The Renaissance, wedding dresses….and Robert de Vere….

  Well, I wasn’t looking for observations on when the Renaissance commenced, rather was I trying to find information on the wedding of Robert de Vere, Duke of Ireland, Marquess of Dublin, and 9th Earl of Oxford KG. The wording of my Google search brought up a site in which I found the following: “….During…

Henry Tudor was Medieval, not Renaissance….!

You can take your pick of our medieval monarchs at this site ! Although I’m sure Henry Tiddler wouldn’t appreciate being included as Medieval. He was Renaissance, indeed, he started that whole shebang – ask any Tudorite!  

Guess what? Henry VII invented the London Watch….!

“….Watchmen were organized groups of men, usually authorized by a state, government, city, or society, to deter criminal activity and provide law enforcement as well as traditionally perform the services of public safety, fire watch, crime prevention, crime detection, recovery of stolen goods. The streets in London were dark and had a shortage of artificial…

Gainsborough Old Hall was built in 1460…therefore it HAS to be Tudor….!

Well, if Richard III was entertained there, Gainsborough Old Hall can’t have always been Tudor! This article even says as much in a heading: “….Lincolnshire house, built in 1460, has been a theatre, preaching house, pub and masonic temple….” Excuse me, but 1460 was Plantagenet, not Tudor. Maybe it’s a Guardian error. (Perish the thought.)…

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…

No, the Tudors DIDN’T bring the Renaissance to England, it was here already….!

Tudorites are always very keen to claim the introduction of the Renaissance to England as their territory. Anyone who went before the blessed Henry VII had nothing whatsoever to do with it. Right? No, very wrong. Lady and gentlemen, I give you the Wilton Diptych (see here and also this video), which was created for…

Columbus didn’t discover America, Henry Tudor got there first . . . !

I know this book (cover pictured below) is serious, well researched and is no doubt an excellent read . . . but come ON, forget Columbus, the Vikings and early Irish holy men, we all know Henry VII got there first, on his way to settle the small obstacle of Richard III. The Tudor proboscis…

What did colours mean in the medieval period….?

Even today, we associate certain colours with certain things, e.g. white for chastity, black for mourning and red protects against evil. Back in the medieval period many more colours had meanngs at different times of the year – well, the Church does now as then, of course, but I mean for people in general. With…

Handmade in Bolton

This is a short BBC4 series about the Lancashire craftsman Shaun Greenhalgh’s attempts to recreate historic artefacts using modern methods. Co-presenting with Janina Ramirez, Greenhalgh seeks authentic materials, where possible and safe, trying to put them through the right processes. Not all of these work immediately, although the end result closely resembles the original. The…

When my lord took his tapestries with him on his travels….

  We all know that when medieval nobles moved between their properties, they often/usually took their luxury items with them, such as tapestries. These were then hung anew in whichever house/castle the lord had gone to. It had never occurred to me how much trouble this must have caused for those in charge of things…