Websites | Books

Heritage sites

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About Britain
www.aboutbritain.com/
Tourist information site offers a search engine giving access to a comprehensive range of heritage sites and landmarks with detailed information on the history of Hampton Court Palace.

Britain express
www.britainexpress.com/History
Very comprehensive tourist information site containing a series of short essays on Tudor history and the main characters and events of the time. Each article is accompanied by a bibliography.

Britannia
www.britannia.com
Tourist site offers information on Ludlow Castle, Hever Castle, Westminster Abbey and includes a detailed history of Greenwich Palace by John Timbs, with links to biographies of the monarchs who lived there.

The British monarchy
www.royal.gov.uk/index.htm
The official website for the royal family. As well as contemporary information it offers a comprehensive history of the monarchy through the ages including texts on Henry VIII and his wives, which can be found through an internal search engine.

English Heritage
www.english-heritage.org.uk
Site for the government's leading body for the historic environment in England. Offers details on the restoration and upkeep of heritage sites, with links to tourist information.

English history
www.englishhistory.net
Well-researched site on all aspects of the Tudor period. Contains letters of the six wives of Henry VIII with accompanying notes, as well as eyewitness accounts of people and events in Tudor England.

Greenwich guide
www.greenwich-guide.org.uk/museum.htm
The website offers a detailed history of Greenwich Palace, also known as The Palace of Placentia, where Henry VIII was born and Ann Boleyn gave birth to Elizabeth I.

Hampton Court Palace
East Molesley
Surrey KT8 9AU
Tel: 020 8781 9500
Website: www.hrp.org.uk/hcp
Contact for details of visitor information. The official website of the Historic Royal Palaces offers details of tours, an events diary, a history of Hampton Court and general knowledge quiz.

The Heritage Trail
www.theheritagetrail.co.uk
Extensive guide to Britain's heritage, with photographs and articles giving a brief history, plus links to a medieval studies web ring.

Hever Castle
Edenbridge
Kent TN8 7NG
Tel: 01732 865224
E-mail: apwatt@hevercastle.co.uk
Website: www.hevercastle.co.uk
Contact for details about visiting the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII.

Images of medieval art and architecture
http://vrcoll.fa.pitt.edu/medart
Educational site by Alison Stones, a lecturer in medieval studies. It offers a detailed compendium of illustrations of art and architecture taken from antiquarian books, including the Tower of London and old St Paul’s Cathedral.

Ludlow Castle
Castle Square
Ludlow
Shropshire SY8 1AY
Tel: 01584 873355
Website: www.ludlowcastle.com
Romantic ruin, owned by the Earl of Powis. Contact for details of guided tours, festivals theatre events and other special events throughout the year.

National Maritime Museum
Greenwich
London SE10 9NF
Tel: 020 8858 4422
Website: www.nmm.ac.uk
The museum stands on the site of Greenwich Palace, Henry VIII’s birthplace. Website offers details of an associated research and conference centre.

The National Trust
www.nationaltrust.org.uk
National organisation for the protection of Britain’s heritage. The website offers information about the heritage sites it manages, plus environment and conservation work, education and membership.

The Royal Stuarts Scottish Performers Guild
www.royal-stuarts.org/flodden.htm
This site offers a detailed account of the Battle of Flodden 1513, by John Hill Burton

St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Churchyard
London EC4
Tel: 020 7246 8348
Website: www.stpauls.co.uk
The present cathedral was built on the site of a church which was central during Henry VIII’s reign. Contact for details of visitor information, services, concerts, recitals and other special events.

HM Tower of London
Royal Armouries
London EC3N 4AB
Tel: 020 7709 0765
Website: www.hrp.org.uk
Home to the Crown Jewels and the site of the beheading of Ann Boleyn and Catherine Howard. Contact for details of guided tours, talks and a range of special events aimed at bringing royal history to life.

The Tower of London
www.tower-of-london.com
Website created in association with the Yeoman Warders of the Tower. Contains a virtual guide by the warders (assisted by Shockwave 8) offering much anecdotal information about the ever present ravens, the prisoners and the ghosts, including tales of Ann Boleyn’s haunting of the Tower.

Tudor history
www.tudorhistory.org
US educational history site with a wealth of information about The Tudors, including a genealogical tree and detailed biographies of the six wives of Henry VIII.

Westminster Abbey
The Chapter Office
20 Dean’s Yard
London SW1P 3PA
Tel: 020 7222 7110
E-mail: info@westminster-abbey.org
Web: www.westminster-abbey.org
Contact for opening times, tour times and reservations, group visits and other visitor information. Website offers a complete guide to the abbey and the associated church, choir and school.

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Books

Heritage

Historic Houses of the National Trust by Adrian Tinniswood (The National Trust, 1991) £25.00
A study of 40 of the National Trust's most interesting and important historical houses, including details of how they came to be built, their appearance and those who live in and work with them.

Ludlow Castle; Its History and Buildings edited by Ron Shoesmith and Andy Johnson
(Logaston Press, 2000) £14.95
This book charts the history of Ludlow Castle, the Royal seat of Prince Arthur, the first husband of Catherine Aragon.

Medieval Art, Architecture and Archaeology in London edited by Lindy Grant (Maney Publishing, 1990) £28.50
A study of medieval London including the Romanesque architecture of Old Saint Paul's Cathedral and its late 11th-century context.

