A bride for Grand Duke Constantine Pavlovich (1779-1831)

When Tsarina Catherine II The Great was looking for a wife for one of her cherished grandsons, Grand Duke Constantine Pavlovich (1779–1831), she invited the Prince and Princess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld to bring their 3 daughters to Russia. It was said that when Catherine and Constantine watched them arrive at the Winter Palace, the elder two Princesses tripped as they dismounted from the carrige, but the third, Juliane, stepped down without mishap. "Al right," said Constantine, "if it must be so, I'll have the little monkey. It dances prettily." On 15 February 1796, Constantine married 14-year-old Juliane of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1781-1860), now Grand Duchess Anna Fyodorovna. Constantine spent their wedding night railing against some guards who had committed a minor infraction, and failed to perform his “marital duties”. 

Constantine of Russia

Constantine, known to be a violent man, and fully dedicated to his military career, made his young wife intensely miserable. Soon their marriage was deeply unhappy. It was even said that Constantine went to bed in his boots. Anyway, he continued to lead a disorderly bachelor life, while his military career occupied his full attention. 
Anna returned to Coburg in 1801. In 1808 she gave birth to an illegitimate son, named Eduard Edgar Schmidt-Löwe. The father of this child may have been Jules Gabriel Émile de Seigneux, a minor French nobleman and officer in the Prussian army. In 1835 Eduard married his cousin Bertha von Schauenstein, an illegitimate daughter of Juliane's brother Ernest. 

After 19 years of separation, the marriage of Constantine and Juliane was formally annulled on 20 March 1820. Two months later, on 27 May, Konstantin married the Polish Countess Joanna Grudzińska (1791-1831), his mistress since 1815. She was given the title of "Her Serenity" Princess of Lowicz. The new Princess's health was poor; she had migraines, fevers and rheumatism, and led a quiet life. 
Grand Duke Constantine died of cholera in Vitebsk (now Belarus) on 27 June 1831. Joanna accompanied his body to Saint Petersburg, dying the same year. 

Sources:

• Simon Sebag Montefiore: The Romanovs 1613-1918, W&N, 2017.
• Arturo E. Beéche, Greg King: The Grand Dukes (Sons and Grandsons of Russia's Tsars since Paul I), Volume 1, EuroHistory.com, 2010. 
• Wikipedia.

Miranshah (1366-1408), Tamerlane's Unruly Son

Miranshah (1366-1408)

Miranshah (1366-1408) was the third son of the great conqueror Tamerlane (1336-1405). Tamerlane was known to cross Asia like a firestorm. He had people tortured and had piles made of bloody heads. He was also an avid collector of wives and concubines. One of Tamerlane’s concubines, Mengli Agha, was Miranshah's mother. Miranshah had just 3 wives and several additional concubines. His most famous descendant was Babur (1483-1530) who became the first Mughal Emperor in India.

In 1396 Tamerlane gave Miranshah the control of Azerbaijan. By 1398 stories of Mrianshah’s uncontrolled debauchery had reached Tamerlane, while he was on his way back from India after sacking Delhi. Stories were told of Miranshah's riotous gambling, and of marathon drinking bouts inside mosques. The Prince was said to throw gold coins from palace windows into the hands of frenzied mobs. Further evidence of Miranshah’s disturbed behavior came with reports that he had desecrated the tomb of Mongol Prince Oljeytu in the famous green-domed mosque of Sultaniya, north-west of Theran. Miranshah also had some fine buildings summarily demolished. Castilian embassador Guy Gonález de Clavijo described Miranshah as “a man of advanced age, beging about 40 years old, big and fat, and he suffers much from gout”. He doubted reports of Miranshah’s insanity, attributing his bizarre behavior to “insecurity and attention-seeking”.

Whatever the truth of Miranshah’s mental state, his lack of military talents gave his father the greatest cause for concern. Although Tamerlane loved drinking bouts, too, particularly after great battles - or at weddings and festivals, the difference was that - unlike Miranshah – Tamerlane did not let the drinking get in the way of either winning wars, or administering his empire.
Tamerlane sent some officers to Azerbaijan who reported back that Miranshah had been corrupted by the scandalous company he kept. His shifty entourage of scholars, poets and musicians were blamed for the disastrous state into which Azerbaijan had descended. Thus, Tamerlane had his son’s court favorites sentenced to death. Miranshah himself escaped the death sentence, but was relieved of his throne. 
After his father’s death in 1405 Miranshah tried to support his own son Khalil Sultan in his claims to the throne until he was killed in battle in 1408.

Sources: J. Marozzi: Tamerlane, 2004, HarperCollins & Wikipedia.

