#thomas boleyn icons

[tianmicons]

#nick dunning icons #nick dunning #icons with psd #psd icons #thomas boleyn icons #thomas boleyn #tv series #tv series icons #the tudors #the tudors icons #actors icons #actors

[mihrsuri]

For the TS edit: Tommy & Mihrimah, and Elizabeth & Robert! <3

And isn't it just so pretty to think

All along there was some

Invisible string

Tying you to me?

At the heart of these two extraordinary iconic people and leaders was a love story - a partnership, a romance and a friendship that never wavered in all their years together. In their deserved status as icons, as once in many thousand year rulers, we forget sometimes the depth of their love.

Roses, Sunshine & Gold: A Love Story

(Set in my Tudor Triad verse aka an alternate history in which Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII and Thomas (Frain) Cromwell are in a secret triad marriage from 1536, have eight children, Anne is always a beloved Queen and their oldest son marries Mihrimah Sultan and they bring in a truly progressive by modern standards golden world, minus colonialism and empire because it’s my wish fulfilment au)

Robert and Elizabeth are here <3

#meme #pending graphic tag #lils edits #ot3: political power trio #au: golden world #MY BABIES #I cannot for the life of me find a face calm that is Thomas thought #*though #tudorsedit #ts edit meme

[toweroflondontour]

Tower of London official

Icon Of England- Surprising Facts You Didn't Know About The Tower Of London

You may have heard about The Tower of London. It's a legendary fortress situated right in the heart of London city.

It's been around for centuries. From ancient kings and queens to political prisoners and sparkling crown jewels, the Tower of London has seen it all.

It's like a history book come to life, packed with secrets, drama, and a dash of royal intrigue. Here are some surprising facts that will make you see this ancient fortress in a new light

Official Name

The Tower of London official name is His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London. That's quite a mouthful, so it's no wonder that most people call it the Tower.

Ravens That Cannot Leave

According to legend, if the ravens ever leave the Tower, the kingdom and the Tower will fall.

That's why at least six ravens are always living at the Tower, guarded by a special Ravenmaster.

The ravens have names and personalities. They can imitate sounds, engage in games, and solve various problems.

Scene Of Many Executions

Some famous people who lost their heads at the Tower include Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard, Lady Jane Grey, and Sir Thomas More. The last execution at the Tower occurred in 1941 when a firing squad shot a German spy.

Houses The Crown Jewels

The Crown Jewels are the ceremonial objects used by the monarchs of England for their coronations and other occasions.

They include crowns, sceptres, orbs, swords, and rings. The most valuable item is the Star of Africa, a 530-carat diamond that is part of the Imperial State Crown.

The Ceremony Of The Keys

The Tower of London Tour has a ceremony that is over 700 years old. Every night at 9:53 pm, the Chief Yeoman Warder locks up the gates of the Tower in a ritual called the Ceremony of the Keys.

The Tower Of London Has Its Pub

The Yeoman Warders who live and work at the Tower have a private pub called The Keys, located inside the fortress.

It is not open to the public, but visitors can see it outside. The Tower of London Yeoman tour offers a captivating insight into the history and daily life of the iconic Yeoman Warders.

The Tower Of London Has A Ghostly Reputation

Many people believe that the Tower is haunted by the spirits of those who died or suffered there.

They said they had seen the ghost of Anne Boleyn, Sir Walter Raleigh, and two young princes who disappeared mysteriously in 1483 and whose bones were found under a staircase in 1674.

Conclusion:

The Tower of London is an iconic landmark with countless surprising facts and captivating stories.

From its official name as His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London to its famous resident ravens believed to protect the kingdom, the Tower never fails to intrigue.

It has witnessed historical executions, housed the magnificent Crown Jewels, and continues the centuries-old tradition of the Ceremony of the Keys.

The Tower of London remains an enduring symbol of England's history and heritage. Visit the Tower of London Tour Website, book your tickets, and embark on this adventurous journey now.

Look at our homepage to get more information about Tower of London Tour!

[zuzcreation]

Icons of Richard Pepper as Thomas Boleyn in The Spanish Princess s2 (x3)

#richard pepper #thomas boleyn #the spanish princess #tspedit #icons #200x200 #perioddramaedit #echodesplaines #100disorders #y: 2021

[amatchforyourmadness]

you’re totally right anne, cromwell and henry is the ot3 that should have been. the subtext is the only good thing about wolf hall besides the costumes (FRENCH HOODS. RED HEAD MARY)

I FUCKING KNOW RIGHT?!

I mean… Yes, that OT3 would have been iconic, but Anne deserved better than them both. The possibilities, tho, all the amazing things they could have done, the epic lovestory that could have been. I’m forever sadened (the costumes were the fucking shit, girl don’t get me started- the show was shit, the clothes were hip).

#askthewriter #the ot3 that should have been #anne boleyn #henry viii #Henry Tudor #thomas cromwell #redhead mary is iconic #french hoods are iconic #Wolf Hall was a shitshow but a well dressed shitshow

[dragonmartellstark]

AU Tudor: Best Destinations for Henry VIII's Wives (That is, if they had never married him)

Anne Boleyn-Countess of Northumberland (1507-1558)

Anne Boleyn arrived as a companion to Queen Catherine of Aragon, attracting the eyes of many men thanks to her charm and exotic beauty, but Ana felt a great attraction for a young man named Henry Percy, who was the heir to the county of Northumberland. Both had a romance which is believed to have been nothing intimate and they had a common feeling.

Thomas Bolena and Henry Percy, parents of the lovers, did not agree with that relationship, much less with a possible marriage between them. Thomas planned for his own daughter to aspire higher, it was even rumored that he wanted Anne to be a suitor to be the wife of the Prince of Wales, Henry Tudor or even for her to be the lover of King Arthur I.

The passion between the two spouses was such that they decided to marry in secret in the year 1523, in a private ceremony attended by only a few acquaintances from the court and Mary Boleyn and Elizabeth Howard, the maiden's sister and mother.

