Germany
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When a medieval craftsman was denied his wages, he turned to stone to exact his revenge in a way that would echo through centuries. Atop Freiburg Minster resides a notorious gargoyle that serves a dual purpose: not only does it effectively channel rainwater, but it also embodies a spirit of defiance. According to historical accounts,…
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In 1577 Leonberg, Katharina Guldenmann took her small son “to a high place” for an advantageous view of a comet passing over what is now southwestern Germany. Three years later, the then eight-year-old boy’s father brought him out on a bitterly cold winter night to witness a lunar eclipse. Though in later years this boy…
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So now, having analysed Henry VIII’s will, the Jacobites, the Roman Empire, France, Russia, Germany and Portugal, we move on to a monarchy that was still extant eighty years ago: that of Italy, which was ended by referendum in 1946. Umberto II (pictured), who reigned for the (1861) House of Savoy’s last five weeks after…
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The Royals: A History of Scandals
adultery trials, Albert Victor Duke of Clarence, Amy Robsart, animal bones, annulments, Brighton Pavillion, Caroline of Brunswick, Catherine of Aragon, Charles V, Cleveland Street, coronations, corruption, Count Konigsmarck, disappearance, divorce, DNA evidence, Edward VII, Elizabeth I, Ernest Augustus Duke of Cumberland, extravagance, Frederick Duke of York, George I, George III, George IV, Germany, Group Captain Townsend, Hanoverians, Henry VIII, human remains, imprisonment, John Ashdown-Hill, Leine Castle, male brothels, Maria Smythe, More 4, Princess Margaret, Robert Dudley Earl of Leicester, Royal Marriage Secrets, Royal Marriages Act, royal mistresses, royal murder mysteries, Sophia Dorothea of Celle, Suzannah Lipscomb, Sweden, The Royals: A History of Scandals, valets, Victoria, William CecilThis is a four-part series on More4, presented by Suzannah Lipscomb and with a focus on the Hanoverian era. It started with financial scandals, such as George IV’s extravagance and his brother‘s mistress who sold army commissions. The second episode was about sexual scandals and rumours, such as Edward VII’s mistresses and the male brothel…
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The Emperor Charles V was the grandson of Maximilian I (Richard III’s friend and step-nephew-in-law), a nephew of Catherine of Aragon (and thus by marriage to Henry VIII) and father-in-law of Mary I. In February 1547, he feared death at the hands of a Italian mercenary (Pierre Strozzi) and wrote a fiendishly coded letter to…
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This post in the Times details the final resting place of every English and then British monarch since 1066, although Harold II (probably Waltham Abbey) is omitted. Note from the interactive map that there are four (plus the Empress Matilda) burials in France and one in Germany. There are none in Scotland, Wales, Ireland or…
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No, don’t crane your necks! It’s supposed to be upside down, as you’ll see at this site, from which the extract below is taken:- “….Every year as December rolls in, some 2 billion people start to feel the Christmas cheer. While the celebration is primarily a Christian one honouring the birth of Jesus, its traditions…
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This time, Useful Charts determines the hypothetical King (Emperor) of Germany. The Emperors from 1871 were the Hohenzollerns, an ancient family who had become Kings of Prussia, the largest of the four remaining component monarchies alongside Bavaria, Saxony and Wurttenburg and several smaller states. The 2018 video, ironically marking the centenary of the abdication shows…
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I find myself needing to research the sort of accommodation a weary medieval traveller might expect to find at an inn or hospice. Today we look at our picturesque 14th/15th16th century inns and have no trouble at all booking ourselves into handsome panelled rooms with low beams, latticed bay windows, fine four-posters etc. Oh…
The New Murrey and Blue blog 