Cat's Historical Doodles

Livia, also known as Livia Drusilla was born on 30 January 58 BC, as the daughter of Marcus Livius Drusus Claudianus and his wife, Aufidia. The diminutive Drusilla often found in her name suggests she was a second daughter. Livia was probably married in 43 BC. Her father married her to Tiberius Claudius Nero, his cousin of patrician status, with whom he was fighting on the side of Julius Caesar 's assassins against Octavian . Livia's father committed suicide in the Battle of Philippi (42 BC), along Gaius Cassius Longinus and Marcus Junius Brutus. Her husband, however, kept fighting against Octavian, now on behalf of Mark Antony. Livia gave birth to her first child, Tiberius Claudius Nero (future Emperor) on 16 November 42 BC. Two years later, in 40 BC, the family was forced to flee Italy in order to avoid the Triumvirate of Octavian, Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. They joined Sextus Pompeius (a son of Pompey Magnus) in Sicily; later, they moved to Greece. ...

Tamar (Georgian: თამარი, Tamari) was born circa 1160 to George III, King of Georgia, and his wife, Burdukhan of Alania. The name Tamar is of Hebrew origin and, like other biblical names, was favoured by the Georgian Bagrationi dynasty because of their claim to be descended from David, the second King of Israel. Tamar's youth coincided with a major upheaval in Georgia. In 1177, her father was confronted by a rebellious faction of nobles. The intention was to dethrone George III in favour of the King's nephew, Demna, who was considered by many to be a legitimate royal heir of his murdered father, David V. Demna's cause was just a pretext for the nobles to, led by the pretender's father-in-law Ivane Orbeli, to weaken the crown. George III managed to crush the revolt and embarked on a repression campaign on the defiant aristocratic clans. Ivane Orbeli was put to death and the surviving family was driven out of Georgia. Demna was castrated and blinded on his uncle'...

Catherine (Portuguese: Catarina) was born on 14 January 1507, in Torquemada, Spain. She was the last child of Queen Joanna of Castile and her husband, Philip I of Castile. She was named after her aunt, Catherine of Aragon . When Catherine was born, her father had already died. Catherine spent her childhood with her mentally unstable mother until her eldest siblings, Eleanor and Charles, arrived at Spain, coming from Flanders. All of her siblings (except Ferdinand) were born in the Low Countries and had been put into the care of their aunt, Margaret of Austria . However, Joanna kept hold of young Catherine. Catherine stayed with her mother at Tordesillas during Joanna's imprisonment. When the time came for her to marry, Catherine was released from the custody that her mother would endure until her death. On 10 February 1525, Catherine married her first cousin, King João III of Portugal, becoming Queen of Portugal. Their marriage was marked by the consecutive deaths of ...

Galileo Galilei was born on 15 February 1565, in Pisa. He was the first of six children of Vincenzo Galilei, a famous lutenist, composer and music theorist, and Giulia Galilei. Galileo became an accomplished lutenist himself and learned early from his father a scepticism for established authority, the value of quantified experimentation, as well as the results expected from a combination of mathematics and experiment. When Galileo was 8, the family moved to Florence, but he was left with Jacopo Borghini for two years. He was educated in the Vallombrosa Abbey. Despite being a genuinely pious Catholic, Galileo fathered three children out of wedlock: Virginia (born in 1600), Livia (born 1601) and Vincenzo (born in 1606). Because of their illegitimate birth, Galileo considered his daughters unmarriageable: they were accepted by the convent of San Matteo in Arcetri, where they became nuns. Vincenzo was later legitimised as the legal heir. Although Galileo considered being a pri...

Catherine (Italian: Caterina) was born on 13 April 1519, in Florence. She was the only child of Lorenzo de' Medici, Duke of Urbino, and his wife, Madeleine de la Tour d'Auvergne, Countess of Boulogne. According to a contemporary chronicler, when Catherine was born, her parents were as pleased as if it has been a boy . However, within a month of Catherine's birth, both her parents were dead: Madeleine died on 28 April, possibly of puerperal fever, and Lorenzo died on 4 May. King Francis I of France wanted Catherine to be raised at the French court, but Pope Leo X had other plans for her. Catherine was first cared for by her paternal grandmother, Alfonsina Orsini. After her death in 1520, Catherine was raised by her aunt, Clarice Strozzi. The death of the Pope in 1521 interrupted Medici power until the election of Pope Clement VII in 1523. Clement housed Catherine in the Palazzo Medici Riccardi, in Florence. In 1527, the Medici were overthrown in Florence; Catherin...