On the wedding night Anne became pregnant, but the spouses tried to hide the union of her and that baby in her womb. As the months went by it became more evident that Ana was pregnant and she decided to admit that she had married Henry, being a great scandal for both families and for the court. This scandal caused Sir Henry Percy to disinherit his son despite being his sole heir and Thomas Boleyn forced his family not to maintain contact with his family, even though Isabel Howard could secretly exchange letters with her daughter.

In 1524 Anne gave birth to her first son, Henry, the future Earl of Northumberland. After this birth Henry Percy became one of Prince George's guards in this way the couple could fairly support their family.

Two years later Elizabeth, the future Viscountess consort of Albret, was born, as well as being a fashion icon in France. A year later Henry Percy, 5th Earl of Northumberland and King Arthur I agreed to legitimize the union of Percy and Boleyn, in addition to declaring their children as legitimate and heirs to the county of Northumberland.

In the year 1529 the couple's third daughter was born, Anne, who was Duchess of Ferrara and known for leading a scandalous life when it was said that she had love affairs with men and women.

In the following years the county of Northumberland achieved great prestige thanks to Ana's monetary administration, in this way the Percy family achieved large sums of money. Also, thanks to her friendships in France, she managed to promise her daughter Isabel to the Viscount of Albret and despite the different religious beliefs she made an alliance with the Duchy of Ferrara, promising her little daughter, Ana.

In the year 1540 she gave birth to her last son, Thomas Percy who would later become King Henry VIII's worthy and would become one of the least loved men by the English court.

In 1545, Princess Margaret of Valois, sister of King Francis I of France, gave Anne as a gift for her good friendship, some land in the town of Nantes to expand her domains. Although this caused envy among many courtiers at the French court, the place was used as a family vacation home.

Five years later in the year 1550 Henry Percy died supposedly from "English sweat" a disease that was attacking England until the year 1551. The death of her husband was painful for Anne who had been very much in love with Henry and mourned him until his death. death. That same year her son Henry became Earl of Northumberland and Anne helped her beloved son as her secretary.

In the year 1555 Henry VII managed to form an alliance with the Grand Duke Cosimo I de Medici, marrying his eldest daughter, Maria Lucrecia of Medici. Despite the Catholic beliefs of the Medici, Maria agreed to embrace the Protestant faith and the same year the couple married. A year later, Ana's first grandson was born to Henry, Archibald, whom she would love with all her soul as well as the children her daughters Isabel and Ana had.

In 1558 Anne contracted pneumonia while she was walking with her daughter Isabel on a winter afternoon and she remained in bed for a few days until one morning in December the woman was found in her bed without life . Anne Boleyn passed away at approximately 51 years of age and she left her possessions for her favorite daughter, Anne.

AU Tudor: Los mejores destinos para las esposas de Henry VIII (Es decir si ellas nunca se hubieran casado con el)

Ana Bolena-Condesa de Northumberland (1507-1558)

Ana Bolena llego como dama de compañía de la reina Catalina de Aragón atrayendo las miradas de muchos hombres gracias a su encanto y su belleza exótica, pero Ana sintió una gran atracción por un joven llamado Henry Percy, quien era el heredero del condado de Northumberland. Ambos mantuvieron un romance el cual se cree que no hubo nada intimo y mantenían un sentimiento en común.

Thomas Bolena y Henry Percy, padres de los amantes no estaban de acuerdo con aquella relación y mucho menos con un posible matrimonio entre ellos. Thomas planeaba que su propia hija aspirara mas alto, incluso se rumoreaba que el buscaba que Ana fuera una pretendiente a ser la esposa del príncipe de Gales, Enrique Tudor o incluso que fuera la amante del rey Arturo I.

La pasión entre ambos conyugues era tal que decidieron casarse en secreto en el año 1523, en una ceremonia privada a la cual solo asistieron algunos conocidos de la corte y María Bolena e Isabel Howard, hermana y madre de la doncella.

En la noche de bodas Ana quedo embarazada, pero los cónyuges trataron de ocultar su unión y aquel bebé en su vientre. Conforme pasaban los meses era mas evidente que Ana estaba embarazada y decidió admitir que se había casado con Henry, siendo un gran escandalo para ambas familias y para la corte. Este escandalo hizo que el Sir Henry Percy desheredara a su hijo pese a ser su único heredero y Thomas Bolena obligo a su familia a no mantener contacto con su familia, aun que Isabel Howard pudo intercambiarse secretamente cartas con su hija.

En el año 1524 Ana dio a luz a su primer hijo, Henry futuro conde de Northumberland. Tras este nacimiento Henry Percy se convirtió en uno de los guardias del príncipe George de esta forma la pareja pudo mantener de manera justa a su familia.

Dos años después nació Isabel futura vizcondesa consorte de Albret, además de ser un icono de la moda en Francia. Un año mas tarde falleció Henry Percy, quinto conde de Northumberland y el rey, Arturo I acepto legitimar la unión de Percy y Bolena, además de declarar a los hijos de estos como legítimos y herederos del condado de Northumberland.

En el año 1529 nació la tercera hija de la pareja, Ana la cual fue duquesa de Ferrara y conocida por llevar una vida escandalosa al decirse que mantenía amoríos con hombres y mujeres.

En los años siguientes el condado de Northumberland alcanzo un gran prestigió gracias a la administración monetaria de Ana, de esta manera la familia Percy alcanzo unas grandes sumas de dinero. Además gracias a sus amistades en Francia logró prometer a su hija Isabel con el vizconde de Albret y pesé a las diferentes creencias religiosas hizo una alianza con el ducado de Ferrara prometiendo a su hija pequeña, Ana.

En el año 1540 dio a luz a su ultimo hijo, Thomas Percy quien mas tarde se convertiría en el valido del rey Enrique VIII y se volvería uno de los hombres menos queridos por la corte inglesa.

