Picture of the Week #408

Entrance to Hall’s Croft, Stratford-upon-Avon. Photo May 2015.

This month we’re going back to Stratford and featuring Hall’s Croft, one of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust properties. Since this property is set a little away from the busiest tourist area of the town, it’s a little quieter and for that reason alone worth seeking out! But it’s also a great place to visit, with period furniture throughout and a lovely back garden.

Hall’s Croft was the first home of Shakespeare’s daughter Susannah and her husband Dr. John Hall after they were married, but they later moved to New Place after her father’s death.

Upcoming Books, Exhibitions, and Events for September 2016

New books

One book I missed from last month is Wendy J. Dunn’s Falling Pomegranate Seeds, a novel about Katherine of Aragon:

And out at the end of this month in the UK is Anne Boleyn in London by Lissa Chapman, which will be out early next year in the US:

Events

The BBC History Magazine’s History Weekends return this fall with one in Winchester from October 7th to 9th and another in York from November 18th to 20th.

Exhibitions Ending This Month

Oxford’s Bodleian Library will run Shakespeare’s Dead from April 22 to September 4. This exhibition will examine the theme of Death in Shakespeare’s works. It “provides a unique take on the subject by exploring how Shakespeare used the anticipation of death, the moment of death and mourning the dead as contexts to bring characters to life. … Shakespeare’s Dead also looks at last words spoken, funerals and mourning as well as life after death, including ghosts and characters who come back to life.”

The British Library’s Shakespeare in Ten Acts opened April 15 and will run through September 6. The exhibition is a “Journey through 400 years of history

Picture of the Week #406

The Battlefield in 1485. Photo May 2015.

The text on the sign reads:

The Battlefield in 1485

The trees in the modern landscape make the lie of the land quite hard to see. The medieval landscape was more or less devoid of trees as a system of open field farming prevailed. This method was widespread and created a rather barren landscape. From this point in 1485 you would be able to see Dadlington windmill and most of Norfolk’s army throughout the battle. You would also be able to hear the roar of the guns and the screams of the dying.

Picture of the Week #405

Display of the ‘Crown in the Hawthorn Bush’ story from the end of the battle, at the Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre.

Legend has it that Lord Stanley found the circlet that Richard III had worn into battle in a hawthorn bush and presented it to Henry at the end of the battle.

Picture of the Week #403

Inscription on the Bosworth Battlefield memorial sundial. Photo May 2015.

On to August and a new theme for this month’s pictures – the Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre and Country Park, in honor of the anniversary of the battle on August 22nd.

Upcoming Books, Exhibitions, and Events for August 2016

New Books

One new release this month – Scourge of Henry VIII: The Life of Marie de Guise by Melanie Clegg is out August 30 in the UK and later in the fall in the US. It’s great to see work on Marie de Guise, someone I’ve been intrigued by for a while now.

And a few books already out in the UK that will be out at the end of the month in the US (or possibly mid-September – I have conflicting info, but I decided to go ahead and include them in this month’s round-up)

New Event

Tudor Ambition – Talk and book signing with Lauren Mackay and Elizabeth Norton at Sudeley Castle on September 4 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets available at the link. (Yes, it’s actually in September, but I wanted to get it in earlier to give people a chance to plan.)

New Exhibitions

Will & Jane will open on August 6 and run through November 6 and is the final of three exhibitions they put on, in addition to other events, during their year-long Wonder of Will celebrations.

Continuing Exhibitions

Oxford’s Bodleian Library will run Shakespeare’s Dead from April 22 to September 4. This exhibition will examine the theme of Death in Shakespeare’s works. It “provides a unique take on the subject by exploring how Shakespeare used the anticipation of death, the moment of death and mourning the dead as contexts to bring characters to life. … Shakespeare’s Dead also looks at last words spoken, funerals and mourning as well as life after death, including ghosts and characters who come back to life.”

The British Library’s Shakespeare in Ten Acts opened April 15 and will run through September 6. The exhibition is a “Journey through 400 years of history

Picture of the Week #401

Leicester’s Building at Kenilworth Castle. Photo 2015.

These buildings were built by Robert Dudley for Elizabeth I’s use on a couple of her visits, including the famous 1575 stay at the castle. The scaffolding that allows visitors to go up into the structure was completed by the time of my visit last year so I was able to take advantage of the new views!

Sunday Short Takes

Time for a Sunday Short Takes!

* Dynastic Rivalry and Digital Reconstruction at Bradgate House – Interesting work on the reconstruction of Bradgate House for a new visitors center at Bradgate Park.

* Tudor Calendar Photography Competition – The Anne Boleyn Files is hosting a calendar photo competition again this year, so pick out your best Tudor-related photos!

* Tudor women: what was life like? – Elizabeth Norton writes about the life of women in all levels of Tudor society

* Tour Westminster Abbey on Google Street View

Picture of the Week #399

Kenilworth Castle. Photo May 2015.

New month, new theme! This time we’re going to Kenilworth Castle in honor of the famous visit by Elizabeth I in July 1575. I visited Kenilworth on my whirlwind trip in 1998 when I tried to squeeze so many things in because it was my first visit to Britain. I spent a few hours there and took a pathetic 6 or 7 photos. So, when I was planning last year’s trip, I decided to go back and plan to spend a lot more time there and, thanks to digital photography, take A LOT more photos. When I went in to get my entry ticket, the guy (hearing my American accent) said something to the effect of “I’m guessing you haven’t been here before?” and I got to see the surprised look on his face when I said “actually, yes I have!” But, it was 17 years previous, the stables were mostly closed for renovation, Dudley’s gatehouse was completely closed because of restoration work, the new Elizabethan gardens weren’t there, and the viewing platforms in Leicester’s Building weren’t even a glimmer in someone’s eye (as far as I know). So this visit was almost like visiting it again for the first time!