sunnykerr

So it was Henry VIII. Kinda wish it wasn't.

fluffybunny

Henry VIII was so horrible. I hate what he did to a lot of our beautiful churches.

sunnykerr

The part that I don't get is that, unless I'm much mistaken, his father spent his reign being pretty frugal because the 100 Years Wars had just depleted the royal coffers. So Henry VII spent his life as king trying to bring money back in.

Then his son inherits that. Now, granted, he inherited that at age 18, when none of us is at our most rational, and he also waged a lot of wars, which is expensive...

But how the heck did he blow through all the money his father left? I know Henry VIII had one of the most lavish lifestyles in the history of Western monarchies (well, give or take Louis XIV) but still...

He didn't need to loot the monasteries and churches. Well, he shouldn't have needed to anyway.

Because it was all about the money for him. Henry VIII died a Catholic. He just created the Church of England because he wanted a divorce and the Pope wouldn't give him one.

Oliver Cromwell was the Protestant true believer there. Not Henry.

fluffybunny

Oops, I just had to change my post, as I accidentally referred to him as Henry VII instead of Henry VIII.

I'm very impressed with your knowledge of our Tudor history. I like watching historical documentaries on them, but because I have memory issues, I forget a lot of it.

I much prefer Henry VIII's daughter Elizabeth I, and I have an original coin of her. I don't want one of Henry VIII though. They are very expensive, but even if they were cheap, I wouldn't get one.

sunnykerr

No worries. I totally understood what you meant.

And I'm hardly one to point fingers here.

I was in my bed last night, when I thought back to this post and almost got up to fix it. It was the War of the Roses, not the 100 Years War.

I'm sorry for word vomitting all of that on you. I'm a huge history nerd, not an expert but a huge nerd. And, as you can imagine, the changes of talking about Tudor history are a bit thin on the ground around here.

It really helps that I have found many Tudor historians who write really, really well. Obviously the period was dramatic, but some historians could cure insomnia (I wish) with how boring they are. Way too acadamic and up their own backsides.

But there are historians who write in a way that is actually interesting. And for some reason, a lot of them enjoy the Tudor period.

fluffybunny

I must have been really tired, as I didn't notice the 100 Years War bit.

No need to apologise - it's all interesting. I don't read books anymore, so my knowledge is from the net and TV. We have some interesting history programmes, and Lucy Worsley is my favourite presenter, as well as being a historian, author and curator.


I thought I'd share a few pics of my back garden, because my gardener mowed the lawn on Thursday, and did some weeding and other stuff. I realised that the bushes and trees have completely covered the fence along the back of the garden.
My dad did loads of gardening, bless him, but I'm reliant on the gardener. We had lots of flowers when my dad was here. I only get the gardener when it gets a bit too wild. I mean, I love it wild, but there's a limit. The borders go back further than I can show on the photos, and the hedgehogs and birds love it. The little bowls at the left side are for the hedgehog's food and water.

Firecrest

Love the amazing trees and lawn!

sunnykerr

It's a gorgeous garden.

A wild garden is good for the wildlife, but when it get too wild it's not so good for neighbourly relations. It becomes necessary to mow the lawn then.

Not to mention, wilderness is good for the wildlife, but I would imagine they appreciate a cleanup every so often as well.

fluffybunny

Thanks Norman and Sunny.

The trees right at the back belong to the neighbours, including the apple tree on the right hand side. It has a parasitic plant all over it, but still yields lots of apples, many of which fall onto my side. Also, because of the plant which has grown on it, it is evergreen, so the birds can snuggle up in it all year round.

sunnykerr

I'd never heard of a parasitic plant turning a plant evergreen. Of course, our winters are much harsher here, so that's probably why. Anyway, that's awesome.

I meant to say, Lucy Worsley is one of those historians who is incredibly easy to read. I think presenting TV shows probably helped her with that... or that's just her natural talent.

fluffybunny

Yeah, I've never seen another tree like it. It looks really strange in winter. It's been that way for years, and I just hope it lasts for long time to come, as the birdies love it.

Oh yes, Lucy is great. I've recommended her TV programmes to my friend recently too.

Firecrest

Sure thing!

sunnykerr

Whatever magic makes that tree thrive in winter, may it continue for a long time.

Lucy is the queen, but she's not alone. Maybe not presenters, but there are women historians who are absolutely fantastic writers. There are also male historians who are good, but I've grown to question their blind spots. History's been written by men for too long. They tend to make assumptions women writers don't.

fluffybunny

I totally agree.

You've got a really good point about male historians. I'm so glad there are more female historians who get airtime. I can only comment on television work, as I don't read books anymore.

I do like to read historical facts, stories etc. on the internet though. I'll start by looking up one thing, then it escalates and before I know it, I've spent absolutely ages learning about stuff I didn't originally intend to look up in the first place.

sunnykerr

To be fair, I think the younger generation of male historians are aware that they have blind spots.

I enjoy female historians a lot. Especially if we're gonna talk about the Tudors. Because I was used to thinking Anne Boleyn, like, bewitched Henry VIII away from Catherine of Aragon. And that's just stupid. Even before he became a massive tyrant, that man had an ego.

And Mary Tudor killed a lot of people because they wouldn't convert to Catholicism. I'm quite certain she was influenced by the (male) religious figures in her life. But she had a brain of her own. She made her own choices.

Same with Elizabeth. She signed Mary Queen of Scots's death warrant. She doesn't get to say her counsellors went behind her back after that. (Still like her. But she was human.)