Moniek Bloks, Author at History of Royal Women

Margaret of England, Queen of Scots, and the death of her esquire

Tuesday, 11 April 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

This article was written by Carol. Margaret of England was the daughter of Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. In 1251 she married Alexander of Scotland and became Queen of Scotland. Margaret was only 11 years old at the time of her marriage. Alexander the King was only 10. A group of Barons [read more]

Mary of Bourbon – The jilted Bride

Wednesday, 5 April 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Mary of Bourbon was born on 29 October 1515 as the daughter of Charles, Duke of Vendôme and Françoise d’Alençon. The Treaty of Rouen of 1517 between France and Scotland provided for the marriage of a French Princess to the King of Scots. However, it soon became clear that Madeleine of Valois, the daughter of King [read more]

Secret 500-year-old spy chamber ‘built by Ivan the Terrible’s mother’ found under Moscow street

Monday, 3 April 2017, 14:00 Moniek Bloks 0

The footage from the video above shows a secret 500-year-old spy chamber, which was underneath a street in Moscow. Archaeologists say the room the room was built by Elena Glinskaya, the mother of Ivan the Terrible. The room is thought to have been used to eavesdrop on the enemy with a special acoustic effect. It was [read more]

Queens Regent – Catherine of Austria

Monday, 3 April 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

A regent is “a person appointed to administer a state because the monarch is a minor, is absent or is incapacitated.” Catherine of Austria was born on 14 January 1507 as the daughter of Joanna of Castile and Philip I of Castile, who had sadly passed away in September 1506. Joanna was forced into confinement by her [read more]

The White Princess – Who is who?

Saturday, 1 April 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

While the White Princess begins with the House of Tudor, to understand how we got there, we must begin several years earlier. King Henry VI of England from the House of Lancaster ruled England from the age of 1 from 31 August 1422 until 4 March 1461. His grandfather had usurped the throne in 1399. He [read more]

Rhodopis – The first Cinderella

Friday, 31 March 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

This article was written by Marie. The “Cinderella and the slipper” story – a humble girl marrying into royalty – is a very old one. The Romans even had their own version; only it was set in Egypt – the most fabulously wealthy land of the ancient world. The pharaoh of the story was one [read more]