Hampton Court Palace by Matthew Sturgis (Channel 4 Books, 2001) £12.99
A comprehensive history of Hampton Court Palace and its royal residents, from the time of Thomas Wolsey to the present day.

Kingdom, Power and Glory: Historical Guide to Westminster Abbey by John Field (James & James, 1996) £20.00
An illustrated account of Westminster Abbey, its architectural features, the people and the events which give it central significance to British history, using the words of kings, nobles, priests and chroniclers.

Alhambra by Michael Jacobs, (Frances Lincoln, 2000) £30.00
An exploration of this magical palace and gardens through the mythology that has grown up around it. The final chapter assesses the literature, art and architecture the palace has inspired.

Tales of the Alhambra by Washington Irving (Connect ELT Project Management, 1999) £8.95
Irving's ‘Spanish sketchbook’ was inspired by his 1829 residence at the ancient Moorish palace in Granada; weaving history, legend, and description, it remains the best guidebook to this haunting place.

The Tower of London by Derek Wilson (Allison & Busby, 1998) £9.99
A study of the Tower of London, and its place in history as a fortress, palace, prison, place of execution, zoo, mint and jewel house, incorporating recent discoveries about those who have found themselves residing in the Tower.

The Tower of London by Leonard Fisher, Everett (Prentice Hall & IBD, 1987) £11.50
This volume characterises the Tower and its people during the turbulent years of the formation of the British nation from 1078 through 1666.

Historical figures

The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir (Pimlico, 1997) £9.99
Drawing upon documentary material from the Tudor period, this text offers a comprehensive, factual version of the tempestuous private and public lives of Henry VIII and his six wives, revealing each woman as a distinct and compelling personality in her own right.

Henry VIII: King and Court by Alison Weir (Jonathan Cape, 2001) £20.00
A detailed study written by a popular Tudor historian that sets a personal biography of Henry VIII against the cultural, social and political background of his court and the splendour of his many palaces.

The Children of Henry VIII by Alison Weir (Ballantine Books, 1997) £14.00
Recounts the lives of Henry VIII's heirs and the intrigues that arose from their struggle to ascend their father's throne.

The Rise and Fall of Anne Boleyn by Retha M Warnicke (Cambridge University Press, 1991) £9.95
Biography focusing on the sexual intrigues and family politics pervading the court, which led to the execution of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second queen, in 1536.

The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn by Robin Maxwell (Ulverscroft Large Print Editions, 2000) £15.99
Historical novel, constructed from the adventures of Henry VIII's doomed second queen, mother of Elizabeth I. The story puts Elizabeth in charge of a diary where she finds out the truth about her maligned mother.

Virgin: Prelude to the Throne by Robin Maxwell (Arcade Publishing, 2001) £9.99
Based on fact, this book details Elizabeth’s relationship with her stepmother Katherine Parr and the sinister calf-love affair with Parr’s second husband, Sir Thomas Seymore.

Divorced, Beheaded, Survived: a feminist reinterpretation of the wives of Henry VIII by Karen Lindsey (Perseus Books, 1996) £11.13
Scholarly study of the predicament of women in the 16th century, focusing on the lives of Henry VIII’s wives.

The Six Wives of Henry the VIII by Antonia Fraser (Arrow, 2001) £10.00
An illustrated look at Henry's relationship with each of his wives giving a valuable historical insight into the workings of the royal court under each of the king's consorts. This study evaluates the individual upbringings of each woman, addressing the arguments and debates that have surrounded their lives.

Historical context

The Early Modern Englishwoman: a Facsimile Library of Essential Works Part 1, Vol 3: Printed Writings, 1500-1640: Katherine Parr edited by Betty S, Travitsky and Patrick Cullen (Scolar Press, 1995) £35.00
One volume in a series, rediscovering texts by women authors, writing in English from 1500 to 1700. Each text is preceded by a short introduction providing an overview of the life and work of the writer, along with a survey of important relevant scholarship.

Women and Literature in Britain, 1500-1700 edited by Helen Wilcox (Cambridge University Press, 1996) £15.95
This work comprises an introduction to the works and social contexts of women writers in early modern Britain. A chronology offers a woman-centred perspective on historical and literary events.

Women's Lives in Medieval Europe by Emilie Amt (Routledge, 1993) £14.99
This study presents a unique insight into the everyday experiences of women in the Middle Ages. Through public and private records, letters, legal documents, historical and personal narratives, and archaeological evidence from the 5th to the 15th centuries, it looks at how women were expected to live and behave and the contradictory realities of women's lives.

Women's Writing in Middle English edited by Alexandra Barratt (Longman Publishing Group, 1992) £29.12
Anthology illustrating the full range of Middle English writing from the period 1300-1530 in whose production women were involved in one way or another. The examples include accounts of religious experiences, meditations, personal letters, love poems and educational writing.

The Case for Women in Medieval Culture by Alcuin Blamires (Clarendon Press, 1998) £14.99
This text surveys extant writings formally defending women in the Middle Ages, identifying a source for pro-feminine argument in biblical apocrypha. It offers a series of explorations of the background and circulation of central arguments on behalf of women, and seeks to situate relevant texts by Christine de Pizan, Chaucer, Abelard, and Hrotsvitha in relation to these arguments.

The Tudor Housewife by Alison Sim (Sutton Publishing, 1998) £12.99
This study provides a fascinating overview of the life of Tudor women. Outlining the structure of Tudor society, the author explores attitudes to childbirth, education, and the religious and moral training of children; household duties, home remedies, and the role women played in business.

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