Wilhelm Kettler (1574-1640), Duke of Courland

Wilhelm Kettler (1574-1640)

Wilhelm Kettler was born on June 20, 1574, in Mitau (now Jelgava in Latvia) as the younger son of Gotthard Kettler and his wife Anna of Mecklenburg (1533-1602). She was a daughter of Duke Albrecht VII “The Handsome” of Mecklenburg-Güstrow and his wife Anna of Brandenburg (1507-1567). After his father’s death in 1587 Wilhelm and his elder brother Friedrich inherited the Duchy of Courland and divided the inheritance between themselves.

In 1609 Wilhelm married Sophia of Prussia (1582-1610), one of the 5 surviving daughters of Albrecht Friedrich (1553-1618), the last, mad Duke of Prussia, and his wife Marie Eleonore of Cleves (1550-1608), a sister of the last, mad Duke of Cleves. As a dowry Wilhelm and Sophia received the territory of Grobina (now in Latvia). Their only child, a son Jacob, was born on October 28, 1610, while Sophia died soon afterwards, around November 24.

Due to conflicts with the local nobility, Wilhelm lost control of the Duchy of Courland in 1617. He emigrated, leaving his brother Friedrich als sole ruler. Wilhelm died on April 7, 1640 in Kukułowo in Poland. Two years later his son, Jacob von Kettler (1610-1682), succeeded his uncle Friedrich as Duke of Courland.

The madness of Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1831-91)

Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich (“Nizi”), was born on 8 August 1831 at Tsarskoye Selo Palace in Russia as a younger son of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. His father arranged for Nicholas a career in the army. Nicholas Nicolaievich unwillingly married his second cousin Princess Alexandra of Oldenburg (1838–1900) who is described as “plain and unsophisticated”. The wedding took place in St Petersburg on 6 February 1856. Soon after, the couple found out that they had little in common. Still, they had 2 sons. 

Grand Duke Nicholas 

Tall, strong and with a long, thin nose and heavily lidded blue eyes, Nicholas Nicolaievich was neither handsome nor very intelligent. An incredible womanizer, Nicholas “loved all women except for his wife”, as a contemporary wrote. Around 1860 Nicholas developed a permanent relationship with Catherine Chislova (1846-89), a dancer from the Krasnoye Selo Theater. Their affair was quite open and they had 5 children. The Grand Duke arranged a change of class into the gentry for his mistress, and their illegitimate children took the surname Nikolayev. In 1881 his wife left Nicholas for good and moved to Kiev, but she refused to grant the divorce Nicholas wanted.

Nicholas' mistress, Catherine Chislova, died unexpectedly in 1889. Shortly after her death, Nicholas went mad. His priapic sexuality had now metamorphosed into hypersexual insanity: “suffering from delusions”, he “molested every women he met”. After a ballet, Nicholas “became so aroused, he went backstage and tried to seduce everyone he saw”. Finally, he was pulled from one of the young male dancers, whom he had cornered and covered with kisses. 
In 1890 Nicholas was declared insane and kept locked indoors in his Crimean Vorontzov Palace. There he was attended by an elderly manservant, allegedly the only person who was safe from his amorous attacks. As a womanizer Nicholas may have suffered from tertiary syphilis. 

Quickly Nicholas Nicolaievich slipped into a haze of madness. His younger brother Mikhail wittily expressed his “astonishment that a man of such excessive stupidity could still lose his mind”. Nicholas died in his Palace at Alupka, Crimea, on 25 April 1891. The Palace was immediately sold as he was in debt after squandering all his tremendous wealth, and borrowing heavily. 


Sources: 

• Simon Sebag Montefiore: The Romanovs 1613-1918, W&N, 2017.
• Arturo E. Beéche, Greg King: The Grand Dukes (Sons and Grandsons of Russia's Tsars since Paul I), Volume 1, EuroHistory.com, 2010. 
• Wikipedia.

The Wives of Jagatjit Singh Bahadur, Maharaja of Kapurthala

Born in the autumn of 1872, Sir Jagatjit Singh Bahadur became ruling Maharaja of the Princely State of Kapurthala in India in 1877, succeeding his father Kharak Singh Bahadur (1849-1877). In 1890 Jagatjit attained full ruling powers . Like most of his fellow Princes, Jagatjit reveled in pomp and ceremony. He was an avowed Fracophile who modelled his palaces on French châteaus and filled them with French furniture. In 1935 Jagatjit met with Benito Mussolini. He also attended a Nazi Parteitag in Nuremburg.

Jagatjit Singh Bahadur,
Maharaja of Kapurthala.

At the age of 13 Jagatjit had been married to Maharani Harbans Kaur, daughter of Mian Ranjit Singh Guleria of Poprola. Several years had since passed, and his wife still had not conceived, so questions were asked. Even Jagatjit’s portly girth was blamed for his inability to consummate his marriage. It seems that experts were consulted, and a ramp-like bed was constructed. This apparently solved the couple’s difficulties and in due course a son was born and named Paramjit Singh (1892-1955). The bed’s engineer received a life pension.

During his life Jagatjit Singh married 6 times. His 5th wife was a Spanish girl, Anita Delgado (1890-1962). In 1908 they married and had a son. Anita was never required to live with his other wives, and would accompany Jagatjit on his travels. They were separated in 1925. 

