Marriages for the Stuart boys

So here’s something I’ve been debating recently, so the Nassau girls were originally considered for the sons of Charles I but for various reasons the marriages didn’t happen.

What happens if in 1659, Charles II marries Henriette Catherine and James, Duke of York is married to Catherine if Braganza, who light a surviving Henry duke of Gloucester marry here and what are the consequences of such
Marriages?

@Kellan Sullivan @Valena @Emperor Constantine
 
What happens if in 1659, Charles II marries Henriette Catherine and James, Duke of York is married to Catherine if Braganza, who light a surviving Henry duke of Gloucester marry here and what are the consequences of such
There are 2 (two) prominent Protestant brides left on the market:
Anne Sophie of Denmark, OTL Electress of Saxony and mother of Augustus the Strong
Erdmuthe Sophie of Saxony, a historian and musician, but sadly sickly and likely infertile due to her metabolic disease (died from it in 1670 OTL)

There is also a French bride - Charlotte de Dunois, provided she lives to/past 1663 TTL (data on her death date in wikis is conflicting); she was ofered to Henry by his friend, Prince of Conde, who was the uncle of the girl.

I've written TLs/mini-TLs where I had Henry marry either Erdmuthe or Charlotte. Marriage to Anne Sophia would mean that Henry will marry higher than BOTH his brothers - Henriette Catherine of Nassau is a daughter of elective ruler, Catherine's father is the first king of his dynasty, while Anna Sophia is a "purple-born" princess of ancient House of Oldenburg. I think Saxony or Longueville match would be viewed as more fitting for third son.
 
There are 2 (two) prominent Protestant brides left on the market:
Anne Sophie of Denmark, OTL Electress of Saxony and mother of Augustus the Strong
Erdmuthe Sophie of Saxony, a historian and musician, but sadly sickly and likely infertile due to her metabolic disease (died from it in 1670 OTL)

There is also a French bride - Charlotte de Dunois, provided she lives to/past 1663 TTL (data on her death date in wikis is conflicting); she was ofered to Henry by his friend, Prince of Conde, who was the uncle of the girl.

I've written TLs/mini-TLs where I had Henry marry either Erdmuthe or Charlotte. Marriage to Anne Sophia would mean that Henry will marry higher than BOTH his brothers - Henriette Catherine of Nassau is a daughter of elective ruler, Catherine's father is the first king of his dynasty, while Anna Sophia is a "purple-born" princess of ancient House of Oldenburg. I think Saxony or Longueville match would be viewed as more fitting for third son.
Agreed with you there, longieville xould be quite good.

On that note actually, other than Catherine is it realistic for Charles to perhaps marry Anne
Sophia? Or is there someone else that he could marry of a similar rank?
 
Charles to Anne Sophia would be fascinating I think especially with the butterflies it brings
Anne Sophia was one of the three princesses offered as Spanish proxies in competition to Catherine Braganza (the other two being Erdmuthe of Saxony and Catalina Farneze (main Catholic proxy), Infanta Margarita Teresa being too young to be considered seriously). As you know, the Spanish failed at bribing British officials, and Portuguese match happened. But if it does not happen for some reason...
 
Anne Sophia was one of the three princesses offered as Spanish proxies in competition to Catherine Braganza (the other two being Erdmuthe of Saxony and Catalina Farneze (main Catholic proxy), Infanta Margarita Teresa being too young to be considered seriously). As you know, the Spanish failed at bribing British officials, and Portuguese match happened. But if it does not happen for some reason...
Oooh thay would be interesting, hmm if Charles does
Marry her could
James marry Catherine?
 
