The subject of our blog today is about this consort who is, unfortunately, neglected in counterpoint to her predecessors. Who was Catherine of Braganza, the only Portuguese Infanta to be crowned Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland? It is true that we count a Castilian consort amongst the British Kings (Eleanor of Castile, as the wife of King Edward I, excluding the Castilian princesses who were married to princes like John of Gaunt) and an Aragonese, Catherine of Aragon, before the union of Spain. Then the future Philippe II of Spain is married to Queen Mary Tudor. Even with the next dynasty, the Stuarts, we see no Portuguese consort until the restoration, when Catherine is married to King Charles II, and no other after their deaths.
But Catherine of Braganza was more than just the sweet wife of a womanizer monarch. Their own relationship was, against all odds, one of full of affection. After his death, she returned to Portugal, where she acted as regent to her brother and then to her nephew. She was a fortress for all, a clever and pious woman who introduced the habit of drinking tea to the British people. Currently, british historiography has been trying to open to new perspectives of the impact Catherine left during the time she reigned as Queen next to Charles Stuart.
Born Catarina Henriquetta de Bragança at the Ducal Palace of Vila Viçosa, she was the second daughter of the then 8th duke of Bragança, John, and his spouse Luísa of Guzmán. By the time of her birth, Portuguese was struggling for independence against Spain, as it was under the Spanish domain ever since King Philippe II united the Iberian Peninsula. Eventually, John became King John IV of Portugal, accepting the throne and declaring independence of Spain for good. Many european countries were relucting to acknowledging it: for example, France abandoned the treaty with Portugal and the struggle with Spain would still remain for a while.
Despite this, Catherine had a happy childhood in Lisbon, where she was raised at a convent that stayed very near to the royal palace. Her mother, Queen Luísa, supervised the education of her children, and Catherine was no exception. What we also know, aside of her quiet childhood, is that "her upbringing was said to be sheltered and made her a person of strong faith and devotion."
With her father becoming king of Portugal, and upon the death of her older sister Joanna, Catherine's status as Portuguese Infanta was very valuable so her mother:
But Catherine of Braganza was more than just the sweet wife of a womanizer monarch. Their own relationship was, against all odds, one of full of affection. After his death, she returned to Portugal, where she acted as regent to her brother and then to her nephew. She was a fortress for all, a clever and pious woman who introduced the habit of drinking tea to the British people. Currently, british historiography has been trying to open to new perspectives of the impact Catherine left during the time she reigned as Queen next to Charles Stuart.
Born Catarina Henriquetta de Bragança at the Ducal Palace of Vila Viçosa, she was the second daughter of the then 8th duke of Bragança, John, and his spouse Luísa of Guzmán. By the time of her birth, Portuguese was struggling for independence against Spain, as it was under the Spanish domain ever since King Philippe II united the Iberian Peninsula. Eventually, John became King John IV of Portugal, accepting the throne and declaring independence of Spain for good. Many european countries were relucting to acknowledging it: for example, France abandoned the treaty with Portugal and the struggle with Spain would still remain for a while.
Despite this, Catherine had a happy childhood in Lisbon, where she was raised at a convent that stayed very near to the royal palace. Her mother, Queen Luísa, supervised the education of her children, and Catherine was no exception. What we also know, aside of her quiet childhood, is that "her upbringing was said to be sheltered and made her a person of strong faith and devotion."
With her father becoming king of Portugal, and upon the death of her older sister Joanna, Catherine's status as Portuguese Infanta was very valuable so her mother:
"(...) first contemplated a marriage with Louis XIV of France. When that didn't materialize, she turned to England. A secreet meeting was set up with her ambassador and King Charles II. The Portuguese offered Charles Tangier which could be used as a base for trade in the Mediterranean, Bombay, a gateway for trade with India, free trade with Brazil and the East Indies and an enormous amount of cash, £300,00. After a year of negotiations and overcoming doubts over him marrying a Catholic princess, Charles announced he would marry Catherine of Braganza before Parliament on May 8, 1661."As for Charles II, before he was invited to come back to England, there had been few prospects as his consort. Luckily, situation favoured for his side once it was stabilized and the choice fell on Catherine of Braganza, especially because she'd bring a huge dowry to the already in debt british sovereign. Nonetheless, by all accounts the:
"(...) marriage between the newly restored King of England and the Portuguese Infanta took place in Portsmouth on the 21st of May 1662. As St Thomas's, the parish church of Portsmouth, was still heavily damaged from the English Civil War, the only suitable venue for a royal wedding was the "Domus Dei". (...) The wedding service, however, is believed to have taken place in the Governor's Presence Chamber and not the chapel itself [4]. Besides a considerable dowry of some 2 million Portuguese Crowns, England also gained the North African port of Tangiers, trading privileges in the East Indies (...)."It is said that they had two ceremonies: one, secret, followed the Catholic rites according to the new Queen's insistence; and the other followed the Protestant ones. Later, on 30 september 1662 the:
"(...) married couple entered London as part of a large procession, which included the Portuguese delegation and many members of the court. There were also minstrels and musicians, among them ten playing shawns and twelve playing Portuguese bagpipes, those being the new Queen's favourite instruments. The procession continued over a large bridge, especially designed and built for the occasion, which led into the palace where Henrietta Maria, the Queen Mother waited, along with the British court and nobility. This was followed by feasting and firework displays."