En el 1545 la princesa Margarita de Valois, hermana del rey Francisco I de Francia le dio a Ana como regalo por su buena amistad, unos terrenos en la localidad de Nantes para expandir sus dominios. Aun que esto provoco la envidia entre muchos cortesanos de la corte francesa, el lugar fue utilizado como una casa de vacaciones para la familia.

Cinco años después en el año 1550 Henry Percy falleció supuestamente por “sudor ingles” una enfermedad que estuvo atacando a Inglaterra hasta el año 1551. La muerte de su marido fue dolorosa para Ana quien había estado muy enamorada de Henry y le guardo luto hasta su muerte.  Ese mismo año su hijo, Henry se convirtió en conde de Northumberland y Ana ayudo a su querido hijo como su secretaria.

En el año 1555 Henry vii logró formar una alianza con el gran duque Cosme I de Medici, casándose con su hija mayor, María Lucrecia de Medici. Pesé a las creencias católicas de los Medici, María acepto abrazar la fe protestante y el mismo año la pareja se caso. Un año después nació el primer nieto de Ana por parte de Henry, Archibald al cual amaría con toda su alma al igual con los hijos que tuvieron sus hijas Isabel y Ana.

En el año 1558 Ana contrajo una neumonía mientras paseaba junto a su hija Isabel en una tarde de invierno y permaneció en cama por unos días hasta que una mañana de diciembre la mujer fue encontrada en su cama sin vida. Ana Bolena falleció con aproximadamente unos 51 años de edad y dejo sus posesiones para su hija favorita, Ana.

#anne boleyn #henry percy #thomas boleyn #elizabeth howard #mary boleyn #george boleyn #catherine of aragon #arthur i of england

[cecilyneville]

the spanish princess ep 5 

i really don’t want to do this anymore lol

i choose to believe lina calling catherine “highness” and not “your majesty” is a deliberate sign of disrespect towards her shitty friend, and not emma frost’s shitty writing

2020 mood

love the idea that charles brandon has to just hang out with this eight year old all the time until he marries her??

oh, so i guess this is the episode where henry starts to go full excess party king and ruairi is...genuinely bad at it, sorry dude

you know, i wish they’d just ripped off the tudors masque scene instead of giving us...whatever this is

side note i take back what i said about laura carmichael being a bad actress. she’s good, just ends up in bad roles. i’d like to see her in a comedy (by which i mean a show that is *intentionally* funny)

love the idea that thomas more, who by this point had written a history of richard iii, apparently has no clue who maggie’s parents are

remember when andrew buchan was absolutely killing it in broadchurch and the honourable woman? great times

so...you’re telling me...maggie & more are self isolating after being exposed to an extremely infectious disease...oh god this is too 2020 to handle

YES finally some thomas boleyn plotting! i like this dude, he’s hot, but i miss nick dunning’s slimy scheming, that was so much FUN

the editing on this show, even to my untrained eye, is so bad

*~eMoTiOn~*

can’t wait for tsp stan twitter to put me on a watchlist for being mean to their girl, but i guess there’s no accounting for taste

we’re not getting the year of the three queens??? i wanted a margaret and mary reunion!!!

STOP CALLING JAMES V THE FUTURE KING OF SCOTLAND WHEN HE’S THE ACTUAL KING, I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW THICK THIS WRITING IS

i like meg’s riding outfit, idk if she’s supposed to be in disguise as a man or whatever, but i’m digging it

albany is nice but he’s still not HOT (i am the only person complaining about this)

“and wolsey? why do you let him humiliate me before the court?” catherine don’t deny me the one pleasure i get from this show

henry being all like “if bessie has a boy i’ll know it’s not my fault” while catherine is in his arms is too funny

“who says he punishes us?” catherine you’ve been saying it for the past few episodes, get a brain

i like how they style maggie in this ep with her hair down, she looks so young and carefree

elizabeth of york mention, isabel neville mention, i just automatically hiss like haloumi hitting a hot pan

HAHAHA MARY FUCKED LOUIS TO DEATH OF COURSE 

god catherine is just truly an almighty piece of shit and i cannot wait for this all to come crashing down on her, it will be so satisfying to me personally

mary gets cute costumes

meg’s red riding cape is also nice

my shitlist has expanded from ef & ch to include whoever did the soundtrack, it’s abysmal

stan jane stewart! call out your trash boyfriend! let him know!

i am DYING at mary’s fake tears, i love her so much

“i ran my own household when i was forced into poverty” yeah and you were bad at it lol. ALSO!!! QUEENS RUN THEIR OWN HOUSEHOLDS!!!

“let’s fall in love then” but...aren’t...you...already...in love??

lina keeps calling catherine highness it’s SO funny

she is an ICON

“i merely burn” maybe don’t say that when the plague’s about, maggie

are you ‘avin me on, mate?? are you ‘avin a laff??

why do they not have midwives in this show, it’s so bizarre

oh bessie’s calling her “your highness” now too, love that

catherine of aragon performing a literal episiotomy is categorically the stupidest thing i have witnessed in any episode of television ever and that, folks, is why i have to keep watching this until the end

henry: “catherine, give me a son” / catherine: LOL OK

are they going to go full tobg and have catherine claim henry fitzroy as her ward and be like HE’S MY SON NOW BESSIE

what must it be like inside emma frost’s galaxy sized brain

#the spanish princess #no television series has or ever will be this dumb...my precious brain cells #tbd

[kiitsume]

a few thoughts on six the musical because nobody asked for them

(also excuse any historical inaccuracies, i've done only cursory reading thank you)

let's start light. the costumes are pretty but they completely take away any sense of historical context, unintentionally minimizing the degree of awareness the audience has of the culture surrounding the women at the time, which is actually pretty important to the message the writers are trying to construct.

the music is good. like, it's catchy and generally well written, and of course well performed. but the writers giveth and the writers taketh away. mostly they take away. all of the songs are reductive and collapse six people-- who they claim to attempt to honor the memory of-- down into platitudes and general notions of people, caricaturizing them into something that's barely recognizable.

