September 2 - A very wealthy Irish earl dies in the Tower

On this day in Tudor history, 2nd September 1534, Gerald Fitzgerald, 9th Earl of Kildare and Lord Deputy of Ireland, died in the Tower of London at around the age of 47. Kildare had been arrested on 29th June 1534, accused of corruption and causing rebellion in Ireland. 

 

Kildare seems to have spent most of his career being accused of crimes, but his son Silken Thomas's rebellion was his final undoing. 

 

He was already ill when he was arrested and imprisoned, suffering from the after effects of being shot, but at least his wife was able to nurse him.

 

Find out more about this Earl of Kildare, his life and career, in today's talk from historian Claire Ridgway. You can see this podcast as a video at the following link:

https://youtu.be/iFWPVHvWirs

 

3rd February video on Kildare’s son, Silken Thomas - https://youtu.be/JA5hsZk0G3k

Also on this day in Tudor history, 2nd September 1591, naval commander and explorer Sir Richard Grenville died at sea from injuries sustained while commanding his ship, The Revenge, in the Battle of Flores. Unfortunately, Grenville's death was a result of him disobeying orders and doing his own thing. Find out more about what happened and hear excerpts from Alfred Lord Tennyon’s poem “The Revenge: A Ballad of the Fleet", in last year’s video - https://youtu.be/ideGMFpNrv4