Margaret of Austria (1480 - 1530)

Margaret of Parma – Governor of the Netherlands

Margaret was born on 28 December 1522 as the illegitimate daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and Johanna Maria van der Gheynst, the daughter of a carpet manufacturer.  Johanna Maria worked as a maid for the Governor of Oudenaarde, who hosted the then 22-year-old and unmarried Charles for six weeks. Margaret was named for her great-aunt, Margaret of [read more]