poets
-
When we think of alchemy and alchemists, we tend to categorise them as men. But no. There were women alchemists as well, as I discovered when I came upon this article which lists ten such women through history. One of the ten caught my eye. She lived in the reign of Elizabeth I, who was…
-
Poetry, architecture and journalism in their souls
“Tudor” rebellions, Annette Carson, architects, bob wyatt, bodyline, cricket, false allegations, Henry Grey Duke of Suffolk, Jane, Lord Guildford Dudley, MPs, peers, petronella wyatt, poets, Scotland, Sir Henry Wyatt, Sir Thomas Wyatt, Thomas Wyatt the Younger, Wallis Simpson, Woodrow Wyatt, Wyatt familyAt the moment, it looks as though there may be two separate Wyatt families. The first would start with Sir Henry, who the anti-historians claim to have been tortured on the orders of Richard III … except that we know, thanks to Carson et al, that it happened in Scotland. Sir Thomas the poet (left)…
-
The royal and noble descent of Jane Birkin
actresses, bastardy, Charles II, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Dukes of Bedford, Earls of Bedford, Edward I, Edward III, France, George II, Henry Earl of Surrey, Henry III, House of Hanover, Howards, James IV, Jane Birkin, Joan “Beaufort”, Lady Elizabeth Grey, Lancastrians, Mowbrays, poets, Prince William Henry, Ralph Earl of Westmorland, Serge Gainsbourg, Seymour-Conways, singers, Thomas Grey Marquess of Dorset, van KeppelsThe late actress and singer Jane Birkin, who would have been 77 today, had some interesting ancestors. As this first table shows, these were all through her father David, a naval Lieutenant Commander with a Russell mother, through whom Jane was descended from the Dukes of Bedford, along with several other peers: the van Keppels,…
-

The sitter of this portrait is said to be Lucy Hutchinson (born Apsley) who was the wife of Civil War General John Hutchinson, MP. Lucy was a remarkable woman. She wrote what is thought to be the first epic poem produced by an Englishwoman. She was also a translator, and as if that was not…
-
Rumi, the Persian Poet
Afghanistan, Angevin Empire, Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Brad Gooch, Cambridge University, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Genghis Khan, Henry III, Holy Roman Emperors, Innocent III, Iran, Islam, John, Layamon, Muhammed Ali Musofer, Persian Empire, Philip of Swabia, poets, Shamsoddin, Siberia, stephen langton, Tajikstan, Turkey, Vakhsh, William MarshallI grew up under the tutelage of an amateur historian father, one who both dissected past events and also generously passed along a wide range of historical snippets. Perhaps he had a limited knowledge of this event, or I forgot most details about that one. Whatever the reason for the more modest lessons, or memories,…
-
Here is another fine old house for sale, although way out of my price bracket. I’ve learned of it courtesy of Country Life magazine. Hunton Court, formerly Court Lodge, is tucked away near Maidstone in Kent and you can read about it here. There is a link to the estate agent’s details of the property,…