Marie de Hautefort, Confidante and Favorite of King Louis XIII of France

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Marie de Hautefort was a close confidante and favorite of King Louis XIII of France. She was also a close friend and prominent member of the household of his wife, Queen Anne (the former Anne of Austria).

source: Wikipedia

Marie de Hautefort was born at the Château de Hautefort on January 7, 1616, the youngest of seven children of Charles, Marquis de Hautefort and Renée du Bellay. Her maternal grandmother, Catherine le Voyer de Lignerolles, was a lady-in-waiting to two French queens – Marie de’ Medici and Anne of Austria – and later served as Dame d’atour (Lady of the Attire) to Queen Anne – the second highest ranking position within the Queen’s household.

It was through her grandmother’s position that Marie first met King Louis XIII, and the king quickly became enamored with her. After the King’s mother, Marie de’ Medici, was forced to leave the country in 1630, he appointed Marie’s grandmother as Dame d’atour to his wife, Queen Anne, and appointed Marie to be one of the Queen’s attendants as well. This kept Marie at court, where she quickly became one of his closest confidantes. However, the king’s romantic feelings toward her were not reciprocated. She also became very close with Queen Anne, perhaps even more so than with the King himself. She was much more supportive to Queen Anne, especially during the time when Anne was accused of being a supporter of the Spanish cause. This close relationship often caused tension between the King and Marie.

Anne of Austria, Queen of France; Credit – Wikipedia

She remained at Court until 1635 when Cardinal Richelieu brought Louise de La Fayette to court to replace Marie as the King’s favorite. However, when de La Fayette entered a convent two years later, Marie was quickly called back to court and returned to the King’s favor. Her stay lasted just two more years before the King found a new favorite in the Marquis of Cinq-Mars.

Following the King’s death in 1643, Queen Anne became regent for their young son, Louis XIV. Marie was called back to Court and resumed her position within the Queen’s household. This lasted only briefly before the Queen dismissed her from court in 1644.

Charles de Schomberg, Duke d’Halluin. source: Wikipedia

Soon after leaving the French court for the last time, Marie married Charles de Schomberg, Duke d’Halluin, on September 24, 1646. Known for his military skills, Charles led French forces to victory against the Spanish in the Battle of Leucate in 1637, for which he was appointed Marshal of France. He then held several governorships. His title of Duke d’Halluin came from his first wife, Anne, Duchess d’Halluin, who had died in 1641. Marie and Charles had no children.

The couple lived in Metz, where Charles served as Governor, until his death in 1656. Marie then returned permanently to Paris, where she would later resume contact with the Dowager Queen Anne. The two continued to correspond until the Queen’s death in 1666. Marie de Hautefort died in Paris on August 1, 1691, at the age of 75.

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Scarlett-Lauren Sirgue, former fiancée of Prince Louis of Luxembourg

by Susan Flantzer 
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

On April 6, 2021, the Grand Ducal Court of Luxembourg announced the engagement of Prince Louis of Luxembourg and Scarlett-Lauren Sirgue. Prince Louis is the third of the four sons and the third of the five children of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Marie Teresa of Luxembourg (born Maria Teresa Mestre y Batista). Less than a year later, on February 22, 2022, the couple announced that they were amicably ending their four-year relationship. Louis and Scarlett-Lauren issued an official statement which said: “We have decided not to pursue our romantic relationship, while remaining deeply bound by friendship and tenderness. It is a decision we have made together upon serious reflection.”

Born in Bordeaux, France on August 8, 1991, Scarlett-Lauren is the daughter of Pierre Sirgue, (in French) a French lawyer specializing in health law, and Scarlett Berrebi, a French lawyer specializing in family law. She is a lawyer in her parents’ law firm Berrebi and Sirgue (in French)  with offices in Paris and Bordeaux, and Louis works as a mediator in the same law firm. Scarlett has an older sister Elisabeth Defforey (born 1987, Elisabeth Sirgue) and a younger brother Archibald Sirgue (born 1997), both mediators.

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Scarlett-Lauren Sirgue and Prince Louis of Luxembourg attend the “Children For Peace” Auction Gala Dinner at Le Grand Bistro de Breteuil on March 11, 2020 in Paris, France

Scarlett-Lauren attended the Paris Descartes University in Paris, France. She then studied law at the Professional Bar Training School (link in French) under the jurisdiction of the Paris Court of Appeals. As part of her training, Scarlett-Lauren worked as a legal assistant in a law firm from 2013 – 2014, and then as a lawyer at the Paris Court of Appeals from 2015 – 2016. Scarlett-Lauren was admitted to the Paris Bar in 2014 and, in 2016, was sworn in with full privileges as a lawyer. She began her career as a lawyer alongside her mother in family law but then moved on to victims’ law, still in her parents’ law firm.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Monarchie.lu. 2021. Fiançailles de S.A.R. le Prince Louis avec Mademoiselle Scarlett-Lauren Sirgue | Cour grand-ducale. [online] Available at: <https://monarchie.lu/fr/actualites/fiancailles-de-sar-le-prince-louis-avec-mademoiselle-scarlett-lauren-sirgue> [Accessed 6 April 2021].
  • Linkedin. 2021. Scarlett-Lauren Sirgue. [online] Available at: <https://fr.linkedin.com/in/scarlett-lauren-sirgue-629428189?trk=public_profile_browsemap_profile-result-card_result-card_full-click> [Accessed 6 April 2021].

checked 5/28/2021

Anna Alexandrovna Vyrubova, Lady-in-Waiting and Favorite of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Credit – Wikipedia

Favorite: a person treated with special or undue favor by a king, queen, or another royal person

Patronymics

  • In Russian, a patronymic is the second name derived from the father’s first name: the suffix -vich means “son of” and the suffixes -eva, -evna, -ova, and -ovna mean “daughter of”.

Anna Alexandrovna Taneyeva was born on July 16, 1884, in Oranienbaum, Russia, near St. Petersburg, the second of the four children and the second of the three daughters of Alexander Sergeevich Taneyev (1850 – 1918) and Nadezhda Illarionovna Tolstoyeva (1860 – 1937). Her father was a composer who had success in Russia and also was a high-ranking state official, serving for 22 years as the director of His Imperial Majesty’s Own Chancellery, the personal office of the Emperor of All Russia. Her mother was the daughter of Lieutenant-General Illarion Nikolaevich Tolstoy and a descendant of military leaders Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov and General of the Infantry Nikolai Matveevich Tolstoy.

