Margaret of Bavaria: The Duchess Who Governed Burgundy During John the Fearless’s Absences

Margaret of Bavaria: The Duchess Who Governed Burgundy During John the Fearless’s Absences

We have recently been finding out about some of the people connected to John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, so today I want to find out a little about his wife, Margaret of Bavaria.

Margaret was born in 1363 and was the daughter of Albert I, Duke of Bavaria-Straubing and Count of Hainault, Holland and Zeeland and Margaret of Brieg.

In April 1385, Margaret married John, then Count of Nevers, at Cambrai. Their marriage formed part of an important double wedding between the Burgundian and Bavarian families. At the same time, Margaret’s brother William married John’s sister, Margaret of Burgundy.

When John’s father, Philip the Bold, died in 1404, John became Duke of Burgundy and Margaret became Duchess of Burgundy.

Margaret was far more than simply the duke’s wife. John spent considerable periods away from Burgundy because of his involvement in French politics.

 Margaret increasingly took responsibility for affairs in his territories, and in 1409 she was formally appointed his deputy in Burgundy, allowing her to govern there during his absences. She therefore played an important role in maintaining Burgundian authority while her husband concentrated on events elsewhere.

Margaret and John had several children who would go on to form important political marriages across Europe. Their only surviving son was Philip the Good, who later became one of the most powerful dukes of Burgundy. Their daughters included Anne of Burgundy, who married John, Duke of Bedford, and Agnes, who married Charles I, Duke of Bourbon.

In 1419, Margaret’s life changed dramatically when John the Fearless was killed during a meeting with the future Charles VII of France at Montereau.

Their son Philip succeeded him as Duke of Burgundy, but Margaret continued to play a political role. Philip confirmed her authority to govern Burgundy during his absences, and she acted as regent until 1423.

Margaret died in Dijon on the 23rd of January 1424, having lived through one of the most turbulent periods in Burgundian and French history.

Image info:
Date: 16tg century
Collection: Hospice Comtesse

Would You Have Risked Everything to Save a Stranger?

Would You Have Risked Everything to Save a Stranger?

If you enjoy history with heart, courage, remarkable people and the occasional moment that makes you wonder, “Would I have been brave enough to do that?” then this little booklet may be for you.

It brings together the true stories of men and women who risked their safety, careers and sometimes their lives to help Jewish people during the Holocaust.

Some were diplomats, nurses or clergy. Others were just ordinary people who were faced with an extraordinary choice.

It is an easy, thoughtful read filled with humanity, bravery and stories worth remembering, ideally enjoyed with a cuppa nearby.

My book is available now.

Available https://a.co/d/0eQoxXLO

María Edwards: The Chilean Woman Who Helped to Save Jewish Children in the Second World War.

María Edwards: The Chilean Woman Who Helped to Save Jewish Children in the Second World War.

Today I am going to find out a little bit about María Edwards. She was a Chilean-born woman who became involved with the French Resistance and helped to save Jewish children during the German occupation of Paris.

María Edwards McClure was born in Santiago in Chile, on the 11th of December 1893. She was the youngest of nine children and came from a prominent Catholic family.

In 1913, María married Chilean diplomat Guillermo Errázuriz Vergara. His career took the couple to Europe, and in 1917 their daughter, María Angélica, was born in England. The family later moved to Paris.

Sadly in 1922 Guillermo died and María went on to marry the French writer Jacques Feydeau, although the marriage was short-lived.

When the Germans occupied Paris in the Second World War, María volunteered as a nurse at the Rothschild Hospital. The hospital treated many Jewish patients, including children whose families were being targeted.

María became involved with a resistance network operating around the hospital. She helped Jewish children who had been separated from their parents and were in danger of being deported. Working with others, she helped to arrange their escape and concealment, placing herself at considerable risk.

María was eventually brought to the attention of the German authorities. She was arrested and interrogated, but she continued to risk her life through her resistance work.

After the liberation of France, her courage was recognised. In 1953, she was awarded the French Legion of Honour.

María eventually returned to Chile in 1960. She died in Santiago on the 8th of June 1972, at the age of 78.

More than thirty years after her death, Yad Vashem recognised María Edwards as Righteous Among the Nations in 2005 for the part she played in helping Jewish children survive the Holocaust.

 

Image info:

Artist: William Orpen

Date: 1915

Collection: Mildura Arts Centre

 

Henry Courtenay: The Royal Cousin Caught in the Exeter Conspiracy

Henry Courtenay: The Royal Cousin Caught in the Exeter Conspiracy

We have been finding out about some of the people who were connected to Reginald Pole. Today I want to find out a little about Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter, a close relative of Pole and King Henry VIII.

Image info:

Garter Knights in the Black Book of the Garter

Date: 1535

Collection: Royal Collection, Windsor Castle

Courtnay is second from the left

Henry was born around 1498, the son of William Courtenay and Catherine of York, who was a daughter of King Edward IV. This made him a grandson of Edward IV and a first cousin of Henry VIII.

He was also related to Reginald Pole. Henry’s mother, Catherine of York, and Reginald’s mother, Margaret Pole, were first cousins, making Henry and Reginald second cousins.

For many years, Henry Courtenay had a close relationship with Henry VIII. He accompanied the king to the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520, became a Knight of the Garter and in 1525 was created Marquess of Exeter.

He initially supported Henry’s policies and was even involved in proceedings against Catherine of Aragon and the trial of Anne Boleyn.

However, by the late 1530s his position had become increasingly dangerous. His wife, Gertrude, remained Catholic, while Courtenay became increasingly opposed to Thomas Cromwell and the religious changes that were taking place in England.

Most dangerously, Courtenay was in correspondence with his relative Cardinal Reginald Pole, who had become one of Henry VIII’s most outspoken opponents.

In 1538, investigations began into what became known as the Exeter Conspiracy. Courtenay and members of the Pole family were accused of being involved in a Catholic conspiracy against Henry VIII.

Whether there was actually a carefully organised plot still remains debated.

Henry was arrested in November 1538 and was found guilty of treason.

On the 9th of December 1538, Henry Courtenay was executed on Tower Hill.

He had been one of Henry VIII’s closest companions. But his royal blood, religious connections and association with Reginald Pole ultimately helped make him a target.

Why Britain Invaded Afghanistan in 1839: The Fear of Russia That Led to War- Part One

Why Britain Invaded Afghanistan in 1839: The Fear of Russia That Led to War- Part One

Why would Britain send an army deep into Afghanistan when the country itself posed no direct threat to British territory?

image info:

Entrance to the Bolan Pass from DadurArmy of the Indus used the Bolan Pass during the 1839 invasion of Afghanistan.

Today I want to start a new series looking at the First Anglo-Afghan War, one of the most disastrous conflicts of the Victorian era. Over the next few weeks, I want to look at why Britain became involved in Afghanistan, how the campaign initially seemed to succeed, and how events eventually led to the terrible retreat from Kabul.

To understand why British troops went into Afghanistan in 1839, we need to look beyond Afghanistan.

Much of India was controlled by the British East India Company. India was enormously important to British trade, wealth and influence, and British officials were constantly worried about anything that might threaten their position there.

One of their greatest fears was Russia.

During the early 19th century, the Russian Empire was expanding south through Central Asia. British politicians and military officials were becoming increasingly concerned that Russian influence might eventually reach Afghanistan and that it may even threaten British-controlled India.

This rivalry between Britain and Russia later became known as the Great Game.

Afghanistan was situated between the Russian Empire in the north and British India to the south-east, which made it hugely important.

At the time, Dost Mohammad Khan was the most powerful ruler in Afghanistan and controlled Kabul.

Afghanistan had been divided by years of rivalry following the decline of the Durrani Empire. Dost Mohammad had gradually emerged from these struggles and took control of Kabul in 1826. But he faced serious problems of his own.

One of the most important concerned the city of Peshawar.

Peshawar had previously been under Afghan control but had been captured by the Sikh Empire, ruled by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Dost Mohammad wanted British help to recover the city.

The British, however, had already developed an important relationship with Ranjit Singh and were unwilling to support an Afghan attack against him.

So Dost Mohammad started looking elsewhere for help.

In 1837, a Russian representative, Captain Ivan Vitkevich, arrived in Kabul. To British officials, his presence appeared to confirm their fears that Russia was attempting to gain influence over Afghanistan.

Britain also had its own representative in Kabul, Alexander Burnes.

Burnes had been sent to negotiate with Dost Mohammad and explore the possibility of strengthening relations between Afghanistan and British India.

Dost Mohammad was willing to cooperate, but he again raised the question of Peshawar.

British officials refused to support his claim.

With negotiations failing and a Russian representative also present in Kabul, the British government in India increasingly began to view Dost Mohammad as unreliable.

At around the same time, Persia, with Russian support, was besieging the Afghan city of Herat. To British officials, this made the threat appear even more serious and increased their fears that Russian influence could spread closer to India.

Instead, they decided to support another man.

Shah Shuja Durrani had once ruled Afghanistan but had been driven from power many years before. He was living in exile under British protection.

British officials believed that if Shah Shuja could be restored to the Afghan throne, he would become a friendly ruler who could help prevent Russian influence from spreading towards India.

In October 1838, the Governor-General of India, Lord Auckland, issued what became known as the Simla Manifesto.

It attempted to justify British intervention in Afghanistan and presented the restoration of Shah Shuja as necessary for the security of British India.

An agreement had already been made between the British, Shah Shuja and Ranjit Singh.

The plan was now clear.

