Hey friends, welcome to the Renaissance English History podcast.

This is the weekly highlight reel of videos that I have put out on YouTube.

So in case you don't know, you can go over to YouTube and watch all my videos.

The channel is History and Coffee, And you can just search for my name as well, Heather Tesco, History and Coffee.

And you will get it. And you can subscribe there. Thank you to the many people who already subscribe.

And then what I've started doing is weekly highlight reels of some of the videos that have

gone out on YouTube that would be of interest to the podcast listeners as well. So thanks for

listening. And you can also, like I said, go over and join me on YouTube history and copy and

search for Heather. And there I am. So let's get right into it. So today we are going to talk

about the companions that Prince Henry had when he was young, the boys and young men that his

family had chosen to surround him with. When Henry VIII ascended to the throne in 1509, he brought with him a group of trusted

companion, many of whom had been with him since his youth. These young men were not just court

officials, but they were also close friends who shaped the young prince as he grew into a

king. Their influence extended far beyond the courts halls, impacting Henry's

military ambitions, his political strategy, and his personal life. Today, like I said, we're going

to talk about four, count on four key figures, William Fitzwilliam, Anthony Brown, Henry

Courtney and Charles Brandon, who stood by Henry in his early years and through

some of the most pivotal moments of his reign. Let's start with William Fitzwilliam, the loyal Navy

commander. William Fitzwilliam was born into a noble family around the same time as Henry

8th, around 1490, and it was his half-brother Anthony

Brown who actually connected him to the Tudor Court. He was chosen to be one of Prince Henry's

companions, a position that would define his life. His early exposure to court politics and military

...