Desktop Siege Engines

Every history fan should have one of these Medieval Trebuchets on their desk, or alternatively an equally effective Roman Onager - according the the blurb the range is up to 20 feet, so plenty of scope for office mayhem...

johnson ben tesco

One of the fun things you can do with a website tracking tool such as Statcounter is to look at the sometimes odd search strings or keywords people enter into Google (or occasionally Yahoo, or sometimes the new-fangled Bing).

Here are a few obscure ones that have recently landed on Cardinal Wolsey's Today in History:

"johnson ben tesco"
"play icy tower vi.3.1"
"cardinal wolsey cabinet"
"cardinal wolsey suicide" [The Tudors on TV to blame for this one...CW]
"oliver cromwell stonehenge" [did he go there?]
"stonehenge scary games"
"tudor food fight"

and would anyone like to own up to ...

"german lady mudfight" ?????

Tudor Bloopers!

Although some felt that Season 1 of "The Tudors" was one long out-take, see Cardinal Wolsey's Vodpod for a selection of sometimes hilarious forgotten lines, corpsing and general banter by the cast, courtesy of the great historical research tool "YeTube".

Carnivalesque XXXVII is up...

Fed up with the Tudors? Then take a look at the latest Ancient/Medieval edition of the Carnivalesque blog carnival over at In the Middle. Interestingly, this edition is hosted by a Tiny Shriner, a small but perfectly formed member of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. A lot of interesting posts, including What made the Romans laugh.

Anyway, the Shriners' headware of choice is the red fez, so that's an excuse for a Tommy Cooper sketch is it not?

Medieval Helpdesk

This gem is exactly at the point where the Norwegian sense of humour intersects with ours....

Henry VIII's preferred road-trip snack

Thanks to TudorHistory.org blog for spotting this!

Christmas Quiz.... The Answers

Here are the answers to yesterday's quiz questions from the BBC...

1. What did Henry VII do with Yorkist imposter Lambert Simnel after capturing him in 1487?
Lambert Simnel was spared death and made to work as a turnspit in the royal kitchens (pictured).


2. 2008 is the 500th anniversary of the birth of one of history's most influential architects, born in Padua in 1508. Who was it?
Andrea Palladio, who influenced Inigo Jones and Christopher Wren.


3. Which Tudor queen had a pomegranate as a badge?
Catherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII and mother of Mary I.


4. Which English possession was captured by the French on 7th January, 1558? (clue: it's not far away)
Calais, which had been in English hands since 1347. On its recapture, Mary I is reported to have said "When I am dead and opened, you shall find Philip (her husband) and Calais lying in my heart"Holinshed's Chronicles, IV (1808).


5. February 13th, 1608 is the 400th anniversary of the death of one of Tudor England's richest and most influential women. Who?
Elizabeth, Countess of Shrewsbury, or Bess of Hardwick, builder of "Hardwick Hall, more glass than wall."


6. How is Rembrandt's 1642 painting, The Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch better known?
The Night Watch, the most famous painting in the Amsterdam Rijksmuseum.


7. Which English statesman died 350 years ago on 3rd September, 1658?
Oliver Cromwell, a somewhat controversial figure, especially in Ireland.


8. Which cuvee of champagne is named after a 17th century Benedicine monk?
Dom Perignon. nb. you have to be of legal drinking age to access the website!


9. July 11th 2008 is the 300th anniversary of Marlborough's third major victory over the French in 1708. Where?
The Battle of Oudenarde in Flanders. The future King George II of England took part in the battle as part of the "Hanover Horse" cavalry on the English side.


10. Which dish is said to have been first cooked by Napoleon's chef following the battle in 1800 it is named after.
Chicken Marengo. For the authentic recipe you should cut up the chicken with a sabre!

Christmas Quiz ..... slightly late

The December edition of the BBC History magazine has a Christmas Quiz....here is selection of questions with an Early Modern bias:

1. What did Henry VII do with Yorkist imposter Lambert Simnel after capturing him in 1487?

2. 2008 is the 500th anniversary of the birth of one of history's most influential architects, born in Padua in 1508. Who was it?

3. Which Tudor queen had a pomegranate as a badge?

4. Which English possession was captured by the French on 7th January, 1558? (clue: it's not far away)

5. February 13th, 1608 is the 400th anniversary of the death of one of Tudor England's richest and most influential women. Who?

6. How is Rembrandt's 1642 painting, The Company of Frans Banning Cocq and Willem van Ruytenburch better known?

7. Which English statesman died 350 years ago on 3rd September, 1658?

8. Which cuvee of champagne is named after a 17th century Benedicine monk?

9. July 11th 2008 is the 300th anniversary of Marlborough's third major victory over the French in 1708. Where?

10. Which dish is said to have been first cooked by Napoleon's chef following the battle in 1800 it is named after.


Answers tomorrow, and a Happy New Year to all readers of this blog.

"The Tudors" fun quiz

Here's a fun quiz which the people behind "The Tudors" have put out as part of a DVD promo. The executioner raises his axe higher with every wrong answer......you can guess the rest.

Lo! 'Tis the Shakespeare Quote Generator

Test thy knowledge of the Bard with this widgette. Doff of cap to Anachronista for the tip.

She's beautiful and therefore to be wooed;
She is a nothing, therefore to be won.

Which work of Shakespeare was the original quote from?

Get your own quotes:

Would you let a Trojan Horse in?

Here is a funny video from Oz, for serious students of ancient history.....enjoy.

Rate "TheTudors"

I have installed a short survey on the sidebar to give readers the chance to rate the TV series "The Tudors", on which opinions seem to be divided. You can check more than one box! Personally, I rate it both "annoying" and "gripping".

History as Entertainment

Although I managed to miss the opening of " The Tudors" on BBC, I understand now why the USA is already on series two. Just check out the enthusiastic "Renaissance Fayre" videos on the Cardinal Wolsey vodpod sidebar this week. I like the witty voiceover on the Nebraska one: "Who put the car dealership ad on the castle??". They just can't get enough of those Tudors!

I am 58% addicted to blogging

I found this fun quiz at Phil Stolle's Thoughtsparks site. So I can reassure my wife that I am less than 60% addicted to blogging, according to a reputable scientific test. Unfortunately this only gets the reaction: " What are you doing on a dating site???" . Err....


58%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

A New Take on Tetris

Here is an interesting take on Tetris that will test your geography. Statetris is great fun - try the hard setting where you don't get the names of the countries/counties/states you are trying to fit together. Thanks to Stumbleupon for somehow turning this one up.