1.
Juan Pantoja de la Cruz
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Juan Pantoja de La Cruz was a Spanish painter, one of the best representatives of the Spanish school of court painters. He worked for Philip II and Philip III, the Museo del Prado contains examples of his severe portraiture style. Juan Pantoja de La Cruz was born in 1553 in Valladolid, very little is known of his formative years as a painter. He was a pupil of the court painter Alonso Sánchez Coello in Madrid and he must have assisted his master in complying with his duties as painter of the Spanish King, Pantoja probably continued to work in his master studio after completing his training. He married in 1585 beginning to paint for the court around that time, after Sanchez Coellos death in 1588, Pantoja took over his master workshop and became court painter to Philip II of Spain. Pantoja kept working for the court and the nobility, painting portraits of Prince Philip, among his most well known works is the portrait of Philip II wearing a cape and hat all in black, painted around 1594 for the Escorial. This portrait is one of the best representations of the idea of Spanish majesty, on Philip IIs death in 1598, Philip III confirmed Pantojas status as court painter. When the court settled in Valladolid in 1601, Pantoja moved to the new capital, remaining in this city, juan Pantoja de la Cruz painted a great number of state portraits with the combined forces of his studio, his attendants, apprentices, and collaborators. He was primarily a painter to the royal family. Pantoja also painted religious works primarily commissioned by the Spanish Queen, Margarita of Austria, Pantojas paintings of religious themes also contain many portraits as auxiliary figures as in The Birth of the Blessed Virgin in which he included the mother of the Queen. He painted still lifes as well, but, like his ceiling frescoes, Pantoja returned with the court to Madrid and he died there on 26 October 1608. Pantoja represents one of the highest points in the Mannerism aesthetic of portrait painting and he followed the Spanish tradition of Royal Portraits, initiated with the famous portrait of Charles V by Titian, a copy of which, made by Pantoja, is at the Escorial. Antonis Mor, Alonso Sanchez Coello and Pantoja himself continued the tradition, the compositional formula of Velázquezs state portraits derives from his Spanish predecessors, among them Pantoja de la Cruz. In his best works, Pantoja introduced an impressive combination of sophistication and geometric abstraction achieved by means of powerful contrast of light and his portraits are noted for the meticulous detail of representing the intricate embroidery of dresses and jewelry designs. The subject is portrayed standing against a dark background. The face and hands are depicted with a flat and subtle technique. Among his portraits are, Philip III, Queen Margarita of Austria,1606, Prado, infanta Isabel Clara Eugenia, Alte Pinakothek, Munich. Marquess of Viana, D. Diego de Valmayor,1605, Hermitage, Pantoja besides scoring a great success as the foremost portraitist of his time, was a highly versatile painter at home in all genres
Juan Pantoja de la Cruz
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Portrait of Philip III of Spain by Juan Pantoja de la Cruz
2.
Palace of Fontainebleau
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The Palace of Fontainebleau or Château de Fontainebleau is located 55 kilometres southeast of the centre of Paris, and is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The medieval castle and later château was the residence of French monarchs from Louis VII through Napoleon III, Napoleon I abdicated his throne there before being exiled to Elba. Today, it is a museum and a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is located in the commune of Fontainebleau. The earliest record of a castle at Fontainebleau dates to 1137. It became a residence and hunting lodge of the Kings of France because of the abundant game. It took its name one of the springs, the fountain de Bliaud, located now in the English garden. He commissioned the architect Gilles le Breton to build a palace in the new Renaissance style and it included monumental Porte Dorée, as its southern entrance. As well as a monumental Renaissance stairway, the portique de Serlio, beginning in about 1528, Francis constructed the Gallery Francis I, which allowed him to pass directly from his apartments to the chapel of the Trinitaires. He brought the architect Sebastiano Serlio from Italy, and the Florentine painter Giovanni Battista di Jacopo, known as Rosso Fiorentino, another Italian painter, Francesco Primaticcio from Bologna, joined later in the decoration of the palace. Together their style of decoration became known as the first School of Fontainebleau and this was the first great decorated gallery built in France. Broadly speaking, at Fontainebleau the Renaissance was introduced to France, in about 1540, Francis began another major addition to the chateau. Using land on the east side of the chateau purchased from the order of the Trinitaires, he began to build a new square of buildings around a large courtyard. It was enclosed on the north by the wing of the Ministers, on the east by the wing of Ferrare, the chateau was surrounded by a new park in the style of the Italian Renaissance garden, with pavilions and the first grotto in France. Primaticcio created more monumental murals for the gallery of Ulysses, following the death of Francis I, King Henry II decided to continue and expand the chateau. The King and his wife chose the architects Philibert Delorme and Jean Bullant to do the work and they extended the east wing of the lower court, and decorated it with the first famous horseshoe-shaped staircase. In the oval court, they transformed the loggia planned by Francois into a Salle des Fétes or grand ballroom with a coffered ceiling. Facing the courtyard of the fountain and the pond, they designed a new building. At Henris orders, the Nymphe de Fontainebleau was installed at the entrance of Château dAnet
Palace of Fontainebleau
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UNESCO World Heritage Site
Palace of Fontainebleau
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The Oval Courtyard, with the Medieval donjon, a vestige of the original castle where the King's apartments were located, in the center.
Palace of Fontainebleau
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The Gallery of Francis I, connecting the King's apartments with the chapel, decorated between 1533 and 1539. It introduced the Italian Renaissance style to France.
3.
Royal Palace of Aranjuez
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The Royal Palace of Aranjuez is a residence of the King of Spain, located in the town of Aranjuez, in the Community of Madrid, Spain. The palace is open to the public as one of the Spanish royal sites, also died here the Ferdinand VII the Felons first wife Maria Antonia of Naples, the second wife Maria Isabel of Portugal and third wife Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony. In 1931, during the Second Spanish Republic declared the Royal Site a Artistic Historical Monument and this building is part of the Aranjuez Cultural Landscape declared in 2001 a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO Most days, Patrimonio Nacional does not allow photos of its interior. It is in the 12th century when the Order of Santiago settled in the due to its verdant landscape and mild climate that is beneficiary of Tagus. In 1523, Aranjuez became a royal property, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor was the one who gave this orders former possessions the dignity of Real Bosque y Casa de Aranjuez, in order to enjoy in them huntings good days. In 1551 he destined a facilities for botanical garden, which serve to catalog new species brought from the Americas, but the emperors purposes barely met. Wars, his stays in Europe and health setbacks prevented him seize the property as much as anticipated. It did his son Philip II, after granting Aranjuez the designation of Royal Site in 1561, aware of how fertile place, he devoted a portion of land to farm. In the adjacent plot, the King began construction of the first palace and he hired for this services Juan Bautista de Toledo and Juan de Herrera, responsibles for the El Escorials works. On the Philip IIs death in 1598, the works were still to finish, in addition to the royal apartments, only they had built the chapel at the base of the south tower and part of the facades of noon and sunset. Then, the 17th century economic and political crisis and the lack of interest for the place of the last Habsburgs resulted in stoppage of work, was Philip V the Bourbon dynastys first king, who decided to resume the work and tried to make Aranjuez his particular Versailles. Subsequently, this condition would inherit La Granja de San Ildefonso, with Philip V rose a new north tower, completed the west facade and charted the structure that would shape the current palace. In 1748, a fire destroyed almost all of his work. After the fire, Ferdinand VI Philip Vs son, rebuilds the palace, the new project, although he respected the original buildings foundations, was due entirely to aesthetic and the 18th centurys thought. That is, a construction, and refined lines in the exterior. As a tribute to its history, it were included in the facade the statues of its main promoters, Philip II, Philip V. The imposing building that has reached today is due to Charles III in his reforming work for Madrid. The architect was Italian Francesco Sabatini who designed the two wings of the west, laterally limiting the cour dhonneur, at one end of the ensemble was located the chapel, and on opposite side should built a theater that never came up
Royal Palace of Aranjuez
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Royal Palace of Aranjuez
Royal Palace of Aranjuez
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Royal Palace of Aranjuez.
Royal Palace of Aranjuez
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La Ría.
Royal Palace of Aranjuez
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Back facade of Casa del Labrador.
4.
Philip II of Spain
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Philip II of Spain, called the Prudent, was King of Spain, King of Portugal, King of Naples and Sicily, and jure uxoris King of England and Ireland. He was also Duke of Milan, from 1555, he was lord of the Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands. Known in Spain as Felipe el Prudente, his empire included territories on every continent then known to Europeans, during his reign, Spain reached the height of its influence and power. This is sometimes called the Golden Age, the expression, the empire on which the sun never sets, was coined during Philips time to reflect the extent of his dominion. During Philips reign there were separate state bankruptcies in 1557,1560,1569,1575 and this was partly the cause of the declaration of independence which created the Dutch Republic in 1581. The Ambassador went on to say He dresses very tastefully, the culture and courtly life of Spain were an important influence in his early life. He was tutored by Juan Martínez Siliceo – the future Archbishop of Toledo, Philip displayed reasonable aptitude in arms and letters alike. Later he would study with more illustrious tutors, including the humanist Juan Cristóbal Calvete de Estrella, Philip, though he had good command over Latin, Spanish and Portuguese, never managed to equal his father, Charles V, as a polyglot. Despite being also a German archduke from the House of Habsburg, Philip felt himself to be culturally Spanish, he had been born in Spain and raised in the Castilian court, his native tongue was Spanish, and he preferred to live in Spain. This would ultimately impede his succession to the imperial throne, Philip was also close to his two sisters, María and Juana, and to his two pages, the Portuguese nobleman Rui Gomes da Silva and Luis de Requesens, the son of his governor Juan de Zúñiga. These men would serve Philip throughout their lives, as would Antonio Pérez, Philips martial training was undertaken by his governor, Juan de Zúñiga, a Castilian nobleman who served as the commendador mayor of Castile. The practical lessons in warfare were overseen by the Duke of Alba during the Italian Wars, Philip was present at the Siege of Perpignan in 1542, but did not see action as the Spanish army under Alba decisively defeated the besieging French forces under the Dauphin of France. On his way back to Castile, Philip received the oath of allegiance of the Aragonese Cortes at Monzón. The king-emperors interactions with his son during his stay in Spain convinced him of Philips precocity in statesmanship, Philip, who had previously been made the Duke of Milan in 1540, began governing the most extensive empire in the world at the young age of sixteen. Charles left Philip with experienced advisors—notably the secretary Francisco de los Cobos, Philip was also left with extensive written instructions which emphasised piety, patience, modesty, and distrust. These principles of Charles were gradually assimilated by his son, who would grow up to become grave, self-possessed, personally, Philip spoke softly, and had an icy self-mastery, in the words of one of his ministers, he had a smile that cut like a sword. After living in the Netherlands in the years of his reign. Although sometimes described as a monarch, Philip faced many constitutional constraints on his authority
Philip II of Spain
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'The Baptism of Phillip II' in Valladolid, Spain. Historical ceiling preserved in Palacio de Pimentel (Valladolid).
Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
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Portrait of Philip II on 1/5 Philipsdaalder, struck 1566, Guelders, Low Countries.
Philip II of Spain
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Titian 's portrait of Philip as prince, aged about twenty-four dressed in a magnificent, lavishly decorated set of armour. The whiteness of his skin corresponds to his white stockings and the greenish golden sheen on his armour. In this way, the prince's pale complexion appears more distinguished.
5.
Catherine Michelle of Spain
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Catherine Michelle of Spain was a Duchess consort of Savoy by marriage to Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy, she also served as Regent of Savoy several times during the absence of her spouse. She was the youngest surviving daughter of Philip II of Spain and Elisabeth of Valois, she was also the sister of Isabella Clara Eugenia, catherine Michelle was described as beautiful, intelligent, arrogant and well aware of her high social status. She had a relationship with her father and exchanged letters with him after her marriage. Charles Emmanuel I suggested the marriage as a way of gaining Spanish support for his plans to expand Savoy on the coast of the then weakened France, the wedding took place in Zaragoza on 11 March 1585 and the couple made their entrance to Turin in Savoy 10 August 1585. Catherine Michelle was initially unpopular because of her arrogance and attempts to introduce Spanish pomp, ceremony, however, she soon gained respect because of her political and diplomatic skill, which she used to defend the autonomy of Savoy against Spain. She refused the Spanish offer to install a Spanish garrison in Turin from Milan with the excuse of giving her a life guard and she is reported to have had great influence on Charles Emmanuel I and to have reformed him for the better. She also served as regent several times during the absence of the duke on military campaigns, catherine Michelle died near the end of 1597, she had miscarried earlier that year. Her father died the following year and her sister Isabella married Albert VII, Archduke of Austria, and later became Governess of the Netherlands. In 1584, she married Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy and this marriage produced ten children, Philip Emanuel Victor Amadeus Emanuel Filibert of Savoy, Spanish Viceroy of Sicily
Catherine Michelle of Spain
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Infanta Catherine Michelle
6.
Dynasty
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A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a feudal or monarchical system but sometimes also appearing in elective republics. The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a house, historians periodize the histories of many sovereign states, such as Ancient Egypt, the Carolingian Empire and Imperial China, using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the dynasty may be used to delimit the era during which the family reigned and to describe events, trends. The word dynasty itself is often dropped from such adjectival references, until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty, that is, to increase the territory, wealth, and power of his family members. The longest-surviving dynasty in the world is the Imperial House of Japan, dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally, such as under the Frankish Salic law. Succession through a daughter when permitted was considered to establish a new dynasty in her husbands ruling house, however, some states in Africa, determined descent matrilineally, while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mothers dynasty when coming into her inheritance. It is also extended to unrelated people such as poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team. The word dynasty derives via Latin dynastia from Greek dynastéia, where it referred to power, dominion and it was the abstract noun of dynástēs, the agent noun of dynamis, power or ability, from dýnamai, to be able. A ruler in a dynasty is referred to as a dynast. For example, following his abdication, Edward VIII of the United Kingdom ceased to be a member of the House of Windsor. A dynastic marriage is one that complies with monarchical house law restrictions, the marriage of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, to Máxima Zorreguieta in 2002 was dynastic, for example, and their eldest child is expected to inherit the Dutch crown eventually. But the marriage of his younger brother Prince Friso to Mabel Wisse Smit in 2003 lacked government support, thus Friso forfeited his place in the order of succession, lost his title as a Prince of the Netherlands, and left his children without dynastic rights. In historical and monarchist references to formerly reigning families, a dynast is a member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchys rules still in force. Even since abolition of the Austrian monarchy, Max and his descendants have not been considered the rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position. The term dynast is sometimes used only to refer to descendants of a realms monarchs. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people, yet he is not a male-line member of the royal family, and is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor. Thus, in 1999 he requested and obtained permission from Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholic Princess Caroline of Monaco. Yet a clause of the English Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time and that exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts prior to triggering it by marriage to a Catholic
Dynasty
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Charles I of England and his son, the future James II
7.
Henry II of France
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Henry II was a monarch of the House of Valois who ruled as King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis III, Duke of Brittany, as a child, Henry and his elder brother spent over four years in captivity in Spain as hostages in exchange for their father. Henry pursued his fathers policies in matter of arts, wars and he persevered in the Italian Wars against the House of Habsburg and tried to suppress the Protestant Reformation, even as the Huguenot numbers were increasing drastically in France during his reign. Henry suffered a death in a jousting tournament held to celebrate the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis at the conclusion of the Eighth Italian War. The kings surgeon, Ambroise Paré, was unable to cure the infected wound inflicted by Gabriel de Montgomery and he was succeeded in turn by three of his sons, whose ineffective reigns helped to spark the French Wars of Religion between Protestants and Catholics. Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris and his father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by the forces of his sworn enemy, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and held prisoner in Spain. To obtain his release, it was agreed that Henry and his brother be sent to Spain in his place. They remained in captivity for four years. Henry married Catherine de Medici, a member of the family of Florence, on 28 October 1533. The following year, he became involved with a thirty-five-year-old widow. They had always very close, she had publicly embraced him on the day he set off to Spain. Diane became Henrys mistress and most trusted confidante and, for the next years, wielded considerable influence behind the scenes. Extremely confident, mature and intelligent, she left Catherine powerless to intervene and she did, however, insist that Henry sleep with Catherine in order to produce heirs to the throne. When his elder brother Francis, the Dauphin and Duke of Brittany, died in 1536 after a game of tennis and he succeeded his father on his 28th birthday and was crowned King of France on 25 July 1547 at Reims Cathedral. Henrys reign was marked by wars with Austria and the persecution of Protestants, Henry II severely punished them, particularly the ministers, for example by burning at the stake or cutting off their tongues for uttering heresies. Even those only suspected of being Huguenots could be imprisoned and it also strictly regulated publications by prohibiting the sale, importation or printing of any unapproved book. It was during the reign of Henry II that Huguenot attempts at establishing a colony in Brazil were made, persecution of Protestants at home did not prevent Henry II from becoming allied with German Protestant princes at the Treaty of Chambord in 1552. Simultaneously, the continuation of his fathers Franco-Ottoman alliance allowed Henry II to push for French conquests towards the Rhine while a Franco-Ottoman fleet defended southern France, an early offensive into Lorraine was successful
Henry II of France
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Henry II
Henry II of France
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Henry as a child
Henry II of France
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Entrance of Henri II in Metz in 1552, after the signature of the Treaty of Chambord.
Henry II of France
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Engraving of Henry II
8.
