Edward I of England is one of those historical characters that tend to inspire a lot of ambivalence. This man, who chose to have “Hammer of the Scots” inscribed on his tomb was many things: dutiful son, loving husband, harsh conqueror, efficient ruler, capable warrior, devout Crusader, ruthless when he felt wronged—and once upon a …
A softer approach – or when Edward I did his peace dove act Read More »
In 1214, Berengaria of Portugal married Valdemar II, king of Denmark. How on earth would a medieval Portuguese princess and a Danish king meet, you might ask, but there was an indirect connection as Valdemar’s sister, Ingeborg, was unfortunate enough to marry Berengaria’s French cousin, Philippe Augustus. This is why Berengaria was in Paris, and …
Some time ago, I wrote about the misfortunes of Blanca of Navarra, a young woman who was to be betrayed by almost everyone who should have her back—including her hubby, Enrique IV of Castile. Now, as those of you who read about Blanca may remember, Enrique had their marriage annulled after 13 years, citing non-consummation …
Today, dear peeps, we’re going to be spending some quality time with Jaime I of Aragon. He snorts at my use of the Spanish version of his name, which is Jaume in Catalan – and Jaume was a major advocate of Catalan. (Although in his native occitan, his name was Jacme, but let’s not confuse …
After several weeks of radio silence – I took a much-needed break from everything this summer—I am now suffering from severe “post-writing abstinence”. This is a rather grave condition which must of course be addressed by…taa-daa…writing a new post. Fortunately, over these last few weeks I have collected a list of potential subjects. Oddly, none …
In 1720, Fredrick William I of Prussia and his wife welcomed a baby girl to the world. She was the tenth (but not the last) child of their union, and as she was a girl, rather than the much desired male spare, I dare say Fredrick William did not exactly do cartwheels of joy. Still: …
Entitled, haughty and determined- of a Prussian Iron Lady in the Swedish Court Read More »
Today, dear peeps, I have the pleasure of hosting one of the stops on The Coffee Pot Book Club’s blog tour of Essex, Tony Riches’ latest release. When I was given the opportunity to read and review, I more or less leapt at it, despite having a problem with men in puff breeches and hose …
So much more than a glory-hound – the Earl of Essex as described by Tony Riches Read More »
Sometimes, I stumble upon my protagonists by chance. Like when I came upon the fate of Teresa while researching my post from last week, about García Fernandez and his beautiful hands. Now, when talking about Spanish history, there is one Teresa that towers over all the others, namely St Teresa, this charming and erudite holy …
The royal slave – a story of faith in Moorish Spain Read More »
Today, I am dragging you all the way back to the tenth century, a time when Castile was ruled by a count, when more than half of the Iberian Peninsula was controlled by the Moors. This was the time of the great Muslim caliphate, of the splendour of Córdoba, Zaragoza and Sevilla under Muslim rule. …
Having drool-worthy hands does not keep you safe from false wives… Read More »
Today, we are going to be spending some time with Sancho II of Castile. Not that his time will be all that long—at times, life (or in this case, siblings) conspire against you. Mind you, Sancho had himself to blame. Sancho’s story starts in Zamora, a fortified town on the river Duero that has been …
Siblings, sieges and assassinations – nothing unusual in medieval Spain Read More »
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