Beautiful Chiddingstone was there BEFORE the Tudors, methinks….!

  Well, I think present-day Chiddingstone village is cleaner and healthier than it was in Tudor times, but it’s certainly very very beautiful. Mind you, it was there before the rotten Tudors! For instance “….The historical epicentre is the village shop [illustrated above] believed to be the oldest functioning shop in England, dating back to… Continue reading Beautiful Chiddingstone was there BEFORE the Tudors, methinks….!

Richard III and the dirty Tudors….?

  “…8…Richard III and dirty Tudors…“…Rotting vegetation, dung heaps and overflowing cesspits were just some of the unpleasant daily realities faced by ordinary people in 16th-century England. Here, Pamela Hartshorne discusses the challenges Tudors faced when trying to keep their cities clean and hygienic. Also in this episode, Chris Skidmore tells us how his research… Continue reading Richard III and the dirty Tudors….?

Father of a Queen: Thomas Boleyn

Two miles from Edenbridge in Kent  lies the small but attractive castle of Hever. Originally built in 1270, it was taken over 1462 by Geoffrey Bullen (or Boleyn) younger brother of Thomas Boleyn , Master of Gonville Hall, a constituent college of Cambridge. Geoffrey had a son called William and he in turn fathered Thomas… Continue reading Father of a Queen: Thomas Boleyn