france Archives - Page 27 of 32 - History of Royal Women

Marie Antoinette’s Darkest Days: Prisoner No. 280 in the Conciergerie by Will Bashor Book Review

Tuesday, 2 May 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

This compelling book begins on the 2nd of August 1793, the day Marie Antoinette was torn from her family’s arms and escorted from the Temple to the Conciergerie, a thick-walled fortress turned prison. It was also known as the “waiting room for the guillotine” because prisoners only spent a day or two here before their [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]

Athénaïs – Madame de Montespan

Wednesday, 8 February 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 2

This is a guest article by Kate Braithwaite. Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart, the famously beautiful and witty maîtresse-en-titre of the Sun King Louis XIV, was born in Lussac in 1640. She was the third child of the Duc and Duchesse de Mortemart, one of France’s most noble families. Athénaïs (as she chose to be [read more]

Katherine Hepburn as Eleanor in The Lion in Winter

Eleanor of Aquitaine – Twice a Queen (Part 3)

Sunday, 15 January 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Written by Taylor. Read part one here. Read part two here. Eleanor first met Henry in Paris while she was still Queen of France. According to contemporary sources, there was an instant attraction between the two. Henry’s father, Geoffrey of Anjou, warned him not to fall under Eleanor’s spell, but Henry didn’t listen. From the [read more]

Glenn Close as Eleanor in The Lion in Winter

Eleanor of Aquitaine – Twice a Queen (Part two)

Friday, 6 January 2017, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Written by Taylor. Read part one here. From the start of their marriage, it was very apparent that Louis and Eleanor were not a match-made-in-heaven. They had opposite upbringings, interests, and temperaments. Louis was gentle and pious while Eleanor was worldly and passionate. Even the royal couple had different ideas when it came to politics. [read more]

Valentina Visconti – Waiting for justice

Wednesday, 23 November 2016, 7:00 Moniek Bloks 6

This article was written by Carol. Valentina was born about 1370, the daughter of Gian Galleazo Visconti, Duke of Milan and the French princess Isabella de Valois. Valentina’s mother died in 1373, and she was mainly raised by her grandmother, Bianca of Savoy. Bianca was a cultured woman, and she passed on to Valentina a [read more]