Jagatjit’s 6th wife was Eugenie Grosupova, an illegitimate daughter of a Czech Count and an actress. After the deaths of her grandmother and mother, Eugenie became profoundly disturbed. She was certain that they had both been poisoned, and lived in terror of being poisoned herself. 
As Jagatjit’s roving eye had already alighted on another beautiful girl, Eugenie and Jagatjit were having difficulties in their marriage. One day, Eugenie caught a taxi to a stone tower, and committed suicide by jumping off it. From the marbled 5th storey Eugenie fell 3 storeys to the red-sandstoned, 2nd floor. Eugenie's body was found hanging over the railings. Jagatjit was shocked and upset when he heard of her death, and was said to have aged overnight. He died on June 19, 1949. 

Sources: World of Royalty, C. Younger: Wicked Women of the Ray, HarperCollins, 2011.

Count Renauld II "The Bad" of Sense (†1055)

Count Renaud II “The Bad” of Sense was described as “mad”. He was the eldest son of Fromond II of Sense (†1012) and his wife Gerberge de Roucy. Fromond was at loggerheads with the archbishop of Sense, Lietry, whom he could not forgive for having got the archbishopric in stead of his son Bruno.

After succeeding his father, Renaud II became involved in the power struggle with the archbishop of Sens. Renaud acted with disrespect to the church, which he despoiled, apparently claiming that he was “King of the Jews”. On another occasion, during mass, Renauld spat at the archbishop. French King Robert The Pious (972–1031) decided to intervene. For some reason, when the King took Sens on April 22, 1015, Renaud II was naked when he fled. Renaud’s brother Fromond was defending in the Big Tower in the city of Sens when he was captured. Fromond was subsequently interned in Orléans where he died.

Denier of French King Robert II the Pious.

Finally, a bargain was struck, whereby Renaud was to keep the county for life, and at his death the entire county was to revert to the crown. This agreement was carried out on Renaud’s death in 1055.
Renaud's brother Bruno was installed as archdeacon of the Church of Langres. Another brother, Renaud, became abbot of Sainte-Marie du Charnier. In 1023 Renaud II married a woman named Juvilla and fathered a son named Fromond.

"Raging Wolf" Thomas of Marle (1073-1130), Lord of Coucy

Thomas of Marle was born in 1073 as son of Enguerrand I of Coucy (±1042-1116), a man of many sandals. Enguerrand divorced his first wife, Thomas' mother Adèle of Marle, for adultery. Thus, Thomas' paternity was cast into doubt, and Enguerrand openly vented doubts that Thomas was his biological son.
When Enguerrand abducted and married his second wife, Sibyl of Château-Porcien, she was still married to Godfrey of Lorraine, while he was absent and at war. Thus, Enguerrand and Godfrey became bitter enemies, fighting each other in a private war. Thomas of Marle hated his father and joined his enemies. Still, in 1095 they both took part in the First Crusade.

Coucy Heraldry

As a knight, Thomas of Marle should have been an example of virtues like wisdom, charity and loyalty, but he wasn't like that at all. He achieved notoriety as a "wild beast", an "unbearable madman" and "like a wolf gone mad". He was "the vilest of men and a plague to God and man alike". He had a habit of "torturing peasants and captives, hanging them by the testicles, beating and starving them to death".
Thomas even cut the throat of a relative, archdeacon Walter of Laon. He supported the citizens of Laon in their rising of 1112, and sheltered its leaders. As a result Thomas was excommunicted in 1114, and condemned in the Royal Court of France, but continued with his deplorable activities.

In 1102 Thomas had married Ida of Hainault and they subsequently had 2 daughters. After Ida's death he married Melisende of Crécy in 1108, and had 2 sons and 2 more daughters. Thomas succeeded his father upon Enguerrand's death in 1116.

In 1130, while King Louis VI was hampered by obesity, his relative Raoul of Vermandois^* organized an expedition against Thomas of Marle. At Coucy Ralph's men caught him, and Raoul pierced him with his sword - before handing him over to the French King. Thomas made a long confession, was imprisoned, and died soon afterwards in prison.

Peace was finally achieved when Thomas' son, Enguerrand II, married Agnès de Beaugency, a niece of Raoul of Vermandois. It was Enguerrand VII de Coucy (1340-97) who married Princess Isabella (1332-82), daughter of English King Edward III.

 ^* Raoul of Vermandois was a grandson of King Henry I of France (1008-1060).

The violent deaths of the Counts of Flanders around 1100

Around 1100 successive Counts of Flanders in Belgium met with violent deaths.

