by Heather R. Darsie Henry VIII is generally viewed as a Lothario during his marriages to Katharine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. During his lifetime, he fathered at least six children with Katharine of Aragon, two or possibly three with Anne Boleyn, one with Jane Seymour, and possibly an additional six illegitimate children. All of Henry’s children were born in or before 1537. Henry’s first … Continue reading Henry VIII: How Many Children did He Have?
by Heather R. Darsie Prior to Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon, the Catholic Monarchs, finally removing the last Islamic presence from the Kingdom of Granada, there was a considerable Islamic and Jewish presence that lasted over 700 hundred years. Isabella of Castile by Juan de Flandes, c. 1500-1504 The Muslims first came to Spain during the Umayyad conquest of Hispania around the year … Continue reading Convivencia in Katharine of Aragon’s Spain
by Heather R. Darsie On 6 April 1453, Sultan Mehmed II, known as the Conqueror, began his siege against Constantinople. Constantinople, now known as Istanbul, was a capital city for one governmental body or another since 330 CE. Founded by the Roman emperor Constantine the Great, a city stood on this spot off and on for centuries before. Constantine transferred the imperial Roman seat of … Continue reading Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Turks? Part II: The Fall of Constantinople
by Heather R. Darsie This series of articles is dedicated to my father, Burns Darsie III, born in June 1943 and deceased on Good Friday 2020. Due to the pandemic, we are unable to have a proper funeral. I chose to write about my father’s favorite historical figure, Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson. We had the pleasure of going on a Nelson-themed tour around England in … Continue reading Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson: Part I
by Heather R. Darsie After Anne Boleyn had her coronation, she was assigned her own court and officers. Per her chaplain William Latymer, she gave two speeches to her court. The first was to her temporal officers, and the second to her spiritual advisers. The accuracy of these speeches is in no way verifiable, as William Latymer’s work was written during the reign of Elizabeth … Continue reading Anne Boleyn Speaks to Her Court, 1533
by Heather R. Darsie Arthur Plantagenet was born in the late 1460’s in English-held Calais. He was the illegitimate son of King Edward IV o England. His mother’s identity is unknown. Up until Edward IV’s death in 1483, Arthur was raised at court. It is not known how his teenage years were spent after Edward’s death and during the reigns of Richard III or Henry … Continue reading Arthur Plantagenet, Viscount Lisle
By late February 1540, it was already obvious to Henry VIII that the political situation between Anna of Cleves brother, the young Duke Wilhelm, and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V was serious. Most members of Anna’s German party who came with her across Imperial and French territory to England had left for the United Duchies of Juelich-Cleves-Berg. Henry faced the very real concern that his … Continue reading The First Cracks in Anna of Cleves’ Marriage to Henry VIII
On 6 February 1539, Anna of Cleves’ father Johann III von der Mark, Duke of the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg died from an illness. He tuned 48 years old the November before. It was erroneously reported at Henry VIII’s court that it was Wilhelm, who was still only 22 years old, had died. Johann’s death allowed Wilhelm to pursue his clever-but-reckless political agenda, which included … Continue reading Death of Johann III of Cleves and Ascension of Wilhelm V: Anna of Cleves’ Future Changes
by Heather R. Darsie** Attempts at providing poor relief increased in the late 16th century. Some of the more overt changes happened in Elizabethan England, and in the Netherlands and Germany. This is in part due to religious changes. In this essay, trends in charitable giving and social changes in poor relief due to the Reformation in England, Germany, and the Netherlands are explored. Poverty … Continue reading Poor Relief in Reformation England, Germany, and the Netherlands
by Heather R. Darsie The year 1519 was a year of massive changes, important births, and important deaths in Western Europe. Some of these impacted Henry VIII’s reign, whilst others did not come meaningfully into play until the reigns of Henry’s daughters. Henry VIII turned 28 years old in 1519, and was still young-minded. Births and Deaths Maximilian I von Habsburg, Holy Roman Emperor, died … Continue reading 1519: A Tudor Year in Review