Anna and her sister Alexandra in front of the Catherine Palace at Tsarskoye Selo in 1908; Credit – Wikipedia

Anna Alexandrovna had two younger siblings:

Because of her father’s court connections, Anna grew up around the imperial court and was a playmate of Prince Felix Felixovich Yusupov, part of the conspiracy to murder Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin. She spent her childhood years in Moscow and at the family estate of Rozhdestveno near Moscow, nearby Illinskoe, the estate of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, son of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia, and Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodrovna, born Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, an elder sister of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia. Anna first met Empress Alexandra, born Alix of Hesse and by Rhine, at a tea party at Illinskoe.

Anna became a maid of honor at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1903, serving various female members of the Romanov family. In 1905, Anna was summoned to Tsarskoye Selo, the town containing residences of the Imperial Family located 15 miles south of St. Petersburg, to fill in for a lady-in-waiting to Empress Alexandra who became ill. Thus began her longtime relationship with Empress Alexandra. The position of lady-in-waiting was rotating – one month on duty, one month at home. Anna became a close friend of Empress Alexandra, was close to the Imperial Family for many years, accompanied them on many trips, and attended private family events.

Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and Anna Vyrubova (sitting) with Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna (standing), circa 1908; Credit – Wikipedia

Shortly after Anna became a lady-in-waiting to Empress Alexandra, Alexandra and her husband Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia became acquainted with Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin, a Russian mystic and self-proclaimed holy man, and naturally, Anna also became acquainted with him. Rasputin had been introduced to the Imperial Family by Grand Duchess Anastasia Nicholaievna, born Princess Anastasia of Montenegro, the wife of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia. In late 1906, Rasputin began acting as a healer for Nicholas and Alexandra’s only son Alexei who suffered from hemophilia.

At Alexandra’s urging, Anna married Alexander Vasilievich Vyrubov, a naval officer who had survived the Russo-Japanese War with what probably was post-traumatic stress disorder. A few days before her marriage, Rasputin warned Anna that the marriage would be an unhappy one. Vyrubov drank and then became violent and was unable and unwilling to consummate the marriage. The couple divorced within a year and a half of their marriage. After her divorce, Rasputin consoled her and this strengthened her religious passion. Anna became convinced that Rasputin had miraculous powers shortly thereafter and became one of Rasputin’s most influential advocates and served as a go-between for Rasputin and Empress Alexandra.

Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin; Credit – Wikipedia

Several times Rasputin appeared to have brought the hemophiliac Alexei back from the brink of death, which further cemented Empress Alexandra’s reliance on him. There were many rumors about the relationship of Rasputin with Alexandra and her children. Rasputin’s friendship with the imperial children was evident in some of the messages he sent to them. While Rasputin’s visits to the children were, by all accounts, completely innocent, the family was scandalized. Because of Anna’s connection to both Empress Alexandra and Rasputin, she also became the focus of growing public hostility.

During World War I, Anna was a nurse with the Russian Red Cross together with Empress Alexandra and her eldest daughters Olga and Tatiana. In January 1915, while traveling from Tsarskoye Selo to St. Petersburg, Anna Vyrubova was in a train accident. Her legs were crushed and her skull and spine were seriously injured. The doctors expected her to die and she received the last rites. When Rasputin heard about the accident, he immediately went to the hospital. He found Nicholas and Alexandra at Anna’s bedside. Rasputin took Anna’s hand and called out, “Annushka! Annushka! Annushka! Now wake up and rise!” Anna made an effort to get up. “Speak to me!” Rasputin then ordered. Anna spoke in a weak voice. Rasputin then proclaimed, “She will recover but she will remain a cripple.” For both Anna and Empress Alexandra, this was more proof of Rasputin’s miraculous powers. Anna remained physically disabled for the rest of her life, using a wheelchair or crutches.

Anna in a wheelchair with Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna in 1916; Credit – Wikipedia

After Rasputin was murdered on December 30, 1916, Anna received anonymous threats by mail. Fearing for Anna’s safety, Empress Alexandra had Anna moved from her cottage near Alexander Palace at Tsarskoye Selo, into the palace itself. When the imperial children became sick with measles in March 1917, Anna also became ill. After the February 1917 Revolution, Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia abdicated on March 15, 1917. Nicholas and his family were held under house arrest first at the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoye Selo, and later at the Governor’s Mansion in Tobolsk, Siberia between August 1917 – April 1918. In April 1918, they were moved to the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg, Siberia. It was here on the morning of July 17, 1918, that the family and their servants were brought to a room in the basement and assassinated.

Still recovering from the measles, Anna was arrested on March 21, 1917, because of her closeness with the Imperial Family. Of her farewell with Empress Alexandra, Anna wrote in her memoirs, “The last thing I remember was the white hand of the Empress pointing upward and her voice saying, ‘There we will always be together.’” Anna was imprisoned for five months in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg on suspicion of espionage and treason and underwent numerous interrogations. Anna feigned a childish innocence during her interrogations. The investigators concluded that she was too naïve and unintelligent to have had any influence over Empress Alexandra and she was released.

Anna lived in obscurity in St. Petersburg, then called Petrograd and later Leningrad (1924–1991), reverting back to St. Petersburg after the fall of the Soviet Union. However, she was re-imprisoned several times. She became friendly with the writer Maxim Gorky who encouraged her to write her memoirs. Several times Anna received letters from Empress Alexandra during the Imperial Family’s house arrest at the Governor’s Mansion in Tobolsk, Siberia.

Anna in 1957; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1920, Anna and her mother escaped to Finland, where she spent the rest of her life, first in Viipuri (now Vyborg, Russia) and later in Helsinki. In Finland, Anna did write her memoirs as Maxim Gorky had suggested, Memoirs of the Russian Court, published in 1923 and still available. When World War II broke out, Anna was forced to flee Viipuri which was near the Soviet Union border because she feared for her life at the hands of the Soviets. After World War II, Anna once again tried to live in obscurity. She took vows as a Russian Orthodox nun but was permitted to live in her home because of her physical disabilities. In memory of her beloved friend Empress Alexandra, Anna wore the ribbon of a maid of honor until her death. Anna Alexandrovna Vyrubova died in Helsinki, Finland on July 20, 1964, four days after her 80th birthday. She was buried in the Russian Orthodox section of the Hietaniemi Cemetery in Helsinki, Finland.

