Mary, Queen of Scots was perhaps never happier than during the time spent in France. Initially, as a child, she was adored, both by her father-in-law, the King of France, Henri II, and later by her young husband, Francois. Tragically he died, aged 16, just 17 months after becoming King of France in 1560. A …
On the anniversary of the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots at Fotheringhay Castle on 8 February 1587, we wind back the clock to the dramatic events which preceded Mary’s flight from Scotland and, in particular, focus on the place in which she was first imprisoned after her surrender at the Battle of Carberry Hill, …
Outside, a fierce winter terrorises the landscape. Scotland and the north of England lie covered by a deep blanket of snow, making the roads connecting the two neighbouring countries nigh on impassable. From time-to-time, hoarfrosts cast their magic across the countryside, leaving every twig and blade of grass glistening like a carpet of flawless diamonds …
In the early hours of the morning, on 25 January 1533, the slight figure of a woman made her way by flickering torchlight along the King’s Privy Gallery at Whitehall. Outside the window, blackness enshrouded the privy gardens below. She heard the night owl screech out its territorial cry, penetrating the stillness of the icy, …
Inside an incongruous parish church, in the small Suffolk town of Framlingham, lie some of the most magnificent Tudor tombs you are likely to see anywhere. Although unfinished, they are glorious and contain the remains of some of the most important figures in Tudor history, including Thomas Howard, third Duke of Norfolk; his son, Henry …