CEM YİĞİT ÜZÜMOĞLU as SULTAN MEHMED II in RISE OF EMPIRES: OTTOMAN

Sultan Mehmed II X Emine Gülbahar Mükrime Hatun

In January 1448 a son was born to Mehmed Çelebi in Thracian Dimotika, by a slave girl named Gülbahar. The boy was given the name of Bayezid and was later (1481) to mount the Ottoman throne as the second sultan of this name. There is no doubt that this union was beneath Mehmed's station: Gülbahar bint Abdullah, whom Turkish legend sub- sequently transformed into a "daughter of the king of France," was a Christian slave of Albanian origin. It is equally certain, as we shall see later on, that Mehmed preserved a particular affection for her as long as he lived. From the fact that Gülbahar Hatun bore her child in Dimotika, it may be inferred that Mehmed was back in Europe by the beginning of 1448 at the latest and perhaps even that he was residing there. Dimotika was the site of an old Byzantine castle, with a double ring of walls, preserved by the sultans and sometimes used for the Ottoman state treasury.

Babinger, F. (1978). Mehmed the conqueror and his time. Princeton University Press.

P.s. She also bore him a daughter named Geverhan Sultan.

(Almost) Every Costume Per Episode + Margaret Beaufort's red and green velvet gown in 1x01,4,5,6

This Yellow embroidered gown was worn on Charlotte Hope as Catherine of Aragon in The Spanish Princess (2019) and worn again on an extra in The Princess (2022) and gown was worn on exstra in Damsel (2024)

Also the Spanish actress Bárbara Lennie wore this yellow dress as Juana of Portugal in "Isabel" (2012)

This Yellow Dress is worn on Uknown Actor as Lady in Waiting in The Spanish Princess Season 2 (2020) and worn again on Uknown Actor as Lady in Damsel (2024)

Bénita Anguinet (1819-1887) was one of the famous magicians of her time. Her impressive tricks bewitched France and Europe.

A family tradition 

Bénita learned her trade from her father, Antoine, an illusionist who performed in local fairs and later in Paris. She made her debut on stage at age 7 and would accompany him father on tour. By 1840, Bénita had become the family’s figurehead, her fame having relegated her male relatives to the background. 

Unlike her father, Bénita performed only in theaters. She toured across France and traveled to Western Europe and Algeria. Contemporary reviews praised her skills, marveling at her “prodigies” and “wonders”. 

The star of Paris 

In 1856, Bénita acquired her theater at the Pré-Catelan, near Paris. It could host up to 170 spectators. She performed there continuously during afternoons and evenings, from spring to autumn. 

Bénita's theater (1856)

Bénita became a true celebrity and a fashionable topic. Female conductor Laure Micheli composed a piece in her honor: Bénita the magician. 

Among her tricks were the inexhaustible bottle, producing various liquors according to the audience’s wishes, and the fantastic cardboard from which the illusionist pulled many objects that weren’t supposed to fit in it in the first place. 

Her signature trick was the mysterious cabbage. Bénita would make a glove and a ring borrowed from spectators disappear. She made them reappear inside an egg, itself enclosed in a lemon, wrapped inside an orange, which then emerged from a beet forming the heart of a huge cabbage. 

Back on the road

Bénita’s success coincided with the rise of female illusionists. From the end of the 1850s and for two or three decades, many women would occupy the top of the bill, with their husbands or male relatives performing only secondary attractions. Women also practiced the discipline as amateurs.

Bénita's Parisian fame didn't last and her revenues plummeted in 1858. A year later, Bénita toured France again. In 1863, she settled in the Iberian peninsula where she performed until she died in 1887.

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Further reading 

"Bénita Anguinet (1819-1887), la célèbre illusionniste du Pré-Catelan"

Alphabet with The Crown of The King's historical women

Historical women, who's name starts with an “E”

CHRISTINA ROKICZANA ( BEFORE 1330 — AFTER 1365

Christina was a Bohemian woman from townsfolk and daughter of Wenceslaus, mayor of Prague. At some point she was married to merchant Mikuláš Rokiczan, who unexpectedly died leaving her with great fortune. Thanks to her husband's connection with the King, she most likely became the lady-in-waiting at Bohemian court.

It was well known that King Casimir The Great is a womanizer and Charles of Luxembourg decided to use that fact to gain a spy in Polish court and possibly destabilise situation in Polish Kingdom. He invited Casimir to Prague in May 1356 and asked Christina to charm the man. It was successful, because Casimir shortly after brought her with him to Cracow. Christina, however, refused sleeping with him and becoming his mistress, what made Casimir marry her.

The problem was that he was already married with Adelaide of Hesse, which was sent away by him to Żarnowiec. She didn't agree to get a divorce, what made Casimir's marriage with Christina bigamous.

