Let's not even get started about the French and their love for the name "Louis"
Children of the Bloody Queen: A Tudor Timeline
- Thread starter EternalMadness1997
- Start date
mais there were never two royal brothers both named charles...at any rate, the french royals didn't even use first names so much (they referred to themselves and each other more by titles) so it was no big problem.
The Regency Years
1568: Impending Terror (If you're French)
The news that King Philip II of England was now also the Prince of Asturias sent shockwaves throughout all of continental Europe. Virtually all nobles and royals alike who were opposed to the Habsburgs were now forced to re-assess their situation. The English and Spanish branches would be sharing a brain with one another for the forseeable future, provided King Philip II (to also be III) proves to have a fruitful marriage. True the balance of power wouldn't be shifted so much in central or eastern Europe, where the Habsburg power was Austria rather than Spain, but France was a completely different story. Catherine de Medici and her son, Charles IX, were already embroiled in the Wars of Religion - and thus their only save grace was that technically, their government was aligned to the Spanish, as well as the Papacy & Duchy of Savoy. By proxy, this technically meant England as well - though with the realm under a regency there was no direct involvement in the fiery conflict. Still, Catherine de Medici was under no illusion that this would last and neither was her son; for now though, they would just have to focus their energies on the Huguenots lest they tear France completely asunder. Something they already seemed to be doing anyway.As for the English nobles, this created a massive divide amongst those who welcomed or at least accepted the union, and those who feared it. Much like the Spanish Marriage, the "Spanish Union" was feared because England did not want to become simply a part of the vast Spanish Empire - the argument that it was the English King inheriting Spain did little to dissuade those of a paranoid mind.
"Soon there will be a day where the King of England doesn't even remember how to speak English!" was one saying that became popular amongst those who were opposed to the union. Though it is unknown from where or whom it came from.
It would prove something of a warning for what was to come.
King Philip II himself, ever a prideful young lad, was most unamused by the saying - he knew very well how to speak English. Frankly, he would have liked to have whoever said that during his reign beheaded for treason; if only he knew who it had been.
As for how Spain thought of the current Prince of Asturias, honestly after having to deal with Carlos these past few decades many were actually pleased that a boy of a more sound and stable mind was the heir. There were some who were concerned about the fact the incoming King was from a foreign realm, though the fact he had the blood of not only Ferdinand & Isabella but also Catalina and Carlos I (V) running through his veins certainly was something the Spaniards respected. Genetically and ethnically speaking, he truly was more a Spanish King than that of an English one, though this would not really have been put much thought into at the time; and suggesting this in England would have been seen as borderline treason.
Didn't stop some people, though.
1568: The Huntingdon Plot
It can not really be stressed enough that there were plenty of people, true to Nicholas Heath's words, "who would love to have your royal head on the tip of a pike to avoid this union, your majesty". To which King Philip himself replied, "I would like to see this traitors try to behead me, before I behead them." For the French, the reason was obvious: they absolutely dreaded being completely surrounded by their arch nemesis. They would have likely put more effort into conspiring against Philip at the very moment if they were not embroiled in the chaos that was the Wars of Religion. That said, the English eyes being primarily on the potential of a French or Scottish plot meant that domestic plots from the English nobility found an easier time festering and growing.That is there the now infamous Huntingdon plot came in.
Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon, always had a certain suspicion placed upon him during the reign of Queen Mary - as did his father Francis. Both of them were protestant noblemen who had been involved in the coup to place Jane Grey on the throne. However, Francis was convinced to be supportive of the Queen and turned against his former allies - which combined with him being nephew to Reginald Pole gave him a certain clemency during her time. He and his son would have certainly stayed loyal to the crown, had they not seen definitive proof, in their eyes, that England's independence was in grave danger. With Francis having died in 1561, Henry took it upon himself to formulate the plot to free England from Spanish yoke. He had tried to get the likes of William Cecil & Robert Dudley in his plot, and though they expressed a certain support if it they declined direct involvement. They never did expose Hastings to the proper authorities however, which was certainly telling.
