The wedding of Queen Victoria to Prince Albert
I discussed the history of royal weddings on The Goods on CBC (Season 2, Episode 97). The audience participated in a royal wedding quiz with questions about royal wedding gifts, dresses and balcony appearances!
Click here to watch the episode
On Wednesday afternoons in January and February 2018, I will be teaching an eight week history course about Family Life from Medieval to Modern Times.
Click here for more information and to register.
Course Description:
The Prince and Princess of Wales on their wedding day in 1981
Here’s an excerpt from the interview:
How has the U.K. media been covering the anniversary of her death?
“There are two main components to British media coverage of Diana’s death: new insights about Diana’s life and legacy and reflection on the impact of Diana’s death on British society. During her lifetime, Diana was one of the most famous women in the world and spoke openly to the press about the difficulties she faced as a member of the Royal Family and during the breakdown of her marriage. The media today is therefore fascinated by new information, including new insights from her sons and the controversial tapes recorded for Diana’s voice coach.”
Click here to read the full interview: U of T expert on Diana’s legacy, 20 years after her death
I also discussed Diana’s advocacy for victims of landmines with the Kingston Whig-Standard. Click here to read the interview: Diana Advanced Land Mine Ban
Lady Diana Spencer surrounded by photographers immediately prior to the announcement of her engagement to the Prince of Wales
I discussed the life and legacy of Diana, Princess of Wales with the CBC and the Canadian Press for the 20th anniversary of Diana’s death in 1997.
Click here to read “The Diana myth: Why she haunts us still — 20 years after her death” at CBC News.
I will be interviewed about Diana on CBC Alberta at Noon on Thursday, August 31.
Diana, Princess of Wales at the Cannes film festival.
I discussed Diana, Princess of Wales with Janet Davidson at the CBC, leading up to the 20th anniversary of Diana’s death on August 31, 1997. Here’s an excerpt from the interview.
“Anniversaries of historical events often offer an opportunity to look back and reflect on them, says Carolyn Harris, a Toronto-based royal historian and author of the recently published Raising Royalty: 1,000 Years of Royal Parenting.
But Harris sees more in play here.
“It’s not simply a matter of looking back at how things were 20 years ago but that we’re seeing new perspectives on Diana’s passing, particularly the views of her sons.”
Princess Charlotte, the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince George and the Duke of Cambridge in Victoria, British Columbia (Photo Credit: The Canadian Press)
“As I discuss in my new book, Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting, the upbringing of a royal child has always included a wide circle of people including grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, tutors, nannies and governesses. In fact, royal parenting has acquired a negative reputation over the centuries because of how often kings and queens delegated the daily routine of childrearing to their extended family and household. But there’s another way of looking at this tradition: Royal children have had a large support system during both good times and difficult times.”
Click here to purchase your copy of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
How royal parents dealt with raising their children over the past thousand years, from keeping Vikings at bay to fending off paparazzi.
William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, are setting trends for millions of parents around the world. The upbringing of their children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, is the focus of intense popular scrutiny. Royalty have always raised their children in the public eye and attracted praise or criticism according to parenting standards of their day.
Royal parents have faced unique challenges and held unique privileges. In medieval times, raising an heir often meant raising a rival, and monarchs sometimes faced their grown children on the battlefield. Conversely, kings and queens who lost their thrones in wars or popular revolutions often found solace in time spent with their children. In modern times, royal duties and overseas tours have often separated young princes and princesses from their parents, a circumstance that is slowly changing with the current generation of royalty.
Click here to purchase your copy of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
Table of Contents
Introduction Raising a Royal Child
1 Edgar “the Peaceable” (c. 943-75) and Elfrida of Northampton (c. 945-1001)
2 William “the Conqueror” (c. 1028-87) and Matilda of Flanders (c. 1031-83)
Genealogical chart depicting King Henry II of England and his children
3 Henry II (1133-89) and Eleanor of Aquitaine (c. 1124-1204)
4 Henry III (1207-72) and Eleanor of Provence (c. 1223-91)
5 Edward III (1312-77) and Philippa of Hainault (1314-69)
6 Richard III (1452-85) and Anne Neville (1456-85)
Charles I, Henrietta Maria and their two eldest children
7 Ferdinand II of Aragon (1452-1516) and Isabella I of Castile (1451-1504)
8 Henry VIII (1491-1547) and Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536)
9 Frederick V, Elector Palatine (1596-1632) and Elizabeth of England and Scotland (1596-1662)
10 Charles I (1600-49) and Henrietta Maria of France (1609-69)
11 Peter I “the Great” of Russia (1672-1725) and Catherine I (1684-1727)
12 Anne (1665-1714) and George of Denmark (1653-1708)
13 George II (1683-1760) and Caroline of Ansbach (1683-1737)
Nicholas and Alexandra present their daughter, Olga to Queen Victoria
14 Louis XVI of France (1754-93) and Marie Antoinette of Austria (1755-93)
15 Victoria (1819-1901) and Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1819-61)
16 Nicholas II of Russia (1868-1918) and Alexandra of Hesse-Darmstadt (1872-1918)
17 Juliana of the Netherlands (1909-2004) and Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1911-2004)
18 Elizabeth II (1926-) and Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark (1921-)
19 Prince Charles (1948-) and Lady Diana Spencer (1961-97) 20 Prince William (1982-) and Catherine Middleton (1982-)
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte arrive in Canada
Epilogue The Future of the Royal Nursery
Acknowledgements
Notes
Further Reading
Index
Here are excerpts from some of the reader reviews:
“Raising Royalty is a comprehensive study of how…Kings and Queens have raised their children. Twenty families with their widely varying parenting approaches from Anglo-Saxon times to the present are studied.
