history

The Coronation of Edward IV

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

Geniuses from Tenby, Wales!

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!

Becoming Richard III

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

A Rose Named Joséphine

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

The Bloodbath Begins: Henry VIII Turns to the Axe

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

Edward Longshanks, the Great and Terrible

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

Dr Elizabeth Garrett Anderson

Happy Birthday to Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the first woman (who didn’t keep her gender a secret) to qualify in Britain as a physician and surgeon by having first crossed the English channel and becoming the first female doctor of medicine in France. She was also the first woman in the country to be elected to a… Read more Dr Elizabeth Garrett Anderson