Tudor Times

On Sept. 7th, 1533 Princess Elizabeth Tudor was born to King Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn at Greenwich Palace. She was the second surviving daughter of Henry VIII, and the first child of he and his second wife. Elizabeth was considered England’s princess as well as Henry’s heir upon her birth, since Henry had divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, to marry Anne Boleyn. Her older half sister Mary, once Henry’s heir, had been declared illegitimate.

Elizabeth’s childhood was spent at summer palaces like Hatsfield with her governesses and servants. At age three, however, Elizabeth was demoted as princess and declared illegitimate. Her mother, Anne Boleyn, had failed to produce Henry with a male heir and had fallen victim to a coup which ended on Tower green with her execution.

One of the earliest surviving portraits of Elizabeth

Elizabeth was eventually taken back into her father’s good graces and in 1543 she was written back into the succession. In 1558, Elizabeth became queen of England and ruled until her death in 1603.

A clip from Showtime’s The Tudor’s Portrayal of Elizabeth’s birth

One of our wiki members, AReformer, has graciously designed this lovely wallpaper for Elizabeth’s 477th birthday! It is free to all! To check out other Tudor wallpapers AReformer has made, go here.

Also, we have a happy birthday thread for Elizabeth here at the Everything Tudor Wiki. Several of our wiki members have posted their thoughts, favorite quotes, etc. about Elizabeth. Be sure to share yours!

Firstly, I wanted to point out some interesting posts at the blog On the Tudor Trail. Natalie has written about several famous Tudor ghosts including Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn.

Katheryn Howard's "Ghost" from a Victorian Postcard

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Secondly, Hampton Court is hosting a few events this coming holiday to celebrate Henry VIII. I mentioned this in an earlier post but here is another article detailing the events.

Here’s a video of a jousting match also held at Hampton Court.

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Thirdly, Peterborough Cathedral is hosting a night of Tudor music, ranging from works by Thomas Tallis to William Byrd and John Sheppard. Here’s an article with more information.

Peterborough Cathedral, burial place of Katherine of Aragon

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And finally, Shakespeare’s Richard III is in the works with director Sam Mendes and starring Kevin Spacey. Here’s an article with more detail.

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With the success of our Tudor Book Club, one of our wiki members suggested a Tudor Film Club where we will choose a Tudor film/show, watch it, then discuss it. We are in the rudimentary stages of deciding what to watch and when, so be sure to voice your opinion and join us!

Here’s the link.

Confessions of a Ci-Devant Blog has some interesting posts up recently about those who played major Tudor characters throughout film history. So far they have Henry VIII and his six wives (through Anne of Cleves). They also have images of the actors/actresses playing the roles and a bit about them. It is really interesting, especially with the older silent films.

Here’s the link to the first post about Henry VIII. You can then check the side bar for the later posts about the wives.

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Hampton Court is hosting a lot of events for the August bank holiday, including jousting! Click here for more detail, or visit Hampton Court’s official site.

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Finally, a reenactment was held recently for the anniversary of the Battle of Bosworth…only it was held at the wrong location! This is because the real location of the battle was recently discovered a few miles away, but unfortunately cannot accommodate the crowds.

Here’s a lovely article on this year’s events as well as information on the actual location of the battle.

I am slowly renovating the older parts of the site and have finished the Tudor Timelines section and the Tudor Biographies section. They are also found linked on the home page.

I am now turning my attentions to the literature section and updating it. Hopefully it will be completed by next week.

Hope you enjoy!

On Aug. 22, 1485 the forces of the Yorkist King Richard III and the Lancastrian Henry Tudor met at Bosworth Field, the battle that would end the long civil war known as The Wars of the Roses.