Grave of Anna Alexandrovna Vyrubova; Credit – By Paasikivi – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62148938

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Atchinson, Bob, 2021. Anna Vyrubova – Blog & Alexander Palace Time Machine. [online] Alexanderpalace.org. Available at: <https://www.alexanderpalace.org/palace/Anya.php> [Accessed 10 January 2021].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna Alexandrowna Wyrubowa. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Alexandrowna_Wyrubowa> [Accessed 10 January 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna Vyrubova. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Vyrubova> [Accessed 10 January 2021].
  • Massie, Robert, 1967. Nicholas And Alexandra. New York: Random House.
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2021. Вырубова, Анна Александровна. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%92%D1%8B%D1%80%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0,_%D0%90%D0%BD%D0%BD%D0%B0_%D0%90%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BA%D1%81%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B4%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%BD%D0%B0> [Accessed 10 January 2021].

Christian III, King of Denmark and Norway

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Christian III, King of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

The only son and the elder of the two children of Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway and his first wife Anna of Brandenburg, Christian III, King of Denmark and Norway was born on August 12, 1503, at Gottorp Castle in Schleswig, Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.

Christian had one younger sister:

Christian III’s parents Frederik I and Anna of Brandenburg; Credit – Wikipedia

Having two children during her teenage years weakened the health of Christian’s mother. She contracted tuberculosis and died on May 3, 1514, aged 26, while six months pregnant. Four years after the death of his mother Christian and his sister Dorothea got a stepmother when their father married Sophie of Pomerania on October 9, 1518.

Christian had six half-siblings from his father’s second marriage:

Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms; Credit – Wikipedia

Christian grew up during the time of the Protestant Reformation. He first encountered the teachings of Martin Luther from his tutor Wolfgang von Utenhof. In 1521, when he was 18-years-old, Christian traveled to the Imperial Free City of Worms, now in Germany, to witness the Diet of Worms, an assembly of the Holy Roman Empire, called by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Pope Leo X had warned Martin Luther that unless he recanted his reformer views, he risked excommunication. Martin Luther had been summoned to renounce or reaffirm his views. He defended his reformer views and refused to recant them. Holy Roman Emperor Charles V then issued the Edict of Worms that condemned Martin Luther as “a notorious heretic” and banned citizens of the Holy Roman Empire from propagating his ideas.

Martin Luther’s performance at the Diet of Worms made a great impression on Christian and impacted his future. When he returned home, Christian made no secret of his Lutheran views. Christian’s father became King in 1523 and his father gave him the management of part of the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. In 1528, Christian officially introduced Lutheranism into the duchies. This brought him into conflict, not only with the Catholic-dominated State Council but also with his father. His father Frederik I was the last Roman Catholic Danish monarch. All subsequent Danish monarchs have been Lutheran. Although Frederik remained Catholic, he was somewhat tolerant of the new Protestant Lutheran religion. He ordered that Lutherans and Roman Catholics share the same churches and encouraged the first publication of the Bible in the Danish language. When Lutheran reformer Hans Tausen was threatened with arrest and trial for heresy, Frederick appointed him his personal chaplain to give him immunity. Frederik’s attitude toward religion postponed the all-out warfare between Protestants and Roman Catholics that occurred during the reign of his son King Christian III and that ultimately turned Denmark into a Protestant nation.

Christian III’s wife Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg; Credit – Wikipedia

On October 29, 1525 at Lauenburg Castle in Lauenberg, Duchy of Saxe-Lauenberg, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, Christian married Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg, daughter of Magnus I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg and Catherine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Christian and Dorothea had five children:

After a reign of ten years, Christian’s father Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway died on April 10, 1533, aged 61. After Frederik I’s death, the Danish Council of State had a lengthy discussion on whether the Danish throne should go to Christian, Frederik I’s Lutheran son from his first marriage, or Frederik I’s Catholic twelve-year-old son Johann from his second marriage. In 1534, Christian was proclaimed Christian III, King of Denmark at an assembly of Lutheran nobles in Jutland. However, the Danish Council of State, made up of mostly Catholic bishops and nobles, refused to accept Christian III as king. Johann, Frederik’s son from his second marriage, was deemed too young and the council was more amenable to restoring the deposed King Christian II to the throne because he had supported both the Catholics and Protestant Reformers at various times.

Christopher, Count of Oldenburg, the grandson of a brother of King Christian I of Denmark and the second cousin of both Christian II and Christian III, led the military alliance to restore King Christian II to the throne. What resulted was a two-year civil war, known as the Count’s Feud, from 1534 – 1536, between Protestant and Catholic forces, that led to King Frederik I’s son from his first marriage ascending the Danish throne as King Christian III. In 1537, Christian III was also recognized as King of Norway.

On August 12, 1536, King Christian III had three Catholic bishops arrested, partly to break the resistance to the Reformation and partly to pay off the debts by expropriating church property. Christian’s Protestant policies led Denmark to the establishment of Lutheranism as the Danish National Church on October 30, 1536, when the State Council adopted the Lutheran Ordinances designed by German theologian Johannes Bugenhagen, a close associate of Martin Luther.

Sophie of Pomerania, Christian III’s stepmother; Credit – Wikipedia

King Christian III had a long dispute with his widowed stepmother Sophie of Pomerania about her property. First, Christian II claimed Gottorp Castle for himself and forced Sophia to retire to Kiel Castle. Sophie considered the lands that her husband had bestowed upon her as her private property and she had continued conflicts with Christian III and his son and successor Frederik II over revenue management and the appointment of civil servants.

Tomb of King Christian III and Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg – Photo by Susan Flantzer

Christian III, King of Denmark and Norway died on January 1, 1559, aged 55, at Koldinghus, a Danish royal castle, on the Jutland Peninsula in Kolding, Denmark. He was buried in the Chapel of the Magi at Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark in a tomb designed by Flemish sculptor Cornelis Floris de Vriendt. His wife Dorothea survived him by twelve years, dying on October 7, 1571, aged 60, and was buried with her husband.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • Da.wikipedia.org. 2021. Christian 3. – Wikipedia, den frie encyklopædi. [online] Available at: <https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_3.> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Christian III. (Dänemark und Norwegen) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_III._(D%C3%A4nemark_und_Norwegen)> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Christian III of Denmark – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_III_of_Denmark> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/frederik-i-king-of-denmark-and-norway/> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Sophie of Pomerania, Queen of Denmark and Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/sophie-of-pomerania-queen-of-denmark-and-norway/> [Accessed 2 April 2021].

Catherine of Lancaster, Queen of Castile

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Catherine of Lancaster, Queen of Castile; Credit – www.findagrave.com

Born March 31, 1373, at Hertford Castle in Hertfordshire, England, Catherine of Lancaster was the elder but the only surviving child of the two children of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster and his second wife Constance of Castile. Catherine’s paternal grandparents were King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. Her maternal grandparents were King Pedro I of Castile and his first wife Maria de Padilla. Catherine was a half-sister of King Henry IV of England.

