Life and times of Charles I and Henrietta Maria
Charles was never meant to be king but rose to the challenge and he and Henrietta led a glittering court. Sadly they were at odds with Parliament and the people which led to Civil War.
This course was run at the Queen’s House Greenwich on Saturday 20th January 2018 and at the City Lit on Saturday 16th February 2019.
We covered the background to how the Stuarts succeeded to the English throne from already being rulers of Scotland and what effect thi
s dual role had on them and their subjects. Charles’s childhood in the shadow of his brilliant brother Henry will be looked at and how Henry’s sudden death thrust him into the centre of politics. Charles’s personal life will also be looked at including his problems in finding a wife and producing heirs as well as his religious convictions and how this affected his role as monarch. His marriage to the French princess Henrietta Maria was a diplomatic coup but her Catholicism was to cause many problems with his British subjects. His attempts to rule without Parliament will be looked at and how this led to Civil War and the ultimate loss of his throne. Henrietta survived her husband to encourage her children to play a role in the future of Europe and the restoration of the British monarchy. She joined her son back in England and lived at the Queen’s House again after nearly 20 years absence.
The following were the slides from the course plus some slides of Charles’s personal collection based on the Royal Academy Exhibition in 2018 plus the Raphael Cartoons in the Victoria and Albert museum.
Charles I printable slides 1 2018
Charles I printable slides 2 2018
Revised in 2019
Charles I slides 2 2019 printable
Charles I printable slides 3 2018
Revised in 2019
Charles I slides 3 2019 printable
Charles I printable slides 4 2018
Revised in 2019
Charles I slides 4 2019 printable
Royal Academy and Raphael printable slides
This is a timeline from Charles’s Life
Revised Timeline
The following is a list of Masques from the reigns of James I and Charles I
A List if Composers associated with the early Jacobean court
This is a family tree of Charles I’s nearest family born before his death
Henrietta Maria’s French family showing connections to Spain and other European royalty
The following podcasts from Melvyn Bragg’s “In Our Time” series might also be of interest
Putney Debates 1647
Republicanism
The Covenanters
The Divine Right of Kings
The Thirty Years War
The Trial of Charles I