Malvasia companies occasionally use the name "Malvasia" or "Malvazia" for non-vintage Madeiras, especially those primarily marketed to Portuguese-speaking countries. English historical tradition associates Malmsey wine with the death of George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, brother of King Edward IV of England. Following his conviction for treason, he was "privately executed" at the Tower on 18 February 1478, by tradition in the Bowyer Tower, and soon after the event, the rumour gained ground that he was drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine. Malvasia Malvasia (, also known as Malvazia) is a group of wine grape varieties grown historically in the
Anne Hathaway (wife of Shakespeare) is a curious bequest in the will of her father's shepherd, Thomas Whittington, who died in 1601. Whittington left 40 shillings to "the poor of Stratford", adding that the money was "in the hand of Anne Shakespeare wife unto Master William Shakespeare, and is due debt unto me, being paid to mine executor by the said William Shakespeare or his assigns according to the true meaning of this my will." This passage has been interpreted in several different ways. One view is that Whittington may have lent Anne the money, presumably because she was short of cash while her husband