Tag Archives: Richard I

August 1st

12 Monday Aug 2013

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Events:
1192 – Richard I of England landed near the town of Jaffa in the Holy Land. The Lionheart and his Crusaders were ambushed by the Muslim army of Saladin, but it would a victory for Richard and his men.

1800 – The Acts of Union passed Parliament. The Acts officially combined the nations of Great Britain and Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Since 1603, the nations had operated under the same sovereign, but with separate Governments.

1893 – Alexander I of Greece was born near Athens. He was a younger son of Constantine I, and became King in 1917 when his father was forced to abdicate, and both his father and his brother, the Crown Prince, were exiled. Alexander had little to do with government though, as the Prime Minister held most of the power. In 1919, he married a commoner, Aspasia Manos, and they would have one daughter, barred from the Greek succession due to her mothers humble origins. The girl would later become Queen consort Alexandra of Yugoslavia. In 1920, Alexander was bitten by a macaque and developed an infection. His father would later be restored to the crown.

Deaths:
1137 – Louis VI of France died at age 55. He had been King since 1108, and was the son of Phillip I. Like other Kings of his time, he spent much time at war. However he would emerge as a stronger King than his predecessors. Months before his death, he would be made guardian of Eleanor of Aquitaine, heiress to the richest Duchy in France. He would marry Eleanor to his son and heir, the future Louis VII.

1402 – Edmund of Langley died at age 61. He was the younger son of Edward III of England and Phillippa of Hainault. The Yorkist claimants to the throne of England are descended from him. He would spend time on military campaigns in both France and Castilian Spain. Edmund also fought on the side of Henry Bolingbroke when he invaded England and overthrew Richard II, becoming Henry IV.

1714 – Queen Anne of Great Britain and Ireland died at Kensington Palace in London. She was 49 years old. She was the younger daughter of James II and VII and his first wife, and sister to Queen Mary II. In 1683, she was married to Prince George of Denmark. They were said to be devoted to each other, but they would have no children that survived childhood. She was supportive of her sister Mary, and her brother in law William, when they overthrew James in 1688, during the Glorious Revolution. Anne was a presence at court, but had a falling out with her sister, and they would be estranged until Mary’s early death. Anne would become Queen in 1702, when William died childless. Just a few years later, Anne gave Royal Assent to the Acts of Union, which united England and Scotland into Great Britain. Her successors would her German cousins, the Hanovers.

Have an awesome day!

June 8th

08 Saturday Jun 2013

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Events:
1042 – Edward the Confessor succeeded Harthacnut as King of England. Edward was a younger son of Aethelred the Unready and of the House of Wessex. He had spent most of his youth in exile, hiding from the ruling Danes. He would go on to be King until his death in 1066, and remains one of the most famous figures in Pre-Norman England. Both the crown the monarch today is crowned with, and the chair they are crowned in, are named for him. A hundred years after his death he was canonized.

1191 – Richard I of England lands in Acre, marking the beginning of the Third Crusade.

2013 – Princess Madeleine of Sweden married Christopher O’Neill, an American business man, whom she met while living in New York.

No major birthdays.

Deaths:
1376 – Edward of Woodstock, Prince of Wales died at age 45 of an illness. He was the eldest son of Edward III and Queen Philippa. He had been created Duke of Cornwall as a boy, in the first creation of a Duke in England. Later, his father also invested him with Aquitaine. He was also the first Knight in the Order of the Garter, and a renowned military commander. Known as “The Black Prince” after his death, his son became Richard II after the death of the elder Edward in 1377.

1714 – The 83 year old Sophia of Hanover died in Germany. She was the daughter of the Elector of Palantine, Frederick V and Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I and VI of England and Scotland. This made her a cousin to Charles I and Charles II, and also James II and VII. What Sophia is most famous for though, is the fact that in 1701, she and her descendants were named as the successors to the throne of Great Britain, if the line of Queen Anne failed. She and her offspring were the most closely related Protestants, as Parliament passed a law saying Catholics could not inherit the crown. Sophia would die just a few weeks before Queen Anne though, so Sophia’s son became George I of the United Kingdom. All British monarchs since then are descended from her.

1795 – Louis Charles, the one time Dauphin of France died at age 10 of an infection. He was the only surviving son of the executed Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Known as Louis XVII to the Royalists during the Revolution, the boy had been held in captivity after his fathers arrest. When the Bourbon family was restored later, his uncle took the regnal name of Louis XVIII in honor of his nephew.

