Tudors | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/tudors/RSS feed for TudorsenWed, 28 Oct 2026 18:19:13 +0000'Lie Down and Look Up' at England's Most Ornate Ceilings, From Sparkling Gold-Leaf Stars to Intricate Plaster Designs at Queen Victoria's Seaside Retreathttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/lie-down-and-look-up-at-englands-most-ornate-ceilings-from-sparkling-gold-leaf-stars-to-intricate-plaster-designs-at-queen-victorias-seaside-retreat-180989770/A new campaign encourages visitors to take in the lavish art above their heads at five historic sites across England. There are even cushions for maximum comfort while you gazeWed, 28 Oct 2026 18:19:13 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/lie-down-and-look-up-at-englands-most-ornate-ceilings-from-sparkling-gold-leaf-stars-to-intricate-plaster-designs-at-queen-victorias-seaside-retreat-180989770/Ivan the Terrible Wanted to Marry Elizabeth I. How Did England's 'Virgin Queen' Reject the Russian Czar Without Souring Trade Relations?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ivan-the-terrible-wanted-to-marry-elizabeth-i-how-did-englands-virgin-queen-reject-the-russian-czar-without-souring-trade-relations-180989656/A new book details the Russian ruler's failed courtship of the Tudor queen, who famously remained unmarried during her nearly 45-year reignFri, 23 Oct 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ivan-the-terrible-wanted-to-marry-elizabeth-i-how-did-englands-virgin-queen-reject-the-russian-czar-without-souring-trade-relations-180989656/Archaeologists May Have Solved the Mystery of a Roman Sarcophagus Excavated at Westminster Abbey in 1869https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-may-have-solved-the-mystery-of-a-roman-sarcophagus-excavated-at-westminster-abbey-in-1869-180989732/New research suggests that the ancient coffin was repurposed in the 10th or 11th century to hold the remains of an abbot who had overseen the London monasteryWed, 21 Oct 2026 20:34:09 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-may-have-solved-the-mystery-of-a-roman-sarcophagus-excavated-at-westminster-abbey-in-1869-180989732/She Painted the First Known Self-Portrait of an Artist at Work—and Signed It—Nearly 500 Years Ago. Who Was Catharina van Hemessen?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/she-painted-first-known-self-portrait-an-artist-at-work-and-signed-it-nearly-500-years-ago-who-was-catharina-van-hemessen-180989724/Few women worked as professional artists in the 16th century. A new exhibition in Antwerp, Belgium, seeks to restore this Flemish painter to the pantheon of art history giantsWed, 21 Oct 2026 16:01:03 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/she-painted-first-known-self-portrait-an-artist-at-work-and-signed-it-nearly-500-years-ago-who-was-catharina-van-hemessen-180989724/Who Wrote Elizabeth I's Most Scathing Letters? New Research Suggests the Tudor Queen's Male Secretaries Revised Her Correspondence to Emphasize Her Temperhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/who-wrote-elizabeth-is-most-scathing-letters-new-research-suggests-the-tudor-queens-male-secretaries-revised-her-correspondence-to-emphasize-her-temper-180989565/An analysis of more than 500 missives found that Elizabeth's advisers crafted and even intensified the expression of emotion in her messages to such figures as Mary, Queen of Scots, and James VI of ScotlandMon, 28 Sep 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/who-wrote-elizabeth-is-most-scathing-letters-new-research-suggests-the-tudor-queens-male-secretaries-revised-her-correspondence-to-emphasize-her-temper-180989565/Henry VIII Relied on This Courtier to Enforce His Orders During the English Reformation. Behind the Scenes, the Tudor Politician Defied His King by Secretly Saving a Catholic Texthttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/henry-viii-relied-on-this-courtier-to-enforce-his-orders-during-the-english-reformation-behind-the-scenes-the-tudor-politician-defied-his-king-by-secretly-saving-a-catholic-text-180989541/A newly discovered fragment suggests that John Gage preserved a 15th-century religious manuscript, keeping it "safe when he was meant to destroy books precisely like this one"Mon, 21 Sep 2026 19:08:47 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/henry-viii-relied-on-this-courtier-to-enforce-his-orders-during-the-english-reformation-behind-the-scenes-the-tudor-politician-defied-his-king-by-secretly-saving-a-catholic-text-180989541/Stones From One of Henry VIII's Fortresses Spent More Than a Century Hidden in Plain Sight. New Research Suggests the Victorians Repurposed Them as Building Materialshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stones-from-one-of-henry-viiis-fortresses-spent-more-than-a-century-hidden-in-plain-sight-new-research-suggests-the-victorians-repurposed-them-as-building-materials-180989427/Recently discovered archival records indicate that workers constructing an extension of the Constable's Gate at Dover Castle in the late 19th century reused fragments of the Tudor-era Sandown CastleTue, 01 Sep 2026 12:52:03 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stones-from-one-of-henry-viiis-fortresses-spent-more-than-a-century-hidden-in-plain-sight-new-research-suggests-the-victorians-repurposed-them-as-building-materials-180989427/