religion
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In this time of Covid 19, when we don’t know why it seems to affect men more than women, and some ethnicities but not others, it is interesting that back in the 14th century the tsunami of the Great Pestilence of 1348 was followed by lesser waves that differed in many ways from the original.…
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If, like me, you are confounded by the canonical hours that are so often mentioned in books, fiction and non-fiction, then I hope the article you’ll find at this link will be of some help. I’m not a Catholic, or indeed particularly religious, and it doesn’t help when some of the hours are still used,…
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Richard III and Harold II
“Lambert Simnel”, “Perkin”, Anne Neville, Archibald Whitelaw, bastardy, Battle of Bosworth, Battle of Hastings, Bishop’s Stortford, Bosham, burial mystery, Constable of England, coronations, Earl of Wessex, Edgar the Atheling, Edith Swan Neck, Edward V, exile, George Duke of Clarence, Godwin Earl of Wessex, Gruffydd ap Llewellyn, Harold Hardrada, Harold II, Henry VII, Lord Protector of the Realm, marriage, more Danico, Nevilles, Orderic Vitalis, propaganda, Richard Duke of York, scoliosis, Scotland, St. Edward the Confessor, Stamford Bridge, Tostig, Wales, Waltham Abbey, William I, WitangemotWe all know that Richard is directly descended from William the Conqueror, who is his eleven times great grandfather. Here is Richard’s pedigree to William in three parts – follow the yellow dots left to right. (N.B. the first few generations have the yellow combined with red and blue which lead to other ancestors). But…
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The Last Knight: The Art, Armor, and Ambition of Maximilian I
“Lambert Simnel”, “Perkin”, “Princes”, “The Last Knight”, “Tudor” rebellions, archers, Battle of Guinegate, Bruges Chapel of the Holy Blood, Charles the Bold, Charles V, Durer, Edmund de la Pole, exhibitions, Frederick III, Frederick the Wise, Habsburgs, Holy Roman Empire, James Gairdner, Jorg Helmschmid, jousting, Kingdom of the Romans, Louis XI, Margaret of Burgundy, Mary of Burgundy, masquerades, Maximilian I, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Order of the Garter, Order of the Golden Fleece, Philip the Handsome, Richard III, Tournament Tapestry, Victoria and Albert Museum
Originally posted on RICARDIAN LOONS: Portrait of Maximilian I, from the workshop or a follower of Albrecht Dürer. Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (1459-1519) is one of those larger-than-life historical figures. Straddling the medieval and Renaissance eras, he worked tirelessly and spent a vast fortune to establish the Habsburgs as one of Europe’s dominant ruling…
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On reading Chivalry by Léon Gautier, I learned that St Maurice was the patron saint of knights. Another interesting fact about him is that he’s often depicted as a Black African man in armour. He apparently came from Upper Egypt, so he probably was black. I’m reminded of the Black Madonnas. We’re always surprised…
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This article is about George Easton, the jeweller who created Richard III’s crown (see above) for the funeral and reinterment at Leicester. And he did so with the assistance of John Ashdown-Hill, although John’s name isn’t mentioned. George’s business is called Danegeld: “….A land tax in Anglo-Saxon England might not sound the most glamorous starting…
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During the medieval period it was common for hollow beeswax votive offerings to be made in the hope of spiritual assistance in healing or at least minimizing an injury or ailment. In Exeter Cathedral, these were hung above the tomb of Bishop Edmund Lacy (c. 1370-1455), but there were other cathedrals and churches where…
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There is something that has always puzzled me about Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales: if there were up to thirty pilgrims (which is what’s reckoned) how on earth could one of them (at a time)tell a tale that the other twenty-nine could hear? In the text Chaucer has his pilgrims point out places they’re passing, so it…
The New Murrey and Blue blog 