logo
episode-header-image
Today
1h 1m

Mother of All Tudors: Margaret Beaufort

History Hit
About this episode


Step into the turbulent heart of the Wars of the Roses and meet one of history’s most formidable survivors: Lady Margaret Beaufort.

A child bride, a teenage mother, and ultimately the mastermind behind the rise of the Tudor dynasty, Margaret navigated betrayal, bloodshed, and political chaos with nerves of steel.

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb sits down with leading biographers Lauren Johnson and Dr. Nicola Tallis to uncover the real woman behind the legend: her extraordinary resilience, razor-sharp political instincts and the unyielding drive that helped place her son on the throne as Henry VII, the first Tudor monarch.


MORE

Henry VII

Listen on Apple

Listen on Spotify


Henry VIII's Sister, Margaret, Queen of Scots

Listen on Apple

Listen on Spotify


Presented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Max Wintle. Edited and produced by Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcast


Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 

You can take part in our listener survey here


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Nov 24
Origins of Free Speech
<p>Free speech is today more contested than ever before. In many places, differing views about politics, sex, and religion are suppressed and punished. In the West, debates rage over its limits and meaning. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Fara Dabhoiwala to trace the ... Show More
1 h
Nov 20
Raleigh and the Lost Colony of Roanoke
<p>What happened to the lost colony of Roanoke?</p><p>In the 1580s Sir Walter Raleigh set about establishing a permanent English colony on Roanoke Island, off the coast of North Carolina. But within a few years the settlement and its colonists had mysteriously vanished. Ever sinc ... Show More
46m 48s
Nov 17
Tudor True Crime: Who Murdered Lord Darnley?
<p>**Contains accounts of murder and sexual violence**</p><p>After an explosion rocked Edinburgh in February 1567, Lord Darnley - husband to Mary, Queen of Scots - was found strangled, alongside a servant. Who killed them? Was it Darnley's rival, and Mary's next husband, the Earl ... Show More
48m 20s
Recommended Episodes
Aug 26
Women of the Crusades
The image we usually associate with a Crusader - of a dashing nobleman on a mighty steed heading out for Holy War - often obscures all of the other medieval people who went to the Holy Land, especially the countless women.In this edition of Gone Medieval, Dr. Eleanor Janega talks ... Show More
36m 33s
Jun 2025
Theodora, the rags to riches Empress
<p><br></p><p>Dr. Eleanor Janega and author Stella Duffy dive into the extraordinary life and legacy of Empress Theodora.</p><p>A woman who rose from the lowest ranks of society as a prostitute at the Hippodrome to capture the heard of an emperor to become the most powerful woman ... Show More
46m 50s
Sep 16
The Real Eleanor of Aquitaine
Eleanor of Aquitaine was a queen who defied expectations, a duchess who outmanoeuvred kings, and a mother whose dynasty shaped the future of Europe. She is often remembered through myth, gossip, and legend—but the truth is far more fascinating. Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Pro ... Show More
1 h
Aug 2024
Medieval Life During Plague & War
<p>When so much of history is written by men, Margaret Paston's letters offer us a rare insight into the life of a woman and the world around her in 15th century England.</p><br><p>How did she cope with waves of plague wiping out her town? What did she do when the War of the Rose ... Show More
40m 42s
Mar 2025
Women killers of the early modern era
From true crime pamphlets to reports from the scaffold, early modern Britain was gripped by tales of women who killed. But were these cases as common as they seemed, or was something else at play? Speaking to Lauren Good, historian Blessin Adams explores the obsession with female ... Show More
34m 56s
Aug 2024
Life Lessons From Historical Women
<p>When women's stories aren't being flat-out ignored from the history books, they can often be sidelined.</p><br><p>Well not here! Joining Kate today is the comedian and author of <a href="https://www.welbooks.co.uk/shop/p/life-lessons-from-historical-women-by-eleanor-morton" re ... Show More
35m 48s
Jan 2025
Medieval Sex Myths
<p>From medieval d*ck pics to sex with monks, how did people in medieval times think about sex and sexuality?</p><br><p>It was a period that spanned roughly 1,000 years and even though views on sex were largely shaped by the dominant Christian faith, whether this filtered down to ... Show More
46m 4s
Jan 2025
Medieval Lesbians
<p>How do you begin to look for examples of lesbians in the medieval period?</p><br><p>Even though it was deeply frowned upon by the powers that be, the clues are very much there... if you know where to look.</p><br><p>What examples do we have? How did the male-run church respond ... Show More
45m 38s
Sep 30
Ballads of Love and Death
In this enchanting episode, Dr. Eleanor Janega dissolves the boundaries between history, folklore, and music to explore the haunting world of medieval ballads. Joined by author Amy Jeffs, illustrator Gwen Burns and composer/singer Natalie Brice, Eleanor uncovers the timeless stor ... Show More
1h 1m
Feb 2025
Sojourner Truth: American abolitionist, suffragist, preacher
Greg Jenner is joined in 19th-Century America by Dr Michell Chresfield and comedian Desiree Burch to learn all about abolitionist and suffragist Sojourner Truth. Born into slavery in a Dutch-speaking area of New England, Sojourner Truth fought to free herself and then others, bec ... Show More
57m 49s