Renaissance English History Podcast: A Show About the Tudors

Latest Episodes:

How Tudors Started the Day: Morning Routines in the 1500s Feb 12, 2026

Show notes

What did a typical morning look like in Tudor England?

There were no alarm clocks, no hot showers, and no coffee waiting in the kitchen. Instead, people woke in cold rooms, often sharing beds, with the fire nearly out and the day’s work already ahead of them.

In this episode, we walk through a full Tudor morning routine, from first light to the start of work. You’ll hear about rush-covered floors, chamber pots, quick basin washes, layered clothing, bread and small beer for breakfast, morning prayers, and the all-important task of bringing the fire back to life.

It’s a practical, physical start to the day that depended on the household, the season, and the light of the sun.

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From Pancakes to Fasting: Shrovetide and Lent in Tudor England Feb 11, 2026

Show notes

Late February was one of the hardest times of year in Tudor England. Food stores were running low, the weather was damp and cold, and spring still felt far away. But in the middle of that hungry season came Shrovetide, a brief burst of pancakes, games, and noise before the long fast of Lent began.

In this video, we spend a day inside a Tudor household at the end of winter. From thin pottage and smoky hearths to Shrove Tuesday pancakes and rough village football, this is what the season actually looked like for ordinary people.

We’ll follow the rhythm from the final feast of Shrovetide into the quiet first days of Lent, when the tables grew plainer and the long wait for spring began.

If you’d like to experience this season in a more reflective way, you can join The Tudor Spring: A 40-Day Sanctuary, a gentle, history-based journey through Lent with daily stories, music, and reflections:
https://heatherteysko.thrivecart.com/the-tudor-spring-a-40-day-sanctuary/

#TudorHistory #Shrovetide #DailyLifeHistory #Lent #SocialHistory

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The Marriage That Could Have Saved Mary I | Tudor Alternate History Feb 09, 2026

Show notes

What if Mary I had listened to her people instead of her heart?

When Mary Tudor took the throne in 1553, she was a survivor who had beaten the odds. But she was also a woman in a hurry. She needed an heir, she needed to secure the Catholic faith, and she needed a husband. In our timeline, she chose Philip of Spain, a decision that brought Wyatt’s Rebellion, the loss of Calais, and the nickname "Bloody Mary."

But it didn't have to be that way.

In today’s episode, we’re diving into a fascinating "sliding doors" moment in Tudor history. We explore what would have happened if Mary had chosen the handsome, erratic, and purely English Edward Courtenay instead.

We’re breaking down the ramifications of that one choice:

Why the Spanish match was so loathed by the English public.
How the survival of Lady Jane Grey and the freedom of Princess Elizabeth hinged on this wedding.
The economic "miracle" of a timeline where England never loses Calais.
Whether a secure, "English" Mary would have ever become the "Bloody" queen we remember today.

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Arbella Stuart’s Escape: Disguised as a Man, Chased by the Crown Feb 05, 2026

Show notes

Arbella Stuart was born with royal blood, raised under watch, and treated as a possible queen her entire life. She never claimed the throne, but her lineage made her dangerous simply by existing.

In this episode, we follow Arbella from her childhood under Bess of Hardwick to her secret marriage to William Seymour, and the dramatic 1611 escape attempt that ended in pursuit, capture, and imprisonment in the Tower of London.

It’s the story of a woman who spent her life waiting for permission, and what happened when she finally stopped.

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How Cold Were Tudor Houses? The Reality of Life Without Heat Feb 04, 2026

Show notes

If you’ve ever visited a Tudor palace in winter and wondered why it feels so cold inside, the answer is simple: it always was.

In this episode, I explore how people in Tudor England actually stayed warm indoors. Not central heating, not roaring fires in every room, but a daily system built around one hearth, heavy clothing, hot food, shared warmth, and carefully managed routines.

We’ll look at fireplaces and fuel, why most rooms were never heated at all, how beds were warmed instead of bedrooms, and how people wrote, read, and worked with numb fingers in firelit rooms. From foot warmers taken to church to warming pans slipped between the sheets, heat in the Tudor world was local, temporary, and precious.

Understanding how the Tudors dealt with cold changes how we think about daily life, privacy, sleep, work, and even learning in the sixteenth century. Warmth wasn’t ambient. It was something you had to make, protect, and share.

This is the everyday reality of living in cold stone houses, with one fire, long winters, and no escape from the chill.

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What If the Gunpowder Plot Had Succeeded? England After November 5, 1605 Feb 02, 2026

Show notes

In November 1605, the Gunpowder Plot came terrifyingly close to reshaping England’s future. This episode explores what would have happened if Parliament had actually exploded - killing the king, his ministers, and much of the political class in a single moment.

