Dating back to the fifth century, the legend of King Arthur, his Queen Guinevere, and the Knights of the Round Table is an integral part of British national mythology. From its beginning as a few lines of Latin text written in a sixth-century monk’s hand, Arthurian legend has blossomed over the years into a unique […]
In Britain the phrase ‘an heir and a spare’ refers to the imperative for members of the royal family to provide both an heir to take on their title and a spare. In this equation King George VI was ‘the spare’, the second son of King George V and Mary, and never expected to sit
There are many versions of Queen Elizabeth I of England; the beautiful young Tudor Queen courted by all the princes of Europe; a fearless virgin warrior in white velvet, rousing her troops on the battlefield; an irascible old woman in a powdered wig, surrounded by fawning young men. A formidable woman, Elizabeth I ruled alone
Since his death in the year 1547, King Henry VIII has been celebrated as a chivalrous pioneer and reviled as a brutal tyrant, but he has never been ignored. Henry was responsible for the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church, the ramifications of which reverberated through subsequent centuries of European
He was born on September 5th, 1638 in the French lap of luxury otherwise known as the “Chateau de Saint-Germain-en-Laye.” This extravagant palace of French excess is located about 12 miles west of Paris. His birth name, “Louis-Dieudonne,” is French for, literally, “Gift for God.” This belief of divine right, initially inspired by his mother
It is possible that no man has ever dominated a time as much as Charles the Great dominated the Early Middle Ages. It is true that the era had its kings, warriors, scholars, and religious leaders, but in many ways, Charlemagne was all of these things. Inside you will read about… ✓ Charles the Carolingian✓
Mary Stuart was born into a powerful royal dynasty that was at war with the rest of Europe and with itself. Mary’s ascent to the throne was disarmingly easy and she reached adulthood completely unprepared for the plots and betrayals she would be subject to. As the head of a resolutely unstable country, Mary struggled
Mary Queen of Scots Read More »
The Queen of Great Britain and Ireland for 63 years, the mother of nine children and grandmother to 42, Queen Victoria’s life was one of magnificent proportions. Victoria’s childhood was difficult and lonely but from the time she took the throne aged just eighteen she blossomed into a powerful woman, both frivolous and formidable. Inside
