pub signs
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Since most people were unable to read, mediaeval drinking houses/pubs used colourful pictorial signs, leading on from the ‘ale-stake,’ a vertical or horizontal pole hung outside such establishments to show that fresh ale was available. This was a continuation of a Roman practice of using ivy or vine leaves to indicate a place that sold…
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This image of the Muniments Room in Westminster Abbey shows the White Hart of King Richard II, still standing there 623 years after his death. A remarkable survival. The White Hart was King Richard’s livery badge which he circulated to his supporters in the 1390s. It possibly derived from his mother’s cognizance of the…
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Sir Thomas Pilkington
Alexander de Pilkington, arms, attainder, Bishops of Durham, Bosworth, Bury, Bury castle, Edward IV, Henry VII, Lancashire towns, Lord Mayors of London, Oldham, pardons, Pilkington glass, pub signs, Richard III, Scotland, siege of Berwick, Sir Thomas Pilkington, Stand Old Hall, Stanleys, Stoke Field, The man and Scythe, Thomas StanleySir Thomas Pilkington, of Pilkington, Bury and various other places, led his tenants and retainers to Bosworth to fight for Richard III. Whether they got there in time is not 100% clear but Sir Thomas was attainted and lost his Lancashire lands. You’ll never guess which family received them. Yes, those caring, sharing Stanleys, in…
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