And although her good, quiet, pious nature she developed thanks to the days she spent in the convent had pleased the Queen Mother, the effect it had on her husband was little. Despite the good beginning they apparently shared, with Charles having no complaints of his wife, he had mistresses, one of them the most famous being Barbara Villiers. She apparently demanded to be included in the retinue of ladies of the Queen. At first, Catherine was not aware of the liasion and permitted it, but once she found about it, she tried to dismiss. This was reason to the strangement between them until she was forced to accept her husband's mistress.
In fact, "Catherine worked hard on her public image of being a pious image (but she also loved to party), and conveyed the message that she was still the queen". This would prove useful as the king started to rely on his wife, and, as their relationship developed into a loving one, the king would constantly stand by her side, especially when she was accused of poisoning him in what was known as "Popish Act":
The nature of their relationship has been often discussed through controversies of whether he did love her or not, after all, it is not uncommon to wonder so due to the common concept of love. But here are some situations that prove how kind and loving King Charles was towards his wife, despite the extra marital affairs that made the Stuart king known for his love of women.
After Charles's death in 1685, James Stuart became King James II of England and VII of Scotland. With him, Catherine held the prestigious position of Queen Dowager, and kept good relations with him. She also witnessed the Glorious Revolution, where her niece through marriage, Mary, deposed her father James alongside her husband William of Orange. They would reign jointly as Queen Mary II and King William III. The relations Catherine of Braganza held with them were respectfully, but some odd involving money and other religious misunderstandings leaded her to return to Portugal, as we see next:
Perhaps the reason they tolerated Catherine, or at least embraced her as Queen, unlike what had happened to her predecessor, is possibly explained by the fact she lacked heirs and the possibility of educating them to Catholicism. So if there was a main reason that could be pointed to Catherine's return to her homeland is this one.
But even still, when she did so, she returned as a wealthy widow and held regency in Portugal on the behalf of her brother and then her nephew. When this latter's mother died, it was Catherine who helped him to get out of depression and acted as mothern figure. Furthermore, she:
In fact, "Catherine worked hard on her public image of being a pious image (but she also loved to party), and conveyed the message that she was still the queen". This would prove useful as the king started to rely on his wife, and, as their relationship developed into a loving one, the king would constantly stand by her side, especially when she was accused of poisoning him in what was known as "Popish Act":
"Technically British monarchs were not supposed to be practicing Catholics (...) but she practiced her religion anyway. She was definitely in danger of treason, though, when she was accused of planning to poison the king along with other conspiracies. King Charles didn't believe the accusations against his wife and ignored suggestions to divorce her. He said: "She could never do anything wicked, and it would be a horrible thing to abandon her."The divorce was suggested not only as a result of Catherine failing in producing a male heir after three miscarriage, but because of the concern that the crown would be passed to James, who, by then, was converted to Catholicism. Nonetheless, it seemed this did not make them strained, but attached one another as was already mentioned, to the point that whoever offended the Queen would be at least banished from court or be sent away, as it was the case of Barbara Villiers.
The nature of their relationship has been often discussed through controversies of whether he did love her or not, after all, it is not uncommon to wonder so due to the common concept of love. But here are some situations that prove how kind and loving King Charles was towards his wife, despite the extra marital affairs that made the Stuart king known for his love of women.
