Francis de Valois, Dauphin of France and Duke of Brittany

Francois III Duke of Brittany by Corneille de Lyon The birth of the Dauphin Francis was cause for great celebration, not only for his parents but also for the kingdom of France. After suffering thr…

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Madeleine of Valois, Queen of Scotland

King Edward I of England had claimed feudal lordship over Scotland beginning in 1290 AD and there had been battles ever since. John Balliol, King of Scots and Philip IV of France negotiated the “Au…

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Why Was Cluny Abbey Once the Heart of Western Christendom? | TheCollector

Cluny Abbey was the birthplace of one of the most influential religious reform movements of the Middle Ages.

thecollector.com

Queen Elizabeth I, the Spanish Armada and the Celebrated Speech at Tilbury – 1588

By the time Queen Elizabeth I made her celebrated speech at Tilbury, the English and the Spanish had already engaged in a skirmish at sea. The great Armada was first sighted on July 19, 1588…

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Henry Tudor Recruits Soldiers for His Showdown with King Richard III

At the Battle of Tewkesbury on May 4, 1471, the Yorkists won a huge victory against the Lancastrians. Edward, Prince of Wales, son of Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou was killed during the battle and…

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Napoleon’s Greatest Defeat- Soldiers’ Accounts – A guest post by Anthony Ruggiero

Anthony is currently a high school history teacher in New York City, New York.  In addition to teaching, he has been published in several magazines and blogs such as “History is Now”, “Tudor Life”,…

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Giulia Tofana: poisoner, murderer, saviour? – Historia Magazine

Giulia Tofana was a 17th-century Italian poisoner. But was she a murderer - or a saviour, Cathryn Kemp asks. Her novel, A Poisoner’s Tale, is a dark retelling of Giulia’s story

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History of Eltham Palace

On my last trip to the UK, I was lucky enough to have a tour of Eltham Palace. My main interest for seeing the palace was the Tudor connection. It served as the royal nursery for the children of Ki…

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Great Fire of London 1212

Mention ‘The Great Fire of London’ and most people think of the 1666 disaster. However more people were killed in the Great Fire of 1212...

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16 of the worst monarchs in history

From the morally bankrupt to the staggeringly inept, Jonny Wilkes guides us through the lives of 16 rulers who wrote their names into the history books for all the wrong reasons

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The outrageous heretical legend of Pope Joan, history’s only female pope

When it comes to popes, the current split between men and women is 266 to zero. But, as Jonny Wilkes explores, that hasn’t stopped an enduring medieval myth about the enigmatic Pope Joan

historyextra.com

King James II of Scotland

Woodcut of King James II of Scotland showing the birthmark on his face History repeats itself. This aphorism is especially true for the Scottish monarchy. There was a period during Scottish history…

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King Henri III’s Last Letter to His Wife Queen Louise – 1589

In the summer of 1589, France was afflicted by the Wars of Religion. The authority of King Henri III was severely destabilized by a litany of political parties which were being funded by foreign po…

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Queen Anne – The Last Monarch of the Stuart Dynasty ~ A guest post by Trisha Hughes

When it comes to tragic lives, Queen Anne undoubtedly wins the competition hands down, mainly due to her horrific gynaecological record. In sixteen years, she had seventeen pregnancies: twelve were…

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The Formation of the Valois Burgundian Empire – Philip the Good

Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy Philip the Good, third Valois Duke of Burgundy, was born to Margaret of Bavaria on July 31, 1396, at Dijon. He married Michelle de Valois, daughter of King Charles…

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Mary Boleyn

Most people know the story of Anne Boleyn, the second of King Henry VIII’s six wives. Few people know that Anne had an older sister Mary who was the mistress of two kings. There’s a rea…

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Catherine of France, Countess of Charolais

In 1435, the Treaty of Arras was signed between the duchy of Burgundy and the Kingdom of France. This treaty would be the end of an extended existing alliance between Burgundy and England. Duke Phi…

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Offa, Anglo-Saxon King of Mercia

The eighth century Anglo-Saxon king Offa of Mercia must have been an impressive and powerful king to his contemporaries. Offa could make the claim of being the first “king of the English”. While he…

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Ingeborg of Denmark, Queen of France

Continuing with the narrative of King Philip II Augustus’ marital woes, we have the tale of his second and third wives. And the story just gets more curious. We have already seen that due to politi…

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Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex and Chief Minister to King Henry VIII

Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, 1532 Born in Putney, Surrey, c. 1485, Thomas was the son of Walter Cromwell whose various professions included blacksmith, fuller, cloth merchant, brewer and hostel …

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Catherine Howard, Queen of England

Badge of Catherine Howard Of all of Henry VIII’s six wives, the most beautiful was probably the nubile Catherine Howard. Henry called her his “rose without a thorn”. But she doesn’t appear to…

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Season 8 Episode 9 Queenship pt 2 Reina, Madre, Imperio: El Legado de la Reina Isabella y su linaje - Rediscovering Latinidad

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The Wedding of Queen Mary I and King Philip II of Spain

The wedding of Queen Mary I and King Philip II of Spain took place on July 25, 1554. It was the feast day of St. James the Greater, the patron saint of Spain. The venue chosen for the event was Win…

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Deconstructing the Story of Eleanor of Aquitaine

Everything you know about Eleanor of Aquitaine is wrong! Or so says Michael R. Evans, lecturer in medieval history at Central Michigan University. In his book “Inventing Eleanor: The Medieval and P…

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King James I of Scotland

James Stewart I, King of Scots had an unusual reign in many ways. His rule began while he was a prisoner of King Henry IV of England. And his rule certainly ended in a tumultuous and violent manner…

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The Abdication of a Queen | In Custodia Legis

Short history of the events leading to Mary, Queen of Scots abdication in 1567.

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Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond

Henry Fitzroy was born sometime in June, 1519 (most likely on the 18th) at the priory of St. Lawrence, Blackmore near Ingatestone, Essex. His father was King Henry VIII of England and his mother wa…

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