Robert the Frisian was a younger son of Count Baldwin V of Flanders (1012-67) and his wife, Princess Adèle of France. Robert married Gertrude of Saxony, widow of Count Floris I of Holland. While acting as regent for his stepson Dirk I of Holland, Thus, Robert acquired the nickname "The Frisian" (Frisia being the name for Holland at the time). In addition to 7 children from her first marriage, Gertrude gave Robert 3 sons and 3 daughters. On February 22, 1071, near Cassel Robbrecht attacked his unpopular nephew Arnulf III of Flanders, a teenager, who died in battle.
Thus, Robert succeeded as Count of Flanders. On October 13, 1093, Robert was crossing the Marne River on campaign with the French King, when he fell from his horse and was trampled on by other horses.

Robert II of Flanders, Robert I’s eldest son, joined the First Crusade. He became known as a cruel conqueror who participated in the killings and looting in Jerusalem. He brought back with him a relic, said to be the arm of Saint George. In 1111 Robert led an army against Meaux. While approaching the city Robert was fatally wounded. He fell from his horse, and drowned in the River Marne on October 5.

Baldwin VII of Flanders

Baldwin VII of Flanders, Robert II's only son, was born in 1093. Aged 18, the new Count solicited the advice of his cousin, Charles the Good, who was several years older. It was Baldwin who arranged the marriage of Charles to the heiress of the County of Amiens, Margaret of Clermont, in 1118. Once Baldwin VII personally hanged ten knights who had violated the peace of the fair of Torhout, and he had another one boiled in oil. During a fight over the castle of Bures-en-Bray, Baldwin VI was being hit on the head by a lance. The nosepiece of his helmet was shattered, wounding him in the face. Badly hurt, Baldwin continued to fight, but soon his face was badly swollen. He was first taken to the abbey of Auchy, then to Atrecht, while the swelling on his face increased. He had trouble moving his arms, while his lower body became paralysed. Baldwin never recovered and died within a year on July 17, 1070.

Baldwin had nominated his cousin Charles the Good as his heir. Charles was born in 1084 in Denmark to King Canute IV and his wife Adela of Flanders, a daughter of Robert The Frisian. After Canute IV had been murdered in 1086 in the church of Odense, Adela took her son for safety to Flanders. During Charles' reign a solar eclipse was followed by a great famine, but Charles took measures that helped to address the famine quickly.
Charles made increased use of courts to settle disputes, and tried to tackle corruption. That way, Charles managed to antagonize the Ergembald family, and also a man named Didier Hacket by punishing the man's son for his part in a feud. While praying prostate on the floor of the St-Donatien Church in Bruges on March 2, 1127, Didier and some henchmen entered the church and blocked off all the exits. Charles was attacked, and his head was cut off as he looked up. The murderes were arrested and executed, while 21 others were hanged from the tower of Bruges. All members of the Ergembald family were hunted down and killed.

Charles had died childless. His successor as Count of Flanders was the unpopular William Clito of Normandy. William was wounded in the hand by an arrow at Alost; it turned gangrenous, and he died on July 28, 1128. He was succeeded by Thierry of Alsace, another grandson of Robert The Frisian. His rule was moderate and peaceful.

Sources: 

• Maesschalck, E. de: De Graven van Vlaanderen 961-1384, Davidsfonds, 2012
• Nicholas, D.: Medieval Flanders, Longman, 1996
• Hellinga, G.G.: Graven van Vlaanderen, Vlaamse vorsten in woord en beeld (862-1795), Walburg Press, 2013
• Bradbury, J.: The Capetians: Kings of France 987-1328, Hambledon Continuum, 2007

King Chilperic I (±539-584), the Nero & Herod of his time

Frankish King Chilperic I (±539-584) was one of the sons of Clothaire I of the French Merovingian dynasty. After his father’s death in 561 Chilperic became King of Neustria (the northwestern part of France). Chilperic’s reign saw the introduction of the Byzantine punishment of eye-gouging (the act of pressing or tearing the eye). After sizing some ecclesiastical property, chronicler Gregory of Tours described Chilperic as “the Nero and Herod of his time”.

Chilperic murdering his wife

Chiliperic had his first wife Audovera, the mother of 5 of his children, committed to a convent. There she was murdered in 580. Next, Chilperic married the Visigothic Princess Galaswintha (540-568) in 567, but soon tired of her. One day she was found strangled in bed. She may have been murdered at the instigation of Chilperic’s mistress, a serving-woman called Fredegund, who then married him. Rumour also had it that Chilperic himself had murdered his wife in bed (see picture). 
Since Chilperic’s brother Sigibert had married Galaswintha’s sister, the Visigothic Princess Brunhilda, the murder of Galaswintha resulted in a series of bloody wars. In 575 Fredegund had Sigebert assassinated. His widow Brunhilda then married her nephew Merovech, a son of Chilperic and his first wife Audovera. To nullify the marriage, Chilperic had Merovech tonsured and sent to a monastery to become a priest.

There is a story that one day Chilperic found his new wife Fredegund washing over a basin, and then smacked her bottom. She thought it was her lover and cried out “what do you think you are doing, Landeric?’ She saved herself by having her husband killed. Chilperic was stabbed to death by an unkown assailant. 

The cruelty & bloodshed of Queen Keo Phimpha of Lan Xang

The notorious Queen Nang Keo Phimpha of Lan Xang in Laos may have been born as the eldest child of King Samsenthai (†1417) and his 1st-wife-and-1st-cousin, Queen Bua Then Fa. After Samsenthai's death Keo Phimpha intrigued and connived as King Maker and Breaker for the best part - or worst - of a decade.

In 1428 King Phommathath, Keo Phimpha's nephew, was beheaded on her orders within 10 months of his accession. Another nephew, King Youkhon, reigned for 8 months and then fled for his life before being killed on the others of his aunt. A 3rd nephew, King Konekham, reigned for 1½ year before Keo Phimpha had him murdered, too.

One of Keo Phimpha’s brothers, called Lue-Sai or Meunsai, who had earlier been passed over in the succession, was allowed to reign for 6 months before committing suicide in the Palace gardens. In 1436 Keo Phimpha raised another brother to the throne. This Khong Kham claimed to be a reincarnation of this own father. He died from a fit in 1438.

Then, finally, the aged Keo Phimpha mounted the throne herself. By then the Council of Ministers and the senior nobility had tired of her intrigues, cruelty and bloodshed. They succeeded in deposing Keo Phimpha within a few months of her accession. She was abandoned on a rock at Pha-Dieo, bound together with her husband and grandnephew, Wiang Pha. They died from either thirst, starvation or being eaten by wild animals.

The brain damage of Charles The Young of Aquitaine (†866)

Emperor Charles the Bald (823-77) was a grandson of Charlemagne. He married twice and had several sons and daughters. In 855 Charles the Bald passed the rebellious Kingdom of Aquitaine to his son Young Charles (±847-866).

Charles The Bald

As Charles the Child became a teenager, he tried to exercise what little personal authority he could. In 862 he married a widow without his father's consent. Charles the Bald suppressed his son’s rebellion and forced Young Charles to put away his wife.

In 864 Charles apparently intended to play a joke on one Albuin during a hunt, ambushing him and stealing his horse. Albuin believed the assault to be genuine, and hit Charles on the head with his sword. Brain damage due to the blow left Charles mentally incapacitated. He never recovered and died 2 years later on September 29, 866.

Sources: J. Bradbury's The Capetians (Kings of France 987-1328) & wikipedia.

Sofie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1685–1735)

Sofie Luise was born on 6 May 1685 as the 4th and youngest child and only daughter of Friedrich, Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow, and his wife Christine Wilhelmine of Hesse-Homburg. Sofie Luise's father died before her 3rd birthday. Her eldest brother, who was 10 years her senior, succeeded their childless uncle as Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1692.

Sofie Luise
of Mecklenburg

On 28 November 1708 Sofie Louise became the 3rd wife of Friedrich I (1657–1713), the 1st King in Prussia. Friedrich had just one surviving son from his earlier marriages and still hoped to get additional sons with his young wife. He was a little man with a little hump, unimpressive in appearance, asthmatic, sickly and weak. At 50, Friedrich was no longer capable of making love, and the marriage remained childless.

Worse, the marriage was a disaster. Sofie Luise proved to be a fanatic, puritan Lutheran and a complete nuisance. Gradually, she showed herself to be mentally unstable, and the King estranged from her. Soon, she was over the hill and required watching. During periodic fits of violence Sofie Luise had to be kept under restraint.

Maria d’Aragona (±1503-1568)

In the "Golden Age of Bastards" King Ferrante I of Naples (1423-1494) was an illegitimate son of King Alfonso V of Aragon and his mistress Giraldona Carlino. Ferrante I married twice and had several illegitimate children, too. One of Ferrante’s mistresses, Diana Guardado, was a member of an aristocratic patrician family. She gave birth to three of his children: Maria d’Aragona (who married a brother of Pope Pius III), Giovanna d’Aragona (who married a brother of Pope Julius II) and Ferdinando d’Aragona (†1542). Ferdinando was created Duke of Montaldo and married twice, too. His youngest child was Maria d’Aragona (1503-1568).

Maria's sister Giovanna 

d'Aragona (1502-1575) 

was also a patron 

of writers.

Maria d’Aragona’s brilliance and beauty were widely praised. She frequented intellectual and religious circles, and was acquainted with the poetess Victoria Colonna. In 1523 Maria married Alfonso d’Avalos (1502-1546), Marquess del Vasco. He became a decorated soldier. In 1538 he was appointed governor of Milan for Emperor Charles V. Subsequently, Maria lived in the ducal palace in Milan, while her husband was constantly in the field with his army. In 1544, in one of the worst massacres of the century, Alfonso lost 12,000 of his men in a battle against the French. He was wounded in a battle and never fully recovered from his wounds. The last years of his life he was a broken. After her husband’s death in 1546 Maria, her 7 children and her sister Giovanna (to the right), settled in Pavia, where they established a literary salon. In 1547 they moved to Castell dell’Ovo in Naples and reopened their salon. Driven out of the castle during a rebellion, Maria managed to live out the last years of her life in Naples, where she died in 1568.

In 2012 the remains of Maria d’Aragona were dug up in Naples. When a linen bandage was cut off from Maria’s arm, a large, oval ulcer was discovered. Examination of the tissue with a microscope showed the presence of Treponema Pallidum, a spirochaete bacterium that is known to cause syphilis. The tissue was so well preserved that the spiral shape of the bacteria could be detected. Maria also harbored human papillomavirus in a venereal wart—the first diagnosis of this sexually transmitted, cancer-causing disease in the tissue of a mummy.

Sexually transmitted diseases were common in Renaissance Italy. It was easily spread by soldiers, having sex with - or raping – women, so Maria was most likely infected by her soldiering husband. See also: Syphilis in the Italian Renaissance.

Intermezzo - Syphilis & the Italian Renaissance

The Italian Renaissance is also known as the “Golden Age of Bastards”. Powerful men routinely took many mistresses and fathered several children with them. “Natural” children were frequently raised by the legal wife, alongside half brothers and sisters; others were sent to live and be educated in foreign courts. 

“The Wolf of Rimini”

Several of these bastards had brilliant careers: 

• Despite the presence of legitimate children Lionello d’Este (1407-1450) was favoured by his father as successor as Marquess of Ferrara. 
• Career soldier Federigo III da Montefeltro (1422-1482) was an illegitimate son of the lord of Urbino. 
• The notorious Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (1417-1468), popularly known as “The Wolf of Rimini”, was an illegitimate son of the lord of Fano.

The Italian Renaissance is also known as the era of highly contagious syphilis. At the time, social environmental and biological conditions were ideal for the spread of infections: new contacts among people, increasing trade, movements of armies from one part to the other within Europe, and also promiscuity and prostitution. 
The first well-documented major outbreak of syphilis occurred in Naples in the mid-1490s after Charles VIII of France had invaded Italy. It was of exceptional virulence, highly contagious and caused severe ulceration. Soon, a slower-progressing form of syphilis replaced the initial severe form. Many symptoms were less severe, and the rash, of a reddish colour, did not cause itching. Moreover, the gummy tumours then appeared only in a limited number of cases. For Renaissance rulers, leading the licentious lifestyle of court society of the time, syphilis was almost an occupational hazard.

Another Mad Heir - Felipe of Spain and Sicily (1747-1777)

With Don Carlos (1527-1598), Spain had already had an imbecile heir to the throne, who had a tendency to molest women. Don Felipe (1747-1777), however, was even worse.

Charles VII of Naples
aka Charles III of Spain
(1716-1788)

King Charles VII of Naples and Sicily (1716-1788) had become King at the age of 19. He married 13-year-old Princess Maria Amalia of Poland and Saxony (1724-1760). She had already given birth to 5 daughters when, late at night on June 13, 1747, their first son was born. He was christened immediately with the name “Felipe Antonio Januario Pascual Francisco de Paula”. Charles, besides himself with joy, seized the infant in his arms and embraced him, then lifted him up for all to admire. He thanked Heaven again and again.

Before Felipe was weaned, he had his first epileptic fits. Several nurses were discharged until one was found in whose care Felipe seemed to blossom. After a while, however, she refused to stay - in spite of every possible inducement. In the following years, Felipe was to substantiate the most dismal rumours about him. The Sardinian ambassador wrote: “There is something in his eyes that does not harmonize with the rest of his features. I have been assured that, although he is 7 years old, [..] he can scarcely utter a word [..].” The Prince - supposedly - suffered from “a great heaviness of head, which made him gloomy and ill-humoured”.

Don Felipe (1747-1777)

Don Felipe was not the first Spanish Royal with mental problems. His grandfather, King Philip V of Spain, had periodically been afflicted by fits of manic depression; suffering from delusions, screaming and biting himself. Felipe’s uncle, King Ferdinand V of Spain, suffered from a similar mental illness. Felipe’s mother, Maria Amalia, was impatient and ill-tempered. When she lost control, she boxed her pages and slapped her ladies-in-waiting.

Charles’ elder half-brother, Ferdinand VI, died childless on August 10, 1759. On August 22, the news reached Naples. Charles fainted and remained speechless for hours. Overcome with melancholy, he remained in his rooms for nine days. He knew he had to appoint a successor to the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily. First, he appointed a committee of the highest officials and magistrates and 6 physicians. They were to examine the mental state of his eldest son and pronounce on his capacity to govern. Don Felipe was kept in close observation for 2 weeks, and the committee’s verdict was that his “complete imbecility” should exclude him from the succession. King Charles issued a declaration stating: “A considerable body of my counsellors of state, a member of the Council of Castile, of the Chamber of St. Chiara, the Lieutenant of the Sommaric of Naples, and the whole Junta of Sicily, assisted by the six deputies, have represented to me that after every possible investigation they have not been able to find in the unhappy Prince the use of reason, nor any trace of reflection, and that such having been his state from infancy, he is not only incapable of religious sentiments and the use of reason at present, but no shadow of hope appears for the future.” Felipe’s second brother, another Carlos (1748-1819), became heir to the Spanish throne, while a third brother, Ferdinand (1751-1825), became King of Naples and Sicily.

