When Christmas Really Ended: Twelfth Night & Epiphany in Tudor England

Anne Boleyn is so often remembered at the height of drama, standing at the centre of Henry VIII’s court, caught in politics, passion, and tragedy. But Anne did not appear from nowhere. Before the scandals, the Reformation, and the dramatic fall, there was a child, shaped by powerful families, privilege, education, and expectation. In this episode, I explore the world that formed Anne Boleyn - her lineage, identity, upbringing, and early surroundings at Blickling and Hever. Far from the myth of a “low-born girl who rose too high”, Anne belonged to three great dynasties: • the Boleyns - wealthy, ambitious, rising through land and service • the Butlers of Ormond - one of the greatest Anglo-Irish noble houses • the Howards - ancient English aristocracy with royal blood Through these families we uncover: • how Anne’s status and upbringing shaped her confidence and outlook • what her childhood world looked like in elite Tudor households • the roles of Blickling and Hever in her early life • how her education prepared her for courts across Europe • why understanding her origins changes how we see her later story This episode traces Anne’s background up to her departure to the Continent, setting the stage for the next chapter of her life, and the making of the woman who would one day change English history. Let me know in the comments what surprised you most about Anne’s early life, and whether you think her upbringing has been misunderstood in popular history. This is part of my new deep-dive Anne Boleyn series, designed to tell her story with context, nuance, and humanity, so please make sure you're subscribed to my channel and have hit the notification bell so you don't miss my other episodes. Want more behind-the-scenes research and companion resources? Channel members receive (depending on level) extra resources like: • transcripts • reading lists • timelines and family-tree resources • Monthly YouTube livestreams • Monthly zoom call discussions to get deeper into these topics You can join via the Join button under this video, or by going to https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCioSUqeGrdFq6DEVK3-DXGQ/join  — and thank you so much to everyone who already supports the channel

Christmas in Tudor England wasn’t a single day, it was a season. And Twelfth Night was its final, glittering crescendo. In this final episode of my Tudor Advent and Christmas series, I explore how Tudor people marked the end of Christmas with feasting, music, disguisings, misrule, and the famous Twelfth Night cake, complete with a hidden bean or pea to crown a King (or Lord of Misrule) for the night. I also explain: When Twelfth Night actually was — the 5th or the 6th of January Why Epiphany mattered both socially and spiritually How Tudor court celebrations turned halls into living theatre And how these traditions still survive today, including here in Spain with the Roscón de Reyes Twelfth Night mattered because it ended Christmas properly, rather than Christmas just fading away. If you’ve missed earlier episodes, do watch “The Real Twelve Days of Christmas”, where I explain how the Tudors celebrated the entire festive season: https://youtu.be/0t61a2jATgs Do you celebrate Epiphany or Twelfth Night today? I’d love to hear your traditions in the comments.

Christmas Eve in Tudor England was a day of preparation, restraint, and anticipation, not feasting. It marked the final day of Advent. In this short Christmas Eve episode, I’m sharing quick reminders of how Tudor people marked this special day, from fasting and firelight to church and tradition, before the celebrations truly began. For a deeper look at how Christmas was celebrated across the whole season, watch my video “The Real Twelve Days of Christmas” - https://youtu.be/0t61a2jATgs Before I go, I also want to say a heartfelt thank you,  from me and Tim, and from our whole family (including the pets!), for all your support this year. Whether you watch, comment, share, or support the channel in other ways, it genuinely means so much. If you’d like to support the channel further and enjoy exclusive Tudor content, livestreams, zooms, magazines and resources, you’re very welcome to join my YouTube channel membership.  Merry Christmas, and thank you for being here.    #TudorChristmas #ChristmasEve #TwelveDaysofChristmas #HistoricalTraditions

Tudor Christmas didn’t just sound like gentle carols, it was bold, noisy, and spectacular. In this episode of my Tudor Christmas Advent series, we step beyond singing and into the vibrant world of Tudor Christmas music, the instruments, entertainers, and soundscape that filled great halls, courtyards, streets, and chambers during the festive season. This isn’t church music. This is feasting, dancing, misrule, and display. You’ll discover: - Why loud instruments like shawms and sackbuts dominated festive evenings - How pipes, tabors, and drums drove dancing and revelry - Which softer instruments — like viols, rebecs, and lutes — were played later in the evening - Who provided the music, from court musicians and household minstrels to the city waits - And why Henry VIII himself was at the heart of Tudor Christmas music-making If you’d like to explore Tudor music even further, I recommend my interview with historian, musician, and historical instrument maker Jane Moulder, which I’ve linked here: https://youtu.be/07xLwzchEqs Question for you: Which Tudor instrument would you most like to hear played live? #TudorChristmas #TudorMusic #TudorHistory #EarlyMusic #HenryVIII #ChristmasHistory #MusicHistory

Tudor Christmas wasn’t just celebrated at home or in church, it was performed. In this episode of my Tudor Christmas Advent series, we step into the vivid, noisy, emotional world of Christmas mystery plays, public dramas staged in streets, market squares, and churchyards across medieval and early Tudor England. You’ll discover: - What mystery plays really were — and why the word “mystery” meant craft, not confusion - How towns like York, Chester, and Coventry brought Christmas to life with pageant wagons and street drama - Why King Herod was played as a terrifying, shouting tyrant - How shepherds’ humour made the Nativity relatable to Tudor audiences -  And how one of our most haunting carols, Coventry Carol, comes directly from a Christmas mystery play These plays didn’t just tell people the Christmas story, they made them feel it. This video is part of my Tudor Christmas Advent series. If you’ve enjoyed it, please like, subscribe, and ring the bell so you don’t miss tomorrow’s episode. Question for you: Would you have watched a Tudor Christmas mystery play, or found it too intense? #TudorChristmas #MysteryPlays #CoventryCarol #TudorHistory #ChristmasHistory #MedievalDrama #BritishHistory #EarlyModernEngland