the set up the musical to be a "competition between these six women to get the respect the deserve for the amount they suffered" and then they turn around at the end and shame the audience for doing that-- for picking favorites along the way and actually considering which ones they empathize most with.

the opening song, "ex-wives" uses modern lingo and whatnot, but it's not any more jarring that the costumes, so it's not until "don't lose your head" that the text speak really throws you off. it was honestly uncomfortable to watch in context of the musical, at least upon my viewing.

do i know they went chronologically? yes. will i ever forgive them for putting the most jarring joke of a song, "haus of holbein" right after arguably the most heartfelt song of the musical, jane seymour's "heart of stone"? absolutely fucking not.

haus of holbein has it's merits. i won't lie. it addresses the beauty standards of the time and the way that women were expected to destroy their bodies and give up their lives in order to appeal to men, which contributes to the larger narrative the writers were trying to build in saying that all these women would've led remarkable lives if they hadn't been forced to give themselves up to a life that made them miserable. but all of that is erased by the fact that it has air horns in it, i'm sorry, that can't be overlooked. literally die.

katherine (we're going with the musical's spelling okay) howard's song? a fucking bop. "all you wanna do" is iconic. but it has been brought to my attention by my girlfriend, who is much more knowledgeable on the six's actual history and writings, that pretty much the entire song is a complete disregard for who she was in life and her actual feelings, and that's especially irritating because they did it specifically for the purpose of constructing a much more simple narrative and, in the process, did the exact thing they claim to condemn: writing over her, and all the others, with what they think they know and bending them and their lives to fit their ideal message. how so? my girl k howard actually did have feelings for thomas. you know, the one person in the song she's like, "just mates, no chemistry/ i get him and he gets me/ and there's nothing more to it." they just throw that out to make thomas look like a nice guy and like people were just constantly taking advantage of her, which to some extent was true. but it also strips all the agency out of her life, and ignores the fact that "serious, stern and slow/ gets what he wants and he won't take no," francis dereham was the one who got jealous of her and thomas' relationship and snitched to the king and got her executed. there's literally no acknowledgement that he was anything other than just another fling or something. and, by omission, it implies that her music teacher, henry mannox, was the one and only one who groomed her (and molested her at 13). in reality, dereham's relationship with her started when she was 15 and he was 32. oh, and she was 17 when she married the 49 year old king. if the musical is supposed to form a cohesive narrative around how these girls were taken advantage of and thrown out by history as a joke, her story is literally ideal for that purpose. but instead we got naive girl uses sex to get ahead and then it backfires and she's killed for it.

not that thomas is innocent in all of this-- when the affair was brought to public light he blamed everything on howard and continued to deny ever sleeping with her, though he eventually admitted to intending to. there's some debate over whether their private meetings were actually an affair, but howard's writings on it make it seem as if she did have feelings for him, so. we may never know. but again, this is just to show the disservice the musical did to her.

i don't know as much about the other queens i'll admit, but here's just a few things that would be useful for the narrative the musical tries and fails to build: catherine parr was 15 when she was married to henry's brother arthur, who she couldn't speak to because they'd corresponded in latin but had different pronunciations-- this marriage was to give arthur greater legitimacy, because she was considered more strongly royal by blood; anne boleyn resisted henry's attempts to make her a mistress-- she was extremely smart, which was desirable in a mistress but not a wife!-- as her sister mary had been, and her daughter, unlike parr's is never acknowledged by the musical, the subjects called her "the king's whore" and blamed her for his tyranny, and-- oh, did i mention? historians debate whether there were any actual grounds for the charges brought against her that led to her execution, and most scholars regard it just something the king did so he could move on to seymour; jane seymour was married to henry the day after anne boleyn's execution, and she was never publically coronated in part because of a plague (woo!) but some also theorize that henry didn't want her to be coronated until she'd done her "duty as queen" and bore him a male heir; anne of cleves was described as extremely beautiful, so when the king met her and described her as "plain" he was incredibly let down, and immediately decided that he wanted to avoid the marriage altogether-- she was not considered ugly, as the musical makes it sound, just not good enough for the kings "selective" tastes (you know, the same henry who had a festering, ulcerated wound on his leg from a jousting accident); catherine parr is done the most justice, actually acknowledging the work she did in education and writing, the role she played in the establishment of the Third Succession Act which allowed her daughters access to the throne, and her two previous marriages (one of which was to someone twice her age) but it fails to acknowledge that her protestant sympathies got her targeted by arrest warrants before she reconciled with the king, and she was able to marry her lost love thomas seymour (different thomas, different seymour) in secret four months after the king's death, only to die a year and four months later.

also this: catherine of aragon was the only wife older than henry when they married, with her being 24 when and henry being 18; boleyn was 32 while henry was 42; seymour was 28, married to a 45 year old henry; anne of cleves was 25 and henry was 49; i repeat, howard was 17 when she was married to the 49 year old king; and parr was 31 and henry was 52.

and they were all flawed individuals, too, don't take my defenses of them to mean otherwise. in fact, as historical figures, i don't necessarily like all of them. but despite their flaws, they didn't deserve what happened to them, which is something the musical fails to portray in every way. it glosses over everything so quickly, which i understand is to be expected to a degree when you give each queen a six minute song to tell the story of their entire life, but the writing distorts them so badly they're hardly recognizable, and their stories are changed willy-nilly to fit the lazy empowerment theme rather than addressing them as they were.

