The History of England Magazine
Every month we present new feature articles relating to the history of this green and pleasant land. From ancient battlefields to famous people, hangings to national celebrations, we’ve got something to interest everyone.
Boudica and The Slaughter at Camulodunum
Camulodunum (Colchester) was the capital of Roman Britain, and the site of the first battle of the Iceni rebellion, led by Boudica. What happened at Camulodunum deserves special mention as it was not simply a battle, but a systematic slaughter of every Roman who lived there…
The Mysticism and Madness of Margery Kempe
Margery Kempe must have cut quite a figure on the pilgrimage circuits of Medieval Europe: a married woman dressed in white, weeping incessantly, and holding court with some of the greatest religious figures of her time. She leaves her life story with us in “The Book”, often thought of as the oldest example of an autobiography in the English language.
The St Brice’s Day Massacre
The St Brice’s Day Massacre earned King Aethelred the nickname Aethelred the Unready (or ill advised), and took place on 13th November 1002. It resulted in widespread violence, upheaval and invasion…
The Yeomen of the Guard
The first part of the ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament takes place out of public sight, when the cellars beneath the Palace of Westminster are searched by the Yeomen of the Guard, resplendent in their Tudor-style uniforms…
Barbary Pirates and English Slaves
For over 300 years, the coastlines of the English Channel and south west of England were at the mercy of Barbary pirates. Men, women and children were kidnapped to be sold as slaves…
Catherine Parr or Anne of Cleves – the real survivor of Henry VIII
Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived; the tale of Henry VIII and his six wives. The rhyme suggests that his final wife, Catherine Parr was the survivor of the notorious womanizer, but is that really true? What of his fourth wife, his ‘belov’d sister’ Anne of Cleeves?….
A Good Death – An Early Modern Obsession
In Early Modern England, the deathbed was a spiritual drama, a battle for the dying individual’s soul between the forces of God and the demons of Satan. If the individual died well, peacefully, with family and priest, then salvation was assumed to be theirs. A bad death, alone or in agony or without a holy man’s sacrament, was to be avoided at all cost…
Samuel Pepys and His Diary
Samuel Pepys is best known for his diaries, written between 1660 and 1671, and his eyewitness accounts of major events such as the coronation of Charles II, the Great Fire of London and the Great Plague…
