One of the best museums I have visited in recent years was the Vasa Museet in Stockholm, Sweden. The museum is dedicated to the story of the Vasa, a royal warship that sunk less than 2000 metres into its maiden voyage in 1628. The museum is a large, impressive building, and it has to be, … Continue reading Vasa Museet
Tag: Early Modern History
Daughters of Castile
A contemporary of Anne of France, who we explored last week, was Queen Isabella of Castile. She was one of the most powerful women of her era, and along with Anne dominated European politics and “set a precedent for the female rulers of the sixteenth century”. Isabella of Castile Isabella’s rise to Queenship wasn’t easy … Continue reading Daughters of Castile
Love Letters: Henry VIII & Anne Boleyn
Henry VIII famously had six wives, yet only for one of them did he rip the fabric of England apart in order to marry her and make her his queen. The lady in question? The iconic Anne Boleyn. Anne Boleyn by unknown artist Anne is first thought to have caught Henry’s eye in 1526. He … Continue reading Love Letters: Henry VIII & Anne Boleyn
Snapshot of History: The Letter that Betrayed the Gunpowder Plot
It's the 5th November and you know what that means - it's Guy Fawkes Night! So in line with the occasion this month's history topic is all about the Gunpowder Plot. Click below to find out how the plot was discovered... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FM9OEh4mjg If videos aren't accessible to you, or they're just not your thing, you … Continue reading Snapshot of History: The Letter that Betrayed the Gunpowder Plot
Mary Tudor & the Letter of 1536
"Most humbly prostrate before the feet of your most excellent majesty, your most humble, so faithful and obedient subject, who has so extremely offended your most gracious highness that my heavy and fearful heart dare not presume to call you father, deserving of nothing from your majesty, save that the kindness of your most blessed … Continue reading Mary Tudor & the Letter of 1536
Recommendation: Museum of Liverpool
As Storm Dennis hit last weekend I decided to take myself into the warm and dry Museum of Liverpool for a look around, and friends it did not disappoint! With 3 floors covering the pre-historic to present day Liverpool, there was a lot to see! According to some interpretation training I once received, a museums … Continue reading Recommendation: Museum of Liverpool
The Scottish Queen
Mary Queen of Scots. What new is there to say? She is one of the most well known historical figures in British history, and her dramatic life of passion and intrigue has enthralled people for centuries. Yet today I want to focus on a very specific moment in her early life, one that often gets … Continue reading The Scottish Queen
Heir and Spare
What did it mean to be the heir to a royal house and know your future was to be King? Well Prince Arthur had some experience in this area. He was the firstborn son of King Henry VII of England and his Queen Elizabeth of York. Born in 1486, only a year after his father's … Continue reading Heir and Spare
“Mad Madge” and the Royal Society
On the 30th May 1667 the first woman attended a meeting of the Royal Society, a significant achievement, as women had been barred from the society since it's creation in 1660. The woman in questions was Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle. No woman could have divided opinion more, to the famous essayist Charles Lamb she was … Continue reading “Mad Madge” and the Royal Society
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