Moniek Bloks, Author at History of Royal Women

Catherine of Aragon’s letter to her daughter Mary

Friday, 15 April 2016, 6:00 Moniek Bloks 0

In April 1534, Catherine of Aragon was in exile at The More and Mary was in the service of her newborn half-sister Elizabeth. She was increasingly put under pressure to take the oath to the Act of Succession, recognising that her parents’ marriage was invalid and that she herself was illegitimate. Catherine feared for her [read more]

Charlotte Sophie of Aldenburg – The Countess of Aldenburg

Wednesday, 13 April 2016, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Charlotte was born in 1715 as the daughter and ultimately the heiress of Count Anton II of Aldenburg and Wilhelmine Marie of Hesse-Homburg. Charlotte was known as lively and witty. She enjoyed hunting and spent her youth at Castle Varel, which unfortunately no longer exists. At age 16, her father was approached with the idea [read more]

Queens Regnant – Blanche I of Navarre

Monday, 11 April 2016, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Blanche was born on 6 July 1387, the second-oldest daughter of Charles III of Navarre and Eleanor of Castile. She was one of eight siblings, and Blanche became heiress of Navarre after the death of her eldest sister, Joan, who had married John I, Count of Foix. She first married Martin the Younger, King of [read more]

The Act for the Marriage of Queen Mary I to Philip of Spain

Sunday, 10 April 2016, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

The marriage between England’s first Queen regnant and a foreign prince was a delicate matter. The situation simply had not happened before. In April of 1554, The Act for the Marriage of Queen Mary to Philip of Spain was passed by parliament. It became more or less a business contract, stipulating what Spain could expect [read more]

The Court Chapel of the Binnenhof

Friday, 8 April 2016, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

The Binnenhof (or Inner Court) in The Hague was once the residence for the Counts of Holland and was also used for the Princes of Oranges. It is now home to both houses of the States General of the Netherlands, as well as the Ministry of General Affairs and the office of the Prime Minister of [read more]

The Temptation of Elizabeth Tudor by Elizabeth Norton Book Review

Wednesday, 6 April 2016, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

A power-hungry and charming courtier. An impressionable and trusting princess. The Tudor court in the wake of Henry VIII’s death had never been more perilous for the young Elizabeth, where rumors had the power to determine her fate England, late 1547. King Henry VIII Is dead. His fourteen-year-old daughter Elizabeth is living with the king’s [read more]