One of the initial plans Hastings had come up with involved inciting a riot during one of the king's carriage rides through London after he left his court, and it would be in the chaos that either paid assassins or bribed guardsmen would do what needed to be done. There was uncertainty whether or not Princess Catherine was to be killed as well, or if this plot was to make her queen. The initial plan however, seems to have been scrapped in favor of one that was less chaotic as well as more likely to happen; during one of the King's hunting trips, there was to be an accident induced by a few paid off guardsmen or via influencing the right people to lower the king's usually high security once the king was far enough away from the palace. It is presumed the king himself was to be stabbed or shot, though the details given in Hasting's parchment were vague - implying he would have let the one doing the work decide such details for themselves "so long as the deed is done".
Having gathered to discuss this plot many times within Hastings' own estate, the men all certainly knew the risks of what it was they were doing. They knew that if they failed, there would be nothing good waiting for them. But it was worth it to them: "For the good of all England" they would say, to remind each other why it was they were even contemplating killing the rightful king.
Certainly if the boy's mother had known this was going to happen, she would not have been so merciful to Hastings.
The plot was presumably intended to occur sometime in August or September of 1568, based on the fact that it was ultimately foiled in the early weeks of August after correspondence to the palace had been intercepted by the principal secretary John Boxall, who was a key holdout from the late queen Mary. Doing his proper duty, he immediately informed the king and regent Heath of the plot. Seeing as how he still had Tudor blood in him and being within his teen years, King Philip II was famously furious and as to be expected, ordered the immediate arrest of Hastings and all of his plotting associates.
Hastings wasn't at his home when the forces of the king arrived at his estate for the arrest however, though was in the process of returning to it. The moment he had spotted the men of the king, he attempted to make a break for it - though as they were supposed to, those he was fleeing from gave chase. He ultimately did not get very far, as his horses ultimately tripped and sent the man flying off and onto the road not far from his estate in Huntingdon at all. It wasn't long at all before he was thereafter apprehended and found himself being hauled off to the tower.
Henry Hastings would ultimately be executed on Tower Hill come the 10th of November, 1568 along with at least 8 other people implicated in the plot; in a traditional Tudor fashion, the method of execution was that of beheading. King Philip II only regretted that the execution had been scheduled for earlier.
That said, this incident did make Philip II be cautious whenever going on his routine hunting trips.
There was also news from Spain that the King Father Philip II was now married to Anna of Austria, his niece. Though he could very likely give birth to other sons of his in the future due to his new marriage, it still wouldn't change that by the traditional laws of primogeniture Philip would inherit the many realms at stake; though of course, Philip of Spain could decide to name separate successors for his realms. Though there were some who pressured the king to do that in Spain, he never did so due to the political chaos it could potentially entail following succession.
1569: Rebellion
But a year after the foiled Huntingdon plot, in 1569 yet another incident opposing Philip II and his reign would break out. Though this time it was a bit of a 'usual' threat, seeing as how it came from Ireland - a place notorious for resenting English authority and desiring for the independence of the Irish people; no doubt it too harbored a further resentment of impending Spanish rule potentially coming over them too. The earl of Desmond, James FitzMaurice FitzGerald, initiated the rebellion in the midst of June when he attacked the English colony near Cork before then attacking Cork itself. By the time news had reached London, the rebel forces were already besieging Kilkenny.As to be expected, Philip made sure to have Henry Sidney and other men stationed to quell this rebellion advised to "use whatever force may prove necessary" when dealing with these traitors.
Mustering whatever men he could, Henry Sidney managed to muster up whatever men he could and focused his attention on Cork. Also mobilized against the rebels were the forces of the Butlers and any other Gaelic clans who opposed the Geraldines, the ancient blood feuds between families being used for English advantage. The Osmondes, Sidney and the Governor of Munster together formed a formidable alliance in combatting this rebellion, which much to the King's delight was rather efficiently crushed not long after it started. With Kilkenny's siege being thwarted and Cork being retaken, the English forces crushed and demoralized the rebelling Irish by use of a scorched earth policy - even slaughtering civilians and having severed heads placed on the entrances of military camps. Many of the rebelling lords were concerned enough to break from FitzMaurice in desperate bid to defend their own fiefs & lands. Ireland learned well the wrath of the boy king.
The King was pleased to hear from Sidney that the rebellion was swiftly turning into little more than a glorified clean-up operation. Of course, it would be one that would ultimately last for some time, for though FitzMaurice was pushed into the remote mountains of Ireland and the threat of Irish secession no longer a concern, he would still launch guerilla campaigns against English forces for several years into the early 1570's.
