Pembroke didn’t pop the Weasel when it should have….!

Well, the first part of a riveting, absolutely factual series about Henry VII was warning enough. I confess to having had to read the first sentence twice, because first time around I thought Edmund Tudor was fighting against the Duke of York’s men and Edmund’s own wife, Margaret Beaufort, who was Henry’s underage mother. Shame on…

Michael Portillo’s Great Coastal Railway Journeys and Pembroke Castle

  I have enjoyed watching Michael Portillo’s Great Railway Journeys particularly the programmes that have shown him travelling along the coast of South Wales. He stopped off in places that I know well in Glamorgan, also in places that my ancestors hailed from in Carmarthenshire. However, one programme ended up in Pembroke and I must…

William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke

William Herbert, otherwise ‘Black William’ was born in 1423, the son of Sir William ap Thomas ‘the Blue Knight of Gwent’ and Gwladys ferch Dafydd Gam the ‘Star of Abergavenny’. His main claim to fame is that he was the first Welshman to become an earl in the peerage of England, except for Henry VI’s…

The Welsh princess men found irresistible….

  When it comes to medieval ladies whose story I have always wanted to write but have never found the moment. something else always got in the way. One such lady is Princess Nest/Nesta of Wales, daughter of the last King of South Wales, whose life spanned the end of the 11th century and beginning…

The Greatest Knight and Richard III

I have previously posted about my family history connections with Richard III here and I have since found out more interesting links. One such is William Marshall. Called by some the greatest ever knight, he is one of my direct ancestors and also the direct ancestor of Richard III. William had an eventful life. He…

Has Henry VII’s actual birthplace been found in Pembroke Castle….?

It seems there is now new evidence at Pembroke Castle to suggest the existence of a late medieval building in which Henry VII may have born on 28th January, 1457. I am not quite sure why it is thought this might be the actual building where Margaret Beaufort gave birth at the age of around 14,…

The Halloween horror of Henry VII….

The people of Pembroke are proud of Henry VII, and are raising money for an 8′ (rather unflattering) statue of him – it’s about as complimentary as poor old Richard’s armless statue at Middleham. But, unlike Richard, it is highly suitable for a Halloween shock! http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-37695578 Anyway, this 8′ giant prompted me to ponder how…

Henry carved in stone…

Oh, dear, In Pembroke they want a statue of Henry Tudor. The thing is, if the real man stood on a plinth, would we be able to tell he wasn’t the statue? I mean, he always looks “carved in stone” to me… http://www.tenby-today.co.uk/article.cfm?id=102491&headline=Maquette%20unveiling%20marks%20launch%20of%20Henry%20VII%20statue%20campaign&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2016 There was a stone statue of Henry VII in Exeter, near Eastgate,…