White Rose of Avalon

Anne Boleyn

  • My Top 5 Favorite Vanessa Redgrave Costume Drama Roles

    For today’s post I would like to do a count down of my favorite roles played by Vanessa Redgrave in costume dramas.    All five of these films are worth watching, and some are even masterpieces in my opinion.   Without further ado here are the top five costume drama roles portrayed by the great…

  • The White Falcon

    Today I would like to discuss Anne Boleyn’s coronation song.    On Sunday June 1, 1533 Anne Boleyn was coronated Queen of England.   Her coronation ballad was titled The White Falcon, and was written to honor her new role as queen.    It was a time that Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII were at…

  • Tudor Women’s Fashion

    At the Tudor court, as with many other royal courts, fashion was an important element of how courtiers distinguished themselves.    There are strict court politics when it came to sartorial choices, yet some were able to make a splash in how they dressed. Two of the most important figures in the Tudor era to…

  • Anne Boleyn and the Art of Flirting in Royal Courts

    I have written about courtly love traditions before.   Today I want to focus on a specific element of courtly love tradition.    Flirting was something well groomed and intelligent courtiers were expected to participate in.   There were rules to how to flirt without offending the strict traditions of the royal courts! Flirting would…

  • Historical Inaccuracy in Modern Film and Television

    There is something that I want to talk about that is more hot button than I normally would post here, but I really feel the need to express this.    It relates to my love of history, and so much of the content I post here is of a historical nature making this a post…

  • Sir Francis Walsingham: Elizabethan Spymaster

    For day two of Elizabethan Intrigue week I have chosen to focus on the figure of Elizabeth I’s spymaster. Francis Walsingham was an important figure in Elizabeth’s court.    Walsingham was a devout Protestant, who went into exile in Switzerland and Italy during the reign of Mary I.   When he came back to the…

  • My Top 5 Anne Boleyn Biographies

    Today I want to countdown my favorite biographies of my favorite historical Queen of all time! Number 5: Anne Boleyn: Young Queen to Be by Josephine Wilkinson ~This biography takes the unique view of telling the youthful years of Anne Boleyn, and not focusing on her time as Queen! Number 4: Anne Boleyn by Amy…

  • My Personal Rankings of the Queens of Henry VIII

    Today I would like to do a countdown of my opinions on the wives of Henry VIII.   While all the Queens here had their merits, and their flaws, I have a definitive opinion on who I like best (and worst). Number 6: Jane Seymour ~It is unsurprising to anyone who has read this blog…

  • Prisoner Queens

    Many queens throughout history have been held captive.    Obviously, the Tudor queens who had been executed were held prisoner first.    Anne Boleyn spent from May 2, 1536 to May 19, 1536 (when she was executed) in the tower.    Likewise, Katheryn Howard and Jane Grey spent time captive before they were executed.   …

  • The Cultural Legend of Anne Boleyn

    Anne Boleyn is a historical figure who has obtained legendary status.    This also means that she is a figure that has been misunderstood over the years, and one that it is near impossible to entirely pin point.    There is a question over whether we could ever truly know who she was. We do…