Catherine de' Medici
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Catherine de Medici, daughter of Lorenzo II de Medici and of Madeleine de La Tour dAuvergne, was an Italian noblewoman who was Queen of France from 1547 until 1559, as the wife of King Henry II. As the mother of three sons who became kings of France during her lifetime, she had extensive, if at times varying, for a time, she ruled France as its regent. In 1533, at the age of fourteen, Caterina married Henry, second son of King Francis I, under the gallicised version of her name, Catherine de Médicis, she was Queen consort of France as the wife of King Henry II of France from 1547 to 1559. Throughout his reign, Henry excluded Catherine from participating in state affairs and instead showered favours on his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. Henrys death thrust Catherine into the arena as mother of the frail fifteen-year-old King Francis II. When he died in 1560, she became regent on behalf of her ten-year-old son King Charles IX and was granted sweeping powers, after Charles died in 1574, Catherine played a key role in the reign of her third son, Henry III. He dispensed with her only in the last months of her life. Catherines three sons reigned in an age of almost constant civil and religious war in France, the problems facing the monarchy were complex and daunting but Catherine was able to keep the monarchy and the state institutions functioning even at a minimum level. At first, Catherine compromised and made concessions to the rebelling Protestants, or Huguenots and she failed, however, to grasp the theological issues that drove their movement. Later she resorted, in frustration and anger, to hard-line policies against them, some historians have excused Catherine from blame for the worst decisions of the crown, though evidence for her ruthlessness can be found in her letters. In practice, her authority was limited by the effects of the civil wars. Without Catherine, it is unlikely that her sons would have remained in power, the years in which they reigned have been called the age of Catherine de Medici. According to Mark Strage, one of her biographers, Catherine was the most powerful woman in sixteenth-century Europe. Catherine was born on 13 April 1519 in Florence, Republic of Florence, the child of Lorenzo de Medici, Duke of Urbino, and his wife, Madeleine de la Tour dAuvergne. The young couple had married the year before at Amboise as part of the alliance between King Francis I of France and Lorenzos uncle Pope Leo X against the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. According to a chronicler, when Catherine was born, her parents were as pleased as if it had been a boy. King Francis wanted Catherine to be raised at the French court, Catherine was first cared for by her paternal grandmother, Alfonsina Orsini. After Alfonsinas death in 1520, Catherine joined her cousins and was raised by her aunt, the death of Pope Leo in 1521 interrupted Medici power briefly, until Cardinal Giulio de Medici was elected Pope Clement VII in 1523
Catherine de' Medici
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Painting attributed to François Clouet, c. 1555
Catherine de' Medici
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Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, Pope Clement VII, by Sebastiano del Piombo, c.1531. Clement called Catherine's betrothal to Henry of Orléans "the greatest match in the world".
Catherine de' Medici
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Catherine and Henry's marriage, painted seventeen years after the event
Catherine de' Medici
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Henry, Duke of Orléans, by Corneille de Lyon. During his childhood, Henry spent almost four and a half years as a hostage in Spain, an ordeal that marked him for life, leaving him introverted and gloomy.
9.
Spanish language
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Spanish —also called Castilian —is a Romance language that originated in the Castile region of Spain, with hundreds of millions of native speakers around the world. It is usually considered the worlds second-most spoken native language after Mandarin Chinese and it is one of the few languages to use inverted question and exclamation marks. Spanish is a part of the Ibero-Romance group of languages, which evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in Iberia after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century. Beginning in the early 16th century, Spanish was taken to the colonies of the Spanish Empire, most notably to the Americas, as well as territories in Africa, Oceania, around 75% of modern Spanish is derived from Latin. Greek has also contributed substantially to Spanish vocabulary, especially through Latin, Spanish vocabulary has been in contact from an early date with Arabic, having developed during the Al-Andalus era in the Iberian Peninsula. With around 8% of its vocabulary being Arabic in origin, this language is the second most important influence after Latin and it has also been influenced by Basque as well as by neighboring Ibero-Romance languages. It also adopted words from languages such as Gothic language from the Visigoths in which many Spanish names and surnames have a Visigothic origin. Spanish is one of the six languages of the United Nations. It is the language in the world by the number of people who speak it as a mother tongue, after Mandarin Chinese. It is estimated more than 437 million people speak Spanish as a native language. Spanish is the official or national language in Spain, Equatorial Guinea, speakers in the Americas total some 418 million. In the European Union, Spanish is the tongue of 8% of the population. Spanish is the most popular second language learned in the United States, in 2011 it was estimated by the American Community Survey that of the 55 million Hispanic United States residents who are five years of age and over,38 million speak Spanish at home. The Spanish Constitution of 1978 uses the term castellano to define the language of the whole Spanish State in contrast to las demás lenguas españolas. Article III reads as follows, El castellano es la lengua española oficial del Estado, las demás lenguas españolas serán también oficiales en las respectivas Comunidades Autónomas. Castilian is the official Spanish language of the State, the other Spanish languages as well shall be official in their respective Autonomous Communities. The Spanish Royal Academy, on the hand, currently uses the term español in its publications. Two etymologies for español have been suggested, the Spanish Royal Academy Dictionary derives the term from the Provençal word espaignol, and that in turn from the Medieval Latin word Hispaniolus, from—or pertaining to—Hispania
Spanish language
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A page of Cantar de Mio Cid, the oldest preserved Spanish epic poem, in medieval Spanish.
Spanish language
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Spanish is sole official language at the national level
Spanish language
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Antonio de Nebrija, author of Gramática de la lengua castellana, the first grammar of modern European languages.
Spanish language
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Miguel de Cervantes author of Don Quixote, considered the first modern European novel.
10.
French language
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French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages, French has evolved from Gallo-Romance, the spoken Latin in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues doïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to Frances past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, a French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French. French is a language in 29 countries, most of which are members of la francophonie. As of 2015, 40% of the population is in Europe, 35% in sub-Saharan Africa, 15% in North Africa and the Middle East, 8% in the Americas. French is the fourth-most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union, 1/5 of Europeans who do not have French as a mother tongue speak French as a second language. As a result of French and Belgian colonialism from the 17th and 18th century onward, French was introduced to new territories in the Americas, Africa, most second-language speakers reside in Francophone Africa, in particular Gabon, Algeria, Mauritius, Senegal and Ivory Coast. In 2015, French was estimated to have 77 to 110 million native speakers, approximately 274 million people are able to speak the language. The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie estimates 700 million by 2050, in 2011, Bloomberg Businessweek ranked French the third most useful language for business, after English and Standard Mandarin Chinese. Under the Constitution of France, French has been the language of the Republic since 1992. France mandates the use of French in official government publications, public education except in specific cases, French is one of the four official languages of Switzerland and is spoken in the western part of Switzerland called Romandie, of which Geneva is the largest city. French is the language of about 23% of the Swiss population. French is also a language of Luxembourg, Monaco, and Aosta Valley, while French dialects remain spoken by minorities on the Channel Islands. A plurality of the worlds French-speaking population lives in Africa and this number does not include the people living in non-Francophone African countries who have learned French as a foreign language. Due to the rise of French in Africa, the total French-speaking population worldwide is expected to reach 700 million people in 2050, French is the fastest growing language on the continent. French is mostly a language in Africa, but it has become a first language in some urban areas, such as the region of Abidjan, Ivory Coast and in Libreville. There is not a single African French, but multiple forms that diverged through contact with various indigenous African languages, sub-Saharan Africa is the region where the French language is most likely to expand, because of the expansion of education and rapid population growth
French language
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The "arrêt" signs (French for "stop") are used in Canada while the international stop, which is also a valid French word, is used in France as well as other French-speaking countries and regions.
French language
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Regions where French is the main language
French language
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Town sign in Standard Arabic and French at the entrance of Rechmaya in Lebanon.
French language
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An obsolete 100 Lebanese pound note with the French language inscriptions "Banque du Liban" and "Cent livres".
11.
Mary, Queen of Scots
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Mary, Queen of Scots, also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, reigned over Scotland from 14 December 1542 to 24 July 1567. Mary, the surviving legitimate child of James V of Scotland, was six days old when her father died. She spent most of her childhood in France while Scotland was ruled by regents and he ascended the French throne as King Francis II in 1559, and Mary briefly became queen consort of France, until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland, arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561, four years later, she married her first cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, but their union was unhappy. In February 1567, his residence was destroyed by an explosion, James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnleys death, but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567, and the following month he married Mary. Following an uprising against the couple, Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle, on 24 July 1567, she was forced to abdicate in favour of James VI, her one-year-old son by Darnley. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southwards seeking the protection of her first cousin once removed, perceiving her as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth in 1586 and was beheaded the following year. Mary was born on 7 or 8 December 1542 at Linlithgow Palace, Scotland, to King James V and his French second wife and she was said to have been born prematurely and was the only legitimate child of James to survive him. She was the great-niece of King Henry VIII of England, as her paternal grandmother, Margaret Tudor, was Henry VIIIs sister. A popular legend, first recorded by John Knox, states that James, hearing on his deathbed that his wife had given birth to a daughter, ruefully exclaimed, It cam wi a lass and it will gang wi a lass. His House of Stewart had gained the throne of Scotland by the marriage of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert the Bruce, to Walter Stewart, the crown had come to his family through a woman, and would be lost from his family through a woman. This legendary statement came true much later—not through Mary, but through her descendant Queen Anne, Mary was baptised at the nearby Church of St Michael shortly after she was born. As Mary was an infant when she inherited the throne, Scotland was ruled by regents until she became an adult. From the outset, there were two claims to the Regency, one from Catholic Cardinal Beaton, and the other from the Protestant Earl of Arran, Beatons claim was based on a version of the late kings will that his opponents dismissed as a forgery. Arran, with the support of his friends and relations, became the regent until 1554 when Marys mother managed to remove and succeed him. King Henry VIII of England took the opportunity of the regency to propose marriage between Mary and his own son, Prince Edward, hoping for a union of Scotland and England. The treaty provided that the two countries would remain separate and that if the couple should fail to have children the temporary union would dissolve
Mary, Queen of Scots
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Portrait of Mary after François Clouet, c. 1559
Mary, Queen of Scots
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Signature
Mary, Queen of Scots
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Both Mary and her father were born at Linlithgow Palace.
Mary, Queen of Scots
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Coin of 1553: obverse, coat of arms of Scotland; reverse, royal monogram
12.
Margaret of Valois
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Margaret of Valois was a French princess of the Valois dynasty who became queen consort of Navarre and later also of France. Charles IX arranged for her to marry a distant cousin, King Henry III of Navarre, and she thus became Queen of Navarre in 1572. In 1589, after all her brothers had died leaving no sons, Margarets husband, the senior-most agnatic heir to France, succeeded to the French throne as Henry IV, the first Bourbon King of France. A queen of two kingdoms, Margaret was subjected to political manipulations, including being held prisoner by her own brother, Henry III of France. However, her life was anything but passive and she was famous for her beauty and sense of style, notorious for a licentious lifestyle, and also proved a competent memoirist. She was indeed one of the most fashionable women of her time, while imprisoned, she took advantage of the time to write her memoirs, which included a succession of stories relating to the disputes of her brothers Charles IX and Henry III with her husband. The memoirs were published posthumously in 1628, Margaret was born Marguerite de Valois on May 14,1553, at the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the seventh child and third daughter of Henry II and Catherine de Medici. Three of her brothers would become kings of France, Francis II, Charles IX and her sister, Elisabeth of Valois, would become the third wife of King Philip II of Spain. In 1565, her mother Catherine met with Philip IIs chief minister Duke of Alba at Bayonne in hopes of arranging a marriage between Margaret and Philips son Don Carlos, however, Alba refused any consideration of a dynastic marriage. Margaret was secretly involved with Henry of Guise, the son of the late Duke of Guise, when Catherine found this out, she had her daughter brought from her bed. Catherine and the king then beat her and sent Henry of Guise from court. The marriage of the 19-year-old Margaret to Henry, who had become King of Navarre upon the death of his mother, Jeanne dAlbret, the groom, a Huguenot, had to remain outside the cathedral during the religious ceremony. It was hoped this union would reunite family ties and create harmony between Catholics and the Protestant Huguenots, traditionally believed to have been instigated by Catherine de Medici, the marriage was an occasion on which many of the most wealthy and prominent Huguenots had gathered in largely Catholic Paris. Margaret has been credited with saving the lives of several prominent Protestants, including her husband, during the massacre, by keeping them in her rooms, Henry of Navarre had to feign conversion to Catholicism. After more than three years of confinement at court, Henry escaped Paris in 1576, leaving his wife behind, finally granted permission to return to her husband in Navarre, for the next three and a half years Margaret and her husband lived in Pau. Both openly kept other lovers, and they quarrelled frequently, after an illness in 1582, Queen Margaret returned to the court of her brother, Henry III, in Paris. Her brother was soon scandalized by her reputation and behavior, and forced her to leave the court, after long negotiations, she was allowed to return to her husbands court in Navarre, but she received an icy reception. Determined to overcome her difficulties, Queen Margaret masterminded a coup détat and seized power over Agen and she spent several months of fortifying the city, but the citizens of Agen revolted against her, and Queen Margaret fled to the castle of Carlat
Margaret of Valois
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Detail of painting by Pieter Paul Rubens
Margaret of Valois
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The young Margaret of Valois, by François Clouet, c. 1560
Margaret of Valois
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Henry of Navarre and Marguerite of Valois
Margaret of Valois
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Margaret of Valois age 20, by François Clouet, c. 1573
13.
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
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Charles V was ruler of both the Spanish Empire from 1516 and the Holy Roman Empire from 1519, as well as of the Habsburg Netherlands from 1506. He voluntarily stepped down from these and other positions by a series of abdications between 1554 and 1556, through inheritance, he brought together under his rule extensive territories in western, central, and southern Europe, and the Spanish colonies in the Americas and Asia. As a result, his domains spanned nearly four square kilometers and were the first to be described as the empire on which the sun never sets. Charles was the heir of three of Europes leading dynasties, the Houses of Valois-Burgundy, Habsburg, and Trastámara and he inherited the Burgundian Netherlands and the Franche-Comté as heir of the House of Valois-Burgundy. From his own dynasty, the Habsburgs, he inherited Austria and he was also elected to succeed his Habsburg grandfather, Maximilian I, as Holy Roman Emperor, a title held by the Habsburgs since 1440. Charles was the first king to rule Castile and Aragon simultaneously in his own right, the personal union, under Charles, of the Holy Roman Empire with the Spanish Empire resulted in the closest Europe would come to a universal monarchy since the death of Louis the Pious. France recovered and the wars continued for the remainder of Charless reign, enormously expensive, they led to the development of the first modern professional army in Europe, the Tercios. The struggle with the Ottoman Empire was fought in Hungary and the Mediterranean, after seizing most of eastern and central Hungary in 1526, the Ottomans’ advance was halted at their failed Siege of Vienna in 1529. A lengthy war of attrition, conducted on his behalf by his younger brother Ferdinand, in the Mediterranean, although there were some successes, Charles was unable to prevent the Ottomans’ increasing naval dominance and the piratical activity of the Barbary Corsairs. Charles opposed the Reformation and in Germany he was in conflict with the Protestant Princes of the Schmalkaldic League who were motivated by religious and political opposition to him. Once the rebellions were quelled the essential Castilian and Burgundian territories remained mostly loyal to Charles throughout his rule, Charles’s Spanish dominions were the chief source of his power and wealth, and they became increasingly important as his reign progressed. In the Americas, Charles sanctioned the conquest by Castillian conquistadors of the Aztec, Castillian control was extended across much of South and Central America. The resulting vast expansion of territory and the flows of South American silver to Castile had profound long term effects on Spain. Charles was only 56 when he abdicated, but after 34 years of rule he was physically exhausted and sought the peace of a monastery. Upon Charles’s abdications, the Holy Roman Empire was inherited by his younger brother Ferdinand, the Spanish Empire, including the possessions in the Netherlands and Italy, was inherited by Charles’s son Philip II. The two empires would remain allies until the 18th century, Charles was born in 1500 as the eldest son of Philip the Handsome and Joanna of Castile in the Flemish city of Ghent, which was part of the Habsburg Netherlands. The culture and courtly life of the Burgundian Low Countries were an important influence in his early life and he was tutored by William de Croÿ, and also by Adrian of Utrecht. He also gained a decent command of German, though he never spoke it as well as French, a witticism sometimes attributed to Charles is, I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men and German to my horse
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
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Charrles V by Titian, 1548. Alte Pinakothek, Munich, Germany
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
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Signature
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
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Copper coin "korte" with portrait of Charles V, struck in Antwerp, 1548
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
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A young Charles V, by Bernard van Orley, Louvre Museum, Paris, France
14.
Proxy marriage
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A proxy wedding or is a wedding in which one or both of the individuals being united are not physically present, usually being represented instead by other persons. If both partners are absent a double proxy wedding occurs, Proxy weddings are not recognized as legally binding in most jurisdictions, both parties must be present. Under the English common law, if a marriage is valid by the law of the place where the marriage was celebrated then it will be recognised in England. Beginning in the Middle Ages European monarchs and nobility sometimes married by proxy, a well-known example more recently involved the marriage of Napoleon I of France and the Austrian Archduchess Marie Louise in 1810. There was another proxy wedding that occurred at Eltham on 3 April,1402 between Henry IV and Joan, the daughter of Charles II, King of Navarre, another famous example is the marriage of Mary, Queen of Hungary to Louis I, Duke of Orléans in 1385. Catherine of Aragon wed Prince Arthur by proxy in 1499, a famous 17th-century painting by Peter Paul Rubens depicts the proxy marriage of Marie de Medici in 1600. By the end of the 19th century the practice had died out. Video conferencing allows couples to experience the ceremony together, a unique space wedding took place on August 10,2003 when Ekaterina Dmitriev married Yuri Malenchenko, a cosmonaut orbiting the Earth in the International Space Station, by proxy in Texas, USA. In the United States, proxy marriages are provided for in law or by customary practice in Texas, Colorado, Kansas, Proxy marriages cannot be solemnized in all other U. S. states. The Portuguese woman was allowed to immigrate to the United States on account of the marriage, during the early 1900s, United States proxy marriages increased significantly when many Japanese picture brides arrived at Angel Island, California. Since the early 20th century, it has been most commonly used in the United States for marriages where one partner is a member of the military on active duty, in California, proxy marriage is only available to deployed military personnel. In Montana, it is if one partner is either on active military duty or is a Montana resident. Mexico and Paraguay both offer proxy marriages for a fee, Proxy marriages through the consulate of Paraguay in Tel Aviv are recognized by Israeli law. Italy permits proxy marriages to Italian soldiers in times of war, canada ended any form of proxy marriage where one or both spouses are not present, with the exception of men and women in the Canadian armed forces. This became effective on June 11,2015, catholic Canon Law permits marriage by proxy, but requires officiants to receive authorization from the local ordinary before proceeding. Operation ‘I Do’, Moody AFB Attorneys Help Couple Tie Knot Marriage by proxy in California Ernest G. Lorenzen, Marriage By Proxy and the Conflict of Laws Double Proxy Marriage in Montana
Proxy marriage
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The Wedding by Proxy of Marie de' Medici to King Henry IV by Peter Paul Rubens (1622–25)
15.
