On this day in Tudor history, 11th December 1539, Anne of Cleves and her retinue were received at Gravelines, just a few miles outside of Calais, by Lord Lisle, Deputy of Calais.

 

Anne of Cleves was on her way to England to marry King Henry VIII, but her journey had been rather slow and she was about to be delayed even more.

 

The reception was rather lavish, with everyone dressed up to the nines. Enjoy a contemporary description from a Tudor chronicler in today's talk from historian Claire Ridgway. You can see this podcast as a video at the following link:

https://youtu.be/Iad-x1I_cSY

 

Video on Henry VIII meeting Anne of Cleves for the first time - https://youtu.be/97X0ZvHNESo

 

Also on this day in history, 11th December 1608, one of Queen Elizabeth I’s former ladies and a lover of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, was buried at St Margaret's Church, Westminster. Her name was Douglas Sheffield and she was the mother of Leicester's illegitimate son, Sir Robert Dudley. Find out more about Douglas Sheffield, who claimed to be Leicester's legal wife, in last year’s video - https://youtu.be/rhP-Z89CbEg