Have an awesome day!

May 12th

12 Sunday May 2013

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Events:
1191 – Richard I of England married Berengaria of Navarre in Cyprus today. Richard was on his way to the Third Crusade. Berengaria would accompany him on the first part of the Crusade, but they would be separated eventually. She would never come to England or Aquitaine with Richard as his Queen.

1588 – During the French Wars of Religion, Henry III of France flees Paris as the Duke of Guise rides into the city and riots erupt against the recent concessions Henry gave to Protestants.

1689 – William III of England signs on to the League of Augsburg along with most Europe in opposition to the expansion plans of Louis XIV of France. In England it was called the Grand Alliance.

1743 – Maria Theresa of Austria is crowned as Queen of Bohemia. She was the eldest daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI, whose death and female heir led to the War of Austrian Succession. In 1741, she had been crowned as Queen of Hungary, and in 1745 her husband, Francis, was elected Holy Roman Emperor, but Maria Theresa did not take the role of consort, and acted as much as a ruler as Francis did, even later co-ruling with their sons.

1937 – King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were crowned at Westminster Abbey. The coronation was originally planned to be for George’s elder brother, Edward VIII. Edward had abdicated the previous December to marry his American lover, Wallis Simpson.

Birthdays:
1496 – Gustav I of Sweden is born today in Uppland, Sweden. He rose to be one of the leaders of the War of Liberation against the Danish, and despite his low birth, he was elected King of Sweden in 1523. He has both the legacy as a tyrant, for his harsh dealings with revolts against him, and he has the legacy as the father of the nation of Sweden. His accession day is still a national holiday. He was both witty and sly, in addition to ruthless to his opponents.

1670 – In Dresden, Germany the future Augustus II of Poland and Lithuania is born. He was at first Elector of Saxony, where he earned the nickname “Augustus the Strong”. He converted from Lutheranism to Catholicism in order to be elected King of Poland and Lithuania in 1697. He was a great patron of the arts in Saxony, but his reign was not as successful in Poland, as he was unable to institute the reforms he wanted, and Poland became involved in the Great Northern War.

No major deaths.

Have a great day!

April 6th

06 Saturday Apr 2013

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Events:
1320 – Scotland reaffirms its independence with a document called the Declaration of Arbroath, named for the Abbey in which it was probably written. It was sealed by 51 nobles and magnates of the land. One copy survives today.

1385 – The Portuguese Council of the Kingdom meets in Coimbra and declares John, Master of Aviz, King of Portugal. He was the illegitimate son of Peter I, but there had been civil war before him, as his sister, Beatrice was married to John I of Castile, and thus with their accession, Portugal would have been annexed by Castile.

Birthdays:
1632 – Maria Leopoldine of Austria is born in Innsbruck. She was he daughter of and Archduke of Austria, thus making her and Archduchess. She would marry Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor in 1648, and thus be Empress consort. They were first cousins. A year later, Maria would die after a difficult labour with the couples only child. She was 17 years old.

1871 – A baby boy is born to the future Edward VII and Alexandra of the United Kingdom. He would be christened as Alexander John, but would die within 24 hours of his birth.

Deaths:
1199 – King Richard I of England dies in France of injuries while laying siege to a castle. He had been King of England for 10 years, but spent most of the time on the Third Crusade or protecting his vast lands in southern France. He was the son of first Plantagenet king, Henry II, and the equally indomitable Eleanor of Aquitaine. His legacy lives on in the Royal Arms of England, which still bear his standard, three gold lions. He is also the only English king better known by his nickname , the Lionheart, rather than his number.

1490 – Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, and Duke of Austria, dies in Vienna at age 47. He had been king of Hungary since age 14 and acquired the other titles in time. He was one of the first rulers to fully embrace the Italian Renaissance, and fashioned himself a philosopher king after Plato’s Republic. However his empire would not last after him, as he had only one illegitimate son, and he was not accepted as ruler in most lands.

2005 – Prince Rainier III of Monaco dies at age 81. He had been sick for some time, and suffered from multiple illnesses. He came to the throne in 1949 after the death of his father, Louis II. He famously married American movie star, Grace Kelly in 1956 and they had three children, including the current ruler, Albert II. But more than that, he expanded Monaco’s economy from more than just gambling revenues, which were 95% of the country’s revenue at his accession, and less than 5% at his death.