Guadalajara (province)
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Guadalajara is a province of central/north-central Spain, in the northern part of the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. As of 2013 it had a population of 257,723 people, the population of the province has grown in the last 10 years. The province has been inhabited since the Paleolithic as evidenced by stone tools found on the banks of the Henares and Linares rivers. There are remains of bronze age settlements along the river banks in the area. In addition to raising livestock and breeding horses, they created many fortified towns, between 143 and 133 B. C. the Romans initiated their battles to conquer Spain which continued until 94 B. C. They brought agriculture, mining and commerce to the region, facilitating communications with roads, the most important Roman city was Segontia although they built a town wall around Luzaga where there were large public buildings. The Visigoths, with their capital at Toledo, were dominant in the area around the 6th and 7th centuries A. D. bringing Christianity, in 578, King Leovigild founded Recópolis on the River Tagus with a basilica and a palace. The Moors arrived in the area in c,711, establishing Islamic rule for some four centuries until the early 13th century. Their most important contribution was founding of the capital, Guadalajara, the territory now covered by the Province of Guadalajara was part of the Moors Marca Media. Generally sparsely populated, the most important towns were Atienza, Guadalajara, Jadraque, Hita, following the dismemberment of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Toledo gained independence in 1018, reaching its zenith under Yahya-al-Mamun who reigned from 1043 to 1075. Following his death, pressure from King Alfonso VI of León, by the early 12th century, Molina, La Serrania, Sigüenza and the Tagus Valley were retrieved leading to the establishment of the Bishopric of Sigüenza. Under Alfonso VII and Alfonso VIII, the region was repopulated with people other parts of Castile. The modern age began with the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon whose marriage in Valladolid in 1469 united the crowns of Castile and Aragón. They centralized the authority which had developed in the church, the military, in the 16th century, this practice was reinforced by Charles I and Philip II. In Guadalajara, this was particularly the case with areas that had belonged to the orders of Calatrava. The Mendozas who succeeded in acquiring substantial territories built a palace in Pastrana and extended their influence over Sayatón. Under the Mendozas, the city of Guadalajara prospered in the 15th and 16th centuries, attracting writers, historians and philosophers, bringing it the name la Atenas alcarreña. Encouraged by the Renaissance, Íñigo López de Mendoza, 1st Marquis of Santillana, not only built palaces, churches and monasteries but developed a library of Greek
Guadalajara (province)
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Guadalajara
Guadalajara (province)
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Cerramiento de pizarra, Guadalajara
Guadalajara (province)
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Co-cathedral of Santa María de la Fuente la Mayor
16.
Mary I of England
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Mary I was the Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death. Her executions of Protestants led to the posthumous sobriquet Bloody Mary and she was the only child of Henry VIII by his first wife Catherine of Aragon to survive to adulthood. Her younger half-brother Edward VI succeeded their father in 1547, when Edward became mortally ill in 1553, he attempted to remove Mary from the line of succession because of religious differences. On his death their first cousin once removed, Lady Jane Grey, was proclaimed queen, Mary assembled a force in East Anglia and deposed Jane, who was ultimately beheaded. Mary was—excluding the disputed reigns of Jane and the Empress Matilda—the first queen regnant of England, in 1554, Mary married Philip of Spain, becoming queen consort of Habsburg Spain on his accession in 1556. Mary is remembered for her restoration of Roman Catholicism after her half-brothers short-lived Protestant reign, during her five-year reign, she had over 280 religious dissenters burned at the stake in the Marian persecutions. After her death in 1558, her re-establishment of Roman Catholicism was reversed by her younger half-sister and successor Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry, Mary was born on 18 February 1516 at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, London. She was the child of King Henry VIII by his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. Her mother had many miscarriages, before Marys birth, four previous pregnancies had resulted in a stillborn daughter and she was baptised into the Catholic faith at the Church of the Observant Friars in Greenwich three days after her birth. Her godparents included her great-aunt the Countess of Devon, Lord Chancellor Thomas Wolsey, Henry VIIIs cousin once removed, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, stood sponsor for Marys confirmation, which was held immediately after the baptism. The following year, Mary became a godmother herself when she was named as one of the sponsors of her cousin Frances Brandon, in 1520, the Countess of Salisbury was appointed Marys governess. Sir John Hussey, later Lord Hussey, was her chamberlain from 1530, in July 1520, when scarcely four and a half years old, she entertained a visiting French delegation with a performance on the virginals. By the age of nine, Mary could read and write Latin and she studied French, Spanish, music, dance, and perhaps Greek. Henry VIII doted on his daughter and boasted to the Venetian ambassador Sebastian Giustiniani, also, as the miniature portrait of her shows, Mary had, like both her parents, a very fair complexion, pale blue eyes and red or reddish-golden hair. She was also ruddy cheeked, a trait she inherited from her father, despite his affection for Mary, Henry was deeply disappointed that his marriage had produced no sons. By the time Mary was nine years old, it was apparent that Henry and Catherine would have no more children, in 1525, Henry sent Mary to the border of Wales to preside, presumably in name only, over the Council of Wales and the Marches. She was given her own based at Ludlow Castle and many of the royal prerogatives normally reserved for the Prince of Wales. Vives and others called her the Princess of Wales, although she was never technically invested with the title and she appears to have spent three years in the Welsh Marches, making regular visits to her fathers court, before returning permanently to the home counties around London in mid-1528
Mary I of England
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Portrait by Antonis Mor, 1554
Mary I of England
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Mary at the time of her engagement to Charles V. She is wearing a square brooch inscribed with "The Emperour".
Mary I of England
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Mary in 1544
Mary I of England
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Philip of Spain by Titian
17.
Sofonisba Anguissola
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Sofonisba Anguissola, also known as Sophonisba Angussola or Anguisciola, was an Italian Renaissance painter born in Cremona to a relatively poor noble family. She received an education, that included the fine arts. As a young woman, Anguissola traveled to Rome where she was introduced to Michelangelo, who recognized her talent, and to Milan. Elizabeth of Valois, the queen of Philip II of Spain, was an amateur painter. She later became a court painter to the king. After the queens death, Philip helped arrange a marriage for her. She moved to Sicily, and later Pisa and Genoa, where she continued to practice as a portrait painter. Her most distinctive and attractive paintings are her portraits of herself and her family, in particular her depictions of children were fresh and closely observed. At the Spanish court she painted formal portraits in the prevailing official style. In later life, she painted religious themes, although many of her religious paintings have been lost. In 1625, she died at age ninety-three in Palermo and her paintings can be seen at galleries in Boston, MA, Bergamo, Brescia, Budapest, Madrid, Naples, Siena, and at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Sofonisba Anguissola was born in Cremona, Lombardy, in 1532 and her father, Amilcare Anguissola, was a member of the Genoese minor nobility, and her mother, Bianca Ponzone, was also of noble background. The Anguissola family believed they had a connection to the ancient Carthaginians, Amilcare Anguissola encouraged all his daughters to cultivate and perfect their talents. Four of the sisters became painters, but Sofonisba was by far the most accomplished and renowned, Elena abandoned painting to become a nun. Both Anna Maria and Europa gave up art upon marrying, while Lucia Anguissola, the remaining sister, Minerva, became a writer and Latin scholar. Asdrubale, Sophonisbas brother, studied music and Latin, but not painting and her aristocratic father made sure that Anguissola and her sisters received a well-rounded education that included the fine arts. Anguissola was fourteen when her father sent her and her sister Elena to study with Bernardino Campi, when Campi moved to another city, Anguissola continued her studies with painter Bernardino Gatti. Anguissolas apprenticeship with local painters set a precedent for women to be accepted as students of art, dates are uncertain, but Anguissola probably continued her studies under Gatti for about three years
Sofonisba Anguissola
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Self-Portrait, 1556, Lancut Museum, Poland
Sofonisba Anguissola
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The artist's sisters Lucia, Minerva and Europa Anguissola Playing Chess, 1555
Sofonisba Anguissola
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Family Portrait, Minerva, Amilcare and Asdrubale Anguissola, 1557
Sofonisba Anguissola
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Portrait of Bianca Ponzoni Anguissola, the artist's mother, 1557
18.
Chivalry in Spain
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During the Middle Ages, Medieval Europe was engaged in almost constant warfare and conflict. European warfare during the Middle Ages was marked by a transformation in the character of warfare from antiquity, changing military tactics, in addition to military tactical and technological innovations during this period, chivalric military and religious ideals arose giving motivation for engagement in the ceaseless warfare. In the Iberian Peninsula, chivalric ideals and institutions would be adopted and exercised with more fervor than anywhere else. St. James himself was known and celebrated in Christianity as ‘the slayer of the Moors’, the Reconquista had begun under Alfonso II, and would last nearly 700 years as Christians attempted to suppress and push Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula. However, the instatement of chivalric orders and the chivalric ideals. Chivalry in Medieval Spain cannot be understood outside of the context of the Military Orders of Knighthood, historians seem to be conflicted as to whether Knights in Spanish were directed more by Castilian and Catalan-Aragonese royalty or by the Papacy. But there seems to be a consensus that the knights had obligations to both and an allegiance to the Church, as both were in direct contact with knights. The Iberian Peninsula had multiple factors contributing to the chivalric ethos exemplified by Spanish Knights. One determinate factor to the adoption of chivalric Orders, in Spain, is the Reconquista in which Christian Kingdoms attempted to expel Muslims from the peninsula. In other Christian kingdoms the fighting was at least initially waged between Christians of different kingdoms, and as such was more debated and contested within Christian circles, in the 12th–13th century, most of the prominent Spanish Knightly orders were formed. The early formation of the Orders of the peninsula was dangerous, for instance, Ferdinand III of Castile’s reign facilitated the rise of more Spanish Orders because of the desire in the kingdom led by the king to crusade against the moors. However the years followed the death of Ferdinand III were relatively peaceful in Castile. The decline of knightly Orders in Spain is the subject of much debate, some historians have attributed the fall of Chivalry and Knightly Orders to Cervantes because he “smiled Spain’s chivalry away” with his satirical Don Quixote. The succeeding centuries however saw the rise of the Spanish Empire, “The rewards for the conquistador were similar to those of his medieval predecessor, the reconquistador, land to conquer, people to convert to Christianity, and glory or fame. Bernal Díaz de Castillo, a soldier who took part in the conquest of Mexico, put the conquistador’s objective succinctly, “we came here to serve God and the king and also to get rich”. El Cantar de Myo Çid, also known in English as The Lay of the Cid, based on a true story, it tells of the Spanish hero El Cid, and takes place during the Reconquista, or reconquest of Spain from the Moors. “The protagonist of the poem is the historical Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, also known as Cid, the poem begins with the departure of Rodrigo from his home in Vivar, the first of two exiles of Rodrigo decreed by Alfonso VI, king of Castile and Leon. In the poem this first exile and the second are conflated and lead to the Cids military campaigns in the Spanish Levant, culminating in the Cids conquest of the Moorish kingdom of Valencia
Chivalry in Spain
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Combat des chevaliers dans la campagne (1824) by Eugène Delacroix, now in the Louvre
Chivalry in Spain
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Castillo de Calatrava la Nueva
Chivalry in Spain
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Engraving by Alphonse-Marie-Adolphe de Neuville of the Cid ordering the execution of the instigator of the revolt and almoravid after his conquest of the city in 1094.
Chivalry in Spain
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Don Quixote, his horse Rocinante and his squire Sancho Panza after an unsuccessful attack on a windmill. By Gustave Doré
19.
Carlos, Prince of Asturias
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Several of the Carlist pretenders to the Spanish throne were also known as Don Carlos. Carlos, Prince of Asturias, also known as Don Carlos, was the eldest son and his mother was Maria Manuela of Portugal, daughter of John III of Portugal. Carlos was mentally unstable and was imprisoned by his father in early 1568 and his fate was a theme in Spains Black Legend, and inspired a play by Friedrich Schiller and an opera by Giuseppe Verdi. Carlos was born at Valladolid on 8 July 1545 and his mother, María Manuela of Portugal, died four days later from a haemorrhage she had suffered after the birth. The young Infante Carlos was delicate and deformed and he grew up proud and willful and, as a young adult, began to show signs of mental instability. Many of his physical and psychological afflictions may have stemmed from the common to the House of Habsburg. Carlos had only four great-grandparents instead of the maximum of eight, in 1559 Prince Carlos was betrothed to Elizabeth of Valois, eldest daughter of King Henry II of France. However, for reasons, she instead married King Philip in 1560. It was agreed in 1564 that Carlos should marry Anna, Carlos was recognized in 1560 as the heir-apparent to the Castilian throne, and three years later as heir-apparent to the Crown of Aragon as well. He became also the 218th Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece and he often attended meetings of the Council of State and was in correspondence with his aunt Margaret, who governed the Low Countries in his fathers name. In 1562 Carlos fell down a flight of stairs, which caused serious head injuries and his life was saved by a trepanation of the skull, performed by the eminent anatomist Andreas Vesalius. After his recovery, Carlos became wild and unpredictable in his behavior and he took a dislike to the Duke of Alba, who became the commander of Philips forces in the Netherlands, a position that had been promised to Carlos. Carlos possibly made contacts with representative of the Count Egmont from the Low Countries and he also exhibited an antipathy towards his father, whose murder, according to Carlos confessor, he supposedly contemplated at one time. In the autumn of 1567 he made preparations to flee to the Netherlands, however, John of Austria, whom Carlos tried to draw into his plans, revealed everything to King Philip. Carlos remained in confinement at the Alcázar of Madrid until his death six months later. It was later claimed that he was poisoned on the orders of King Philip, especially by William the Silent in his Apology, modern historians think that Don Carlos died of natural causes. He grew very thin and developed eating disorders during his imprisonment, Carlos left an unfavourable impression on some foreign ambassadors. Another Venetian, Paolo Tiepolo, wrote, He wished neither to study nor to take physical exercise, the idea of King Philip confining and murdering his own son later played a minor role in establishing the anti-Spanish Black Legend
Carlos, Prince of Asturias
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Portrait by Alonso Sánchez Coello, 1564.
Carlos, Prince of Asturias
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Portrait of Don Carlos by Sofonisba Anguissola, 1560
20.
John of Austria
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He became a military leader in the service of his half-brother, King Philip II of Spain and is best known for his role as the admiral of the Holy Alliance fleet at the Battle of Lepanto. The date of his birth is unknown, with sources indicating that he was born in the year 1545 and others, like G. Parker or P. Pierson. Pierson makes mention that some contemporaries affirmed that he was born in 1545, but that the oldest evidence found in France with regards to public ceremonies, supports the date of 1547. It is likely that John of Austria was conceived in May 1546, when Emperor Charles V was then in Regensburg and it is possible that John had deliberately chosen the 24th of February as his birthday, which was the month and day of his father Charles Vs birth. Shortly after giving birth, Barbara Blomberg was quickly married to Hieronymus Kegel, John of Austrias original name as a child, Geronimo or Jeromín, was an allusion to his stepfather. Charles V then decided that his son should be raised in Spain away from his mother and his Majordomo, Luis de Quijada, had reached an agreement with Francisco Massy, a violist of the imperial court, and married to a Spanish woman, Ana de Medina. In exchange for an income of 50 ducats, the couple had agreed to raise the child. In mid-1551 they together had arrived in Leganés, where Ana de Medina had property, in the summer of 1554, the boy was taken to the castle of Luis de Quijada in Villagarcía de Campos, Valladolid. His wife, Magdalena de Ulloa, took charge of his education, assisted by the Latin teacher Guillén Prieto, the chaplain García de Morales and the squire Juan Galarza. Charles V wrote a codicil, dated 6 June 1554, in which he recognized, For since I was in Germany, after being widowed, I had a child of one unmarried woman. In the summer of 1558, Charles V had ordered Luis de Quijada, his wife Magdalena de Ulloa, the Emperor was already residing nearby at the Monastery of Yuste. From that time forward, and until his own death in September of that year, Charles Vs only surviving legitimate son and heir, now King Philip II after his fathers abdication, was then outside of Spain. Rumors had spread about the paternity of the child, which de Quijada had denied, Charles V replied with a note written by his personal secretary Eraso, in whose erasures and amendments were expressed, the Emperors thoughts about how best to deal with such a delicate matter. It was recommended to wait for Philip IIs return to Spain, Philip II returned from Brussels in 1559, aware of his fathers will. Once he had settled in Valladolid, he had summoned de Quijada to bring along Jeromín to a hunt, the first meeting between the two of them took place on 28 September in the Monastery of Santa María de La Santa Espina. When the King appeared, Luis de Quijada told Jeromín to dismount, when Jeromín did so, Philip II asked him if he knew the identity of his father. When the boy did not know, the King embraced him and explained that they had the same father, in formal style he was your excellency, the address used for a Spanish grandee, and known as Don Juan de Austria. John did not live in a palace, but rather maintained a separate household with Luis de Quijada as the head
John of Austria
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John of Austria
John of Austria
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Portrait, 1559-60 by Alonso Sánchez Coello
John of Austria
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Battle of Lepanto
John of Austria
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The Victors of Lepanto (from left: Don Juan de Austria, Marcantonio Colonna, Sebastiano Venier)
21.
