Claire | July 17, 2021
Mary I was the daughter of King Henry VIII and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and she was Queen of England from July 1553 to November 1558, but how much do you know about her? In this latest edition of my “facts about…” series, I share 21 interesting facts about Mary I. Find out […]
Claire | November 17, 2017
On this day in history, 17th November 1558, Queen Mary I, Henry VIII’s eldest daughter, died at St James’s Palace at the age of forty-two. Mary had named her half-sister, twenty-five-year-old Elizabeth, as her heir and members of Mary’s council rushed to Hatfield to give the new queen the news of Mary’s death. On hearing […]
Claire | May 26, 2017
On this day in history, Friday 26th May 1536, exactly a week after the execution of Queen Anne Boleyn, her stepmother, Henry VIII’s eldest daughter, the Lady Mary, wrote to Thomas Cromwell. Mary wanted Cromwell, the king’s right-hand man, to intercede with her father on her behalf and she wanted permission to write to the […]
Claire | March 30, 2017
Mary I is one of those historical figures that divides opinions, with some people viewing her as nothing more than Bloody Mary and others seeking to rehabilitate her image. It’s hard to do her justice in a short time, but I hope that my 60-second history serves as an introduction to her, to pique viewers’ […]
Claire | February 20, 2017
With it having been the anniversary of the birth of Queen Mary I on 18th February, there have been lots of discussions on blogs and social media regarding Mary, her reign and also her accession. Mary I became queen on 19th July 1553 after she successfully deposed her first cousin once removed, Lady Jane Grey, […]
Claire | February 20, 2017
Two important Tudor “on this day in history” events took place on 20th February. On 20th February 1516, two-day-old Princess Mary, daughter of King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, was baptised at the Church of the Observant Friars, Greenwich. On 20th February 1516, two-day-old Princess Mary, daughter of King Henry VIII and Catherine of […]
Claire | February 18, 2017
Thank you to historian and author Conor Byrne for writing this article to commemorate the anniversary of Mary I’s birth on this day in 1516. Mary, daughter of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon, was born at Greenwich Palace on 18 February 1516. Last year marked the five hundredth anniversary of her birth, and a […]
Claire | October 1, 2016
On this day in history, 1st October 1553, Mary I, daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, was crowned queen at Westminster Abbey by Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester. Here are links to some articles I wrote for the Tudor Society on the lead-up to Mary’s coronation in 1553: Mary I’s Coronation Part 1 […]
