The exact answer is that no one knows. In theory the Ptolemys practiced brother to sister royal marriages, and unless they had fantastic genes they should have developed severe disorders like the European royal house The Hapsburgs. It began with the The Hapsburgs wanting to keep their genetics free of other influences. The irony is of course that they destroyed their genetics. The Roman Catholic royals generally married cousin to cousin, and initially avoided sibling and Uncle/Aunt and Nephew/Niece marriages and yet began having severe birth defects. In later generations some Uncle/Niece, Aunt
The exact answer is that no one knows. In theory the Ptolemys practiced brother to sister royal marriages, and unless they had fantastic genes they should have developed severe disorders like the European royal house The Hapsburgs. It began with the The Hapsburgs wanting to keep their genetics free of other influences. The irony is of course that they destroyed their genetics. The Roman Catholic royals generally married cousin to cousin, and initially avoided sibling and Uncle/Aunt and Nephew/Niece marriages and yet began having severe birth defects. In later generations some Uncle/Niece, Aunt/Nephew matches were allowed, although controversial. Genealogical research of the Hapsburg family show that their limited family tree was now so similar as to make distant cousins more like brothers and sisters in shared genetics. Eventually the line ended with the direct line being sterile.
One very possible answer to the Ptolemaic dynasty is that possibly Ptolemaic marriages were ceremonial and perhaps even relationally authentic, but not consummated. The children of the line may have been born to concubines or fathered by soldiers. Until the time of Cleopatra the Ptolemys ruled in an aloof and distant manner, not even speaking the language of the people they ruled. There could easily be some theater involved in the lineages of their members. They had used mythology to legitimize their role as rulers before they were even officially the Egyptian Royal family.
Ptolemy I had been Alexander the Great’s General and historian, and was likely from a family of close court functionaries under Alexander’s father Philip. Ptolemaic myth said instead that Ptolemy was Philip’s illegitimate son raised by his loyal courtier. There is likely no truth to this story, and it was probably just Ptolemaic royalist propaganda to prop up the dynasty.
Another possibility is that the line began as brother to sister, because Ptolemy himself was determined to be seen as first the legitimate heir to Alexander and as a divine Pharaoh. They may have realized over time that they were beginning to have physical effects. Artistic portrayals of the Ptolemaic family often show them as morbidly obese, with slightly over large necks, and slightly bulging eyes. It’s thought that Grave’s disease, or hyperthyroidism may have effected some members. They were universally described as cultured and intelligent, with Cleopatra seen as extremely intelligent and very attractive if not beautiful. The effects if there were any had to be minimal.
It seems unlikely that regular brother to sister marriages resulted in their legitimate children , particularly if every generation married brother to sister and had children. To do so without any obvious detrimental effects seems unlikely.
Because the Ptolemaics usually murdered each other before the detrimental genetic effects in their family tumbleweed became evident.
The Ptolemaic family tumbleweed. This is not how a healthy heritage should look like!
The Ptolemaics were the last Pharaonic dynasty in Egypt - and most likely the sickest. Imagine just the Gaunts (of Potterverse) meet Targayens (of Martinverse) meet Gollum (of Tolkienverse). All male members of the dynasty carried the name Ptolemaios (Πτολεμαῖος, often anglified as Ptolemy) and all female members either Berenike, Aresinoë or Cleopatra.
The Ptolemaics were insane. S
Because the Ptolemaics usually murdered each other before the detrimental genetic effects in their family tumbleweed became evident.
The Ptolemaic family tumbleweed. This is not how a healthy heritage should look like!
The Ptolemaics were the last Pharaonic dynasty in Egypt - and most likely the sickest. Imagine just the Gaunts (of Potterverse) meet Targayens (of Martinverse) meet Gollum (of Tolkienverse). All male members of the dynasty carried the name Ptolemaios (Πτολεμαῖος, often anglified as Ptolemy) and all female members either Berenike, Aresinoë or Cleopatra.
The Ptolemaics were insane. Simply insane - murderlusty, cruel and impetuous. Their family defect was tendency to morbid obesity and bulbous eyes. They had a custom of marrying their siblings with the occasional uncle-niece and nephew-aunt weddings, and at least one possible mother-son marriage, thrown into the mix. In addition to marrying their close relatives, they were also into murdering each other, and their history abounds with Ptolemies killing their brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, nieces, nephews, mothers, fathers and even sons and daughters. And the really scary thing, is that this inflighting was not only a common thing in everyday life, it was actually encouraged!
The Ptolemaic children were groomed to view everyone as a tool to be used, and discarded when they were no more use, or if they were in the way of them getting more power, or if they were weak, meaning that nearly every Ptolemaiuc was a sociopath, and/or a social darwinist. and getting murdered by their siblings, parents or offspring. And no, Cleopatra VII was no exception. She murdered her sister Arsinoë and his brother-husband Ptolemaios XIII.
The Ptolemaicss believed this incest and kinslaying would make them (and Egypt stronger). Instead, it did the exact opposite. The numerous assassinations, murders, and civil wars that were born from this infighting drained money from the coffers, caused the people to suffer, and reduced Egypt's size, and ultimatly, it was one of the factors that lead to the Ptolemaic dynasty downfall, and Egypt's annexation into Rome.
The Ptolemaic dynasty and the Habsburgs both practiced incestuous marriages, but the effects of these practices were different due to several factors:
1. Cultural Context and Tradition
- Ptolemaic Dynasty: The Ptolemies, who ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great, embraced sibling marriages as a means to preserve royal bloodlines and consolidate power. This practice was rooted in the traditions of ancient Egyptian royalty, where sibling marriages were not uncommon, especially among the ruling class.