the final song, "six." boy do i have thoughts. it's meant to seem empowering, and to an extent it is, because the characters they've given us get to talk about having a happy ending and making something of their lives that made them happy to have a legacy. but none of it's true, and it feels incredibly forced, especially because they take the concept of these women and pay no attention to them historically or what the figures they're based on would've actually wanted, and instead just says, "they all sing and dance and have a great time! question nothing!" and it just feels so hollow. it honestly made me feel even worse about the historical figures themselves and the suffering they endured, because it felt minimizing and shallow, like a platitude to make you stop thinking about how horribly they were treated. it was genuinely upsetting from that point of view, and despite how uplifting it's meant to be in the context of the show, it acknowledges that it's only a dream by giving a time limit to their happiness-- five minutes. and after that point you're supposed to go on continuing to be happy, having connected with these people and been empowered by their stories, when you are given very little of their actual stories and are shamed for analyzing things through the lens they gave you at the opening of the show. not to mention how horribly they trample over their message of how restrictive and repressive their lives were by nature of their station and says that, "well, if they could've just made different choices they would've been happy!" ignoring how the culture gave them no other choice and there's a pretty good chance that, even if they had made the choices they wanted to, they would've still been held back by virtue of their gender and station. the story behind six is not empowering, and it feels horrible to have it twisted around that was to make it seem empowering. i understand not wanting to beat down your audience and make them miserable, but rather than reducing these women down to such simplified caricatures and then having them all bond and have a girl power moment, it would've been much more impactful to have their actual concerns be what they bonded over-- being forgotten, talked over, held back, so on-- and talking about the people they actually were. having them write their own stories is fun and all, but having them actually tell their stories and feel heard, even if it's in a time they'll never see, is a much less reductive sentiment.

tl;dr: so basically i thought the musical was badly written for the message they were trying to send, and no amount of good music or talented performance can save a boring or badly written musical, and the six queens still deserve better.

#long post #this took me all morning and i still feel like i didn't address everything i thought about it #but if i think about it any more i'll start crying because it distresses me to that degree that it didn't do them justice #and for other reasons but. staying on theme that's the reason we're going with. #not gonna put hate in the tags though have fun #i still listen to the soundtrack it's great it's just a bad musical when it's all put together

[katybirdy95]

History ask: 2, 5, 10, 11, 16, 19, 29, 47, 61, 62

Hi there!

2. Favorite underrated historical figure?

Catherine of Braganza, I feel she doesn’t get as much attention compared to Charles II’s mistresses and I think that needs to change as she was an amazing woman. We need more biographies on her to.

5. Favorite political scandal to examine?

I can’t really think of one, someone spoke about the political manuverings of the restoration court and in particular George Villers, Duke of Buckingham and I have found myself in the last few weeks casually researching him and his shenanigans.

10. Favorite movie based on history?

The Lion in Winter (1968). It’s got amazing actors and a fantastic script with loads of iconic lines.

11. Favorite biography?

Love and Louis XIV by Antonia Fraser. I’m not really into reading biographies, but I try my best do read them to keep myself informed, but prefer fiction, documentaries and articles.

16. Favorite controversial leader?

I don’t know if monarch’s count, but I’ll go with Henry VIII. He’s not my favourite king, but he’s very interesting and I like reading up on some of the softer sides to his personality than the tyrianical side that is more popular in history.

19. If you could travel back in time and kill anyone, who would it be?

There is definitely a lot of historical figures that should have been taken out, but I’d rather someone else do the job for me.

29. Rant about your favorite topic.

This has been brought to attention on this site recently, but I hate the fact that grown adults judge Katheryn Howard who was an abused child and even go so far as to say that her and her cousin (Anne Boleyn) deserved death. I actually think that Katheryn didn’t sleep with Thomas Culpepper, but maybe had an emotional affair with him instead. I think that people should explore the possiblity that Katheryn might not have committed adultery, especially since this poor girl had been used by men her entire life.

47. Favorite queen/king of England?

Edward IV and Anne Boleyn. Anne Boleyn was what got me into history when I was a little girl and I just love the charisma of Edward IV and I’m disappointed at how little attention he gets compared to Richard III.

61. Favorite ancient civilization?

I would say Ancient Greece. I love studying mythology, in particular geek mythology, which I started studying as a child and I had to a paper on Ancient Greek from one of my classes in highschool and really enjoyed delving into the information. I do want to get in Egyptian mythology next though and explore the history and culture/religious aspect.

62. Favorite leader of said ancient civilization?

I don’t really have one, I’m more interested in the mythological side like deites.

Sorry this took so long and that it’s not a lot of information, I’ve been busy the last few days, but wanted to get this out.

#ask #history asks

[edwardianbookwhore]

VHS Six the Musical

Alright so if you haven’t watched this video yet I’m gonna link it here because it is honestly one of the best high school theatre performances I’ve ever seen and it’s so underrated. If you don’t believe me, well let me tell you why. 

1. The entire thing is choreographed and directed by students. That may not seem very impressive but once you watch it you’ll understand why. The girl who plays Aragon (Abbey Thomas) choreographed the whole thing and Travis Roy Rogers did the musical direction. They didn’t have music for the performance so the percussion is made up completely of the choreography. Starting with Parr (Emma Thomas) stomping her feet for the beginning of “Ex-Wives” all the way to them actually getting down for “Get Down”. It’s honestly so impressive that it was all choreographed by a teenager, some of it is even better than the original production’s. 

2. As previously mentioned, they didn’t have any music so all the vocals are a capella. Aragon (Abbey Thomas), Boleyn (Chloe Rodriguez), and Seymour’s (Jaden Lewis) vocals were certainly the strongest but there were no mics so it was kind of hard to tell. However, considering the fact that the whole piece was performed in a school gym while people were cheering, you can hear them all pretty well. Some of the arrangements are even changed up, for the better. Massive props to Travis Roy Rogers for all that. 

3. These girls’ stage presence is on point. While it may not be a stage, they certainly make that gym in to one. They’re all so confident in their abilities and characters. While confidence and stage presence is not necessarily the same thing, some of these girls have both which is more that some Broadway performers can say. My eyes were instantly drawn to Boleyn (Chloe Rodriguez); she absolutely owns that gym during “Don’t Lose Ur Head”. Very few high school performers are able to do that. 

