A primrose at Candlemas….

  “….and grant of the said manor and lands to Sir Walter for two years from this date, rendering one primrose a year at the Purification…” You’ll find the above extract at this site. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/cal-close-rolls/ric2/vol3/pp296-298 It records an agreement between Sir Walter de Cokesseye and the more famous Sir Hugh Calveley, who was a famous…

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…

A Keighley man has traced his ancestry back to Sir Thomas Vaughan . . .

A Keighley man, Jimmy Vaughan, has traced his ancestry back to the Sir Thomas Vaughan who was executed at Pontefract Castle on June 25 1483 for opposing Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who was by right of his late brother’s request, Lord Protector of England. Of course, Sir Thomas was one of the multitude of three…

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…

Was there a monstrous serpent and treasure hoard near Ludlow…or not?

  We all know Thomas of Walsingham. Well, not personally, of course, although sometimes it seems like it. He was a very busy fellow, and did not always record simple ‘history’, but included some strange stories as well. In the year 1344, he recorded a ‘remarkable tale’ about John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, 7th…

The White Rose Of Mortimer?

Originally posted on RICARDIAN LOONS:
Most historians now accept that, while the white rose of York was a heraldic badge used by the house of York during the Wars of the Roses, the origins of the red rose of Lancaster can only be traced back to Henry VII.1 After his accession to the throne in…

Thomas Stanley, or, the man with the evil beard….

For anyone interested in knowing what made slippery Lord Stanley tick, here is an excellent evaluation, save that Sir William was executed for refusing to oppose “Perkin”, not for supporting him. The man was a born opportunist and survivor. Full stop. Oh, and he had an evil beard!  

Earl Rivers, What was he up to in January 1483?

I came across this page in a book The English Parliaments of Henry VII 1485 – 1504, written by P R Cavill. As I haven’t read all the book I am not sure why he is citing something that happened in 1483 in a book about Henry VII’s Parliaments. Maybe it is meant to be…

The Ludlow Castle Heraldic Roll….

“It was a couple of years ago that I first heard about the existence of an old roll of parchment containing the coats of arms of people connected with Ludlow Castle. It was owned by a dealer in the Portobello Road in London who had had it for several years. Heraldic rolls like this are…

Edward V slept here….?

On the death of Edward IV, the young heir, Edward, Prince of Wales, set off from Ludlow in Shropshire for London, in the care of his maternal uncle, Sir Anthony Woodville. Tradition has it that they halted overnight at Upton Cressett Hall, prior to crossing the River Severn the following morning. The britainexpress.com link below…