One of the focal points of Christmas is what is on tv at this time of year. Often we know what is going to be on at this time of year - soaps, dramas, a disney film or two, and Christmas films you've probably seen about a million times. However, this year there is a number of historical tv themed shows which you can watch instead. Which is refreshing. Let us look at some of the historical shows you can watch this Christmas! Lucy Worsley's - Six Wives Lucy Worsley in Lucy Worsley's Six Wives looks at the six wives of Tudor king, Henry the VIII. The first two episodes have already been aired. If you haven't watched them yet, you can watch them on BBC iPlayer. The Six Wives follows the stories of all of Henry's wives; Catherine of Aragon, Anne Bolyen, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleeves, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr. The documentaries tell a unique tale on the wives of Henry the VIII. And tell the story more from their point of view. Vienna Empire, Dynasy and Dream Vienna Empire, Dynasty and Dream looks at the history of Vienna. Mainly the history of the 19th and 20th centuries. Vienna might be a small place, but it has a lot of heart, which has lead it to having a profound effect on modern history. We get to look at many influential historical European figures in this documentary. Including; Hitler, Stalin, Bismark and the Russian Tsars. You can catch it on BBC Four or BBC iPlayer. Victorian Bakers Victorian Bakers is on at Christmas Day on BBC Two. The show centers around how Victorians celebrated Christmas. How we celebrate Christmas today, is largely thanks to the Victorians. The show will center around what Victorians ate for Christmas. They will divide it into what wealthy Victorian individuals ate. And what poor Victorian individuals ate.
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On the 16th of December, 1431, Henry VI of England was crowned King of France. This was not when Henry VI became King of France, it was the date of his coronation. Henry VI became King of France on the 22nd of October, 1422. And his reign ended on the 19th of October, 1453. It was shortly after Henry had lost France that he suffered a mental breakdown. However, it is also suggested that the king may also have been suffering from some other mental illness. The king had suffered a mental break down for just over a year. By the time of Christmas, 1454, King Henry VI had regained mental stability. He is not really remembered for his personal health, or his personal life. Which is contray to what his son, Henry VIII has became known for. Instead, Henry VI has became known for what you would expect a king to become known for - battles and warfare. This sums up Henry VIs reign as king perfectly. Henry VI is most known as a king who's reign was most dominated by the War of the Roses. Or, the One Hundred Years War, as it is also known. Henry VI died on the 21st of May, 1471. At the tender age of 49.
On the 10th of December, 1936, Edward VIII wrote a letter saying that he would abdicated the British thone. As a result, this triggered what is now known as the 'Abdication Crisis.'
The Abdication Crisis happened because Edward VIII fell in love with the American socialite Wallis Simpson. This event was scandelous at the time. Simpson was a divorcee, which meant that many were opposed to her as becoming Queen Consort. The opposition would mainly come from the British public, as stated by the then Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin. He was right, when the British public found out about the relationship, the British public detested he. But, Edward VIII also fell from grace. Edward essentially had to choose between love or the British thrown, he choose love. Which triggered the Abdication Crisis. Edward, along with his three brothers, George, Albert and Henry, her signed his abdication notice. The letter can be read below: The Instrument of Abdication by Edward VIII is short, simple and to the point. In it he simply states that he is abdicating the throne. And that he is abdicating it in front of witnesses - his three brothers. Intrestingly, Edward doesn't explain why he is abdicating the throne. He doesn't give any indication to the British public as to why he is abdicating the throne. Just that he is abdicating, and abdicating with immediate effect. The Kings abdication was read out in the House of Commons.
Both Thomas Culpepper and Francis Dereham were executed on this day, on the 10th of December, 1541, on command of King Henry VIII on the grounds that both of them had affairs with his wife, Queen Catherine Howard. Catherine Howard shared the same fate as her cousin before her, Anne Bolyen. Both women were executed on grounds that they had extramarital affairs, outside their marriage to Henry VIII. However, most historians think that while Anne Boleyn was innocent , and did not have extramarital affairs (though, it is still a constested subject). It is believed that Catherine Howard ws guilty of having extramarital affairs.