Countess Juliane of Salm (1616-±1647) had been naughty

On 18-11-1642 the Wittelsbacher Count Palatine Georg Wilhelm (1591-1669) divorced Countess Juliane of Salm (1616-±1647) because she had given birth within only 2½ months of their marriage. 

Juliane of Salm was the youngest daughter of Johann (1582-1630), Wild- und Rheingraf in Grumbach und Rheingrafenstein and Countess Anna Juliane von Mansfeld (1591-±1626), thus Juliane had been an orphan since around the age of 14.

Birkenfeld Castle

Juliane married Count Palatine George Wilhelm on 30-11-1641 in his castle in Birkenfeld. He was 25 years her senior. Juliane gave birth within 2½ months of the wedding ceremony on 14-2-1642. The child had been fathered by Count Johann Ludwig of Salm-Dhaun (1620-1673) who belonged to another branche of the same family. On 30-10-1643, however, Johan Ludwig married another relative instead, Elisabeth of Salm-Neuviller (1620-1653).

Darya Nikolaevna Saltykova (1730-1801), the Russian Elisabeth Báthory

In the late 1750s ominous rumours began to spread in Moscow about terrible things taking place in the home of the young widow Darya Nikolayevna Saltykova. Born in 1730 as daughter of Nikolai Avtonomovich Ivanov and Anna Ivanovna Davydova, she was married at a young age to the noble Gleb Alexeyevich Saltykov, an uncle of Nikolai Saltykov (1736-1810), a tutor of the future Emperor Paul I of Russia and his 2 sons. Darya gave birth to 2 sons: Theodore (1750-1801) and Nicholas († 1775). She was widowed by 1755 at the age of 26.

Darya Nikolayevna Saltykova

People spoke of 100s of house-serfs tormented brutally by the lady landowner, about cruel torture and murder. At first, complaints to authorities about the deaths at the Saltykova estate were ignored, because Saltykova was well-connected with powerful people at the royal court. Eventually, however, relatives of murdered women were able to bring a petition before Empress Catherine II 'The Great'. She decided to form a commission to investigate and try Saltykova publicly.

Saltykova was arrested in 1762 and held for 6 years, while the commission conducted a painstaking investigation. Many witnesses were questioned and records of the Saltykova estate were examined. Finally, the commission was compelled to admit that Saltykova’s brutality had caused the death “if not of a hundred people, as had been reported by informers, then of at least fifty people for certain”.

It had been established that the sadistic lady beat her house-serfs (mostly maids), using different objects and implements; she poured boiling water over them, and froze them in the snow. Following her orders, the stablemen would whip disobedient house-serfs to death. In its report, the commission attributed the enormities to the mistress’s anger aroused at the sight of “carelessly washed floors and clothes”.

Saltykova had murdered her servants in a house standing in the center of Moscow, under the jurisdiction of Moscow police, who - it turned out - were bribed from top to bottom by Saltykova. The police readily drew up documents certifying yet another 'accidental death' of one of Saltikova's house-serfs. Even the leaders of the Chief Criminal Investigation Department took bribes, resulting in long delays during the investigation.

In 1768 Saltykova was chained on a platform in Moscow for one hour with a sign around her neck with the text: “This woman has tortured and murdered”. Many people came to look at her during the one hour she was displayed. Afterward, she was imprisoned for life in the basement of the Ivanovsky Convent in Moscow. Saltykova showed no repentance for what she had done and used to curse nearly everyone she saw. She remained locked-up for 33 years, dying on 27-12-1801 and was buried next to her relatives in the Donsky Monastery necropolis.

Bronnen: Evgenii V. Anismov: Five Empresses (Court Life in Eighteenth-Century Russia), 2004; Wikipedia. For further reading see:  Russia Pedia.

Michele Imperiali (1719-82), Prince of Francavilla

Michele Imperiali Junior, Prince of Francavilla, was born on July 7, 1719. He was named after his grandfather, another Michele Imperiali (1673-1738). When the elder Prince disagreed with the verdict of an honest Judge, he had him exiled. Later, when his retainers happened to kill those of a neighbour, Francavilla Sr. was ordered to arrest the culprits. Instead of doing so, he rode to Naples, where the King refused to see him. He was told to arrest his men, or remove himself from Naples. While on his way to make another appeal for a royal audience the Elder Prince died of a fit on the steps of the Royal Palace. His grandson, Michele Jr., took over the title, because his son, Andrea Imperiali, had predeceased him.

