From child marriages to a royal murder in Calais….

  While seeking information that might help with the child marriage of Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford and Philippa de Coucy, granddaughter of King Edward III, I came upon this link which is from Illustrations of Ancient State and Chivalry, From Manuscripts Preserved In The Ashmolean Museum, edited by William Henry Black and… Continue reading From child marriages to a royal murder in Calais….

Thomas of Woodstock was an unpleasant, supposedly pious bully….

This article Thomas of Woodstock and Shakespeare’s Twisted History | Ancient Origins (ancient-origins.net) begins as follows:- “….William Shakespeare wrote ten history plays. Of these, one of the most famous is  Richard II . The play  Richard II , written around 1595, is based on the rule of King Richard II (reign 1377-1399), but one of the main characters in… Continue reading Thomas of Woodstock was an unpleasant, supposedly pious bully….

Weir(d) Babies (3): “Philippa of Gloucester”

We have written twice before about non-existent historical children somehow finding their way into works by a certain modern writer, who is often cited on Wikipedia and repeated by others. In these posts, we referred to “Joan of York”, ostensibly a sister of Richard III, together with those attributed to Henry IV and Mary de… Continue reading Weir(d) Babies (3): “Philippa of Gloucester”

STATEMENT IN STONE

Most old castles will have graffiti both old and new pecked into their stonework somewhere. People like to leave A symbol for posterity (often unfortunately.) Very few ancient buildings, however, have the owner’s name graven into them for for eternity. Not so at Caldicot in Wales. If you walk around to the back of the… Continue reading STATEMENT IN STONE