Did everyone die young in medieval times? And were medieval people really as dirty as we think? Ahead of our 2020 Medieval Life and Death events, historian Hannah Skoda shares a dozen little-known facts about the Middle Ages… historyextra.com
Author: r3wa
Blood brothers: Richard III’s battle with his siblings
The three siblings Edward IV, George, Duke of Clarence and the future Richard III were meant to be on the same side in the Wars of the Roses. Yet the relationship between these heavyweights of the House of York was defined by jealousy, backstabbing and murder. Thomas Penn describes the great family rivalry that dogged the English throne in the later 15th century… historyextra.com
10 Facts About Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York
Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York, was one of the most significant figures of the 15th century. A man with close royal links, he was a giant of English politics who helped plunge his country into the bloody Wars of the Roses.
He was an able administrator and a charismatic commander with several powerful friends; yet his power, lineage, ambition and fame also ensured he gained some mighty enemies, holding deep-felt enmity that, ultimately, proved resolvable only by the sword. historyhit.com
Santa Claus’ finger bone in Battle Abbey’s medieval inventory
Santa Claus’ finger bone and a piece of the manger that served as Christ’s crib were among the relics gifted to an English monastery, a new analysis of a medieval manuscript has revealed.
Michael Carter, a historian at English Heritage, an organization that manages more than 400 historic buildings, found the objects listed on a 580-year-old inventory for Battle Abbey in Sussex, southeast England. msn.com
Eat Sh*t and (Don’t) Die
Sometimes, when we get sick, it can feel like we’d do anything to get better. But what if the remedy we needed required us to swallow animal dung?
The use of animal dung in medicine is not new to us, nor would it have been to people in the medieval world. It also wasn’t exclusive to Europe, and (believe it or not) using dung to solve our problems still hasn’t completely gone out of fashion. medievalists.net
Thousands of medieval manuscripts now online in full color through digitization project
From tattoos to video games to Game of Thrones, medieval iconography has long inspired fascination, imitation and veneration. Now, thousands of original medieval manuscript and early modern images are available for free online, for scholars and aficionados to search, download and study. phys.org
Divided Loyalties in the Medieval World
To whom should one pledge fealty? Lord, king, brother or nation?
Jo Johnson, the younger brother of the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, recently blamed divided loyalties for his resignation as Cabinet minister and MP. Citing ‘unresolvable tension’ between family loyalty and the national interest, he found the time had come to quit his governmental roles. David Gauke, one of those to have recently lost the Conservative Party whip, admitted that many MPs have had to ‘wrestle with conflicting loyalties’ in the past few months, as Brexit rips a hole through traditional ties of party and family. historytoday.com
9 medieval battles more significant than Agincourt
It is more than 600 years since Henry V led England to victory at the battle of Agincourt on 25 October 1415, defeating a French army significantly bigger than his own. But despite deservedly being one of the most famous battles of the Middle Ages, Agincourt is not necessarily one of the most significant of the era, argues medieval warfare expert Dr Sean McGlynn. Here are 9 important medieval battles, from the battle of Hastings in 1066 to the battle of Bosworth in 1485… historyextra.com
Medieval Death Bot is posting how people in medieval England died and it’s fascinating
Medieval Death Bot AKA @DeathMedieval posts “real deaths from medieval coroner’s rolls” and it’s the most compelling, oddest and sorta funniest thing we’ve read today.
Here’s 25 of the best deaths of olden times! thepoke.co.uk
8 things you (probably) didn’t know about the Woodvilles
In 1464, England’s most eligible bachelor, King Edward IV, shocked the nation by announcing that he had taken a bride: Elizabeth Woodville, an impoverished widow with two young sons. The match brought his queen’s family into the thick of the Wars of the Roses… historyextra.com
Richard III Society 