Usurpers to throne
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Time for some more utter tosh about nasty, mean, beastly,, heartless, murderous Richard III. Not that Henry VII fares well either: “….Henry VII was not a fun guy. He was strict, severe, and unbearably cheap. Records from his early reign show that he never parted with a penny he didn’t have to, and he tracked…
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We always bunch the participants in the Peasants’ Revolt together as something akin to Bulwer-Lytton’s great unwashed . But were they the great unwashed? No, according to new research. (See https://theconversation.com/who-were-the-peasants-of-the-1381-peasants-revolt-new-database-has-answers-278011.) Many of them were almost wealthy by 14th-century standards, and women played a great part in what happened. What they didn’t have was armour!…
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This link https://www.thecollector.com/british-royal-melodramas/ is an interesting accompaniment to your morning tea/coffee, and it’s Number Four in the list, Cousins in Conflict: Wars of the Roses, that will interest Ricardians the most. So I’ll deal with that and not the others, which are yours to read as you please. Two King Richards figure in the commentary,…
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I sometimes have huge sympathy for Henry II’s heartfelt desire to be rid of his turbulent priest, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will_no_one_rid_me_of_this_turbulent_priest%3F. Meddling churchmen were rife back in medieval times. Kings were both supported and beset by them, and Richard III was beset by at least two of the tiresome traitorous ticks, John Morton (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Morton_(cardinal)) and Richard Foxe…
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Well I’m not quite sure what to expect of this book, see https://tinyurl.com/5uajhun5. Yes, it focuses on the background rivalries that led to Bosworth, but is it fair to Richard III? As it’s written from the Welsh point of view, I have to hesitate. Even though Richard’s ancestry was more highborn Welsh than Henry Tudor,…
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Perkin Warbeck remains an enigma. Without any ultimate proof of his true identity, I can’t take one side or the other, because I’m really not sure. But I do lean toward believing he really was Richard of Shrewsbury, the younger of the “Princes in the Tower”. This article—https://tinyurl.com/y8c95suy—is all about him, but in a few…
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The following contains my comments on this review (https://www.pressreader.com/uk/yorkshire-post-yp-magazine/20260124/282218017200594) of the book “The Eagle and the Hart” by Helen Castor. The reviewer (Greg Wright of YP Magazine) remarks that the “dazzling [book] has the pace of a thriller”. Well, it’s certain a work of fiction. Here is a small extract of the review, to set…
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Later this year the Bayeux Tapestry will be coming to London on loan from France for the first time in almost a millennium. It is believed to have been fashioned by English embroiderers (it’s not really a Tapestry, but an Embroidery) possibly in Canterbury. It was probably commissioned by Archbishop Odo, the brother of William…
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“….At Bosworth in 1485, Richard III’s fall from his horse marked the collapse of his kingship….” Hmm, that’s debatable. According to the Tudorised so-called “history ” that’s dominated relentlessly ever since 1485 , Richard’s downfall began from the moment he stole his elder nephew’s throne, murdered both nephews, executed Hastings and others without trial, etc.…
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I have written recently about Jo Harkin’s new book, The Pretender, (https://murreyandblue.co.uk/2025/05/05/the-pretender-takes-the-same-old-attitude-to-richard-iii/) which tells the story of Lambert Simnel, who claimed to be Edward, Earl of Warwick, for whom the Yorkists fought (and lost) the Battle of Stoke Field in 1487. You can read about the earl here https://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/plantagenet_25.html. And about Lambert Simnel here https://richardiii.net/faqs/richard-and-his-world/aftermath/lambert-simnel-and-the-king-from-dublin/…
The New Murrey and Blue blog 