Sunday Short Takes

Finally time for another round-up!

* The huge dig by The Deep revealing Hull’s Royal secrets – including King Henry VIII’s fortress – Warning – autoplay video (but otherwise very interesting!)

* 10 Minute Tudors: Leanda de Lisle – A new podcast from historian and author Leanda de Lisle (link goes to iTunes)

* Inside the Tudor court – A great post from the British Library’s Medieval Manuscripts blog featuring images from four recently digitized account books of Henry VII and Henry VIII (links to the manuscripts are at the bottom of the post)

* Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn, and the Ashbourne Charter of 1585 – Nice discussion by Suzannah Lipscomb of the iconography in an Elizabethan charter and the few examples we have of Elizabeth I remembering her mother, Anne Boleyn.

Picture of the Week #461

Front of Nash’s House in Stratford-upon-Avon. Photo May 2015.

Nash’s House and the site of Shakespeare’s final home, New Place, were closed for renovations on my visit in 2015. I saw them in 1998, but I definitely would like to go back now that the new gardens are open at New Place!

Upcoming Books, Exhibitions, and Events for September 2017

Yay September! We’re starting into my favorite time of year!

Books

Although I posted about it a couple of months ago, it appears that Elizabeth of York and Her Six Daughters-in-Law: Fashioning Tudor Queenship, 1485-1547 by Retha Warnicke has been delayed until September 26, so I’m posting it again.

Another update – Colouring History: The Tudors by Natalie Grueninger and Kathryn Holeman is still listed with an October 1 release date in the US, but I’ve already received my pre-order copy so if you order it now you might get it before October 1.

Next up – Tudor Fashion: Dress at Court by Eleri Lynn was released last month in the UK and is due out on September 12 in the US.

In new books out this month, The King’s Pearl: Henry VIII and His Daughter Mary by Melita Thomas will be out in mid-September in the UK and next year in the US. Assuming I answered my email in time, keep an eye out at this site for a stop on the blog tour for this book!

And Chris Skidmore’s newest work, Richard III: Brother, Protector, King will be out in the UK on September 21 and is due out next year in the US with the title Richard III: England’s Most Controversial King.

Events

Here’s another one that I’m going to post a month earlier in case tickets sell out: The Mary Rose Trust Anniversary Lectures – Celebrating 35 years since the raising of the Mary Rose. More details will be posted at the website and I’ll probably have another separate post about it when the press releases go out.

Continuing Exhibitions and Displays

The Encounter – Drawings from Leonardo to Rembrandt opened at the National Portrait Gallery, London on July 12 and runs through October 22. Tickets can be booked at the gallery’s website linked above. More about the exhibition:

The creative encounter between individual artists and sitters is explored in this major exhibition featuring portrait drawings by some of the outstanding masters of the Renaissance and Baroque periods.

Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire is Power & Portraiture: painting at the court of Elizabeth I opened on June 7 and will run through October 29, 2017 at From the website:

A special display exploring how Elizabeth I and her courtiers used portraits to fashion their public image and promote themselves in a glamorous, dangerous world.

Two spectacular panel paintings by Nicholas Hilliard will be accompanied by loans from the Royal Collection and National Portrait Gallery. Visitors will learn about the scientific and scholarly detective work that has led to this important discovery and will be able to compare it with the famous

Sunday Short Takes

Feels weird doing this while part of my state drowns but other than some small donations there isn’t a whole lot I can do at this point until the rain stops here and elsewhere (and it looks like that won’t happen until the end of the week). So, while I continue to try to distract myself, here’s a news round-up!

The big announcement of the last couple of weeks was the discovery of more parts of the old Palace at Greenwich. Here’s a sample of the news coverage:

* Discovery of old Greenwich Palace sheds light on Tudor life

* Greenwich Palace: Archaeologists discover ruined remains of Henry VIII

Sunday Short Takes

Mix of stuff this week!

* Sad news to start with: Robert Hardy, star of Harry Potter and All Creatures Great & Small, dies aged 91 – Although most of the articles I saw focused on his recent work in the Harry Potter films, Tudor history fans will probably also know him from his portrayal of Robert Dudley in the BBC Elizabeth R series.

* And speaking of Harry Potter: Merlin’s beard! Harry Potter’s childhood home in Godric’s Hollow is on the market – This is one of the most historically significant houses in the area, owned from the 14th to the 17th centuries by the de Veres, the richest family in the country after the monarch. – I really wanted to make it to Lavenham when I was in England in 2015 but I just couldn’t fit it in. Another for the “reasons to go again” list!

