January 2015 - History of Royal Women

‘A Free Dutch Woman’ – Princess Marianne of the Netherlands

Thursday, 29 January 2015, 21:45 Moniek Bloks 0

Princess Marianne of the Netherlands is certainly one royal woman who did not put up with her cheating husband. She was born the daughter of King William I of the Netherlands and his wife Wilhelmina of Prussia. There was quite an age difference between her and her brother, later William II of the Netherlands, almost 18 [read more]

The Sister Kings

Wednesday, 28 January 2015, 13:00 Moniek Bloks 2

In an age where female rulers weren’t all that common, these sisters were Kings in their own right of two respective countries. Mary of Hungary and Jadwiga of Poland were the daughters of Louis I of Hungary and Elizabeth of Bosnia. During their father’s reign, Poland and Hungary were in a personal union and Louis [read more]

Inside Anne Boleyn’s place of burial

Saturday, 24 January 2015, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 12

If you’ve followed this blog for a while you will know of my fascination with Anne Boleyn. She was, of course, Henry VIII of England’s second wife and the mother of Elizabeth I. She was executed inside the Tower of London on 19 May 1536 after being found guilty of treason, incest and adultery. This [read more]

England’s Queens, From Boudica to Elizabeth of York by Elizabeth Norton Review

Friday, 23 January 2015, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 1

I was really looking forward to the release of this book and I was lucky enough to receive a copy to review it. I’ve actually read some books by Elizabeth Norton before, she’s also the author of The Anne Boleyn Papers (which I got for Christmas!) and Elfrida: The First Crowned Queen of England among others. England’s Queens [read more]

‘It is forgiven’ – Anna of Saxony’s illegitimate daughter

Wednesday, 21 January 2015, 13:04 Moniek Bloks 0

Anna of Saxony was born on 23 December 1544 in Dresden to Maurice, Elector of Saxony and Agnes of Hesse. She became her father’s heiress upon the death of brother Albert, who died in infancy. She was thus very wealthy and an attractive candidate for marriage. She married as his second wife, William the Silent, [read more]

The Latent Queen: Maria de las Mercedes

Friday, 16 January 2015, 20:00 Moniek Bloks 0

The birth of the Monegasque twins raised an interesting succession question. Princess Gabriella was born before her brother Prince Jacques, but due to male-preference cognatic primogeniture, Prince Jacques is the Hereditary Prince of Monaco. Despite the fact that I find this a horribly outdated practice, Monaco is not the only country that still practises some [read more]