Writing About Richard III: Admissible Sources and Emotional Responses
What is it about Richard III that provokes an emotional response, when so many other British monarchs are of scant interest to twenty-first century people?
Philippa Langley: The End of Richard III and the Beginning of Henry I
Amidst all the excitement, and the whirlwind that was Richard III’s reburial in Leicester, I managed to catch up with one of the world’s most famous Ricardians, ‘the Kingfinder’, Philippa Langley.
The Road to Richard: The Reburial of the Last Plantagenet
While there have been outcries over the pomp and circumstance surrounding Richard’s extravagant burial, there has also been a renewed sense of pride and upswing in popularity for this much maligned monarch.
Quiz: The Battles of the Wars of the Roses
How well do you know your timelines – can you correctly place in order these nine battles from the Wars of the Roses?
Top Ten Insults against Savonarola
‘He is a fruit quite worthy of his diabolical seed.’
Crowdfunding project to restore medieval prayer book closes in on goal
In less than two weeks a crowdfunding campaign to restore a 600 year old manuscript has already raised three-quarters of €25,000 it is asking for.
Margaret Beaufort, Mother of King Henry VII
Margaret Beaufort, Mother of King Henry VII By Susan Abernethy Lady Margaret Beaufort was the matriarch of the Tudor dynasty of Kings in…
A Fifteenth-Century Merchant in London and Kent: Thomas Walsingham (d.1457)
In 1424 the London citizen and vintner Thomas Walsingham acquired the manor of Scadbury, then in the parish of Chislehurst in north-west Kent.
Which Of These Foods Were Available In 15th Century England?
Some of these foods were available when King Richard III was on the throne, others were not. Can you guess what might have been on your shopping list back in 15th century England?
Obscenity Out of the Margins: Mysterious Imagery Within the Cent nouvelles nouvelles, MS Hunter 252
The blatant portrayal of male genitalia is reminiscent of fourteenth-century marginalia, but here is located front and centre. Unlike marginalia, which was either allegorically related or not related at all to the text, these images are a direct portrayal of events recounted in the tales which they accompany. How can we explain where the inspiration for these images came from and how they fit into the ideas and conventions of the context in which they were created?
Cannonball from Wars of the Roses battle discovered
A lead ball, believed to be the oldest cannonball ever found in England, has been discovered on the site of the Battle of Northampton.
Scattered voices: Anthonis de Roovere and other reporters of the wedding of Charles the Bold and Margaret of York
Both sources are of great value for those who study the Bruges wedding, with the impact it had on its contemporaries, and the way in which our present-day picture of it came about.
Medieval Manuscripts: The Isabella Breviary
Within its pages lie some of the finest illuminations ever painted during the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance.
10 Creepy Things to See at the Louvre That Are Better Than the Mona Lisa
If you’re an ancient historian, a medievalist, or early modernist, there are so many other amazing pieces and works of art a the Louvre other than these two tourist staples. Here is my list of cool, creepy, unusual and better than the Mona Lisa at the Louvre in Paris.
Owain Glyndwr and the siege of Coity Castle, 1404-1405
The siege of Coity was indeed significant for its length and its importance, and it was indeed historic, because it is the most famous event associated with the castle in the entire 900 years of its existence. Yet we know very little about the siege and the circumstances surrounding it, even though it lasted for a good part of two years
Charlotte of Savoy, Queen of France
Charlotte of Savoy, Queen of France By Susan Abernethy Charlotte of Savoy came from a large family and was married at the tender…
The Impalings of Vlad the Impaler
One of the most infamous chararacters from the Middle Ages was Vlad III Dracula, the prince of Wallachia. Here is the story of how he gained the name of ‘the Impaler’.
Move over Milan! Late Medieval and Renaissance Fashion in Venice
Milan may be Italy’s current fashion capital, but Venice had an important role to play in the development of the Italian fashion and textile industry since the late middle ages and renaissance period.
The Foxes of Venice
This paper will focus on the process that led to the professionalization of ambassadorial relations and dispatches as a means to display the shift in the Venetian Senate’s political priorities, as it necessitated and enforced a constant and regular influx of foreign knowledge.
‘Forget Your People and Your Father’s House’: Teresa de Cartagena and the Converso Identity
Religion is a very important factor to take into consideration in discussions about the identity of the conversos [converts] or New Christians, an emerging group in 15th-century Castile.
The Sincere Body: The Performance of Weeping and Emotion in Late Medieval Italian Sermons
In 1493 the well-known and controversial Franciscan preacher Bernardino of Feltre gave a series of Lenten sermons to the people of Pavia. On March 11 he dedicated an entire sermon to the necessity of contrition—or perfect sorrow over sin—in the rite of confession.
Besteiros Do Conto (Crossbowmen): Organization, abuses of power and irregularities during the reign of Dom João I (1385-1433)
The aim of this paper is to examine an aspect of social life linked to one of the most important and original forms of military organization in the whole of Portuguese history—the besteiros do conto (crossbowmen).
Renaissance Contacts Between Dubrovnik (Ragusa) and the Kingdom of Hungary
During the rule of the Angevin dynasty (1308-82) in Hungary, towns and cities increasingly assumed greater political influence. The first treaty between the King of Hungary and Dubrovnik (in those days Ragusa) was signed in 1358, during the reign of Louis (Lajos) the Great.
Emperor Zar’a Ya’eqob (1434-68) And The Christianization Of Medieval Ethiopia
One of the most important figures in Ethiopian Christianity was the 15th century Emperor Zar’a Ya’eqob.