It’s World Heritage Day on the 18th of April. So, let’s shine a light on some of the UK’s most well-known heritage sites.
Stonehenge is perhaps one of the most iconic sites in Britain. Located in Wiltshire, the prehistoric stone circle is estimated to date back to 3100 BCE and was most probably built as a monument site for worship. Today, the site receives an estimated 1 million visitors each year.
Dating back to 122 CE, Hadrian’s Wall was built as a Roman defence against the ‘barbarians’ in the north of Britannia. It stretches from Wallsend on the River Tyne in the east of northern England to Bowness-on-Solway in the west. The wall was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.
Located in Warwickshire, Kenilworth Castle is famous as the home of Robert Dudley, the (supposed) lover of Queen Elizabeth I. However, the castle predates Dudley, who only occupied it from 1563, by a few hundred years. The original castle was founded in the 1120s.
Overlooking The Channel, Dover Castle in Kent is one of the largest castles in England. As well as attracting many visitors each year, this castle has also been used as a location for a number of film and TV productions including Doctor Who, Into The Woods, and Avengers: Age of Ultron.
The Giant’s Causeway is an area of volcanic rock columns found on the coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The rock formations are said to be between 50 and 60 million years old and, according to Gaelic legend, the area is the remains of a road built by the Irish giant Fionn mac Cumhaill so that he could cross the North Channel to meet Scottish giant Benandonner for a fight.
Also known as Holy Island, Lindisfarne is a tidal island (when the tide goes out it can be reached by land) off the coast of Northumberland that has been an important Christian site since the 6th century. Lindisfarne is perhaps most famous as the site of the first Viking raid on Britain in 793 CE – an event which kickstarted a long series of Viking invasions in Britain.
Also known as the Palace of Westminster, the grade 1 listed Gothic building serves as the meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. It is thought that the site of the Palace, along the bank of the River Thames in London, has been used as a meeting place and residence for England’s rulers since the 11th century.
Built between 1705 and 1722, Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire is most well-known as the birthplace of Winston Churchill. Despite being open to the public, and receiving around 950,000 visitors last year, the palace remains the home of the current Duke of Marlborough.
This is the site of one of the most famous battles in England’s history – the battle during which King Harold of England was defeated by the invading French leader, William, Duke of Normandy. William is now perhaps more widely known as William the Conqueror. After the battle, William had the Abbey built at the place of Harold’s death.
Located off the coast of North Cornwall, Tintagel Castle has long been associated with the legends of King Arthur. It is likely that the area surrounding the castle, the Tintagel Peninsula, had been occupied since the 1st century, but the ruined castle that stands there now upon a rocky islet wasn’t built until 1233. If you visit, you will see that the castle is very much a dramatic sight to behold.
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When you look at the vast, arid landscape of the Sahara desert, you may find it hard to believe that this was once a lush, green space full of grasses, trees and lakes. Yet this is likely the case. It has been called the North African Humid Period, and occurred around 12,000 years ago during the late Pleistocene and Holocene geological epochs.
There is good paleoclimatological evidence to suggest that over the last 3,000,000 years, there have been 230 of these North African Humid Periods (NAHPs), indicating that the Sahara region alternates between arid phases (as present) and humid phases, which are full of rivers, vegetation and lakes. According to an article in Nature Magazine online, these NAHPs are governed by a phenomenon known as the Procession Cycle, which is when a wobble occurs in the orientation of the Earth’s axis of rotation. Thereafter, you might imagine the planet as a slightly off-centre spinning top. This off-centre rotation continues for a period of around 25,000 years. Procession is an additional form of planetary motion to the more well-known daily rotation and annual revolution cycle of the Earth. It is caused by the gravitational tidal force of the Sun and Moon acting on our planet’s equatorial bulge. There is a good visual of this rotational phenomenon here on Wikipedia.
The wobble itself is known as an Axial Procession, and it makes seasonal contrasts more extreme in one hemisphere and less extreme in the other. Not only does the procession cycle govern the seasonal contrasts, it determines temperature and precipitation variance between seasons. During the periods of increased Boreal Summer Insolation (when solar radiation hits the Earth’s northern hemisphere between March and September), the African Monsoon systems are intensified. It is these precipitation-rich phases of the procession cycle that underpin the North African Humid Periods.
