There is a popular misconception that Henry VIII met his final wife, Catherine Parr, after she joined the household of his daughter, Mary, at some …
CATHERINE PARR WAS NOT MARY’S LADY-IN-WAITING
Mary I
THE TUDOR QUEENS’ CONSORT NECKLACE
The so-called ‘Consort Necklace’ is one of the most famous pieces of Tudor jewellery. Appearing in a number of portraits of Henry VIII’s wives, it …
MARY I AND THE CORRUPTED HOLY OIL
The most sacred moment of the coronation ceremony is the anointing with holy oil. When the archbishop of Canterbury touches the oil to the hands, …
CORONATIONS: EDWARD THE CONFESSOR TO ELIZABETH I
The coronation the world is going to witness on Saturday is very much a medieval ceremony, even as it has evolved and continues to evolve …
PRINCE EDWARD’S LETTER ABOUT MARY’S DANCING
On the 12th May, 1546, a young Prince Edward wrote a letter to his stepmother, Catherine Parr, that sheds an interesting light on Edward’s early …
HENRY VIII’S TREATMENT OF MARY – FEBRUARY 1536
I have written previously about the plot to help Mary flee England in 1535 and 1536. Following Katherine of Aragon’s death, there was an increased …
MARY AND MUSIC
Amongst Mary’s many passions and accomplishments was a deep love of music. Letters, ambassadorial reports, and household expenses reveal just how devoted Mary was to …
A GENEALOGY FROM ADAM AND EVE TO KING EDWARD VI OF ENGLAND
Just like today, people in the medieval and early modern periods were fascinated by their genealogies, especially kings and noblemen. Henry VIII possessed a particularly …
A MISSING PORTRAIT OF MARY?
In 1546, two very famous Tudor portraits were created: the portrait of a young Lady Elizabeth, and the other of young Edward, Prince of Wales. …
MARY’S PLANNED FLIGHT FROM ENGLAND
It is well known that in 1550, Mary almost went through with a plan to flee England into the welcoming, Catholic embrace of Charles V …
