Joan of Kent

The most beautiful woman in medieval England….?

Sep 20, 2023

anniversaries, buildings, genealogy, law, religion

annulment, bigamy, Canterbury Cathedral, Edmund Earl of Kent, Edward I, Edward II, Edward III, Edward of Woodstock, executions, Henry IV, Isabelle de France, Joan of Kent, John of Gaunt, pre-contract, Richard II, Stamford Greyfriars, Thomas Holand, usurpation, William Earl of Salisbury

The title of this article refers to Joan, Princess of Wales, mother of Richard II. She became known as the “Fair Maid of Kent”, a sobriquet acquired posthumously. But, was she the most beautiful woman in England? According to the standards of her time yes, she certainly was, although the contemporary likenesses we have…
A BOOK ON PLANTAGENET QUEENS-BUT WHERE IS ANNE?

Aug 21, 2023

Book Reviews, buildings, genealogy, law, religion

“Beauforts”, “Lambert Simnel”, “Tudor” rebellions, “Tudors”, Anne Neville, Anne of Bohemia, Bermondsey Abbey, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Eleanor of Castile, Eleanor of Provence, Elizabeth of York, Henry III, Henry VII, House of York, Joan of Kent, Joan of Navarre, John of Gaunt, Katherine de Roët, Lady Eleanor Talbot, Marguerite of France, Plantagenet Queens and Consorts, pre-contract, Richard II, Richard III

A review of Plantagenet Queens and Consorts by Steven J. Corvi I am always partial to a good book on medieval English Queens. History being what it is, these women often get overlooked and sidelined unless they did something that was, usually, regarded as greedy, grasping or immoral. Therefore when I saw Steven J.…
Who led the tournament knights on golden chains….?

Apr 23, 2023

anniversaries, culture, heraldry

Arthur, Constance of Castile, Edward III, Edward of Woodstock, Edward VII, Elizabeth of Lancaster, Henry VII, horses, Joan of Kent, John of Gaunt, Ladies of the Garter, Lady Margaret Beaufort, Nigel Saul, Order of the Garter, palfreys, Phillippa of Hainault, Queen Alexanra, Sir John Holland, St. George’s Day, tournaments

We all know about the Order of the Garter, and the many knights who’ve been honoured by being admitted to its exclusive ranks. We also know that there were Ladies of the Garter, starting with Queen Philippa of Hainault, consort of the Order’s founder, King Edward III. She was followed by a number of…
The Touchet/Audley Family in the Fifteenth Century.

Sep 26, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, law, religion

Alionore Holland, Arundels, Barnet, Battle of Bosworth, Battles of Sandwich, Bishop Edmund Audley, Bishop of Hereford, Blore Heath, Buckingham rebellion, Calais, Cheshire, Constance of York, Despensers, Dukes of Somerset, Edmund Holland, Edward I, Edward III, Edward IV, Edward of Lancaster, executions, Fitzalans, Francis Viscount Lovell, Heighley Castle, Henry III, Henry VII, Isabel Mylbery, James Lord Audley, Joan Bourchier, Joan of Kent, John Lord Audley, Lord High Treasurer, Ludlow Castle, Margaret Darrell, Margaret of Anjou, Margaret Roos, Mortimer’s Cross, Parliament’s power to determine legitimacy, Red Castle, Richard Duke of York, Richard III, Sir Humphrey Audley, surnames, Tewkesbury, Towton, Welsh Marches, Wydevilles

James Touchet, Lord Audley, was born about 1398. He was not in the first rank of magnates but nevertheless had significant estates, notably Heighley Castle, near Madeley in Staffordshire, and the Red Castle (Hawkstone) in Shropshire, as well as two small Marcher lordships in Wales. His first marriage was to Margaret Roos, daughter of Lord Roos…
The Wardrobe, the King’s Wardrobes….er, no The Queen’s Wardrobe….?

May 21, 2022

buildings, sources

Agas map, Baynard’s Castle, Besant, Canterbury, Edward III, Great Fire of London, Henry IV, Joan of Kent, John Howard Duke of Norfolk, past maps, Peasants’ Revolt, Phillippa of Hainault, pilgrimage, Richard II, Richard III, Royal Street, Royal wardrobe, Simon of Sudbury, Stow, Tower of London, wine merchants

During the Peasants’ Revolt in 1381, when the Tower of London was breached by the rebels and some of those sheltering inside were dragged out and executed, another person of note who was there was widowed Joan of Kent, Princess of Wales, mother of 14-year-old King Richard II. Well, the future Henry IV was…
A medieval mystery in Stamford….