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
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Alexander Farnese was Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1586 to 1592, and Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 to 1592. He is best known for his successful campaign 1578-1592 against the Dutch Revolt, in which he captured the cities in the south. His talents as a commander, strategist and organizer earned him the regard of his contemporaries. Alessandro was the son of Duke Ottavio Farnese of Parma and Margaret and he had a twin brother, Charles, who only lived one month. His mother was the half-sister of Philip II of Spain and John of Austria and he led a significant military and diplomatic career in the service of Spain under the service of his uncle the King. He fought in the Battle of Lepanto and then in the Netherlands against the rebels and he accompanied his mother to Brussels when she was appointed Governor of the Netherlands. In 1565 his marriage with Maria of Portugal was celebrated in Brussels with great splendour and it was seven years before he again had the opportunity to display his great military talents. During that time the provinces of the Netherlands had revolted against Spanish rule. In the autumn of 1577, Farnese was sent to join Don John at the head of reinforcements, shortly afterwards Don John, whose health had broken down, died. Phillip appointed Farnese to take his place, both as Captain-General of the Army of Flanders, and as Governor-General, Farnese was confronted with a difficult situation. Perceiving that his opponents were divided between Catholic and Protestant, Fleming and Walloon, he worked to exploit these divisions. By this means, he regained the allegiance of the Walloon provinces for the king, by the treaty of Arras, January 1579, he secured the support of the Malcontents for the royal cause. The rebels in the seven northern provinces then formed the Union of Utrecht, formally abjuring Phillips rule, as soon as he had secured a base of operations in Hainaut and Artois, Farnese set himself in earnest to the task of reconquering Brabant and Flanders by force of arms. Town after town fell under his control, tournai, Maastricht, Breda, Bruges, and Ghent opened their gates. In a war composed mostly of sieges rather than battles, he proved his mettle and he finally laid siege to the great seaport of Antwerp. The town was open to the sea, strongly fortified, and defended with resolute determination and they were led by the famous Marnix van St. Aldegonde and assisted by an ingenious Italian engineer named Federigo Giambelli. The siege began in 1584 and called all of Farneses military genius. He cut off all access to Antwerp from the sea by constructing a bridge of boats across the Scheldt from Calloo to Oordam, the terms offered included the clause that all Protestants had to leave the city within four years
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
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Portrait of Farnese by Jean Baptiste de Saive
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
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Coat of Arms of the Farnese as dukes of Parma. Alexander did not use the inescutcheon of Portugal but his successors did.
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
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Engraving of Alexander Farnese. The Netherlands, 1614
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
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Arrival of the funeral procession of the Duke of Parma in Brussels 1592. Print from 'The Wars of Nassau' by Willem Baudartius.
22.
Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain
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Isabella Clara Eugenia was sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands in the Low Countries and the north of modern France, together with her husband Albert VII, Archduke of Austria. In some sources, she is referred to as Clara Isabella Eugenia, by birth, she was an infanta of Spain and Portugal. Isabella Clara Eugenia of Austria was born in the Palacio del bosque de Valsaín, Segovia on 12 August 1566, daughter of Philip II of Spain and her paternal grandparents were Emperor Charles V and Isabella of Portugal. Her maternal grandparents were Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici and her father, Philip II, was reportedly overjoyed at her birth and declared himself to be happier on the occasion than he would have been at the birth of a son. Isabellas mother, Elisabeth of Valois, had originally been betrothed to Don Carlos, despite the significant age difference between them, Philip was very attached to Elisabeth, staying close by her side even when she was ill with smallpox. Elisabeths first pregnancy in 1564 ended in a miscarriage of twin daughters and she later gave birth to Isabella Clara Eugenia on 12 August 1566, and then to Isabellas younger sister Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain 10 October 1567. Elisabeth miscarried a daughter in 1568 and died the same day, Isabella grew up with her sister Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain, beloved by her father and her stepmother Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain, Philips fourth wife. Philip ultimately fathered five children by Anna, all of whom died in childhood except his heir. Isabella was also the person whom Philip permitted to help him with his work, sorting his papers. Since 1568, at the age of two, Isabella Clara Eugenia was promised to marry Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, son of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, Maria was a daughter of her paternal grandparents Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and Isabella of Portugal. Isabella Clara Eugenia, however, had to wait for more than 20 years before the eccentric Rudolf declared that he had no intention of marrying anybody, at any rate, Isabella Clara Eugenias mother had ceded any claim to the French crown with her marriage to Philip II. However the Parlement de Paris, in power of the Catholic party and her father decided to cede the Spanish Netherlands to her on condition that she marry her cousin, Albert VII, Archduke of Austria. They were to reign over the Netherlands jointly as duke/count and duchess/countess and it was also stipulated that, should they have no children, the Netherlands would revert to the King of Spain upon the death of either spouse. On 18 April 1599, being 33 years old, she married Albert, Albert was the joint sovereign of the Seventeen Provinces and the former viceroy of Portugal. As Albert also was the Archbishop of Toledo, he had to be released from his religious commitments by Pope Clement VIII before the wedding could take place. Shortly before Philip II died on 13 September 1598, he renounced his rights to the Netherlands in favor of his daughter Isabella and her fiancé. Beginning in 1601, the couple ruled the Spanish Netherlands together, a false anecdote links Isabella, the siege of Ostend, and the horse coat colour isabelline. The reign of Albert and Isabella is considered the Golden Age of the Spanish Netherlands, the reign of the Archduke Albert of Austria and Archduchess Isabella Clara Eugenia is a key period in the history of the Spanish Netherlands
Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain
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Portrait by Frans Pourbus the Younger
Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain
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Isabella and her dwarf, c. 1599
Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain
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Isabella Clara Eugenia and Archduke Albert
Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain
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Jeton with portraits of Albert VII, Archduke of Austria and Infanta Isabella of Spain, struck in Antwerp 1612. Obv: Portraits of Albert and Isabella. Rev: Eagle holding balance, date 1612.
23.
Biblical law in Christianity
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Theologian Thomas Aquinas explained that there are three types of biblical precepts, moral, ceremonial, and judicial. He holds that moral precepts are permanent, having held even before the Law was given, ceremonial precepts and judicial precepts came into existence only with the Law of Moses and were only temporary. The ceremonial commands were ordained to the Divine worship for that particular time, however, while the judicial laws ceased to bind with the advent of Christ, it was not a mortal sin to enforce them. Aquinas says, if a sovereign were to order these judicial precepts to be observed in his kingdom, thus some scholars refer to his views on government as General Equity Theonomy. Unlike the ceremonial and judicial precepts, moral commands continue to bind, the mission of teaching all peoples, and of preaching the Gospel to every creature, so that all men may attain salvation through faith, Baptism and the observance of the Commandments. The Ten Commandments belong to Gods revelation, at the same time they teach us the true humanity of man. They bring to light the essential duties, and therefore, indirectly, the Decalogue contains a privileged expression of the natural law, From the beginning, God had implanted in the heart of man the precepts of the natural law. Then he was content to him of them. Since they express mans fundamental duties towards God and towards his neighbour and they are fundamentally immutable, and they oblige always and everywhere. No one can dispense from them, the Ten Commandments are engraved by God in the human heart. The Roman Catholic Church thus applies to Sunday, the Lords Day, between 1580 and 1713 this principle was considered of fundamental importance by Lutheran theologians. Lutherans, quoting Colossians 2 and Romans 14, believe that circumcision, the Westminster Confession of Faith divides the Mosaic laws into three categories, moral, civil, and ceremonial. In the view of the Westminster Divines, only the laws of the Mosaic Law, which include the Ten Commandments. Ceremonial laws, in view, include the regulations pertaining to ceremonial cleanliness, festivals, diet. In keeping with this, most advocates also hold that when the Law is spoken of as everlasting, anglican theology is defined to the degree it is expressed by its historic defining statements known as the Thirty-Nine Articles. As a theological system, Dispensationalism is rooted in the writings of John Nelson Darby and the Brethren Movement, dispensationists divide the Bible into varying numbers of separate dispensations or ages. Wayne G. Strickland, professor of theology at the Multnomah University and this view holds that Mosaic Laws and the penalties attached to them were limited to the particular historical and theological setting of the Old Testament. In that view, the Law was given to Israel and does not apply since the age of the New Covenant
Biblical law in Christianity
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Depicted is the famous Sermon on the Mount of Jesus in which he commented on the Old Covenant. Painting by Carl Heinrich Bloch, Danish painter, d. 1890.
Biblical law in Christianity
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The Ten Commandments on a monument on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol which includes: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy".
Biblical law in Christianity
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Law and Grace, by Lucas Cranach the Elder, a Lutheran. The left side of the tree illustrates law, while the right side illustrates grace.
Biblical law in Christianity
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The decalog of the reformed church of Ligerz, Switzerland
24.
Thomas Otway
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Thomas Otway was an English dramatist of the Restoration period, best known for Venice Preservd, or A Plot Discoverd. Otway was born at Trotton near Midhurst, the parish of which his father, Humphrey later became rector of Woolbeding, a neighbouring parish, where Thomas Otway was brought up. He was educated at Winchester College, and in 1669 entered Christ Church, Oxford, as a commoner, but left the university without a degree in the autumn of 1672. At Oxford he made the acquaintance of Anthony Cary, 5th Viscount Falkland, through whom, he says in the dedication to Caius Marius, he first learned to love books. In London he made acquaintance with Aphra Behn, who in 1672 cast him as the old king in her play, Forcd Marriage, or The Jealous Bridegroom, however, he had a bad attack of stage fright, and never made a second appearance. Meanwhile, he had fallen in love with Elizabeth Barry, who played many of the parts in his plays. Six letters to her survive, the last of them referring to an appointment in the Mall. She seems to have flirted with Otway, but had no intention of permanently offending Rochester, her lover. In 1678, driven to desperation, Otway obtained a commission through Charles, Earl of Plymouth, the English troops were disbanded in 1679, but were left to find their way home as best they could. They were paid with depreciated paper, and Otway arrived in London late in the year, ragged and dirty and he apparently ceased to struggle against his poverty and misfortunes. The generally accepted story regarding the manner of his death was first given in Theophilus Cibbers Lives of the Poets and he is said to have emerged from his retreat at the Bull on Tower Hill to beg for bread. A passer-by, learning who he was, gave him a guinea and he ate too hastily, and choked on the first mouthful. Whether this account of his death is true or not, it is certain that he died in the utmost poverty, in 1675 Thomas Betterton produced, at the Dorset Garden Theatre, Otways first play, Alcibiades, which was printed in the same year. It is a tragedy, written in verse, saved from absolute failure only by the actors. Elizabeth Barry took the part of Draxilla, and her lover, John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester and he made a great improvement in Don Carlos, Prince of Spain. The material for this rhymed tragedy came from the novel of the name, written in 1672 by the Abbé de Saint-Real. In it the two characters familiar throughout his plays make their appearance and it got more money, says John Downes of this play, than any preceding modern tragedy. In 1677 Betterton produced two adaptations from the French by Otway, Titus and Berenice, and the Cheats of Scapin and these were printed together, with a dedication to Rochester
Thomas Otway
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Portrait by William Blake, c. 1800
Thomas Otway
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Playwrights
25.
Schiller
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Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German poet, philosopher, physician, historian, and playwright. During the last seventeen years of his life, Schiller struck up a productive, if complicated, friendship with the already famous and they frequently discussed issues concerning aesthetics, and Schiller encouraged Goethe to finish works he left as sketches. This relationship and these led to a period now referred to as Weimar Classicism. They also worked together on Xenien, a collection of satirical poems in which both Schiller and Goethe challenge opponents to their philosophical vision. Friedrich Schiller was born on 10 November 1759, in Marbach, Württemberg as the son of military doctor Johann Kaspar Schiller. Schiller grew up in a religious family and spent much of his youth studying the Bible. His father was away in the Seven Years War when Friedrich was born and he was named after king Frederick the Great, but he was called Fritz by nearly everyone. Kaspar Schiller was rarely home during the war, but he did manage to visit the family once in a while and his wife and children also visited him occasionally wherever he happened to be stationed. When the war ended in 1763, Schillers father became an officer and was stationed in Schwäbisch Gmünd. Due to the high cost of living—especially the rent—the family moved to nearby Lorch, although the family was happy in Lorch, Schillers father found his work unsatisfying. He sometimes took his son with him, in Lorch, Schiller received his primary education. The quality of the lessons was fairly bad, and Friedrich regularly cut class with his older sister, because his parents wanted Schiller to become a pastor, they had the pastor of the village instruct the boy in Latin and Greek. Pastor Moser was a teacher, and later Schiller named the cleric in his first play Die Räuber after him. As a boy, Schiller was excited by the idea of becoming a cleric and often put on black robes, in 1766, the family left Lorch for the Duke of Württembergs principal residence, Ludwigsburg. Schillers father had not been paid for three years, and the family had been living on their savings but could no longer afford to do so, so Kaspar Schiller took an assignment to the garrison in Ludwigsburg. There the Schiller boy came to the attention of Karl Eugen and he entered the Karlsschule Stuttgart, in 1773, where he eventually studied medicine. During most of his life, he suffered from illnesses that he tried to cure himself. While at the Karlsschule, Schiller read Rousseau and Goethe and discussed Classical ideals with his classmates, the plays critique of social corruption and its affirmation of proto-revolutionary republican ideals astounded its original audience
Schiller
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Friedrich Schiller
Schiller
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Portrait of Friedrich Schiller by Gerhard von Kügelgen
Schiller
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Lithograph portrait from 1905, captioned "Friedrich von Schiller" in recognition of his 1802 ennoblement
Schiller
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Germany's oldest Schiller memorial (1839) on Schillerplatz, Stuttgart
26.
Don Carlos (play)
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Don Carlos is a tragedy in five acts by Friedrich Schiller, it was written between 1783 and 1787 and first produced in Hamburg in 1787. The title character is Carlos, Prince of Asturias and the play as a whole is loosely modeled on events in the 16th century under the reign of King Philip II of Spain. Poultons adaptation was directed by Michael Grandage in a well-reviewed staging, Schiller, Volume Two, Don Carlos, Mary Stuart. MacDonalds adaptation was first staged in Edinburgh in 1995, cultural depictions of Philip II of Spain Carlos, Prince of Asturias Stevens, Robert. Schillers Don Carlos, the light and warmth of a timeless play, review of a 2004 production in Sheffield, England of Mike Poultons adaptation from the German, along with an extended discussion of plays history. University of Oxford production of Don Carlos at the Oxford Playhouse, 18-21 Feb.2009
Don Carlos (play)
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Don Karlos, Leipzig, 1787
27.
Giuseppe Verdi
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Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian opera composer. Verdi was born near Busseto to a family of moderate means. Verdi came to dominate the Italian opera scene after the era of Bellini, Donizetti and Rossini, whose works influenced him. In his early operas Verdi demonstrated a sympathy with the Risorgimento movement which sought the unification of Italy and he also participated briefly as an elected politician. He surprised the world by returning, after his success with the opera Aida. The baptismal register, prepared on 11 October 1813, lists his parents Carlo, additionally, it lists Verdi as being born yesterday, but since days were often considered to begin at sunset, this could have meant either 9 or 10 October. Verdi himself, following his mother, always celebrated his birthday on 9 October, Verdi had a younger sister, Giuseppa, who died aged 17 in 1833. From the age of four, Verdi was given lessons in Latin and Italian by the village schoolmaster, Baistrocchi. After learning to play the organ, he showed so much interest in music that his parents provided him with a spinet. Verdis gift for music was apparent by 1820–21 when he began his association with the local church, serving in the choir, acting as an altar boy for a while. After Baistrocchis death, Verdi, at the age of eight, Carlo Verdi was energetic in furthering his sons education. something which Verdi tended to hide in later life. He picture emerges of youthful precocity eagerly nurtured by a father and of a sustained, sophisticated. Verdi returned to Busseto regularly to play the organ on Sundays, at age 11, Verdi received schooling in Italian, Latin, the humanities, and rhetoric. By the time he was 12, he began lessons with Ferdinando Provesi, maestro di cappella at San Bartolomeo, director of the music school. This information comes from the Autobiographical Sketch which Verdi dictated to the publisher Giulio Ricordi late in life, in 1879, written, understandably, with the benefit of hindsight, it is not always reliable when dealing with issues more contentious than those of his childhood. The other director of the Philharmonic Society was Antonio Barezzi, a grocer and distiller. The young Verdi did not immediately become involved with the Philharmonic, by June 1827, he had graduated with honours from the Ginnasio and was able to focus solely on music under Provesi. By 1829–30, Verdi had established himself as a leader of the Philharmonic, none of us could rival him reported the secretary of the organisation, Giuseppe Demaldè
Giuseppe Verdi
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Giuseppe Verdi Portrait by Giovanni Boldini, 1886
Giuseppe Verdi
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Verdi's childhood home at Le Roncole.
Giuseppe Verdi
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Antonio Barezzi, Verdi's patron and later father-in-law
Giuseppe Verdi
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Margherita Barezzi, Verdi's first wife.
28.
