The general belief is that the dreaded sweating sickness arrived in England along with Henry Tudor and his French army. Maybe it did. Certainly it became rife after Bosworth and he entered London. It was a fearsome disease, worse even than the Black Death, for you could be hale and hearty at breakfast and dead… Continue reading What was the sweating sickness and where did it come from….?
Tag: health
Richard III had the sweating sickness before facing Tudor….?
It has been argued before, especially by the late John Ashdown-Hill, that Richard’s sleepless nights and so-called ghastly appearance before Bosworth were caused by the sweating sickness. It has also been more generally understood that it was Henry VII and his army of foreign invaders who brought and spread the disease, which was new to… Continue reading Richard III had the sweating sickness before facing Tudor….?
Are you still a thoroughly top-notch, summit-of-the-heap king without a coronation….?
Does anyone know what would happen if a newly succeeding medieval king were too unwell to undergo the rigours of a coronation? Would such a ceremony merely be postponed in the hope of his recovery? What would happen if he didn’t recover, but eventually died still without having had a coronation? Did the omission somehow… Continue reading Are you still a thoroughly top-notch, summit-of-the-heap king without a coronation….?
Covid 19 and similarites with the second wave of the Great Pestilence in 1360…
In this time of Covid 19, when we don’t know why it seems to affect men more than women, and some ethnicities but not others, it is interesting that back in the 14th century the tsunami of the Great Pestilence of 1348 was followed by lesser waves that differed in many ways from the original.… Continue reading Covid 19 and similarites with the second wave of the Great Pestilence in 1360…
Emma de Beston, a suitable case for treatment….
We’re always inclined to think that medieval folk who fell mentally ill were treated barbarically. I think that accolade goes to a later period, when the inmates of Bedlam were laughed at by the paying public. Here is a link to the National Archives to an account of an actual case from 1383, that of… Continue reading Emma de Beston, a suitable case for treatment….
Busting yet another Cairo myth
Bishop Robert Stillington was imprisoned soon after Bosworth and died in captivity in 1491, definitely by 15 May. It is generally thought that this was a punishment for providing the copious evidence that convinced the Three Estates, in June 1483, of Edward IV’s bigamy. This rendered Elizabeth of York and all her siblings legally illegitimate,… Continue reading Busting yet another Cairo myth
Digging up Britain’s Past: By George, I think she’s got it
This second episode of this Channel Five series, presented by Alex Langlands and Helen Skelton, took us to Elsyng Palace, a North London house built by Henry VIII but with question marks about its precise venue until recently. Very unusually, the presenters clearly stated that the “King’s Great Matter” concerned not a divorce from Catherine… Continue reading Digging up Britain’s Past: By George, I think she’s got it
And the king’s hair seethed with lice at his coronation. . .!
Do not read on if you’re squeamish about blood-sucking parasites. No, I’m not referring to Henry VII, but his equally usurping Lancastrian predecessor, Henry IV. When we think of medieval coronations, and see contemporary illustrations, we see the glamour, colour and solemnity of the occasion, hear the singing, smell the incense, observe the wonderful robes… Continue reading And the king’s hair seethed with lice at his coronation. . .!
Might Edward IV have suffered from Type 2 diabetes…?
http://ricardianregister.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/did-king-edward-iv-have-type-2-diabetes.html No doubt many of you have read this article before (see link above), but I had not. It’s very interesting to ponder whether Edward IV may have suffered from Type 2 Diabetes. I have to say that his portrait seems a prime example of the “fair, fat and forty” stereotype (of which I too… Continue reading Might Edward IV have suffered from Type 2 diabetes…?
Was Richard the big-spender on fashion? No, it was Henry….
I must admit that the following article didn’t come as quite the surprise it should. Henry has always struck me as a man who enjoyed the good things in life, and was prepared to be lavish when he felt like it. Yes, indeed! And he enjoyed being entertained and so on…but that he was… Continue reading Was Richard the big-spender on fashion? No, it was Henry….
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