- Habsburgs: The Habsburgs, particularly in the early modern period, engaged in cousin and sibling marr
The Ptolemaic dynasty and the Habsburgs both practiced incestuous marriages, but the effects of these practices were different due to several factors:
1. Cultural Context and Tradition
- Ptolemaic Dynasty: The Ptolemies, who ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great, embraced sibling marriages as a means to preserve royal bloodlines and consolidate power. This practice was rooted in the traditions of ancient Egyptian royalty, where sibling marriages were not uncommon, especially among the ruling class.
- Habsburgs: The Habsburgs, particularly in the early modern period, engaged in cousin and sibling marriages to maintain territorial integrity and political alliances. However, their practice was often viewed with more scrutiny by contemporary society, which may have contributed to the perception of their inbreeding consequences.
2. Genetic Consequences
- Ptolemaic Dynasty: While the Ptolemies did experience some genetic issues, these problems were somewhat mitigated by the fact that they often married outside their immediate family (e.g., marrying cousins or distant relatives) and had a more diverse gene pool due to the integration of various cultures in Egypt.
- Habsburgs: The Habsburgs’ more insular marriages led to a higher incidence of genetic disorders, such as the well-documented Habsburg jaw. Their family tree became increasingly limited, leading to more pronounced health issues in later generations.
3. Political Structures and Stability
- Ptolemaic Dynasty: The Ptolemaic dynasty had a relatively stable political structure and strong centralized power, which may have helped mitigate the effects of genetic issues. Their rule lasted for nearly 300 years, indicating that their governance strategies were effective despite the incestuous practices.
- Habsburgs: The Habsburgs faced more political fragmentation and challenges, especially as their empire expanded. The health problems associated with inbreeding may have weakened their ability to maintain power, contributing to their decline.
4. Historical Outcomes
- Ptolemaic Dynasty: While the Ptolemaic dynasty eventually declined, it was due to a combination of external pressures (like Roman conquest) and internal strife rather than solely the consequences of inbreeding.
- Habsburgs: The Habsburgs’ issues with inbreeding became more pronounced in the 17th and 18th centuries, leading to significant health problems and ultimately contributing to their downfall, particularly with the death of Charles II, who was severely affected by inbreeding.
Conclusion
In summary, while both dynasties practiced incestuous marriages, the Ptolemaic dynasty's cultural context, genetic diversity, political stability, and historical outcomes contributed to a less severe impact compared to the Habsburgs, whose insular practices led to more pronounced genetic issues and political challenges.
(Edited to correct a bad mistake: the first “in-bred” Ptolemy was not, as I initially wrote, Ptolemy III Euergetes, but Ptolemy IV Philopator.)
First, a line of “sibling marriages” brings out severe genetic defects only if there are dangerous genes present in the original pair of siblings – if the original pair is free of dangerous genes, then sibling marriages are not more likely to produce children with genetic defects than any other marriage.
Next, within the Ptolemaic sibling marriages we do have to reckon with the possibility of what are euphemistically known as “false paternity incidents”
(Edited to correct a bad mistake: the first “in-bred” Ptolemy was not, as I initially wrote, Ptolemy III Euergetes, but Ptolemy IV Philopator.)
First, a line of “sibling marriages” brings out severe genetic defects only if there are dangerous genes present in the original pair of siblings – if the original pair is free of dangerous genes, then sibling marriages are not more likely to produce children with genetic defects than any other marriage.
Next, within the Ptolemaic sibling marriages we do have to reckon with the possibility of what are euphemistically known as “false paternity incidents” – there may have been some infusions of different genetic material here and there. Also, the exact parentage (in particular the mother) of each sister in these marriages is not always certainly known – one or two of the sisters might have been half-sisters. This too would have allowed for an infusion of some fresh genetic material.
Finally, the first “in-bred” Ptolemy was Ptolemy IV Philopator (the son of Ptolemy III Euergetes and his sister – both children of Ptolemy II Philadelphus). On Ptolemy IV Philopator there follow three generations of in-breeding:
First generation: Ptolemy IV Philopator
Second generation: Ptolemy V Epiphanes
Third generation: Ptolemy VI Philometor & Ptolemy VIII Physco
Fourth generation: Ptolemy IX Lathyrus & Ptolemy X Alexander I
Mem.: There is no Ptolemy VII; and Ptolemy XI Alexander II, a son of Ptolemy X Alexander I’s, ruled for only 19 days, and his mother is entirely unknown anyway.
The next generation to rule is represented by Ptolemy XII Auletes. He was an illegitimate son of Ptolemy IX Lathyrus’ – i.e. 50% of his genetic material was not from the Ptolemaic line. He married a woman called Cleopatra Tryphaina who was probably but not certainly his sister – and even if she was his sister, we still have no way of knowing if she was his full- or half-sister.
Anyway, the line of incestuous sibling-marriages is broken after four generations. Ptolemy XII Auletes and Cleopatra (VI) Tryphaina produced three children that survived to succeed him: Cleopatra VII (this is the one played by Miss Taylor), Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV. Neither of the two boys had issue; but Cleopatra produced one son with Julius Caesar (Ptolemy XV – who obviously wasn’t in-bred); and three more children with Mark Antony – these three obviously weren’t in-bred either. Cleopatra VII’s daughter, Cleopatra Selene, was given in marriage to Juba II, the King of Mauretania, and produced a son called Ptolemy – obviously no in-breeding there.
