On 25 March 1586, Margaret Clitherow was executed on Ouse Bridge. It’s surely one of the saddest dates in York’s history. However, there were at least three reasons why Margaret’s life could have been saved. This fourth and final article explores the events which took … Continue reading The Final Days of Margaret Clitherow
On 15 March 1586, Margaret Clitherow was taken to the York Lent assizes court, for the second and final day of her trial for harbouring Catholic priests. This article (the third in a series of four) describes her final day in court. Margaret hands were … Continue reading The Trial of Margaret Clitherow – Final Day in Court
On 14 March 1586, Margaret Clitherow was brought before the York Lent assizes court, accused of the capital crime of harbouring Catholic priests. This article (the second of four) describes her first day in court. Margaret was taken from York Castle to the Common Hall … Continue reading The Trial of Margaret Clitherow – Day One in Court
On 10 March 1586, Margaret Clitherow was arrested at her home in the Shambles in York. She was charged by the Protestant authorities with the recently introduced capital crime of aiding or harbouring Catholic priests. This is the story of her arrest. Margaret’s husband John … Continue reading The Arrest of Margaret Clitherow
I’m currently writing a non-fiction history book about Margaret Clitherow’s life and death in Tudor York. One of the most fascinating aspects of Margaret’s story is her refusal to make a plea in court. Having refused to plead guilty or otherwise, Margaret Clitherow was executed … Continue reading To Plead or Not to Plead
5th November is an important date in the calendar of the United Kingdom. Most years, the evening fills with smoke and fireworks light the skies. We call it Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Night but what is it all about? On 5th November 1605 a … Continue reading Remember, Remember the 5th of November
Remember, Remember Monteagle’s Letter We’ve all heard of Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot, the Catholic conspiracy to kill King James I by blowing up Parliament, but why did it fail? Perhaps it was because the authorities received a tip-off a terrorist attack was about … Continue reading The Tip Off which led to Guy Fawkes’ Arrest?
We only usually hear about the men, so this blog tells the story of the women connected to the Gunpowder Plot. On November 5th in 1605, Guy Fawkes was apprehended in Westminster. His arrest foiled a deadly plan to blow up Parliament and kill the … Continue reading Women of the Gunpowder Plot
Most people in the UK have heard of Guy Fawkes. We associate him with November 5th, bonfire night and fireworks. Many of us are aware he was arrested beneath Parliament – but what else do we know about the man or the events he was … Continue reading Who Were the Gunpowder Plotters?
In 1553, a baby girl called Margaret Middleton was born in Davygate within the city walls of York in northern England. It was a time of change and turbulence in a country which had oscillated between Catholicism and Protestantism. In the reign of Queen Mary, … Continue reading The Life and Times of Saint Margaret Clitherow
