Iceland’s English Century
In the 15th century Iceland was caught in a trade war between the Kalmar Union, the Hanseatic League, and England. Which power defined the island’s fate?
Henry IV
A Christmas to Save the Byzantine Empire
Henry IV had a special guest for Christmas in 1400: the Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaiologos. United by their Christian faith, they were nonetheless on separate sides of the East-West schism. How did they celebrate?
The Last Testaments of Richard II and Henry IV
The tyrant and the usurper: the last wills of Richard II and Henry IV give rare insight into the medieval monarchs.
Death of Thomas Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel
The English noble and a major figure during the reign of Henry IV died on October 13th 1415.
Henry IV and the Revolt of the Earls, 1400
Alan Rogers tells the story of a plot to capture and kill the Lancastrian sovereign and restore his dethroned cousin, Richard II.
The Siege of Bourg, 1406
J.L. Kirby describes an episode in the long struggle of the English Kings to keep their fiefs as Dukes of Aquitaine.
The Reign of Henry IV
During the troublous reign that began when he dethroned his cousin Richard, Henry IV encountered a long series of exhausting crises. He met his troubles, writes A.L. Rowse, with resilience and courage.
An Episode in Anglo-Hanseatic Relations
J.L. Kirby describes how, early in the fifteenth century, King Henry IV of England ordered three trusted servants to conduct delicate negotiations with the rich cities of the Hanseatic League, whence England imported such precious commodities as dried fish, furs, tar and timber.
Clerks in Royal Service
J.L. Kirby examines how the 15th-century records of Thomas Hoccleve, Robert Fry and Thomas Broket illustrate the workings of modern civil service in its infancy.
Henry IV and Personal Piety
Debbi Codling looks at the beliefs and spiritual life of the man who usurped Richard II, an anointed king.