I think it was mentioned in a previous thread where Gloucester survives, so I'm bringing it up here. If Charles II wants a Scandinavian-adjacent match for Henry, what about one of the princesses of Baden-Durlach? Their mom is sister to the late Carl X of Sweden. Sweden is a French ally (at least on paper), so she'd probably have Louis XIV's endorsement à la Mary of Modena, and it won't cause major knock on effects in Europe. Plus, it gives the Stuart court an in into Germany (and if the marriage occurs at around the same time Leopold I is sniffing around in Baden for awife then it would make Gloucester brother-in-law to the emperor
 
If Charles II wants a Scandinavian-adjacent match for Henry, what about one of the princesses of Baden-Durlach?
The one of age is Christine of Baden-Durlach (her sisters are considered a tad bit young), but a) she was childless in both of her OTL marriages (so no real advantage over say Erdmuthe of Saxony); b) her family is relative nobodies, first couisins to Charles XI of Sweden or no.
Though a) may be related to relative duration of her marital life.
 
Though a) may be related to relative duration of her marital life.

AFAIK it was. The first marriage was only a few months and she was still a teenager (IIRC), while her second marriage she was 36yo (or perhaps in both cases her husbands (already widowers with children) wanted a mother for their babies rather than a wife for their beds).

I'm not so sure about the relative nobodies, since Leopold I's reason for considering Katharina Barbara (Christine's younger sister) was exactly the reason that I cited (i.e. a Swedish proxy). If his match with a Danish princess fell through, he considered a Swedish proxy princess the next best thing. The only thing was that Baden refused his proposal FWIG
 
I'm not so sure about the relative nobodies, since Leopold I's reason for considering Katharina Barbara (Christine's younger sister) was exactly the reason that I cited (i.e. a Swedish proxy). If his match with a Danish princess fell through, he considered a Swedish proxy princess the next best thing. The only thing was that Baden refused his proposal FWIG
So, count Christine in list.
If the marriage happens, Katharina Barbara becomes more attractive to Leopold.
 
So, we've got Charles married either to Anne Sophia of Denmark or Henriette Catherine of Nassau, James married to Catherine of Braganza and Henry married to Christine of Baden Durlach, quite the list of marriages and quite the way to secure things, assuming Henry doesn't die when he did otl, this is going to change a lot of stuff for England and the isles.
 
Interesting Christine for Henry could be interesting indeed were the family quite devoutly Protestant?

Baden was one of those German families which had one Catholic and one Protestant branch. Although the Catholic branch had sorta no one of age to offer Leopold (the only girls around where born at the end of the 1660s, and were the children of Leopold's eventual step-grandmother-in-law, Maria Franziska of Furstenberg-Heiligenberg). And they objected to Katharina converting to marry Leopold OTL (FWIU they feared that the emperor would use it as an excuse to re-Catholicize the entirety of Baden).
 
Baden was one of those German families which had one Catholic and one Protestant branch. Although the Catholic branch had sorta no one of age to offer Leopold (the only girls around where born at the end of the 1660s, and were the children of Leopold's eventual step-grandmother-in-law, Maria Franziska of Furstenberg-Heiligenberg). And they objected to Katharina converting to marry Leopold OTL (FWIU they feared that the emperor would use it as an excuse to re-Catholicize the entirety of Baden).

Ahhh interesting, but if Henry is married to one of their girls, they might not be?
 
Ahhh interesting, but if Henry is married to one of their girls, they might not be?

What? Half-Catholic or half-Protestant? I don't think a marriage to Henry will affect Baden's religious split too much.
If we're talking about Kat's conversion, there might be some persuasion coming from London to agree to it. Although the end result will presumably be the same.

Eleonore only became empress thanks to the intervention of her father (Philipp Wilhelm)'s cousin/niece, Sophie Auguste of Sulzbach, who was married to Prince Lobkowitz. Lobkowitz played up Julich-Cleves' position as beneficial to the empire's security to the imperial vice-chancellor, Strattmann, and warned against allowing it to fall under French influence - since it was within memory that Eleonore had been courted by James, duke of York, who was part of a Anglo-French alliance.
 
What? Half-Catholic or half-Protestant? I don't think a marriage to Henry will affect Baden's religious split too much.
If we're talking about Kat's conversion, there might be some persuasion coming from London to agree to it. Although the end result will presumably be the same.
Ah this is very true
 
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