June 19th Remembering Piers Gaveston

 This day, of course, marks the anniversary of Piers Gaveston.  I’ve really neglected this blog this year.  Not because of a wane in my interest, but because there has been a lot going on, and there is nothing new to add.  Kathryn Warner’s excellent blog on Edward II contains everything you need to know about Piers Gaveston.  But I couldn’t let this day pass without remembering Piers and what happened to him.  RIP Piers Gaveston.  

Monument to Piers Gaveston, Blacklow Hill, Leek Wootton.

 

Christmas at Chatsworth House - with actual snow!

 

November 1307 marriage of Piers Gaveston and Margaret de Clare.

November 1st 1307 was the anniversary of the wedding between Piers Gaveston and Margaret de Clare, niece of Edward II.  Margaret was the second daughter of Gilbert de Clare and the daughter of Edward 1st, Joan of Acre.  She had 2 other sisters, and her elder sister Eleanor was married to Hugh Despencer, and at this time, there was no attachment  between Edward II and Despencer. This was Edward's way of bringing Piers into the Royal family.   The Vita Edwardi Secundi says it was Edward's aim to 'strengthen Piers and surround him with friends '.   At the time of her marriage , Margaret was only 14, and would have had very little say in the marriage.   Margaret’s thoughts on her marriage are not recorded, but she may well have been pleased with her Uncle’s choice.  Chroniclers describe Piers as elegant and graceful.  Edward 1st was said to have chosen Piers as an ideal role model for his son , with a chivalrous attitude and impeccable manners.  The marriage would have given her access to the king and with her husband created an Earl, Margaret would have been made Countess of Cornwall.  The marriage took place at Berkhamsted Castle, and the King and some of the nobles attended.  The couple were given jewels and the king arranged for almost £8 in pennies to be thrown over the happy couple.   There was a lavish celebration and afterwards, a tournament was held at Wallingford at which Piers and his knights excelled.  It was an excellent match for Margaret, and whatever her feelings, she would have done her duty.

The tomb of Sir Thomas Boleyn

I've visited Hever Castle, the ancestral home of the Boleyn family, several times, but I've never had the

time to visit the family church, St Peter's.   It's here the Boleyn family would have worshipped, including of course, Anne Boleyn, future Queen of England and mother of Elizabeth 1st.  Finally managed to make time to visit it this summer.  What a beautiful church it is, and walking through the entrance, it gave me a real feeling of walking in the footsteps of the young Anne Boleyn.  Inside is the tomb of Anne's father, Sir Thomas Boleyn.  Sir Thomas, who has, in my opinion, often been unfairly portrayed in books and certain television series, one in particular, survived the fall of his brilliant children, Anne and George.  I don't subscribe to the view that he engineered the rise of both his daughters, putting Mary in Henry VIII's bed and Anne on the throne.  He undoubtedly was ambitious - as were many Tudor courtiers, but he could not have known that Henry would become so infatuated with Anne he would break with Rome, destroy his first wife, and marry her.  As for Mary, Thomas did not need to rely on Mary to elevate his status.  He was a brilliant linguist and superb ambassador to Henry VIII.  He had secured places at various courts for all his children, and Henry was known to discard his mistresses without sentiment or rewards.  Mary hardly made a fine match.  As for Anne, I firmly believe she was in charge of her own destiny.  What I do find hard is Thomas, despite the loss of his children and being stripped of his title Earl of Wiltshire, continued to serve Henry as best he could, even attending the christening of Henry's son Edward.  He must have been a broken man, although he had his daughter Mary, whom he considered a disgrace after her second marriage, and grandchildren.  Surely best to just stay on his estate at Hever and avoid court, and attempt some sort of reconciliation with Mary.  We'll never know how he felt, or see into the mind of a Tudor statesman.   What is telling is that when his wife, Elizabeth Boleyn, died, she chose to be buried at Lambeth, with her Howard family.  So Sir Thomas has no family resting with him at St Peter's (although there is some evidence the Boleyns had more children who did not survive infancy and may be buried in the church).  Anne and George of course had no choice - they are buried within the walls of St Peter ad Vincula, the chapel in the Tower of London.  The resting place of Mary Boleyn is unknown.

The inscription and brass of the tomb of Sir Thomas Boleyn.

The entrance to St Peter's Church.

The sign outside the church, announcing the grandfather of Queen Elizabeth 1st rests within.

 

More from the Six Lives exhibition

The Anne Boleyn Psalter - this passage was written by Anne Boleyn.  Her signature was later cut from the book.

Portrait of Katherine Parr, from a private collector.

Miniature of Anne of Cleves, painted by Hans Holbein.

Miniature of Catherine Howard.

Letter written by CatherHoward to Thomas Culpepper.

 

Tudors, Tudors, everywhere.

 I think everyone with an interest in history knows the Tudors are top of the tree.  So many books, articles and tv dramas or documentaries.  This year there has been an exhibition of the work of the artist Hans Holbein, Henry VIII’s painter.  At the present time, the National Portrait Gallery has an exhibition called Six Lives - the stories of the six wives.  I’ve been to both.  The Holbein exhibition was outstanding, to see the originals of Holbein’s sketches was amazing.  However, I don’t feel quite the same about Six Lives.

Six Lives costs £21 plus a donation to the NPG.   Highlights for me were the small charm whistle and cosmetic attachments that Henry VIII was said to have given Anne Boleyn, the original bronze medal of Anne Boleyn from 1534, and documents from the National Archives.   These had been borrowed from other museums, and there were other items borrowed from colleges and a few from private collectors.  The vast majority of the portraits, however, were from the NPG’s own collection, which you can usually see for free whenever you want.   That’s the issue for me - £21 is an awful lot of money to pay for most of the exhibition you can see for free.   The exhibition runs until September 8th.  If you can’t visit then, or are put off by the price, just remember you can see most of the portraits for free at the NPG.

Below, miniature charm given to Anne Boleyn

 

Medal of Anne Boleyn 1534