4. Each girl makes their characters their own. Between Chicago and London, there’s not really much of a difference between how the casts portray each character. They’re all pretty much the same, which is not necessarily a bad thing. However, these girls completely shine though with their own personalities in each character. Aragon (Abbey Thomas) is the leader, you can tell the actor is the director right from the start. Boleyn (Chloe Rodriguez) is the small second-in-command. Seymour (Jaden Lewis) is the confident woman with a strong voice; the actor kind of looks like she could be in a legitimate production of the musical. Cleves (Roxy Fulmer) is the girl who may be easily overlooked but certainly has some talents of her own. Howard (Sophia Rodriguez), while she may come off a little nerdy, makes the character really funny, although her story may not be so. Lastly, Parr (Emma Thomas), although stronger on choreography, really shines through with her borderline-emo/feminist aesthetic for the character. I really enjoyed the fresh takes on each character and thought it was a nice change to the same six characters in the original musical. While these decisions may not be intentional, I liked it a whole lot more than London’s to be completely honest. 

5. I’m just gonna leave these photos here to convince you. 

Abbey Thomas as Aragon

Chloe Rodriguez as Boleyn (I couldn’t decide on a picture, both are iconic)

Jaden Lewis as Seymour (those vocals though!!)

Roxy Fulmer as Cleves

Sophia Rodriguez as Howard

Emma Thomas as Parr (best dancing tbh)

WATCH THIS PERFORMANCE!!! (All the actors’ instagrams are linked in the description of the video)

#six the musical #six #west end #london #broadway #musicals

[tianmicons]

#nick dunning icons #nick dunning #icons with psd #psd icons #thomas boleyn icons #thomas boleyn #tv series #tv series icons #actors #actors icons #the tudors #the tudors icons

[mihrsuri]

An OT3 verse thing: King Thomas II (Turhan) and his cousin Anne Tudor-Dudley (Cromwell-Boleyn) are absolutely BFFs. She’s his secret spymaster, openly one of his advisors and they have the same dry sense of humour and also she will stab people for him.

(Turhan finds it very hard - not only is he the son of two genuinely iconic once in a millennia genuinely golden world rulers he’s the biracial takes after his maternal family in appearance who is very much a Muslim King).

#tudors ot3 verse reference #ot3: political power trio #their friendship is so important to me though

[ap-kinda-lit]

Today’s the birthday of a true queen, an icon, and a BAMF

Elizabeth I, Queen of England

Born on September 7, 1533. Her mother was Anne Boleyn and her father was King Henry VIII. 3 years later, her mother was beheaded for trumped up charges of adultery and treason and Elizabeth was thus declared a bastard, banished from the royal court and the English succession. From very early, it was obvious to everyone that Elizabeth was no ordinary girl both as a princess and a bastard: she was incredibly intelligent (reaching a level on par with even the finest male scholars of England at a young age), full of energy, brimming astonishing mental and physical strength, superbly precocious, possessed a fiery temper, and totally irrepressible and stubborn. With her strength and wit, she was able to survive several dangerous episodes in her youth spanning from her abuse and scandal at the hands of her stepfather, Thomas Seymour, to her imprisonment in the Tower London under her sister’s reign. Despite all of the obstacles blocking her from the throne, Elizabeth was crowned Queen of England in 1558. Many did not believe she was capable of being a good monarch because she was a woman and a bastard and a Protestant, especially as she refused to ever marry. However, Elizabeth proved to be the exact opposite: she became the greatest monarch England had ever known. Under her reign, England went from a bankrupt isle surrounded by enemies to a European superpower. Art and literature flourished (the printing press was developed, Shakespeare and other reknowned writers grew recognition and inspiration), expeditions into the New World expanded and its benefits of wealth, resources, and other discoveries were reaped tremendously thus making the economy grow very rich, peace and prosperity for England and its people reigned for the first time in so long and lasted for decades, the looming threat of Spanish invasion and the Spanish Armada were defeated, the working class improved and prospered, and religious tolerance was valued by Elizabeth. For 44 years, Elizabeth ruled as the revered and iconic Gloriana, the Virgin Queen, until her death in March of 1603. The legacy she left behind was a glorious kingdom, a spectacular feminist icon for the centuries, everlasting proof that a woman can wield power and rule as a regnant monarch, and a legendary example.

#elizabeth i #elizabeth tudor #september 7 #an international holiday

[bibliophileiz]

An Ode to Spoilers: How ‘shock value’ flies in the face of conventional storytelling

My name is Iz and I love spoilers.

One of my favorite books I’ve ever read is an epic tragic love story that ends with the lovers dead. The first dies suddenly and horribly, and the other is left embittered, hopelessly navigating his now empty existence until he too dies in an unmomentous scene that feels almost more like a sigh of relief than the gut-wrenching destruction of a character I spent 353 pages with by that point. 

Here’s the thing though: I knew all that was coming when I started Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles, because I know how Homer’s The Iliad ends.

I’ve read a handful of retellings of the fall of Troy, and I never expect them to have happy endings. (I was pleasantly surprised when David and Stella Gemmell’s Troy trilogy ended with two of the characters living happily ever after.) Same goes with any stories that take place during destructive moments in history -- The Other Boleyn Girl will end with Mary watching her sister’s execution, The Titanic will always sink, and any book you read about the Holocaust may be about hope, but it will also be about trauma. 

So let’s take it out of the context of history and into fiction. One of the most famous tragic love stories of all time, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, tells you in the prologue in Act I that Romeo and Juliet will die at the end -- presumably so that people who wanted a happy ending know to leave right then and come back when Much Ado About Nothing is playing. 

Shakespeare wasn’t the first or only storyteller to do this either. The audiences of Greek tragedies knew good and well Antigone was going to die for her loyalty to family and the gods. Even the muses in the opening of Homer’s The Odyssey kind of tell you what’s about to happen. Which suggests that in many of the most iconic and long-lasting stories in Western culture* the storytellers haven’t been too concerned with spoilers.

This is not what we’re seeing with storytellers today.  

