Month: Jun 2024

Could there be ‘More’ to this Tomb?

While out churchcrawling, I recently visited the rather remote Dorset church of St Mary’s at Netherbury. We were looking for the tomb of my partner’s ancestor, William Purchase, who was lord of the manor in the early 1800’s. We found his posh tomb in the graveyard…but when we looked in the church, I found another… Continue reading Could there be ‘More’ to this Tomb?

EDWARD V – HIS LIFE PRIOR TO JUNE 1483

REBLOGGED FROM A MEDIEVAL POTPOURRI He had such dignity in his whole person and in his countenance such charm that, however much they might feast their eyes he never sated the gaze of observers’.  Domenico Mancini Edward V from the window at Coldridge Church, Devon.  Despite the late historian Professor Helen Maud Cam opining rather harshly… Continue reading EDWARD V – HIS LIFE PRIOR TO JUNE 1483

The Church and the midsummer solstice….

  You might wonder what the above 1855 painting (from Gunby Hall, Lincolnshire) has to do with the summer solstice, but it’s taken from this National Trust article, which emphasises the magical aspect of this particular time of the year. It also illustrates the sort of books I read as a child. Today’s adults underestimate… Continue reading The Church and the midsummer solstice….

Wick Court, a forgotten mansion in the depths of Gloucestershire….

According to this site Visiting Wick Court – Farms For City Children “….Wick Court is an Elizabethan moated manor house once used as a hunting lodge by the Lords of Berkeley and rumoured to have been visited by Elizabeth I Although grand in its history, this intimate house stands on a site looking out across… Continue reading Wick Court, a forgotten mansion in the depths of Gloucestershire….

A review of “Uncrowned” …

… and here it is, with many thanks to Tony Riches. Uncrowned features claimants from several centuries, including Jane, Edward V, Edward the Black Prince and Henry Frederick Stuart. Ashley Mantle is also the author of King John: A Brief History.

Fancy the Scottish Island to which Robert the Bruce fled….?

Sanda Island is in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, off the southern tip of the Kintyre peninsula, and it came to my attention when I read this article A Scottish island for sale with seals, seven houses, a lighthouse and its own pub – Country Life in Country Life. The article is beautifully illustrated, with an aerial video that sings… Continue reading Fancy the Scottish Island to which Robert the Bruce fled….?

Digging for another Anglo-Saxon king

Here we have a Yahoo article about Athelstan, the grandson of Alfred who united England at the battle of Brunaburh, who was buried at Malmesbury Abbey. There will be a dig, by Cotswold Archeology, at the site on 6th and 7th of July, in the run-up to the 1100th anniversary of his accession later that… Continue reading Digging for another Anglo-Saxon king

A medieval shipwreck in Poole Bay….

Yet again the amazing coast of Dorset yields a historic discovery. Not prehistoric this time, but 13th century, in the form of a large sunken vessel with an interesting cargo. Discovered in Poole Bay in 2020 and granted protected status in 2022, the wreck is well preserved and is giving up its intriguing contents of… Continue reading A medieval shipwreck in Poole Bay….

Only reading half the evidence …

This article seems to cite all the right sources in implying that there is a false paternity event in the short line between Edward III and Richard III. However, they haven’t examined Edward III’s Y-chromosome or the much longer paternal chain to the (Regency) 5th Duke of Beaufort, as we did here. Hilariously, even one… Continue reading Only reading half the evidence …