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If there is one thing a lot of people know about Henry VII—apart from his dastardly defeat of Richard III at Bosworth in August 1485—it is that the latter part of his reign was a dreadful time for England. His avarice became almost oxygen to him, and he allowed his ministers to inflict truly dreadful…
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The word ‘tyrant’ is perhaps used too lightly. It is questionable whether any of the Plantagenets qualify when compared to this man: “Galeazzo Sforza (Duke of Milan) is also known to have had a cruel streak. He was a notorious womanizer who often passed his women on to his courtiers once he was tired of…
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Today is the annniversary of the death in 1416 of Constance of York, Lady Despenser and (for a time) Countess of Gloucester. She was one of many people of various conditions in life who inexplicably preferred the ‘tyranny’ of Richard II to the rule of Henry IV, and put their lives at risk to do…
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WARS OF THE FICTIONAL ROSES There’s a plethora of fiction set at the time of the Wars of the Roses, and an increasing number of authors writing about Richard III, often featuring him in a positive light. One would imagine that, in the creative pursuits, people could put aside their differences in belief and just…
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I have been delving into the world of mediaeval and Tudor portraits, this time in search of Sir William Stanley, the louse who turned traitor on Richard III at Bosworth and cost him his throne, his realm and his life. Sir William’s eventual reward was to be beheaded by the very man he helped so…
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Now then, I look at the above portraits and do not see Henry VII of England (1457-1509) on the right or below. The portrait on the above left is Henry. The general consensus is that the other two more resemble Vlad the Impaler. Well, the one on the right does, while the clothing of the one below…
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by Merlyn MacLeod All Souls’ Day is Sunday, November 2nd. Beginning in 998, it was the day the ancient church set aside to pray for the dead — not just for your relatives, but for anyone you loved. In medieval England, children and the poor went “a-souling” on All Souls Day; going door to door,…
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For anyone interested in portraits of those who lived centuries ago, it can be very frustrating—if not to say aggravating—to come across one portrait, that recurs all over the internet and identifies the people in it, but that is all. No date, no artist, nothing. A good example is this portrait of Henry VII with his…
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This is a blog from me that was written for: http://halebooks.wordpress.com/2014/10/16/historical-fiction-and-why-it-grips-us-so/ It is a truth universally acknowledged, that . . . . Well, the famous Jane Austen opening line is one of the most memorable of all time, and not only in historical fiction, which is what Pride and Prejudice has now become. It was, of…
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This is posted on behalf of someone else, and is not the work of viscountessw ‘I can feel his presence, I’m sure of it’, said the leader of the group of hormonally challenged women in the ruins of Pontefract Castle. It was the inaugural meeting of the Woodville Wives, a pilgrimage they had vowed to…
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