Tag: Beaufort family.

Conisbrough Castle and the House of York.

Conisbrough Castle originates in the Norman period, but the existing structure is largely the work of the Warrenne family, with the keep, by far the most important of the surviving buildings, dating from the 12th Century. When the Warenne family died out in the 14th Century, their lands escheated to the crown and a large… Continue reading Conisbrough Castle and the House of York.

RALPH NEVILLE, 2ND EARL OF WESTMORLAND – HIS HOME, BRANCEPETH CASTLE AND BURIAL IN BRANCEPETH CHURCH.

REBLOGGED FROM A MEDIEVAL POTPOURRI @sparkypus.com Ralph Neville, 2nd Earl of Westmorland c.1406-1484 and one of his wives.  Fine oak effigy once in Brancepeth Church, County Durham.  Destroyed 1998. Drawn by Charles Stothard c.1815. An interesting life if somewhat tinged by tragedy.    Ralph Neville 2nd Earl of Westmorland, born at Cockermouth in Cumbria (c.1406-1485) was… Continue reading RALPH NEVILLE, 2ND EARL OF WESTMORLAND – HIS HOME, BRANCEPETH CASTLE AND BURIAL IN BRANCEPETH CHURCH.

Shadow King: the Life and Death of Henry VI

 Helen Rae Rants! Shadow King: The Life and Death of Henry VI by Lauren Johnson Head of Zeus Publications, 2020, paperback, 700 pages, £12.00 ISBN 978-1784-979645 <img class=”i-amphtml-intrinsic-sizer” style=”max-width: 100%; display: block !important;” role=”presentation” src=”data:;base64,” alt=”” aria-hidden=”true” /> Henry VI has gone down in history as one of England’s worst kings. Not for being cruel… Continue reading Shadow King: the Life and Death of Henry VI

Why I dislike John of Gaunt….

As Ricardians, we know very well now, history can be twisted to suit. The matter of those strawberries and what happened next, for instance. I mean, the different versions are legion, even to the point of whether or not Thomas, Lord Stanley was ever present at all, let alone injured in a scrap and obliged… Continue reading Why I dislike John of Gaunt….

John Fortescue Speaks

John Fortescue (1385-1479) on the subject of illegitimate children inheriting or having rights of succession to their father’s estate or patrimony: “The civil [Roman] law [followed on the Continent] legitimates children born before matrimony as well as after, and causes them to succeed to the parental inheritance. But the law of England does not allow… Continue reading John Fortescue Speaks

A History Walk in Wiltshire

Sometimes, in this very old country of ours,  even a simple afternoon’s walk out along the river  can come up with some rewarding historical data relating to the Middle Ages and the Wars of the Roses period. Recently I went for a walk near the Wiltshire Avon, from Figheldean to Netheravon, taking in  two little-known… Continue reading A History Walk in Wiltshire

“excepta dignitate regali” (again)

Henry IV added these words to Richard II’s legitimisation of his half-siblings in 1407, when he had four healthy sons and two daughters. So what was the Beaufort family situation in the year that their claim to the throne was disregarded? JOHN, MARQUIS OF DORSET AND SOMERSET was about 36, a married father of five.… Continue reading “excepta dignitate regali” (again)

The Mystery Man In The Vaux Passional

In 1921, a manuscript dating to the late 15th or early 16th century was donated to the National Library of Wales. It was a “passional”, a book recounting the sufferings of saints and martyrs, and containted 2 texts in medieval French: “La Passion de Nostre Seigneur” (The Passion of Our Lord), an account of the… Continue reading The Mystery Man In The Vaux Passional

The Tudor/Beaufort claim to the throne.

For the purpose of this post I am going to assume that everyone’s father was as given in standard family trees. The question of whether the eldest 14th Century Beaufort was actually a Swynford both legally and biologically, and the issues around the fathering of Katherine of Valois’ children I leave to others to untangle.… Continue reading The Tudor/Beaufort claim to the throne.