If you’ve missed it, it is Women’s History Month! And while most of my posts are centred on women’s history, I take this month to solely focus on it. Regular readers will know that a lot of my content focuses on royal women. Today I’m going to be highlighting some who have had incredible talents and accomplishments but have largely been forgotten, as they were not monarchs or consorts. (Not to say that female sovereigns do not have achievements but they tend to get more attention.) Today we have 4 forgotten royal women from history and their accomplishments!
The Author- Lady Hyegyong
Lady Hyegyong was the wife of Crown Prince Sado of Joseon; she lived from 1735 to 1816. (Joseon is the last Kingdom of what we now consider Korea.) She was chosen from a number of young aristocratic girls to marry Sado. While her husband suffered from mental health issues and violent outbursts, she lived on for over five decades after he was executed. She was posthumously named Heongyong, the Virtuous Empress.
Why Should We Know Her?
Lady Hyegyong wrote her own memoirs covering the time that she was confined to Changgyeong Palace, including detailing her husband’s illness and his execution. There are four individual sections and collectively are a valuable primary source for the Joseon court. Each section serves a different political purpose and covers a separate period, providing an exceptional amount of information. Given that so many surviving historical texts are written by men, these memoirs are exceptional. (And a must-read! It is utterly fascinating.)
The Royal Martyr- Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna
Princess Elizabeth of Hesse and by Rhine was born to Ludwig IV, Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, meaning she was one of Queen Victoria’s god-daughters. She was considered a beauty of her generation and married Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia in 1884. After his assassination in 1905, she dedicated herself to religious life.
Why Should We Know Her?
Known to her family as Ella, the Grand Duchess devoted much of her time during her marriage to charitable acts. However, after her husband’s death, she completely turned her life over to religion. By 1908 she had sold all of her jewels and fine possessions and then used the funds to found a religious order, the Convent of Saints Martha and Mary in Moscow. The order ran a hospital and an orphanage, and provided meals to those who could not afford to eat.
Ella was to meet a brutal end, though. In 1918 Elizabeth, along with other members of the Romanov family, were arrested following the overthrow of the monarchy. On 17 July 1918, they were pushed down a mine shaft, and when they did not die, grenades were thrown down, and then the mine shaft was set on fire. Ella was named a Russian Orthodox Saint- Saint Elizabeth the New Martyr- in 1981.
The Suffragette Princess- Princess Sophia Duleep Singh
Princess Sophia Duleep Singh remains one of my favourite historical figures. She was born to the last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, Duleep Singh, who was forced to hand over his kingdom and the Koh-i-Noor diamond. Sophia was a god-daughter of Queen Victoria, and was raised as such- she and her siblings were raised in the UK with the appropriate aristocratic education and hobbies expected. As an adult, she was given a grace-and-favour apartment at Hampton Court Palace.
Why Should We Know Her?
While Sophia and her sisters were socialites, her life would take a different turn. After visiting India in 1903 and 1907, Sophia became involved with the suffragette cause. She supported the Women’s Social and Political Union, and she worked with other suffragettes like Emmeline Pankhurst and Una Dugdale. She was at the demonstrations outside of Parliament on 18 November 1910 where several protestors faced a violent police force. Sophia provided financial support to different groups and would often sell suffragette newspapers at Hampton Court Palace to passersby. King George V could potentially have arrested her for her suffragette activities, but thankfully that did not happen.
The Artist- Princess Elizabeth
Princess Elizabeth was the third daughter and seventh child of King George III and Queen Charlotte. Although Bridgerton and Queen Charlotte have brought their family into the spotlight, Elizabeth and her talents are not widely known. She was born in 1770 and grew up with her fourteen siblings; Elizabeth notably took a dedicated interest in her father’s agricultural work. She married Frederick VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg at 48, and lived the remainder of her life in Germany.
Why Should We Know Her?
Elizabeth was a talented artist. She didn’t limit herself to one medium: she learned painting, embroidery, printing, silhouette cutting, upholstery painting, and more. She was known to be a talent, and you can find many of her sketches and paintings in the Royal Collection today. The Princess also created different books of her artwork and cuttings tobe given as gifts, and others to be sold for charity. Notably, her 1795 drawings titled “The Birth and Triumph of Cupid” were engraved by her drawing teacher and were then reissued under the title “The Birth and Triumph of Love”. Although Princess Louise (daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert) is known as the royal artist, Princess Elizabeth was also immensely talented.
Have you “met” any of these forgotten royal women? Were you familiar with their accomplishments?
Cheers,
The Historian
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Apart from Lady Hyegyeong’s memoirs are there any books that would focus just on these women? I am sure if I looked up books on The Romanovs I could find something mentioning Princess Elizabeth of Hesse and by Rhine but I don’t know how in-depth it would get.