Director Reel

I always enjoy the serendipity of scouring through old records, especially when I find something of even greater interest than the thing I was looking for.In this instance I was looking at the Privy Purse accounts of Henry VIII for May 1530 and I noted this entry:“To Scawseby, for bows, arrows, shafts, broad heads, bracer, and shooting glove for lady Anne, 23s. 4d.”Anne Boleyn was known to be a keen archer but here we have wonderful additional information. The name ‘Scawseby’ – was he a bowyer, a fletcher or simply a merchant selling on a range of archery equipment? It tells us that she used a shooting glove rather than a tab. It gives us a cost (not insubstantial) for this package of equipment. Most importantly the inclusion of broad heads suggests that she was no mere garden recreation archer (as so often portrayed in films) but rather a woman who enjoyed the challenge of hunting deer with a bow. There’s more…In June the records show “Four bows for lady Anne, 13s. 4d.” Also “Lost at shooting, to Sir John Hurt, 20s.” – which suggests Henry wagered very significant amounts on his archery ability and moreover, despite being a king he was prepared to admit when he lost.As to why I was pouring through these records – it followed a podcast interview yesterday about Tudor Dogs for the ‘Not Just The Tudors’ podcast with Prof Suzannah Lipscomb (out April 28). Henry VIII’s favourite pet dogs – Cutt and Ball – were mentioned and I wanted to check if there was any primary evidence relating to their type. The internet tells me Cutt was a spaniel but I wanted to find a genuine source for that.In Henry VIII’s Privy Purse expenses November 1529 – November 1531, the entry for May 1530 is “to one of the Queen’s servants for bringing Cut, the King’s spaniel again. 10 shillings.” In this transcription (British History Online site) Cut is rendered with a single t, although other contemporary sources spell it as Cutt. I’ve often wondered if this curious spelling relates it to the common term ‘Cutto’, which was a hunting sword, deriving from a shortened and Anglicized version of ‘couteax de chasse’. I digress…It is further noted, in May again, that a reward was paid “to one who brought home Ball, the King’s dog, which was lost in Waltham Forest 5 shillings.Cut(t) ran off again in Feb 1532 and reward was paid to “a poor woman for bringing again Cut, the king’s dog. 4s 8d”The things we spend money on give tremendous insights into the way we live. Future historians, aided by AI, will have colossal data banks of our collective lives from online shopping. ... See MoreSee Less

Director Reel

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