Today in 1530 Margaret of Austria died. She is remembered as one of the group of women rulers that were so prominent in the early 16th century in Europe, serving as Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands from 1507 to 1515 and again from 1519 to 1530, during a period of peace and prosperity in the country.
Margaret of Austria is also the woman at whose court the young Anne Boleyn was raised, and would have been most influenced by. She was artistic and creative, having a huge library including works by Christine de Pizan, one of the first women writers in Europe. She also supported musicians like Josquin and Pierre de la Rue. It was a glittering and cultured place, led by a strong woman, and this experience for Anne, very early in her life, would have given her many of her ideas about the role of women, as well as the arts and scholarship.
That’s your Tudor Minute for today. Remember you can dive deeper into life in 16th century England through the Renaissance English History Podcast at englandcast.com.
Suggested links:
Women Getting It Done: The Ladies Peace
Anne Boleyn’s Songbook: sharing the intimate emotions of a Queen
Episode 076: Alison Weir on Anne Boleyn
From the shop:
Kickass Tudor Women Quote Collection
Featuring: “A woman with a mind is fit for any task” Christine de Pizan Mug.
Note: All products are made on-demand and can take a few weeks to ship.
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Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast, one of the longest running indie history podcasts, going since 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. She writes books, created the original Tudor Planner (a yearly diary filled with Tudor history) and in 2019 created the world's first Tudorcon (you can "attend" online this year!). She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 20 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history.