I am very proud to be hosting Lori Crane on my blog today. For those of you who have as yet not made acquaintance with Lori’s books, I must say you are in for a major treat. This lady knows how to write – and even more, she writes about her own ancestors in various […]
Welcoming Elly Hays – five generations down the line Read More »
There are seven deadly sins. Those of you who have attended Catholic schools, will probably know them by heart – or maybe you don’t, because you spent Divinity class doodling rather than listening. The rest of you may have only the vaguest of notions as to what I’m on about, but some of you will
Samain. All Saints Eve. Hallowe’en. A night to be wary of, a short moment in time when the thin veil that separates the living from the dead can be breached, when restless souls wander the dark in search a new abode. Well, assuming you believe in stuff like that, right? I’m not sure I do.
One of my favourite historical persons is St Teresa de Jesus (or St Teresa de Avila as she is also known). I would actually go as far as to say this lady is my favourite saint – but that may of course be because she is one of the few saints I have found interesting
We all have our particular favourites among historical people. Quite often, the people we idolise will be vilified by others – history, just like pretty much everything in life, is a matter of perception and opinion. After all, none of us knew the people who took central stage during the preceding centuries. (Well; I would
This post is my contribution to the Nautical Blog Hop, organised by Helen Hollick. Please do not miss out on all the other posts on this blog hop – right at the bottom of this post you will find a list of all participants. Further to this, why not participate in my little give-away –
Most of the time, I wander around entirely unaware of my age. Okay, so of course I know how old I am – I’m not senile yet – but mostly I put myself in a vague age bracket that could be denominated “middle-aged”, with a mental qualification that I am of course still a very
In 1496, Princess Juana of Castilla, daughter of their most Catholic majesties Fernando and Isabel, married Philip the Beautiful, son of Maximilan I, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, scion of the Hapsburg dynasty. At the time of her marriage, Juana was not expected to inherit the combined kingdoms of Aragón and Castilla. She had
Of inbreeding, royal marriages and their ultimate consequence Read More »
In November 1520, Lady Kristina Gyllenstierna was dragged before the victorious Danish king and given the choice of dying by burning at the stake or by being buried alive. Needless to say, this 25-year-old woman wasn’t too keen on either of the options. Besides, why should she be condemned to die, when all she had
I like wandering round in churches, and on a recent visit to the Church of Holy Trinity in Kristianstad, I spent my time perusing the gravestones that line the walls of the church. The church was built in the early seventeenth century, and as was the custom rich people were often buried directly under the