This article in the Geographical explains how the most recent incarnation of the dry version of the Sahara came about. Around 12,000 years ago, the end of the ice age led to a wetter climate in the region, possibly due to low-pressure areas forming over collapsing ice-sheets in the north. But, once these ice sheets melted, the Northern Sahara region dried out. However, monsoon conditions in the South meant that the Southern Sahara region was wetter. But, eventually this monsoon retreated south (as part of the procession cycle) and the entire Sahara region become desert. This is the incarnation of the Sahara you see today.
When will this cycle end, then? Well, not for a while. Experts predict that the Sahara will revert back to that lush green alternative state in about 10,000 years.
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Every four years we have a Leap Year, which gifts us an extra day, the elusive February 29th, known as Leap Day – and the next is due in just a few days time. This anomaly in the calendar has inspired unique traditions and celebrations around the world.
In Ireland, Leap Day (known as Bachelor’s Day or Ladies’ Privilege Day) carries a tradition of empowering women to take charge of their romantic destinies. According to folklore, on February 29th, women have the right to propose to their partners (this may not mean quite so much now). This custom dates back to a 5th-century Irish nun, St. Brigid, who complained to St. Patrick about women having to wait too long for suitors to propose. St. Patrick then granted women the opportunity to propose every four years.
The self-proclaimed “Leap Year Capital of the World,” Anthony, Texas, hosts a festival to honour the Leap Day. The town embraces the uniqueness of this day and welcomes people born on February 29th (known as Leap Babies) from around the US and a few foreign countries too. The festival features parades, concerts, and a grand birthday celebration for Leap Babies of all ages. At last count, their leap year party club had over 400 members, allegedly.
In the Rhineland region of Germany, love-struck boys place a small birch tree adorned with ribbons, known as a Liebesmaie, on the doorstep of their crush on the eve of May Day, 30th April. In each leap year, girls can reciprocate this gesture. Additionally, on May Day itself, another unique tradition unfolds as only women partake in the maypole dance during these years, while in non-leap years, men also join in the festivities.
La Bougie du Sapeur is a French satirical newspaper that is only published on the 29th of February and has been honouring this Leap Day tradition for the last 43 years. It includes unusual articles, humorous anecdotes, fake advertisements, and absurd events and is meant to be an escape from daily life.
In conclusion, Leap Day, occurring every four years, sparks diverse traditions globally, from empowering marriage proposals to festive celebrations and generally embracing a lighter perspective on life.
Okay, so I am sat at my desk staring out of my window at the grey clouds on the horizon. Before I know it, time has passed. What have I achieved? Have I been lazy? Well, actually, no, I haven’t. In fact, I have been thinking, and having time to think is something we often feel guilty for. Our lives are busy, and we feel that we should fill every moment with action. But if you stop to think for a while, the benefits can be huge.
Now, you might be thinking (get it): this is weird. Why do I need time to think? Well, for nearly 100 years, World Thinking Day has been recognised on 22nd February each year. In fact, all across the world, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts organisations show their appreciation for others by thinking about global situations and how others can be helped. You might be wondering why it is specifically the 22nd of February? Well, it is the birthday of Lord Robert Baden-Powell, the Scouting and Guiding founder. Coincidentally, his wife, Lady Olave Baden-Powell, shared the same birthday – so this day celebrates her life, too, and what she stood for.
World Thinking Day used to be just Thinking Day – right up until 1999 when at the 30th World Conference, held in Ireland, the word ‘World’ was added to give the day the much-needed global focus. Nowadays, many Scouting and Guiding groups around the world raise money for worthwhile causes – and all the while this annual day is celebrated with a special theme. Past examples included thinking about water and food. But this year the theme is Our World, Our Thriving Future: The environment and global poverty. It does not mean that this is only a theme for the 22nd of February, of course. Instead, it draws attention to the day and encourages people to spend time thinking about how others can be helped.
Different ways of recognising this special day take place around the world. An example in New Zealand involves rangers climbing Mount Eden before it gets light – and the people who attend spend time thinking about how they are going to help others in less fortunate positions than themselves. Some groups are twinned and they spend time thinking about helping each other. Others focus on writing each other postcards or letters.
