Question from Stacey - Henry VII and Perkin Warbeck

I just finished Philippa Gregory's "The White Princess". Part of the book is about the time that Perkin Warbeck spent at the court of Henry VII & that he was given an allowance, treated well & was basically free to come & go. Is this correct? Henry had believed that Warbeck was a huge threat, so why would he allow him at court? Was Henry VII really in love with Warbeck's wife? If so, why didn't he marry her? (sorry for so many questions)

Question from Poppy - Foxe's treatment of reigns of Henry VIII and Mary I

For my dissertation in my third year at University i'm focusing on John Foxe and his book of martyrs. My question is 'Propaganda or reality in John Foxe?'
I am assessing the differences between the reigns of Henry VIII and Mary Tudor in his book to work out if he was bias towards a certain monarch etc.

So far i've found out that, as a Protestant, Foxe obviously documented Mary's reign in a negative light. However, what I cannot seem to find out is why Henry felt the need to deal with heretics when his take on religion seems to be iffy, almost as if he wants to keep both sides happy.

Any help would be great!

Question from Margaret - Anne Boleyn's favorite ladies in waiting

Does anyone know who Queen Ann Boleyn's chief Ladies in Waiting were....and who among them were her favorites?

(See this previous thread for some of the names of the ladies: http://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2008/07/question-from-elizabeth-robinson-anne.html - Lara)

Question from Mairead - Use of wet nurses by the middle classes

Hi,

Would middle class Tudor women have employed wet nurses to breastfeed their children (wives of gentlemen farmers/businessmen etc). I saw a thread about wet nurse use amongst upperclass women, but wondered how widespread the practice was amongst more ordinary folk. Reason I'm asking is because I'm writing a novel set in the period - in general, if an up and coming member of society could afford a wet-nurse, would he employ one?

Many thanks

Question from Kay - Yuletide festivities at Whitehall

Hi, I'm working on a novel based on the life of Lady Mary Wroth, the niece of Sir Philip Sidney. I'm setting a few scenes in Whitehall, which has been a struggle since there are so many competing accounts of how it was laid out and which rooms were used for what. So far, my best resource, I think, has been Simon Thurley's 'Whitehall Palace' and I'm relying most heavily on that.

But here's my question. I'm dramatizing a moment that is mentioned in one of the letters of the time saying that my main character danced before Queen Elizabeth on St. Stephen's Day in 1602 in the afternoon. I'm trying to determine/decide how such a presentation would have fit into the festivities of the yuletide and where such a presentation would take place. Would it be after the noon meal in the Great Hall? In the Presence Chamber? In the Banqueting Hall?

If anyone has any insights into what the daily rhythm would be like during the yuletide and where these types of events would occur, I'd be very grateful for any help!

Question from Mary R - Charges against Thomas Cromwell

Thomas Cromwell was executed for heresy among other things. What exactly did he say or do merit this in the king's eyes (besides marry Henry off to an ugly woman)?

Question from Isabel - Why did Henry VIII struggle to produce an heir

I am 17 and doing my EPQ on Henry VIII and my title is "Why did Henry VIII struggle to produce an heir?"
I would appreciate your opinion on why he seemed to, or whether he did, have problems producing a male heir. I would like to use it, along with other historian's opinions, and my own research to help me reach a conclusion.
Thank you very much for your time,
Isabel

Question from Marilyn R - Remains of those burned at the stake

Today, 16th July, in 1546 Anne Askew, John Lascelles, John Adams and Nicholas Belenian were burned at the stake at Smithfield for heresy.

What happened to what few remains there would be after execution by burning? Would there be any sort of burial? Would the flames have been intense enough to destroy bone and teeth?

Question from Conor - Henry Manox and Kathryn Howard's downfall

Hi,

I am aware that in May 2011 a question was asked about Henry Manox, but unfortunately the answers did not aid my research.

I have been researching in detail Katherine Howard's downfall, particularly the role of her so-called accomplices aka Jane Rochford, Joan Bulmer, Katherine Tylney etc. All of these women, and other Howard relatives, were charged - in Jane's case, of course, her charge of treason led to her death.

Why was Henry Manox never charged with anything? He had first initiated Katherine into the sexual world while a pre-pubescent girl, and I frankly find it bizarre that he was never punished. It seems he was interrogated in November 1541, alongside Dereham, but then his name never comes up again.

I have been trying to track down written documents which can help, but has anyone got ANY idea of Manox's eventual fate? Why was he never punished?

For all we know, maybe he was murdered or something at the time. Or he could have been married and the interrogators felt it was not worth pursuing, in contrast with Dereham.

It is a mystery.

Question from Julian - Henry VII's military training

I am a serious amatuer Historian and Living History enthusiast of the English late-15th century; and I have been researching the 13 yr. Exile of Henry Earl of Richmond. And after 5 years steady part-time work on this project, I have exhausted all the mentions in English sources. One side-thread I am just starting to consider, - not having thought of it previously - is how much military training Jasper Tudor would have insisted the young Henry undertake. Do you know if any reputable military Historian has published anything on Henry VII as a soldier and military commander. If you do, references would be gratefully received. Thank you.

Question from Nigel - More and the burial of the Princes in the Tower

This is a question about how Thomas More was able to say where the two bodies of the Princess in the Tower were located. It is a question out of curiousity as I have been watching "The White Queen" and have since been reading up on the history behind that period.

In his history of King Richard III, Thomas More said that the princes were smothered to death in their beds by two agents of James Tyrell — Miles Forrest and John Dighton — and were then buried "at the stayre foote, metely depe in the grounde vnder a great heape of stones". He then went on to say that they were later disinterred and buried in a secret place.

In 1674, some workmen remodelling the Tower of London dug up a wooden box containing two small human skeletons. The bones were found in the ground close to the White Tower, consistent with More's description of the original burial place of the princes (under the tower stairs), but not consistent with More's later claim that the bodies had been subsequently removed and buried elsewhere.

(The two paragraphs above have been compiled from information I have found from searching on Google and Wikipedia.)

I am a little confused as to where Thomas More got his information from as to the exact (and originally correct) location of the bodies as according to him he wrote that James Tyrell confessed to the murders and implicated the other two but that James Tyrell was unable to say where the where the bodies were.

Does this mean Thomas More had another source of information as to where the bodies were buried?