Have an awesome day!!

March 25th

25 Monday Mar 2013

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Events:

1199 – Richard I of England is shot in the shoulder with a crossbow bolt while besieging the castle at Chalus-Chabrol in France. It would take several days, but Richard the Lionheart would die from his injuries.

1306 – Robert the Bruce is crowned as King of Scotland at the traditional place, Scone. He would continue to spend the rest of the year at war with the English king, Edward I.

Birthdays:

1345 – Blanche of Lancaster is born to the Ducal family of Lancaster in northern England. She would later marry John of Gaunt, one of the sons of Edward III and her husband would be created Duke of Lancaster. Of her three surviving children, her oldest daughter would become Queen consort of Portugal, and her son, Henry Bolingbroke, would be the first Lancastrian king, Henry IV. She was just 23 when she died, possibly of the plague.

1767 – Joachim Murat, future King of Naples, is born in France. He rose to prominence under Napoleon Bonaparte, in the army. In 1800, he would marry Caroline, Napoleon’s sister, and in 1808 they would be made King and Queen of Naples by the French Emperor. However, their rule would not survive Bonaparte’s fall from power, and Murat would later be executed via firing squad for treason against King Ferdinand IV of Naples, who was the rightful king.

1782 – Joachim’s bride, Caroline Bonaparte was also born today on the island of Corsica, as one of the younger Bonaparte children. She was married at 17, and had a famous feud with Napoleon’s first wife, Josephine. She was known to be ambitious, and she and her husband were made Grand Duke and Duchess of Berg and Cleves in Germany, before given the Kingdom of Naples. She would flee after her brother’s final defeat and her husband’s execution, landing in Austria, where she remained and remarried.

1921 – Alexandra of Greece and Denmark is born in Athens, just months after the death of her father, Alexander I of Greece. In 1944, she would marry Peter II of Yugoslavia, becoming the last Queen of the country. When she was giving birth to Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia, while in exile in London, the British Government ceded the hotel they were in, to Yugoslavia, so the Prince could still be born on Yugoslavian territory. She would live out her days in Britain. Her remains, along with those of her husband, King Peter II, and mother-in-law, Queen Maria, were returned to Yugoslavia and reburied in the crypt of the Royal Mausoleum at Oplenac on May 26th, 2013.

Deaths:

1223 – Afonso II of Portugal dies at age 37 in Coimbra, Portugal. Afonso the Fat as he was called, was not interested in fighting the Spanish Moors like his father and grandfather Sancho I and Afonso I. He was more interested in peace with Castile, which he achieved and centralizing and strengthening his government. He helped to engineer the first written laws in Portugal. Afonso would eventually come to conflict with the Pope at the time, and at his death, he was actually an excommunicate of the church.

1751 – A 75 year old Frederick I of Sweden dies in Stockholm. He was first Prince consort of Sweden when he married his second wife, Ulrika Eleonora. Five years into her reign, she abdicated in her husband’s favor, thus making him the only person to have ever been King and Prince consort of Sweden. He was largely and weak and ineffective ruler, and its stated that that is the reason the Swedish Estates wanted him as king, so rule would fall into the hands of them and the nobility.

1975 – King Faisal is shot at close range by his nephew, Faisal bin Musaid. The Saudi King would die of his injuries later that day. The younger Faisal never gave an exact reason for the shooting, although theories abound, including that he was working with the American CIA and British MI6. The assassin was declared insane, but sane when he shot the king. He was executed just a few months later by beheading.

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March 5th

05 Tuesday Mar 2013

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Events:
1496 – King Henry VII of England grants a charter to explore new lands to John Cabot and his sons. They would go on to discover parts of mainland Canada, including Newfoundland.

Birthdays:

1133 – The future Henry II of England is born in Le Mans, France. His father was Geoffrey, Count of Anjou, and his mother was Matilda, former Holy Roman Empress, and claimant of the crown of England as the daughter of Henry I. Henry would later marry the equally formidable Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine. Through him, the House of Plantagenet was founded, who would rule England for the next 300 years. He would spawn two of the most famous monarchs in English history, Richard I ‘the Lionheart’ and John I. He would also hold considerable lands in France, including Anjou, Normandy, Aquitaine, Maine, Nantes, and Brittany, ruling more of France than the King of France.