If there were any genetic defects brought out by the in-breeding, they should have been visible in the Ptolemies out of the later ones of the four in-bred generations. It may well be that a fortuitous “false paternity incident” somewhere in there as well as the occasional half-sister forestalled the appearance of some genetic defects. Or Ptolemy III Philadelphus and his sister had some really great genes, and there were no significant genetic defects to be brought out by the later sibling-marriages.
We do not know that much about the Ptolemaic dynasty. For instance we do not know who the mother was of the famous Queen Cleopatra VII and her siblings..
But we know an awful lot about the Habsburgs, both the extinct Spanish branch as well as the surviving Austrian branch.
It is true King/Emperor Charles V of Spain married his full cousin, Princess Isabella of Portugal.
And that his son , King Philip II finally wed his niece Anna , Archduchess of Austria, the daughter of his sister, as his fourth wife..
And that their son in turn Philip III married his more distant cousin, the Austrian Archduchess
We do not know that much about the Ptolemaic dynasty. For instance we do not know who the mother was of the famous Queen Cleopatra VII and her siblings..
But we know an awful lot about the Habsburgs, both the extinct Spanish branch as well as the surviving Austrian branch.
It is true King/Emperor Charles V of Spain married his full cousin, Princess Isabella of Portugal.
And that his son , King Philip II finally wed his niece Anna , Archduchess of Austria, the daughter of his sister, as his fourth wife..
And that their son in turn Philip III married his more distant cousin, the Austrian Archduchess Margaretha..
And finally their son Philip IV wed his niece Maria Anna of Austria , daughter of his sister, as his second wife..
Their son was the final Hapsburg King Charles of Spain, mentally and physically handicapped, and unable to reproduce..
This is a classical case of extinction through marriage with too close relatives..Several European dynasties more or less did it but never so intense as the Habsburgs..
By the 18th century even Kings observed that their legitimate offspring was often not healthy while their bastard children with unrelated mothers were alive and kicking. Nevertheless by the 19th century it became very obvious. As Duke Robert de Bourbon of Parma sired around two dozen children with his succeeding wives and many were handicapped..
Duke Robert as a wee child with his mother.
So Queen Margharita of Italy, born Margharita of Savoy and out of necesity married to her cousin, the Italian King Umberto I was relieved when their son, the infamous Victor Emmanuel wed Princess Elena of Montenegro who was not a relative!
Queen Elena, born Princess of Montenegro..
However, it is a world wide phenomenon. Many royals did so: from the Inca Emperors to the Hashemite dynasty of Jordan, Hejaz, Iraq and Syria.
The boy-King Faisal II of Iraq with his mother Queen Aliyah, born Princess of Hejaz. The Queen had wed her full cousin, King Ghazi of Iraq.
Well we don't really know much about Ptolemy's children but King Tut was a wreck due to the incest of his parents.The Spanish Habsburgs left remarkable portraits that showed some physical results of their inbreeding like the infamous Habsburgs Jaw jutting out like the prow of Jay Leno's ship. The beautiful Marie Antoinette was a descendant too but only had a protruding lower lip making her an early pouting Brigitte Bardot. Hasidim run the risk of inbreeding when the Grand Rabbinical Dynasties marry their cousins. So far I haven't detected any physical aberrations but they HAVE produced some br
Well we don't really know much about Ptolemy's children but King Tut was a wreck due to the incest of his parents.The Spanish Habsburgs left remarkable portraits that showed some physical results of their inbreeding like the infamous Habsburgs Jaw jutting out like the prow of Jay Leno's ship. The beautiful Marie Antoinette was a descendant too but only had a protruding lower lip making her an early pouting Brigitte Bardot. Hasidim run the risk of inbreeding when the Grand Rabbinical Dynasties marry their cousins. So far I haven't detected any physical aberrations but they HAVE produced some brilliant leaders by marrying the children of genius families together. An April 4, 2002 NY TIMES article reports little to NO risk for child defects in first cousin marriages so I wouldn't get too excited.
The Ptolemaic dynasty and the Habsburgs were both known for their indulgence in incestuous sibling marriages, but there were indeed notable differences in the impact of these practices on their respective dynasties. While both families engaged in such unions to consolidate power and maintain royal bloodlines, the consequences varied due to a combination of factors, including societal norms, genetic variations, and historical context.
Firstly, it’s important to consider the societal attitudes towards incestuous marriages during these periods. The Ptolemaic dynasty ruled over ancient Egypt, where
The Ptolemaic dynasty and the Habsburgs were both known for their indulgence in incestuous sibling marriages, but there were indeed notable differences in the impact of these practices on their respective dynasties. While both families engaged in such unions to consolidate power and maintain royal bloodlines, the consequences varied due to a combination of factors, including societal norms, genetic variations, and historical context.
Firstly, it’s important to consider the societal attitudes towards incestuous marriages during these periods. The Ptolemaic dynasty ruled over ancient Egypt, where the practice of sibling marriage was relatively accepted and even considered divine. In fact, the Egyptian pharaohs believed themselves to be descended from the gods, and marrying within the family was seen as a means to maintain this divine lineage. Consequently, the Ptolemies did not face significant opposition or social stigma for their incestuous unions.
On the other hand, the Habsburgs belonged to a different cultural and historical context. They hailed from medieval Europe, where the Church held significant influence on matters of marriage and morality. The Catholic Church strongly condemned incestuous relationships, considering them sinful and morally reprehensible. As a result, the Habsburgs faced greater scrutiny and criticism for their close bloodline marriages, leading to public disapproval and potential challenges to their legitimacy.
