What prompted Morton to threaten a visitation to St Albans Abbey . . . .?

  Well, in 1487, while the powers-that-be were gearing up toward the Battle of Stoke Field, Archbishop Morton (also Chancellor) was also having to deal with the – um! – mundane goings-on at St Albans Abbey. It seems the abbot was being proceeded against in the Court of Arches by the Prioress of Sopwell. This…

The Harringtons of Hornby Castle and the Stanleys

Most people are aware of the story of the original Hornby Castle. Sir Thomas Harrington and John, his elder son, were killed fighting at Wakefield in the Yorkist cause. John Harrington left two daughters – Anne was five and Elizabeth four at the time – and the Stanleys, assuming them to be their grandfather’s heirs,…

An interview with Philippa Langley – Part Two

We understand that there are developments with Henry I on the site of Reading Abbey. What can you tell us? As its name suggests, the Hidden Abbey Project is a research initiative to uncover the hidden story of Reading Abbey. The project began with a Ground Penetrating Radar survey of the Abbey Church site (completed…

Henry VII was a saint….?

Now, if you read this claptrap  you’ll learn that saintly Henry VII, on his brilliant ownio, decided that ” . . . rather than adopting the costly and aggressive strategy of invasion and war favoured by some of his predecessors  . . . used dynastic royal marriages to make alliances in Europe . . .…

Matt Lewis goes from strength to strength….!

Matt Lewis is definitely Richard III’s new champion, and is managing to achieve various excellent articles that express his (correct!) views on our maligned king. Here in the Daily Express is an example I’ve come upon in the last couple of days. Well done, Matt. I’m sure that if Richard could, he’d show his appreciation…

Sharon Kay Penman-A Tribute

Ask many Ricardians how they got their first glimpse of a non-Shakespearean Richard III, and many will tell you it was one of two novels—Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey or The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman. Sadly, on January 22, Sharon Penman, who continued to be a great supporter of Richard’s cause…

Yet another C17 coincidence

The English Civil War often looked like Round Two of the Wars of the Roses with, geographically, Yorkists morphing into Parliamentarians and Lancastrians becoming Royalists. One parliamentary commander was a Richard Neville and another bore the name of Ralph Assheton, as we shall show, descended from the Vice-Constable of the 1480s: Colonel Assheton, of Middleton,…

The prospect of an exciting new dig at York….!

The York Archaeological Society is hoping that an important new dig in the city is going to attract thousands of tourists. It will be an excavation into the city’s Roman history, and being outdoors will be an advantage in these times of Covid 19 restrictions. This can only be a good thing when so many…

I HAD A LITTLE NUT TREE

Recently while perusing a book of folklore, I came across this traditional rhyme- I had a little nut tree, Nothing  could it bear But a silver nutmeg and a golden pear; The king of Spain’s daughter Came to visit me; And all for the sake of my little nut tree. Apparently, this rhyme is supposed…

Richard III’s claims about Edward V’s bastardy had “traction”….

Here’s a link to an interesting article about the bastardy of Edward V, and the reception of Richard’s claims concerning it. Specifically with regard to the IPM of Hastings. You can download the full PDF. And as a ‘taster’:- “….Richard’s claim that Edward V was a bastard did have traction in the localities after the…