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What might have happened if Mary's phantom pregnancy in 1554 had proved true and she'd successfully carried a child to term?
Specifically, I wonder what might have happened if she'd managed to give birth to a daughter. The sole product of their union and heiress to England itself even since I don't see her managing to have another after. A single living child would probably be pushing it as it is.
Something that always interests me is the fact that Philip promised the Spanish Netherlands to their future son. Would he cede his Northern territories to a daughter instead here? Or would they simply remain with the Spanish crown?
The child would also be roughly 3 or 4 by the time Mary dies. Who would most likely be in charge of her regency and upbringing? I don't think Philip would have allowed the young girl out of his own influence and would have preferred to appoint her household himself. But would the English nobility have allowed it? Or would Mary have willed that he have some measure of control over their daughter's upbringing?
Just how important would this child have been to her father's plans and what might her life have been like?