So, even though World Thinking Day has its roots in the Guiding and Scouting movement, there is no reason why all of us couldn’t spend a bit more time thinking – not just on 22 February but every day. Who knows where a thought might take you?
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Although hard of hearing, Thomas Alva Edison was the epitome of the inventor genius whose lack of managerial abilities led him to undertake inventive challenges that others at the time dismissed. His role as a machine shop operator set the foundation for his career, nurturing the skills he needed to develop his printing telegraphs, telephone carbon button transmitter, phonograph, alkaline storage battery and of course the electric lightbulb.
Born in America in 1847, Edison – or ‘Al’ as he was known as a boy – was home-schooled by his mother and showed a strong interest in the way mechanical mechanisms worked. He had his first taste of entrepreneurship selling newspapers to train passengers. Unfortunately, he lost most of his hearing at the age of twelve, although he himself saw this as an advantage in being able to focus on his work.
Edison began his career right when the telegraph industry began to build momentum. He took advantage of the opportunity to learn railroad telegraphy and used his skills to work as an apprentice telegraph operator. The system initially transmitted messages through dots and dashes although as the telegraphy receiver technology evolved to use sound, Edison’s lack of hearing led to a severe disadvantage. He focused on his inventions instead and through experimentation, designed the quadruplex – a telegraph capable of sending four messages at once through the same wire. Earning a reputation as a savvy businessman, he sold his invention to the highest bidder.
Edison realised he needed a dedicated place to focus on his inventions. With the help of his father, he built his famous ‘invention factory’ laboratory in Menlo Park. It was here that Edison employed some of the top inventors and mechanics work for him, such as Nikola Tesla. Realising his own shortcomings in his mathematical and scientific approaches, his hired associates complemented his work, bringing with them academic expertise. It was while experimenting for the automatic telegraph that Edison discovered that the conductivity of carbon changed under different pressures. This led him to design the carbon button transmitter which significantly improved the audibility of the telephone.
Edison’s work on the telephone led to the idea that sound, such as a person’s voice, could be transcribed as indentations or ‘phonography’ onto a tin foil surface which could be later played back later. Although its initial launch was met with scepticism, the phonograph quickly became a revelation and made Thomas Edison a household name, earning him the title of ‘The Wizard of Menlo Park’. Later, Edison made many adjustments and upgrades to the phonograph to make it a commercially viable and profitable venture. He pursued the idea of linking the phonograph to a zoetrope – a pre-film animation device that gave the illusion of moving images – but syncing the two together proved difficult and instead film production moved into the silent movie era.
Thomas Edison wasn’t the first to invent the incandescent electric lightbulb, but he was the first to make it commercially viable and available to the masses, with the help of Tesla’s AC system. His goal was to take the existing design and make the bulb burn longer and more reliably. He established the Edison Electric Light Company, and with the help of financial backing, developed a variety of vacuum lightbulbs, experimenting with the filament; from platinum, carbon and eventually carbonised bamboo fibre that could last over 1200 hours. It was his modifications that made the lightbulb publicly accessible for the first time.
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Languages are like living organisms, constantly evolving and adapting to their environments. In the case of Spanish, one of the world’s most widely spoken languages, its evolution has been greatly influenced by historical events and cultural exchanges. Among the most significant influences is the Arabic language, which left an indelible mark on the Spanish language and culture.
The story of Arabic in Spain begins in the early 8th century when the Moors, led by Tariq ibn Ziyad, crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and conquered the Iberian Peninsula. For nearly eight centuries, much of Spain was under Muslim rule, and during this time, the Arabic language played a central role in shaping the linguistic landscape of the region.
One of the most enduring legacies of Arabic is in the Spanish vocabulary, with over 4,000 words having Arabic origins. These words span various domains, from science and mathematics to food and architecture. For example, words like “aceite” (oil), “albóndiga” (meatball), and “cifra” (numeral) all have their roots in Arabic.
