An Accidental History of Tudor England

A unique new window onto Tudor life, told through ordinary people's untimely deaths.

How did ordinary people live in Tudor England? This unique history unearths the ways they died to find out.

Uncovering thousands of coroners' reports, An Accidental History of Tudor England explores the history of everyday life, and everyday death, in a world far from the intrigues of Hampton Court Palace, Shakespeare's plots, and the Spanish Armada. Here, farming, building, and travel were dangerous. Fruit trees killed more people than guns, and sheep killed about the same number as coalmines. Men stabbed themselves playing football, and women drowned in hundreds fetching water. Going to church had its dangers, especially when it came to bell-ringing, archery practice was perilous, and haystacks claimed numerous victims. Restless animals roamed the roads, which contained some potholes so deep men could drown, and drown they did.

From bear attacks in north Oxford to a bowls-on-ice-incident on the Thames, this book uses a remarkable trove of sources and stories to put common folk back into the big picture of Tudor England, bringing the reality of their world to life as never before.