The Tudor Chest Podcast

Hans Holbein - The Window into the Court of Henry VIII

He is the man to whom all historians and fans of Tudor England owe an enormous debt. Without the work of Hans Holbein, we wouldn't know what practically all the key players of King Henry VIII's court looked like. As a fabulous new exhibition is launched at the Queens Gallery, Buckingham Palace, featuring many of Holbeins original sketches, portraits and creations, there is no more apposite time than to look back at the life of this most iconic Tudor artist, the man who gave us a front row seat to the court of King Henry VIII.

The Life and Death of Queen Katheryn Howard

She was the fifth wife of King Henry VIII. Plucked from relative obscurity, Katheryn Howard would reign for just eighteen months before a scandalous affair engulfed the court and ended with the teenage queen becoming the second of Henry VIII's queens to lose her head on the executioners scaffold, but is Katheryn really the airhead history has led us to believe, or was she a victim, brought down by power politics and salacious gossip?

The Life of Princess Mary Tudor, Queen of France

She was the daughter of a king, the sister of a king and the wife of a king. Princess Mary Tudor, Queen of France and later Duchess of Suffolk was the younger, famously stunning, sister of King Henry VIII. Her scandalous marriage to the king's best friend almost spelt disaster, but she overcame it and twenty years after her death, her granddaughter became the shortest reigning sovereign in English history. In this weeks episode I explore the life of this elusive Tudor princess!

Arthur, Prince of Wales with Gareth Streeter

He was the brother of Henry VIII, the boy born to be king, and yet how much do we actually know about this oft forgotten Tudor prince? In this weeks episode I am thrilled to welcome my first guest, Gareth Streeter to discuss his book "Arthur, Prince of Wales: Henry VIII's Lost Brother". Expert some serious conversation intermingled with a more light-hearted discussion about the virtues of Max Iron.......... 

Lady Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury: The Last White Rose of York

She was one of England's highest members of the nobility. The niece of two king's of England, a cousin of Queen Elizabeth of York, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury was one of only two peeresses in her own right. She was the royal governess to Princess Mary, she was the wealthiest woman in England, with sons who were popular and beloved members of Henry VIII's inner court, and yet, in the end, all of this went against her, for Margaret could not escape the blood that ran in her veins, which eventually put her, and her family, on an explosive collision course with the most volatile man to ever sit on the throne of England.

Who was the love of King Henry VIII’s life?

Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived. The six wives of Henry VIII are amongst the most famous women in English history, but a question we seldom ask is who was the true love of King Henry VIII's life? Was it the pious and loyal Catherine of Aragon, the tempestuous and exciting Anne Boleyn, or the dutiful but dull Jane Seymour? In this episode, historian and author Adam Pennington attempts to answer this question.

Jane Boleyn, Lady Rochford: Villain or Victim?

Jane Boleyn, Lady Rochford served the first five queens of King Henry VIII and counted Anne Boleyn as her sister-in-law. Unfortunately, she has been perpetually vilified as the chief source of her husband and sister-in-laws demise, and yet what is the evidence to support this theory? And how did Jane become so embroiled in the scandal of Katheryn Howard's love affairs that she also lost her head to the axeman in 1542? 

Game of Thrones - The History behind the hit!

Game of Thrones aired between 2011 and 2019, becoming the biggest and most successful television series of all time. What is not so well known however, is that many of the most iconic characters, storylines and locations from Game of Thrones took direct inspiration from real history. In this weeks episode of The Tudor Chest - The Podcast, I explore these inspirations, examining the Game of Thrones characters inspired by Henry VIII, Margaret of Anjou, Richard III and Anne Boleyn, plus many more! Listen in, to discover the history behind the hit!

The Life and Death of Lady Jane Grey

Known to history as the "nine days queen", Lady Jane Grey is one of the most tragic figures from British history. Executed at the age of just sixteen on the orders of her cousin, Queen Mary I, just had briefly ruled as queen herself, but how did this come to be, and why was a distant cousin of King Edward VI given the throne in place of the Tudor Princesses, Mary and Elizabeth?

Working Royals, Royal Titles, and two Pampered Princesses

In this weeks episode of The Tudor Chest - The Podcast, Historian and Author Adam Pennington steps away from the 16th century, and into the modern day machinations of the royal family to explore what it means to be a working royal, how and why titles work within the royal family, and why, he believes, that Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are the most misunderstood members of the entire royal family..