Don Carlos
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The opera is usually performed in Italian. The operas story is based on conflicts in the life of Carlos and it was commissioned and produced by the Théâtre Impérial de lOpéra and given its premiere at the Salle Le Peletier on 11 March 1867. When performed in one of its several Italian versions, the opera is generally called Don Carlo, the first Italian version given in Italy was in Bologna in March 1867. Revised again by Verdi, it was given in Naples in November/December 1872, finally, two other versions were prepared, the first was seen in Milan in January 1884. That is now known as the Milan version, while the second—also sanctioned by the composer—became the Modena version and was presented in city in December 1886. It restored the Fontainebleau first act to the Milan four-act version, over the following twenty years, cuts and additions were made to the opera, resulting in a number of versions being available to directors and conductors. No other Verdi opera exists in so many versions, at its full length, it contains close to four hours of music and is Verdis longest opera. Pre-première cuts and first published edition Verdi made a number of cuts in 1866, after finishing the opera but before composing the ballet, simply because the work was becoming too long. After the ballet had been composed, it emerged during the 1867 rehearsal period that, without further cuts, the opera, as first published at the time of the première, consisted of Verdis original conception, minus all of the above-named cuts, but including the ballet. After the première and before leaving Paris, Verdi authorised the Opéra authorities to end Act 4, after his departure, further cuts were apparently made during the remaining performances. It was common practice at the time for most theatres to perform operas in Italian, and an Italian translation of Don Carlos was prepared in the autumn of 1866 by Achille de Lauzières. However, the Italian translation was first performed not in Italy but in London at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on 4 June 1867, where it was produced and conducted by Michael Costa. Additionally, the duet between Philip and the Inquisitor was shortened by four lines, and Elisabeths aria in Act 5 consisted only of part of the middle section, the production was initially considered a success, and Verdi sent a congratulatory note to Costa. Later when he learned of the alterations, Verdi was greatly irritated, for the Rome premiere on 9 February 1868 at the Teatro Apollo, perhaps unsurprisingly, the Papal censor changed the Inquisitor into a Gran Cancelliere and the Monk/Emperor into a Solitario. This version of the opera was first performed in Milan at La Scala on 25 March 1868, and prestige productions in most other Italian opera houses followed, the length was a particular problem, and subsequent performances were generally heavily cut. The first production in Naples in 1871 was indisputably a failure, following the unsuccessful performance in Naples in 1871, Verdi was persuaded to visit the city for further performances in November / December 1872, and he made two more modifications to the score. These were additions to the scene for Posa and the King in Act 2 and this is the only portion of the entire opera that was ever composed by Verdi to an Italian rather than a French text. In addition, there were cuts to the duet between Carlos and Elisabeth in Act 5, by April 1882, he was in Paris where he was ready to make changes
Don Carlos
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Carlo Cornaglia's depiction of Act IV (the original Act V) in the 1884 La Scala production
Don Carlos
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Title page of a libretto for performances at the Teatro Pagliano in Florence in April–May 1869 which used the Italian translation by Achille de Lauzières
Don Carlos
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Boris Christoff as King Philip in the 1958 Covent Garden production
Don Carlos
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Jean Morère, the original Don Carlos
29.
Madame de Lafayette
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Christened Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne, she was born in Paris to a family of minor but wealthy nobility. At 16, de la Vergne became the maid of honour to Queen Anne of Austria and began also to acquire an education from Gilles Ménage. Ménage would lead her to join the fashionable salons of Madame de Rambouillet and Madeleine de Scudéry. Her father, Marc Pioche de la Vergne, had died a year before, and the year her mother married Renaud de Sévigné, uncle of Madame de Sévigné. In 1655, de la Vergne married François Motier, comte de La Fayette and she accompanied him to country estates in Auvergne and Bourbonnais although she made frequent trips back to Paris, where she began to mix with court society and formed her own successful salon. Her sister-in-law was Louise de La Fayette, favourite of Louis XIII of France, some of her acquaintances included Henrietta of England, future Duchess of Orleans, who asked La Fayette to write her biography, Antoine Arnauld, and the leading French writers Segrais and Huet. Earlier on, during the Fronde, La Fayette had also befriended the Cardinal de Retz with whom her stepfather was associated, settling permanently in Paris in 1659, La Fayette published, anonymously, La Princesse de Montpensier in 1662. From 1665 onwards she formed a relationship with François de La Rochefoucauld, author of Maximes. 1669 saw the publication of the first volume of Zaïde, a Hispano-Moorish romance which was signed by Segrais but is almost certainly attributable to La Fayette, the second volume appeared in 1671. The title ran through reprints and translations mostly thanks to the preface Huet had offered, La Fayettes most famous novel was La Princesse de Clèves, first published anonymously in March 1678. An immense success, the work is taken to be the first true French novel. Her correspondence showed her as the acute diplomatic agent of Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy-Nemours, duchess of Savoy, the death of La Rochefoucauld in 1680 and her husband in 1683 led La Fayette to lead a less active social life in her later years. Three works were published posthumously, La Comtesse de Tende, Histoire dHenriette dAngleterre and her baptism took place March 18,1634 in the Church of Saint-Sulpice. Her godfather was Urbain de Maillé-Brézé, Marshal of France, and her godmother was Marie-Madelaine de Vignerot, lady Combalet, later Duchess of Aiguillon and she married on February 15,1655 François Motier, Count de La Fayette. He held several lands in the Auvergne region such as de La Fayette, de Goutenoutouse, de Médat and de Forest. She gave him two sons, Louis de Lafayette, baptized March 7,1658, commendatory abbot of Notre-Dame de Valmont, Armand Renaud de La Fayette, Brigadier des armées, count, La Princesse de Montpensier,1662, 2nd edition 1674 and 1675. 1, vol 2, Paris, Claude Barbin,1671, La Princesse de Clèves, Paris, Claude Barbin,16 mai 1678. Romans et Nouvelles, Paris, Classiques Garnier,1989, ISSN 0750-2176, Histoire de madame Henriette dAngleterre, première femme de Philippe de France, Duc dOrléans, Amsterdam, M. -C
Madame de Lafayette
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Madame de La Fayette
Madame de Lafayette
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Marie de LaFayette's La Princesse de Clèves (1678)
30.
Queen Elizabeth I
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Elizabeth I was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, his second wife, who was executed two and a half years after Elizabeths birth. Annes marriage to Henry VIII was annulled, and Elizabeth was declared illegitimate, edwards will was set aside and Mary became queen, deposing Lady Jane Grey. During Marys reign, Elizabeth was imprisoned for nearly a year on suspicion of supporting Protestant rebels, in 1558, Elizabeth succeeded her half-sister to the throne and set out to rule by good counsel. She depended heavily on a group of trusted advisers, led by William Cecil, one of her first actions as queen was the establishment of an English Protestant church, of which she became the Supreme Governor. This Elizabethan Religious Settlement was to evolve into the Church of England and it was expected that Elizabeth would marry and produce an heir to continue the Tudor line. She never did, despite numerous courtships, as she grew older, Elizabeth became famous for her virginity. A cult grew around her which was celebrated in the portraits, pageants, in government, Elizabeth was more moderate than her father and half-siblings had been. One of her mottoes was video et taceo, in religion, she was relatively tolerant and avoided systematic persecution. Elizabeth was cautious in foreign affairs, manoeuvring between the powers of France and Spain. She only half-heartedly supported a number of ineffective, poorly resourced military campaigns in the Netherlands, France, by the mid-1580s, England could no longer avoid war with Spain. Englands defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 associated Elizabeth with one of the greatest military victories in English history, Elizabeths reign is known as the Elizabethan era. Some historians depict Elizabeth as a short-tempered, sometimes indecisive ruler, towards the end of her reign, a series of economic and military problems weakened her popularity. Such was the case with Elizabeths rival, Mary, Queen of Scots, after the short reigns of Elizabeths half-siblings, her 44 years on the throne provided welcome stability for the kingdom and helped forge a sense of national identity. Elizabeth was born at Greenwich Palace and was named after both her grandmothers, Elizabeth of York and Elizabeth Howard and she was the second child of Henry VIII of England born in wedlock to survive infancy. Her mother was Henrys second wife, Anne Boleyn, at birth, Elizabeth was the heir presumptive to the throne of England. She was baptised on 10 September, Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, the Marquess of Exeter, the Duchess of Norfolk, Elizabeth was two years and eight months old when her mother was beheaded on 19 May 1536, four months after Catherine of Aragons death from natural causes. Elizabeth was declared illegitimate and deprived of her place in the royal succession, eleven days after Anne Boleyns execution, Henry married Jane Seymour, who died shortly after the birth of their son, Prince Edward, in 1537
Queen Elizabeth I
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The "Darnley Portrait" of Elizabeth I (c. 1575)
Queen Elizabeth I
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The Lady Elizabeth in about 1546, by an unknown artist
Queen Elizabeth I
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The Miroir or Glasse of the Synneful Soul, a translation from the French, by Elizabeth, presented to Catherine Parr in 1544. The embroidered binding with the monogram KP for "Katherine Parr" is believed to have been worked by Elizabeth.
Queen Elizabeth I
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Mary I, by Anthonis Mor, 1554
31.
Philip II, Duke of Savoy
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Philip II, surnamed the Landless, was the Duke of Savoy for a brief reign from 1496 to 1497. He was the granduncle of the previous duke Charles II, however, he was not the heir general of the previous duke, there being several females before him in the line of succession. To ensure male inheritance to the Savoy line, his eldest son Philibert was married to his cousin, however, the plan did not succeed, the girl died at age twelve. The children of the daughters of Philips eldest brother Duke Amedeo IX of Savoy were next in line, despite the fact that Cyprus and Jerusalem did not bar succession in female line, Philip however took those claims and used those titles as well. His male successors in Savoy also continued to do so, thus giving their ducal title a higher and he spent most of his life as a junior member of the ducal family. His original apanage was the district of Bresse, close to the French and Burgundian border, but it was lost and therefore Philip received his sobriquet the Landless, or Lackland
Philip II, Duke of Savoy
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Coat of Arms of the Counts of Savoy
32.
Louise of Savoy
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Louise of Savoy was a French noblewoman, Duchess suo jure of Auvergne and Bourbon, Duchess of Nemours, and the mother of King Francis I of France. She was politically active and served as the Regent of France in 1515, in 1525–1526, Louise of Savoy was born at Pont-dAin, the eldest daughter of Philip II, Duke of Savoy and his first wife, Margaret of Bourbon. Her brother, Philibert II, Duke of Savoy, succeeded her father as ruler of the duchy and he was, in turn, succeeded by their half-brother Charles III, Duke of Savoy. Because her mother died when she was seven, she was brought up by Anne de Beaujeu. At Amboise she met Margaret of Austria, who was betrothed to the young king, at age eleven, Louise married Charles of Orléans, Count of Angoulême, on 16 February 1488 in Paris. She only began living with him when she was fifteen, though, despite her husband having two mistresses, the marriage was not unhappy and they shared a love for books. The household of Charles was presided over by his châtelaine Antoinette de Polignac, Dame de Combronde, Antoinette became Louises lady-in-waiting and confidante. Her children were raised alongside Louises own, Charles had another illegitimate daughter, Souveraine, by Jeanne le Conte, who also lived in the Angoulême chateau. She would later arrange marriages for her husbands illegitimate children and their first child, Marguerite, was born on 11 April 1492, their second child, Francis, was born on 12 September 1494. When her husband fell ill after going out riding in the winter of 1495, she nursed him, when she was widowed at the young age of 19, Louise deftly maneuvered her children into a position that would secure for each of them a promising future. Though they remained in Cognac for two years, she moved her family to court at the ascension of King Louis XII, Louise had a keen awareness for the intricacies of politics and diplomacy, and was deeply interested in the advances of arts and sciences in Renaissance Italy. She made certain that her children were educated in the spirit of the Italian Renaissance, also helped by her Italian confessor and she commissioned books specifically for them and she taught Francis Italian and Spanish. When Louis XII became ill in 1505, he determined that Francis should succeed him and he recovered and Francis became a favourite of the king, who eventually gave him his daughter Claude of France in marriage on 8 May 1514. Following the marriage, Louis XII designated Francis as his heir, with the death of Louis XII on 1 January 1515, Francis became king of France. On 4 February 1515, Louise was named Duchess of Angoulême and this led her in rivalry against Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, Suzannes widower, whom she proposed to marry in order to settle the Bourbon inheritance issue. When her suit was rejected by Charles, Louise instigated efforts to undermine him. This led to Charles exile and his attempt to regain his lost status by waging war against the King and he died in 1527 having failed to regain his lost lands and titles. Louise recovered Auvergne from confiscations and became duchess in the name of her son, Louise of Savoy remained politically active on behalf of her son in the early years of his reign especially
Louise of Savoy
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Louise of Savoy
33.
Louis XII of France
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Louis XII was a monarch of the House of Valois who ruled as King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Maria of Cleves, he succeeded his cousin Charles VIII, who died without a closer heir in 1498. Before his accession to the throne of France, he was known as Louis of Orléans and was compelled to be married to his disabled and supposedly sterile cousin Joan by his second cousin, king Louis XI. By doing so, Louis XI hoped to extinguish the Orléans cadet branch of the House of Valois, Louis of Orléans was one of the great feudal lords who opposed the French monarchy in the conflict known as the Mad War. At the royal victory in the Battle of Saint-Aubin-du-Cormier in 1488, Louis was captured and he subsequently took part in the Italian War of 1494–1498 as one of the French commanders. When Louis XII became king in 1498, he had his marriage with Joan annulled by Pope Alexander VI and instead married Anne of Brittany and this marriage allowed Louis to reinforce the personal Union of Brittany and France. Louis persevered in the Italian Wars, initiating a second Italian campaign for the control of the Kingdom of Naples, Louis conquered the Duchy of Milan in 1500 and pushed forward to the Kingdom of Naples, which fell to him in 1501. Proclaimed King of Naples, Louis faced a new coalition gathered by Ferdinand II of Aragon and was forced to cede Naples to Spain in 1504. A popular king, Louis was proclaimed Father of the People in 1506 by the Estates-General of Tours for his reduction of the tax known as taille, legal reforms, Louis XII died in 1515 without a male heir. He was succeeded by his cousin Francis from the Angoulême cadet branch of the House of Valois, Louis was born on 27 June 1462 in the Château de Blois, Touraine. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Marie of Cleves, however, Louis XI may have been more influenced in this opinion by his opposition to the entire Orleanist faction of the royal family than by the actual facts of this paternity case. Despite any alleged doubts that King Louis XI may have had, King Louis XI died on 30 August 1483. He was succeeded to the throne of France by his thirteen year-old son, nobody knew the direction which the new king would take in leading the kingdom. Accordingly, on 24 October 1483, a call went out for a convocation of the Estates General of the French kingdom, in January 1484, deputies of the Estates General began to arrive in Tours, France. The deputies represented three different estates in society, the First Estate was the Church, in France this meant the Roman Catholic Church. The Second Estate was composed of the nobility and the royalty of France, the Third Estate was generally composed of commoners and the class of traders and merchants in France. Louis, the current Duke of Orleans and future Louis XII, each estate brought their chief complaints to the Estates General in hopes to have some impact on the policies that the new King would pursue. The First Estate wanted a return to the Pragmatic Sanction, the Pragmatic Sanction had been first instituted by King Charles VII, the current King Charles VIIIs grandfather
Louis XII of France
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Louis XII
Louis XII of France
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Bronze cannon of Louis XII, with porcupine emblem. Caliber: 172mm, length: 305 cm, weight: 1870kg. Recovered in Algiers in 1830. Musée de l'Armée.
Louis XII of France
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Louis XII leaving Alessandria to attack Genoa; by Jean Bourdichon
Louis XII of France
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Litterae super abrogatione pragmatice sanctionis, 1512
34.
Claude of France
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Claude of France, was Sovereign Duchess of the Duchy of Brittany after her mother, Anne, and Queen of France by marriage to Francis I. Claude was born on 13 October 1499 in Romorantin-Lanthenay as the eldest daughter of Louis XII of France, because her mother had no surviving sons, Claude became heiress to the Duchy of Brittany. The crown of France, however, could only to and through male heirs. Eager to keep Brittany separated from the French crown, Queen Anne, with help of Cardinal Georges dAmboise, promoted a solution for this problem. A part of the contract promised the inheritance of Brittany to the prince, already the next in line to thrones of Castile and Aragon, Austria. Thus, all the causes of the rivalry between Charles V and Francis I were decided even before the succession of the two princes. Indeed, previously Louise of Savoy obtained from the king a secret promise that Claude could be married to her son, Anne of Brittany, furious to see the triumph of Marshal of Gié, exerted all her influence to obtain his conviction for treason before the Parliament of Paris. On 9 January 1514, when her died, Claude became Duchess of Brittany. With this union, it was secured that Brittany would remain united to the French crown, however, the union was short-lived and childless, Louis XII died less than three months later, on 1 January 1515, reputedly worn out by his exertions in the bedchamber. Francis and Claude became king and queen, the time in history that the Duchess of Brittany became Queen of France. As Queen, Claude was eclipsed at court by her mother-in-law, Louise of Savoy, and her sister-in-law and she never ruled over Brittany, in 1515 she gave the government of her domains to her husband in perpetuity. Gabriel Miron repeated his functions under Anne of Brittany and remained as Chancellor of Queen Claude and first doctor, after Francis became king in 1515, Anne Boleyn stayed as a member of Claudes household. Its assumed that Anne served as Claudes translator whenever there were English visitors, such as in 1520, Anne Boleyn returned to England in late 1521, where she eventually became Queen of England as the second wife of Henry VIII. Diane de Poitiers, another of Claudes ladies, was an inspiration of the School of Fontainebleau of the French Renaissance. Claude was crowned Queen of France at St. Denis Basilica on 10 May 1517 by Cardinal Philippe de Luxembourg and she spent almost all her marriage in an endless round of annual pregnancies. Her husband had mistresses, but was usually relatively discreet. Claude imposed a moral code on her own household, which only a few chose to flout. Both Duchies joined in all good deed to our beautiful kingdom, the pawn of so much dynastic maneuvering, Claude was short in stature and afflicted with scoliosis, which gave her a hunched back, while her husband was bigger and athletic
Claude of France
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Claude
Claude of France
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Claude surrounded by her daughters (Charlotte, Madeleine and Marguerite), her sister Renée (or her deceased older daughter Louise) and her husband's second wife Eleanor of Austria, in the Livre d'heures de Catherine de Medicis, 1550. Currently in the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
Claude of France
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Le Sacre de Claude de France (Description of the coronation of Claude of France at St. Denis in 1517), tapestry illuminated by Jean Coene IV, ca. 1517.
