She was a hugely popular queen who became
beloved in the country she made her own. But Elisabeth of Belgium
was also intrigued by the past of another nation and she ventured
to King Tut’s tomb and was fascinated with Egyptology. Queen
Elisabeth of Belgium was born a duchess in Bavaria as the daughter
of Duke Karl Theodor and the Portuguese-born royal Infanta Maria
José. She was born on 25…
The site of Christchurch Greyfriars, is a
strange, haunting place, redolent of history. It is now a ruined,
public garden and a popular place for Londoners to take their
sandwiches for lunch. Long gone is the atmosphere of bells and
prayer from the Middle Ages; although in…
As the only son of the Russian Empress
Catherine the Great, Tsar Paul I succeeded his mother on her death
in 1796. He would rule the Russian Empire for the next five years.
Probably, he would had ruled the Russian Empire much longer than
that. But Paul was murdered. And his…
She was the queen who gave Henry VIII the
son he so desired but Jane Seymour’s story had far from a happy
ending. The consort died just a few days after presenting the Tudor
monarch with his longed for male heir and is now said to haunt one
of the most famous royal residences in the world. Royal Central
takes a look at the stories of Jane’s ghost at Hampton Court
Palace. In the early hours…
Elizabeth “Jane” Shore (née Lambert) was
one of the many mistresses of King Edward IV of England. Jane would
go on to become one of the most intelligent and beautiful women in
the realm. Known as the witty mistress of the king, she would come
to be known as a dangerous…
It’s rare to see a royal engagement ring
with a flash of green about it. Emeralds aren’t the most popular
pick for royal betrothals but the few that have hit the headlines
are all rather striking. Here’s our rundown of that rarest of royal
sparklers – the emerald…
A royal mystery from history - did a queen murder her love rival as political power slipped from her grasp?
26th October 2023
The fate of one of medieval England’s
most famous royal mistresses ahs fascinated historians for
centuries. What really happened to The Fair Rosamund? Much of
Rosamund Clifford’s life is now the stuff of legend and folklore
but, in her time, she was England’s greatest beauty and Eleanor of
Aquitaine’s greatest nemesis. For by the time Rosamund began a
relationship with Eleanor’s…
It’s a very famous royal wedding outfit,
a style statement worn as a much talked about bride became a
princess. Charlene Wittstock arrived at her civil marriage to
Prince Albert II of Monaco in a trouser suit she designed with the
help of Karl Lagerfeld. Charlene and…
As Hallowe’en approaches, ghost stories
abound. The nights are drawing in, darkness is falling and amidst
the swirling mists of late autumn evenings come tales of mystery.
This Hallowe’en, Royal Central is taking a look at some of the best
known tales of regal ghosts and…
Queens and witchcraft aren’t words that
go together. In books and in films, witches are the wicked women
who stand in the way of pretty princesses as they search for a
happy ending. In the history of royalty, witchcraft was a tool to
use against women who might otherwise be untouchable. And several
of England’s queens found themselves accused of being witches at
times when enemies wanted to…
