I have updated my Canadian Encyclopedia article about Prince William to include recent royal engagements and the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Click here to read Prince William (HRH The Duke of Cambridge) in the Canadian Encyclopedia
Category Archives: Princess Charlotte of Cambridge
Winter 2022 Online Course: Behind the Crown: The Monarchy from Victoria to Queen Elizabeth II
My new eight week online course at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies starts Wednesday January 12, 2022. Click here for more information and to register.
ABOUT THIS COURSE
The year 2022 marks Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, the 70th anniversary of her accession to the throne. It’s an opportunity to look back on the social, political and cultural changes during her long reign. The personal lives of royalty are a popular subject for fiction in novels, films and TV series but the real history is more interesting. Each generation of royalty must respond to the challenges of their times to keep the monarchy relevant and engaged with public opinion. Join Carolyn Harris, historian, commentator and author of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting for a lively discussion of the history, politics and cultural significance of the monarchy in the UK and Canada.
My January-February 2018 course at University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies: Family Life from Medieval to Modern Times
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:
Our views on marriage and childrearing would seem very strange to families of past centuries. We’ll see the influence of romanticism on the current understanding of family life, the changing role of grandparents in relation to family traditions, and the emergence of a distinct children’s culture including the birth of children’s literature, due in part to the expansion of formal education. Join us for a look at marriage and parenting customs and advice through the centuries, and the surprising influence of history on family life today.
Learning Outcomes:
National Post review of Raising Royalty: “Murder your children’s rivals, and other parenting tips from royals”
19th century portrait of Peter the Great interrogating his son, Alexei
My new book, Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
“[The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge] want Princess Charlotte and Prince George to go to the local school. They want to be hands-on parents. On the day George left the hospital, William wrestled with the lad’s car seat, a performance reenacted daily by new dads the world over. The message they hoped you’d glean from it? Will and Kate are just like you and me.
In her new book, Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting, Canadian historian Carolyn Harris reveals there may be other parenting tips to be gleaned from royal watching. With Harris as inspiration, we offer six tips from moms and dads who also happened to be monarchs.”
New Quartz Article: The history of British royalty proves raising a kid is always a group effort
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.”
HELLO! Canada Magazine review of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
“When we saw Prince William gamely attempt to buckle baby Prince George into his car seat outside St. Mary’s hospital, public fascination with royal parenting peaked and, thanks to the arrival of George’s sister Charlotte, shows no sign of diminishing. Raising Royalty is well placed to satiate this interest. Using today’s royals as a jumping off point, Canadian historian Carolyn turns back the clock and deftly guides us through 10 centuries of royal child-rearing (a highlight is Queen Victoria and her “deeply ambivalent” approach toward her nine children). Informative, amusing and royally riveting.”
Click here to see the review in HELLO! Canada Magazine
Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting now available for purchase
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
Open History Interview: Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
Click here to read “Open History – Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting”
Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting is currently for sale in Chapters/Indigo bookstores and will be available across Canada on April 8. The USA/UK publication date is May 2.
The Table of Contents for 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
Advance Reader Reviews of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting
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