Tuesday, June 21, 2022

Question from Jessica - Elizabeth I's temper

This question may not exactly be 'Tudor,' but it is Elizabethan which I though it was close enough. Several years ago when I was in junior high, I had a history teacher who told me that Queen Elizabeth I had a violent, abusive temper and would do things like throw objects, cuss like a sailor, and even bully and torment both her courtiers and servants by starving them, beating them, pressuring them to look/act a certain way, threatening to behead them, and expecting them to be as meek as a mouse, all the while. So, exactly how much of this info is true? Was Good Queen Bess actually this horrible? Did she really mistreat those around her, or is that all just a big myth/rumor?

Related threads:
https://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2006/11/question-from-carlyn-elizabeth-i.html
https://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2012/01/question-from-stacey-incidents-with.html

Sunday, June 19, 2022

Question from Laurence - Toilet privacy

This may be a strange question, but one I just need to get out and in the open! Did the people in this era have shy bowels or bladders; aka; parcopresis or paruresis? Because often when I'm in public I find it hard to do #.2, or even #.1 in the restroom stalls. So, did people back then simply not have the expectation for privacy we do now, or were there still some people who had trouble going if there were other people around them?

Related threads:
https://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2013/10/question-from-george-toilet-facilities.html
https://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2017/03/question-from-george-further-inquires.html

Monday, June 13, 2022

Question from Harriet - Self-poisoning

This may seem like a redundant question, but can I ask, what would've happened if a king or queen, or nobleman or noblewoman tried to poison themselves? I mean, nobody else put anything into the food or drink, except himself/herself; like arsenic, for instance. Whether their motivation was suicide, a weight loss method, a coping mechanism to try to gain more sympathy from others, or a disturbing experimentation just to simply see what poison does to ones body, cause they were curious, what would be done about it? How would the rest of society, and their courtiers react? Thanks, I would appreciate a reply from a fellow blogger.

Sunday, June 12, 2022

Question from Amanda - Going to the theater in Tudor times

What was going to the theater like in Tudor/Elizabethan times? Was seeing a play to them the equivalent of a movie theater from today? Did the theaters offer people popcorn? Were women and/or children allowed to even go, or was it just an all adult male audience? Were there any restrooms to go if one needed to in the midst of a show?

Friday, June 10, 2022

Question from Clara - Shopping in Tudor times

Did people go shopping in Tudor times? Were there grocery stores or shops as we know them today ?

Wednesday, June 08, 2022

Question from Niles - Food-borne illness

How was food poisoning dealt with in this era? My job as a full-time waiter in a fine dining restaurant makes me curious to ask this. I would assume since unfortunately there was no such thing as refrigeration that it might have been quite common. Wouldve they have been given the same advice/treatment as we would today, or did the concept of foodborne illness just not exist? Good day, Niles.

Tuesday, June 07, 2022

Question from William - Views on suicide in Tudor times

*Trigger warning* I wanted to be courteous enough to put that there because I want to ask about the sensitive topic of suicide. How was killing onesself viewed back then? Did they consider it a sin? Did they believe the person who killed themselves would not be allowed to enter Heaven, or was this just simply a subject that no one ever talked about or had any modern day concept of? Answers please, William.

Saturday, June 04, 2022

Question from Nigel - Exercise in Tudor England

As a frequent gym-goer, I wanted to ask how did people of Tudor England exercise? Did they jog, lift weights, do pushups, or run laps?

Friday, June 03, 2022

Question from Oswald - Punishment of children for misbehavior

How were teenaged kids punished in Tudor times when they misbehaved or broke a parents rule? Did he / she get grounded as in; having privileges taken away, made to do extra chores, prohibited from leaving the home, hanging out with friends; etc. ? Or were they whipped, beaten, or what?

Thursday, June 02, 2022

Question from Jane - Learning horse riding

What age were teenagers when they learned how to ride a horse/horse-drawn carriage? Did they learn when they were 16? (Because its the equivalent of learning how to drive cars nowadays, since horses to them were their main source of transportation). Or were they younger or older?

Wednesday, June 01, 2022

Question from Peter - Non-belief in Tudor England

God bless you Tudor bloggers. Im a pastor at my town's church, here's my question; I hope this is a question someone can help me with. What percentage of the population in this time in history believed in God? Did they worship our one true God, or did they worship many gods? How many people were atheists (non-believers)? Yours truly, Peter. Editor's note - related thread here: https://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2009/09/question-from-zoe-atheism-in-tudor.html