Genetic variations also played a role in the differing effects of incestuous unions on these two dynasties. Over time, the Ptolemies developed a unique genetic pool due to centuries of intermarriage. While this could have potentially led to increased risks of genetic disorders, the Ptolemaic dynasty managed to maintain a relatively stable lineage for several generations. This is likely attributed to the large population of ancient Egypt, which provided a wider gene pool and reduced the likelihood of detrimental genetic mutations.
In contrast, the Habsburgs experienced a higher degree of consanguinity in their marriages. They repeatedly married close relatives, often within a few generations, resulting in a limited gene pool and an increased risk of genetic disorders. This is known as the “Habsburg jaw” or “Habsburg lip,” physical characteristics associated with the dynasty due to these genetic complications. The persistence of such genetic issues among the Habsburgs eventually led to their decline and the end of their ruling dynasty.
Furthermore, the Ptolemaic dynasty enjoyed a period of relative stability and prosperity during its reign, while the Habsburgs faced numerous political challenges and conflicts throughout history. These external factors undoubtedly influenced the long-term effects of incestuous marriages on each dynasty.
It probably did. A lot of the later Ptolemies were known for being viciously murderous towards one another, even by the usual decadent standards of Eastern Mediterranean monarchies throughout the period. There is also some evidence of genetic damage/issues over subsequent generations of the Ptolemy family, though granted nothing on the level of the lamentable Charles II of Spain.
There is also another explanation though, and the possibility exists that this answers the question. While incestuous marriages (particularly sibling ones) were religious custom among Pharoahs long prior to the arrival
It probably did. A lot of the later Ptolemies were known for being viciously murderous towards one another, even by the usual decadent standards of Eastern Mediterranean monarchies throughout the period. There is also some evidence of genetic damage/issues over subsequent generations of the Ptolemy family, though granted nothing on the level of the lamentable Charles II of Spain.
There is also another explanation though, and the possibility exists that this answers the question. While incestuous marriages (particularly sibling ones) were religious custom among Pharoahs long prior to the arrival of the Ptolemaic rulers, it is also the case that previous dynasties of Pharoahs had multiple wives and concubines from other and unrelated bloodlines as well. It is possible, even quite likely, that many of the descendants of these “marriages” were in fact the products of a union between a Pharaoh and their “lesser” spouses, who were often either foreign royals or unrelated at all. At least some of the Ptolemaic monarchs may have been born from these unions, and the incestuous “main” marriage was there primarily for legitimacy/religious custom, while the actual reproduction part of dynastic marriage was done outside that union.
If that’s the case, it might help to explain why at least some of the Ptolemies did escape really severe genetic damage. They likely weren’t the products of quite as much incest as their family trees might formally suggest.
Time, luck and missing data.
The Ptolemaic dynasty was ruling for 300 years - less than the Habsburgs. They had not such an obvious dominantly inherited defect like the Habsburg lower jaw. The members of the Ptolemaic were not so thoroughly depicted and investigated like the Habsburgs.
Inbreeding necessarily leads to homozygosity, but not necessarily to manifest of recessive pathological alleles. They can only manifest if they are present. It is possible that the Ptoleiams, although they practiced imbreeding, were homozygizing, but the pathological mutations did not appear simply because they were not present, or were simply excluded by chance during imbreeding.
It wasn’t just the Ptolemies It was all the Pharoahs. Where do you think the Greeks picked it up from as it wasnt a greek Custome has been so long with very little evidence as to the effects on the Lineage that its impossible to tell the long term effects except for ancient remains.
As others say, we do not know who were the biological parents of most of them.
And note also that most European monarchies had a high degree of inbreeding. The Catholic Church kept granting exemptions to the rules. So the Habsburg were exaggerating an existing trend.
The famous Cleopatra sired a son Ceasarion to Julius Caesar perhaps other Ptolemaic rulers used proxies for procreation. I don’t know how you would know if the inbreeding affected them as not very much is known about many of them.
There is an expression in Appalachia. The more related your wife is to you. The fewer wedding guests you have to liquor up. With regards to the Hapsburgs. I guess they ran out of people to marry. And they didn't want to share resources. So they reproduced with each other.
Still Charles II got all the bad genes. His sisters were normal. Since they got all the good genes. It's too bad women could not inherit the throne.
There is an expression in Appalachia. The more related your wife is to you. The fewer wedding guests you have to liquor up. With regards to the Hapsburgs. I guess they ran out of people to marry. And they didn't want to share resources. So they reproduced with each other.
Still Charles II got all the bad genes. His sisters were normal. Since they got all the good genes. It's too bad women could not inherit the throne.
They did - in Belgium.
Leopold II of the Belgians, of the Belgian branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, married an Austrian archduchess Marie Henriette (1836–1902). It was not a happy marriage.
(Henriette was far from ugly. She was just too different from her husband).
(in old age)
Their only son Baudouin died young. Their three daughters were not allowed to succeed, and the two elder Louise and Stephanie made unhappy marriages. The second daughter Stephanie married Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria. Marie Henriette was not a loving mother but was extremely distant accordingly to her daughters.
Le
They did - in Belgium.
Leopold II of the Belgians, of the Belgian branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, married an Austrian archduchess Marie Henriette (1836–1902). It was not a happy marriage.
(Henriette was far from ugly. She was just too different from her husband).
(in old age)
Their only son Baudouin died young. Their three daughters were not allowed to succeed, and the two elder Louise and Stephanie made unhappy marriages. The second daughter Stephanie married Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria. Marie Henriette was not a loving mother but was extremely distant accordingly to her daughters.
