Isabel Mylbery – a possible daughter of King Edward IV

Isabel Mylbery is quite obscure. The earliest evidence we have is from about 1510. Garter King-at-Arms recorded that she was ‘educata ut fert[ur] pre Regem E[dwardum] iiij’ which means, roughly, that she was brought up by Edward IV. She also bore lions and white roses in her coat of arms. None of this is remotely…

PERKIN WARBECK AND THE ASSAULTS ON THE GATES OF EXETER

Reblogged from A Medieval Potpourri sparkypus.com This is thought to be a portrait of Perkin Warbeck/Richard Duke of York from the Tournament Tapestry at Valenciennes Perkin Warbeck.  Pencil sketch c1560.  Note the eye blemish in both portraits. Following on from my earlier post and the high likelihood that John Evans ,who lies buried in Coldridge Church Devon,  was…

Buckingham’s Cousin: the Quiet Stafford

In the sleepy little village of Lowick in Northamptonshire stands a fine medieval church with a tall octagonal ‘lantern’ tower that bears some similarity to that at Fotheringhay. It is normally kept locked but if you are very, very lucky you can track down the key in the village. There are many fine tomb effigies…

The Traitor’s Arms?

In 1840 workmen carrying out repairs to St Bartholomew’s Church, Ashperton, Herefordshire were collecting stones from the ruins of a nearby manor house when they discovered a heavy stone plaque, carved with an elaborate coat of arms, among the rubble. The stone was taken to the church for safekeeping and has hung on the wall…

THE DARRELLS OF LITTLECOTE

Littlecote House in Wiltshire, now a Warner’s hotel (those with very long memories might remember it as a sort of theme park/tourist attraction in the 1980’s) is considered to be one of England’s most haunted houses. Amongst the many spooks that haunt its halls is a burning baby, said to be the spirit of  a…

Where’s Henry?

In life, Henry VII was renowned for fighting his battles from a deckchair, behind a pike wall with a telescope. Even some of his statues are behaving similarly now. The best example is, or was, in Exeter. It commemorated the two sieges of the city in 1497 when the two Cornish Rebellions were kept out…

“People, politics and Community in the Later Middle Ages”

(and symposium books in general) I purchased this book, edited by Rosenthal and Richmond, for thirty pence but the cross-Atlantic postage was at least nine times as much. One of the eleven chapters, the first by Arthurson on the First Cornish Rebellion, was exceptional and many of the others were interesting. This collaborative book, which…

An interesting article about Exeter and the rebellions

Very good although it makes an assumption about “Perkin”‘s identity: http://www.devonperspectives.co.uk/exeter_1497.html

The consequences of the Human Shredder

We already know that William, Lord Hastings, was one of several people arrested on the morning of 13 June for a conspiracy against the Duke of Gloucester, who was both Constable and Lord Protector. We know that Bishop Morton was among the others but that Hastings alone was executed, that the Constable had the right…