There was as good reason Henry VII forbid his son Henry from jousting – it was dangerous as hell. The minute Henry VII died and the new King Henry VIII was in charge of his own life, he took up jousting in spite of the risk. Why? Because it was COOL, baby! Rock-star level coolness… Read more OUCH! A Splinter Takes Out King Henri II of France’s Eye in a Jousting Accident
Edward IV, the first Yorkist king, was crowned on 28 June 1461 after proclaiming himself king following the bloodbath at the Battle of Towton in Yorkshire the previous March. The young usurper was only nineteen years old and had just lost his father, Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York. Nonetheless, Edward was commanding and a… Read more The Coronation of Edward IV
This weekend my husband and I took the kids to Tenby, Wales to see some seals and some historical sights, and it was a richly rewarding experience on all fronts. As to be expected from a seafront village whose Anglicized name comes from the Welsh title Dinbych-y-pysgod, meaning “little fort of the fish”, there was… Read more Geniuses from Tenby, Wales!
Richard, Duke of Gloucester, the younger brother of King Edward IV, began his reign as King Richard III on 26 June 1483, although he wouldn’t have his coronation until 6 July. Richard III became king during one of the vicious times in English royal history. Seriously, it makes the fictional Game of Thrones look a… Read more Becoming Richard III
The only thing in the world that Napoléon Bonaparte loved as much as coffee and military victory was his first wife, Joséphine de Beauharnais. Napoleon’s love was born on 22 June 1763, the eldest daughter of a French Creole sugar plantation owner in the Caribbean, either at his estate on Martinique or the one on… Read more A Rose Named Joséphine
Contrary to popular belief, Henry VIII wasn’t a tyrannical monster who chopped off heads willy-nilly … until 1535. Prior to that year, Henry was reluctant to use the axe when other solutions were possible and the worst thing he had done was separate Katherina of Aragon from their daughter, Mary. Even that wasn’t just being… Read more The Bloodbath Begins: Henry VIII Turns to the Axe
Almost indisputably, the best uncle of the medieval period was Jasper Tudor. He was utterly devoted to his nephew, the future King Henry VII. However, there is also a medieval uncle who was loyal to his nephew yet does not get nearly enough credit for it — John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford. John… Read more John of Lancaster, an Excellent Uncle
Happy birthday to one of England’s most notable monarchs, King Edward I, who was born on 17 (or the early hours of the 18th) June 1239 to King Henry III and Eleanor of Provence at the Palace of Westminster. Edward’s moniker as king was Longshanks because he was so tall, but he could have justifiably been called Edward the… Read more Edward Longshanks, the Great and Terrible
Contrary to popular belief, the Wars of the Roses wasn’t over when the Plantagenet king, Richard III of England, died at the Battle of Bosworth Field and the reign of King Henry VII began. The last pitched engagement of that war was not until two years later, on 16 June 1487, at the Battle of… Read more The REAL Final Battle of the War of the Roses … Almost
Lice. AKA cooties. My daughters brought home the wee vermin this week in their hair, necessating a thorough saturation of their hair with a mixture of olive oil and a generous portion of tea tree oil. The olive oil smothers cooties and makes it easier to fine-comb them out, and the tea tree oil kills… Read more A Lousy Time Was Had By All