the Actor (by Piers Gaveston): "By the spring of 1309 Edward had managed to effect Gaveston's recall from exile, but once again he proved to be troublesome. According the the chroniclers, Gaveston returned to England as arrogant as ever, and during this period he is alleged to have dubbed his fellow earls with slanderous nicknames: . . . Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, was 'the fiddler,' 'the actor,' or 'the churl'. . . ." (Historical Dictionary of Late Medieval England, 1272-1485: 222)
the Churl (by Piers Gaveston): "Unlike his father Edward I, Edward II proved to be a weak and unpopular king who was addicted to homo sexual favourites, which resulted in conflict between himself and his barons. He alienated the once loyal Lancaster, who hated Edward's favourite, the arrogant Piers Gaveston, who ridiculed him with the nicknames 'the Fiddler' and the 'churl', Lancaster swore revenge on him when Gaveston demanded that the King dismiss one of his retainers." (English Monarchs)
the Fiddler (by Piers Gaveston):
the Gentle Count (by the people): "The Earl of Lancaster was the son of Edmund Crouchback and of Blanche of Artois, mother of the Queen of France. He was a fine-looking man, devout and gracious, and much beloved by the people, who called him the Gentle Count' but Gaveston's nickname for him of the 'stage-player" may have been unmerited, for he seems to have been over-greedy of popular applause and influence, and to have had much personal ambition; and it does not seem certain, though Gaveston might be vain, and his master weak and foolish, that Lancaster and his friends did not exaggerate their faults, and excite the malevolence of a nation never tolerant either of royal favorites or of an expensive court. . . ." (Yonge. Cameos from English History, from Rollo to Edward II: 405)
the Black Devil (Ger. Schwarze Teufel; Fr. Diable Noir): " . . . He was clearly a remarkable individual, and his physical strength was also legendary; it was said that he could lift four muskets by inserting his fingers into the barrels. For holding a bridge single-handed he was nicknamed 'the Horatius of the Tyrol') after the Roman hero Horatius Cocles, who according tradition defended the Sublician bridge across the Tiber to save Rome), and another nickname from his Tyrolean campaigning was 'the Black Devil'. . . ." (Haythornthwaite: 25)
the Hopeful: " . . . [O]n his return to England (he) was much employed about his father's suits at law, for which he shewed (sic) much aptitude, especially in his proceedings to obtain restitution of Berkeley Castle and manors. . . His labours were however ineffectual, and the Crow still retained possession of the Berkeley Castle estates, although hopes continued to be held out to the family of their ultimate restitution. . . ." (Tudor Place)
the Wool Earl: "He was known as The Wool Earl, due to his enormous wealth. Besides being in possession of major lands in the Irish counties of Kilkenny and Tipperary, he owned 72 manors in England, making him one of the richest subjects in the realm." (Wikipedia)
Black Tom: "When Edward VI died in Jul 1553, his catholic sister Mary came to the throne, and Ormonde appears to have had no difficulty in accommodating himself to the changed regime. Black Tom won his spurs and possibly his nickname when suppressing the rebellion against Queen Mary of Sir Thomas Wyatt, whom some called White Tom. Mary retained the Earl at court for a further year, allowing him to return to Ireland in Oct 1554, along with Barnaby Fitzpatrick and Gerald Fitzgerald, 11th Earl of Kildare. Throughout the rest of his long life, Ormonde maintained his family’s tradition of unswerving loyalty to the crown, spending long periods at court, where he exploited the powerful connections his early education had given him." (Castelli)
the Black Husband: " . . . Carte styles him 'a man of very great parts, admirable judgment, great experience, and a prodigious memory; . . very comely and graceful, . of a black complexion which gave occasion to the Queen (in her way of expressing kindness to such as she favoured) to call him her 'black husband.'. . . ." (Compendium of Irish Biography)
the Bald: "Lady Katherine Fitzgerald was born in the Castle of Dromana, in the third year of Edward IV. . . In 1483 she married her kinsman, Thomas, third son of Thomas, eighth Earl of Desmond. . . [T]he honours . . . devolved on the husband of the Lady Katherine, who became, in 1529, the twelfth Earl of Desmond. At this time he was in his seventy-sixth year, and had acquired the sobriquet of Maol, or 'The Bald.' The countess was ten years his junior. . . ." (Blackburne, Vol. 1: 74)
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| Thomas Lyttelton 2nd Baron Lyttelton Bad Lord Lyttelton @Wikipedia |
Bad Lord Lyttelton:
the Wicked Lord Lyttelton
"Thomas, second Baron Lyttelton, known as "the wicked Lord Lyttelton," in distinction to his father, who in his lifetime had been styled 'the good Lord Lyttelton.'" Thomas, Baron Lyttelton, was a man of parts and fashion; a politician, a writer of verses, an artist whose paintings were supposed to contain the combined excellencies of Salvator Rosa and Claude, and withal one of the greatest profligates of the age. This is the Lord Lyttelton who, in his thirty-fifth year, and whilst in perfect health, dreamt a woman appeared to him and announced he had not three days to live. He spoke lightly of his dream, and on the morning of the third day felt in such good spirits that he declared he should 'bilk the ghost.' He died suddenly that night, when his friend Miles Peter Andrews dreamt Lyttelton appeared to him and said, 'All is over.'" (Memoirs of Mary Robinson @A Celebration of Women Writers)
the Albanian-slayer: "He also held the title of Albanian-slayer after receiving aid from the Ottoman Empire to capture Ioannina from Albanian ruler of the despotate of Arta, John Spata, after failing do to so independently." (Wikipedia)
the Darling of Mankind, the Delight and Darling of Mankind, Mankind's Darling (by Suetonius) :
--"There is no indication anywhere as to the name of the Colosseum's architect. It was inaugurated in 80 A.D. by Vespasian's older son, named like himself, Titus Flavius Vespasianus, Titus, known as 'the darling of mankind' because of his gentle and generous nature, died in the second year of his reign. Further modifications were made to this structure The structure by his brother, Domitian (81-96), "a genuine tyrant," who succeeded him."
--" . . . But with respect to his natural disposition, and moral behaviour, the expectations entertained by the public were not equally flattering. He was immoderately addicted to luxury; he had betrayed a strong inclination to cruelty; and he lived in the habitual practice of lewdness, no less unnatural than intemperate. But, with a degree of virtuous resolution unexampled in history, he had no sooner taken into his hands the entire reins of government, than he renounced every vicious attachment. Instead of wallowing in luxury, as before, he became a model of temperance; instead of cruelty, he displayed the strongest proofs of humanity and benevolence; and in the room of lewdness, he exhibited a transition to the most unblemished chastity and virtue. In a word, so sudden and great a change was never known in the character of mortal; and he had the peculiar glory to receive the appellation of 'the darling and delight of mankind.'" (Suetonius)
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