Christmas in Tudor England wasn’t only about feasting, pageantry, and celebration. It was also a season of obligation, a time when charity and almsgiving were seen as essential acts of faith. In this episode of my Tudor Christmas Advent series, I explore how medieval and Tudor people understood Christmas charity: not as a sentimental gesture, but as a moral and religious duty rooted in scripture, custom, and community. We’ll explore: - Why charity was preached so strongly at Christmas - How St Thomas’s Day set the tone for a charitable festive season - What great households were expected to give - How royal and parish charity worked before and after the Reformation For the Tudors, to give at Christmas was to prepare the soul for Christ’s birth, and to refuse was seen as a failure of faith. I hope you enjoy this quieter, more reflective look at a Tudor Christmas tradition that mattered deeply to people living through the hardest time of the year. If you’ve enjoyed the video, please like, subscribe, and click the bell so you don’t miss the rest of my Tudor Christmas Advent series.   #TudorChristmas #TudorHistory #ChristmasHistory #MedievalChristmas #StThomassDay #BritishHistory #HistoryLovers #TheAnneBoleynFiles #ChristmasAdvent #EarlyModernHistory

Think you know Tudor Christmas? In this festive quiz episode, I’m challenging Tim, my long-suffering cameraman (and husband!), with questions drawn from my Tudor Christmas Advent series. From royal feasts and festive games to superstition, lost palaces, and winter weather, this is a chance to test your Tudor knowledge and play along at home. Grab a pen, keep your score, and let us know how you did!   #TudorChristmas #TudorHistory #HistoryQuiz #ChristmasTrivia #BritishHistory #HistoryLovers #AnneBoleyn #TheAnneBoleynFiles #ChristmasAdvent #LearnHistory

Christmas in Tudor England wasn’t just about people, prayers, and pageantry, it was also shaped by animals. In today’s episode of my Tudor Christmas Advent series, we step into the world of Tudor Christmas animals: the creatures that filled festive tables, shaped religious symbolism, inspired superstition, and even featured in royal gift-giving and court entertainments. Drawing on medieval sermons, Tudor household records, chronicles, cookery books, and royal accounts, this episode explores the very real animals that defined a Tudor Yuletide, from the triumphal boar’s head to the ox and ass of the Nativity, from winter hunts and gifts of venison to cats watched for weather omens by the hearth.   If you enjoy historically accurate Tudor Christmas traditions, do give the video a like, subscribe, and click the bell so you don’t miss the rest of the Advent series. And tell me in the comments: how do animals feature in your Christmas today? #TudorChristmas #TudorHistory #MedievalChristmas #TudorLife #ChristmasTraditions #HistoryAtChristmas

Step with me into a palace that no longer stands, yet once witnessed some of the most important Christmases of the Tudor age. In this episode of my Tudor Christmas Advent series, we journey to Richmond Palace, once known as Shene: a beloved winter residence of the Tudor monarchs, rebuilt by Henry VII after a devastating fire and transformed into one of the most elegant palaces of the dynasty. Although Richmond has almost entirely disappeared, surviving sketches, descriptions, and ground plans allow us to reconstruct it in our imagination - its great halls glowing with candlelight, greenery hung for Christmas, music echoing through long galleries, and the Thames mist curling around red-brick towers. This was a palace where: Henry VII celebrated Christmas with ceremony and splendour Henry VIII spent tense, politically charged winters during the Great Matter and Elizabeth I passed her final Christmas, bringing the Tudor dynasty quietly to a close Richmond was not just a festive retreat — it was a stage for power, diplomacy, celebration, and endings. If you enjoy uncovering lost Tudor places, imagining historic Christmases, and exploring the quieter, more atmospheric side of royal history, this episode is for you. If Richmond Palace still stood today, would you want to walk its halls at Christmastime? Let me know in the comments. Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and click the bell so you don’t miss the rest of my Tudor Christmas Advent series. #RichmondPalace #TudorChristmas #TudorHistory #LostPalaces #HenryVII #HenryVIII #ElizabethI #TheAnneBoleynFiles #TudorCourt

Christmas in Tudor England wasn’t just a season of feasting, music and Yule logs… it was also a time when the veil between worlds felt unusually thin. In today’s Tudor Christmas Advent episode, I’m stepping into the atmospheric world of real medieval and Tudor Yuletide superstitions - beliefs recorded in late medieval sermons, Tudor writings, and 16th-century accounts. These weren’t cosy Victorian myths or later folklore. They were ideas that shaped how people in the 1400s and 1500s experienced Christmas Eve itself, a night of wonder, fear, and expectation. In this video, I’ll share three of the strongest and most authentic Christmas superstitions from the period… and trust me, they’re haunting, surprising, and very revealing about Tudor beliefs. - Why did people avoid stables at midnight? - What did some fear they might see in a church porch? - And which spectral figure did Shakespeare expect his audience to recognise? Join me for a wonderfully eerie festive journey into Tudor England’s winter imagination. If you enjoy this darker corner of Tudor Christmas, please like, subscribe, and click the bell so you don’t miss the rest of my Advent series. And in the comments, tell me: Would YOU have been brave enough to test one of these superstitions at midnight? #TudorChristmas #TudorHistory #ChristmasHistory #MedievalFolklore #TudorSuperstitions #HistoryYouTube #TheAnneBoleynFiles #16thCentury #HistoryLovers #YuletideTraditions