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Month: May 2008

Happy Birthday Margaret Beaufort!

I don’t generally make a habit of noting Tudor anniversaries unless it is a big one, but I thought I would post about this one since Margaret is a pet interest of mine and she is the entry for the 31st on the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography “Lives of the Week”. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the OBNB, it’s a great resource for information on important British figures, but it is often only available through the print version or subscription to their online version. I’m lucky to have access through the university that work for, but I know a lot of people don’t have that luxury. Thankfully, they feature a biography for free every day, which you can get either by email or through their RSS feed. More information is available on their website. They also have a free virtual reading room which is worth checking out if you don’t otherwise have access.

I’m not sure how long the free bio of Margaret will be up, so I suggest getting it soon if you’re interested. And happy 565th birthday to the Countess of Richmond and Derby, mother of the first Tudor king!

Portrait of Elizabeth I as princess found

From the BBC:

A rare portrait of Queen Elizabeth I as a young princess has been discovered in a private collection at a stately home in Northamptonshire.
The portrait, dating from 1650 to 1680, was found in the Duke of Buccleuch’s collection at Boughton House.

It shows Elizabeth with siblings Edward VI and Mary I, father Henry VIII and his jester, Will Somers.
….
Tracy Borman said that when she was first sent a picture of the portrait she realised it had never been seen before.

“The more we found out, the more obvious it was that nobody had come across this,” she said.

“It’s clearly a copy of a lost original and it’s that mystery that we started to try to solve.

“It’s also a very different look to Elizabeth and comparing it to other portraits it helps us to solve the identity of other portraits – for example one always known as the Unknown Lady in the National Portrait Gallery.”

Full article (with link to enlarged full photo)

And here is a link at the NPG to a similar image that was previously thought to be Jane Grey, but now looks like it might be Elizabeth.

Bid to overturn the 450-year-old conviction of a Tudor rebel

I thought this was interesting…

From Eveningnews24.com:

Robert Kett led a bloody rebellion against the state in 1549, but he has been honoured by the people of Norwich as a brave hero who fought against the injustices of his day.

And now more than 450 years after the Wymondham-born yeoman farmer was put to death for high treason at Norwich Castle, an amateur historian is calling on the government to quash his conviction.

Michael Chandler, 46, who lives in the city centre, has written to the Home Office asking them to

A couple of follow-ups to older stories

An Elizabethan shipwreck off Alderney in the Channel Islands that I wrote about back in September 2006 is being excavated to recover a cannon and other items.

From PRWeb:

Great guns on Alderney! It has taken over 400 years but soon the Tower of London is going to get some of its guns back. On May 25, archaeologists will begin work on the recovery of cannon from a sunken Elizabethan ship that went down off the coast of Alderney in the Channel Islands in 1592. The Duke of York is behind the work that aims to conserve, replicate and test-fire the weapons found on this important wreck.

Excavation director Mensun Bound of St Peter’s College, Oxford, says, “We are not just bringing up cannon, but also muskets, grenades, swords, rapiers, body armour and helmets. This was a ship that was supplying an English army fighting in France to prevent a second Armada-style invasion by Spain.”

The full press release is here. Conservation work on the recovered items will be done at the Tower of London and people will be able to watch the process. Neat!

And the other follow-up has to do with remains of Henry VII’s chapel found at Greenwich which I wrote about here and here back in January 2006.

From 24hourmuseum:

Designed by Christopher Wren, the Old Royal Naval College has played a key role in both the history of Greenwich and Britain.

A Royal Palace once stood on the site. Henry VIII and his daughters Mary and Elizabeth were born there, and it was one of the King’s favourite places. In 1694, a Royal Charter saw it turned into a hospital for sick seamen

Private tours of Historic Royal Palaces on eBay

From the BBC:

People are being given the chance to bid for exclusive tours around some of London’s historic palaces.

A look around the hidden areas of the Tower of London or a roof top walk on Hampton Court Palace are being offered.

The money raised from the auction on the website eBay will go to the upkeep and restoration of the palaces.

