Uploaded July 2024 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
He was the ILLEGITIMATE SON OF HENRY VIII, the brother of Elizabeth I, Mary I and Edward VI and a boy who many thought might be placed in the line of succession for the English throne, but what do we really know about the life of Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, who died at the age of just seventeen?
In this week’s Tudor history documentary from History Calling, we go back to the middle years of the reign of King Henry VIII to look at the life of his only acknowledged illegitimate child (not counting the fact that he delegitimised his daughters at different points). You’ll hear about the relationship between Fitzroy’s mother, Elizabeth Blount and Henry VIII, what we know about Henry Fitzroy’s birth and childhood, why his upbringing was overseen by his godfather, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey and when and why he was given the extraordinary honour of a double Dukedom. I’ll also tell you about the other positions heaped on this young child, including being made Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and describe his relationship with his father, even showing you a letter written by the Duke of Richmond to his royal parent. We’ll discuss his marriage to Mary Howard, who was a cousin of Anne Boleyn and the only daughter-in-law of Henry VIII and look at some of the famous moments in Tudor history which this boy was present for, including the execution of Anne Boleyn in 1536. Richmond would outlive his step-mother by only a couple of months and the video will conclude by taking you through the sudden death of this illegitimate Tudor on 23 July, plus his funeral, burial and what happened to his grave later on.
BUY MY BOOK (Find Your Irish Ancestors Online): amzn.to/3Z2ChnG
Website (with 2 FREE DOWNLOADS): historycallingofficial.com
Patreon: patreon.com/historycalling
Amazon storefront: amazon.com/shop/historycalling
Instagram: instagram.com/historycalling
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
WHO WAS BESSIE BLOUNT?
youtu.be/7BkXXfDqFJE
THE SHORT LIFE OF PRINCE HENRY TUDOR, DUKE OF CORNWALL
youtu.be/7F6WYqzGURk
HOW EMPRESS MATILDA LOST THE THRONE
youtu.be/etng7e53UFw
TRAGIC DEATH AND BURIAL OF PRINCE ARTHUR
youtu.be/M7izXFVPG1M
TUDOR MONARCHS’ PLAYLIST
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLSjVq5Qtb0FD_vatnjVq9egboPYy8Kg0
SIX WIVES OF HENRY VIII PLAYLIST
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLSjVq5Qtb0Hb5Wjykc2hBrBddQYXDUqU
LEARN MORE
Want to watch/hear/read more about history (and a whole host of other topics)? Then you might benefit from a free Audible or Prime video trial. They are available from the following links:
AUDIBLE
amzn.to/44MvlMi
AUDIBLE PLUS & AUDIBLE PREMIUM PLUS
amzn.to/42rh3PF
PRIME VIDEO
amzn.to/3LW7ykg
Beverley A. Murphy, B**stard Prince: Henry VIII's Lost Son (2004)
amzn.to/43P9TWH
Robert Hutchinson, Young Henry: The Rise of Henry VIII (W&N, 2012). amzn.to/3mu5liP
David Starkey, Henry: Virtuous Prince (Harper Press, 2008). amzn.to/39y2jVK
Giles Tremlett, Catherine of Aragon: Henry’s Spanish Queen (London, 2010)
amzn.to/3UfGmmx
Eric Ives, The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn (Wiley-Blackwell, 2005)
amzn.to/3xLivgr
BUY OR RENT:
The Tudors, season 1
amzn.to/2VCwQ0j
The Tudors, season 2
amzn.to/2VMPnHw
The Tudors, season 3
amzn.to/3BijsPB
The Tudors, season 4
amzn.to/3z16S58
Henry VIII and his Six Wives (2016 docu-drama)
amzn.to/3jiCkag
Six Wives with Lucy Worsley (2016 docu-drama)
amzn.to/3wH2mr2
GEAR USED
Apple MacBook Pro Laptop (for video editing): amzn.to/3S6IoRK
DJI Drone: amzn.to/38h1vXr (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/39hROZm (US LINK)
Go-Pro Hero 10 camera: amzn.to/3EPIK9U (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rTWScL (US LINK)
GoPro 3-Way 2.0 (Tripod/Grip/Arm): amzn.to/37CdC1r (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3vaVxjU (US LINK)
Memory Card: amzn.to/36QvcOQ (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3KeLZZs (US LINK)
Microphone: amzn.to/3MFtoaK (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rYtjH8 (US LINK)
THUMBNAIL: Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
Open Street Map copyright information
openstreetmap.org/copyright
Creative Commons licenses used see creativecommons.org/licenses
NB: Links above may be affiliate links. This means if you make a purchase through one of these links, I earn a small commission. It in no way affects the price you pay.