Richard’s army outnumbered Henry’s by as much as three to four thousand men. However, during the course of battle several of Richard’s lords (Derby, Stanley, and Northumberland) abandoned him and joined with Henry VII. This put a severe dent in Richard’s forces. Another devastating blow came with the death of John Howard, Duke of Norfolk and close companion of Richard. Despite these set backs, Richard fought bravely and nearly reaching Henry Tudor before beingsurrounded and killed. According to tradition, his died yelling “treason, treason, treason….”

Richard’s body was then stripped and hung by Henry VII before finally being laid to rest. Henry VII then claimed the crown and claimed his right as King of England. He later married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV and began the Tudor Dynasty.

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History was written by the winners, which leaves one to wonder how accurate Tudor depictions on Richard as an evil murderous hunchback are true.

Here is the link to an article on the truth behind Richard III’s bad press.

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Despite what many historians say, Bosworth was not technically the end of the Wars of the Roses. Henry VII went to battle again 1497 against “Richard IV” aka Perking Warbeck, a pretender to the throne claiming to be Richard, Duke of York, youngest of the Princes in the Tower.

Here’s an interesting article on the Perkin Warbeck rebellion.

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If you are interested in more on Richard III, make sure to check the books highlighted on The Tudor Book Blog this week pertaining to Richard, his life, and the myths that surround him.

As some of you may have noticed, there are a few problems with the wiki right now, including not being able to click, scroll, etc. It is a problem all wetpaint sites are experiencing. According to the main wetpaint site, the crew is working on fixing the problem asap.

If it isn’t fixed by tomorrow, I will post a temporary discussion board on the book blog. Hopefully the wiki will be fixed though! I will update as soon as more information is available!

On Aug. 19, 1561, 18 year old Mary, Queen of Scots and Dowager Queen of France arrives back in her homeland after being away for 13 years. Coming back to Scotland must have been a strange and scary experience for the young woman who had spent most of her life in France.

Mary's landing in Scotland

Upon her return, Mary found a land in turmoil. Scotland was torn between the powerful Protestant sect and the Catholic Sect. Mary had been raised Catholic and remained a Catholic, but tolerated the Protestant religion in her realm. She being Catholic caused suspicion on the side of the Protestants, and her tolerance of them caused disappointment and anger on the side of the Catholics. This struggle continued throughout Mary’s reign and contributed to (along with two failed and unpopular marriages) her forced abdication in 1567.

Be sure to check out the Tudor Book Blog’s Book(s) of the Week on Mary, Queen of Scots here!

I am happy to finally announce my first Tudor Tour, starting in Summer 2011! Since starting my site a year and a half ago, I have traveled to England several times and have wanted to share the many Tudor places I have visited with my readers through more than just pictures and photo tours. Thus, I have developed a tour devoted to the Queens of this period.

The Tour focuses on all Queens of Tudor England, from Elizabeth of York to Elizabeth I. While on the tour, you will travel to many Tudor destinations including Hampton Court, Hever Castle, Sudeley Castle, the Tower, and more. You will also have private, guided tours of most of our destinations, or be able to explore them on their own. You will also get to experience a Tudor Banquet in the Great Hall of the Old Palace at Hatfield, once used by Elizabeth I!

To learn more about this tour, be sure to check out the Tudor Queens of England Page here. The itinerary as well as all costs, terms, and other information are available in detail.

There are only 20 spots available, so be sure to book your place now! To book, go to our Booking Page here.

Just a few quick things I wanted to point out this evening:

I had a good time listening to a few podcasts earlier from the History Faculty. There are several on the Tudors, including a few on Henry VIII’s early reign and Cardinal Wolsey.

Here’s the link. They are worth a listen!

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Hever Castle is famous for being the childhood home of Anne Boleyn. If you are able to visit it, I highly recommend it! In the mean time, be sure to read this interesting guide to the castle which goes room by room describing what the room is, used to be, and how authentic it is.

Here’s the link.

Picture from my trip to Hever last year.

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For those interested in the new play Anne Boleyn at the Shakespeare Globe, here’s the link to an image of the set. It looks really interesting!