Queen Elisabeth
Empress of Austria & Queen of Hungary by marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph I, born in 1837.
Marie Duplessis
French courtesan & salon hostess born in 1824. Inspiration for Alexander Dumas’ character Marguerite Gautier.
Lorenzo de’ Medici
Italian statesman & de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic & powerful patron of Renaissance culture in Italy.
Catherine of Aragon
Queen of England & first wife of Henry VIII born in 1485. Princess of Whales as wife of Henry’s brother.
Empress Dowager Cixi
Chinese noblewoman, concubine, & later regent who controlled the Qing dynasty from 1861-1908.
Margaret Tudor
Queen of Scotland from 1503 to 1513 by marriage to King James IV.
Marie Thérèse
French royal & eldest child of Marie Antoinette & Louis XVI, born in 1778. Queen of France for 20 minutes.
Mary Queen of Scots
Scottish queen who reigned over Scotland from 1542 (when her father died six days after her birth) to 1567.
Queen Christina
Queen of Sweden (1632-1654) born in 1626. Known for her intellect, masculine dress, & unconventionality.
George VI
King of England from 1936 until his death in 1952. Succeeded by his daughter, Queen Elizabeth II.