In addition to vocabulary, Arabic influence extended to phonetics, phonology, and grammar. The pronunciation of certain sounds and the phonetic patterns found in Spanish have been shaped by its presence. Moreover, the structure of Spanish verbs and the use of the subjunctive mood all show traces of Arabic. Indeed, the translation of Arabic texts into Spanish introduced European scholars to the knowledge of the Arab world, helping to spark the Renaissance and the flourishing of Spanish culture. One of the most renowned works of influence in Spain is “El Cantar de Mio Cid,” an epic poem that combines both Arabic and Christian influences. This literary masterpiece reflects the rich tapestry of linguistic and cultural interactions that characterised the Spanish landscape during the period.
The Reconquista, a centuries-long campaign to reclaim the Iberian Peninsula, marked the eventual end of Muslim rule in Spain. However, while it led to the expulsion of Moors and Jews, the Arabic influence on Spanish language and culture persisted. The multicultural history of Spain, with its coexistence of Christians, Muslims, and Jews, remains an integral part of Spanish identity.
Today, the Arabic influence on Spanish is celebrated and cherished. It is a testament to the enduring legacy of cultural exchange and the ways in which languages can evolve through centuries of interaction. The linguistic journey of Arabic in Spain is a reminder of the complex tapestry of human history and the role that language plays in bridging cultures and preserving the memories of the past.
St Paul’s Cathedral is one of the UK’s most iconic buildings. The present-day cathedral was consecrated on the 2nd of December 1697, and declared officially complete on Christmas day 1711, but in fact there has been a religious building on the site since around 604 CE, and so the cathedral has born witness to a long and rather interesting history. Let’s explore some of the numerous events it has housed over the centuries.
St Paul’s hosts only a very small number of weddings each year and, as it is not a parish church, there are specific conditions which must be met before one can take place at the cathedral. The cathedral will only marry members of the Order of the British Empire, the Order of St Michael and St George, the Imperial Society of Knights Bachelor, or the Cathedral Community (which includes staff and volunteers). The children of any of the above may also be married at St Paul’s. All wedding applications must go through the Archbishop of Canterbury. There have been two particularly notable weddings hosted by St Paul’s. The first was the wedding of Prince Arther, the eldest son of Henry VII, to Catherine of Aragon in 1501. Catherine would later and more perhaps more famously become Henry VIII’s first wife after Arthur died. The second was the marriage of then Prince Charles to Lady Diana Spencer in 1981.
St Paul’s has hosted three state funerals. The first was for Admiral Horatio Nelson who was killed at the battle of Trafalgar on the 21st October 1805. Though the battle had led to his death, Nelson had won what was a crucial naval engagement with France, and subsequently became a national hero. His body was preserved in a barrel of rum as it was transported to London for his funeral on the 9th January 1806. Afterwards, Nelson was buried in the Cathedral Crypt.
Another Napoleonic War hero, Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, was also given a state funeral at St Paul’s after his death in 1852. An estimated 1.5 million people gathered to watch the funeral procession from Chelsea Hospital to St Paul’s, and around 15,000 people congregated inside the cathedral for the funeral. He too is buried in the Crypt.
The most recent state funeral to have been held at St Paul’s was that of Sir Winston Churchill in 1965. Whilst Churchill is buried in Oxfordshire, St Paul’s hosted a huge funeral ceremony which was attended by political leaders and royalty from across the globe. As well as these three notable state funerals, the Cathedral Crypt is the burial site of a number of important public figures including King Aethelred the Unready, Scottish microbiologist Alexander Fleming, artist Joseph Turner, and Sir Christopher Wren, the architect who designed the present-day cathedral.
The Cathedral has been the venue for a number of Royal Jubilee services, the being for Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee, held there in 1897. Since then, St Paul’s has celebrated the Silver Jubilee of King George V in 1935 and the Silver, Golden, Diamond and Platinum Jubilees of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977, 2002, 2012 and 2022 respectively.
As well as these more celebratory and memorial events, it has also hosted a number of grim executions, most notably the hanging, in 1606, of five men who had conspired to blow up Parliament as part of the Gunpowder Plot.
One of the more recent national events hosted by St Paul’s was the National Memorial Service for the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire in west London in 2017. More than 1500 people attended the event to pay tribute to the 72 people who died.
To learn more about the history of this iconic building and the numerous events that took place here visit St Paul’s official website or The Founding of St.Paul’s Cathedral web page at The History of London website.
