One year in Henry VIII’s life: 1536
Katherine of Aragon died on 7th January, at Kimbolton House, possibly as a result of coronary thrombosis. She was buried...
30/01/2015
MEDIEVAL HISTORY
Matilda: A Queen in King’s World
Power was inherently and inescapably male in the Middle Ages. The images displayed on the Great Seal of England encapsulated...
14/01/2015
The Venerable Bede
Bede was a Northumbrian, born in 673 on the lands of the monastery of St Peter at Wearmouth. At the...
15/12/2014
William Marshal: The archetypal knight
A younger son of a minor nobleman who became a notable tourneyer and warrior, a comrade to princes and kings,...
22/11/2014
Becoming a knight
The three main strands of the chivalric ethos – warrior, courtier and Christian – might throw up some contradictions, but...
04/08/2014
Mail-order queen
Well aware of this increase in realism, Henry VIII decided to choose his fourth wife from her portrait. Traditionally, dynastic...
08/07/2014
The death of King Edward VI of England
On 6th February 1553, Mary rode to court to see Edward who was still ill. By March, some observers believed...
26/06/2014
Guelphs and Ghibellines
Aristocratic factionalism, popular rebellions and the relationship between Italian and German culture all combined to ensure the long-term use of...
14/05/2014
King John of England and the French invasion
When Richard the Lionheart was killed by a crossbow bolt in France in April 1199, a French chronicler, no friend...
03/05/2014
Medieval sense of humour
The passions of a violent society spill over into the sense of humour you will encounter. Yes, there is humour,...
20/04/2014