Thus, while the rebellion was ultimately doomed, it still proved a great source of early frustration for the king and his subordinates. It also provided ample opportunity for a further suppression of the celtic customs of the Irish people, with many traditions of theirs being banned in response to the rebellion; which absolutely had to be disciplined. Thankfully for King Philip II, most of the Irish people were catholic and had no interest in joining the antics of FitzMaurice.
At least, for the time being.
Also, news had reached England in March of 1570 that the King Father and Anna of Austria had their first child - it was in fact a son, a boy they named Ferdinand. He survived up to his christening, but died by April of 1570. The cause of death is uncertain.
1570 - 1572: Years Go By
While the Desmond Rebellion was diverging from a major revolt into that of little more than a petty guerilla campaign, there was relative peace going on at the King's court in London, where the royal family as well as the regency council remained safe from the chaos erupting in Ireland.To be fair, it was nothing compared to what was ongoing across the continent - the French were still embroiled in conflicts against the stubborn Huguenots. King Philip II of England would have loved to take advantage of the ancient rival's moment of weakness, though he would never want to give protestants any form of an advantage either. There was also the issue that the King Father as well as the papacy had aligned themselves with Charles IX and his mother Catherine de Medici in the fight against the heretics, which meant that in spirit England was on their side as well - though not actively participating in the conflict due to the regency's unwillingness to get involved in the King Father's wars.
In 1570 it would almost look as if the French forces had won, though after the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre, the third "war" would erupt in 1572. King Philip II was just honestly stunned the wars lasted so long, shaking his head as he read each of the parchments he received detailing the conflict. In his own writing he expressed a support of de Medici & the French King in the 'wars', and made it clear that any protestants fleeing the war would not be allowed in England.
The onset of the 1570's was also important, as it signified the increasing end of King Philip's teen years and the decreasing authority of the regency - as increasingly the King was asserting his own will to make decisions on the realm with the advise of the council, rather than having to get all of his appointments & decisions approved or even essentially made for him by regents. Nicholas Heath understood well that it was time for him to begin transitioning from regent to a more humble advisor, and did not resist the King when his authority was asserted.
This was best shown during his correspondence with the continued fight against FitzMaurice in Ireland, as the King by this point was increasingly corresponding to his commanders there without his regents lording over the dispatches as he received word of both setbacks and successes, and was routinely assured that this rebellion was little more than a recurrent pest. The papacy itself didn't say anything about it, a Catholic rebelling against a Catholic was quite literally nothing worth his holiness' time.
1571 would prove to be at least a bit of an eventful year. On order of the King, the royal exchange was founded in January to capitalize on the increasingly bustling economy following the tax reforms. A few months later however, Secretary of State John Boxall was proclaimed deceased - having died of either illness or natural causes, historians are unsure due to a lack of written records. This left the King with the opportunity to appoint someone of his own choosing to that position, and after carefully vetting all of the potential candidates he ultimately selected a man by the name of Sir Henry Babington, a member of a more minor gentry family and father to a young boy by the name of Francis. There was a bout of illness that befell the new secretary not long after his appointment, though he was able to recover perhaps in part to the more skilled doctors the royal court had access to. A devout Catholic, he would remain utterly loyal to the now Habsburg crown - and though he did admit he was nervous about the incoming Spanish Union, he was sure that the doomsday concerns were greatly exaggerated.
1572 would not be that eventful of a year however - though Princess Catherine did complain about not being married yet, to her brother's annoyance. He insisted that she should have an heir first before she is properly married, though Catherine would usually say back to him "our dynasty is sufficiently large, you do not have to act like our mother's father!" which of course, only infuriated the king more. He did not like being compared to his "heretic" predecessors, his favored grandfather by far being Charles V. He would never strike his younger sister, but they certainly did have their moments of bickering banter. Without their mother to intervene and with their father far too busy in running his own realm, they could last for some time.
Nicholas Heath certainly had his hands full.
1573: The Austrian Marriage
1573 would make the final transformation of Philip from boy to king.For one thing, it was clear that despite a few bouts of illness here and there over the years, he never reacted to it as badly nor as suddenly as his uncle did. He of course always had the occasional fever or cold, but usually just triumphantly emerged from his chambers healthy as could be. Preparations for Catherine to be made Queen were clearly far too rushed.