The Boston Tea Party, a pivotal event in American history, symbolised colonial resistance to British tyranny and taxation without representation. On December 16, 1773, enraged colonists, disguised as Mohawk Indians, dumped over 40,000 kilograms of tea into Boston Harbor to protest the Tea Act. This audacious act not only articulated opposition to economic oppression but also fostered a sense of unity among the colonies.
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, it’s not just an event consigned to history books; it’s a pivotal moment that brewed the essence of American independence. On that chilly night of December 16, 1773, this act of defiance was more than the destruction of the favoured drink of the British; it was a catalyst that percolated through time, shaping the course of both American and world history.
The seeds of the Boston Tea Party were sown amid the discontent of the American colonies under British rule. The Tea Act of 1773, ostensibly designed to aid the struggling British East India Company, granted it a monopoly on tea sales in the American colonies. This act further strained the already taut relationship between the colonies and the British Crown, as it was perceived as an attempt to assert parliamentary authority and maintain taxation without colonial representation.
On that fateful night, a group of colonists, fed up with the injustice of British policies, staged a dramatic act of civil disobedience. Clad as Mohawk Indians to conceal their identities, they boarded three British ships – the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, and the Beaver – and proceeded to dump 342 chests of tea into the icy waters of Boston Harbor. The value of the tea, a staggering £10,000 in 18th-century currency (equivalent to around £1 million today), reflected the enormity of the protest.
Interestingly enough though, following the tea-dumping protest, the patriots responsible for the Boston Tea Party organised a cleanup effort. They swept the decks of the ships, removed any broken tea chests that had washed ashore, and even replaced a broken lock on one of the ship’s hatches. This attention to detail highlights the disciplined and principled nature of the protest.
In response to the Tea Party, the British government enacted the Coercive Acts, also known as the Intolerable Acts, as a means of asserting control over the unruly colonies. As they tried to pursue reparations from those who had committed the crime, these acts only served to intensify colonial resistance, with the rallying cry of “No Taxation Without Representation” reverberating through the streets. The Boston Tea Party, rather than quelling dissent, fuelled the flames of revolution.
The Boston Tea Party served as a crucial turning point in the lead-up to the American Revolution. The heightened tensions and British attempts to suppress colonial autonomy eventually led to armed conflict at Lexington and Concord in 1775. The clash of ideals and the pursuit of freedom culminated in the Declaration of Independence, which echoed the sentiments of those defiant colonists in Boston Harbour.
The reverberations of the Boston Tea Party were not confined to the shores of the Thirteen Colonies. News of the protest spread across the Atlantic, resonating with Enlightenment ideals that were sweeping through Europe. The spirit of resistance against unjust authority, as exemplified by the Boston Tea Party, inspired movements for political and social change worldwide. It contributed to the broader narrative of human rights and self-determination that would shape revolutions in France, Latin America, and beyond.
As it reaches the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, the event imparts timeless lessons that seem relevant event today. The rebellious act of those colonists in 1773 sent ripples through time, contributing to the foundation of a nation that champions the principles of democracy, freedom, and representation. The legacy of the Boston Tea Party endures not only in history books but in the very fabric of the nation it helped to birth.
It underscores the power of collective action against injustice, reminding us that individuals, unified by a common cause, can catalyse significant change. The protest teaches the importance of dissent when faced with unjust governance and the enduring value of defending principles over personal comfort. There’s plenty of cause for that today.
The start of this month saw the marking of World Tsunami Awareness Day. Following up on this subject, let’s explore what a tsunami actually is and discover the stories of some of the most devastating in history.
The word ‘tsunami’ is Japanese, meaning ‘harbour wave’. Tsunamis are essentially large waves caused by oceanic earthquakes or volcanoes. When an earthquake occurs, or there is a volcanic eruption deep under the ocean, the water around it is displaced and often forms a large wave. As the wave moves closer and closer to land it grows taller as the ocean shallows close to shore (as shown in the visual above.) Not all earthquakes and volcanoes will cause a tsunami but one way to predict them is if the water at the shore begins to quickly recede after an earthquake. Tsunamis can be hundreds of feet tall and travel extremely quickly, so they can be incredibly destructive for the areas affected by them. Below are a couple of examples of some of the worst to have been recorded.
