Special Guest Post by Rosemary Griggs, Author of A Woman of Noble Wit, #HistoryWritersAdvent24

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Few women of her time lived to see their name in print. But Katherine was no ordinary woman. She was Sir Walter Raleigh’s mother. This is her story. Set against the turbulent background of a Devon rocked by the religious and social changes that shaped Tudor England; a Devon of privateers and pirates; a Devon riven by rebellions and plots, A Woman of Noble Wit tells how Katherine became the woman who would inspire her famous sons to follow their dreams. It is Tudor history seen though a woman’s eyes.

For many of us in 21st century England, Christmas is an excuse for family gatherings, eating too much, and an orgy of gift giving. Decorations go up earlier every year — when we checked out of one lovely hotel during our summer progress this year, the Christmas tree was already on display in reception. It was mid August! (Admittedly, they did substantial business hosting Christmas feasts, but even so!)

Christmas is also a welcome holiday from work, a chance to re-charge the batteries before a New Year begins. It’s also a time to make plans for the next year, to look forward, to give thanks for our blessings, and to help those in need.

I’ve been thinking about what Christmas was like for the people of Tudor England, and how important that mid-winter break must have been for them.

In the sixteenth century, winters were long and extremely cold. The Tudor and Elizabethan years fell within the ‘Little Ice Age’, which lasted from around 1300 to 1850. During that time average temperatures plummeted — some estimates suggest by as much as by 3.6°F in Europe and North America. 

Occasionally, even mighty rivers like the Thames froze so hard that horses and carts could cross. It’s often suggested that Henry VIII and his third wife, Jane Seymour, crossed the ice-bound Thames when travelling from Whitehall to Greenwich, either on horseback, or in a sleigh, during the winter of 1536–37. The Chronicler, Windsor Herald, Charles Wriothesley, says:

‘… the Kinge’s Grace, the Queen’s Grace, and my ladye Marye, the kings daughter, tooke their horses at the sayde Pallase of Westmynster accompanied with a goodlye company of lords, ladyes, and gentellmen, and so roode from thense through the cittye of London to Grenwych …

… The cause of the kings rydinge through London was because the Tames was so frosynne that there might no boots [boats] go there on for yse [ice].’

Whether the King and his wife of six months rode across the frozen river or took a safer route over London, Bridge is uncertain, but the river certainly froze.

Thames Frost Fair, 1683–84, by Thomas Wyke,

(Wikimedia Commons)

Henry’s daughter Elizabeth also saw frequent grim winters throughout her reign. For example, in 1564-65 the frost set in on December 7 and from Christmas Day until January 13, the river remained frozen. It’s said that boys played football on the ice and shot “at marks”, and the Queen practiced archery on the frozen surface. The river froze over some 24 times between the early 1600s and 1814, and people often enjoyed frost fairs.

That may sound like fun, but for ordinary people, such weather added an extra burden to already harsh lives. Severe frosts often continued from October to April. Travel was difficult, while frost, snow and storms disrupted the farming year. The frozen or waterlogged ground delayed spring planting, and hail damaged crops. This often led to poor harvest, food prices rocketing, scarcity and even famine. The 1590s was the coldest decade of the 16th century, with a run of terrible summers and very harsh winters, leading to an Elizabethan ‘cost-of-living crisis’.

At the start of the Tudor period, the population of England totalled 2.2 million. By 1600, it had grown to 4.1 million. Wages increased much slower than prices; as a result, real wages of agricultural workers, labourers and skilled artisans fell by about 60 per cent over the course of the century.

The dissolution of the monasteries in 1536-40, and closing down religious guilds, fraternities, almshouses, and hospitals, had taken away much of the institutional fabric which had provided charity for the poor. Many people experienced severe hardship, and civil unrest followed. Acts of Parliament in 1597-98 and 1601, the first ‘Poor Laws’, aimed to prevent starvation and to control public order.

Amid such testing conditions, the twelve days of Christmas must have come as a welcome relief; a time when most people could feel warmer, eat a little better than usual, and take a break from the relentless toil of day-to-day life. In far-flung rural communities, the local nobility and gentry opened their doors and invited many to share the warmth of their fireside and to eat at their Christmas table. It was as a time for hospitality and giving alms to the poor, not just an excuse for one long party.

For twelve whole days, the only work carried out was feeding any livestock that had escaped the November cull, and putting food on the table for the Christmas feasts. They locked the plough in the church on Christmas Eve, and only brought it out again on Plough Monday, (the Monday after Twelfth night). This stopped any of the men waking on a crisp New Year’s morning tempted to set out to plough the top field. Similarly, the women who usually sat at their spinning wheels would weave boughs of greenery, ivy, and holly into the spokes, avoiding any temptation to work.

As in earlier Roman and Saxon festivals, decking the halls with greenery signified hope that after the dark days of winter, spring would return. The mid winter holiday marked the turning of the year.

With all of that in mind, it’s not surprising that Christmas festivities often feature in the stories I write about women who lived in Devon during those turbulent Tudor years. Here’s an extract form “A Woman of Noble Wit’ about a Christmas that is a turning point in young Katherine Champernowne’s life. She’s been with her grandmother at Mohun’s Ottery, learning how to be a lady. After her grandmother dies, she returns to Modbury, feeling very sad. Not until Twelfth night does she cheer up.

In the end it was Arthur who made her smile. He had the portion of the Twelfth Night cake which held the dried pea. What a time that little boy had as Prince of the Pea; his mirth so infectious that even Eliza, who seemed almost as sad as Katherine, had to laugh. Arthur was nearly six years old, but thought himself already a man. How he revelled in his powers, giving out ever more audacious commands. He ordered Father to sit on the floor amongst the dogs, Mother to dance on the table, and the girls to wear their headdresses backwards. The minstrels played, Arthur strutted around, and the waves of uncontrollable laughter that engulfed them all seemed to release a spring in Katherine. She started to emerge from her despair like a moth carefully shedding its dark pupa and gingerly spreading its wings.

 

 Rosemanry Griggs

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About the Author

Author and speaker Rosemary Griggs has been researching Devon's sixteenth-century history for years. She has discovered a cast of fascinating characters and an intriguing network of families whose influence stretched far beyond the West Country. She loves telling the stories of the forgotten women of history — the women beyond the royal court; wives, sisters, daughters and mothers who played their part during those tumultuous Tudor years: the Daughters of Devon. Her novel A Woman of Noble Wit tells the story of Katherine Champernowne, Sir Walter Raleigh’s mother, and features many of the county’s well-loved places. The Dartington Bride, published March 2024, is the extraordinary tale of Lady Gabrielle Roberda Montgomery who travelled from France to Elizabethan England to marry into the prominent and well-connected Champernowne family. Rosemary creates and wears sixteenth-century clothing, a passion which complements her love for bringing the past to life through a unique blend of theatre, history and re-enactment. Her appearances and talks for museums and community groups all over the West Country draw on her extensive research into sixteenth-century Devon, Tudor life and Tudor dress, particularly Elizabethan. Out of costume, Rosemary leads heritage tours of the gardens at Dartington Hall, a fourteenth-century manor house and now a a historic visitor destination, events venue and thriving community of businesses, colleges and more. You can find out more on Rosemary’s website:  https://rosemarygriggs.co.uk/ and follow her on Bluesky and Twitter @RAGriggsauthor