While the book is a thoroughly researched subject by a scholar, it is a joy to read. It provides a clear picture of how parenting in the rarefied atmosphere of castles and palaces has evolved and, perhaps more importantly, why. Boys were brought up to fight and rule, and girls for dynastic/political marriages. Princes and princesses had no choice one thousand years ago and, one also sympathizes, today their futures are still fixed in stone but with a little more leeway.
Carolyn Harris, the author, has done an excellent job of writing this book for general readership and it will open eyes with the detail and surprises. Recommended for history buffs and royal watchers.” — Julie Ferguson
“I was expecting the book to be entirely be about English royalty, but was pleased to find that it covered enough of Europe to give it some diversity.
Filled with a lot of interesting facts and written in a way that held my attention.
Both well researched and written.” — MissyLynne
“I was expecting a list of “advice” and “lessons” and was pleasantly surprised.
Ms. Harris presents a HUGE amount of history in this book and her skill at writing in a way that keeps the reader engaged and interested is refreshing.
Anyone with any interest in royal families will love this book. It’s a great read. ” — Michelle Griswold
Click here to view all reader reviews for Raising Royalty on goodreads
“Today‘s parents think they have it tough, monitoring screen time and shuttling kids to soccer matches. Imagine being King William I, the Conqueror, who in 1079 had to fight his firstborn son on the battlefield; or Henry II, whose villainous son, John, is today best known as Robin Hood‘s arch enemy. Carolyn Harris‘s history of royal child rearing is a must read for anyone interested in the never-ending saga of royal families and a fascinating read.” (Mark Reid, Editor-in-Chief, Canada’s History Magazine)
“Carolyn Harris has taken an innovative approach with this engaging new work, bringing together a millennia of royal parenting from Edgar “the Peaceable” and Elfrida of Northampton right up to the present day with the children of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Harris has deftly woven together the history of various rulers, evaluating their relationships with their children and bringing in wider trends in parenting in different eras. She notes both rivalry and tension between parents and children, as aptly illustrated by the Hanoverian monarchs of England, as well as evidence of affection and strong bonds between rulers and their offspring. Any reader with an interest in the history of monarchy or parenting itself will find this an absorbing read, both accessible and replete with interesting information. A real strength of this book is that it puts our present-day fascination with current and recent monarchs and their children in a long-term historical context.” (Dr. Elena (Ellie) Woodacre, Senior Lecturer in Early Modern European History Postgraduate Student Coordinator-Faculty of HSS University of Winchester, editor of The Royal Studies Journal)
“How to raise the kids? It is a question that has confounded parents for centuries. Imagine how parenting has been for royalty throughout the ages? Royal historian Carolyn Harris’s newest book focuses on this very topic. In Raising Royalty, Harris’s detailed research [explores] how royal parenting has evolved throughout the last thousand years. Harris focuses on twenty royal parents – from Edgar the Peaceable and Elfrieda of Northampton to Prince William and Catherine Middleton. This book is delightfully readable, infused with the brilliance of pure scholarship.” (Marlene A. Eilers Koenig, author of Queen Victoria’s Descendants
“Carolyn Harris’s encyclopedic knowledge infuses Raising Royalty with fascinating insights into the lives of Europe’s Royal Families. Moving through the centuries, Harris highlights unique and evolving family dynamics and traditions right up to our present day. An essential addition to any royal enthusiast’s collection, Raising Royalty provides a captivating look at the families occupying the centre of some of the world’s greatest monarchies.” (Nathan Tidridge, author of Canada’s Constitutional Monarchy)
Click here to pre-order your copy of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
