Cat's Historical Doodles

Isabella (Portuguese: Isabel) was born on 21 February 1397, in Évora. She was daughter of King João I of Portugal and his wife, Philippa of Lancaster . Isabella was the fourth child and only daughter to survive to adulthood. Philippa instilled in all her children, including Isabella, a sense of duty, faith and belief in education. Isabella was an avid reader and was interested in politics. Her father ensured that she was given a good understanding of politics, joining her brothers in their instructions in affairs of state. Isabella became proficient in Latin, French, English and Italian; she was fond of riding and hunting. In 1415, Isabella received an offer of marriage from her cousin, King Henry V of England, an effort to form closer links with Portugal against France. The negotiations failed and Isabella remained unmarried. 1415 was also the year she grieved the death of her mother, with whom she had a close relationship. At the age of 30, Isabella was still unmarrie...

Henry was born on 28 June 1491, at the Palace of Placentia. He was the third child and second son of King Henry VII and Queen Elizabeth of York . Of Henry’s six siblings, only three survived infancy: Arthur, Margaret and Mary . Henry was given a first-rate education from leading tutors, becoming fluent in Latin and French, and learning some Italian. Not much is known about his early life because he was not expected to become King. In November 1501, he played a considerable role in the ceremonies surrounding his brother’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon . In early 1502, Arthur died at the age of 15, probably of sweating sickness. Arthur’s death thrust his duties upon the 10-year old Henry. Henry VII gave the boy few tasks; Henry was strictly supervised and did not appear in public. As a result, he later ascended the throne untrained in the exacting art of kingship (in other words: spoiled) . Henry VII still wanted to seal a marital alliance between England and Spain, so he...

Anne (Breton: Anna) was born on 25 or 26 January 1477, in Nantes; she was the eldest daughter of Francis II, Duke of Brittany, and his second wife, Margaret of Foix. She had a younger sister, Isabelle. Margaret died when Anne was little, and Francis died when Anne was 11 years old. It is likely that Anne learned to read and write in French, and perhaps a little Latin. She was also taught music, dance, and singing. In this period, the law of succession was unclear, but prior to the Breton War of Succession (1341-1365) mainly operated according to semi-Salic Law: women could inherit but only if the male line had died out. The Treaty of Guérande (1365), however, stated that in the absence of a male heir from the House of Monfort, the heirs of Joanna of Penthièvre would succeed. By the time Anne was born, her father was the only male from the House of Monfort, and the Penthièvre heir was a female who had sold her rights over Brittany to King Louis XI of France. The lack of a...

Catherine was born on 27 October 1401, in Paris. She was the youngest daughter of King Charles VI of France and his wife, Isabeau of Bavaria. While it has been suggested that Catherine was neglected as a child by her mother, a more modern examination of the evidence suggests otherwise. According to the financial accounts of Isabeau, toys were purchased, religious texts were provided, and Catherine was sent to a convent to receive a religious education. Early on, there had been a discussion of marrying her to Henry, son of King Henry IV of England, but the King died before negotiations could begin. In 1414, however, the now King Henry V reopened the discussion of the match. Henry V went to war with France, and even after the English victory at Agincourt, plans for the marriage continued. Catherine was said to be very beautiful and when Henry finally met her at Meulan, he became enamoured. In May 1420, a peace agreement was signed (the Treaty of Troyes) and Charles VI of Fran...

Isabel was born on 5 September 1451, at Warwick Castle, the seat of the Earls of Warwick. She was the elder daughter of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick (aka Kingmaker), and his wife Anne de Beauchamp. Isabel had a younger sister, Anne, who would become Queen of England as Richard III ’s wife. In 1469, when Isabel was 17, her ambitious father betrothed her to George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence and heir presumptive to the throne of England; he was the brother of King Edward IV and the future Richard III. King Edward opposed the marriage because it would bring the already powerful Earl of Warwick too close to the throne. However, George and Isabel did get married in secret, in a ceremony in Calais on 11 July 1469. Following the marriage, George joined forces with Warwick and changed sides in the Wars of the Roses: he allied with the Lancastrians (led by Margaret of Anjou ) against his own brother and the Yorkists. When Isabel’s sister Anne married Edward of Westminst...

Margaret (German: Margarete; French: Marguerite; Dutch: Margaretha; Spanish: Margarita) was born on 10 January 1480. She was the second child on Maximilian of Austria and Mary of Burgundy, co-sovereigns of the Low Countries. She was named after her step-grandmother, Margaret of York. In 1482, Margaret’s mother died and her older brother, Philip the Handsome (aged 3), succeeded her as sovereign of the Low Countries, with his father Maximilian as regent. In 1482, King Louis XI of France signed the Treaty of Arras, where her father promised to give Margaret’s hand in marriage to Louis’ son Charles. The engagement took place in 1487. Margaret was transferred to the guardianship of Louis XI, who died soon after. She was educated at the French court and prepared for her future role as Queen of France. She was raised as a fille de France , under the supervision of her fiancé’s sister and regent, Anne .  Margaret developed a genuine affection for Charles. However, in the autumn ...

Anne was born on 3 April 1461, in Brabant. She was the eldest surviving daughter of Louis XI of France and his wife, Charlotte of Savoy. She had two siblings: Charles and Jeanne. Initially, Anne was betrothed to Nicholas, Duke of Lorraine. She was created Viscountess of Thouars in 1468 (Anne was just 7!) in anticipation of the marriage, but Nicholas broke the engagement to pursue Marie, Duchess of Burgundy. Nicholas died unexpectedly in 1473 and Anne ended up marrying Peter of Bourbon on 3 November of that year; she took up rule of the Beaujolais at that time. Anne was just 12 years old. During the minority of Anne’s brother, Charles VIII of France, she and her husband held the regency of France between1483 and 1491. Anne’s regency overcame many difficulties, like the unrest among the magnates who suffered under Louis XI’s oppression. Together, Peter and Anne managed to maintain the royal authority and the unity of the Kingdom against the Orléans party. Concessions were made,...

Richard was born on 2 October 1452, at Fotheringhay Castle; he was the twelfth of thirteen children of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and his wife Cecily Neville. Richard was born at the beginning of what is called the Wars of the Roses, a period of three or four decades of political instability and open civil war in the second half of the 15th century. It opposed Richard's father and his supporters (the Yorkists) and King Henry VI, Queen Margaret of Anjou and their supporters (the Lancastrians). When his father and elder brother Edmund were killed at the battle of Wakefield, Richard (aged 8) and his brother George were sent to the Low Countries. They returned to England after the defeat of the Lancastrians at the battle of Towton. In June 1461, their eldest brother was crowned King Edward IV of England. Richard received the title of Duke of Gloucester and was made a Knight of the Garter and Knight of the Bath. Richard spent several years of his childhood at...

Margaret was probably born on 31 May 1443, in Bedfordshire. She was the daughter and sole heiress of John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset, and his wife Margaret Beauchamp of Bletsoe. John Beaufort was a great-grandson of King Edward III through his son, John of Gaunt and his mistress Katherine Swynford. At the moment of her birth, Margaret's father was preparing to go to France and lead a military expedition for King Henry VI. The Duke of Somerset negotiated with the King to ensure that in case of his death, the rights to Margaret's wardship and marriage would be granted only to his wife. Upon Margaret's first birthday, however, the King broke the arrangement and granted the wardship of her extensive lands to William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk, although Margaret herself remained in the custody of her mother. Margaret was married to Suffolk's son, John de la Pole; the wedding may have been held between 28 January and 7 February 1444, when she was perhaps j...