Richard gets porcelain and a modern firearm…?

Forgive me if I’m a little bemused. This picture is Richard. OK? But he’s dressed to look like a clown, with what looks like breast armour representing his innards. Hmmm. As for the weapon, I’m sure Richard would have been pleased to arm his men with such things. More hmmmmm…. Well, the French do have…

Here it is, in black and white …

Many of you will remember this post from before Christmas, about the “Lincoln Roll”, supposedly compiled for the Earl of Lincoln but clearly updated at least twenty-six years after his death, to cover his brother’s execution: http://www.johnashdownhill.com/johns-blog/2015/12/21/the-henry-tudor-society-death-certificates In it, you will note that Dr. Ashdown-Hill corrects a troll, who claimed that it showed Edward IV’s…

Henry carved in stone…

Oh, dear, In Pembroke they want a statue of Henry Tudor. The thing is, if the real man stood on a plinth, would we be able to tell he wasn’t the statue? I mean, he always looks “carved in stone” to me… http://www.tenby-today.co.uk/article.cfm?id=102491&headline=Maquette%20unveiling%20marks%20launch%20of%20Henry%20VII%20statue%20campaign&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2016 There was a stone statue of Henry VII in Exeter, near Eastgate,…

A 1950’s Kids’ Book with a Different View

We tend to think of anything relating to Richard  III prior to the last  forty years to be biased towards traditional views, with the exceptions of Josephine Tey’s novel, Paul Murray Kendall’s biography, a few other novels like Patrick Carlton’s Under the Hog, and the early  ‘defenders’ such as Buck, Markham and Halsted. Children’s books…

More useful than ever

This is the story of a triple murder in Seattle. The trial took place in 1998 and the victims were two drug dealers and their dog, Chief. The case was also featured on an episode of CBS Reality’s “Medical Detectives” that British viewers may have seen on several occasions; most recently on the early evening…

Coming soon -Plantagenet Ninja Supermarket Sweep!

Originally posted on Giaconda's Blog:
Donald CBE FSA FRHistS  -‘ that’s how many letters I have after my name and still no mention of a knighthood! Snarkey’ will be the talking head behind Channel 5’s new documentary/ game show/ reality tv series which will be launched later this year in response to the great…

What a pity statues can’t come to life….

No justice for Richard twenty-five years ago, when his magnificent statue got the rough treatment from louts. I’d  love to think he ‘came to life’ and rammed that sword where their sun don’t shine!

Those le Despensers

We all know that the principal protagonists of Edward II’s reign – the King himself and Roger Mortimer, later Earl of March – were among Richard III’s ancestors. However, this table shows that Anne Neville, his Queen Consort, was descended from Hugh le Despenser the Elder (and also from the Younger) through the Beauchamps of…

One of Richard’s finest rescuers….

This lady turned me into a Ricardian. Single-handedly. The Daughter of Time is a wonderful book that is still changing people’s lives today. Richard owes her a lot for rescuing him from the outer reaches of Shakespearean bias. I shall definitely be reading this new biography of her: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/what-to-read/josephine-tey-a-life-by-morag-henderson-review-entertaining/    

Jorvik – Reconstructing the Viking Age

Originally posted on Giaconda's Blog:
The Viking settlement at Jorvik, modern day York, is the largest excavated Viking site in England. Jorvik was an important trading centre due to its river links along the Ouse to the Humber estuary and North Sea and also an important political centre, the largest of the of the six fortified…