Claude of France
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Tomb of Francis I and Claude of France at St. Denis Basilica.
35.
Anne of Brittany
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Anne of Brittany was Duchess of Brittany from 1488 until her death, and queen consort of France from 1491 to 1498 and from 1499 to her death. She is the woman to have been queen consort of France twice. During the Italian Wars, Anne also became queen consort of Naples, from 1501 to 1504, Anne was raised in Nantes during a series of conflicts in which the king of France sought to assert his suzerainty over Brittany. Her father, Francis II, Duke of Brittany, was the last male of the House of Montfort, upon his death in 1488, Anne became duchess regnant of Brittany, countess of Nantes, Montfort, and Richmond, and viscountess of Limoges. She was only 12 at that time, but she was already a coveted heiress because of Brittanys strategic position. The next year, she married Maximilian I of Austria by proxy and he started a military campaign which eventually forced the duchess to renounce her marriage. Anne eventually married Charles VIII in 1491, none of their children survived early childhood, and when the king died in 1498, the throne went to his cousin, Louis XII. Following an agreement made to secure the annexation of Brittany, Anne had to marry the new king, Louis XII was deeply in love with his wife and Anne had many opportunities to reassert the independence of her duchy. They had two daughters together and, although neither could succeed to the French throne due to the Salic Law, the eldest was proclaimed the heiress of Brittany. Anne managed to have her eldest daughter engaged to the future Charles V of Austria, grandchild of Maximilian I and this marriage later led to the formal union between France and Brittany. Anne is highly regarded in Brittany as a ruler who defended the duchy against France. In the Romantic period, she became a figure of Breton patriotism and she was honoured with many memorials and her artistic legacy is important in the Loire Valley, where she spent most of her life. She was notably responsible, with her husbands, for projects in the châteaux of Blois. Four years later, her parents had a daughter, Isabelle. Her mother died when she was little, while her father died when Anne was eleven years old and it is likely that she learned to read and write in French, and perhaps a little Latin. Contrary to what is claimed, it was unlikely that she learned Greek or Hebrew. She was raised by a governess, Françoise de Dinan, Lady of Chateaubriant, in addition, she had several tutors, including her butler and court poet, Jean Meschinot, who is thought to have taught her dancing, singing and music. The Treaty of Guérande in 1365, however, stated that in the absence of an heir from the House of Montfort
Anne of Brittany
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Anne
Anne of Brittany
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Treaty made signed on Anne's behalf with the Kingdom of England on 15 February 1490. The signing is autograph and also contains the personal seal of the Duchess. Archives nationales, France, AE/II/525.
Anne of Brittany
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Waxwork reenactment from the marriage of Duchess Anne of Brittany and King Charles VIII of France in the " marriage hall " of the Château de Langeais.
Anne of Brittany
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Medal of Queen Anne made in celebration to her stay at Lyon in 1499.
36.
Lorenzo de' Medici
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Lorenzo de Medici was an Italian statesman and de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic, who was one of the most powerful and enthusiastic patrons of the Renaissance. Also known as Lorenzo the Magnificent by contemporary Florentines, he was a magnate, diplomat, politician and patron of scholars and he is well known for his contribution to the art world by sponsoring artists such as Botticelli and Michelangelo. His life coincided with the phase of Italian Renaissance and his death coincided with the end of the Golden Age of Florence. The fragile peace that he helped maintain among the various Italian states collapsed with his death and he is buried in the Medici Chapel in Florence. Lorenzos grandfather, Cosimo de Medici, was the first member of the Medici family to combine running the Medici Bank with leading the Republic of Florence, Cosimo was one of the wealthiest men in Europe and spent a very large portion of his fortune in government and philanthropy. He was a patron of the arts and funded public works, Lorenzos mother, Lucrezia Tornabuoni, was a writer of sonnets and a friend to poets and philosophers of the Medici Academy. She became her sons advisor after the deaths of his father, with his brother Giuliano, he participated in jousting, hawking, hunting, and horse breeding for the Palio, a horse race in Siena. His own horse was named Morello di Vento, Piero sent Lorenzo on many important diplomatic missions when he was still a youth, which included trips to Rome to meet the pope and other important religious and political figures. Lorenzo was described as plain of appearance and was of average height, having a broad frame and short legs, a swarthy skin, squashed nose, short-sighted eyes. Giuliano, on the hand, was regarded as handsome, he was used as a model by Botticelli in his painting of Mars. Lorenzo, groomed for power, assumed a role in the state upon the death of his father in 1469. Lorenzo, like his grandfather, father, and son, ruled Florence indirectly through surrogates in the city councils, threats, payoffs, although Florence flourished under Lorenzos rule, he effectively reigned as a despot, and people had little political freedom. Rival Florentine families inevitably harboured resentments over the Medicis dominance, the most notable of the rival families was the Pazzi, who nearly brought Lorenzos reign to an end right after it began. Alum had been discovered by local citizens of Volterra, who turned to Florence to get backing to exploit this important natural resource. When they realized the value of the mine, the people of Volterra wanted its revenues for their municipal funds rather than having it enter the pockets of their Florentine backers. Thus began an insurrection and secession from Florence, which involved putting to death several opposing citizens, Lorenzo sent mercenaries to suppress the revolt by force, and the mercenaries ultimately sacked the city. Lorenzo hurried to Volterra to make amends, but the incident would remain a dark stain on his record, Giuliano was killed, brutally stabbed to death, but Lorenzo escaped with only a minor wound to the shoulder, having been defended by the poet Politian. That success enabled Lorenzo to secure constitutional changes within the Florentine Republics government, Lorenzo maintained good relations with Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire, as the Florentine maritime trade with the Ottomans was a major source of wealth for the Medici
Lorenzo de' Medici
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Portrait by Agnolo Bronzino
Lorenzo de' Medici
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Madonna of the Magnificat shows Lucrezia as the Madonna, surrounded by her children with Lorenzo holding a pot of ink.
Lorenzo de' Medici
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The Adoration of the Magi includes several generations of the family and their retainers. Sixteen-year-old Lorenzo is to the left, with his horse, prior for his departure on a diplomatic mission to Milan.
Lorenzo de' Medici
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Bust of Lorenzo de' Medici by Verrocchio (1480).
37.
Piero the Unfortunate
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Piero di Lorenzo de Medici, called Piero the Unfortunate, was the Gran maestro of Florence from 1492 until his exile in 1494. Piero di Lorenzo de Medici was the eldest son of Lorenzo de Medici and Clarice Orsini and he was educated to succeed his father as head of the Medici family and de facto ruler of the Florentine state, under notable figures such as Angelo Poliziano. However, his feeble, arrogant and undisciplined character was to prove unsuited to such a role, Piero took over as leader of Florence in 1492, upon Lorenzos death. Charles had been lured to Italy by Ludovico Sforza, ex-Regent of Milan, as a way to eject Ludovicos nephew Gian Galeazzo Sforza, after settling matters in Milan, Charles moved towards Naples. He needed to pass through Tuscany, as well as leave troops there, Piero attempted to stay neutral, but this was unacceptable to Charles, who intended to invade Tuscany. Piero quickly gave up as Charless army neared Florence and surrendered the chief fortresses of Tuscany to the invading army and his poor handling of the situation and failure to negotiate better terms led to an uproar in Florence, and the Medici family fled. The family palazzo was looted, and the substance as well as the form of the Republic of Florence was re-established, a member of the Medici family was not to rule Florence again until 1512. Piero and his family at first fled to Venice with the aid of Philippe de Commines, in 1486, Pieros uncle, Bernardo Rucellai negotiated for Piero to marry Alfonsina Orsini, and stood in for him in a marriage by proxy. Piero and Alfonsina met in 1488 and she was a daughter of Roberto Orsini, Count of Tagliacozzo and Caterina Sanseverino. They had two children, Lorenzo II, Duke of Urbino and she married Filippo Strozzi the Younger. Bernardo Rucellai and the Orti Oricellari, A Study on the Origin of Modern Political Thought, journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes. The Medici Women, Gender and Power in Renaissance Florence
Piero the Unfortunate
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Portrait of Piero de' Medici by Agnolo Bronzino.
38.
Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne
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Madeleine de La Tour dAuvergne was a younger daughter of Jean III de La Tour, Count of Auvergne and Lauraguais, and Jeanne de Bourbon-Vendôme. She was a representative of the senior branch of the house de La Tour dAuvergne. Madeleine is best known for being the mother of Catherine de Medici, as part of his efforts to gain power in Italy, Francis I of France turned to making certain strategic alliances. This agreement, like most others of the time, was cemented with a marriage alliance, leos nephew Lorenzo II de Medici had just become the leader of the Florentine republic in 1516. Francis wrote to him by stating, I intend to help you with all my power. I also wish to marry you off to some beautiful and good lady of noble birth and of my kin, so that the love which I bear you may grow, the good lady Francis proposed, his wealthy and distant relative Madeleine. Lorenzo duly accepted, as it was an honor to be tied to the French royal family, especially since he was merely a commoner. For Madeleine and her family, they were delighted to be tied into the sphere of the Pope himself and she married Duke Lorenzo II de Medicis in Château dAmboise on 5 May 1518. Their wedding was a festival that marked not only their union. As with the other festivities Francis put on throughout his life, dancing was done mostly in the Italian style. Seventy-two ladies were disguised in Italian, German, and other costumes, making for quite a rich display of silk. Francis gave Madeleine 10,000 gold coins, while Lorenzo offered rich gifts to Frances nobility and she died in Italy shortly before her husband on 28 April of the following year, of what is believed to have been the plague. She had just given birth to a daughter, Catherine de Medici, as both of their parents were deceased, Madeleine and her elder sister Anne shared extensive properties in Auvergne, Clermont, Berry, Castres, and Louraguais. Anne inherited Auvergne and married John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany in 1505, house of La Tour dAuvergne McGowan, Margaret M. Dance in the Renaissance, European Fashion, French Obsession. Queens and Mistresses of Renaissance France
Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne
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Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne
39.
Jeanne de Bourbon, Duchess of Bourbon
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Jeanne de Bourbon was a daughter of John II, Count of Vendôme and Isabelle de Beauvau. Through her daughter Madeleine, she was the grandmother of French queen consort Catherine de Medici. She was a daughter of John II, Count of Vendôme and her maternal grandparents were Louis de Beauvau, Seneschal of Anjou and Marguerite de Chambley. Her paternal grandparents were Louis, Count of Vendôme and Jeanne of Laval, Louis had served as both Grand Chamberman of France and Grand Master of France. He was a prominent member of the Armagnac party, Louis was the second son of John I, Count of La Marche and Catherine of Vendôme. John was a prominent soldier in the Hundred Years War, John was in turn the second son of James I, Count of La Marche and Jeanne of Châtillon. James was a Constable of France but was killed in the Battle of Brignais, James was the second surviving son of Louis I, Duke of Bourbon and Mary of Avesnes. Louis served as a Grand Chamberman of France but gained a reputation for his mental instability. Louis was the eldest son of Robert, Count of Clermont, Beatrix was the heiress of the Bourbon family and the matriarch of the new Bourbon line of the Capetian dynasty. Robert was the youngest son of Louis IX of France and Margaret of Provence and she married first John II, Duke of Bourbon in 1487. The groom was about sixty-one years old and the bride only twenty-two, John had survived two previous wives and his only son. He was in a need of an heir, however, they had one son, Louis. He was the heir but did not long survive his birth. John II died the year as his second and last known son. After becoming widowed, it is said that Charles VIII of France became so struck by Jeannes charms that he wished to marry her, a location for the wedding was even selected. However, his mother Queen Charlotte had another match in mind for her son, consequently, the Kings engagement with Jeanne was broken off. Desormeaux commented that Jeanne would have been Queen of France if beauty, Jeanne remained a widow for seven years. On 11 January 1495, Jeanne married her second husband John III and they had two daughters, Anne, married John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany
Jeanne de Bourbon, Duchess of Bourbon
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Jeanne de Bourbon
40.
The Walters Art Museum
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The Walters Art Museum, located in Mount Vernon-Belvedere, Baltimore, Maryland, is a public art museum founded and opened in 1934. It holds collections established during the mid-19th Century, located across the back alley, a block south of the Walters mansion on West Monument Street/Mount Vernon Place, on the northwest corner of North Charles Street at West Centre Street. The following year, The Walters reopened its original building after a dramatic three-year physical renovation and replacement of internal utilities. The Archimedes Palimpsest was on loan to the Walters Art Museum from a collector for conservation. This was one of the largest and most comprehensive such releases made by any museum, the Walters collection of ancient art includes examples from Egypt, Nubia, Greece, Rome, Etruria and the Near East. In 1911, Henry Walters purchased almost 100 gold artifacts from the Chiriqui region of western Panama in Central America, the museum owns the oldest surviving Chinese wood-and-lacquer image of the Buddha. It is exhibited in a gallery dedicated solely to this work, the Museum holds one of the largest and finest collections of Thai bronze, scrolls, and banner paintings in the world. Islamic art in all media is represented at the Walters, the Walters Museum owns an array of Islamic manuscripts. Walters Art Museum, MS W.613 contains five Mughal miniatures from a very important Khamsa of Nizami made for the Emperor Akbar, Henry Walters assembled a collection of art produced during the Middle Ages in all the major artistic media of the period. This forms the basis of the Walters medieval collection, for which the Museum is best known internationally. Considered one of the best collections of art in the United States, the Museums holdings include examples of metalwork, sculpture, stained glass, textiles, icons. Sculpted heads from the royal Abbey of St. Denis are rare surviving examples of sculptures that are directly connected with the origins of Gothic art in 12th Century France. An ivory casket covered with scenes of jousting knights is one of about a dozen such objects to survive in the world, many of these works are on display in the Museums galleries. Works in the collection are the subject of active research by the curatorial and conservation departments of the museum. The collection of European Renaissance and Baroque art features holdings of paintings, sculpture, furniture, ceramics, metal work, arms, the museum has one of ten surviving examples of the Sèvres pot-pourri vase in the shape of a ship from the 1750s and 1760s. William and Henry Walters collected works by late 19th Century French academic masters, Henry Walters was particularly interested in the courtly arts of 18th Century France. The museum’s collection of Sèvres porcelain includes a number of pieces that were made for members of the Royal Bourbon Court at Versailles Palace outside of Paris. Portrait miniatures and the examples of works, especially snuffboxes and watches, are displayed in the Treasury, along with some exceptional 19th-
The Walters Art Museum
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North Charles Street original main entrance to the Walters Art Museum
The Walters Art Museum
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Sculpture Garden (central "Great Hall") of the Walters Art Gallery (now Walters Art Museum) in the original Main Building of 1905-1909
The Walters Art Museum
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Sumerian male worshiper, c.2300 BC
The Walters Art Museum
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" Padiiset's Statue ", illustrates Canaan - Ancient Egypt trade, c.1700 B.C. (inscription c.900 B.C.)
41.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
International Standard Book Number
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A 13-digit ISBN, 978-3-16-148410-0, as represented by an EAN-13 bar code
42.
Capetian dynasty
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The Capetian dynasty /kəˈpiːʃən/, also known as the House of France, is a dynasty of Frankish origin, founded by Hugh Capet. It is among the largest and oldest royal houses in Europe and the world, the senior line ruled in France as the House of Capet from the election of Hugh Capet in 987 until the death of Charles IV in 1328. They were succeeded by cadet branches, the Houses of Valois and Bourbon, the dynasty had a crucial role in the formation of the French state. Initially obeyed only in their own demesne, the Île-de-France, the Capetian kings slowly but steadily increased their power, for a detailed narration on the growth of French royal power, see Crown lands of France. Members of the dynasty were traditionally Catholic, the early Capetians had an alliance with the Church. The French were also the most active participants in the Crusades, culminating in a series of five Crusader Kings – Louis VII, Philip Augustus, Louis VIII, Saint Louis, the Capetian alliance with the papacy suffered a severe blow after the disaster of the Aragonese Crusade. Philip IIIs son and successor, Philip IV, humiliated a pope, the later Valois, starting with Francis I, ignored religious differences and allied with the Ottoman Sultan to counter the growing power of the Holy Roman Empire. Henry IV was a Protestant at the time of his accession, the Capetians generally enjoyed a harmonious family relationship. By tradition, younger sons and brothers of the King of France are given appanages for them to maintain their rank, when Capetian cadets did aspire for kingship, their ambitions were directed not at the French throne, but at foreign thrones. Through this, the Capetians spread widely over Europe, in modern times, both King Felipe VI of Spain and Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg are members of this family, both through the Bourbon branch of the dynasty. Along with the House of Habsburg, it was one of the two most powerful continental European royal families, dominating European politics for five centuries. The name of the dynasty derives from its founder, Hugh, the meaning of Capet is unknown. While folk etymology identifies it with cape, other suggestions suggest it to be connected to the Latin word caput, historians in the 19th century came to apply the name Capetian to both the ruling house of France and to the wider-spread male-line descendants of Hugh Capet. It was not a contemporary practice, the name Capet has also been used as a surname for French royalty, particularly but not exclusively those of the House of Capet. One notable use was during the French Revolution, when the dethroned King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette were referred to as Louis, the dynastic surname now used to describe Hugh Capets family prior to his election as King of France is Robertians or Robertines. The name is derived from the familys first certain ancestor, Robert the Strong, Robert was probably son of Robert III of Worms and grandson of Robert of Hesbaye. The Robertians probably originated in the county Hesbaye, around Tongeren in modern-day Belgium, the sons of Robert the Strong were Odo and Robert, who both ruled as king of Western Francia. The family became Counts of Paris under Odo and Dukes of the Franks under Robert, the Carolingian dynasty ceased to rule France upon the death of Louis V
Capetian dynasty
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Capetian Armorial
43.
