Steve Babb is a writer, teacher, and professional photographer based on the Isle of Man, where his family has lived for generations. He holds BA degrees in Business and Marketing, and is a former member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Chartered Management Institute, and Association of Project Managers. He served for a number of years as official documentarian for Tynwald, the world's oldest continuously sitting parliament, giving him first-hand familiarity with the constitutional system this book describes - not as historical text, but as a working institution. Prior to working in media and education Steve's professional career spanned twenty years in business consultancy across government, utilities and financial services. For the past ten years, working in education, he has designed and delivered bespoke educational resources in partnership with schools, colleges and UK universities, and has taught and lectured from key stage 2 to degree level. A comprehensive companion digital archive, built on the Omeka S scholarly platform, is in development at revestment1765.com, and will host primary sources, endnotes, media and teaching resources. Steve runs his own media company and has worked for several years as a photojournalist with close ties to local newspapers, radio stations, BBC and ITV. He is a former deputy chair of the Isle of Man branch of the Royal Television Society, a former local politician, and served as transition manager of Kensington Arts for the IoM Arts Council. He produces, directs, and edits audio and video resources. He is regularly invited to judge photography and media contests by various Manx and UK societies. He maintains close ties with Manx LitFest, Manx National Heritage, Culture Vannin, and the Office of Tynwald. Steve is also currently pursuing a PhD in History with specific regard to British Constitutional history in the long eighteenth century.
The sea god said to protect the Isle of Man in Manx mythology. His cloak of mist concealed the Island from invaders, and his rent of rushes was paid annually at South Barrule and at Tynwald. Central to Manx identity and origin stories throughout Part I.
Traditionally associated with the arrival of Christianity on the Isle of Man. St Patrick's Isle at Peel bears his name, and the earliest Christian settlements on the Island are connected to his mission in the Irish Sea region.
Irish saint said to have arrived at the northeast coast of the Isle of Man in a coracle. Patron of Kirk Maughold parish. His story connects the Island to the Irish monastic tradition.
Irish saint whose feast day, Laa'l Breeshey (1 February), is one of the quarter days in the Manx calendar. The crossing point between Celtic goddess and Christian saint — rushes gathered, the invitation spoken at the threshold. One of the deep-rooted Manx traditions connecting the Island to the wider Celtic world.
Irish missionary whose influence reached the Isle of Man. The keeill at Kirk Andreas was dedicated to Columba, connecting the Island to the Iona-centred monastic network.
King of Scots who invaded the Isle of Man in 1313. Castle Rushen fell to his forces and the Island was ravaged. His invasion marked a violent interruption in the Norse-Manx political order.
Norse King of Mann who invited Savignac monks to cross from Furness Abbey and found Rushen Abbey in 1134. His patronage of the monastery established the most powerful religious institution on the Island.
King of England who formally renounced royal claims to the Isle of Man and granted the lordship to William Montacute, Earl of Salisbury. This grant established the pattern of feudal lordship separate from the English Crown that would persist for centuries.
English nobleman who received Edward III's grant of the lordship of Mann. He rebuilt Castle Rushen after the damage inflicted by Robert the Bruce's invasion.
Brother of William le Scrope. Proclaimed heir-apparent at the 1393 Tynwald in the tanist tradition — the Manx succession custom — rather than by English primogeniture.
King of England who granted the lordship of Mann to Sir John Stanley in 1405, establishing the Stanley dynasty that would govern the Island for over three centuries.
Henry Tudor, whose claim to the throne was secured at the Battle of Bosworth on 22 August 1485. Thomas Stanley placed the crown on his head. He rewarded Stanley by creating him Earl of Derby. Thomas Stanley stood as godfather to Henry's eldest son Arthur.
King of England who dissolved Rushen Abbey in 1540, ending four centuries of Cistercian monasticism on the Isle of Man. The Percy Folio poem quotes him calling Thomas Stanley 'king of Man, the Honnorable Thomas Erle of Darbye.'
King of England killed at the Battle of Bosworth, 22 August 1485. He took Thomas Stanley's son Lord Strange hostage to ensure Stanley's loyalty, but Stanley held the balance and chose Henry Tudor. Richard died in the charge against Henry's position.
Mother of Henry Tudor. Her marriage to Thomas Stanley connected the Lord of Mann to the Lancastrian claim to the English throne. Through her, the Stanley lordship of Mann became entangled with the highest politics in England.
Thomas Stanley's brother. At Bosworth, he intervened with three thousand men and killed Richard III's charge, deciding the battle. His action secured the Tudor dynasty — and preserved the Stanley lordship of Mann.
