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Historic Royal Palaces blog

Insights and behind the scenes from our palaces

How Henry VII used his Welsh ancestry to secure the English Crown

27 February 2026

The Tudors are England's most famous royal dynasty, but their origins begin far from the centres of English power. They begin in rural Wales.

Princess Mary, Henry VIII and Tudor history's greatest battle of wills

22 August 2025

Chief Historian Tracy Borman explores the dramatic battle of wills between Mary and her tyrannical father.

'Trooping the Colour': The history of the King’s birthday parade

20 June 2025

Jemima Hubberstey, Research Officer at Historic Royal Palaces, explores the history of royal birthday traditions.

The death of Henry VII and the delayed accession of Henry VIII

21 April 2025

On 21 April 1509, Henry VII died aged 52 in his private apartments at Richmond Palace. But officials waited two days to tell the strapping young man that he was now King. Why? 

Thomas Cromwell's fateful match-making

29 November 2024

Tracy Borman explores the real history behind Thomas Cromwell's downfall, which forms the dramatic conclusion to Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light.

Caroline of Ansbach: The Brainiest Princess

03 October 2017

George Augustus of Hanover and his wife, Caroline of Ansbach arrived in London in 1714, in the train of the new king, George I, George Augustus's father.