Business with pleasure - Steven Gunn shows how the spectacle of the joust oiled the wheels of service and diplomacy as well as building up the court's image, not just for Henry VIII but for his dynasty-founding father as well.
Henry VIII spent astronomical amounts on military fortifications from the Scottish border to the South Coast of England. Marcus Merriman discusses the locations and architecture of these fortifications.
Maria Dowling considers the contribution of Henry VIII's queens in promoting new learning and religion at the Tudor court.
David Starkey provides an introduction to the remarkable ruler and places his achievements in a European context.
Linda Pollock questions the assumption that younger brothers in the 16th and 17th-centuries were automatically stifled and frustrated, impotent in the family pecking order.
Timothy Curtis and J.A. Sharpe delve into the country's criminal past.
David Starkey looks at what impresses the contemporary visitor to Henry VIII's palaces
'Revisionism' has now become a historian's catch-phrase. Long-cherished interpretations of upheavals in British and European history have been re-examined. In this light, Glyn Redworth examines revisionist interpretations of the English Reformation.
‘Pastime with good company’ – how the image of ‘Bluff King Hal’ glosses over the harsh realities of life-and-death court intrigues played out among the nooks and crannies of the king’s private apartment.