List of Spanish monarchs
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This is a list of Spanish monarchs, that is, rulers of the country of Spain in the modern sense of the word. Although their kingdoms continued to be separate, with their personal union they ruled together as one dominion. Ferdinand also conquered the part of Navarre and annexed it to what was to become Spain. Isabella left her kingdom to her daughter Joanna of Castile, Ferdinand served as her regent during her insanity, though rebuffed by the Castilian nobility and replaced by Joannas husband Philip the Handsome, he resumed his regency after Philips death. In 1516, after Ferdinand IIs death, his daughter Joanna inherited the kingdom of Aragon, but was kept prisoner at Tordesillas as insane. As Joannas son, the future Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, did not want to be merely a regent, he was proclaimed king of Castile, subsequently, Castilian and Aragonese Cortes alleged oath to him as co-king with his mother. Upon her death, he became sole King of Castile and Aragon, under Isabella and Ferdinand, the royal dynasties of Aragon and Castile were united into a single line. Historiography of Spain generally treats this as the formation of the Kingdom of Spain, but in actuality and it wasnt until the Nueva Planta decrees of the early 18th century that the two lands were formally merged into a single state. Under Joanna and Charles I, the two thrones of Castile and Aragon were finally united under one monarch, traditional numbering of monarchs follows the Castillian crown, i. e. after King Ferdinand, the next Ferdinand was numbered VI. Likewise, Alfonso XII takes his number following that of Alfonso XI of Castile rather than that of Alfonso V of Aragon, in the year 1700 Charles II died. His will named the 16-year-old Philip, the grandson of Charless sister Maria Theresa of Spain, as his successor to the whole Spanish Empire. Upon any possible refusal of the undivided Spanish possessions, the Crown of Spain would be offered next to Philips younger brother Charles, Duke of Berry, or, next, Philip claimed primogeniture because Anne was older than Maria Anna. This was countered by the French claim that it was on the basis of a dowry that had never been paid, after a long council meeting where the Dauphin spoke up in favour of his sons rights, it was agreed that Philip would ascend the throne. Following this, a war broke out and Archduke Charles was also proclaimed king of Spain, as Charles III and he was proclaimed in Vienna, and also in Madrid in the years 1706 and 1710. Charles renounced his claims to the Spanish throne in the Treaty of Rastatt of 1714, Philip ascended the Spanish throne but had to renounce his claim to the throne of France for himself and his descendants. The only monarch from this dynasty was Joseph I, imposed by his brother Napoleon I of France after Charles IV, the title used by Joseph I was King of the Spains and the Indias, by the Grace of God and the Constitution of the State. He was also later given all of the titles of the previous kings, a government in opposition to the French was formed in Cádiz on 25 September 1808, which continued to recognize the imprisoned Ferdinand VII as king. This government was recognized as the legitimate Spanish government by Britain
List of Spanish monarchs
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the Catholic
List of Spanish monarchs
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Kingdom of Spain
List of Spanish monarchs
List of Spanish monarchs
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the Mad
44.
Queen Letizia of Spain
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Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano is the Queen of Spain as the wife of King Felipe VI, who ascended on 19 June 2014 on the abdication of his father Juan Carlos I. Before her marriage to Felipe, Letizia was a journalist and news anchor, Letizia and Felipe have two daughters, Leonor, Princess of Asturias, who is now the heir presumptive, and Infanta Sofía. Letizia was born in Oviedo, Asturias, to a middle-class family and she is the eldest daughter of Jesús José Ortiz Álvarez, a journalist, and his first wife, María de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodríguez, a registered nurse and hospital union representative. She has two sisters, Telma and Érika, whose death was widely reported by press as due to an intentional prescription drug overdose. Her parents divorced in 1999 and her father remarried on 1 September 2000 in Madrid on 18 March 2004 to fellow journalist Ana Togores, born ca. Letizias paternal grandparents were José Luis Ortiz Velasco, an employee at Olivetti, and María del Carmen Menchu Álvarez del Valle. Her maternal grandfather was Francisco Julio Rocasolano Camacho, a mechanic and cab driver in Madrid for over 20 years who was of French, Letizias maternal grandmother, Enriqueta Rodriguez Figueredo was born in the Philippines to Spanish parents. British genealogists have provided evidence that through her mothers Rocasolano lineage, Letizia descends from Astorg Roquesoulane, Letizia attended La Gesta School in Oviedo, before her family moved to Madrid, where she attended high school at the Ramiro de Maeztu High School. During her studies, Letizia worked for the Asturian daily newspaper La Nueva España and later for the newspaper ABC, after completing her studies, she spent some time in Guadalajara, Mexico, working at the newspaper Siglo 21. After returning to Spain, she worked for the Spanish version of the economic channel Bloomberg before moving to the news network CNN+, in 2000, she moved to TVE, where she started working for the news channel 24 Horas. In 2002, she anchored the news report programme Informe Semanal. In August 2003, a few months before her engagement to Felipe, Letizia was promoted to anchor of the TVE daily evening news programme Telediario 2, in 2000, Letizia reported from Washington, D. C. on the presidential elections. In September 2001, she broadcast live from Ground Zero following the 9/11 attacks in New York and in 2003, in 2002 she sent several reports from Galicia in northern Spain following the ecological disaster when the oil tanker Prestige sank. Letizia married Alonso Guerrero Pérez, a writer and a literature teacher, on 7 August 1998, in a simple civil ceremony at Almendralejo, in Badajoz. The marriage was dissolved by divorce in 1999, on 1 November 2003, to the surprise of many, the Royal Household announced Letizias engagement to the Prince of Asturias. Afterwards, she moved to live in a wing of Zarzuela Palace until the day of her wedding, the Prince of Asturias had proposed to her with a 16-baguette diamond engagement ring with a white gold trim. She marked the occasion by giving him gold and sapphire cufflinks. The wedding took place on 22 May 2004 in the Cathedral Santa María la Real de la Almudena in Madrid and it was the first royal wedding in this cathedral, which was consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1993
Queen Letizia of Spain
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Queen Letizia in September 2014
Queen Letizia of Spain
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The Prince and Princess of Asturias at the wedding of the Crown Princess of Sweden in 2010
45.
Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
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Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg was Queen of Spain as the wife of King Alfonso XIII. Victoria Eugenie was born on 24 October 1887 at Balmoral Castle, as Prince Henry was the product of a morganatic marriage, he took his style of Prince of Battenberg from his mother, who had been created Princess of Battenberg in her own right. To her family, and the British general public, she was known by the last of her names, therefore, she spent her childhood at Windsor Castle, Balmoral, and Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. She was a bridesmaid at the wedding of her cousins, the Duke and her father died while on active military service after contracting fever in Africa in 1896. After the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, the Battenbergs moved to London, in 1905, the King of Spain made an official state visit to the United Kingdom. Victoria Eugenies uncle, King Edward VII, hosted a dinner in Buckingham Palace, Alfonso was seated between Queen Alexandra and Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, King Edwards sister. He noticed Victoria Eugenie and asked who was the dinner guest with almost white hair, everybody knew that King Alfonso was looking for a suitable bride and one of the strongest candidates was Princess Patricia of Connaught, daughter of King Edwards brother, the Duke of Connaught. As Princess Patricia seemed not to be impressed by the Spanish monarch, Alfonso indulged his interest in Victoria Eugenie, when Alfonso returned to Spain he frequently sent postcards to Victoria Eugenie and spoke of her approvingly. Another obstacle to a marriage was Victoria Eugenies Protestantism, another potential problem was haemophilia, the disease that Victoria had transmitted to some of her descendants. Eugenies brother Leopold was a haemophiliac, so there was a 50% probability that Victoria Eugenie would be a carrier, still, if Alfonso married her, their issue could be affected by the disease. Some days later at Windsor, King Edward congratulated his niece on her future engagement, Princess Beatrice and her daughter arrived in Biarritz on 22 January and stayed at the Villa Mauriscot where some days later King Alfonso met them. At the Villa Mauriscot, Alfonso and his future bride conducted a chaperoned, then, Alfonso took Victoria Eugenie and her mother to San Sebastián to meet Queen Maria Cristina. The official reception of Victoria Eugenie into the Catholic faith took place on 5 March 1906 at Miramar Palace in San Sebastián, the terms of the marriage were settled by two agreements, a public treaty and a private contractual arrangement. Ratifications were exchanged on 23 May following. Article I, the treatys reference to the forfeiture of Victoria Eugénies British succession rights reflected neither the British governments censure of the alliance, nor any renunciation made by her. Rather, it was a recognition of the fact that by marrying a Roman Catholic. This exclusion was personal and limited, those among her descendants who do not become Roman Catholic remain in the line of succession to the British Throne, given at Our Court of Saint Jamess, the Third day of April 1906, in the Sixth Year of Our Reign. M Gladstone This was accompanied by a published declaration which read. Princess Victoria Eugenie married King Alfonso XIII at the Royal Monastery of San Jerónimo in Madrid on May 31,1906, present at the ceremony were her widowed mother and brothers, as well as her cousins, the Prince and Princess of Wales
Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
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Victoria Eugenie
Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
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Victoria Eugenie dressed in Spanish fashion, as painted by Joaquín Sorolla
Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
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Assassination attempt of 1906
Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
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Queen Victoria Eugenie, in 1918, with her six children: (from left to right) Infanta Maria Cristina, Alfonso, Prince of Asturias, Infante Gonzalo, Infante Juan, Infante Jaime and Infanta Beatriz.
46.
Maria Christina of Austria
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Maria Christina Henriette Desideria Felicitas Raineria of Austria, also known as Maria Christina Henrietta Désirée Félicité Rénière was Queen of Spain as the second wife of King Alfonso XII. She was regent during the minority of their son, Alfonso XIII, known to her family as Christa, she was born at Židlochovice Castle, near Brno, in Moravia, a daughter of Archduke Karl Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Archduchess Elisabeth Franziska of Austria. Her paternal grandparents were Archduke Charles of Austria and Princess Henriette Alexandrine of Nassau-Weilburg, various sources attributed good traits to Maria Christina before her marriage. One states she was tall, fair, sensible, and well educated and she was Princess-Abbess of the Theresian Royal and Imperial Ladies Chapter of the Castle of Prague. She lived a life as queen. During this period, Maria Christina ruled as regent until her child, a son, was born and her chief adviser and head of government was Práxedes Mateo Sagasta. Her role was ceremonial, and her purpose was to preserve the crown for her son until he became an adult. After her sons marriage in 1906, she lost her position as first lady at court, nevertheless, Alfonso XIII continued to look to her on many occasions for advice. She was the 805th Dame of the Royal Order of Queen Maria Luisa, in February 1929, after some weeks of heart disease, she died at the Royal Palace in Madrid and is buried at El Escorial. Sir Charles Petrie, Alfonso XIIIs biographer, maintained that the Queen dowagers death had an effect on her son. Within little more than two years the monarchy had collapsed, campos y Fernández de Sevilla, Francisco-Javier. María Cristina de Habsburgo y la Regencia, 1885–1902, san Lorenzo de El Escorial, Estudios Superiores del Escorial, Real Colegio Universitario María Cristina,1994. The Function of Maria Christina of Austrias Regency, 1885–1902, in Preserving the Spanish Monarchy, figueroa y Torres, Alvaro de, Conde de Romanones. Doña María Cristina de Habsburgo Lorena, la discreta regente de España, diez y seis años de regencia, María Cristina de Hapsburgo-Lorena, 1885–1902. Habsburgs letzte Herrscherin, Maria Christine, Erzherzogin von Österreich, Königin-Regentin von Spanien
Maria Christina of Austria
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Maria Christina of Austria
Maria Christina of Austria
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Maria Christina with her three children, 1897.
47.
Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony
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Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony was Queen consort of Spain as the wife of King Ferdinand VII of Spain. She was the youngest daughter of Prince Maximilian of Saxony and his first wife, Princess Carolina of Parma and she was a member of the house of Wettin. Born Princess Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony, she lost her mother when she was a few old, so her father sent her to a convent near the Elbe river. As a result, Maria Josepha Amalia had a religious upbringing and was a fervent Roman Catholic all her life. At birth she was entitled to the style of Serene Highness as Saxony remained an electorate until 1806, after then, she was entitled to the style of Royal Highness. Ferdinand VII of Spains second wife, Maria Isabel of Portugal, thus the King began to look for a new consort and his choice fell on Maria Josepha Amalia. They married on 20 October 1819 in Madrid, although the new queen was too young, naive and inexperienced, the king fell in love with her because of her sweet temper. Besides, she was more beautiful than his previous wives, Maria Antonia of Naples. After his two marriages, there was great pressure for the Bourbon dynasty in Spain to ensure that King Ferdinand VII had an heir. It took a letter sent by Pope Pius VII in order to convince the queen that sexual relations between spouses were not contrary to the morality of Catholicism. She died as a result of fevers on 18 May 1829 in Aranjuez, leaving her husband heartbroken and her husband remarried for the fourth time to Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies who eventually gave birth to the future Queen Isabella II of Spain. Media related to Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony at Wikimedia Commons
Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony
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Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony
48.
Julie Clary
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Marie Julie Clary was born in Marseille, France, the daughter of François Clary, a wealthy silk manufacturer and merchant of Irish heritage, and his second wife Françoise Rose Somis. Her sister Désirée Clary, six years younger, became Queen of Sweden and Norway when her husband and their brother, Nicholas Joseph Clary, was created 1st Comte Clary and married Anne Jeanne Rouyer. On 1 August 1794, at Cuges, she married Joseph Bonaparte and she accompanied her spouse to Italy when he became ambassador to Rome in 1797, and then settled with him in Paris in 1800. In 1804, when her brother-in-law Napoleon made himself emperor, he named his brother Joseph Imperial Prince, during the coronation of the emperor and empress the same year, Julie was given the task to carry the train of the empress with her sisters-in-law. Joseph was made King of Naples in 1806, thereby making Julie queen consort of Naples and she preferred to stay separated from him in Mortefontaine, however, and was ceremoniously treated as queen in the Imperial court of Paris. She finally joined Joseph in Naples before April 1808, when she was sent there by Napoleon to support him, as he by that time faced a rebellion. When they left, the Napolitans were convinced that they had removed many valuables with them, and commented, The King arrived like a sovereign, the Queen arrived in rags and left like a sovereign. In 1808, Joseph was made King of Spain and Julie thereby formally became Queen of Spain and she was the first queen of Spain not of royal birth. However, she did not join him when he traveled to Spain and in fact never lived there and she was kept informed from Vichy and Plombières about her husbands adulterous relationships in Spain. In Spain, she was referred to as Reina ausente, napoleons army was defeated at the Battle of Vitoria on 21 June 1813. After the deposition of Napoleon, Julie bought the castle of Prangins in Switzerland, during the Hundred Days in 1815, Julie was among those to welcome Napoleon to the Palace in Paris, dressed in Imperial court robe, alongside his former stepdaughter Hortense. Julie went with her daughters to Frankfurt, where she stayed for six years and she later settled in Brussels and then in Florence, Italy, at the Serristori Palace. She did not socialize with the French people and she was described as charming, quiet, dignified and peaceful and generally well liked. In 1823, she parted with her sister Desiree, who, as the Queen of Sweden, in 1840, Joseph joined Julie in Florence. In spite of his adultery, she referred to Joseph as my beloved husband, Joseph Bonaparte died on 28 July 1844, aged 76. Julie died eight months later in Florence, on 7 April 1845 and they were buried side by side at the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence. Joseph and Julie Bonaparte had three daughters, Julie Joséphine Bonaparte, zénaïde Laetitia Julie Bonaparte, had twelve children. Charlotte Napoléone Bonaparte, married in 1826 Napoléon Louis, eldest son of Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland, reinas de España, Casa de Borbón, I, Alderabán, El legado de la historia, Madrid,1999
Julie Clary
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Julie Clary and her daughters
49.
Maria Luisa of Parma
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Maria Luisa of Parma was Queen consort of Spain from 1788 to 1808 as the wife of King Charles IV of Spain. She was the youngest daughter of Philip, Duke of Parma and his wife, Princess Louise-Élisabeth of France, born in Parma, she was christened Luisa Maria Teresa Anna, but is known to history by the short Spanish form of this name, María Luisa. Her parents had been the Duke and Duchess of Parma since 1749 and she, her brother Ferdinand, and her sister Isabella were educated in Parma by Étienne Bonnot de Condillac, a well-known French philosopher. María Luisas mother tried to engage her to Louis, Duke of Burgundy, however, the young duke died in 1761. In 1762 Maria Luisa instead became engaged to Charles, Prince of Asturias, later King Charles IV of Spain, as there was no queen in Spain at that time, María Luisa became the first lady in precedence at the court from the beginning of her residence there. Her husband was the son and heir of the widowed Charles III of Spain, previously Duke of Parma and King of Naples, due to pressure from Napoleon I, Marías husband abdicated the throne of Spain and spent the rest of his life in exile. When Napoleons army invaded the country, several pamphlets blamed her for the abdication, María Luisa spent some years in France and then in Rome. Both María Luisa and her husband died in Italy in early 1819, in 1792, the Order of Queen Maria Luisa for women was founded on her suggestion. Maria Luisa married her first cousin Charles IV, in 1765, a miscarriage of a daughter in the 6th month of pregnancy. A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy, a miscarriage of a son in the 4th and a half month of pregnancy. A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy, a miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy. A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy, a miscarriage of a son in the 5th and a half month of pregnancy. A miscarriage of a son in the 4th and a month of pregnancy. EPTON, Nina, The Spanish mousetrap, Napoleon and the Court of Spain, HILT, Douglas, The troubled trinity, Godoy and the Spanish monarchs
Maria Luisa of Parma
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Portrait of the Queen by Vicente López, after original by Goya (1816).
