S10 E1 | A New Hope
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Hello friends, we're back for the final chapter of the Plantagenets. Buckle up for a wild, bumpy and bloody ride. Now, for those of you new to This Is History, this is a gentle reminder that everyone who subscribes to the show gets episodes 1 and 2 straight into their feed at the start of every season. That means subscribers stay a week ahead. Subscribers, also known as my royal favourites, also get ad-free listening to hundreds more main and bonus episodes, stretching right back to Henry II's day. there for you to discover on patreon.com forward slash this is history. And now let's season 10. Begin.
Ever wonder how people actually get rich? Like actually? I'm Molly Sims, and on my show, Lipstick on the Rim, I sat down with Haley Sachs, aka Mrs. Dow Jones to talk money mindset and why getting rich actually starts with how you think about yourself. We get into the money habits nobody wants to talk about, the mindset shifts that actually stick, and how to stop feeling weird about wanting more. Listen to Lipstick on the Rim on Spotify and Apple Music. or wherever you get your podcast or watch on YouTube.
Uh yes, hello, I'm Simon Mayo. Ah yes, hello, I'm Mark Kermod. What is coming up on the Take this week, Mark? We have reviews of Eli Roth's Ice Cream Man, Love Me Tender, a French drama, the summer book starring Glenn Close, and there's also a reissue of The Hunt for the Wilder People with our special guest.
Who is the one and only Taika Watiti. Do not miss the take, because it's great. Every single second is marvellous.
Pembroke Castle is a grey, forbidding fortress which sits by the water on the southwest tip of Wales, whipped by the gales that blow in from the Atlantic Ocean. In late January 1457, it's as bleak as it gets. Not only is this the coldest time of the year, Today, the castle is also taught with the tension of a young woman giving birth. She's a very young woman. Margaret Beaufort is 13 and a half. That's perilously young to be laboring a child in any age. And Margaret isn't just young, she's also physically tiny. The rooms she's lodged in at the castle have been comfortably set up for childbirth, the fires stoked and the windows and doors sealed to prevent dangerous vapours from getting in. There's a full staff of female midwives and attendants on hand to help Margaret through her ordeal.
But there's no ignoring the fact that her body and even her life are in real danger. Not that Margaret's panicking. She's a determined girl, and she's putting on a brave face. Others may worry about her safety, but she's only concerned for one thing. Her child. In the nine months that she's been carrying this baby, plague has been sweeping around southwest Wales. It killed her husband, Edmund Tudor, striking him down last November at the age of twenty six. If plague gets into the birthing chamber, all Margaret's toil is going to be in vain. She can't let that happen. Why not? Well, as well as the fierce maternal instinct that's alive in young Margaret, this baby will have royal blood in its veins. Margaret is a granddaughter of John of Gaunt, legendary prince of the Plantagenet dynasty.
That means she's a member of the Lancastrian clan, headed by the useless, shambling king Henry VI. The child's late father, Edmund Tudor, was also part of the royal family. So the child about to be born will join the small inner circle of the Lancastrian royal house. Which is good, because right now that family could use a bit of freshening up. As the pangs of childbirth grip Margaret's little body, all thoughts of family trees are forgotten. The women of the chamber gather round to help her through a very long and difficult labour. When the baby is eventually delivered, it seems like a miracle. Margaret has suffered so much that she'll never have another child. But she's alive. And so is her son. There's some debate about what to call him, but Margaret is in no doubt.
This boy is going to be named Henry. Henry Tudor. And though the circumstances of his birth are not very promising, a teenage widow for a mum, a remote Welsh coastal castle for a home.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–10:01
2
How does Margaret Beaufort survive childbirth during the 1457 plague at Pembroke Castle?
10:01–15:19
3
Why is Henry Tudor’s birth considered a crucial hope for the Lancastrian line?
15:19–21:51
4
How did Edward IV secure his throne after the Battle of Towton?
21:51–26:54
5
What role did the Earl of Warwick play as the king’s right‑hand man and power‑broker?
26:54–32:58
6
Why did Edward IV reject the Castilian marriage proposal for his sister‑in‑law Isabella?
32:58–34:37