Queen Elizabeth II’s granddaughter, Princess Beatrice of York, will marry Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi on May 29, 2020 in the Chapel Royal of St. James’s Palace. The Chapel Royal has not been a venue for royal weddings in more than 100 years but was the setting of important historical royal weddings including Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in 1840 and the future King George V and Queen Mary in 1893. I discussed Princess Beatrice with Meghan Collie at Global News.
Category Archives: Queen Victoria
My Globe and Mail article: What It Takes for British Royalty to Truly Become Canadian
My new article in the Globe and Mail, “What it takes for British royalty to truly become Canadian” compares Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex to Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Louise and son-in-law Lord Lorne, the first royal couple to visit Canada. Even in the nineteenth century, royalty faced different expectations in Canada than they did in the United Kingdom and Louise and Lorne adapted well to Canadian life during Lorne’s five year term as Governor General.
Global News Interview: How the Royal Family does Christmas
I discussed royal Christmas traditions with Meaghan Wray at Global News including opening presents on Christmas Eve, multiple Christmas trees including nursery trees for royal children, and other traditions that date back to Queen Victoria’s reign.
Upcoming Guest Lecture: Royal Weddings from Victoria and Albert to Harry and Meghan – December 16, Toronto Public Library
Mon Dec 16, 2019 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Toronto Public Library S. Walter Stewart Branch 170 Memorial Park Ave.
Royal weddings have been the focus of popular fascination for centuries. Queen Victoria popularized the white wedding dress and her descendants have also exerted a profound influence on how marriages are celebrated around the world. Join Carolyn Harris, author of ‘Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting,‘ for a lively history of royal weddings from Victorian times until today.
Drop in. No registration required.
Talking History Interview: Queen Victoria: A Life
The panel of historians and biographers on the program include A.N. Wilson, author of Victoria: A Life, Jane Ridley, author of Bertie: A Life of Edward VII and Queen Victoria: Queen, Matriarch, Empress, Jules Stewart, author of Albert: A Life and Christine Kinealy, author of A New History of Ireland.
CBC News Interview: How Queen Victoria made her mark in Canada — without ever visiting
I discussed Queen Victoria’s legacy in Canada with Janet Davison at CBC News. While Queen Victoria never visited Canada in person, all four of her sons and her daughter Princess Louise spent time in Canada and set precedents for future royal tours. Queen Victoria also exerted political and cultural influence over the development of 19th century Canada and her birthday remains a Canadian holiday to the present day.
Daily Express Interview: Queen Victoria Legacy: Her crucial decision which paved way for Royal Family as we know it
Queen Victoria was born 200 years ago today on May 24, 1819. Her sixty-three year reign had a profound impact on the history of the monarchy and her legacy endures to the present day. I discussed Queen Victoria’s legacy with Aurora Bosotti at the Daily Express along with other historians of the Queen’s reign including Marlene Koenig, author of Queen Victoria’s Descendants, Julia Baird, author of Victoria the Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled an Empire and Helen Rappaport, author of numerous books about Queen Victoria and the Victorian era including Magnificent Obsession: Victoria, Albert and the Death That Changed The Monarchy.
New Canadian Encyclopedia Article: The Marquess of Lansdowne, Governor General of Canada
My new article in the Historica Canada Canadian Encyclopedia is about
Henry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne, politician and governor general of Canada from 1883 to 1888. Lansdowne was the first governor general to travel the entire length of the Canadian Pacific Railway. He also mediated a dispute with the United States concerning fishing rights. During his time in Canada, he enjoyed outdoor sports and social life, becoming the skip of the Rideau Hall curling team in the winter and salmon fishing on the Cascapedia river in the summer.
Click here to read The Marquess of Lansdowne, Governor General of Canada in the Canadian Encyclopedia.
Today Interview: Queen Elizabeth changed how royal babies eat. Will Meghan Markle do the same?
I discussed the history of royal parenting and how royal babies were fed over the past few centuries with Aly Walansky at Today. The debate concerning whether royal mothers should nurse their own children dates from the late eighteenth century when French Enlightenment philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau objected to the prevalence of wet nurses employed to feed and care for infants. Marie Antoinette briefly nursed her daughter Marie-Therese over the objections of her own mother, Empress Maria Theresa and Queen Victoria’s daughters nursed their children despite the Queen’s distaste for the practice. The controversy surrounding royal mothers nursing their own children continued until the arrival of Queen Elizabeth II’s children in the mid 20th century.
Click here to read Queen Elizabeth changed how royal babies eat. Will Meghan Markle do the same?
CBC News Interview: Are Harry and Meghan breaking tradition — or setting trends?
I discussed the history of royal births with Janet Davison at CBC News including the experiences of the Tudors and Queen Victoria. The arrival of a royal child prompts discussion of centuries old traditions but each generation of the royal family also introduces their own innovations, responding to the cultural trends of their times and shaping these trends. With the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s baby due any day, there is growing interest in how the arrival of the latest royal child will shape parenting trends in the 21st century.