England in 1485 was at once a deeply traditional medieval society – and yet poised at the edge of change – economic, social, religious and political Read More
Britain
190 Good King Richard?
Part of the story to counter the propaganda of the Tudors is the view that Richard promised to be an exceptionally good ruler. The brevity of Richard's reign make an assessment difficultRead More
164 Madness
In 1452 and 1453 Henry enjoyed a brief spell where he was on top of his job after the events at Dartford. But fate had something in mind. 164 MadnessRead More
107 The Death of Joan
In 1348 a 14 year old royal princess, Joan, set out from Portsmouth to marry Pedro of Castile. Her route went by Bordeaux, and with the massive trousseau she carriedRead More
102 Highs and Lows
In 1340 against all the odds – of numbers and quality – Edward defeated Philip VIth's Great Army of the Sea at Sluys. The impact on morale, English and FrenchRead More
101 King of France and England
Edward faced a weary time, a weary time. His allies demanded money, he had none to give them. So they refused to fight, while the French closed in on GasconyRead More
66 The Road to Revolution
In 1258, the resentments all came together and the pot boiled over. The pope Alexander did his vassal no favours what so ever by pushing so hard that Henry hadRead More
64 The Personal Reign of Henry III – Part 1
Henry III brushed off his great officers of state and the period of 1234 to 1258 is a period of personal rule. Henry finds himself a wife, a new personalRead More
63 The Last Great Justiciar
From 1227 to 1234 we are sort of in betweeners – the minority has ended, but Henry's government in still dominated by the old guard, people like Hubert de Burgh.Read More
59 Magna Carta and the Death of a Tyrant
Bouvines wasn't the cause of the Baronial revolt, but it probably was John's last chance to avoid it. In 1215 at Runymede Magna Carta was signed. It's extremely unlikely thatRead More
57 The Excommunicate
John took a detailed interest in administration, and made effective changes to the way things worked. Partly his interest was motivated by the need to raise money – as inflationRead More
45 Packing the Bags
Richard came into the lands of his father and was crowned at Westminster in 1189. For the next 6 months he was packing his bags, cleaning the fridge and gettingRead More
43 The Greatest of all Monarchs
In 1173-4 Henry was faced by a revolt by his wife, children and many of his leading barons. 1183 to his death in 1189 were years where Henry was increasingly besetRead More
40 Bishop Trouble
The 1160's. A time of consolidation of the Angevin Empire, still ruled by a dynamic, young and aggressive Henry. But mainly remembered for the start of the struggle between churchRead More
25 Death of a Conqueror
The last years of William the Conqueror’s reign were mainly the meat and drink of the Norman King – beating off other feudal lords, keeping your nobles down, trying notRead More