Category Archives: Anglo-Normans

Serendipity in the Writing Process + the Coming Release on Friday of “The Colonel’s Ungovernable Governess” + a Giveaway

Those of you who know me, know something of my writing process. For example, I still compose in a wide ruled spiral notebook. I choose wide ruled because I can write such words as “timeline” in the margin without breaking … Continue reading

Posted in Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, book excerpts, book release, books, eBooks, etymology, excerpt, family, Georgian England, Georgian Era, giveaway, historical fiction, history, Inheritance, Jane Austen, language choices, Living in the Regency, Pride and Prejudice, primogenture, publishing, Regency era, Regency romance, research, terminology, word origins, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Statute of Wills, Henry VIII’s Answer to Primogeniture

The Statute of Wills (32 Hen. 8, c. 1 – enacted in 1540) was an English Act of Parliament, which created a mechanism for landowners to name who would inherit their landed property. A written will was required. It permitted a … Continue reading

Posted in Act of Parliament, Anglo-Normans, castles, Living in the UK, primogenture | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Origin of the Drama – Everyman and The Second Shepherd’s Play

Morality Plays, those in which the characters were allegorical persons would attempt to drive home a moral. They provided more scope to the imagination for new plots and incidents and afforded a  chance for delineation of characters. (For more information … Continue reading

Posted in Age of Chaucer, Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, Chaucer, Church of England, drama, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Allure of ByGone Days…(or Not)

(In cleaning out some of my school files, I came across these common phrases and their sources. Enjoy!!!) Here are some bygone talesĀ about the 1500s: People married in June. Most had taken their yearly bath in May, so the bride … Continue reading

Posted in Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, Great Britain, real life tales, tall tales | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Pre-Elizabethan Drama: Morality Plays

Previously, I did a piece on Liturgical Drama. Today I would like to look at Moralities. As compared to the Miracle or Liturgical dramas, the morality play was one where the playwright had to come up with an original story … Continue reading

Posted in acting, Age of Chaucer, Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, drama, medieval, playwrights, Vagary | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Pre-Elizabethan Drama: Morality Plays

Colchester and Colchester Castle, Oldest Recorded Town and the Largest Keep in England

Colchester, some 50 miles northeast of London, is an historic market town in the county of Essex. As the oldest recorded Roman town in Britain, Colchester is claimed to be the oldest town in Britain. For a time, it was … Continue reading

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UK “Real” Estate: Coggeshall Abbey in Essex

In 1140, Coggeshall Abbey was founded by King Stephen and his wife Matilda as a Sauvignac Abbey.. It was designed to house the monks of the Savigniac order. The earliest English use of bricks as building materials can be found … Continue reading

Posted in Age of Chaucer, Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, buildings and structures, history | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Theatre-Loving Fore-Runners of Shakespeare ~ Part I

Ā With the rediscovery of the works of Seneca, Plautus, and Terence, the renaissance of 16th Century England began. First edited in 1308 by an Nicholas Treveth, the tragedian Seneca remained unnoticed for some time by those in England, for Treveth … Continue reading

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Shetland Sword Dance

Ā Sir Walter Scott wrote in his diary of the Shetland Sword Dance on 7 August 1814. “At Scalloway my curiosity was gratified by an account of the sword-dance, now almost lost, but still practiced in the Island of Papa…. There … Continue reading

Posted in Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons, British history, drama, literature, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Tradition of Gift Giving

ā€œThen they opened their treasures and presented him the gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.ā€ In Biblical times, the gift of gold indicated the receiver stood in high standing, but giving gold to a child would have … Continue reading

Posted in Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Saxons | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments