History

The Illegitimate Royals: The many children of Henry I

Henry I of England was the son of William the Conqueror and reigned from 1100 to 1135. Henry had two legitimate children with his first wife Matilda of Scotland: Matilda and William. Sadly Henry’s heir William died at sea leaving Matilda as Henry’s chosen heir. This decision was very unusual for the time and led to decades of civil war upon Henry’s death after his nephew, Stephen seized the…
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History

The Illegitimate Royals: William IV and Mrs Jordan's family

Illegitimate children are not uncommon in royal families, especially in past centuries. Marriages were used for dynastic and political reasons and not for love. However, the children of George III were rather well-known for their illegitimate children. William IV and Mrs Jordan’s family of illegitimate children was one of the largest families of George II’s children.  Dorothea Jordan (also…
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FeaturesHistoryInsight

After exhibiting before Their Majesties: Mozart and the British Museum

By October 1764 the Mozarts had once more been at court, having been received at the Queen’s House in May as Leopold Mozart wrote ‘within 5 days of arriving’. The young Wolfgang played before George III and even accompanied Queen Charlotte, who sang an aria. In addition to this, the Mozart children gave public concerts. Leopold Mozart arranged for his children to be advertised in the…
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FeaturesHistory

The Illegitimate Royals: Eleanor Butler, the woman who almost brought down the Tudors

She was the long dead widow who was used by a king to overthrow his own nephew and yet her name is all but forgotten today. Eleanor Butler was the woman who helped change the royal history of England forever and almost brought one of its most famous dynasties to disaster before they had even secured the throne. But was she also Queen of England? Eleanor never claimed a crown for herself but as the…
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