The news cycle is fast, and it’s hard to keep up with our favorite interests and topics! That’s why once a week I make up this post with the top stories that have caught my attention.
How Unflattering Royal Portraits Could Break a Marriage Contract
Henry VIII would go to extremes in his search for a royal wife he found physically attractive. He sent the master painter Hans Holbein, known for his exquisite, realistic portraits to royal courts all over Europe.
https://www.history.com/news/how-portraiture-shaped-royal-marriages
How a woman from humble beginnings became one of the richest in Tudor England
Bess of Hardwick has been described as one of the richest women in England during Tudor times and a good friend of Queen Elizabeth I. She also had an obsession with building.
https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/derby-news/derbyshire-woman-one-richest-tudor-1563922
7 Images That Changed Royal History
Throughout history, royal families have carefully crafted their images, using artists and photographers to portray them in a majestic and iconic light. This includes the Portrait of Anne of Cleves.
https://www.history.com/news/7-royal-images-that-changed-history
When royals marry ‘commoners’: a brief history
Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville – During the Wars of the Roses, Elizabeth Woodville allegedly attracted Edward IV for the first time by waiting for him under an oak tree in Whittlebury Forest.
https://www.historyextra.com/period/medieval/when-royals-marry-commoners-a-brief-history/
The Beginner’s Guide to Shakespeare
So here’s the beginner’s guide to Shakespeare, running through 11 very different plays that cover the range of his style, characters, and technique.
https://www.backstage.com/backstage-guides/beginners-guide-shakespeare/
Notable arranged marriages throughout history
Mary Tudor’s marriage to Louis XII. As part of a peace treaty, Henry VIII used his sister Mary Tudor as a bargaining chip with France.
http://abc13.com/society/notable-arranged-marriages-throughout-history/3480153/
Royal wedding traditions through history: etiquette, menus and the dress code
History of royal wedding etiquette – from the guest list to the wedding gown, to the bedding ceremony.
https://www.historyextra.com/period/modern/royal-wedding-traditions-history-etiquette-menus-dress-code/
Places
Tudor Castle where Henry VIII went on Honeymoon with Anne Boleyn
The grand Thornbury Castle in South Gloucestershire, which is now England’s only Tudor castle hotel where guests can stay.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-5730693/Guests-stay-Englands-Tudor-castle-hotel-Henry-VIII-went-Anne-Boelyn.html
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Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast,  the original Tudor history podcast, started in 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. In 2019 she created Tudorcon, which is now a yearly event, in addition to writing books, and running TudorFair.com - a whimsical Tudor Merch shop. She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 20 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history.