HistoryInsight

THE FOOTMAN: Fortune's Good Fortune - The story of the Queen's Mistress of the Robes as she celebrates her 101st birthday

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24th February 2021
Less than a handful of people can walk straight off the street and into The Queen’s private residences without having to show a Royal Household pass, if you are not yourself royal, that is! Ladies-in-Waiting to Queen Elizabeth II are, as one would expect, notable and noblewomen. Each of The Queen’s Ladies are styled as a “Woman of the Bedchamber” – Her Majesty has several, including…
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British RoyalsFashionHistory

The story of Diana's iconic off-the-rack engagement outfit

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23rd February 2021
When Lady Diana Spencer formally announced her engagement to the Prince of Wales on this day 40 years ago, her days as a fashion icon began. Though she’d been a staple of the paparazzi as speculation mounted that she and Prince Charles would soon be married, this was her first formal appearance as the future Princess of Wales. Let’s look at what she wore on this special day. Prince Charles…
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HistoryHistory

Marking the 479th anniversary of Catherine Howard's execution

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13th February 2021
On 13 February in 1542, Catherine Howard met her tragic end. The youngest of Henry VIII’s consorts, Howard and her short tenure, is often forgotten for Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. However, her execution was nothing like that of her cousin Boleyn.  The daughter of Lord Edmund Howard and Joyce Culpeper, Howard was born sometime around 1523. After her mother died and her father…
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History

Queen Victoria’s wedding ring - a symbol of the passionate marriage she enjoyed with Prince Albert

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10th February 2021
The wedding ring of Queen Victoria has its special poignancy, a symbol of the passionate marriage she enjoyed with Prince Albert. Placed on her finger on the morning of 10 February 1840, her private instructions ensured that she would wear it in perpetuity. What do we know of it? If we study the paintings and engravings made that show the hands of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert joined, we…
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