Royalty in History

[Deleted]

That was pretty amazing before the days of modern medicine, and the fact that royalty had been so inbred by the time she came along that they were kind of weaklings

Speaking of inbred... Albert was her cousin, wasn't he?

And that Victoria didn't really liked her children, because she was obsessed with her husband only...

I guess it was hard to be a good mother when you remain in self-imposed seclusion for a dozen years or so.... which Victoria did after Albert died.

I was always under the impression that Albert was a good influence on her. He might have continued to do some good work in the areas of art and science had he lived.

[azaleaqueen]

I think you're right, elissag. Eddy died of syphilis, I think. And yes, Albert and Victoria were indeed cousins. I don't think all that close, but related just the same. and yes, I think he was a good influence on her. He also introduced the Christmas tree to England and, I think, contributed to Christmas being the major holiday that it is. Oh, I know it was always a major holiday, but nobody made that much fuss over it in England until he came along.

[Auroranorth]

I ahev heard about Jack the Ripper being connected with the Royal Family... but I don't think it was Bertie (future King Edward VII) but his eldest son Albert Victor "Eddy", Duke of Clarence. He died in 1892(?), leaving his young brother George(future George V) as the new heir.

But I absolutely don 't know if the Ripper 'rumor was true.

This is one of the rumors that has been floating around for years, and there's no proof one way or another. What is certain is that Eddy was no loss to the family, and that Edward VIII was NOT the Ripper.

The rhyme I always remember for Henry VIII is:
Henry the Eighth to six wives was wedded,
One died, one survived, two divorced, two beheaded.

Victoria was a very poor mother, and she really made mistakes with Bertie. (In fairness, Prince Albert was just as bad with him.)

Yes, I've read in several biographies of Queen Victoria that Prince Albert had a preference for his eldest daughter,Princess Royal Victoria (Vicky) ? And that Victoria didn't really like her children, because she was obsessed with her husband only...

Yes. She wasn't fond of small children, and having so many put a strain on her. She did like a few of them, Vicky and her hemophiliac son Leopold especially, but poor Edward was punished for looking like her Hanoverian relatives (the ones with all the mistresses). She and Albert were determined to create a super-prince. Didn't work, did it? OTOH, the prince they accidentally created was probably a better king than Victoria was a queen in some ways.

[azaleaqueen]

I think Victoria was disappointed that her first born was a girl. She's supposed to have said something like, "Don't worry, the next one will be a prince". Didn't they have 9 kids in all? I've seen pictures taken of their nursery. Very stark, with youth beds, cribs and bassinettes lined up in a row.

[Deleted]

Nine children, all of them surviving to adulthood (even Leopold!) and not one stillbirth or miscarriage, from what I gather.

Actually, I think at first, Albert wasn't "in love" with her, but he eventually came to be. He doesn't strike me as the type who would be all about looks. (BTW, I loved that miniseries, the girl who played Victoria was excellent!)

It's a shame that Victoria and Albert, who weren't BAD people, became such lousy parents. They were really too strict with poor Bertie, which made things worse. Vicky turned out wonderfully, but then she had her own cross to bear in the Prussian court, and then her son was an absolute egomaniac.

Even as they got older, she could be incredibly selfish-when Beatrice decided she wanted to get married, Victoria wouldn't speak to her for an entire month. She finally came around, but still insisted that they stay in her household. On the whole, she was MUCH better as a grandmother, than a mother.

[Karen]

bagatelle said:

I'm a huge, huge fan of Tudor history. Henry VII to Elizabeth I... even Jane Grey! Anyone else as obsessed as me?

I can't remember how many books I've read about the Tudors - the Stuarts too, since for about fifty years their lives were so connected. I haven't been able to find a Jane Grey biography, but that's definitely on my list of things to look for.

As for the old question of Elizabeth I or Mary Queen of Scots, I'm firmly on Elizabeth's side. Mary would be an ideal royal for these days when you only have to look pretty and provide tabloid material, but in the days when royalty meant actually ruling- oh no.

[pepper67]

I love Jean Plaidy's 'historical' stories. They're based on fact but I have no idea how accurate they are. Fun to read though!

As for the old question of Elizabeth I or Mary Queen of Scots, I'm firmly on Elizabeth's side. Mary would be an ideal royal for these days when you only have to look pretty and provide tabloid material, but in the days when royalty meant actually ruling- oh no.

I've never been a fan of Mary, Queen of Scots either. She always struck me as being rather stupid - which definitely put her at a disadvantage when fighting with the intelligent Elizabeth I.

I really pitied Lady Jane Grey though. Poor kid.

[Deleted]

Aw, I like Mary. I feel bad for her-she was raised in the French court, married to her cousin, who then died when they were still very young, then seduced by a pretty boy, etc.

She was stupid, but she was too sheltered her whole life.


I absolutely agree about Lady Jane Grey. Poor, poor dear. She really got screwed.

I just finished a biography of Prince Philip's mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg (Princess Andrew of Greece). Now I'm going to tackle a mountain of a book about her baby brother, Louis Mountbatten. I also checked out some books on the Habsburgs-I just love the Empress Sisi of Austria.

[Deleted]

Pepper67 said:

I love Jean Plaidy's 'historical' stories. They're based on fact but I have no idea how accurate they are. Fun to read though!

Me too! I think that they are fairly accurate with the dates and stuff. Of course, the characterisations and conversations are made up.

[Deleted]

I'm a history major in university. I'm focused more on Canadian history, but have taken some european classes out of interest. Right now I'm ending a British History 1536-1688. I did a report on Queen Mary I, which was something interesting. For all the bad stuff she did, I still feel really sorry for her. She did not have a happy life at all.