Has mtDNA identified Jack the Ripper?

“Ripperology” is quite a confused subject and at least a dozen suspects have been conclusively “identified as the Whitechapel fiend. Nevertheless, this article and the book detailed within, if taken at face value, uses the scientific techniques that identified Richard III, Jesse James, Nicholas II and others to claim to solve the East London riddle…

A short film about the final plight of Richard II….

Well, here is an article that manages to blend my two favourite kings, Richards II and III, although overwhelmingly Richard II. It concerns actor Mark Burghagen (BBC, Opera North, York Mystery Plays), who has produced a short film based around Richard’s plight after being usurped by his first cousin, Henry IV. Richard is pictured in…

Phone app will take Barnard Castle tourists into the past….

This seems a wonderful idea. Don’t we all like looking at old photographs of place and seeing what is still there now? if anything? It’s possibly why the Francis Frith photographs are so popular. We love to look at what has been lost forever, but which some of the more senior of us still remember.…

That unicorn is really a lap dog: The secret details in 4 classic paintings revealed….

I have always been fascinated by the mysterious way great paintings evolve., and have written on the subject before. In a manner of speaking. See here  Now I have come across a very interesting article about a missing da Vinci fresco, and four great works by da Vinci, Raphael and Boticelli: da Vinci’s Adoration of…

Did Elizabeth Wydville die of the plague….?

We all know that on 8th June, 1492, Elizabeth Woodville died in relative obscurity in Bermondsey Abbey, and it has been imagined that she died a natural death, perhaps brought on by her greatly reduced circumstances and exclusion from court. (Although perhaps she preferred to hide away because she’d simply had enough of court life…

A list of unsolved historical mysteries…yes, including the boys in the Tower….

Here is another list of unsolved mysteries from the past. Yes, Richard and his nephews crop up again. Did he? Didn’t he? Well, it’s suggested that Henry VII was the more likely culprit. Hooray! I mean, look at the fellow. I wouldn’t believe a word he said! And he certainly had more reason than Richard…

Mer de Mort reviewed

Anything new from the Legendary Ten Seconds is always to be greeted with delight, and this new album does not disappoint. It tells the story of the House of Mortimer from its beginnings in France, to its ultimate destiny on the throne of England, through its descendants of the House of York, Edward IV and…

Once again, the slippery Stanleys were true to form….!

You can read more about the Battle of Blore Heath and Stanley mendacity at here , from which the above illustration is taken. This battle was clearly a practice run for Bosworth! That aside, the list is interesting.

How well-stocked with alcohol was Henry V’s army in 1415….?

“…. An army may look splendid but if it is not fed it will not fight and if it cannot drink it will not be happy. As such when Henry V of England rekindled the Hundred Years War 600 years ago in a bid to reclaim his, “just rights and inheritances” in France, wine (and beer)…

How should we consider Edward II’s private life….?

I never really know quite what to say when it comes to the private life of Edward II. I know he is generally regarded as being homosexual, but what we consider to be that now may not be quite the same as what was believed in the late 13th – early 14th century. Edward has…