Renaissance English History Podcast: A Show About The Tudors

He was handsome, ambitious, and despised... accused of being Queen Margaret’s lover and blamed for losing England’s empire in France. When Edmund Beaufort fell at St. Albans, the prophecy of his death came true, and England tumbled into civil war. Sources: The Reign of King Henry VI by Ralph Griffiths AJ Pollard - The Wars of the Roses Tudor London Halloween Walk: https://www.englandcast.com/haunted-tudor-london-walk/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Tudor England, potions promised power, whether to spark desire or to silence rivals. In this spooky Halloween Spooky Week minicast, we’re diving into real Tudor recipes for love and poison, pulled straight from 16th-century sources like The Good Huswifes Jewell and early herbals. Here's the link to the Haunted Tudor London halloween tour: https://www.englandcast.com/haunted-tudor-london-walk/ Sources: https://carolcmcgrath.co.uk/aphrodisiacs-in-tudor-times/ https://www.historyanswers.co.uk/medieval-renaissance/mandrake-menstrual-blood-10-medieval-love-potion-recipes-and-ingredients https://distillatio.wordpress.com/2013/12/16/medieval-poisons-for-killing-animals-and-people/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re kicking off spooky week with a talk from Tudorcon 2024! Victoria Thompson takes us deep into the haunted landscape of East Anglia; a place of ghostly monks, witchcraft, and eerie folklore that has lingered since the Tudor period. Hear stories of drowned towns, spectral hounds, and strange rituals hidden inside old Suffolk homes. It’s the perfect start to a week filled with Tudor hauntings and supernatural tales. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elizabeth Sydenham was the Somerset heiress who married Sir Francis Drake, but only after a meteor crashed through the roof of the church on her first wedding day. That fiery omen ended her engagement and changed her fate. This is the story of the woman who became Lady Drake and then vanished from history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A countess, a court favorite, and a corpse in the Tower. Frances Howard and Robert Carr’s forbidden love became England’s first celebrity crime, complete with potions, poison, and accusations of witchcraft. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They served every Tudor monarch, and often paid dearly for it. From their medieval stronghold at Dudley Castle to the heart of the Tudor court, the Dudley family shaped English history for five hundred years. They raised money for Henry VII, ruled the realm under Edward VI, tried to make Lady Jane Grey queen, and stood beside Elizabeth I as she faced the Spanish Armada. This episode traces their meteoric rise and tragic fall from Edmund Dudley’s execution, to John Dudley’s failed gamble for the crown, to Robert Dudley’s service to Elizabeth, and finally to exile in Florence, where the last of the line became a scientist and mapmaker. Sources mentioned: House of Dudley by Joanna Paul: https://www.amazon.com/House-Dudley-History-Tudor-England/dp/1639363289 Dudley Family History on Internet Archive https://ia601608.us.archive.org/29/items/historyofdudleyf115dudl/historyofdudleyf115dudl.pdf Support the show and unlock exclusive Tudor deep dives at patreon.com/englandcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy f

In 1318, a Yorkshire nun named Joan of Leeds faked her own death to escape convent life, crafting a dummy, staging a burial, and vanishing into the wider world. Her story survives only in a scathing letter from Archbishop William Melton, recently translated by historians at the University of York. This minicast explores Joan’s daring plan, why medieval women entered convents, and what her brief rebellion reveals about life, faith, and freedom in 14th-century England. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1337, priest John Forde was murdered on London’s Cheapside in full view of witnesses. Modern research links the killing to Lady Ela Fitzpayne — a noblewoman, excommunicated rebel, and Forde’s alleged former lover. Witnesses named her own brother as the attacker… yet no one was punished. This is medieval true crime with all the politics, scandal, and power plays intact. Read the full article and get sources... https://www.englandcast.com/a-medieval-murder-mystery-sex-scandal-and-a-throat-slit-on-a-london-street/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nan Cobham appears just once in the historical record, as one of the women who accused Anne Boleyn in 1536...and then disappears without a trace. In this minicast, we look at the theories around her identity and how a single, almost-forgotten figure may have helped bring down