Oct 13, 2021

anniversaries, buildings, religion

books, Collyweston, coronations, Edward the Black Prince, friaries, Henry IV, Joan of Kent, Lincolnshire, Linda Ball, Richard II, Stamford, Thomas Holand

I love it when local historians delve into their area’s past and start unearthing curious things. This is what retired academic Linda Ball has done for the part of Stamford in which she grew up. St Paul’s Street, Stamford, was on the site of what was once either Greyfriars or Whitefriars. The medieval mystery of…
Spreading propaganda works both ways, as John of Gaunt discovered….

Sep 30, 2021

anniversaries, genealogy, law, religion

“Tudor” propaganda, bigamy, books, Earl of Salisbury, Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, Henry IV, Henry VII, illegitimacy, Joan of Kent, John of Gaunt, Lancastrian propaganda, Mortimers, Phillippa of Hainault, popes, Richard II, rumours, Thomas Holand, usurpation

As we all know, the Tudors were masters of propaganda. The lies about Richard III poured forth throughout their usurpation, and still persist to this day. If they could say something unpleasant and derogatory about him, they did. Perhaps it was in their blood, of course, because they were descended (one way or another) from…
What really happened with Princess Cecily’s first two marriages….?

Aug 24, 2021

anniversaries, battles, genealogy, law, religion, sources

“Princes”, Alexander Stewart Duke of Albany, annulments, Barons Scrope of Bolton, Battle of Bosworth, Bishop of Durham, british History Online, Cicely Plantagenet, Complete Peerage, consanguinity, dispensations, Edmund Duke of Somerset, Edward III, Edward IV, Elizabeth Wydeville, Essex, Gaynesparc, Hatfield, Isle of Wight, James III, James IV, Joan “Beaufort”, Joan of Kent, John Scrope of Bolton, Letters and Papers of Henry VIII, Lionel Baron Welles, Margaret Beauchamp, pardons, plots, Ralph Scrope, Richard Fox, Richard III, royal marriages, Scotland, Scottish campaign 1482, Scropes of Masham, Sharon Champion, Thomas Holland, Thomas Kymbe, Tony Riches, Tower of London, Viscount Welles

The following extract is from Not So Fortunate As Fair’: The Life of Princess Cecily Plantagenet by Sharon Champion:- “….At the age of five, she [Cecily] was betrothed to James, the infant son and heir of James III of Scotland. John 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton was sent as commissioner to negotiate a contract of…
More Lancastrian propaganda – about an earlier Richard and Henry….

Jul 15, 2021

anniversaries, battles, Book Reviews, buildings, sources

“Tudor” propaganda, executions, Froissart, Henry IV, Henry VII, Hollands, Joan of Kent, John Ball, John Ferrour, Lancastrian propaganda, Marie Louise Bruce, Mile End, Peasants’ Revolt, Richard II, Richard III, Tower of London, usurpation, Wat Tyler

How many of you have books on your shelves that you’ve had for years but have yet to read? I’m guilty of that, I fear. However, today I grabbed a book at random, to read while my car, name of Iggy, underwent his first MOT. When I arrived and was seated, I discovered that the…
Was the 3rd Duke of York like his youngest son in appearance….?

Mar 27, 2021

anniversaries, art, buildings, religion

appearance, beards, churches, Cirencester, Edmund of Langley, Edmund of Rutland, Edward III, Edward the Black Prince, hair colour, Holands, Humphrey of Gloucester, Joan of Kent, John Earl of Shrewsbury, Richard Duke of York, Richard Earl of Cambridge, Richard II, Richard III, Sir Anthony Wydeville, stained glass, The Shrewsbury Book, Trinity College, William Caxton

When I posted on my Facebook page that it had been suggested to me I write an M&B article about the physical appearance of the 3rd Duke of York, a friend commented: “. . . .According to John Ashdown Hill’s biography of Cecily, he was probably tall because of some poem written about how…