She stayed loyal to Charles of Luxembourg, stating in one of the latters they exchanged that as a Queen (although she was never crowned), she will make sure to take care of his interests and “being there [in Cracow], thanks to him, he can trust her as if they were still personally in the city of Prague”.

At some point Christina's and Casimir's relationship fell out and there are two theories about what happened — one of them says that Christina was suffering from hair loss and scabies and Casimir found out about that from one of his servants, whereas the other one says that Casimir was mad at her after Christina ordered to burn the peasant house, because it blocked a view of Wawel Castle.

It is known that Christina was still in Cracow when King Casimir married his fourth wife, Jadwiga of Sagan. According to the legend, she was burried in the garden of Łobzów residence, which Casimir builded for her.

Historical Indigenous Women & Figures [6]:

Queen Nanny: the leader of the 18th century Maroon community in Jamaica, she led multiple battles in guerrilla war against the British, which included freeing slaves, and raiding plantations, and then later founding the community Nanny Town. There are multiple accounts of Queen Nanny's origins, one claiming that she was of the Akan people from Ghana and escaped slavery before starting rebellions, and others that she was a free person and moved to the Blue Mountains with a community of Taino. Regardless, Queen Nanny solidified her influence among the Indigenous People of Jamaica, and is featured on a Jamaican bank note. Karimeh Abboud: Born in Bethlehem, Palestine, Karimeh Abboud became interested in photography in 1913 after recieving a camera for her 17th birthday from her Father. Her prestige in professional photography rapidly grew and became high demand, being described as one of the "first female photographers of the Arab World", and in 1924 she described herself as "the only National Photographer". Georgia Harris: Born to a family of traditional Catawba potters, Harris took up pottery herself, and is credited with preserving traditional Catawba pottery methods due to refusing to use more tourist friendly forms in her work, despite the traditional method being much more labour intensive. Harris spent the rest of her life preserving and passing on the traditional ways of pottery, and was a recipient of a 1997 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which is the highest honor in the folk and traditional arts in the United States. Nozugum: known as a folk hero of the Uyghur people, Nozugum was a historical figure in 19th century Kashgar, who joined an uprising and killed her captor before running away. While she was eventually killed after escaping, her story remains a treasured one amongst the Uyghur. Pampenum: a Sachem of the Wangunk people in what is now called Pennsylvania, Pampenum gained ownership of her mother's land, who had previously intended to sell it to settlers. Not sharing the same plans as her mother, Pampenum attempted to keep these lands in Native control by using the colonial court system to her advantage, including forbidding her descendants from selling the land, and naming the wife of the Mohegan sachem Mahomet I as her heir. Despite that these lands were later sold, Pampenum's efforts did not go unnoticed. Christine Quintasket: also known as "Humishima", "Mourning Dove", Quintasket was a Sylix author who is credited as being one of the first female Native American authors to write a novel featuring a female protagonist. She used her Sylix name, Humishima, as a pen name, and was inspired to become an author after reading a racist portrayal of Native Americans, & wished to refute this derogatory portrayal. Later in life, she also became active in politics, and helped her tribe to gain money that was owed them. Rita Pitka Blumenstein: an Alaskan Yup'ik woman who's healing career started at four years old, as she was trained in traditional healing by her grandmother, and then later she became the first certified traditional doctor in Alaska and worked for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium. She later passed on her knowledge to her own daughters. February 17th is known as Rita Pitka Blumenstein day in Alaska, and in 2009 she was one of 50 women inducted into the inaugural class of the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame Olivia Ward Bush-Banks: a mixed race woman of African American and Montaukett heritage, Banks was a well known author who was a regular contributor to the the first magazine that covered Black American culture, and wrote a column for a New York publication. She wrote of both Native American, and Black American topics and issues, and helped sculptor Richmond Barthé and writer Langston Hughes get their starts during the Harlem Renaissance. She is also credited with preserving Montaukett language and folklore due to her writing in her early career.

part [1], [2], [3], [4], [5] Transphobes & any other bigots need not reblog and are not welcome on my posts.

Genmei (661-721) was Japan's fourth empress regnant. She was Empress Jitō's half-sister and her match in terms of ambition and political skills. Her rule was characterized by a development of culture and innovations. 

Ruling after her son

Like Jitō (645-703), Genmei was the daughter of Emperor Tenji but was born from a different mother. Jitō was both her half-sister and mother-in-law since Genmei had married the empress’ son, Prince Kusakabe (662-689). She had a son with him, Emperor Monmu (683-707). 

Kusakabe died early and never reigned, which led to Jitō's enthronement. The empress was then succeeded by her grandson Monmu. The latter’s reign was short. In his last will, he called for his mother to succeed him in accordance with the “immutable law” of her father Tenji. Genmei accepted. 