1324 – David II of Scotland is born at Dumferline Palace to King Robert I ‘the Bruce’ and Elizabeth de Burgh. He would become King at age 5 and rule until his death in 1371. In 1346, he was captured in battle by the forces of Edward III and would be held in captivity until 1357. He was the last monarch from the House of Bruce.

1723 – A girl is born in London to the future George II and Queen Caroline to be christened Mary. She would be married in 1740 to the future German Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel, Frederick. The marriage was unhappy, and the couple would separate in 1754, with Mary moving to Denmark with her children, after the death of her sister.

No major deaths.

Have an awesome day!!

December 24th

24 Monday Dec 2012

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No major events.

Birthdays:
1166 – King John I of England was born as the youngest child of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. John tried to usurp the crown from his older brother, Richard the Lionheart, while he was away on the Crusades, but could not defeat the armies still loyal to Richard. But John would become King in 1199 after the death of his brother. However his reign would be marred with strife and civil wars.

1588- Constance of Austria, Queen consort of Poland is born in Graz as the daughter of the Archduke Charles. She would marry Sigismund III Vasa, her sisters widower, after the death of her older sister. She was known as an ambitious politician and did her best to advance the interests of her children, over her sisters, and the interests of her family in Austria as a whole.

1634 – Marianna of Austria is born to Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II and his consort Maria Anna. She became the wife of Phillip IV and the mother of Charles II. She would serve as regent for her son for many years, as he was known to be severly mentally and physically handicapped. However she was an unpopular ruler in place of her son, and was forced from court until her death.

1784 – A second daughter is born to the future Paul I of Russia, named Elena Pavlovna. Her grandmother, Catherine the Great named her after Helen of Troy. She was married off to a German Grand Duke and had two children, before passing away at age 18 from a sudden illness.

1837 – Elisabeth of Bavaria is born in Munich to the Bavarian Duke, Maximilian. She would go on to marry Austrian Emperor, Franz Joseph I at age 17. She was ill suited for court life, and had ongoing health problems and possible eating disorders. She lived to be 60, until she was assassinated in Switzerland by an anarchist.

1863 – The future George I of Greece is born in Copenhagen. He would be elected to be King of the Hellenes by the National Assembly after Otto I was deposed. He was the brother of Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom and Empress Maria of Russia. He would reign for 50 years, the longest in modern Greece, until his own assassination. His successors never enjoyed the long and secure reign that George did.

1879 – Duchess Alexandrine of Mecklenburg is born in Northern Germany. She would go on to marry the future King Christian X of Denmark at age 18, and give birth to two children, including the future Frederick IX of Denmark.

Deaths:
1660- Mary Princess Royal of the United Kingdom and Princess consort of Orange died in London, shortly after the restoration of her brother, Charles II to the throne of Britain. She had been the wife of Prince William II of Orange and was the mother of the future William III of Orange, who also became King of England, Scotland, and Ireland, after the Glorious Revolution.

1976 – Duarte Nuno, Duke of Braganza, died in Lisbon as a claimant to the crown of Portugal after its abolition. He succeeded as a young man, but because of the warring factions between his family and his cousins, and due to Portugal becoming a republic, he was never able to claim the throne, but was never forced into exile either.

Have a great day!!

December 23rd

23 Sunday Dec 2012

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Events:
1688 – King James II and VII of England and Scotland flees the island for France as the Glorious Revolution culminated in his deposition in favor of his daughter Mary and her husband, William of Orange.

Birthdays:
1777 – Alexander I of Russia is born in Saint Petersburg, under the rule of his grandmother, Catherine the Great. He and his brother were raised by Catherine and it was rumored that Alexander would be put on the throne ahead of his father, the future Paul I. He was successful militarily, leading Russia through the Napoleonic Wars and added the territories of Finland and parts of Poland. In the latter part of his reign, he became more conservative, and may reforms were undone, until his sudden death.

1864 – Princess Zorka of Montenegro is born as the daughter of Nicholas I of Montenegro. She would marry Peter, future King of Serbia, but would pass away before he became King. She had 4 children, including the future Alexander I of Yugoslavia. Sadly she would die while giving birth to her fifth child, at age 25.