* Next up – more digging in Leicester!: Archaeologists are set to carry out a dig at Leicester’s Abbey Park – here’s why – The dig is concentrating on discovering more about medieval life at the abbey, but I’m secretly hoping they find the burial of Cardinal Wolsey, who died there while traveling to London. Abbey Park was another place that I had originally hoped to visit when I was in England two years ago but I ended up spending more time at the cathedral and Richard III visitor center than I originally planned so I skipped the Abbey Park to give more time for my visit that afternoon to the Bosworth Battlefield.

* Big announcement – The Tudor Summit 2017 is coming in just a few weeks! I wish I could participate this year but the timing didn’t work out. Hopefully my schedule will actually allow me to join in on in the future!

Join 16th century historians and bloggers at The Tudor Summit 2017 happening online on September 3 and 4!

The Tudor Summit is a two day online event bringing together Tudor history enthusiasts from all over the world to connect with each other, and listen to interviews and lectures from some of the leading Tudor History historians, bloggers, and podcasters. With lecture topics ranging from Tudor portraiture, fashion, and music; to Henry VIII’s wives, and the Princess Mary’s relationships with them, it will be a jam packed and engaging agenda!

The event will be broadcast live on September 3 and 4, starting at 4pm UK time, and registration is free to attend live!

For more information, please visit:
http://www.englandcast.com/the-2017-tudor-history-day-summit/

* The Society of Antiquaries put up a neat video about the volume of the Inventory of Henry VIII from their collections:

* And finally, enjoy a flyover of a digital reconstruction of Edinburgh from 1544

Edinburgh 1544 – Location Compilation from Smart History on Vimeo.

Upcoming Books, Exhibitions, and Events for August 2017

Books

A nice variety of new books of interest are due out in August!

First up is Amy Licence’s latest work, The Lost Kings: Lancaster, York and Tudor, which is due out August 1 in the UK and in early 2018 in the US.

Next is the latest from On the Tudor Trail’s Natalie Grueninger, Discovering Tudor London: A Journey Back in Time which will be released August 7 in the UK and in December in the US.

Nathen Amin, author of Tudor Wales latest book is House of Beaufort: The Bastard Line that Captured the Crown. It will be released on August 15 in the UK and in early November in the US.

And finally, Tudor Fashion: Dress at Court by Eleri Lynn will be released on August 22 in the UK and will be out in the US on September 12 in the US.

Events

The Bosworth Medieval Festival 2017 is on August 19 and 20 and will feature, among many other things, a talk by Leanda de Lisle on “Tudor: The Family Story”.

Continuing Exhibitions and Displays

Blood Royal: Picturing the Tudor Monarchy opened on July 25 and runs through August 25 at The Society of Antiquaries of London. They now have a virtual version of the exhibition available online.

The Encounter – Drawings from Leonardo to Rembrandt opened at the National Portrait Gallery, London on July 12 and runs through October 22. Tickets can be booked at the gallery’s website linked above. More about the exhibition:

The creative encounter between individual artists and sitters is explored in this major exhibition featuring portrait drawings by some of the outstanding masters of the Renaissance and Baroque periods.

Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire is Power & Portraiture: painting at the court of Elizabeth I opened on June 7 and will run through October 29, 2017 at From the website:

A special display exploring how Elizabeth I and her courtiers used portraits to fashion their public image and promote themselves in a glamorous, dangerous world.

Two spectacular panel paintings by Nicholas Hilliard will be accompanied by loans from the Royal Collection and National Portrait Gallery. Visitors will learn about the scientific and scholarly detective work that has led to this important discovery and will be able to compare it with the famous

Sunday Short Takes

More entries for the “OMG I want to win the lottery and buy this place!” wishlist!

First up is Otley Hall in Suffolk, which was mostly built in the 16th century. You can see the listing at Savills here.

And next is Flemings Hall, also in Suffolk, which has parts dating back to the 14th century with 16th century additions. You can see the listing at Savills here.

In other news:

The Rex Factor podcast will soon be launching a Kickstarter for an animated show, which you can see a teaser trailer for here:

Rex Factor – The Animated Show Teaser Trailer from Tinmouse Animation Studio on Vimeo.