#HenryFitzroy #HenryFitzroyDukeOfRichmond #TudorHistoryDocumentary #ForgottenTudor
He was the ILLEGITIMATE SON OF HENRY VIII, the brother of Elizabeth I, Mary I and Edward VI and a boy who many thought might be placed in the line of succession for the English throne, but what do we really know about the life of Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, who died at the age of just seventeen?
In this week’s Tudor history documentary from History Calling, we go back to the middle years of the reign of King Henry VIII to look at the life of his only acknowledged illegitimate child (not counting the fact that he delegitimised his daughters at different points). You’ll hear about the relationship between Fitzroy’s mother, Elizabeth Blount and Henry VIII, what we know about Henry Fitzroy’s birth and childhood, why his upbringing was overseen by his godfather, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey and when and why he was given the extraordinary honour of a double Dukedom. I’ll also tell you about the other positions heaped on this young child, including being made Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and describe his relationship with his father, even showing you a letter written by the Duke of Richmond to his royal parent. We’ll discuss his marriage to Mary Howard, who was a cousin of Anne Boleyn and the only daughter-in-law of Henry VIII and look at some of the famous moments in Tudor history which this boy was present for, including the execution of Anne Boleyn in 1536. Richmond would outlive his step-mother by only a couple of months and the video will conclude by taking you through the sudden death of this illegitimate Tudor on 23 July, plus his funeral, burial and what happened to his grave later on.
BUY MY BOOK (Find Your Irish Ancestors Online): amzn.to/3Z2ChnG
Website (with 2 FREE DOWNLOADS): historycallingofficial.com
Patreon: patreon.com/historycalling
Amazon storefront: amazon.com/shop/historycalling
Instagram: instagram.com/historycalling
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
WHO WAS BESSIE BLOUNT?
youtu.be/7BkXXfDqFJE
THE SHORT LIFE OF PRINCE HENRY TUDOR, DUKE OF CORNWALL
youtu.be/7F6WYqzGURk
HOW EMPRESS MATILDA LOST THE THRONE
youtu.be/etng7e53UFw
TRAGIC DEATH AND BURIAL OF PRINCE ARTHUR
youtu.be/M7izXFVPG1M
TUDOR MONARCHS’ PLAYLIST
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLSjVq5Qtb0FD_vatnjVq9egboPYy8Kg0
SIX WIVES OF HENRY VIII PLAYLIST
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLSjVq5Qtb0Hb5Wjykc2hBrBddQYXDUqU
LEARN MORE
Want to watch/hear/read more about history (and a whole host of other topics)? Then you might benefit from a free Audible or Prime video trial. They are available from the following links:
AUDIBLE
amzn.to/44MvlMi
AUDIBLE PLUS & AUDIBLE PREMIUM PLUS
amzn.to/42rh3PF
PRIME VIDEO
amzn.to/3LW7ykg
Beverley A. Murphy, B**stard Prince: Henry VIII's Lost Son (2004)
amzn.to/43P9TWH
Robert Hutchinson, Young Henry: The Rise of Henry VIII (W&N, 2012). amzn.to/3mu5liP
David Starkey, Henry: Virtuous Prince (Harper Press, 2008). amzn.to/39y2jVK
Giles Tremlett, Catherine of Aragon: Henry’s Spanish Queen (London, 2010)
amzn.to/3UfGmmx
Eric Ives, The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn (Wiley-Blackwell, 2005)
amzn.to/3xLivgr
BUY OR RENT:
The Tudors, season 1
amzn.to/2VCwQ0j
The Tudors, season 2
amzn.to/2VMPnHw
The Tudors, season 3
amzn.to/3BijsPB
The Tudors, season 4
amzn.to/3z16S58
Henry VIII and his Six Wives (2016 docu-drama)
amzn.to/3jiCkag
Six Wives with Lucy Worsley (2016 docu-drama)
amzn.to/3wH2mr2
GEAR USED
Apple MacBook Pro Laptop (for video editing): amzn.to/3S6IoRK
DJI Drone: amzn.to/38h1vXr (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/39hROZm (US LINK)
Go-Pro Hero 10 camera: amzn.to/3EPIK9U (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rTWScL (US LINK)
GoPro 3-Way 2.0 (Tripod/Grip/Arm): amzn.to/37CdC1r (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3vaVxjU (US LINK)
Memory Card: amzn.to/36QvcOQ (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3KeLZZs (US LINK)
Microphone: amzn.to/3MFtoaK (UK LINK) OR amzn.to/3rYtjH8 (US LINK)
THUMBNAIL: Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
Open Street Map copyright information
openstreetmap.org/copyright
Creative Commons licenses used see creativecommons.org/licenses
NB: Links above may be affiliate links. This means if you make a purchase through one of these links, I earn a small commission. It in no way affects the price you pay.
#HenryFitzroy #HenryFitzroyDukeOfRichmond #TudorHistoryDocumentary #ForgottenTudor