Catherine had one younger brother who died in infancy:

  • John of Lancaster (1374 – 1375)

Catherine had seven half-siblings from her father’s first marriage to Blanche of Lancaster:

Catherine had four half-siblings from her father’s relationship with his mistress and subsequently his third wife Katherine Swynford:

Catherine’s parents had married in 1371, as part of a calculated plan for the English to gain control of the Kingdom of Castile, now part of Spain. In 1369, King Pedro I of Castile had been killed by his half-brother who then assumed the throne of Castile as King Enrique II of Castile. Catherine’s mother Constance was the elder surviving daughter, the co-heiress of her father with her younger sister Isabella, and a claimant to the throne of Castile. After his marriage to Constance, John of Gaunt assumed the style of King of Castile in the right of his wife. Constance’s younger sister Isabella of Castile accompanied her sister to England. In 1372, Isabella married John of Gaunt’s younger brother, Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York as part of a dynastic alliance to further the English claim to the crown of Castile.

The English were never able to gain control of the Kingdom of Castile. In 1388, under the Treaty of Bayonne, Constance, Duchess of Lancaster renounced all claims to the Castilian throne and accepted the proposal of her first cousin King Juan I of Castile, to marry her daughter Catherine to his son, the future King Enrique III of Castile. The marriage would end the conflict between the descendants of Pedro I of Castile and Enrique II of Castile and give legitimacy to the House of Trastámara which would become the first ruling house of a united Kingdom of Spain.

Enrique III, King of Castile; Credit – Wikipedia

On September 17, 1388, at the Cathedral of Saint Antoninus of Pamiers in Palencia, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain, fifteen-year-old Catherine of Lancaster was married to her nine-year-old second cousin Enrique, who received the title Prince of Asturias at that time. He was the first person to hold this title, and it designated him as the heir apparent. Today Prince or Princess of Asturias is the title used by the heir apparent or heir presumptive to the throne of Spain.

It is probable that the marriage was not consummated for some time due to Enrique’s young age. Eventually, Catherine (Catalina in Spanish) and Enrique had three children:

Through their son Juan II of Castile, Catherine and Enrique III are the grandparents of Isabella I, Queen of Castile and great-grandparents of Catherine of Aragon (daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon), the first wife of King Henry VIII of England. Catherine of Aragon was named for her great-grandmother Catherine of Lancaster, Queen of Castile. Catherine and Enrique are the ancestors of all subsequent monarchs of the Kingdom of Castile and a united Kingdom of Spain.

On October 9, 1390, Catherine’s father-in-law King Juan I of Castile, aged thirty-two, died after a fall from his horse and her eleven-year-old husband became Enrique III, King of Castile. After a three-year regency, King Enrique III assumed full power. However, due to ill health in the latter part of his reign, Enrique delegated some of his power to his brother Ferdinand. Enrique died, aged 27, on December 25, 1406, in Toledo, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain. King Enrique III’s son and successor was not quite two years old when he became King Juan II of Castile. His mother Catherine and his paternal uncle Ferdinand, who became King Ferdinand I of Aragon in 1412, were co-regents during his minority. When Ferdinand died in 1416, Catherine served as sole regent until her death in 1418. Her son King Juan II immediately took power, without continuing the regency.

Chapel of the New Monarchs at Toledo Cathedral where Catherine I buried with her husband along with other members of the the House of Trastámara; Credit – De Jose Luis Filpo Cabana – Trabajo propio, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30738992

On June 2, 1418, Catherine of Lancaster, Queen of Castile died from a stroke at age 45 in Valladolid, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain. She is buried with her husband King Enrique III of Castile in the Capilla de los Reyes Nuevos (Chapel of the New Monarchs) in the Primate Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo, also known as Toledo Cathedral in Toldeo, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain.

Tomb of Catherine of Lancaster, Queen of Castile; Credit – De Borjaanimal – Trabajo propio, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44532496

Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Catherine of Lancaster – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_of_Lancaster> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Henry III of Castile – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_III_of_Castile> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • Es.wikipedia.org. 2021. Catalina de Lancaster – Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre. [online] Available at: <https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalina_de_Lancaster> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Constance of Castile, Duchess of Lancaster. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/constance-of-castile-duchess-of-lancaster/> [Accessed 2 April 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2017. John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/john-of-gaunt-1st-duke-of-lancaster/> [Accessed 2 April 2021].

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Constance of Castile, Duchess of Lancaster

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Constance of Castile, Duchess of Lancaster; Credit – Wikipedia

Constance of Castile was the second wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the fourth but the third surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. Through their daughter Catherine, Constance and John are the great-grandparents of Queen Isabella I of Castile and León and the great-great-grandparents of Isabella I’s daughter Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII of England. Constance and John are the ancestors of all subsequent monarchs of the Kingdom of Castile and León and a united Kingdom of Spain.

Constance’s mother Maria de Padilla; Credit – Wikipedia

Born in 1354 at the Castle of Castrojeriz in Castrojeriz, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain, Constance of Castile was the second of the three daughters and the second of the four children of Pedro I, King of Castile and the first of his three wives Maria de Padilla, a Castilian noblewoman who had been his mistress. They married in secret in 1353. Although Pedro was forced to repudiate his marriage with Maria de Padilla to marry Blanche of Bourbon (no children), their relationship continued until she died in 1361.

Constance had three siblings:

Constance had had one brother from her father’s third marriage with Juana de Castro:

  • Juan of Castile (1355 – 1405), married Elvira de Eril and Falces, had two children

Battle of Nájera during the Castilian Civil War; Credit – Wikipedia

Throughout the reign of Pedro I, King of Castile, the Castilian Civil War (1351 – 1369), a war of succession over the Kingdom of Castile, was fought between Pedro I and his half-brother Enrique, one of ten children of Pedro’s father King Alfonso XI of Castile and his long-time mistress Eleanor of Guzmán. In 1369, Pedro lost the civil war, his crown, and his life when he was stabbed to death by his half-brother who then succeeded to the throne as Enrique II, King of Castile. Constance was now a pretender to the throne of Castile and remained besieged in the Alcázar del Rey Don Pedro in Carmona for two more years until it was agreed that she could depart for territories of King Edward III of England now in present-day France.

John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster; Credit – Wikipedia

On September 21, 1371, in English territory, at Roquefort near Bordeaux, Guienne (now in France), 31-year-old John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, King Edward III’s fourth but third surviving son, married 17-year-old Constance. This was John of Gaunt’s second marriage. His 23-year-old first wife Blanche of Lancaster, the wealthy heiress whose Duchy of Lancaster, to this day, is held in trust for the Sovereign to provide income for the use of the British monarch, died in 1368. Of John and Blanche’s seven children, three survived to adulthood including King Henry IV of England and Philippa of Lancaster who married King João I of Portugal.