Possibly because fans are now obsessed with getting online and talking out theories for what and how certain plots will play out, writers -- and TV writers in particular -- have become obsessed with “subverting audience expectations.” Some have even come out and said they’ve changed endings after fans correctly predicted their plans. Think about that for a second: audience surprise is now more important to some storytellers than having a plot-driven narrative.

There’s a scene in the CW show Jane the Virgin where, in a flashback, a precocious young Jane at her first ever book reading asks a romance author why she ended a particular book with the couple NOT living happily ever after. The author tells her love doesn’t always work out.

“Yeah, in real life,” Jane says. “But this is a romance novel. In a romance novel, they get a happily ever after, not happily until a mortar shell explodes just when Jean Luc’s finally coming home from the war!

“Everyone knows in tragedies they end up dead, in comedies they end up happy and in romance novels they end up together,” she later adds.

Of course the author tells Jane basically what head show writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss told us about the end of Game of Thrones earlier this year: “Sometimes you need to subvert the ending for the element of surprise.”

The takeaway for Jane is that she has to read the endings of books first so that she knows what happens. This is something that comes up in other meta stories about storytelling. (In the 2003 movie Alex and Emma, Emma, played by Kate Hudson, tells professional novelist Alex, played by Luke Wilson, that she always reads the ends of books before deciding whether she wants to invest her time in the whole thing. Alex is flabbergasted. Also, I need to rewatch that movie.) 

Does this mean I think all TV shows, books, movies, etc. should be spoiled? No. But it does raise the point that audiences want to know they’re on the same page as the storyteller. I don’t want Rob Thomas to manipulate my emotions and make me think I’m watching a particular type of story only to blow Logan Echolls up in the last 10 minutes. I don’t want to read 10,000 pages and watch 7 seasons of a Jaime Lannister redemption arc that ends with him riding back to King’s Landing for a pointless death scene with the woman who sent him down the path of self-destruction in the first place. And I better fucking not have watched Kylo Ren oversee the massacre of a peaceful village at the beginning of The Force Awakens for The Rise of Skywalker to end with him banging Rey. Because those stories weren’t presented to me as the kind of stories that would have those endings.

If Game of Thrones the TV show had told us at the outset that this was the story of The Tragedy of Danaerys Targaryen, would as many people have been shocked, pissed off, bitterly disappointed in the ending to a show they’d spent literal years watching and being invested in? 

The other side of that question, of course, is: If Game of Thrones the TV show had told us at the outset that this was the story of The Tragedy of Danaerys Targaryen, would as many people have watched it in the first place, knowing it would inevitably end with Danaerys’ downfall?

Call me crazy, but I think yes. The show would still have been successful. Hell, I’d argue it would even have been better -- with everyone knowing the end, getting there is tighter. There are fewer false starts and unnecessary characters, the writers, actors and audience are all on the same page, that whole Dorne subplot probably doesn’t happen. With a general consensus on the destination, it all becomes about the journey.

And if we’re really being honest with ourselves, that’s what storytelling is actually about. Because I read 369 pages of The Song of Achilles, knowing damn well it wouldn’t end happily for Patroclus and Achilles but also getting to see how happy they were in the middle -- how their choices brought them to Troy to fight with the Greeks, even though they didn’t start the war themselves; how they spent 10 years making a life there together; how Achilles brought love to Patroclus’ life and how Patroclus kept Achilles human throughout the war. And instead of being a bitter love story, it was a beautiful one, and it was worth the ending.

Having an audience that understands the writer’s storytelling goals will always be better than leaving an audience shocked, angry, and confused at the wholesale destruction of characters they’ve invested in. Intentional storytelling will always be better than shock value.

*I say stories in Western culture because, unfortunately, I am not as familiar with stories in other cultures. (I know/have heard of some of them, but don’t know them well enough to know what the prologue says. Someone who knows -- does The Epic of Gilgamesh tell you at the outset that Enkidu dies?) But I’d be interested to know if some cultures care about spoilers more than others, and just generally would like to see more discussion on this whole topic.

#spoilers abound for the following #the song of achilles #game of thrones #veronica mars #romeo and juliet #other things #but as you may be able to tell from the title of this post #that's kind of the point #also this post was inspired by the ending of season 4 of veronica mars #but i didn't dwell on that as much as game of thrones because vmars had so many OTHER problems this season #i had it spoiled for me and i still thought it was garbage

[salsedine]

Queen Elizabeth I, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Queen Victoria, please? Lol, without context that looks weird. 😉

Hello! :D Ahaha, don’t worry about it.

Queen Elizabeth I. : What’s your favorite period drama?

Alright, I’ve watched a lot of period dramas so I’m probably going to forget something, sorry. In no particular oder I’d say:

Gentleman Jack: Perfection does not exists, but this show comes pretty close. Excellent acting, realistic characters (Yes, Anne Lister is the heroine and she is classist because this is the XIXth century and she is a landowner) and the soundtrack is also lovely. The hill-top scene in the eight episode redefined the concept of romance. The only downside is probably the mutton-leg sleeves but eh, fashion.

The Tudors: Does it have its flaws? Sure, but this is still one of the most compelling rendition of Tudor history. Their Thomas Cromwell? Iconic, thanks James Frain. All the characters are depicted as complex human beings, there are no saints, which is more than any shows have done with the same topic tbh. Ah yes, Dormer did a terrific job with Anne Boleyn and to this day this is still my favourite performance of her.

Black Sails: THIS SHOW. Another show that comes pretty close to perfection. I must admit that the first season left me kind of lukewarm, but from the second season onward? It just get better and better. Incredible storytelling, lot of queer characters and a splendid soudtrack. Ah yes: James Flint is an icon and his “freedom in the darkness” speech kind of changed me as a person.

Special mentions to:

Spartacus: Yes it’s over the top and kind of gory sometimes, but me and @oketipoketifafifurni​ cried so much over the last season. And you know what? It’s one of the first period drama show that not only doesn’t kill off the gay couple but makes them survive until the end. Which, in this show, is  A LOT.

