A review of Westminster Abbey: Behind Closed Doors….

I have now watched all of the Channel 5 series Westminster Abbey: Behind Closed Doors, which is so packed with information that I hardly know where to begin with this review. Aha, did I hear you say the beginning might be a good idea? You’re right, so here goes with a selection of descriptions from… Continue reading A review of Westminster Abbey: Behind Closed Doors….

The Crown Jewels in magnificent close-up….

  Last night I watched a truly decorative and stylish BBC documentary called The Crown Jewels. At the outset we were told that the makers had unprecedented access to both the jewels and the very latest technology, the latter permitting such close-ups of the dazzling gems that their true beauty really was revealed. There were… Continue reading The Crown Jewels in magnificent close-up….

The ruby that isn’t a ruby was worn at a battle that didn’t happen….?

    Aha, so it isn’t a ruby, see this article. Well, we knew that! But for all its associations with the Black Prince, Henry V and Richard III (to say nothing of later monarchs) it seems our present queen “….often likes to think of it being worn by Henry IV during the battle of… Continue reading The ruby that isn’t a ruby was worn at a battle that didn’t happen….?

THE MEDIEVAL CROWNS OF EDWARD THE CONFESSOR AND QUEEN EDITH

UPDATED POST AT sparkypus.com A Medieval Potpourri https://sparkypus.com/2020/05/14/the-medieval-crowns-of-edward-the-confessor-and-queen-edith/ KING RICHARD III AND HIS CONSORT QUEEN ANNE NEVILLE WEARING  EDWARD THE CONFESSOR AND QUEEN EDITH’S CROWNS.  THE ROUS ROLL. THE SAME CROWNS WORN EARLIER BY EDWARD IV AND ELIZABETH WYDVILLE. Photograph by Geoffrey Wheeler.   The first Coronation Crowns, known as the crowns of  Edward the Confessor  (also… Continue reading THE MEDIEVAL CROWNS OF EDWARD THE CONFESSOR AND QUEEN EDITH

Did Richard III wear the Black Prince’s Ruby at Bosworth….?

“….It is said that Henry V wore it [the Black Prince’s Ruby] in his jewel-encrusted helmet at the battle of Agincourt, and Richard III did also at the battle of Bosworth….” I found the above sentence in a post on the British Medieval History Facebook group. How very intriguing. It’s something I had never heard… Continue reading Did Richard III wear the Black Prince’s Ruby at Bosworth….?

All the Johns of St Stephen’s Chapel….

As a writer of medieval fiction, and therefore stuck with a preponderance of Johns, Edwards, Richards, Edmunds and so on, I’m only relieved not to have been asked to write a history of St Stephen’s Chapel. SO many Johns? Of the human variety, I hasten to add! This article: Where did all the Johns come from?… Continue reading All the Johns of St Stephen’s Chapel….