Embed from Getty Images
The Savoy Palace, the London home of John of Gaunt

The marriage of Constance and John was a calculated plan for England to gain control of the Kingdom of Castile. After his marriage to Constance, John assumed the style of King of Castile in the right of his wife. On February 9, 1372, Constance made a ceremonial entry into London as the Queen of Castile, accompanied by John’s eldest brother, Edward (the Black Prince), Prince of Wales, along with an impressive escort of English and Castilian retainers and London dignitaries. Crowds lined the streets to see Constance as she made her way to the Savoy Palace, the London residence of John of Gaunt, where she was ceremonially received by her husband.

Constance’s younger sister Isabella of Castile accompanied her to England. On July 11, 1372, Isabella married John of Gaunt’s younger brother, Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York as part of a dynastic alliance to further the English claim to the crown of Castile.

Constance and John of Gaunt had two children but only one survived infancy:

The English were never able to gain control of the Kingdom of Castile. In 1388, under the Treaty of Bayonne, John of Gaunt and his wife Constance of Castile renounced any claim to the throne of Castile in favor of King Enrique III of Castile, the grandson of Constance’s half-uncle King Enrique II of Castile who had taken the throne from Constance’s father King Pedro I of Castile. The treaty further stipulated that King Enrique III of Castile should marry his second cousin Catherine of Lancaster, John and Constance’s daughter and the granddaughter King Pedro I, thereby uniting the two opposing factions of the family. Also included in the treaty was the creation of the title Prince of Asturias as the title of the heir to the throne of Castile. Today Prince or Princess of Asturias is the title used by the heir apparent or heir presumptive to the throne of Spain.

Soon after King Edward III of England founded the Order of the Garter in 1348, women were appointed Ladies of the Garter but were not made companions. In 1378, Constance received the honor of being appointed the fourth Lady of the Garter.

Constance of Castile, Duchess of Lancaster died on March 24, 1394, aged 39–40, at Leicester Castle in Leicestershire, of England. She was buried at the Church of the Annunciation of Our Lady of the Newarke, in Leicester, England, which was destroyed in the mid-16th century under the Dissolution of the Chantries Act during the reign of King Edward VI of England. In 1396, Constance’s widower John of Gaunt married his long-time mistress Katherine Swynford, with whom he already had four children. John survived Constance by five years, dying on February 3, 1399, aged 58, at Leicester Castle in Leicestershire, England. He was buried with his first wife Blanche of Lancaster in a magnificent tomb at Old St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, England which was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666.

Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Constance of Castile, Duchess of Lancaster – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constance_of_Castile,_Duchess_of_Lancaster> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Peter of Castile – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_of_Castile> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
  • Es.wikipedia.org. 2021. Constanza de Castilla (1354-1394) – Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre. [online] Available at: <https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constanza_de_Castilla_(1354-1394)> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/john-of-gaunt-1st-duke-of-lancaster/> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2021. Констанция Кастильская, герцогиня Ланкастер — Википедия. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%86%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F,_%D0%B3%D0%B5%D1%80%D1%86%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9B%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B5%D1%80> [Accessed 1 April 2021].

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Charles d’Albert, Duke of Luynes, Favorite of King Louis XIII of France

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Charles d’Albert, Duke of Luynes was a close advisor and favorite of King Louis XIII of France from childhood until his death, and held numerous top positions within the French court.

source: Wikipedia

Charles d’Albert was born August 5, 1578, the eldest son of Honoré d’Albert, Seigneur de Luynes and Anne de Rodulf. Closely connected to the French court, his father had served four French kings – François II, Charles IX, Henri III and Henri IV. Charles’s siblings included:

Raised at the French court, Charles was a companion and friend of the future King Louis XIII from a young age.  Louis became King at just nine years old, with his mother, Marie de’ Medici, serving as Regent until his majority. During this time, Charles continued to be close to King Louis XIII and would become one of his closest and most trusted advisors. Raised to numerous high positions and appointments within the royal household, Charles strongly encouraged the King to remove his mother from power and was involved in the plot which led to the death of Concino Concini, one of the dowager queen’s favorites and closest advisors. In 1619, on the King’s behalf, he negotiated the Treaty of Angoulême which ended the battle between mother and son. For his efforts, in addition to several other honorary positions, Charles was created Duke of Luynes and a Peer of France.

In 1617, Charles married Marie Aimée de Rohan, Mademoiselle de Montbazon, the daughter of Hercule de Rohan, Duke of Montbazon and his first wife, Marie de Bretagne d’Avaugour. The couple two daughters who died at early ages and one son::

In 1621, Charles led a campaign against the Protestants in southern France, despite his opposition to the decision. He was appointed Constable of France – a position for which he was far from qualified but received basically by default. The former holder was a Protestant and refused to go along with the King’s wishes. He participated in the Siege of Montauban in the fall of 1621 – gaining much criticism for the failure despite having not actually been in command. Soon after, Charles contracted what was likely scarlet fever. The Duke of Luynes just 43 years old, died of his illness on December 15, 1621, at the Chateau de Longueville.

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Prince Alexander Danilovich Menshikov, Favorite of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Prince Alexander Danilovich Menshikov; Credit – Wikipedia

Favorite: a person treated with special or undue favor by a king, queen, or another royal person

Patronymics

  • In Russian, a patronymic is the second name derived from the father’s first name: the suffix -vich means “son of” and the suffixes -eva, -evna, -ova, and -ovna mean “daughter of”.

Alexander Danilovich Menshikov was a Russian statesman and military leader and a boyhood friend and favorite of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia. He was born on November 16, 1673, in Moscow, Russia and his father Danil Menshikov died in 1695. There is no definite information on Menshikov’s origin. One colorful story says his Lithuanian peasant father apprenticed him to a pastry cook in Moscow where he attracted the attention of François Jacques Le Fort, a Swiss-born Russian admiral and close associate of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia, who took him on as a servant.

However, it is almost certain that Danil Menshikov, Menshikov’s father, was a soldier who served under Alexei I, Tsar of All Russia, Peter I’s father, as a corporal-clerk stationed at Preobrazhenskoye, near Moscow, and was probably of Lithuanian origin. Alexis I partly resided at the imperial estate in Preobrazhenskoye and his son Peter I spent a good part of his childhood there. Alexander was just seventeen months younger than Peter I and spent his childhood as a stable boy at the Preobrazhenskoye imperial estate. From a young age, Alexander understood that it was advantageous to be close to Peter I. He was one of the first boys to volunteer to be in Peter I’s poteshnye voiska, the Toy Army made up of Peter’s playmates, noblemen’s sons, and attendants at his father’s court.  Alexander’s friendship with Peter I lasted until Peter I’s death in 1725.