The picture below shows one of the letters that Catherine Howard sent to Thomas Culpepper. The letter begins with Catherine Howard saying how much she has missed Culpepper, and that she goes on to say that she can't wait to see him again. The letter then goes onto to describe how Lady Rochford (George Bolyens wife, Anne Bolyens sister-in-law), was instrumental in setting up meetings between Culpepper and Howard. It would be this evidence that would bring down Lady Rochford, see her literally losing her mind, and being executed for her part in the affair. It is unclear why Lady Rochford would risk her life to help Catherine. We will propably never know why Rochford orchistrated these meetings between Howard and Culpepper. Perhaps at this stage her mental health was already in decline. But, if she did hve a sound mind at the time, she would have known she was risk her life to help Howard, as she had seen both her husband and her sister-in-law executed on charges of having extramarital affairs. Rochford also would have known the temperment of the king. A king who was notorious for his mood swings and unpridictability. There was also people closer to King Henry VIII, such as Thomas Moore and Cromwell, who he had exeuted - he would therefore not think twice about executing someone more distant. Whether or not Rochford thought of all of these implications, we will never know. Suprisingly there is little historical evidence about her life. Although we can understand why Catherine Howard could be so naive, having been a teenager with little to no life experience, the same cannot be said for Rochford, who was either 36 or 37 at the time of her downfall. Not only should Rochford's age have made her known better, but, so should have her experience at court. Rochford had a lifetime of experience at court. She was present at court as far back as when Catherine of Aragon was queen. The executation of her husband meant she lost everything, and was banished from court. The situation hit Jane both socially and financially. It took up to a year for her to be accepted back into court. Lady Rochford was given another she, why she through it away we will never know.
Lady Rochford and Catherine of Howard were both executed on the same day. They were executed at the Tower of London on the 13th of February, 1542. They were executed almost two months after the executions of Dereham and Culpepper.
Both men were executed on the same day also. They executions took place on the 10th of December, 1541, at the Tower of London. After they were executed, their heads were put on display at Tower Bridge. Culpepper received a clemency from the king that Dereham did not - his execution was changed to a beheading, from being hung, drawn and quartered. Whereas Dereham was; hung, drawn and quartered. It's more unclear whether or not Dereham did actually have an affair with Catherine while she was queen. His guilt in the situation seems to have been before she was queen, were both he and Catherine were thought to have been lovers. Although Howard stated that she had an affair with Dereham, Dereham pleaded his innocence in the matter. It seems likely that Dereham was innocent. There was thought to have been a pre-marriage contract between Dereham and Howard before she was married to Henry, however, there doesn't seem to be any convincing evidence that Dereham done anything to the queen while she was married to Henry. Was Catherine vengeful or bitter at the break-off of their possible union? It seems possible. Reading her words she seems more eager to implement Dereham, than Culpepper. Not just eager, but that she wanted to bring Dereham down. As with the execution of Anne Boleyn, and the men accused of having an affair with her, the situation with Catherine Howard and the men accused with having an affair with her is open to discussion. Perhaps to a lesser extent with Catherine Howard. But, the full picture is still open to interpretation. Scientists from the University of Glasgow have reconstructed a skull which was found at Dunfermline Abbey. The skull was found at Dunfermline Abbey in 1818 during excavations at the sight in 1818. The skull that they found is thought to hve been of that of former king, Robert the Bruce. During a reconstruction of his face, the scientists at the University of Glasgow found that Robert the Bruce really did suffer from leoprasy. It has long been debated by historians whether or not Robert the Bruce did actually suffer from leoprasy. Leading it to be a contentious issues. However, if this is the skull of Robert the Bruce, then Robert the Bruce did suffer from leoprasy during his lifetime. The debate surrounding whether or not Robert had leoprasy is down to the fact that there are no historical sources which provide evidence that he did have leoprasy. This had led some historians calling the rumours a 'smear campaign.' While others say that if he did have leoprasy, he wouldn't have been able to hide it. While there is no direct evidence stating the king did have leoprasy, it is stated that he did have an illness. He was noted to have an illness, which was unclear until now. The illness that he had kept him from his kings duties during his reign. In Ultster 1327, it is said that his illness was so bad that he was very weak. So weak that he couldn't even use his tongue. This illness is probably what killed Robert the Bruce. |
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