Leopold's sister Charlotte married Archduke Maximilian, younger brother to Emperor Francis Joseph. The French emperor Napoleon III arranged for Maximilian to become emperor of Mexico, but he was soon overthrown and shot. His wife Charlotte went insane. There were no children of this second Coburg-Habsburg marriage.
The third Coburg-Habsburg marriage was that of Princess Stephanie of Belgium (1864–1945), second daughter of Leopold II and Marie Henriette. She married her second cousin once removed Crown Prince Rudolf in 1881.
(The sisters Louise and Stephanie)
The marriage produced one daughter but was very unhappy, in part because Rudolf infected his wife with gonorrhea which rendered her sterile. Rudolf committed suicide in 1889 after killing his teenaged lover. The emperor and empress blamed Stephanie for their son's suicide and since she had produced no heir, she lost her high status as Crown Princess which she resented. Stephanie did find happiness in a second marriage but was cut off by her father Leopold iI abd her former father in law Franz Josef. She also became estranged from her wilful daughter Elizabeth.
There were no further Coburg-Habsburg marriages in the Belgian total family for over one hundred years until Princess Astrid of Belgium, then niece to the king, married Archduke Lorenz, grandson of the last emperor in 1984. Today, she and her descendants are in line of succession to the Belgian monarch. Finally, a happy marriage!
(Astrid with her five children in 2005)
Ah, you mean the British branch or the German branch. The British branch could not marry Catholics by the terms of the Act of Settlement. No Habsburg would ever convert. And almost none married Protestants or Orthodox Christians (Marie Henriette's father Joseph married firstly a Russian grand duchess, then two Protestant German princesses. His older brother Karl also married a Protestant German princess. But that was in the Napoleonic and post Congress era).
In the German branch (reigning dukes of tiny Gotha) , Albert's elder brother Ernest married Protestant German princesses, including a niece. His heir was his nephew, Albert's second son Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh who married the Russian emperor's daughter Maria. They had one son who died unmarried and four daughters. Of them, the second Marie married a Catholic prince Ferdinand of Romania (later King Ferdinand I of Romania) but raised her children in the Orthodox church. The fourth Beatrice married a Spanish infante, a junior prince of Spain. Why she didn't marry a Habsburg I don't know.
A Catholic Coburg prince, descended from a marriage to a Hungarian heiress, was chosen ruler of Bulgaria. The three Bulgarian kings were Ferdinand, Boris III, and briefly Simeon I. Ferdinand married a Bourbon-Parma princess, while his son Boris married a Savoy princess, daughter of the King of Italy. Simeon in exile married a Spanish heiress who was not royal. One of Boris's sisters married a Wuerttemberg scion while his daughter married a Leiningen scion. No Habsburg marriages. Perhaps it was considered politically unwise in the Balkans where a power struggle existed between Russia and Austria.
The last reigning duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was Charles, Duke of Albany, nephew of Alfred and son of Leopold (his uncle Arthur, Duke of Connaught deferred his rights). He was the sororal cousin of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, their mothers being sisters. As Duke Carl Eduard, he married his second cousin, the German empress's niece. She was a granddaughter of his grandmother's half-sister Feodora of Leiningen. Their daughter Sibylla married her second cousin, the grandson of the Swedish king, in 1932. Their son Carl XVI Gustaf is the present Swedish king. All these matches were to Protestant princes and princesses.
In the 19th century, the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was a rising power by virtue of careful marriages into the main line of the British Royal Family. Edward VII and George V belonged to this house. Their scions were chosen King of the Belgians, and Tsar then King of Bulgaria. And reigning dukes in Germany.
In comparison, the Habsburgs were in decline, especially after 1866. The new kings of Belgium wanted the Habsburg marriages to strengthen their claim to an area once ruled by the Habsburgs. In the early 1850s, Prussia refused to let Francis Joseph marry a Prussian princess, citing religious differences. His brothers married a Belgian princess (a Saxe-Coburg-Gotha) and a Saxony princess respectively. Later Austrian marriages were to formerly reigning houses such as Braganza and Bourbon-Parma. Austrian archduchesses did marry into Bavaria and Spain. But by 1900, there were many archduchesses and none of them married into reigning houses. The Habsburgs were simply not as prestigious as they used to be, not as powerful as they used to be.
The Habsburgs conquered Europe through marriage policy, as the saying went:
“May others make war, you happy Austria marry”
They married their way up in the Holy Roman Empire, trying to gain the most influence among the electors through marriage. They were a Swiss dynasty which built their own “Eastern Realm” (Austria, literally Österreich) through marriages, and kept it at the top of the German world through marriages.
They absorbed their rival Burgundy to the West of the Alps and Rhine marrying to them after a conflict, and they seized and jumped from Austria to the Spanish Empire by marrying th
The Habsburgs conquered Europe through marriage policy, as the saying went:
“May others make war, you happy Austria marry”
They married their way up in the Holy Roman Empire, trying to gain the most influence among the electors through marriage. They were a Swiss dynasty which built their own “Eastern Realm” (Austria, literally Österreich) through marriages, and kept it at the top of the German world through marriages.
They absorbed their rival Burgundy to the West of the Alps and Rhine marrying to them after a conflict, and they seized and jumped from Austria to the Spanish Empire by marrying the Spanish Trastámaras, and stepping in afterwards. They annexed the Portuguese Empire to Spain by marrying them, and then sending armies to defend the claim. They established the Pax Hispanica by marrying the French repeatedly after the wars of the 1500s and the peaces of Cateau-Cambrésis and Vervins.
