The New Murrey and Blue blog

Henry VIII

Another blunder in Cairo

Dec 27, 2021

law, religion

“Perkin”, Catherine de Valois, Countess of Warwick, denialists, Edmund Duke of Somerset, Edward IV, Elizabeth Wydeville, Henry VIII, John Ashdown-Hill, Juventus, Lady Eleanor Talbot, Owen Tudor, own goals, parish registers, Ralph Butler Baron Sudeley, Robert Stillington, secret marriage, Thomas Cromwell

Of late, I have read the denialists claim that Edward IV’s 1461 marriage couldn’t possibly have been valid because it doesn’t show in the parish registers anywhere in England, therefore his dozen children by Lady Grey must have been legitimate. The only problems with this are:1) Parish registers, inspired by Thomas Cromwell, only date from…
My reaction to Lucy Worsley’s Christmas Carol Odyssey….

Dec 26, 2021

buildings, Events, religion, television reviews

“Tudor” propaganda, “Tudors”, Anglo-Saxons, bias, Catholics, Charles “III”, Christina Rossetti, Christmas carols, Christmas truce, Edward VI, Ely Cathedral, Father Christmas, First World War, French Revolution, Gustav Holst, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Jacobites, Lucy Worsley, Methodists, music, mystery plays, Napoleonic wars, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Reformation, Reverend Phillips, wassailing

Sometimes the stories behind our much-loved Christmas carols are quite disheartening, involving as they do national and international strife and religious rivalry that was both bloody and filled with hatred. Yet every year we sing the resultant carols with joy. The reactions of the human race are sometimes contradictory. To say the least! I am…
Margaret of Anjou was married to Henry IV, Bosworth was in 1495 and Edward VI won at Tewkesbury….!

Dec 4, 2021

battles, genealogy

Bosworth, Edward IV, Edward VI, Elizabeth Wydeville, errors, Henry IV, Henry VI, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Margaret of Anjou, Richard III, Tewkesbury

When an article is entitled War of the Roses: A Brief Timeline, subtitled ‘Emily Hewat gives a crash course on the history behind Yorkshire and Lancaster’s epic rivalry and the origin of the Roses Tournament itself’ one rather expects the correct times! But no. What you find is:- “….Our story starts in 1454 with the…
The tapestries of Thomas Wolsey

Nov 29, 2021

anniversaries, art, buildings, religion

“The King’s Great Matter”, allegory, Archbishop of York, Archduke Philip, Arthur “Tudor”, Baynard’s Castle, cardinals, Catherine of Aragon, Christ was born as the Redeemer of Man, Emma Luisa Cahill Marron, Ferdinand of Aragon, Field of the Cloth of Gold, Hazel Pierce, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Infanta Maria, Ipswich, Isabel of Castile, Juan Rodriguez de Fonseca, Leicester Abbey, Lord Chancellor, Manuel Duke of Beja, Margaret of Salisbury, Narbona Cathedral, Peace and Mercy, Portugal, Richard Gresham, Richmond Palace, Royal College of Arms, Sheen, Sir Edward Howard, Spain, St. George, tapestries, The Creation, The Redemption of Man, The Virtues defy Vices, Thomas Wolsey, tournaments, Trinity College, University of Cantabria, Westminster Hall

We have recently come across this rather interesting article, extracted from Reyes y Prelados, by Emma Luisa Cahill Marron (excuse the missing accent) about Cardinal Wolsey and some of his artefacts. The original is in Spanish and here is a translation, by ladychaol.
More Secret Marriages!

Nov 27, 2021

anniversaries, battles, humour, law, religion

Anne Boleyn, Barnet, Bishop of Liverpool, cartoons, Catherine of Aragon, Charles Brandon, Dan Snow, denialists, Edward IV, Elizabeth Wydeville, George IV, Henry VIII, John Ashdown-Hill, Lady Edwina Grosvenor, Lady Eleanor Talbot, Louis XIV, Madame de Maintenon, Maria Fitzherbert, Mary “Tudor”, pre-contract, Richard of Warwick, Royal Marriage Secrets, secret marriage, Twitter