One of the deadliest tsunamis ever occurred off the coast of Sumatra on the 26th December 2004. A magnitude 9.1 earthquake created a wave that towered 50m tall and reached 5km inland. It is estimated to have cost around US$10 billion of damage and killed around 230,000 people.
Another of the more recent tsunamis to have caused a great deal of devastation struck the coast of Japan on the 11th of March 2011, having begun with a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. With waves 10m high and arriving at an especially rapid speed of 800km per hour, this tsunami killed more than 18,000 people and displaced around 452,000 whose homes had been destroyed. As well as generating the tsunami, this earthquake caused a nuclear emergency at the nearby Fukushima Daiichi power plant, which began to leak dangerous radioactive steam. The damage that this natural disaster caused is estimated to have been in the region of $235 billion.
As mentioned, tsunamis are not only caused by earthquakes. The Krakatau, or Krakatoa, volcano is located on a small Indonesian island in the Sundra Strait between the larger ones of Java and Sumatra. When it erupted on the 27th of August 1883, it caused waves as high as 37m to form. This tsunami destroyed the towns of Merak and Anjer on Java, and its effects were felt as far away as India and Sri Lanka too. The event killed around 40,000 people in total, though many of those deaths were directly caused by the volcano, rather than the tsunami.
Tsunamis don’t just occur in East and South-East Asia. On the 1st of November 1755, three waves struck the west coast of Portugal and southern Spain. These tsunamis, which reached up to 30m high, together with the earthquake that caused them, killed around 60,000 people in Portugal, Spain and Morocco.
For more information about tsunamis, and of the most powerful in history, visit What Is a Tsunami? at NASA’s Space Place website – and The 10 Most Destructive Tsunamis In History at australiangeographic.com.
The Tudor dynasty, which spanned the 15th and 16th centuries, remains one of the most captivating and tumultuous periods in English history. It was a time of sweeping political change, cultural upheaval and infighting for power which forever changed the face of England. And it means the Tudor monarchs, with their stories of love, betrayal and power, continue to fire the minds of history enthusiasts and scholars alike.
The Tudor dynasty began with Henry VII, who had emerged victorious from the Wars of the Roses, a brutal conflict between the rival houses of Lancaster (whose emblem was a red rose) and York (The emblem of York was a white rose. The Tudors thereafter made their own emblem a rose of both colours.) His subsequent marriage to Elizabeth of York united the two houses, symbolising the end of a chaotic period in English history, and his reign would mark the beginning of the Tudor era. The stage was set for the dramatic events that to follow.
One of the most iconic figures of the Tudor dynasty was Henry VIII, whose reign brought about the English Reformation. His desire to annul his marriage to the Catholic Catherine of Aragon led to a break with the Roman Catholic Church and the establishment of the Church of England. It also led to the dissolution of the monasteries, religious reform, and his six marriages, including, most infamously, to Anne Boleyn. These are just a few of the episodes that make Henry VIII’s reign a compelling chapter in English history.
The story of the Tudors is of course incomplete without the enigmatic Elizabeth I, often referred to as the “Virgin Queen.” Her reign, or Elizabethan Era, lasted 45 years. She oversaw a time of great exploration, artistic flourishing, and the defeat of the Spanish Armada. Her ability to rule successfully without a husband in what was a highly patriarchal society, her wise counsel, and her passionate speeches have made Elizabeth I one of England’s most celebrated monarchs.
The Tudor era ended to 1603, with Elizabeth’s death. As she had left no direct heirs, there had to be a succession to a new dynasty, which was that of the Stuarts. Thus, James I took the English throne.
The Tudor dynasty is also notable for its bloody nature. It housed continuous, ruthless pursuits of power, with political machinations, courtly rivalries, and grim executions. Figures like Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, and Anne Boleyn were all caught in the shifting tides of royal favour and power, leading to tragic fates at the block.
Despite all the turmoil, the Tudor period is greatly remembered for its impact on English society, culture, and politics. The flourishing of English literature, with luminaries like William Shakespeare, Edmund Spenser, and Christopher Marlowe, marked the era as a golden age of the English arts. It also witnessed the first voyages of explorers like Sir Walter Raleigh, who played a significant role in expanding England’s colonial influence.
With all its facets, good and ill, the Tudor Dynasty is one that will never fade from the pages of the history books.