metamorphoses of goddesses: mary of modena (1658–1718)The history of Mary of Modena has never been g
metamorphoses of goddesses: mary of modena (1658–1718)The history of Mary of Modena has never been given to the world, bold indeed would have been any writer who should have ventured to call attention to the virtues and the sufferings of the faithful consort of the last and most unfortunate of the Stuart kings.Among the princesses, who have worn the crown matrimonial of England, many have been born in a more elevated rank than Maria Beatrice of Modena; but few could boast of a more illustrious descent than she claimed as the daughter of the house of Esté. That family, so famous in the page of history, derives its name from the city of Esté near the Euganean hills between Verona and Padua and surely no name is associated with nobler themes of interest than the line of heroes of whom Tasso Ariosto and Dante have sung : more than once did they repel the progress of the ferocious hordes of barbarians who came prepared to ravage the fair fields of ltaly.Married to the Duke of York, later James II, Mary’s court was known for its cultivation of literature and the other arts, particularly for bringing Italian art and music to England in the 1670s and for elaborate court games, rituals, and performances. Intelligent charming and resourceful — everything, in short, that her husband was not — she became one of the more regrettable casualties of seventeenth-century politics.— Lives of the Queens of England, Vols. I–III, Agnes Strickland -- source link
#metamorphoses#stuart