a Guest post by Ian Robertson, MA. Why is the Royal Navy of the late 18th and early 19th Centuries referred to as ‘Nelson’s Navy’? As is so often the case, the simplest of answers is the right one. England had been at war, on and off, during this period and if a war is going to maintain… Continue reading NELSON’S NAVY
The Cromwell Enigma by Derek Wilson, published by MaryleboneHouse. When it comes to Thomas Cromwell (1485 – 1540), what more of an enigma can there be than the paucity of detail for the years he spent abroad prior to becoming the indispensable secretary to Cardinal Wolsey and then the man who administered the affairs of… Continue reading The Cromwell Enigma – A Review
Just over twelve months ago I posted a short article on a painting held in a private collection. The owner describes his painting as ‘A unique, mysterious, unrecognised, unidentified painting’. The owner has a dedicated website (a link is in the footnote)[i] in the hope that someone will identify the subject matter, artistic attribution and provenance. … Continue reading Solve the puzzle of this 16th c painting for a £5,000 reward! An update.
For those not familiar with the genre of the portrait miniature, let us first consider why and when these portraits became popular in England, and the various artists creating these images for the Tudor court. The half millennium saw a marked change from the religious themes of the medieval period to secular subjects inspired by… Continue reading The origins of the Tudor portrait miniature
Gill Whitlock’s story, "What Fools!" , demonstrates just how examining an original will can inspire writers to delve deeper into the life of the testator. Gill isn’t the first to see the possibility that Shakespeare’s daughter may have had a hand in creating some of the early Shakespeare plays, but she is the first (as far… Continue reading The Importance of Wills and Other Original Documents.