Full article

More information from the Historic Royal Palaces website

I’m not sure if I should thank Kathy for sending this along or not… I’ll be totally jealous of the people who get to do this! 🙂

Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Center gets accreditation

From 24dash.com:

Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre is celebrating after being recognised by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) as meeting the national standard for UK museums.

Run by Leicestershire County Council, Bosworth Battlefield officially opened in 1974 and has made the transition from a well known visitor attraction to an officially accredited Heritage Centre & Museum.

Full article

Official site for the Heritage Center

When I was on my first trip to the UK (10 years ago this month!) I had planned to go up to the battlefield, but I messed up my back earlier in the day on one of the winding staircases in Warwick Castle, so I decided to skip it. I didn’t make it back to that area of England on either of my subsequent trips, so it has to go on the “wish list” for the future!

Scottish Parliament records now online

For those of you interested in Scottish history –

From the BBC:

An online archive of the proceedings of the original Scottish Parliament from its first surviving act of 1235 to its dissolution in 1707 has been launched.
…
Dr MacIntosh said: “Parliament was a pretty rowdy place back then – members were allowed to take a sword in, and there are records of duels and arrests being made after punch-ups broke out in the debating chamber.”

That last line amused me. 🙂

Full BBC article

And here is the official website for the records

“The Lady Elizabeth” now out and Weir’s book tour

I meant to post a reminder about this a week or two ago, but totally forgot. I originally posted about Alison Weir’s next Tudor novel, this time about Elizabeth before she was Queen, back in February. Here are the links again if anyone is interested (and again, full disclosure – I get a small commission off each sale)

Also, Alison Weir has been on a tour giving talks on the book and other related topics and will be coming to the US soon. If she’s going to be in your area and you’d like to meet up with other Tudor fans, leave a comment below!

Here’s the schedule: http://alisonweir.org.uk/events/index.asp
Thanks to TudorRose for the link for the tour!

3000 years of jewelry set to go on display at the V&A

Yet another reason I need to get back over to the UK!

From The Telegraph:

Prepare to be dazzled – after years in storage the V&A’s jawdropping collection of jewellery from the past 3,000 years is about to go on permanent display.
…
On 24 May the William and Judith Bollinger jewellery gallery will open at the V&A, displaying 3,500 items from the museum’s collection, which is one of the finest and most comprehensive in the world and tells the story of European jewellery over the past 3,000 years.
…
Chadour-Sampson pulls out another drawer and places in the palm of my hand a small locket, the Armada or Heneage jewel made about 1595, a gift from Elizabeth I to her vice-chamberlain, the poet and secret-service agent Sir Thomas Heneage. The locket depicts a profile portrait in gold of the queen up to her neck in a giant gold ruff, her head weighed down by wig and pearls, encircled by diamonds and Burmese rubies. Turn it over and there is a gold and enamelled portrait of an ark, representing the English church, riding through stormy seas, a cloud above raining down lightning on the frail vessel. Open it up and there’s a portrait of a much younger, more girlish Elizabeth, the real woman behind the symbol, or how she wanted to be seen – a wistful love token sent by an old woman.

Full article

Website of the Victoria and Albert Museum

And here are some images of the Elizabethan jewel described in the article (from the V&A website…. you can see larger images if you go to their image collection page and search for “Armada jewel”):

Behind the scenes tour at Hardwick Hall in mid-May

To mark the 400th anniversary of the death of Bess of Hardwick, the public is being given the chance to see areas of her famous building. I’d love to be able to see it myself!

From The Yorkshire Post:

As part of the events to mark the 400th anniversary of the death of Bess of Hardwick, Hidden Hardwick tours will take place at the hall, near Chesterfield, on May 13 and 19.

They are an opportunity not only to have a tour of the hall with an experienced guide but also to go off the normal visitor route and explore previously hidden areas.

“From the hidden floor which cannot be seen from the outside to the secret door between the High Great Chamber and the Long Gallery, visitors love the fact they are in places that others are not normally allowed into.”

The tour will also include areas of the roof space where visitors will be able to see the timber frame with the wattle and daub lining of the rooms and the secret servants’ floor.

Full article

Harwick Hall’s page at the National Trust