One Michele Jr.'s ancestors had married into the Princely Grimaldi family of Monaco. His mother was Anna Maria Caracciolo (1702-1731), a daughter of the 3^rd Prince Torella. Michele married Eleonora Borghese, a relative of Pope Paul V (1552–1621).

Heraldic shield of
the Imperiali Family

From 1770 onwards Michele Jr. was a Knight of the Golden Fleece. He acted as major domo to Ferdinand I (1751–1825), King of the Two Sicilies. Michele rented the magnificent Palazzo Cellamara in Naples. He restored and redecorated the Palace in the French style. His picture gallery was valued at 30,000 ducats. It contained a "Virgin and Child" by Titian, a "Magdalen anointing the feet of Jesus" by Paul Veronese, and many romantic scenes of ruins and architectural panels by Pannini. In addition, Michele collected classical sculpture. The palace’s furniture, porcelain and tapestries were exquisite, too. Its terraced gardens were among the most splendid in Naples.

Michele was known for his splendour and magnificently extravagant hospitality. He would entertain around 750 guests almost every other day. In 1770 Casanova was among his guests. After dinner, Casanova wrote, "the Prince led us to a pool beside the sea". A priest, Don Paolo Moccia, jumped stark naked into the water and without making any movement he floated like a pine plank. Next, Michele made all his pages dive into the pool together. These were boys of about 16 years old, as comely as cupids. On leaving the breasts of the waves almost simultaneously, they swam up under the public's eyes, "developing in strength and grace, and performing a thousand evolutions". All those Adonises were the “Sweethearts” of the homosexual Prince of Francavilla. On request, a chorus of female beauties gave a brilliant swimming display in the marble pool, too.

Michaele Imperiali Jr. died on February 10, 1782, aged 62.

Sources: Harold Acton's "The Bourbons of Naples", H.R.H. Princess Michael of Kent's "Crowned in a Far Country", it.wikipedia.org, George J. Homs, Nobilità Mediterranea.

Katherine Savage developed the delusion that she was a Queen

Lady Katherine Savage was a daughter of John Savage (±1603-1654), 2nd Earl Rivers, and Catherine Parker, daughter of the 13^th Baron Morley. Katherine married Sir Charles Sedley (1639-1701). Sedley was an English wit, dramatist and politician, but also a notorious rake and libertine, one of the “Merry Gang” of courtiers at the Court of King Charles II of Stuart. He inherited his families baronetcy after his elder brother’s death. The pair had a daughter, Catherine (1657-1717), later Countess of Dorchester and mistress of King James II & VII (1633-1701).

Charles Sedley

Katherine Savage became mentally ill, developing the delusion that she was a Queen, and demanding to be addressed as “Your Majesty”. As her illness progressed, she was send to live with an order of English Benedictine nuns at Ghent. Sedley assured his wife’s acceptance by the nuns by agreeing to give the convent £400 a year to help them clear their debts. As a nun Katherine was tricked by a priest, acting on her husband’s orders, to give up her wonderful jewellery. The discovery of the loss of her jewels, emblems of her imagined royal status, distressed Katherine even more. She died in 1670.

Sedley tried to obtain a divorce in vain. With Ann Ayscough he had 2 illegitimate sons, William and Charles Sedley. Upon Sedley’s death on August 20, 1701, the Sedley baronetcy became extinct.

An unlikely suitor for the Princess Royal was send to Bethlem

English Queen Consort Charlotte, wife of King George III, received a letter from Thomas Stone. The son of a floor-cloth painter, Stone was “a heavy looking man, about 33 years of age” and “a native of Shaftesbury”. His letter mentioned “a very warm passion which he had conceived of her eldest daughter; and hoping, if their majesties approved of the idea of his marrying her, he and the Princess Royal would be a very happy couple”. 

Princess Royal Charlotte (1766-1828)

Not content to rest his suit there, Stone appeared in person at St. James’s Palace and “begged of leave to be introduced in form, as for not having received an answer, he conceived his proposal was acceded to”. Apparently, Stone had become fixated on the Princess Royal, Charlotte (1766-1828). 

He wrote the following poem: 

To her Highness the PRINCESS ROYAL

Thrice glad were I to be your willing slave,

But not the captive of the tool or knave

With woe on woe you melt my sighing breast,

Whilst you reject your humble would-be guest.

When Stone took his amorous quest to Kew, he was seized and sent to Bethlem along with 'a Verbal Message' from the King requesting his admission. The mad-doctors reported about “evident marks of insanity having appeared in many parts of his conduct”. During his 1^st year’s stay at Bethlem, Stone wrote additional letters to King George III, who requested his continuing detention. Transferred to the incurables ward in 1788, Stone was to spend the rest of his life in Bethlem, and died there in 1805.

Source: Andrews & Scull: Undertaker of the Mind (John Monro and Mad-Doctoring in 18th-Century England), University of California Press