Dost Mohammad would be removed.

Shah Shuja would be restored.

And Afghanistan would, British officials hoped, become a reliable barrier between Russian expansion and British India.

Late in 1838, a large force known as the Army of the Indus began preparing to advance into Afghanistan.

At first, British leaders expected the campaign to be relatively straightforward.

Instead, their decision to interfere in Afghan politics would begin a chain of events that ended in one of the most famous military disasters of the 19th century.

In Part Two, I want to look at how the British army entered Afghanistan and how Shah Shuja was placed back on the throne.

Klymentiy Sheptytsky: The Monk Who Hid Jewish Children During the Holocaust - Then Died in a Soviet Prison

Klymentiy Sheptytsky: The Monk Who Hid Jewish Children During the Holocaust - Then Died in a Soviet Prison

Today I want to find out a little about Klymentiy Sheptytsky, a Ukrainian Catholic monk and priest who helped to protect Jewish people during the Holocaust and later died as a prisoner of the Soviet Union.

Klymentiy was born Kazimierz Maria Szeptycki on the 17th of November 1869 in Prylbychi, near Lviv, which was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

He came from a prominent Polish-Ruthenian noble family and was the sixth of seven sons, although two of his brothers died young. His older brother, Andrey Sheptytsky, would later become the Metropolitan Archbishop and head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Klymentiy was highly educated. He studied in Kraków, Munich and Paris before earning a doctorate in law from the Jagiellonian University in 1892.

For a while, his life was very different from the one he would go on to choose. He helped to manage his family’s estates and became involved in politics, even serving in the Austrian parliament from 1900.

After leaving politics, Klymentiy became drawn towards religious life.

In 1911, he entered a Benedictine monastery in Germany. He later joined the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and became a member of the Studite monastic community, taking the religious name Klymentiy.

He was ordained as a priest on the 28th of August 1915 and eventually became an important leader within the Studite monasteries.

Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, Lviv and the surrounding region came under German occupation. Jewish communities faced persecution and deportation.

Klymentiy worked closely with his brother Andrey to help save Jewish people.

Studite monasteries were used as places of refuge, and Jewish children were among those secretly hidden within religious communities. At the Univ monastery, Jewish boys could sometimes be hidden among the monks and the other young people living there.

Klymentiy helped to organise this network of protection and was directly involved in sheltering people whose lives were in danger.

Among those who survived with the help of the Sheptytsky brothers were Kurt Lewin and David Kahane, both of whom later wrote about their experiences.

When Soviet forces returned to the region in 1944, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church faced renewed persecution.

Klymentiy became one of the most senior remaining leaders of the Church after many other clergy were arrested.

On the 5th of June 1947, Soviet authorities arrested him.

He was imprisoned and pressured to abandon his allegiance to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, but he refused.

Klymentiy was eventually sentenced to eight years in prison.

He never completed the sentence.

On the 1st of May 1951, at the age of 81, Klymentiy Sheptytsky died in Vladimir Central Prison in the Soviet Union.

In 1995, Yad Vashem honoured him as Righteous Among the Nations for risking his life to help save Jewish people during the Holocaust.

Six years later, on the 27th of June 2001, Pope John Paul II beatified Klymentiy during a visit to Lviv.

Klymentiy Sheptytsky lived through two brutal occupations, but continued to protect others and remain faithful to his beliefs. 

Anne of Burgundy: The Duchess Who Helped Hold the English-Burgundian Alliance Together

Anne of Burgundy: The Duchess Who Helped Hold the English-Burgundian Alliance Together

We have been finding out about some of the people connected to John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy. We have already looked at his son, Philip the Good and Philip’s second wife Bonne of Artois. But today I want to find out a little about John’s daughter, Anne of Burgundy.

Anne was born on the 30th of September 1404. Her father was John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, and her mother was Margaret of Bavaria. Her brother Philip later became the Duke of Burgundy after their father’s death in 1419.

Anne was part of one of the most powerful noble families in Europe.

On the 13^th of May 1423, she married John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford, at Troyes in France.

The marriage was politically important. Bedford was the brother of Henry V and had become Regent of France for his young nephew Henry VI. England relied on its alliance with Burgundy to maintain its position in France.

Anne’s marriage helped to strengthen the relationship between her husband and her brother Philip the Good. Anne and Bedford had no children together.

After Joan of Arc was captured and moved into English custody, Anne was in Rouen during Joan’s trial. Anne, or women acting on her behalf, reportedly examined Joan to confirm her claim that she was a virgin.

Sadly, Anne’s life was short. She died in Paris on the 13th of November 1432, aged just 28.

Her death also had political consequences. Bedford married Jacquetta of Luxembourg the following year, and his relationship with Anne’s brother Philip gradually deteriorated.

In 1435, Burgundy abandoned its alliance with England and made peace with Charles VII of France.