You are at the top of the page

Skip to content or footer

Start of main content

Private Lives of the Tudors

GCSE and A Level Talk

About this learning resource

Format: Video

Join Professor Tracy Borman, Chief Historian at Historic Royal Palaces to uncover how the Tudors lived behind closed doors. Perfect for GCSE and A-level students, these short videos bring exam topics to life and make for ideal revision.

This resource includes three videos:

  • Introduction to the Secret Lives of Tudors
  • Henry VIII Power, Privacy and Politics
  • Edward VI, Mary I & Elizabeth I: Secrets of the Tudor Dynasty

Plus an accompanying image bank with selected images and sources from the talk. 

Resource Information

Key Stage

  • KS4 (age 15-16)
  • KS5 (age 16+)

Subjects

  • History

Topic

  • Elizabethans
  • Tudors

Type

  • Videos
  • Historic sources
  • Images

Palace

  • Hampton Court Palace
Back to learning resources

The Private Lives of the Tudors

This video includes:

  • Layout of Tudor palaces 
  • Tudor archives
  • Tudor history of Hampton Court Palace 
  • Monarchs and status
  • Monarchs and privacy

Henry VIII: Power, Privacy and Politics

This video includes:

  • Henry VIII as a young king
  • Family life
  • Clothing 
  • Hobbies
  • Diet
  • Hygiene and toilet habits

Edward VI, Mary I & Elizabeth I: Secrets of the Tudor Dynasty

This video includes:

  • Royal childhood
  • Pregnancy
  • Smallpox
  • Make up and clothing
  • Sugar and tooth decay

Take a look around Henry VIII's Great Hall on our 360-degree image, created in partnership with Google Arts & Culture.

An editable timeline of the Tudor Religious Rollercoaster for Key Stage 2, Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5. Use dates, key facts and activities to explore the religious changes during the Tudor period.

Key Stage

  • KS2 (age 7-11)
  • KS3 (age 11-14)
  • KS4 (age 15-16)
  • KS5 (age 16+)
  • Home Educators

Subject

  • History

Topic

  • Tudors
  • Elizabethans

Download short editable biographies of Tudor Kings and Queens for Key Stage 2, Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5. Use key facts, activities and historic sources to explore these famous monarchs. 

Key Stage

  • KS2 (age 7-11)
  • KS3 (age 11-14)
  • KS4 (age 15-16)
  • KS5 (age 16+)
  • Home Educators

Subject

  • History

Topic

  • Tudors
  • Elizabethans

What was it like moving to Tudor England?   Step back in time and uncover the journey of Catalina of Motril, an enslaved woman who moved to England with a famous queen.  

Key Stage

  • KS2 (age 7-11)
  • KS3 (age 11-14)
  • KS4 (age 15-16)
  • KS5 (age 16+)
  • Home Educators

Subject

  • History

Topic

  • Tudors
  • Diverse Histories