a queen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1587, a man calling himself Arthur Dudley arrived in Spain and declared that he was the secret son of Queen Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley. Spanish officials called him a spy. He claimed he was a prince. This video looked at his story, the timing of Elizabeth’s mysterious illness in 1561, the ambassador gossip, and what historians actually say about the case today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the early years of Elizabeth I’s reign, the throne was anything but secure. With no husband and no children, three names rose as potential heirs: Lady Katherine Grey, legal heir by Henry VIII’s will; Henry Hastings, the Protestant council’s quiet favorite; and Mary, Queen of Scots, the dynastic threat watched by all of Europe. This episode looks at the rivals Elizabeth refused to name, and how each of them waited for a crown that never came. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s episode is something a little different: a cozy Hallmark-style Tudor romance set at Michaelmas, complete with cinnamon, parish gossip, and a blacksmith who broods in a historically accurate forge. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this minicast, we’re diving into Tudor justice: the wild world of public punishments that doubled as community entertainment. From “respectable” noble penalties to crowd-pleasing shaming devices, the Tudors turned law enforcement into a full-on spectacle. We’re keeping it light and curious, exploring how things like ducking stools, gossip-bridles, and dramatic final speeches became part of everyday life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mary of Hungary was more than just a Habsburg princess. She ruled Hungary as regent and governed the Netherlands on behalf of her brother, Emperor Charles V. As cousin to Mary Tudor, she sat just outside the Tudor story but still held enough power that Henry VIII had to acknowledge her. This minicast looks at how she ended up in that position, and why even Henry couldn’t ignore her. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In October 1562, 29-year-old Queen Elizabeth I fell seriously ill with smallpox at Hampton Court Palace, and for a few terrifying days, it looked like England might lose its queen. With no clear heir to the throne, panic swept through the Tudor court. In this minicast, we’ll look at what happened during Elizabeth’s illness, how her ladies risked their own lives to care for her, and one of the few times when even the indomitable Elizabeth Tudor seemed mortal. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Taylor Swift’s new album references “the fate of Ophelia”, but who was Ophelia, and why does her story still matter? In this episode, we look at Shakespeare’s tragic heroine, her fate in Hamlet, and what her story shows us about women’s lives in Elizabethan England. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rosamund Clifford (“Fair Rosamund”) was Henry II’s mistress, remembered more in legend than in fact. This episode traces her real story, the myths of labyrinths and poison that grew after her death, and how the Tudors revived her as a tragic heroine in chronicles, poems, and ballads. From Holinshed to Samuel Daniel, and from her Godstow tomb to Elizabethan nostalgia, Rosamund became one of England’s most enduring romantic legends. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imperial ambassador Eustace Chapuys spent nearly two decades at Henry VIII’s court, recording the gossip, arguments, and scandals that defined the Tudor age. Fiercely loyal to Catherine of Aragon and Princess Mary, and famously hostile to Anne Boleyn, his letters give us some of the most vivid snapshots of Henry’s reign. Plus, a Tudorcon recap (the first of what will be many, I'm sure!) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Parr family rose from Kendal gentry to the heart of the Tudor court, producing Henry VIII’s last queen, Catherine Parr. This episode follows their story from northern service and Wars of the Roses loyalties to Catherine’s queenship, William Parr’s turbulent career, and Anne Parr’s link to the powerful Herbert-Sidney circle. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tudor England was full of dangers, and some deaths were downright bizarre. From accidents with oxen and brewing vats to poisoned mushrooms and infamous executions, these unusual stories reveal the strange and unpredictable side of Tudor life. Order or preorder the book here: https://www.amazon.com/Strange-Ways-Die-Tudor-Ages/dp/1036108732/ Tudorcon From Home tickets here: https://www.englandcast.com/TudorconFromHome Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices