I always seem to be writing Friday Round Ups – is time flying or is it just me?! So, what’s been going on at the Anne Boleyn Files this week?
- Christmas orders have been flooding in – Well done to those of you who are so organised! Due to the fact that the majority of items are handmade, standard international orders for Daniela’s jewelry items have to be in by tonight to ensure that you get them in time. We also offer priority and express services though so don’t worry. See our Christmas Ordering Deadlines for futher details.
- New jewelry – See the slideshow at the end of this post to see the new items which have been added to our ranges, these include a necklace and earrings for the Mary Rose range where all profits go to the Mary Rose 500 Appeal.
- Sir William Brereton Part 2 – This week I completed my look at the life of Sir William Brereton and how he got caught up in the coup against Anne Boleyn. I found him a fascinating character to lresearch as he had a rather shady past.
- “The Early Loves of Anne Boleyn” by Josephine Wilkinson – I have chosen this book as our November Book of the Month because it is the latest Anne Boleyn book out, having been released just after Alison Weir’s “The Lady in the Tower”. It’s a fascinating look into the men who Anne was linked to – James Butler, Henry Percy, Thomas Wyatt and, of course, Henry VIII, and I enjoyed finding out more about these men. The book also goes into detail on Anne’s life abroad, with the Archduchess Margaret and Queen Claude. Click here to read my review.
- The Elizabeth Files – Over at the Elizabeth Files, there have been lots of comments coming in on last week’s post on whether Elizabeth was genetically male – see “Elizabeth I: A Virago, Genetically Male or Simply a Strong Woman” – and this week I have written about another Elizabeth myth, whether Elizabeth and Robert Dudley had an illegitimate son called Arthur Dudley. I love conspiracy theories! I have also just added a forum to the Elizabeth Files and users of the forum here should be able to just log into it without having to register all over again.
- Christmas Presents – Obviously we have some great products here on the Anne Boleyn Files for Christmas presents (check out our Products Page to see everything we have to offer) but the Royal Mint wrote to me this week about how their special coins can make the perfect Christmas gift. They say:
“Coins and Christmas have long been linked, whether it’s through the tradition of placing a silver sixpence in a Christmas Pudding or the legend of St Nicholas dropping gold coins down the chimney and into waiting Christmas stockings. This Yuletide, give loved ones a Christmas present to cherish with a traditional gift of money from the Royal Mint.
From commemorative coins celebrating great moments in British history to medallions honouring some of today’s most popular icons, the Royal Mint’s beautifully crafted gifts make the perfect keepsakes to be treasured for year’s to come. For Christmas, for everyone, forever.”
For Tudor history fans, the Royal Mint have the 2009 Henry VIII £5 Coin Pack, priced at £9.99, which celebrates the 500th anniversary of Henry VIII’s accession to the throne and comes in a lovely presentation pack (see photo accompanying this post). See the Royal Mint website for this coin and other Christmas gift ideas. - History Quiz – Give your brains a Friday workout with the weekly BBC History Magazine Quiz. I got 4/7, not too bad!!
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P.S. Sorry about the Christmas Henry and Anne!!
Claire, I absolutely love the Christmas ball hangin from Henry’s hat! You slay me! or should I say Sleigh (BAD JOKE)?
XOXOX-Gina
Haha you mean “you’re welcome for the Christmas Henry and Anne”
Very cute Claire, love the festive Henry and Anne!
I was lucky enough to spend a few days in my favorite city, London on a trip to Italy. I went to see the Anne Boleyn cup at the Cirencester Parish Church. There are not any trains into the Cirencester but you can take a coach out of Victoria Coach Station. It is a nice ride and the curch is just a short walk from where the coach drop is. Besides the cup, it is an interesting church. It is worth the trip.
Another thing, I did, was to visit The Tower and pay my respects to our Anne. When, I was on Tower Green, I was listening to one of the yeoman warders talk about Anne and her execution. He seemed to find it funny to say that after her beheading her eyes and lips kept moving. “Just like all women”. The statement got a laugh from his audience. I did NOT and do not find ANYTHING funny about this tradgedy. I have heard the statement before, about her eyes and lips moving, after her execution. But ,if it is true, that Anne was blindfolded before her execution, how could anyone have seen her eyes still moving?
I just felt so defensive on her behalf.
Oh, I forgot to tell everyone, about a most interesting book, I read on my trip. It is called The Other Tudors by Philippa Jones. It is a good read about ” Henry VIII’s mistresses and bastards..
Don’t apologise Claire, i love the festive Henry and Anne, i giggled rather too loudly atthe bauble thing dangling from Herny’s hat particularly, very nice touch!
I’m glad that you like the festive touch!
Anne’s fan, I don’t want to get on my soap box or “high horse” but I do feel remarks like that are very disrespectful. I can understand making jokes about myths and legends but Anne was a real person who was framed for something that she did not do. I know that she is in Heaven and has better things to do than listen in to what people are saying about her, but I do feel that the yeoman warder was being very rude and disrespectful of her memory. I don’t blame you for feeling defensive!
I’m not sure that she was blindfolded at execution, I haven’t read that she was.
A primary source does say that after Anne had finished her scaffold speech one of her ladies bound her eyes, which confirms ‘Anne’s fans’ scepticism in what she was told in the Tower by the Beefeater who gave the tour. The Beefeaters can be rather naughty in their dialogue, presumably out of boredom. When I was there in June the Beefeater who gave the tour I was on tried to convince me that George Boleyn’s real name was John and that Anne was a red head who dyed her hair black. My view is that the Beefeaters have the honour of representing the great historical wealth of this country. If they are bored in doing this then rather than make things up; get another job!
Actually, you’re right, one source does say that she was blindfolded by one of her ladies but The Spanish Chronicle (which is a bit hit and miss and tends to rely on rumour) said that Anne refused a blindfold. Alison Weir in “The Lady in the Tower” writes of one witness’s report (Sir John Spelman) saying that as Anne’s head fell to the ground he saw “her lips moving and her eyes moving”, so actually the yeoman warder was only repeating one eye witness account, although adding his own distasteful joke to it. I think the yeoman warders do like to add a bit to the story to make it more “gory” for tourists but I actually think that the story is horrible enough as it is.