There was also news that in March, the King Father had a young daughter, later christened Maria, with his new wife. Though Anna was left weak from the ordeal and it was thought she would surely perish, she did begin the process of a slowed recovery within the month.
The First Desmond Rebellion was also soon at an end, as FitzMaurice and all of his lords had submitted by February. Ultimately 700 of them would be executed by the King's own approval and the local lord's action. FitzMaurice would be spared, but only because he had negotiated mostly cowardly for his own life to be pardoned in stipulation for his surrender. However, he would ultimately be made completely landless within but a year.
On the topic of Queens, though....
After a long period of consideration given to all of his suitors, there proved to be one that the King was most interested over them all. The ones mostly strongly considered include his first cousin Anna di Savoia and the French princess Marguerite de Valois, but Philip's eyes were smitten with the Austrian beauty Elisabeth von Habsburg - also a first cousin, from the first portrait of her he had gazed upon. For such a handsome young king as himself, such a gorgeous member of the dynasty was a perfect match. The only issue is that there was a bit of debate over whether or not she would be betrothed to Philip or to the King of France, and in fact throughout the prior years it often went back and forth between the two due to the ongoing political issues between the many realms. Ultimately however, the more stable state of England and the King of England's mighty inheritance won out. After plenty of time spent preparing for the occasion the ceremony finally took place on the 26th of August, 1573. The ceremony at Westminster was played up to be as extravagant as the English could afford it to be, with Elisabeth herself wearing a gown with cloth of silver, sprinkled with pearls and sporting on her head a tiara studded with pearls, diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and rubies; and of course it was performed by Thomas Reynolds, Archbishop of Canterbury. The Austrian Alliance was even further celebrated by magnificent feasts held within the King's court not long afterwards. All of the lords, ladies and foreign dignitaries in attendance hoped that the lord would bless their marriage with many children, and it can't be stressed enough how happy Elisabeth herself was to be the lady whom Philip wanted as his Queen.
Elisabeth did have some minor illness after the long and difficult journey from Austria to England, though managed to recover not long afterwards. She was proclaimed as a proper Queen of England in November of 1573, again by Archbishop Reynolds. From the very beginning the young pair were a but unorthodox in their willingness to publicly display affection such as kissing one another, Philip being just as enamored by his wife as she was to him. Elisabeth also got along surprisingly well with the King's sister.
With Philip's marriage over and done with however, there came the issue of who Catherine was to marry. She was now in her middle teen years after all, and now that Philip's marriage was secured the King felt more confident in finally relieving her stress over not having a union of her own. Indeed, the privy council land King had yet to betroth her - though as said many times before, it was due to the fact she was still the first in line to the throne. This was of much stress to her, as like her mother Catherine wanted to sire children of her own - at times Catherine bemoaned the limitations of the Spanish Marriage Treaty, feeling as though the King Father would have surely found her a husband by now. Instead she had to wait for her brother to get around to it.
The good news for her however was that she certainly had plenty of options - much like her brother with the ladies, many unmarried men throughout all of Europe (and even arguably married men) wanted her hand. Philip was unwilling to marry her to a noble within England or even to James VI of Scotland however, still concerned about the chance of being unseated by the husband of such a union. At least, seemingly save for one. The first proposal Philip tried to set up for his sister was that of an old English ally, King Sebastian of Portugal - with Marguerite de Valois being married to the Huguenot King of Navarre, he was open for Catherine's taking, and this was even supported by the King Father, Philip II of Spain. However, King Sebastian of Portugal was seemingly not receptive of the proposal - perhaps fearing the Father-Son duo were eyeing to claim his throne, or perhaps for reasons of his rumored sexual preferences.
Still, there were other options. Both seriously considered, and those scene only as a "last resort" decision.
Of the lesser considered options was that of Enrico Emmanuel, her first cousin as well as the heir to the Duchy of Savoy. A major player in Italian politics and a loyal ally, it would be a useful union. However, Enrico was quite younger than Catherine and it would be quite odd for her to marry a boy of such lower rank - with how important she was to both England and Spain (heir presumptive to England, second in line for Spain), let alone the fact she was still through her late grandfather an Archduchess of Austria, her hand was very important. As such, while Enrico was at least somewhat considered due to his own ties to England, it wasn't taken very seriously. It didn't help that Aunt Elizabeth was rather 'liberal' for the time - controversial in wanting her children to have a say in their marriage betrothals.
Another of the proposals rejected by Philip was that of the Gonzaga family of Mantua & Montferrat. Whereas Savoy was a major player in Italy, their double duchy was considered rather insignificant in comparison. An allied state, but not that worthy an ally. Besides, the heir to the two duchies was already betrothed to cousin Anna by the time of 1573.
More seriously considered was marriage into the powerful de Medici family that ruled what was once the Republic of Florence but now the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, though there weren't any viable options left for Catherine by 1573, with the Grand Duke of Tuscany's son and heir already being married to an Austrian bride.
However, Catherine was able to at least find one good option for herself - that being Rudolf, her first cousin and presumed heir to the Holy Roman Empire as son of Maximillian II, Holy Roman Empire. Catherine was relieved to at least have one man who was available for her hand in marriage, though annoyed when both the prince and her own brother wished to delay the proceedings - Philip until after his heir was born, and Rudolf for reasons he was rather vague about in his correspondence.
In reality, Rudolf preferred the hedonistic life of a bachelor, to the great frustration of his father.
OOC: Well, guess we ended up having a "Queen Elisabeth" in the end anyway.
OOC: Clarification of the line of succession to England/Ireland | Philip II Habsburg (Incumbent King) - > Catherine Habsburg/Catherine of England (Heir Presumptive) - > Elizabeth Tudor/Elizabeth of England/Duchess Elizabeth of Savoy - > Enrico Emmanuel of Savoy - > Anna of Savoy - > James VI Stuart of Scotland . Fun trivia is that in England, Enrico would be "Henry IX"
OOC++: Trivia, in the original drafts of this TL Catherine actually did get married to Sebastian except their marriage spawned no kids, he died, and then daddy came in and took Portugal for himself. Here the union is even more of a dud considering it doesn't even happen lmao.
OOC++: Nearing the part where alternate timeline names/exclusive people can probably start popping in, because I'm not sure how many Elizabethan figures will be relevant in the Philippian Era considering how many of them are/were Protestants.
Update: After being talked out of my Byzantine boner I have edited the betrothal of Catherine to something more reasonable given her rank. I apologize.....sometimes the love for the Romans gets a little strong for me.\
Update 2: Added a little cameo of a certain Elizabethan plotter. Expect a lot of Elizabethan conspirators to be depicted as loyal to the crown ITTL. Also I'm removing the Roman dream scene. It may be rewritten and given to Anna instead.
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Oh pfft....damn Habsburg family tree be hard to follow
It’s all good...easy to forget that elisabeth’s mother is also Philip sr’s sister.
Do not worry. Elizabeth is also the younger sister of Philip’s stepmother so we know who Philip sr surely approved and appreciated his son’s choice
His wife is also his step-aunt while also being his cousin
He basically passed the "Are you a Habsburg?" test with flying colors.
Ehm, that test would still be: “Are you an Iberian ruler?“ or “Are you a worth Trastamara/Avis’ heir?”
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Not my fault if the Trastamara/Avis liked marrying relatives (the Habsburg had not that habit before inheriting Spain)
Trastamaras to the Habsburgs be like "you gotta keep it in the family, bro"
I like it. Elisabeth will be a fabulous queen of England and hopefully give her husband a healthy son and heir
Catherine as Duchess of Mantua is...low? Like, she's an Infanta of Spain, Archduchess of Austria, Princess of England, and heiress presumptive to England and Spain; the Gonzagas, while alright, are rulers of an Italian duchy which is rather minor. Archduke Rudolf is heir to the Holy Roman Empire and ensures that in case Philip Jr dies and Philip II produces no sons, Spain and England stay with a Habsburg instead of a Gonzaga. Rudolf is only 4-5 years older and the perfect match for her prestige, and the Habsburgs already shown with Elisabeth and Philip's match that they're perfectly fine with first-cousin matches. Elisabeth of Austria is a perfect choice for Philip, since she's an Archduchess, but I think Catherine has much better options than Vincenzo Gonzaga, Byzantine revival dreams aside...
I kind of agree...double marriage between Philip and Elisabeth and Catherine and rudolf (or Ernst if rudolf makes a fuss)