Ten-year-old Peter I became co-tsar with his elder half-brother Ivan V in 1682. From childhood, Ivan had serious physical and mental disabilities and was never really able to participate in reigning. By the age of 27, Ivan was senile, paralyzed, and almost blind. He died February 8, 1696, at the age of 29, and his half-brother and co-ruler Peter I was left to be the sole Tsar of All Russia and after 1721, Emperor of All Russia.

Alexander painted in the Netherlands during the Grand Embassy of Peter the Great, by Michiel van Musscher,1698; Credit – Wikipedia

Alexander Menshikov joined the Preobrazhensky Regiment, formed by Peter I in 1687 from his poteshnye voiska (Toy Army), and participated in the Azov campaigns (1695 – 1696) against the Ottoman Empire. In 1697, Peter I traveled incognito to Western Europe on an 18-month tour called the Grand Embassy and Alexander accompanied him. In the Netherlands, Peter I and Alexander studied shipbuilding and those skills were later used to build the Russian navy. In England, Peter I and Alexander met with King William III, visited Greenwich and Oxford, and saw a Royal Navy Fleet Review. They traveled to Manchester, England to learn the techniques of city-building which would later be used to found the city of St. Petersburg.

Alexander married Princess Daria Mikhailovna Arsenyeva (1682 – 1728) and they had three children:

In 1702, Alexander Menshikov was created Count and Prince of the Holy Roman Empire by Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I. After an impressive defeat against the Swedish army in 1706, Peter I created Alexander a Prince of the Russian Empire. As Peter I’s close friend, Alexander had several influential positions:

  • 1st Governor-General of St. Petersburg (1702–1724)
  • Field Marshal of the Russian Imperial Army (1709–1728)
  • Member of Governing Senate (1711–1728)
  • 1st President of College of War (1717–1724)
  • Member of Supreme Privy Council (1726–1728)
  • Admiral of the Russian Imperial Navy (1726–1728)
  • Generalissimo of the Russian Imperial Army (1727–1728)

Alexander Menshikov is responsible for introducing Peter I to his second wife. Marta Skowrońska and her five siblings were orphaned when their Polish parents died of the plague. She was sent to live with an uncle. At the age of 17, Marta was married to a Swedish dragoon named Johann Raabe during the Great Northern War (1700 – 1712). A few days after the wedding, Marta’s husband left with his regiment which departed for the war and was never heard of again. After her town was invaded by the Russian army, Marta, as a maid or as the mistress of the Russian general, traveled back to the Russian court with the army. She became part of the household of Alexander Menshikov. Peter I met Marta while visiting Alexander. By 1704, Marta was well established in Peter’s household as his mistress. In 1705, she converted to Russian Orthodoxy from Roman Catholicism and took the name of Catherine (Ekaterina) Alexeievna. Peter I and Catherine married publically in 1712. Their daughters Anna Petrovna and Elizabeth Petrovna, the only ones of their twelve children who survived, were the bridal attendants. Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna (1708 – 1728), married Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, had one son Carl Peter Ulrich, the future Peter III, Emperor of All Russia, and died of childbirth complications. Her younger sister Grand Duchess Elizabeth Petrovna (1709 – 1762), who never married, reigned in Russia as Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia.

A number of times, in his various positions and situations, Alexander Menshikov abused his power even though he was well aware of the principles on which Peter I’s reforms were conducted and was Peter I’s right hand in all his endeavors. Alexander’s corrupt practices frequently brought him to the verge of ruin.

Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia by Jean-Marc Nattier, 1717; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1718, Peter I’s son from his first marriage and his heir Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich was suspected of plotting to overthrow his father. Alexei was tried, confessed under torture, convicted, and sentenced to be executed. The sentence could be carried out only with Peters’s signed authorization, but Alexei died in prison because his father hesitated in making the decision. Alexei’s death most likely resulted from injuries suffered during his torture. Alexander Menshikov was likely complicit in all the decisions regarding Alexei.

Tsarevich Alexei’s only son Peter Alexeievich, born in 1715, had been ignored by his grandfather Peter I. However, when all the sons of Peter I and his second wife Catherine died there was a succession issue and little Peter received more attention. Besides his grandfather, Peter Alexeievich was the only living male Romanov. Peter I ordered Alexander Menshikov to find tutors for Peter Alexeievich. The tutors Alexander picked were of low quality for a reason – Alexander supported Peter I’s second wife Catherine as his successor.

During the last two years of his life, Peter I suffered from urinary tract problems. During the illness of his grandfather, Peter Alexeievich met Ivan Alexeievich Dolgorukov (1708 – 1739), his future favorite. Peter Alexeievich often visited the home of Alexei Grigoryevich Dolgorukov, Ivan Alexeievich’s father, where his rights to the Russian throne were explained to him. Peter Alexeievich vowed to crush the favorite of his grandfather, Alexander Menshikov, who led the opposition to the old noble families who had not been in favor of the Westernizing reforms of Peter I. However, there was strong opposition to Peter Alexeievich succeeding his grandfather.

Catherine I, Empress of All Russia; Credit – Wikipedia

On February 8, 1725, Peter I died at the age of 52 from a bladder infection without naming a successor. A coup arranged by Alexander Menshikov proclaimed Catherine, Peter’s second wife, the ruler of Russia. During the two-year reign of Catherine I, Empress of All Russia, the real power was held by Alexander and members of the Supreme Privy Council. Catherine I’s reign was only two years and even before her death, it was clear that the inheritance of Peter I’s grandson could not be denied. Alexander began to see this during the end of Catherine I’s reign. Through his efforts, Peter Alexeievich was named Catherine’s heir apparent, even though Catherine had two daughters of her own. Catherine also gave her consent to the betrothal of Peter Alexeievich to Menshikov’s daughter Maria Alexandrovna.

On May 17, 1727, 43-year-old Catherine I, Empress of All Russia died of tuberculosis and 11-year-old Peter Alexeievich became Peter II, Emperor of All Russia. Alexander Menshikov took the young emperor into his home and had full control over all of his actions. The old nobility, represented by the Dolgorukovs and the Galitzines, united to overthrow Alexander. He was deprived of all his dignities, offices, and wealth, expelled from St. Petersburg, and banished to Siberia with his wife and children. The Senate, the Supreme Privy Council, and the emperor’s guards took an oath of allegiance to Peter II, who reigned for only three years due to his death from smallpox.

