Royal burial places

This post in the Times details the final resting place of every English and then British monarch since 1066, although Harold II (probably Waltham Abbey) is omitted. Note from the interactive map that there are four (plus the Empress Matilda) burials in France and one in Germany. There are none in Scotland, Wales, Ireland or…

Which monarch was buried where….?

  There are some monarchs’ last resting places that always come to mind with ease….especially Richard III at Leicester, of course. Then his usurper, Henry Tudor, in his palatial hymn to himself at Westminster Abbey. Edward IV at Windsor, Edward II (apparently) at Gloucester, John at Worcester at so on. Yes, I do know more…

Richard II’s visit to Edward II’s tomb, 1390.

Edward II‘s “tomb” is, as is well-known, to be found in Gloucester Cathedral. What is less well-known is that Richard II wanted it become a shrine, and for his great-grandfather to become St. Edward of Caernarfon. Interestingly, we cannot even be entirely sure that Edward II’s remains lie in the tomb. Kathryn Warner has produced…

Long live the King

This interesting tome has finally appeared in paperback. The opening Parts read like an abridged biography of the story familiar to us through Warner’s The Unconventional King, but to be read with an open mind as to whether Edward II survived his “official death” today in 1327 or not. The reader will re-learn the events…

Richard III’s woodland in Gloucester….

My home city of Gloucester has always appreciated Richard III, and in 1983, to celebrate it being 500 years since he’d granted Gloucester its charter, a new wood was planted to honour him. It’s on Alney Island, which is land between two channels of the River Severn on the western outskirts of the city. From…

A hidden glory in a tiny alley in Gloucester….

Since the middle of the last century the city of Gloucester has been spoiled by dubious, half-witted planning decisions, but there are still some wonderful gems to be found. Everyone knows the cathedral, of course (thankfully it escaped planning notice, or it too might have been “improved” in finest 1960s fashion. Heaven forfend indeed. But…

If the name sounds the same, does it mean we’re all from one original stem….?

If there’s anything in the notion that all the different spellings of one name means all the folk of those various spellings are related, then I (as a Machin by birth) must have something (vaguely!) to do with the astonishing memorial to Thomas Machen and his family on the wall of Gloucester Cathedral. I’ve ended…

The English Medieval Cathedral

Durham Cathedral in the moonlight.. Reblogged from A Medieval Potpourri sparkypus.com A familiar sight to both medieval royalty and commoners alike our Cathedrals soar above us, centuries old,  constant, enduring, and kind of  reassuring.   There is nothing more thrilling as you approach a cathedral city than the first glimpse of their cathedral appearing on the horizon.   So…

Gloucester on 28th October, 1378, 1483 and 1967….

28th October is a notable day for me because of three events in Gloucester’s history:- (1) It was the day my second favourite king, Richard II was in Gloucester and Tewkesbury—well, he was from 20th October 1378 until mid-November, so had to be in one or the other on the 28th. (2) It was also…

The Royal Progress of Richard III

Following his coronation, Richard III – like all medieval monarchs – went on his “royal progress” through the realm.  Along with an entourage in excess of 200 household men, ecclesiastics, supporters, and administrative officials, he visited towns and cities as far west as the River Severn, as far north as the River Ouse, and as…