Back in 2010, historian Dan Snow was married in secret to Lady Edwina Grosvenor, daughter of the Duke of Westminster. I’ve looked but I can’t see that Dan mentions Edward IV‘s probable ‘secret marriage’ to Eleanor Talbot in any of his Twitter or other postings on history. (He did once post a very entertaining picture…
The Kingmaker’s Anger

Nov 22, 2021

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, sources

Alexander Neville Archbishop of York, anarchy, Anne Beauchamp, Anne Neville, Barons Latimer, Calais, Captain of Calais, Cardiff Castle, Catherine Parr, Catherine Woodville, Countess of Shrewsbury, Countesses of Arundel, daughters, de Veres, Duchess of Somerset, Duchess of Warwick, Dukes of Buckingham, Dukes of Norfolk, Earls of Arundel, Earls of Kent, Earls of Northumberland, Edmund Duke of Somerset, George Duke of Clarence, George Neville, George Neville Duke of Bedford, Henry Fitzhugh, Henry II, Henry IV, Henry of Buckingham, Henry VI, Henry VIII, Isabel Neville, Joan “Beaufort”, John Mowbray Duke of Norfolk, Losecoat Field, marriages, Matthew Lewis, Monthemer family, Nevilles, Percies, Ralph Earl of Westmorland, rebellions, Richard Duke of York, Richard Earl Rivers, Richard III, Richard of Warwick, Rous Roll, sibling double marriages, Sir John Woodville, summary executions, the Beauforts., Thomas Lord Stanley, Wakefield, Wars of the Roses, William de Longespee, William Lord Hastings

I’m working on a biography of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick – the man best introduced as The Kingmaker. I have written on the Wars of the Roses, on Richard, Duke of York, and Richard III. Warwick has been a constant presence throughout. I spent some time in an earlier dispute over the throne of…
Inventions

Nov 18, 2021

anniversaries, humour, religion, Science

de heretico comburendo, Edward IV, fire extinguisher, Henry V, Henry VIII, inventions, Mary I, Reginald Cardinal Pole, stair lift

Here is a selection of useful inventions. I was surprised to find out how old the stair lift was but Henry VIII and his maternal grandfather could both have availed themselves of it and 1536 was just in time for the former’s riding accident. The fire extinguisher only dates to 1818 but many people really…
Not just another Anne Boleyn series

Nov 14, 2021

anniversaries, genealogy, law, religion, television reviews

Anne Boleyn, annulments, BBC2, bigamy, Careys, Diarmaid MacCulloch, Elizabeth II, executions, George Boleyn, Henry VIII, Jane Parker Viscountess Rochford, Leanda de Lisle, Mary Boleyn, mediaeval canon law, secret marriage, The Boleyns: A scandalous family, Thomas Cromwell, Thomas Wolsey

This was shown on BBC2 during August and the subject has been covered several times in recent years, not least with our old friend Dr. Starkey. However, I am pleased I watched it for two reasons. The first is that The Boleyns: A scandalous family discussed the situation from the perspective of Thomas Boleyn seeking…
A property sale in Suffolk

Nov 11, 2021

buildings

“Beauforts”, Charles Somerset Earl of Worcester, Henry of Buckingham, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Lady Margaret Beaufort, Lamarsh Hall, Lord Chamberlain, property sales, Sudbury, Suffolk

Here is an East Anglian Daily Times article about Lamarsh Hall near Sudbury, which is for sale. It is Grade II listed and thought to date from c.1485, apparently built for the Beaufort family. Obviously, by 1471, the only legitimate “Beauforts” remaining were the two Margarets, first cousins who had vacated that surname by marriage…
SALISBURY GREY FRIARS–BUCKINGHAM’S BURIAL SITE?

Nov 2, 2021

anniversaries, battles, buildings, religion

Anne Stafford, Battle of Bosworth, Battle of Northampton, executions, Henry of Buckingham, Henry VIII, Humphrey Duke of Buckingham, John Ashdown-Hill, Leicester, Reformation, Richard III, Salisbury Greyfriars, secret tunnels

Salisbury Grey Friars has all but disappeared from the archaeological record. Founded in 1225-8 , it was never a very large house, situated near the still impressive medieval St Ann’s Gate leading into Salisbury’s Cathedral Close. At the reformation, Grey Friars was destroyed and any extant buildings and stonework sold off and re-used (several…