Today in 1533 the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth, was christened at the church of observant friars in Greenwich. She was three days old. The mayor, and all the important citizens of London were ordered to attend. The font itself was silver, was surrounded by gentle women with towels and aprons to make sure that the water stayed clean. A crimson satin canopy trimmed with gold hung over the font. On the way out, gifts were carried with Elizabeth, back to Anne’s chambers – the Queen traditionally did not attend the christening, as she was still in the confinement in her chamber until she was churched 40 days after the birth.
That’s your Tudor Minute for today. Remember you can dive deeper into life in 16th century England through the Renaissance English History Podcast at englandcast.com.
Suggested links:
Episode 024: Pregnancy and Childbirth in Renaissance England
Episode 130: Anne’s Pregnancy and Elizabeth’s Birth
From the shop:
Celebrate Elizabeth I’s birthday month with stuff from the Celebrations of Elizabeth I Collection.
Featuring: “Actually I don’t need a prince to come rescue me” Elizabeth I Shirt
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Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast, one of the longest running indie history podcasts, going since 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. She writes books, created the original Tudor Planner (a yearly diary filled with Tudor history) and in 2019 created the world's first Tudorcon (you can "attend" online this year!). She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 20 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history.