Science
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We all know that the Sweating Sickness arrived in Britain with Henry Tudor’s invading army in 1485. Thank you very much, Harri! Well, I have to wonder why there wasn’t a widespread belief that the Sweating Sickness was God’s condemnation of the vile usurper! That was one propaganda move Henry Tudor was very careful to…
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Collyweston is a small village in Northamptonshire, approximately three miles from the town of Stamford. It was not always so unassuming, however. In the 15th century there was a large fortified manor house that dominated Collyweston, of which today no trace remains above ground. The manor, sometimes known as ‘The Palace’ was first purchased by…
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Shortly before Richard III’s remains were discovered, another ancient member of the English royalty was found–the Saxon Princess Eadgyth who became Queen of Germany in 930 through her marriage to King Otto. Her father was Edward the Elder and so she was Alfred the Great’s granddaughter. She died at around 30 and was buried at…
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Serial killer? Murdered his nephews? Infamous? Had no children? Oh, well, this New Zealand article does go on to say that the actual Richard had a much better reputation than the Bard saw fit to bestow upon him. But if the illustration above is supposed to be Richard….it’s more like his grandfather! Or Jeremy Corbyn…
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Here’s Legends an interesting book of Leicestershire folk tales for children. It includes the intriguing story of the griffin of Griffydam. Oh, and it also relates the “legends” about King Richard III !!
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Finally my new novel, Distant Echoes, is available on Kindle for only £2.50 ($2.99 on Amazon.com). The paperback is imminent too! It was inspired by lyrics from a song, Sheriff Hutton, by The Legendary Ten Seconds. Here is the synopsis of the story: A new, innovative invention. The DNA of a mediaeval king. Put them…
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Occasionally, an image glimpsed quickly on TV appears to be something it is not. This happened to me when I first saw the TV trailer for the series Catching History’s Criminals: the Forensics Story on the Yesterday channel. Being inured to the old, old propaganda that Richard III was the first criminal in all Creation,…
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Here at Murrey and Blue, we are not in the habit of reviewing repeats, not even when we have commented on them before. This time, it is the very fact and timing of the repeat of Channel Four’s “Who killed the Princes in the Tower?”, with the ubiquitous Dan Jones, that is at issue, together…
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Basil Brown’s work at Sutton Hoo, on secondment from Ipswich Museum, began in summer 1938 and reached “Mound One” today in 1939. In time, he explored the many mounds on that site, one of which probably includes the remains of Raedwald, King of East Anglia to about 624 and Bretwalda of England from 616. Raedwald,…
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THE EARLS IN THE TENNIS COURT: A VISIT TO BISHAM ABBEY
arthur pole, autosomal DNA, Bisham Abbey, Burghfield, burials, Earls of Salisbury, Edward II, Edward of Warwick, executions, George Duke of Clarence, John Neville Marquis of Montagu, Knights Templar, Leicester dig, Leicester Greyfriars, Margaret of Salisbury, Marjorie Bruce, mtDNA, Reformation, Richard III, Richard of Warwick, Robert I, tennis court, Wakefield, Y-chromosomeBisham Abbey was the burial place of the Earls of Salisbury, and also Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, the ‘Kingmaker’ and his unfortunate grandson Edward of Warwick, executed on a trumped-up charge by Henry VII. The Abbey was destroyed in the Reformation, and on the grounds now stands the National Sports Centre, where many professional…
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