Alexander and his three children in exile by Vasily Surikov, 1888; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1728, on the way to exile in Siberia, Alexander Menshnikov’s wife Daria Mikhailovna Arsenyeva died. Alexander, his three children, and their eight faithful servants settled into exile in Beryozovo, Siberia, Russia. Alexander built himself a house and a small church, and lived out his life with the philosophy, “I began with a simple life and will finish with a simple life.” During a smallpox epidemic in Siberia, Alexander Danilovich Menshikov died on November 23, 1729, aged 56. His elder daughter Maria also died during the smallpox epidemic. Alexander and his daughter Maria were buried at the altar of the church he had built.

In 1731, during the reign of Anna, Empress of All Russia, who succeeded Peter II, Alexander’s two remaining children were called back from exile. His daughter Alexandra married but died in childbirth delivering her first child who did not survive. His son Alexander Alexandrovich Menshikov married Princess Yelizaveta Petrovna Galitzina, had two sons and two daughters. Alexander Alexandrovich joined the Preobrazhensky Regiment, received some of his father’s goods back, distinguished himself in the Turkish and Swedish Wars, and died with the rank of General-in-Chief. Alexander Danilovich’s great-grandson Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov was the Russian Commander-in-Chief in the Crimean War.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Alexander Danilowitsch Menschikow. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Danilowitsch_Menschikow> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Alexander Danilovich Menshikov. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Danilovich_Menshikov> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2018. Catherine I, Empress Of All Russia. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/empress-catherine-i-of-russia/> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2018. Peter I (The Great), Emperor Of All Russia. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/emperor-peter-i-the-great-of-russia/> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
  • Flantzer, S., 2018. Peter II, Emperor Of All Russia. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/emperor-peter-ii-of-russia/> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
  • Massie, Robert K. (1980). Peter The Great: His Life and World. New York, NY.: Alfred A. Knopf
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2021. Меншиков, Александр Данилович. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9C%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%88%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B2,_%D0%90%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BA%D1%81%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B4%D1%80_%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87> [Accessed 5 January 2021].

Sophie of Pomerania, Queen of Denmark and Norway

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Sophie of Pomerania, Queen of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

Sophie of Pomerania, Queen of Denmark and Norway was born circa 1498 in Stettin, Duchy of Pomerania, now Szczecin, Poland. Stettin was also the birthplace of Catherine II (the Great) of Russia who was born there as Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst while her father, a general in the Prussian Army, was serving as Governor of Stettin. Sophie of Pomerania was the fourth of the eight children and the second of the three daughters of Bogislaw X, Duke of Pomerania and his second wife Princess Anna Jagiellon of Poland, daughter of King Casimir IV of Poland and Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria. The first marriage of Sophie’s father to Margarete of Brandenburg was childless.

Sophie had seven siblings:

Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

On October 9, 1518, in Kiel, Duchy of Holstein, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, twenty-year-old Sophie became the second wife of forty-seven-year-old Frederik of Denmark, the youngest of the four sons but the second surviving son of Christian I, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden and Dorothea of Brandenburg. Frederik was co-Duke of Schleswig and Holstein with his elder brother King Hans of Denmark and Norway. Frederik’s first wife Anna of Brandenburg had died from tuberculosis in 1514 at the age of 26.

Sophie became the stepmother of Frederik and Anna’s two children:

Sophie and Frederik had six children:

Frederik’s nephew Christian II, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden had reigned since the death of his father King Hans in 1513. However, Christian II was deposed in Sweden in 1521 and replaced by Gustav Vasa, the first monarch of the Swedish House of Vasa. By 1523, the Danes also had enough of Christian II and a rebellion started. Christian was forced to abdicate by the Danish nobles and his paternal uncle Frederik, Duke of Schleswig and Holstein was offered the crown on January 20, 1523. Frederik’s army gained control over most of Denmark during the spring, and in April 1523, Christian II and his family left Denmark to live in exile. In 1531, Christian unsuccessfully attempted to reclaim Norway and was imprisoned by his uncle Frederik in castles, albeit in comfortable circumstances, for the last twenty-seven years of his life.

Frederik and Sophie as King and Queen of Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

On August 13, 1525, at the Cathedral of Our Lady in Copenhagen, Denmark, Frederik and Sophie were crowned King and Queen of Denmark. Although Frederik was also King of Norway, he and Sophie never visited the country and were never crowned King and Queen of Norway. Frederik did occasionally visit Denmark, but he kept his main residence at Gottorp Castle in the Duchy of Schleswig. After her coronation, Sophie was granted the Danish islands Lolland and Falster, Kiel Castle and Plön Castle, and several villages in the Duchy of Holstein to provide a means for her income.

After a reign of ten years, Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway died on April 10, 1533, aged 61, at Gottrop Castle in Gottorp, Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Frederik was buried in Schleswig Cathedral in Schleswig, Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.

Sophie’s stepson King Christian III; Credit – Wikipedia

After her husband’s death, when the Danish Council of State was discussing whether the Danish throne should go to her Lutheran stepson the future Christian III or her Catholic twelve-year-old eldest son Johann, Sophie remained with her children at Gottorp Castle. In 1534, Christian was proclaimed King of Denmark at an assembly of Lutheran nobles in Jutland. However, the Danish Council of State, made up of mostly Catholic bishops and nobles, refused to accept Christian III as king. Sophie’s son Johann was deemed too young and the council was more amenable to restoring the deposed King Christian II to the throne because he had supported both the Catholics and Protestant Reformers at various times.

Christopher, Count of Oldenburg, the grandson of a brother of King Christian I of Denmark and the second cousin of both Christian II and Christian III, led the military alliance to restore King Christian II to the throne. What resulted was a two-year civil war, known as the Count’s Feud, from 1534 – 1536, between Protestant and Catholic forces, that led to King Frederik I’s son from his first marriage ascending the Danish throne as King Christian III.

Sophie had a long dispute with her stepson King Christian III and then his son and successor King Frederik II about her property. First, Christian III claimed Gottorp Castle for himself and forced Sophia to retire to Kiel Castle. Sophie considered the lands that her husband had bestowed upon her as her private property and she had conflicts with Christian III and his son and successor Frederik II over revenue management and the appointment of civil servants.

