5 August - Sir Reginald Bray

On this day in Tudor history, 5th August 1503, in the reign of King Henry VII, administrator Sir Reynold or Reginald Bray died.
Who was Bray? What offices had he held? And what are his links to Westminster Abbey and St George's Chapel?
Find out more in this edition of #TudorHistoryShorts from historian Claire Ridgway. You can see this podcast as a video at the following link:https://youtu.be/fHKZMaQZwe4

29 July - The death of Thomas Stanley, Henry VII's stepfather

On this day in Tudor history, 29th July 1504, in the reign of King Henry VII, the king's stepfather died.
Find out a bit more about Thomas Stanley, and his role in helping his stepson take the throne,  in this edition of #TudorHistoryShorts from historian Claire Ridgway.
Claire is the founder of the Tudor Society, an online membership site for those who love Tudor history. There, you can learn from Claire and many other expert historians and authors, enjoy Tudor-focused magazines and live Q&A sessions with experts, and have access to all kinds of talks, articles, quizzes, virtual tours and more. Try it with a 14-day free trial - https://www.tudorsociety.com/signup/
 
Claire has written some bestselling Tudor history books:
 
On This Day in Tudor History - https://amzn.to/3oceahH
The Fall of Anne Boleyn: A Countdown - https://amzn.to/3m8KaSi
George Boleyn: Tudor Poet, Courtier and Diplomat - https://amzn.to/2TdwyZr
The Anne Boleyn Collection - https://amzn.to/3kiQc1T
The Anne Boleyn Collection II - https://amzn.to/3o9LUwi
The Anne Boleyn Collection III - https://amzn.to/3kiQc1T
The Life of Anne Boleyn Colouring Books - https://amzn.to/3jkJ5Vz
 
Claire has also done an online history course, The Life of Anne Boleyn, for MedievalCourses.com - https://medievalcourses.com/overview/life-anne-boleyn-mc06/
 
You can find Claire at:
https://www.theanneboleynfiles.com 
https://www.tudorsociety.com
https://www.facebook.com/theanneboleynfiles/
https://www.facebook.com/tudorsociety/
https://twitter.com/AnneBoleynFiles 
https://twitter.com/thetudorsociety 
https://www.instagram.com/tudor.society/ 
https://www.instagram.com/anneboleynfiles/

28 June - A rebellious baron is executed

On this day in Tudor history, 28th June 1497, in the reign of King Henry VII, Sir James Tuchet, 7th Baron Audley,was executed after rebelling against his kind.
 
Find out how this baron got involved in a rebellion in this edition of #TudorHistoryShorts from historian Claire Ridgway. You can see this podcast as a video at the following link:
https://youtu.be/d14B11EhIwI
 
Find out more about the Cornish Rebellion in these videos:
June 17 - The Cornish Rebellion and the Battle of Blackheath - https://youtu.be/u5uPO7Vza9Y
June 27 - Two Cornishmen gain fame permanent and immortal - https://youtu.be/lWsAT7SRIzQ

13 June - George Neville, a man with a very mixed court career

On 13th June 1535, courtier George Neville, 3rd Baron Bergavenny, died. He'd done well for himself in the reigns of King Richard III and Henry VII, but came undone in Henry VIII's reign.
What happened to George Neville?
Find out a bit more about him in this edition of #TudorHistoryShorts from historian Claire Ridgway. You can see this podcast as a video at the following link:https://youtu.be/jyhRndYFyis

31 May - Lady Margaret Beaufort

On this day in Tudor history, 31st May 1443, Lady Margaret Beaufort, the woman known as the matriarch of the Tudor dynasty, was born.
 
Find out a few facts about her in this #TudorHistoryShorts from historian Claire Ridgway.
 
Here's a link to a more detailed video on her - https://youtu.be/RGbjeIrxtKc

20 Interesting Facts about Henry VII

Historian and author Claire Ridgway introduces us to the very first Tudor monarch, King Henry VII, with 20 interesting facts.
Henry VII does seem to be a neglected monarch, as many people find his son, Henry VIII, and his granddaughter, Elizabeth I, far more interesting, but he deserves some attention, don't you think? 
You can view this podcast as a video here:https://youtu.be/NpoqIccMH7M
Claire recommends the books Winter King by Thomas Penn and Henry VII and the Tudor Pretenders: Simnel, Warbeck, and Warwick by Nathem Amin.

21 April - A new king for England!

On this day in Tudor history, 21st April 1509, Henry VII died and his son came to the throne as Henry VIII.
 
What did the people think of this news?
 
In this #TudorHistoryShorts, historian Claire Ridgway shares two contemporary sources about Henry VIII's accession. You can see this podcast as a video at the following link:
https://youtu.be/00-OnueuwAg
 
Find out more about Henry VII's death and Henry VIII's accession in this more detailed video - https://youtu.be/ngAH2vn7l40

Plays with wonderful titles, Sir Ralph Sadler's busy life, and a dying king makes his will

In this first part of This Week in Tudor History for week beginning 29th March, historian Claire Ridgway talks about William Wager, a playwright and clergyman who picked wonderful titles for his works; the interesting life and career of Sir Ralph Sadler, who started out working for Thomas Cromwell and who went on to serve Henry VIII, Edward VI, Queen Jane (Lady Jane Grey) and Elizabeth I - oh, and Claire will tell us about his bigamous marriage! Then, finally, Claire will leave us with the dying King Henry VIII making his last will and testament.
 
29th March 1591 - The burial of playwright and Church of England clergyman, William Wager, at his church, St Benet Gracechurch. His plays included “Enough is as Good as a Feast” and “The Longer thou Livest the More Fool thou art”.
 
30th March 1587 - The death of diplomat and administrator, Sir Ralph Sadler, in his 80th year. He was laid to rest in St Mary’s Church, Standon.
 
31st March 1509 - The dying Henry VII made his last will and testament at Richmond Palace. He died three weeks later.
 
Sir Ralph Sadler's letters and speeches can be read at https://archive.org/details/statepaperslette01sadluoft/page/n3/mode/2up?view=theater
and https://archive.org/details/statepapers02sadl/page/n9/mode/2up?view=theater 
 
Other Tudor history events for these dates:
March 29 - As foul a lady as the smallpox could make her - https://youtu.be/OkBlboV2G8o
March 29 - Children encourage John Laurence at his sad end - https://youtu.be/ToYVgj9hQqI
March 30 - Thomas Cranmer and his protestation - https://youtu.be/P78Iz-2dLVA
March 30 - A "pregnant" Mary I makes her will - https://youtu.be/LWrcLR61Kbo
March 31 - John Donne, the bell tolls for thee - https://youtu.be/w7Gv5Dw8EJQ
March 31 - King Henry VIII as King Ahab, Anne Boleyn as Jezebel - https://youtu.be/fm1xJmzIyIA