Maria Luisa of Parma
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The family of the Duke of Parma.
Maria Luisa of Parma
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Carlos Clemente Infante of Spain
Maria Luisa of Parma
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Carlota Joaquina Queen of Portugal and the Algarves
50.
Maria Amalia of Saxony
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She was the mother of thirteen children, many of whom died in childhood. A popular consort, she oversaw the construction of the Caserta Palace outside Naples as well as other projects in her husbands domains. Moving to Spain in 1759, she set about the improvements to the Royal Palace of Madrid. Maria Amalia was politically active and openly participated in affairs in both Naples and Spain. She was born at Dresden Castle in Dresden, the daughter of Augustus III of Poland, Elector of Saxony and Maria Josepha of Austria, herself daughter of Joseph I and her mother was the first cousin of Empress Maria Theresa. The infant was baptised with the names Maria Amalia Christina Franziska Xaveria Flora Walburga and her youngest sister, Princess Kunigunde was a possible wife for the future Philippe Égalité. She grew up at the court of Dresden and was educated in French, dance and she was also an accomplished musician and sang and played the keyboard from an early age. In 1738 Maria Amalia became engaged to Charles, King of Naples and Sicily, the impenetrable secret negotiations had taken place earlier in Vienna, where the Dowager Empress Wilhelmina Amalia, grandmother of Maria Amalia, played an important part in the negotiations. The Spanish ambassador in Vienna, Count Fuenclara, acted on behalf of the courts of Madrid and Naples, in December 1737, a papal dispensation was made, and the marriage announced in the beginning 1738. On May 8,1738, Maria Amalia had a ceremony at Dresden with her brother, Frederick Christian of Saxony. Since this marriage was looked upon favorably by the papacy, it soothed the diplomatic disagreements between Charles and the Papal states, on July 4,1738, Maria Amalia arrived at Naples and to what was described as a euphoric welcome. The couple met for the first time on June 19,1738 at Portella, at court, festivities lasted till July 3 when Charles created the Royal order of San Gennaro – the most prestigious chivalric order in the kingdom. He later had the Order of Charles III created in Spain on 19 September 1771, despite being an arranged marriage, the couple became very close, it was noted and reported to her mother-in-law in Spain, that Charles seemed happy and pleased when he first met her. Maria Amalia was described as a beauty and as a skillful rider, as Queen, she exerted great influence upon politics despite her frequent illnesses, and she actively participated in state affairs. He displeasure led directly to the latter being deposed as prime minister, Maria Amalia did not need to keep her influence secret, after the birth of her first son in 1747, she was given a seat in the council of state. In 1744, however she was forced to agree to declare war and she then favored Great Britain before France and Austria. Maria Amalia was talked about because of her favorites, which were to have influence over her policy when she was ill, such as princess Anna Francesca Pinelli. In 1754, she supported the career of Bernardo Tanucci as Foreign Minister, however, they left Naples before its completion due to her declining health so they never actually lived in the palace
Maria Amalia of Saxony
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Maria Amalia of Saxony depicted in Polish attire in 1738, Museo del Prado
Maria Amalia of Saxony
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Portrait of Maria Amalia overlooking the Neapolitan crown, by Giuseppe Bonito, c. 1745.
Maria Amalia of Saxony
51.
Elisabeth Farnese
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Elisabeth Farnese was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She exerted great influence over Spains foreign policy and was the de facto ruler of Spain from 1714 until 1746, from 1759 until 1760, she governed as regent. Elisabeth was born at the Palazzo della Pilotta in Parma, daughter of Odoardo Farnese, Elisabeth would later become the heiress of her fathers dominions after her uncle Francesco Farnese, Duke of Parma and his younger brother both remained childless. Elisabeth was raised in seclusion in an apartment in the Palace in Parma and she had a difficult relationship with her mother, but was reportedly deeply devoted to her uncle-stepfather. She was a student within dance, studied painting under Pierantonio Avanzini and enjoyed music. She survived a virulent attack of smallpox shortly after the War of the Spanish Succession and she was therefore made many marriage proposals. Victor Amadeus, Prince of Piedmont and Francesco dEste, Hereditary Prince of Modena both asked for her hand but negotiations failed, as well as Prince Pio della Mirandola. The Duchy of Parma would later be inherited by her first son, after his accession to the Spanish throne, the title passed on to her third son, Infante Felipe. It was he who founded the modern day House of Bourbon-Parma, on 16 September 1714 she was married by proxy at Parma to Philip V of Spain. The marriage was arranged by the ambassador of Parma, Cardinal Alberoni, with the concurrence of the Princesse des Ursins, Elisabeth was a natural choice for Philip V because of the traditional Spanish interests in Italian provinces, as she was the heir of the Parmesan throne. Elisabeth left Parma in September and traveled to Spain by land in a retinue led by Marquis Schotta, originally intended to travel by sea, she became ill in Genova, and the plans were therefore altered. On her way to Spain, she met the Prince of Monaco and the French ambassador, Elisabeth spent several days in Bayonne in November as guest of her maternal aunt, the Queen Dowager Maria Anna of Spain. At the Franco-Spanish border, she was met by Alberoni, who spent several days warning her against des Ursins, upon entrance to Spain, she refused to part with her Italian retinue in exchange with a Spanish one, as had originally been planned. On 23 December at Jadraque, Elisabeth met the Princesse des Ursins, the princess had sent out spies who reported that Elisabeth was in fact not at all a timid person who would be easy to control. Elisabeth received des Ursins and asked to speak with her privately, shortly after, the party could hear the sounds of a violent argument, after which des Ursins was arrested, fired, and immediately escorted over the border to France. There have been different versions of this incident, and different suggestions as to how it occurred. Her chief adviser was Alberoni, who guided her as how to protect the interests of herself and Parma, while he himself, Queen Elisabeth quickly obtained complete influence over Philip, who himself wished to be dominated. Reportedly she had physical charm and purposefulness, she was intelligent and could converse, be gay, jovial and charming, the king did not live in his own apartments but in the queens, where he spent the whole night
Elisabeth Farnese
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Elisabeth Farnese
Elisabeth Farnese
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Elisabeth with her eldest son Charles.
Elisabeth Farnese
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Philip V and Elisabeth in 1739
52.
Maria Anna of Neuburg
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Maria Anna of Neuburg was Queen of Spain from 1689 to 1700 as the second wife of King Charles II. Born in Benrath Palace in Düsseldorf, she was the child of Philip William, Elector of the Palatinate. Her family affectionately called her Mariandl, since an early age, she was physically attractive, tall, thin, red-haired and with a fair complexion. However, she was known for being haughty, vain, authoritarian. Marie Louise of Orléans, the first wife of Charles II of Spain, had died childless on 12 February 1689, Maria Anna was chosen out of the many candidates to become his second wife because her ancestors had been very fertile - her parents had 17 children. In addition, her eldest sister Eleonore was married to Emperor Leopold I so Spains ties with the Austrian branch of the Habsburgs would become even stronger. The marriage by proxy took place on 28 August 1689 in Ingolstadt, Germany with the attendance of her brother-in-law Emperor Leopold, however, it took Maria Anna several months to arrive in Spain, which didnt happen until the spring of 1690. She married Charles in person on 14 May 1690 in San Diego, nevertheless, this marriage also remained childless, in all probability not because she was infertile herself but because of the kings pervasive physical and mental disabilities. During her time as queen, Maria Anna dominated her husband through her bursts of anger and her imaginary pregnancies, nevertheless, the economy of the kingdom was far from good and even Maria Anna had to make some economic sacrifices at times. For instance, once she was forced to pawn her own jewels in order to cover some expenses because her husband had no money at the time and she complained about this to her family writing that her sisters had had a better dowry than her. Her anger was even greater after hearing that her predecessor, Marie Louise of Orleans, had brought magnificent jewels with her when she married Charles. Her husband died on 1 November 1700 in Madrid and in his will he stated that his widow should be given a good allowance each year as well as treated with respect by his successor. However, the new king, Philip V, ordered Maria Anna to leave Madrid before making his entrance into the capital, the queen had no choice but to settle in the nearby city of Toledo, where she lived in the old and dark Alcazar. She sent some letters to her family in Germany, asking for their help, two years later, in 1706, her destiny changed when her nephew, Archduke Charles of Austria, occupied the city of Toledo with the imperial army. Naturally Maria Anna was very pleased and welcomed them, something that caused King Philip V to expel her from Spain a few years later and she settled in Bayonne, France, where she lived during the next few decades, forgotten by everyone. In 1739, being old and sick, she was allowed to return to Spain. She settled in the Infantado Palace in Guadalajara, Spain, where she died on 16 July 1740 and she was buried in El Escorial Monastery
Maria Anna of Neuburg
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Maria Anna of Neuburg
Maria Anna of Neuburg
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Maria Anna of Neuburg on horseback by Luca Giordano, Prado Museum, Madrid.
53.
Mariana of Austria
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Mariana of Austria was Queen consort of Spain as the second spouse of King Philip IV, who was also her maternal uncle. At the death of her husband in 1665, Queen Mariana became regent for her son Charles II, the last Spanish Habsburg, born as Maria Anna on 24 December 1634 in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, she was the granddaughter of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II. Her parents were Ferdinand III and Maria Anna of Spain, the sister of Maria Annas future husband, King Philip IV of Spain. Her father, who would become emperor in 1637, was as yet only King of Hungary and Bohemia and her grandfather Emperor Ferdinand II died when she was 3 and her father became Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III. Maria Anna, was the second of six children, three of which died in early childhood and her oldest brother, Ferdinand IV of Hungary died young. Only Maria Anna and her brother, the future Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I. Maria Anna was destined from her years to continue the policy of intermarriage between the two branches of the Habsburg family, the Austrian and the Spanish. In 1646 Maria Anna, then eleven years old, was engaged to her Spanish Habsburg first cousin Balthasar Charles, Prince of Asturias, however, he died only three months later age 16. With Balthasar Charless death, Philip IV was left without a male heir, Philip was a widower, as his beautiful and beloved French wife, Elisabeth of France, had just died a few years prior. The forty-four-year-old Philip decided to marry his fourteen-year-old niece himself, after a marriage by proxy, they were wedded on 7 October 1649 in Navalcarnero, near Madrid, and spent their wedding night at El Escorial. From then on, she went by her name in Spanish, Mariana and Philips marriage was not a happy one due to both Philips infidelities and the age difference between them. Mariana had nothing to do with governance while her husband reigned, instead she buried herself in religion to an extent that was excessive even for her time and place. Mariana and Philips marriage produced five children, however, only two lived into adulthood. Their first child was Margaret Theresa, who was born on 12 July 1651, just as her mother did, she went on to marry her own maternal uncle Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor. In 1655, Mariana then had another daughter, Maria Ambrosia de la Concepción, during this time, there were those at court who wanted Philip to officially name his eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, as his heir, as she was already heir presumptive according to Spanish tradition. Mariana began feeling the pressure to have a son, eventually, her first son, Philip Prospero, was born on 28 November 1657, who was joyously received. She then gave birth to the Infante Ferdinand Thomas in 1658, sadly, her son Philip Prospero died in 1661. But that same year, Mariana gave birth to her last child, Charles was born physically and mentally disabled
Mariana of Austria
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Mariana in 1652 by Velázquez, Prado Museum, Madrid.
Mariana of Austria
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Maria Anna and her older brother, Ferdinand, by Frans Luycx, c. 1636
Mariana of Austria
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The reflection of Mariana and Philip IV appears in Las Meninas, by Velázquez.
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Mariana by Velázquez, 1660.
54.
Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain
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Margaret of Austria was Queen consort of Spain and Portugal by her marriage to King Philip III and II. Margaret was the daughter of Archduke Charles II of Austria, the son of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I and Anne of Bohemia, Margarets mother was Maria Anna of Bavaria. Her elder brother was the Archduke Ferdinand, who succeeded as Emperor in 1619, two of her sisters, Anna and Constance, through their subsequent marriages to King Sigismund III Vasa, became Queens of Poland. Margaret married Philip III of Spain, her first cousin, once-removed, on 18 April 1599, Philip had an affectionate, close relationship with Margaret, and paid her additional attention after she bore him a son in 1605. Margaret was also a great patroness of the arts and she was considered by contemporaries to be a very pious Catholic and astute and very skillful in her political dealings. They emphasised Spains status as a Catholic power acting in the interest of Catholic Europe and they were successful, for example, in convincing Philip to provide financial support to Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II. Queen Margaret was melancholic and unhappy about the influence of the Duke, whom she considered corrupt, over her husband, the Duke of Lerma was eventually removed from power in 1618, though only after Margarets death. Margaret died while giving birth to her youngest child, Alfonso and her husband never remarried and died ten years later. Sánchez, Pious and Political Images of a Habsburg Woman at the Court of Philip III, in, Magdalena S. Sánchez and Alain Saint-Saëns, Spanish women in the golden age, images and realities
Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain
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Margaret of Austria, 1609, by Bartolomé González y Serrano
55.
Virtual International Authority File
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The Virtual International Authority File is an international authority file. It is a joint project of national libraries and operated by the Online Computer Library Center. The project was initiated by the US Library of Congress, the German National Library, the National Library of France joined the project on October 5,2007. The project transitions to a service of the OCLC on April 4,2012, the aim is to link the national authority files to a single virtual authority file. In this file, identical records from the different data sets are linked together, a VIAF record receives a standard data number, contains the primary see and see also records from the original records, and refers to the original authority records. The data are available online and are available for research and data exchange. Reciprocal updating uses the Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting protocol, the file numbers are also being added to Wikipedia biographical articles and are incorporated into Wikidata. VIAFs clustering algorithm is run every month, as more data are added from participating libraries, clusters of authority records may coalesce or split, leading to some fluctuation in the VIAF identifier of certain authority records
Virtual International Authority File
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Screenshot 2012
56.
Integrated Authority File
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The Integrated Authority File or GND is an international authority file for the organisation of personal names, subject headings and corporate bodies from catalogues. It is used mainly for documentation in libraries and increasingly also by archives, the GND is managed by the German National Library in cooperation with various regional library networks in German-speaking Europe and other partners. The GND falls under the Creative Commons Zero license, the GND specification provides a hierarchy of high-level entities and sub-classes, useful in library classification, and an approach to unambiguous identification of single elements. It also comprises an ontology intended for knowledge representation in the semantic web, available in the RDF format
Integrated Authority File
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GND screenshot
57.
Elisabeth of Valois
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Elisabeth of Valois was a Spanish queen consort. The eldest daughter of Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici and she was born in the Château de Fontainebleau. Even though Elisabeth had to give precedence to Mary, the two would remain friends for the rest of their lives. While it is acknowledged that her sister Margaret and her future sister-in-law Mary were prettier than she, she was one of Catherines attractive daughters. Elisabeth was also described as being shy, timid and very much in awe of her mother, although there is also evidence that Catherine was tender. This was certainly evident in her letters to Elisabeth, Elisabeth married Philip II of Spain son of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and Isabella of Portugal in 1559. Originally married via proxy at Notre Dame prior to leaving France, the marriage was a result of the Peace of Cateau Cambrésis. His second wife, Mary I of England, had recently died, at her wedding, she met the famous painter Sofonisba Anguissola and Ana de Mendoza, who would live with her the rest of her life. Phillip II appointed Anguissola, a renowned Italian female artist, to be a lady-in-waiting, under Anguissolas tutelage, Elisabeth improved her amateur painting skills even further. Anguissola also influenced the works of her children, Isabella Clara Eugenia and Caterina Michaela. Philip was completely enchanted by his 14-year-old bride, and within a period of time had given up his mistress. Despite the significant age difference, Elisabeth was also pleased with her husband. Philip enjoyed hosting chivalric tournaments to entertain his wife, Elisabeth would play liege lady to the three young princes of the Spanish Court, Carlos, Prince of Asturias, John of Austria, and Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma. Elisabeth had originally been betrothed to Philips son, Carlos, Prince of Asturias and her relationship with her troubled stepson Carlos was warm and friendly. Despite reports of his bizarre behavior, Carlos was always kind. When it eventually became necessary for Philip to lock him away, Philip was very attached to Elisabeth, staying close by her side even when she was ill with smallpox. Elisabeths first pregnancy in 1564 ended with a miscarriage of twin girls and she later gave birth to Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain on 12 August 1566, and then to Isabellas younger sister Catherine Michelle of Spain on 10 October 1567. Elisabeth had another miscarriage on 3 October 1568, and died the same day, after the death of Elisabeth, Catherine de Medici offered her younger daughter Margaret as a bride for Philip
Elisabeth of Valois
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Élisabeth de Valois, by Juan Pantoja de la Cruz, 1565
Elisabeth of Valois
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This painting by Eugène Isabey depicts Elisabeth, dressed more like a widow than a bride, swooning as she is led to the carriage that will bear her away from France to marry King Philip II of Spain. The Walters Art Museum.
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