Borgia: Faith and Fear: Yes it’s (very) over the top and kind of gory just as Spartacus, but their rendition of the Renaissance zeitgeist is splendid, plus I really liked the costumes. The cast is also incredible tbh.

 Harlots: The first two seasons are very interesting and tackle a lot of topics often ignored. Sadly, the third (and last) season is a little bit all over the place.

The White Queen: Is Philippa Gregory biased storytelling annoying? Yes, sure. But I get to watch Rebecca Ferguson doing witchy things and wearing lovely gowns to a nice soundtrack, and sometimes this is enough.

 The Name of the Rose (2019): Lovely soundtrack and cast, overall an excellent adaptation. I’ve liked it far more than the movie.

Vikings: I’ve stopped watching it but I love its first 3 seasons! We need more mythology inspired shows tbh.

I’ll stop here because this is already long enough lol, I’m so sorry.

Eleanor of Aquitaine : Who should play your favorite historical person?

I’m choosing Elizabeth I because I did my bachelor thesis on her :P From existing adaptations, I’m partial to Marleen Loohse, even is she doesn’t have dark eyes, which is kind of my thing when it comes to casting Elizabeth. So the answer is: Marleen with a pair of dark contact lenses :P

Queen Victoria : Favorite historical fiction?

Does Moby Dick counts, since it’s set in XIXth century? :P No, well, I really like Wolf Hall (H. Mantel) even if the author has an huge bias against the Boleyns; the prose is really lovely and the book captures perfectly the historical context.

Thanks for asking! Sadly, when it gets to historical stuff I’m definitely too chatty lol.

#history #birdkeeperklink probably regrets asking me this #ask #birdkeeperklink

[duchessofostergotlands]

Who, in your opinion, have been the most impressive women in the British Royal Family? From any time period.

Hey :) Well there wasn’t a shared royal family until King James VI and I in 1603. So looking at the BRF and then the English and Scottish monarchies before them these are some interesting figures:

Saint Margaret- Queen consort of Scotland from 1070 to 1093. She was a deeply religious woman who helped to make reforms to the church in Scotland and was heavily involved in charity work. She was made a Saint in the 13th century. 

Empress Matilda- Holy Roman Empress from 1114 to 1125 and Queen of England claimant to the English throne from 1141 to 1148. One of my favourites, she was the first to try and take the throne for herself. She was making political decision from around the age of 14 and when she was deprived her rightful throne she convinced powerful men to back her. Think how hard that is for women now let alone 900 years ago!! 

Eleanor of Aquitaine- Queen consort of England from 1154 to 1189. She was married to the King of England- a very powerful man- but he was allowed no say in the running of the Duchy of Aquitaine, which was her territory alone. Like many of my favourite historical royals she was someone who divided attention, but she had the ability to command incredible loyalty from people close to her- convincing people to join her in the Crusades and leading a rebellion against her own husband. 

Isabella of France- Queen consort of England from 1308 to 1327. Any woman given the nickname She Wolf is probably going to be a favourite of mine! Pissed off because her husband was disrespecting her in favour of his “male favourite” and was making terrible leadership decisions she decided to lead a rebellion against him- and she damn well won. 

Anabella Drummond- Queen consort of Scotland from 1390 to 1401. Her husband was severely depressed and unable to rule and Anabella was effectively monarch in his absence. She managed to fend off English invading forces and was well regarded for a powerful woman in that era 

Margaret of Anjou- Queen consort of England from 1445 to 1461. Her husband was unstable so she had huge influence over his decisions. She was pivotal in leading the Lancastrian forces in the Wars of the Roses 

Margaret Tudor- Queen consort of Scotland from 1503 to 1513. She was regent for her son James V and sister to King Henry VIII. She was unusually prominent and powerful for a woman in that era and she fostered some brief moments of peace between England and Scotland 

Anne Boleyn-  Queen consort of England from 1533 to 1536. My dear Anne. The best quote to describe her is from Eric Ives: “A woman in her own right—taken on her own terms in a man’s world; a woman who mobilised her education, her style and her presence to outweigh the disadvantages of her sex; of only moderate good looks, but taking a court and a king by storm. Perhaps, in the end, it is Thomas Cromwell’s assessment that comes nearest: intelligence, spirit and courage.” 

Mary of Guise- Queen consort of Scotland from 1538-1543. Regent for her daughter Mary Queen of Scots. She was supposed to have said- when Henry VIII was interested in marrying her- “I may be a big woman, but I have a very little neck.” She seized the role of regent by force and wielded considerable influence over Scottish affairs 

Mary I- Queen of England from 1553 to 1558. Although she has been overshadowed by other women she was the first officially recognised Queen regnant in English history and she has to get some props for that

 Elizabeth I- Queen of England from 1558 to 1603. She is one of the most well known women who has ever lived. She was fiercely intelligent, independent, politically shrewd, adept at military strategy, and a patron of the arts. She created one of the most iconic eras in British history. 

Princess Charlotte of Wales- Second in line to the British throne from 1796 to 1817. Perhaps the original original People’s Princess, long before Diana. She wasn’t confined by the social mores at the time, dressing how she wanted and openly defying her father.  Much like Diana, she died tragically young and her death was a national moment of mourning because of her immense popularity 

Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll- Daughter of Queen Victoria. While Victoria was incredibly sexist- even for her time- Louise was a proto-feminist. She was incredibly politically liberal and she was known for trying to cast off the royal life, even asking not to go by her titles. 

Queen Elizabeth- Queen Consort of the United Kingdom from 1936 to 1952. The Queen Mother, as most in my generation know her, was a heavily flawed woman but her early years were remarkable. She had to deal with her husband suddenly becoming King during one of the most difficult periods in British history but through her strength and her solidarity with the people she became a rallying point for the nation. You know you’re an impressive person when Adolf Hitler calls you  “the most dangerous woman in Europe.”

#british royal family #historical royals #ask #anon