The medieval remains of the Southwark palace of the Bishops of Winchester are still there….

An item on another group, concerning the Southwark palace of the Bishops of Winchester, set me looking for more information. I knew where the palace was, of course, and who the “Winchester geese” were! You can read about them here. Almost all the links about the palace that turn up in an online search are… Continue reading The medieval remains of the Southwark palace of the Bishops of Winchester are still there….

The murdered Lancastrian countess and the disappearing Yorkist ghost rider….

Gloucestershire doesn’t lack ghostly stories, not least about the Wars of the Roses with, for example, Margaret of Anjou prowling the rooms of Owlpen Manor and the phantom messenger, on his way through Prestbury to Edward IV at Tewkesbury in May 1471 when he was killed by an arrow. He still gallops through the village… Continue reading The murdered Lancastrian countess and the disappearing Yorkist ghost rider….

A spare £9.5 million will get you a beautiful historic castle in Cumbria….

Britain fair bulges with castles, especially along borders or simply impose control in troublesome areas. Some of these fortresses are stark, dramatic ruins that still carry the threatening air that was intended when they were built. Others are more beautiful….and still occupied by those fortunate enough to have, say, £9.5 million stashed away for a… Continue reading A spare £9.5 million will get you a beautiful historic castle in Cumbria….

The rise and fall of Sir Thomas Molyneux’s Cuerdale Hall in Lancashire….

  My meanderings in the name of research sometimes turn up things that rather bemuse me. This time I was in hot pursuit of Sir Thomas Molyneux of Cuerdale, who was murdered rather nastily by Thomas Mortimer Thomas Mortimer at the Battle of Radcot Bridge on 19 December 1387. Molyneux had once been John of… Continue reading The rise and fall of Sir Thomas Molyneux’s Cuerdale Hall in Lancashire….

Ockwells Manor and John Howard, Duke of Norfolk….

Ockwells Manor in Berkshire is surely one of the most beautiful old houses in the United Kingdom. It encapsulates everything we sigh for longingly when it comes to rambling, romantic half-timbered medieval properties with gables and a good few chimneys. And it predates the Tudors! More than its beauty and desirability, Ockwells Manor has a… Continue reading Ockwells Manor and John Howard, Duke of Norfolk….

Off with the old weaponry and on with the new….

If ever an entry in the Close Rolls of Henry IV was evidence of warfare being at a crossroads between the old and the new, it’s surely this one. Poised between two ages, it concerns arms left by the late Richard II in the great hall of Dublin Castle. Richard had been in Ireland immediately… Continue reading Off with the old weaponry and on with the new….

What really happened with Princess Cecily’s first two marriages….?

The following extract is from Not So Fortunate As Fair’: The Life of Princess Cecily Plantagenet by Sharon Champion:- “….At the age of five, she [Cecily] was betrothed to James, the infant son and heir of James III of Scotland. John 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton was sent as commissioner to negotiate a contract of… Continue reading What really happened with Princess Cecily’s first two marriages….?

What do we know about St Mary in Gysma and her connection with London….?

  In my continuous roamings for information, pure chance led me to this https://www.british-history.ac.uk/court-husting-wills/vol2/pp105-123#p43 reference:- “….Benyngton (Simon de), draper.—To be buried in S. John’s Chapel, to the south of the chancel of the church of S. Laurence in Old Jewry, near Idonia his late wife. To Idonia his present wife he leaves lands and tenements in… Continue reading What do we know about St Mary in Gysma and her connection with London….?

Even Stanley suffered because of Henry VII’s avarice….

This concerns Dartford Manor (and then priory) in Kent (above), of which you can read more at https://www.kentarchaeology.org.uk/Research/02/DDAG/08/20.htm and http://www.akentishceremony.com/kcc-register-offices/the-manor-gatehouse/ My interest lies in the history of the manor, i.e. pre-Henry VIII. The following, which is taken from http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol2/pp2-22, seems at first not to concern Dartford Manor, but its pattern of ownership is the same,… Continue reading Even Stanley suffered because of Henry VII’s avarice….

Richard III, Henry VII and the City of York….

    This is not my work, but has been lifted entirely from British History Online. My contribution is the illustrations. It is a sensible assessment of the relationship of both Richard and Henry Tudor with the great city of York. :-  York, Richard of Gloucester, and Henry VII  There was much that was new in… Continue reading Richard III, Henry VII and the City of York….