Schleswig Cathedral; Credit – Von Georg Denda, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39310151

Sophie survived her husband King Frederik I by thirty-five years, dying at Kiel Castle on May 13, 1568, at about the age of 70. She was buried with Frederik at Schleswig Cathedral.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Count’s Feud. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Count%27s_Feud> [Accessed 28 December 2020].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Sophie Of Pomerania. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_of_Pomerania> [Accessed 28 December 2020].
  • Flantzer, Susan. 2021. Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway. [online] Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/frederik-i-king-of-denmark-and-norway/> [Accessed 27 December 2020].
  • Nl.wikipedia.org. 2020. Sophia Van Pommeren (1498-1568). [online] Available at: <https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophia_van_Pommeren_(1498-1568)> [Accessed 28 December 2020].
  • Pl.wikipedia.org. 2020. Zofia Pomorska (1501–1568). [online] Available at: <https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zofia_pomorska_(1501%E2%80%931568)> [Accessed 28 December 2020].

Marie Thérèse Louise of Savoy, Princesse de Lamballe, Favorite of Queen Marie Antoinette of France

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Marie Thérèse Louise of Savoy, Princess of Lamballe, was a favorite and confidante of Queen Marie Antoinette of France.

source: Wikipedia

Maria Teresa Luisa of Savoy was born on September 8, 1749 at the Palazzo Carignano in Turin. She was the sixth of nine children of Luigi Vittorio of Savoy, Prince of Carignano, and Landgravine Christine of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg. Her father was an illegitimate grandson of King Vittorio Amedeo II of Sardinia, and her mother was a niece by marriage of King Carlo Emanuele III of Sardinia.  She had eight siblings:

  • Carlotta (1742) – unmarried
  • Vittorio Amedeo II, Prince of Carignano (1743) – married Joséphine of Lorraine, had issue
  • Leopoldina (1744) – married Andrea IV Doria-Pamphili-Landi, Prince of Melfi, had issue
  • Polissena (1746) – unmarried
  • Gabriella (1748) – married Ferdinand, Prince of Lobkowicz, had issue
  • Tomasso (1751) – died in childhood
  • Eugenio, Count of Villafranca (1753) – married Elisabeth Boisgarin, had issue
  • Caterina (1762) – married Don Filippo Colonna, Prince of Paliano, had issue

On January 31, 1767, Maria Teresa was married to Louis Alexandre of Bourbon-Penthièvre, Prince of Lamballe. Heir to one of the largest fortunes in France, Louis was the son of Louis Jean Marie of Bourbon, Duke of Penthièvre, and Princess Maria Teresa d’Este – both of whom were descendants of King Louis XIV of France and his morganatic wife, Madame de Montespan.

Despite their initial happiness, Louis soon returned to his philandering ways, taking several mistresses within just several months after their marriage. These affairs would be the end of him. Only sixteen months after marrying, the Prince of Lamballe died of a venereal disease on May 6, 1768 at the Château de Louveciennes.

Widowed at just 19, Marie Thérèse became a very wealthy woman, having inherited her husband’s entire estate. She was comforted by her father-in-law who took her in as his own daughter, and the two had a very close relationship. Later that year, Princess Marie Adélaïde, the daughter of King Louis XV, suggested Marie Thérèse as a possible second wife for her father who had recently been widowed as well. However, Marie Thérèse rebuffed the idea.

The Château de Rambouillet.  photo by Pline – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16338695

Marie Thérèse lived a very comfortable life, splitting her time between her father-in-law’s homes – the Hôtel de Toulouse in Paris and the Château de Rambouillet outside of the city. She served as her father-in-law’s hostess when he entertained, often hosting members of both the French, and foreign, royal families.

Due to her position, she often found herself involved with functions of the French Court, including being presented to the new Dauphine – the future Queen Marie Antoinette – upon her arrival in France in 1770. The future queen was charmed by the Princess of Lamballe, and soon the two became very close. Over the next few years, Marie Thérèse was rarely separated from Marie Antoinette, having become one of her closest friends and confidantes.

As an expression of that close friendship, Queen Marie Antoinette appointed Marie Thérèse as Superintendent of the Queen’s Household in 1775. This position, previously abolished over 30 years earlier, made Marie Thérèse the highest-ranking woman in the Royal Court and gave her immense power and influence. It also came with a very large salary of 50,000 crowns per year – an astronomical amount considering the poor financial state of the economy at the time. Considering her personal wealth, she was asked to refuse the salary, but she insisted on receiving it, and the Queen agreed.

Marie Thérèse soon began to fall from favor with the Queen, upon the arrival of the Duchess de Polignac in 1775. The two did not get along, and Marie Antoinette found herself spending more time with the Duchess. Although losing her position as “favorite”, she remained in her position in the Queen’s household.

Suffering from weak health, the Princess traveled to England for several months in 1787 to rest. Upon her return, her relationship with the Queen became closer once again. Despite everything, her loyalty to Marie Antoinette never wavered. On a trip abroad when the Bastille was stormed in 1789, Marie Thérèse rejoined the Royal Family in October of that year, where she remained by the Queen’s side.

When the Royal Family attempted to flee to Brussels in June 1791, Marie Thérèse was not made aware of the plans. The Queen simply bid her goodnight and suggested she take some time off in the country. The following day, she received a note from the Queen informing her of the plans and instructing her to join them in Brussels. Of course, the royal family never made it out of the country. They were captured in Varennes and brought back to Paris where they were confined to the Tuileries Palace.

Marie Thérèse quickly made her way to Brussels, where she found out that the escape plan had failed. She continued a correspondence with the Queen who advised her not to return to France. However, in late 1791, under new provisions of the Constitution, the Queen was instructed to reestablish her household and dismiss anyone not in service. She wrote to Marie Thérèse asking her to return or resign. Despite the Queen’s private advice to stay away, the princess decided to return, arriving in Paris in early November 1791. She continued in her role as Superintendent of the Queen’s Household, devoting herself to the Queen and to ensuring the loyalty of those surrounding her.

Despite the efforts of the King and his supporters, the call for an end to the monarchy grew louder and stronger. On August 10, 1792, the palace was stormed and the royal family and many of their court were taken into custody and imprisoned at the Temple, a small prison in Paris. Nine days later, Marie Thérèse was separated from them and moved to the La Force prison nearby.

A depiction of the death of the Princess of Lamballe. source: Wikipedia

On September 3, 1792, Marie Thérèse went before a tribunal that insisted she swear “hatred to the King and the Queen and to the monarchy”. Refusing to do so, she was released to the streets where she was quickly killed by an angry mob. Her head was placed on a pike, and numerous reports claim that it was paraded below the windows where Queen Marie Antoinette was being held. Most historians agree that the Queen never actually saw this, but she was made aware of the Princess’s death. Her body was turned over to the authorities, but their whereabouts are unknown.

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