Spanish Habsburgs: Felipe I (hat standing), Carlos I (armour), Felipe II (hat sitting), Felipe III (white), Felipe IV (moustache) and Carlos II (ugly)
For the Habsburgs marriage was the path to power, and precisely because of that, they knew that marrying other houses was laying a path to them, in the exact same manner it had serve to lay a path to their own family in the past. They married each other to avoid outside claims to their domains, and to strengthen the family network.
Marrying others meant diluting what they had amassed, precisely by marrying, while marrying each other meant keeping their family empire cohesive and united. Even when they decided to marry France in order to maintain Spanish hegemony through peace, they had a constant fear on the Austrian side, of the Bourbons claiming Spain agsinst them if the Spanish branch disappeared (which eventually happened).
Spanish Empire and Holy Roman Empire, the Crowns of the Habsburg dynasty, the Reich and the Imperio
The Plantagenets had some good marriage strategies but they simply didn’t compare to the Habsburgs. I’ll go into more detail. Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, married Matilda, Dowager Holy Roman Empress, and his descendants now sat upon the English throne. Their son, King Henry II of England, married Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine in her own right and former queen of France. Empress Matilda’s grandsons, King Richard I and King John, married respectable wives, Infanta Berengaria of Navarre and Isabella, Countess of Gloucester and Isabella, Countess of Angoulême, respectively. Another of Empress Matil
The Plantagenets had some good marriage strategies but they simply didn’t compare to the Habsburgs. I’ll go into more detail. Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, married Matilda, Dowager Holy Roman Empress, and his descendants now sat upon the English throne. Their son, King Henry II of England, married Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine in her own right and former queen of France. Empress Matilda’s grandsons, King Richard I and King John, married respectable wives, Infanta Berengaria of Navarre and Isabella, Countess of Gloucester and Isabella, Countess of Angoulême, respectively. Another of Empress Matilda’s granddaughters, Princess Eleanor, married King Afonso VIII of Castile. King Henry III was promised in marriage to Eleanor of Provence, the sister of the Queen of France and the Queen of The Romans. However, there were even more advantageous marriages if we consider the Plantagenet descendants of King Edward III of England and his bride, Queen Philippa of Hainault. Edward The Black Prince married Joan of Kent, an important English noblewoman and gave birth to his heir, King Richard II, who had two advantageous marriages: firstly married to Anne of Bohemia (the daughter of Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV) and secondly to Isabella de Valois (eldest daughter of King Charles VI of France). Edward’s brother, John of Gaunt, married three times but his most significant marriage was to the Infanta Constance of Castile. Both of John of Gaunt’s daughters became queens; Philippa of Lancaster became the Queen of Portugal upon marriage to King John I and Catherine of Lancaster became Queen of Castile upon marriage to King Henry III. Obviously these marriage were significant because they tied England dynastically to the royal houses of the Holy Roman Empire, Castile, Portugal, Navarre, France and many other kingdoms throughout Europe. If we consider King Henry IV’s line of descent, we are faced with King Henry V who married the French princess, Catherine de Valois (Queen Isabella de Valois’ younger sister), whereas Philippa of Lancaster married Eric of Pomerania, King of Denmark, Norway and Sweden (great-nephew of Queen Margaret I of Denmark). It was around this time where tensions between England and France were high and there were intense efforts made to mitigate pressure between the two countries. So a new marriage was deemed necessary; King Henry VI of England (King Henry V’s son) was betrothed to Princess Margaret of Anjou, daughter of René, King of Naples, and Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine, and she was also the niece-in-law of King Charles VII of France. However, Margaret, once she became queen, took control of the government and she and her husband were eventually ousted. The Yorks took over the English throne and more advantageous marriages followed. King Edward IV of England was probably the only member of his family to not seek an advantageous marriage. He married Lady Elizabeth Woodville, a daughter of Jacquetta of Luxembourg, Dowager Duchess of Bedford and daughter of Peter I, Count of Saint-Pol. King Edward’s sister, Lady Margaret, married Charles The Bold, Duke of Burgundy, and took over the Duchy as soon as she was made Duchess of Burgundy. George, Duke of Clarence and King Richard III married the daughter of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, namely Isabel Neville and Anne Neville. Lady Margaret Plantagenet, the Duke of Clarence’s daughter, married Sir Richard Pole (a cousin of King Henry VII) and naturally, King Edward IV’s eldest daughter, Princess Elizabeth, became Queen of England upon marriage to King Henry VII.
