religion
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Well, impressed as I am, all I can say is “rather him than me”! Go up there? Never! I hate heights. But for those you who are made of sterner stuff, this BBC South video of the nooks, crannies and heights of Salisbury Cathedral is well worth watching.
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Recently I came across a Victorian piece of art by Ford Madox Brown which is supposed to depict Elizabeth Woodville first appearing before Edward IV with her two small children. It’s rather odd piece and not particularly flattering–I am guessing that the artist was not a Woodville fan? Here, a rather plain-looking Liz W. has …
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Although the medieval practice of child marriage seems strange to us, if not repulsive, there were advantages that arose from it, particularly for the bride. For example, Anne of Gloucester, Richard II’s cousin and daughter of Thomas of Woodstock married the Earl of Stafford at a very early age. He died while she was still…
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I prefer to think of the 2nd (Howard) Duke of Norfolk as the great John Howard’s son…Anne Boleyn, fascinating as she was, is not of such great interest to devotees of the House of York, and Richard III in particular. John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk, was, of course, killed at Bosworth, and Thomas Howard…
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Here is an interesting little comment: “….in the Picnic Chapel, which contains a small stone that is a remaining part of the stone used to make Richard III’s sarcophagus in Leicester Cathedral….” This stone is at Nevill Holt Opera, near Market Harborough, and the sentence is right at the end of this link. this…
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On 5th December 1484 Pope Innocent VIII issued a papal bull known as Summis desiderantes affectibus (“desiring with supreme ardour”). Its purpose was to suppress the practice of witchcraft by any necessary means. The following paragraph is taken from the 1928 English translation of it:- “….Many persons of both sexes, unmindful of their own salvation and straying…
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We’re often told that the medieval period was one of bright colours. The interiors of castles and great houses were painted with vivid scenes, and the churches and cathedrals were brilliantly decorated. It’s one thing to know this, but quite another to actually see what it might have been like. The above illustration of…
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And how they make it is a mystery, as is the rest of this list, which puts together a truly weird collection. I mean, what was so very remarkable about John and Jackie Kennedy? They were good-looking, influential and rich….but does that make them the sixth “best” couple of all time? I think not. Same…
The New Murrey and Blue blog 