Visited Alianore’s blog today and was shocked (yes, shocked) that Hugh le Despenser the younger had no Catalogue Card. (Of course, we efficient Americans call it a “Catalog Card.”) So here goes: We feel much better on this blog now, thank you.
Hugh’s Catalog Card Read More »
I woke this morning to the interesting, if unappetizing, news that remains of a corpse found at Hulton Abbey in Staffordshire have been identified by an anthropologist, Mary Lewis, as being those of Hugh le Despenser the younger, husband of the heroine of The Traitor’s Wife. (Sorry, had to stick a little promo in here!)
Mr. Despenser Collects Himself? Read More »
Nicholas de Litlyngton, abbot of Westminster from 1362 until his death in 1386, has been misidentified by Dugdale and many since as an out-of-wedlock son of Edward III. As E. H. Pearce pointed out in The Monks of Westminster, however, this would have required considerable precocity on Edward III’s part, since Nicholas was probably only a
Westminster’s Despenser: Abbot Nicholas de Litlyngton Read More »
Yup, it’s been a few days, but here’s a meaty post to make up for it. Long before his son and grandson became embroiled in the disputes between king and nobility during the reign of Edward II, Hugh le Despenser (d. 1265) was a key figure in the turmoil surrounding the reign of Henry III.
The Last Justiciar Read More »
I’ve wished a happy anniversary to Eleanor de Clare and her first husband, Hugh le Despenser the younger, previously in this blog. It seems only fair to extend the same greetings to Eleanor and her second husband, William la Zouche, who married some time in January or February of 1329. Their short marital life–William died
A Possibly Belated Happy Anniversary to Eleanor de Clare and William la Zouche Read More »
I’ve picked on Queen Isabella too much lately, haven’t I? So let’s have some equal time for her archenemy, Hugh le Despenser the younger. Reading Alianore’s post about Hugh’s correspondence made me wonder, what would Hugh be doing today? Well, in between stints at minimum-security prisons for white-collar criminals, he’d probably be a CEO in
Hugh le Despenser’s Ten Management Tips Read More »
On January 1, 1327, Queen Isabella, having executed her enemies and imprisoned her husband, King Edward II, turned her attention to much smaller matters: Hugh le Despenser the younger’s little daughters. On that day, the queen issued an order that Eleanor le Despenser be packed off to Sempringham, a Gilbertine priory in Lincolnshire, and veiled
Two (Maybe Three) Little Nuns Read More »
Today is the 680th anniversary of the death of Hugh le Despenser the younger. I’m too lazy to write a proper blog entry about it. Instead, here’s the scene as I wrote it in The Traitor’s Wife. (It’s not dinnertime fare.) Leybourne and Stanegrave and their men had made Hugh’s journey to Hereford as miserable
680 Years Ago Today in Hereford Read More »
Today marks the 680th anniversary of the death of Hugh le Despenser the elder, Earl of Winchester, who was put to death at Bristol on October 27, 1326, by Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer following their invasion of England. It was a sad end for a man who had been a loyal servant to the
A Sad Day at Bristol Read More »
I’d like my blog entry today to honor Hugh le Despenser (d. 1349), eldest son of Hugh le Despenser the younger and Eleanor de Clare, who on August 24, 1346, as a prelude to the Battle of Crécy two days later, stormed the town of Le Crotoy, killed hundreds of French troops, burnt the town,
The Other Hugh le Despenser, and a Too Perfect Heroine Read More »