The Habsburgs were far more prominent on the European world stage. Almost every single Holy Roman Emperor was of the House of Habsburg. They gained prevalence by having their heirs marry powerful European heiresses such as Elizabeth of Luxembourg, Mary of Burgundy, Joanna of Castile and many others. Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor married three times; firstly to Mary, Duchess of Burgundy in her own right, secondly to Anne, Duchess of Brittany in her own right and finally to the powerful Italian noblewoman, Bianca Maria Sforza of Milan. From his first marriage, Maximilian sired two children; Archduke Philip, Duke of Burgundy and Archduchess Margaret of Austria. Philip married Queen Joanna I of Castile and Aragon, whereas Margaret married twice, firstly to John, Prince of Asturias and secondly to Philibert II, Duke of Savoy. All of Philip and Joanna’s children either became emperors or queens. Eleanor married two kings in quick succession, King Manuel I of Portugal and King Francis I of France. Charles V married the Infanta Isabella of Portugal. Isabella married King Christian II of Denmark. Mary married King Louis II of Hungary. Ferdinand I married Princess Anne of Bohemia and Hungary. And finally Catherine married King John III of Portugal. These marriages were significant because the offspring of Philip and Joanna’s progeny also married into other powerful royal families throughout Europe. The House of Habsburg has produced queens of France (Elisabeth of Austria, Anne of Austria, Maria Theresa of Spain and Marie Antoinette), Portugal (Eleanor of Austria, Catherine of Austria, Anna of Austria, Margaret of Austria, etc), Spain (Anna of Austria, Margaret of Austria, Mariana of Austria, etc), Poland (Elisabeth of Austria, Catherine of Austria, Anne of Austria, Constance of Austria and Cecilia Renata of Austria) and also empresses of the Holy Roman Empire (Maria Anna of Spain, Margaret Theresa of Spain, Maria Amalia of Austria and Maria Theresa of Austria). Charles V (Carlos de Hapsburg) was the Holy Roman Emperor, King of Spain and Germany, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy and Lord of The Netherlands. His three children, Philip, Maria and Joanna, also married prominent royals (King Philip II of Spain married four times, firstly to Infanta Maria Manuela of Portugal, secondly to Queen Mary I of England, thirdly to Princess Elisabeth de Valois and fourthly to Archduchess Anna of Austria. Maria married Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor. And Joanna married João Manuel, Hereditary Prince of Portugal). Centuries later, Empress Maria Theresa (the only woman to rule the Habsburg Dominions in her own right) also had her children marry prominent royals; Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor was first married to Princess Isabella of Parma and secondly to Princess Maria Josepha of Bavaria. Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor married Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain. Archduchess Maria Carolina married King Ferdinand IV and III of Naples and Sicily. And Archduchess Maria Antonia married King Louis XVI of France.
So as you can see, while both the Plantagenets and the Habsburgs were adept at creating strategic marriages, the Habsburgs were better.
We actually know too little of the details on the Ptolemaic dynasty to be sure that these problems with inbreeding did not occur.
It was easier to conceal the problems in an age that did not have printing presses.
Royal families all around married each other because they needed to play politics in order to keep power.
They married their cousin because he was the king of thisland and that was so because her grandfather had married the queen of thatland. The inbreeding was the result of simple politics, those who married each other managed to keep more lands under their family's reach, those who married non-royals lost ground to the rest. And the inbreeding made royal families personally close or deferential to each other because they were family, so in case of a king being overthrown its ties to other kin
Royal families all around married each other because they needed to play politics in order to keep power.
They married their cousin because he was the king of thisland and that was so because her grandfather had married the queen of thatland. The inbreeding was the result of simple politics, those who married each other managed to keep more lands under their family's reach, those who married non-royals lost ground to the rest. And the inbreeding made royal families personally close or deferential to each other because they were family, so in case of a king being overthrown its ties to other kings kept him afloat. The inbreeding became a requisite for the survival of royal dynasties, both on the throne and after being dethroned.
The Habsburgs took it to the next level, they didn't just marry for alliances or to validate their family in the eyes of other royals as part of the “club", Habsburgs decided that marriage was the cheapest, fastest, most effective way of conquest. They used marriage as a way to acquire more lands and build a larger “empire" under their family. Of course for that they needed a lot more inbreeding than your average royal, they needed to take the motto “keep the lands within the family” to the next level. Until it was biologically unsustainable. They made a check mate on themselves by losing bloodlines until the remaining one was genetically a calamity.
The Church allowed it because they were kings, the Church had a political alliance with Crowns, the monarchs needed the Church for an ideological sustain and the Church needed the monarchs for a political sustain. If you expect the Church to go whipping kings for marrying their cousin you do not remotely grasp how the Church worked. The Church needed the kings, sure the kings needed the Church too, but that's the point, the Church's need to punish kings for marrying their cousins was less vital than the kings' need to keep power within the family. The Church would press points that the Crowns could accept, a ban on inbreeding was non-negotiable for the Crowns, so the Church looked elsewhere and the symbiotic relation remained. The kings ruled by the grace of God and the Church had the grace of the armies.
This question and all the answers I’ve seen thus far raise, yet fail to challenge, a prevalent Western fallacy: the glaring contradiction between our widespread belief that marrying relatives is genetically dangerous and socially irresponsible on the one hand, and modern geneticists’ assessment on the other hand that such matings have always — and necessarily — been common, and remain substantially safe.
If this fallacy were true, why is Carlos II “the Bewitched” von Habsburg 1661-1700, King of Spain, endlessly cited as proof indisputable that inbreeding results in hideous genetic deformities o
This question and all the answers I’ve seen thus far raise, yet fail to challenge, a prevalent Western fallacy: the glaring contradiction between our widespread belief that marrying relatives is genetically dangerous and socially irresponsible on the one hand, and modern geneticists’ assessment on the other hand that such matings have always — and necessarily — been common, and remain substantially safe.
If this fallacy were true, why is Carlos II “the Bewitched” von Habsburg 1661-1700, King of Spain, endlessly cited as proof indisputable that inbreeding results in hideous genetic deformities of mind, body and reproductivity, while Queen Cleopatra of Egypt — the product of seven generations of brother/sister marriages in the Seleucid dynasty, thus making her far more inbred than descendants of the Habsburg uncle/niece and cousin/cousin ever were. Yet the Queen of the Nile displayed great intellect, deep learning, strategic diplomacy, seductive wiles, marriage to two of the world’s most powerful rulers, and left healthy children by both. Maybe you don’t need to worry about garbage out, unless you’re dumping garbage in?