1933 – In not so dead royals, Japanese Emperor Akihito is born to Emperor Hirohito in Tokyo. He would not succeed his father until 1989 and his the current reigning Emperor of Japan.

1943 – Also in not so dead royals, Queen consort of Sweden, Silvia is born in Heidelberg, Germany. She is the wife of King Carl XVI Gustav and the mother of the heir apparent, Crown Princess Victoria.

Deaths:
1230 – Berengaria of Navarre, Queen consort of Richard I of England, died long after her husband, in what is modern day France. Her birth date wasn’t recorded, so its unknown exactly how old she was. While she was married to Richard, she never actually stepped foot in England. She may have after Richard’s death, but there is no firm evidence. So it is said she is the only Queen of England to never step foot in England.

Have a great day!!

December 20th

20 Thursday Dec 2012

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Events:
1192 – Richard I of England was captured by Leopold V of Austria while on his way home from the Third Crusade. Leopold believed that Richard murdered his cousin, and he was offended that Richard cut his standard down from the walls of Jerusalem. Richard the Lionheart would be held captive for almost three years.

2007 – Queen Elizabeth II surpasses her Great-Great-Grandmother, Victoria, as the oldest monarch of the United Kingdom in history.

Brithdays:
1537 – The future John III of Sweden is born. He became King in 1568 after deposing his older half-brother, Eric XIV of Sweden, after Eric was deemed insane. He would successfully rule for over 30 years.

1902 – Prince George is born as the fourth son of King George V and Queen Mary. He was the younger brother to Edward VIII and George VI, and thus the paternal uncle to Queen Elizabeth II. He was given the title Duke of Kent in 1934, but would sadly die in 1942 while in the Royal Air Force.

1963 – In not-so-dead royals, Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo, is born in Madrid. She is the eldest child of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofia. She is currently fourth in line to the crown, behind her younger brother and his children.

Deaths:
910 – Alfonso III of Asturias died after abdicating one year prior in favor of his three sons. He ruled most of what we know as Spain now, and his sons split the Kingdom into three.

1355- Stephen Uros IV Dusan of Serbia died of a fever while fighting the Ottoman Empire. Stephen had already conquered most of his region by age 47, and his death is attributed with halting the further spread of the Eastern Orthodox religion in the area.

1765 – Louis, Dauphin of France died of tuberculosis at age 36. He was the eldest son and heir to Louis XV and father of the ill-fated Louis XVI, and also to the other final Bourbon Kings, Louis XVIII and Charles X. Since he pre-deceased his father, he was never King.

Have a great day!!

October 4th

04 Thursday Oct 2012

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Today in 1830, the Kingdom of Belgium was officially formed as a separate nation from the Netherlands.
In 1967 today the Sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddien III suddenly abdicated in favour of his eldest son, Hassanal Bolkiah. An explanation was never given, but Omar played an active role in his son’s government and helped usher in Brunei’s independance from Britain in 1984.
Our first birthday today is that of Alys, Countess of the Vexin in 1160. Alys was the daughter of Louis VII of France, and half sister to his children by Eleanor of Aquitaine. She was betrothed to Eleanor’s son by her second marriage, Richard the Lionheart. Richard ultimately refused to marry her, saying because she had become his father’s mistress while waiting to be married to him. She was sent back to France later, and eventually her granddaughter would be the wife of Edward I, and thus all English monarchs being her descendants.
Next we have Louis X of France and Navarre, born in 1289. He was the son of Phillip IV (the Fair) and is famous for freeing the French serfs and readmitting the Jews his father expelled, in 1315.
In 1379 today, we saw the birth of Henry III of Castile in Burgos, Spain. He would be called “Henry the Sufferor” or “Henry the Infirm” and would live up to those names, not seeing his 30th birthday.
Skipping ahead to 1550, Charles IX of Sweden was born in Stockholm. He would be King for less than 10 years, and be at war the entire time.
And in not-quite-royalty today, Richard Cromwell, one time Lord Protector of England and son of Oliver Cromwell, was born in 1626.
And our last birthday today belongs to Maria Sophie of Bavaria, the last Queen Consort of the Two Sicilies, in 1841. She became Queen in 1859, but by 1861, her and her husband were living in exile in Rome. She would move back to Bavaria and bounce between there and Paris until the outbreak of WWI.
No major deaths today!!
Have a great day!!