"On one occasion, she (Catherine) felt ill during the night when he was in bed with her. He got up to fetch her a basin, but she was sick in the sheets before he returned. Not until he had himself cleaned and dried her, and changed the sheets, did he call her women to help, and repaired to his own room, even then returning three times to see how she was before he finally went to sleep. (Masters 1979, 75-76)."Also:
"In 1663, she fell seriously ill and almost died. The King remained by her side, seemingly devoted to her. In her delirium she kept asking where her children were. Charles reassured her and his attentiveness seemed to restore her. When she recovered she couldn't walk and was temporarily deaf but she eventually overcame these disabilities. In 1665, plague in London caused the court to move to Oxford and it is likely Catherine miscarried in February 1666. She suffered another miscarriage in 1668 and again in June 1669."That being said, Catherine is remembered for introducing the tea into the British lands, or at least making a habit having it, since Samuel Pepys, a 17th century writer, mentions the drink before Catherine's arrival. As the next paragraph points it out:
"She started a fashion for drinking tea, which became associated with the queen as well as changing consumer habits. In one poem of tea, Edmund Waller wrote 'the best of queens and best of herbs we owe/ to that bold nation which the way did show': thinking of Portugal and how assets and trading links with Portugal could help to create new opportunities in England. But the actual parts of Catherine's dowry, the ports that were coming from Catherine's dowry, like Bombay, gave England a presence in India and provided a new platform for the East India trading company."But her habits were not limited in making drinking tea fashionable at court. In fact, although the court of Charles II is often associated to the reproduction of francophone's influences, Queen Catherine managed to, through her fondness of dance, insert some Italian styles in music and fashion. Another of her habits involved playing cards, which left Protestants perplexed, because she did so on Sunday's. She also:
"enjoyed dancing and took great delight in organising masques. She had a great love for the countryside and picnics; fishing and archery were also favourite pastimes. In a far cry from her convent-days the newly liberated Catherine displayed a fondness for the recent trend of court ladies wearing men's clothing, which we are told, "showed off her pretty, neat legs and ankles"; and she was even reported to have considered leading the way in wearing shorter dresses, which would show off her feet."Plus, Catherine:
"(...) may have introduced the use of forks as well. She did not get involved with English politics but closely followed developments in Portugal. In 1665, she started building a religious house east of St. James which was completed in 1667 and became known as The Friary."In general words, we understand that, although she failed in what was expected concerning the main role of a consort -which was providing a male heir to the king- she nonetheless was wise by holding the crown in times her position as queen was constantly defied by the mistresses of her husband and to what extent did her Portuguese habits and her own piety contributed to be an easy target to Protestants courtiers.
After Charles's death in 1685, James Stuart became King James II of England and VII of Scotland. With him, Catherine held the prestigious position of Queen Dowager, and kept good relations with him. She also witnessed the Glorious Revolution, where her niece through marriage, Mary, deposed her father James alongside her husband William of Orange. They would reign jointly as Queen Mary II and King William III. The relations Catherine of Braganza held with them were respectfully, but some odd involving money and other religious misunderstandings leaded her to return to Portugal, as we see next:
"Catherine's current chamberlain worked closely with the now dowager-queen. He took the blame for Catherine's actions when Mary II found out that Catherine forbade the chapels of Somerset House to say prayers for King William. William once tried to get Catherine out of Somerset House, but Catherine reminded him she was protected with certain rights. It took Queen Mary to talk through things with Catherine. Finally it was agreed upon that it would be best if she returned to Portugal."Whether these events actually happened or were merely misunderstandings is beyond of us to figure them out, but the idea that Mary disliked her aunt Catherine can at least be put aside. It must be remembered that even though this is the end of 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century, the Protestant Reformation that ecloded almost 200 years earlier still had its effects. Tensions between Protestantism and Catholicism still happened, and the English people would difficultly accept a monarch of the latter religion.
Perhaps the reason they tolerated Catherine, or at least embraced her as Queen, unlike what had happened to her predecessor, is possibly explained by the fact she lacked heirs and the possibility of educating them to Catholicism. So if there was a main reason that could be pointed to Catherine's return to her homeland is this one.
But even still, when she did so, she returned as a wealthy widow and held regency in Portugal on the behalf of her brother and then her nephew. When this latter's mother died, it was Catherine who helped him to get out of depression and acted as mothern figure. Furthermore, she:
"(....) ruled over military campaigns and was highly effective in running the country. She was to govern to great acclaim until her death on December 31, 1705. She is buried in the Royal Pantheon of the Braganza Dynasty and her name is highly respected to this day in Portugal."
Biography:
http://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/behind-the-scenes/blog/very-royal-wedding-charles-ii-and-catherine-braganza
http://loyaltybindsme.blogspot.com.br/2012/07/did-charles-ii-love-catherine-of.html
http://herstoryline.com/2014/09/23/keeping-up-appearances-catherine-of-braganza-charles-iis-underestimated-wife/
http://stuarts-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/royal-marriage.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_of_Braganza
http://www.marryingcultures.eu/research/catherine-braganza
http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/queen_of_reg/catherine.html
https://thefreelancehistorywriter.com/2012/08/30/catherine-of-braganza-queen-of-england/
http://www.nytimes.com/1990/10/11/nyregion/here-s-to-queen-catherine-who-gave-queens-a-name.html
http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/stuart_29.html
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