Tudors on YouTube

This excellent collection of videos can now be found on YouTube (apologies that they can't be viewed at school). It includes a mixture of extracts from films and TV dramas on Tudor subjects, and documentaries on particular events and individuals, such as David Starkey's comments on Mary Tudor, and Elizabeth's relationship with the Duke of Anjou. Also recommended is this brief discussion of Lady Jane Grey by John Guy, looking in particular at how she has been portrayed in paintings. The infamous "Bloody Mary" video is now also on YouTube, and can be seen above - watch out for David Loades' impressively louche performance.

Mary I's Coronation

On 1 October 1553 Mary I was crowned Queen of England - the first ever female coronation. This fascinating blog article includes 10 facts about the ceremony, including:

• She held two sceptres during the ceremony - one symbolising the King, and another bearing a dove which had been held by her mother, Catherine of Aragon, at Henry VIII's coronation.
• She was crowned with three crowns - Edward the Confessor's, Henry VIII's Imperial Crown, and a crown "purposlie made" for her. Ner brother Edward VI was the only monarch previous to her to have this honour.
• 7112 dishes were served at the coronation banquet, and Mary herself was given 312 of them. However, and food left over was distributed to London's poor.

Further information about her coronation can be found in this earlier blog post.

Who was the best Tudor?

The main issue in this month's BBC History magazine is the debate over the importance of the Tudors and features eminent historians debating each Tudor king and queen. It starts with Steve Gunn's justification of the importance of Henry VII, much to a certain teacher's delight! You can read the articles here and the magazine itself will soon be put in the Sixth Form study room. They have also included podcasts of each debate which will be invaluable to A-level students.

Mary Tudor Website

A new website has just been created by the author of the Mary Tudor Blog who has just completed an MA in her studies of Tudor History. It is still under construction, but already has a useful bibliography section allowing you to research in more detail interpretations of different aspects of her reign. If you find other sites that are as helpful as this, please let us know.

Bloody Mary Video

Watch The Most Evil Women in History - Bloody Mary Tudor in Educational & How-To  |  View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Fans of Mary Tudor may be pleased to know that Channel 5's programme "Bloody Mary - The Most Evil Women in History" is now available on the internet (apologies for the advert that appears at the beginning). The title gives away its intent to cast Mary in a bad light, and the narrators' script is particularly poor, but it does contain commentary from the Tudor Historians David Loades, Steven Gunn, Diarmaid MacCulloch and John Cooper. Loades in particular is playing up for the cameras but it does help you to become familiar with them and their points of view.

PS: Stop Pres: David Loades has now written "The Tudors for Dummies"! If anyone gets a copy of it, let us know what it's like...
PPS: Here is a book review of Eric Ives' recently published "Lady Jane Grey, a Tudor Mystery" by Steven Gunn
PPPS: Here is a bibliography of Tudor historians that A2 students in particular may find useful.

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is a useful starting point for researching historical figures (they have to have died by 2005 to be included). Articles are thoroughly researched and have excellent sets of references, including articles by relevant historians. Here for example are the articles on Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth I. (Full access to the site is only allowed at school and at public libraries)

A2 British Interpretations

This post is for British A2 historians to leave comments on Tudor historians they have discovered and their interpretations of particular aspects of Edward and Mary's reign. Please leave comments and discuss each other's contributions.

PS: This booklist may be of use, and here is an lecture on Edward VI given at a conference at Hampton Court in July.

John Guy

The historian John Guy (Clare College, Cambridge) has a useful website with notes on key Tudor issues. His essay on Mary's court and how it affected policy making is very detailed and has a useful bibliography of other Tudor historians, such as David Loades and Penry Williams. His links to primary sources are also interesting, particularly this book, which contains letters from Edward IV to Queen Elizabeth. Have a look! The pages really turn!