Medieval magnates and their dogs at banquets….

While searching for information about the Duc de Berry, who circa 1386 wanted a pair of unusual greyhounds from Scotland, so he obtained a safe conduct from Richard II for four of his men to pass through England to acquire them. My search took me to this interesting site. From all that I’ve read of…

How did Edward III’s claim to the throne of France come about….?

Should you be interested in the background to Edward III’s claim to the throne of France, here’s a link to a fascinating article about the adulterous goings-on at the French court! And here’s me thinking the French wouldn’t dream of doing such things! 😄

THE THREE HUNDRED YEARS WAR – PART 3 : the dogs of war

Preface This is the third of three articles charting the course of continual Anglo-French conflict from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries. The first, covered the rise and fall of the Angevin Empire, and the Treaty of Paris (1259). The second, continued my narrative from the accession of Edward I until the Treaty of Bretigny…

THE THREE HUNDRED YEARS WAR – PART 2: the just cause

  Preface This is the second of three articles charting the course of continual Anglo-French conflict from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries. In the first article, I wrote about the rise and fall of the Angevin Empire, culminating in the Treaty of Paris (1259). This article picks up my narrative after the death of…

Henry VI: saint or sinner?

A gentle and devotional life About seventy years ago, the historian John Harvey wrote this in an essay about King Henry VI: “The life and death, and the thwarting of his noble designs are one (sic) of the sorriest tragedies of English history. He was a victim of forces outside his control, for whose existence…

Tales of a Ricardian Traveler – Gruyères Castle

Originally posted on RICARDIAN LOONS:
Lady on Horseback, mid-15th c., British Museum It is tempting to think that the British Isles contain all the sites associated with Richard III’s life. Of course, that’s not true. Richard lived abroad twice, first in 1461 and again in 1470-1. On both occasions, he had fled England in order…

The contemporaries of Henry VIII

Genealogy Francois I of France died in the first quarter of 1547, after a reign of over thirty years, leaving only one legitimate son, Henri II. Whilst thought of as a cultured monarch, a patron of the arts and a linguistic reformer, he took an ambiguous approach to religious reform, (in which his sister Marguerite…