Rather than retelling the familiar story, this video focuses on the aftermath that never came to pass: the succession crisis, the fate of Princess Elizabeth, the absence of a functioning government, and the realities the conspirators failed to anticipate.

We then return to what did happen, how the plot unraveled, how the conspirators were hunted down, and how the trials and executions turned a failed conspiracy into a permanent political myth.

On a different note... VDay merch at TudorFair.com!

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The Death and Funeral of Henry VIII: Ritual, Power, and a Vanishing Tomb Jan 31, 2026

Show notes

When Henry VIII died at Whitehall Palace in January 1547, England faced a dangerous moment. His heir was nine years old, power was about to shift, and the death of a king had to be handled with extreme care.

In this video, we follow Henry VIII from his deathbed through one of the most elaborate royal funerals of the sixteenth century.

We look at how his body was prepared, why his burial was delayed, how the funeral procession moved from Whitehall to Windsor, and what those towering candle-filled hearses actually were.

Along the way, we examine one of the most enduring stories associated with Henry’s death - the claim that his coffin burst open at Syon Abbey - and why that story almost certainly isn’t true.

We also explore Henry’s plans for a monumental tomb and a perpetual chantry at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, and why neither was ever completed.

Despite the scale of his funeral, Henry VIII ended up buried without a visible monument, his vault unmarked for centuries.

To celebrate the announcement of Nathen Amin as our Tudorcon keynote, Tudorcon tickets are currently on flash sale - use the code BEAUFORT to save 15 percent (including on payment plans) at https://tudorcon.englandcast.com.

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Women Who Anchored Empire: Ireland, Roanoke, and the Jamestown Brides | Tudorcon Talk Jan 30, 2026

Show notes

What role did women actually play in England’s early colonial experiments?

In this Tudorcon 2025 talk, Colleen Parker explores the overlooked but essential role of women in early English colonization, beginning in Ireland and continuing through Roanoke and Jamestown. Rather than treating women as background figures, this talk shows how they functioned as household managers, negotiators, landholders, cultural intermediaries, and, in many cases, the key to whether a colony survived at all.

Topics include:
• Women in the Irish plantations as a testing ground for colonization • The role of women in Roanoke and the mystery of Virginia Dare • The Jamestown Brides and why “mail-order brides” is a misleading label • Women as property holders and legal actors in early Virginia • Daily survival, childbirth, labor, and negotiation with Native communities

This is a rich, thoughtful look at how women shaped colonization on both sides of the Atlantic.

📣 Tudorcon 2026 Updates
Speaker proposals for Tudorcon are open until February 15. If you’d like to present at a future Tudorcon, the submission form is linked below.

🎉 Flash Sale
We’ve also announced Nathen Amin as our Tudorcon keynote. A limited-time flash sale is running this week ...save 15% with the coupon code BEAUFORT.

👉 Speaker form and tickets are all here: https://tudorcon.englandcast.com.

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The King in the Mill: The Strange Death of James III Jan 28, 2026

Show notes

In the summer of 1488, a King of Scots lay dying in a flour mill, allegedly murdered by a man disguised as a priest. But how did James III - a man who preferred lutes to longswords and architects to Earls - find himself fleeing for his life from his own son?

This week, we’re venturing just north of the border and slightly back in time to explore the chaotic, culture-clashing reign of James III. From the dramatic "kidnapping" of his childhood to the brutal executions at Lauder Bridge and the mystery of his final moments at Sauchieburn, we look at a monarch who was perhaps too "Renaissance" for his own good.

We’ll also trace the thread that leads directly to the Tudor dynasty, exploring how this medieval tragedy set the stage for the "Union of the Thistle and the Rose" and the eventual rise of the United Kingdom. It’s a story of gold, betrayal, and a lifelong penance worn in the form of an iron belt.

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What Was Wolsey Thinking? The Slow, Fatal Unraveling of Henry VIII’s Greatest Minister Jan 27, 2026

Show notes

At the height of his power, Thomas Wolsey stood at the center of Europe’s grandest spectacle - the Field of Cloth of Gold. Ten years later, he was alone, under arrest, and dying far from court.

In this What Were They Thinking? episode, we trace Wolsey’s downfall step by step - from supreme confidence in 1520 to political isolation in 1530. We follow how he reacted to each loss of power: his removal from office, his enforced move north to York, the dangerous letters he continued to write, and the fatal belief that service, law, and process might still save him.

This is not a story of sudden collapse, but of a man who could not stop thinking like a statesman long after the state had turned against him.

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