Steadfast and ambitious 

Genmei was made from the same mold as her half-sister. She proved to be a fearless sovereign, undeterred by military crises. 

She pursued Jitō's policies, strengthening the central administration and keeping the power in imperial hands. Among her decisions were the proscription of runaway peasants and the restriction of private ownership of mountain and field properties by the nobility and Buddhist temples. 

Another of her achievements was transferring the capital at Heijō-kyō (Nara) in 710, turning it into an unprecedented cultural and political center. Her rule saw many innovations. Among them were the first attempt to replace the barter system with the Wadō copper coins, new techniques for making brocade twills and dyeing and the settlement of experimental dairy farmers.

A protector of culture

Genmei sponsored many cultural projects. The first was the Kojiki, written in 712 it told Japan’s history from mythological origins to the current rulers. In its preface, the editor Ō no Yasumaro praised the empress:

“Her Imperial Majesty…illumines the univers…Ruling in the Purple Pavillion, her virtue extends to the limit of the horses’ hoof-prints…It must be saif that her fame is greater than that of Emperor Yü and her virtue surpasses that of Emperor Tang (legendary emperors of China)”.

In 713, she ordered the local governments to collect local legends and oral traditions as well as information about the soil, weather, products and geological and zoological features. Those local gazetteers (Fudoki) were an invaluable source of Japan’s ancient tradition.

Several of Genmei’s poems are included in the Man'yōshū anthology, including a reply by one of the court ladies. 

Listen to the sounds of the warriors' elbow-guards;

Our captain must be ranging the shields to drill the troops.

– Genmei Tennō

Reply:

Be not concerned, O my Sovereign;

Am I not here,

I, whom the ancestral gods endowed with life,

Next of kin to yourself

– Minabe-hime

From mother to daughter 

Genmei abdicated in 715 and passed the throne to her daughter, empress Genshō (680-748) instead of her sickly grandson prince Obito. This was an unprecedented situation, making the Nara period the pinnacle of female monarchy in Japan. 

Genmei would oversee state affairs until she died in 721. Before her death, she shaved her head and became a nun, becoming the first Japanese monarch to take Buddhist vows and establishing a long tradition.

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Further reading

Shillony Ben-Ami, Enigma of the Emperors Sacred Subservience in Japanese History

Tsurumi Patricia E., “Japan’s early female emperors”

Aoki Michiko Y., "Jitō Tennō, the female sovereign",in: Mulhern Chieko Irie (ed.), Heroic with grace legendary women of Japan

Changes in French Hoods 1470 - 1580

https://x.com/Heqijn/status/1746168463843086402

Mary & George (2024) 17th Century Jacobean Era Costume Design by Annie Symons ↪︎ @lgbtqcreators creator challenge: layout + rainbow

I find it so disappointing that in recent years it seems like all anyone cares about when it comes to Margaret of Austria is her brief connection to Anne Boleyn. This woman was the Governor of the Netherlands and one of the most eligible bachelorettes on the 16th century market, something she used to her advantage. It’s just sad because she was such a powerhouse and seeing people reduce her to just a brief moment of her life (and as a prop to someone else no less!) sucks

BARON ALDONÇA DE BELLERA // NOBLEWOMAN

“She was a Spanish noble. When she was widowed in 1412, she became the landowner of the castle Rialp and its surrounding valleys and villages. She is described as a good landlord with a peaceful and just rule over her domains. She is foremost known for the incident when her dower lands were attached and occupied by count Arnau Roger of IV Pallars in 1430. On 16 February, 1430, she was awoken and met with 50 armed soldiers outside. Her calm reaction was admired by her contemporaries. She hold the castle and organized the resistance while the domain outside was pillaged. She advised the peasantry to swear the allegiance to the invader, but report the attack to Maria of Castile, Queen of Aragon. By March, Pallars was forced to end his occupation of Rialp on royal command and return the rule of Rialp domain to her. She did not leave her fortress until her rights of her barony were guaranteed and Pallars were sentenced to compensate her and her peasantry.”

CLEOPATRA VII ~ Mother of Caesarion, Selene, Alexander, & Ptolemy; daughter of Ptolemy XII and Cleopatra V; linguist, scholar, and medical author; naval commander and war strategist; Isis-Aphrodite incarnate; wife of Mark Antony; lover of Julius Caesar; Macedonian Greek queen of Egypt. 

insp

JAMES FRAIN as THOMAS CROMWELL throughout the seasons

Part. I | Requested by @ladauphines

women’s history meme | ancient women / legends 4/5

“As always, an educated woman was a dangerous woman.” ― Stacy Schiff, Cleopatra: A Life ( for @tiny-librarian​​ )