When King Henry I of England died, he had just one living legitimate child – a daughter named Matilda. Although many had sworn an oath to accept her as his successor, it was instead her cousin Stephen who became King of England, leading to many warring years known as the Anarchy. It was a complex [read more]
The future Empress Matilda was born around February 1102 as the daughter of King Henry I of England and Matilda of Scotland. A younger brother was born the following year. We know very little of Matilda’s early childhood and education. She probably remained with her mother, and she was known to be literate. By 1108, [read more]
Queen Zhuang Fanji lived during the Spring and Autumn period, an era in which the states of Jin, Qin, Qi, and Chu were breaking away from the ruling Zhou dynasty and forming their own dynasties.[1] She was known to be a virtuous and capable stateswoman.[2] Many historians attributed Fanji with turning her weak kingdom of Chu into [read more]
With Wilhelmina’s marriage to Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin on 7 February 1901, she and her mother both fervently prayed for healthy children to continue their line. Tragically, Wilhelmina would go on to suffer five miscarriages and only one healthy child was born to Wilhelmina and Henry. In the spring of 1906, Wilhelmina was pregnant for the [read more]
Read part four here. Catherine saw her son as her rival, and she never gave him a role in government. Despite this, he and his wife were required to appear at official ceremonies. He and his mother had very little contact otherwise. Catherine even began to consider skipping Paul all together and making her eldest [read more]
Read part three here. Catherine enforced her success by rewarding those who helped to put her on the throne, including the church and the army. She also cancelled the unpopular alliance with Prussia but assured them she had no wish for a new war. She also called on Russia’s two most experienced statesmen. She settled [read more]
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