In 2009 the Centre for Comparative Genomics (CCG) and the Centre for Human Genetics (CHG) conducted a study that noted “it seems inevitable that intrafamilial reproduction occurred and the resultant levels of inbreeding would have been substantial. Currently, couples related as second cousins or closer (F ≥ 0.0156) and their progeny account for an estimated 10.4% of the global population. The highest rates of consanguineous marriage occur in north and sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and west, central, and south Asia… Mortality in first-cousin progeny is ≈3.5% higher than in nonconsanguineous offspring, although demographic, social, and economic factors can significantly influence the outcome.” “Even in mid 19th century Europe and North America first cousin marriage remained socially accepted and quite widely favored, especially among the more privileged classes. Against this background it is puzzling that in recent generations human inbreeding has been subject to widespread negative opinion and prejudice in Western societies.” 31 of 50 US states now ban marriages between first cousins, but only 12 did so at the beginning of the 20th century.
The CCG/CHG report’s final paragraph concludes, “…it is important to emphasize that in assessing the impact of consanguinity on any aspect of health a clear causal relationship needs to be established, rather than reliance upon speculation driven solely by the presence of a close kin union in the family pedigree.”
The Ptolemaic dynasty practiced polygyny. A male ruler had a harem full of wives from other Greek city-states & foreign countries in addition to his sisters. That mitigated the effects of inbreeding.
The Ptolemaic dynasty practiced polygyny. A male ruler had a harem full of wives from other Greek city-states & foreign countries in addition to his sisters. That mitigated the effects of inbreeding.
They were indeed united by marriage.
How do you think Habsburg Spain became Bourbon Spain? Have you heard of the French Revolution? What family did Louis XVI belong to? And Marie Antoinette?
Bot School has clearly falling standards.
The entire 1600s after the Treaty of Vervins the French Bourbons married the Spanish Habsburgs as part of the peace. In fact, they competed for a Spanish marriage against the Austrian Habsburgs. This is the WHOLE theme of European marriages among the main powers in 1600s Europe.
Bourbon Louis XIII (the one in the Three Musketeers) married Infanta Ana (Spanish Habsburg)
They were indeed united by marriage.
How do you think Habsburg Spain became Bourbon Spain? Have you heard of the French Revolution? What family did Louis XVI belong to? And Marie Antoinette?
Bot School has clearly falling standards.
The entire 1600s after the Treaty of Vervins the French Bourbons married the Spanish Habsburgs as part of the peace. In fact, they competed for a Spanish marriage against the Austrian Habsburgs. This is the WHOLE theme of European marriages among the main powers in 1600s Europe.
Bourbon Louis XIII (the one in the Three Musketeers) married Infanta Ana (Spanish Habsburg), their son was Louis XIV, the Sun King. In between, Louis XIII died young and the Spanish consort queen became regent of France with her Italian lover, French nobility formed La Fronde against them.
Infanta Ana, by the Dutch Pieter Paul Rubens, as Queen Anne of France
Louis XIV himself married Infanta María Teresa as his first wife, also a Spanish Habsburg. From this marriage was born the Grand Dauphin, which is how they called Louis' son and heir—Louis as well—throughout his long reign until he died before his father in 1714. He was the father of Louis, Duke of Burgundy and Philippe, Duke of Anjou, and grandfather of Louis XV.
Infanta María Teresa, by the French Henri Beauburn, as Queen Marie-Therèse of France
Louis XIV tried to marry his son to Infanta Margarita, in order to reclaim the Spanish throne in absence of a male heir, but Spain's Queen Mariana married her daughter to her brother Leopold of Austria (see the competition?). Either way the Dauphin Louis was son and grandson of Spanish Habsburg queens, so the failure to marry a third one didn't stop his second son—the above mentioned Duke of Anjoy—from becoming Felipe V, the first Spanish Bourbon.
Infanta Margarita, by Spaniard Diego de Velázquez, her childhood in Spain before Austria
With the end of the Spanish Habsburgs, and the Bourbons sitting in Spain and France, the family stopped marrying the Habsburgs, as Austria was an enemy of France in central Europe and of Spain in Italy. The French Bourbons started marrying Polish royalty to intervene in the Polish Succession War, and the Spanish Bourbons started marrying Italian royalty to regain ground against Austria.
The Polish marriage of Louis XV didn't serve much of a purpose, as the Polish Succession War was not a big win for France, but the Spanish Italian marriage did render profits, Spain seated the Infante Carlos as the new Duke of Parma, regaining a foothold in Italy. Life is a bitch and just over a decade later Austria had a succession crisis lacking a male heir. So France and Spain took revenge in the Austrian Succession War.
Archiduchess Maria Theresa of Austria remained in power, but Spain won back the Kingdom of Naples (including Sicily) and France achieved the rise of Prussia in Germany, creating a rival to Austria and splitting the German world in two. However Russia betrayed the Bourbons, and thus France and Spain became allies of Austria. Hence the Bourbons married the Habsburgs again, Louis XVI married Archiduchess Marie-Antoinette, an Austrian Habsburg “princess”
Archiduchess Maria Antonia, by French Vigée Lebrun, as Queen Marie-Antoinette of France
NOTE: You might be shocked to know all Austrian royals carried the title “Archiduke”, there were no more titles or distinctions in Austria. These titles, while many people assume are equal all over Europe are VASTLY different.
A German-Austrian ruling family stretching from Portugal to Transylvania, the Habsburgs' family tree is quite complex. Like many royal families, the Habsburgs made strategic marriages to consolidate their power, often to close relatives.
But while the dynasty's clothes were glittering and their palaces sumptuous, the royals themselves were not particularly pleasing to the eye: Generation after generation of Habsburg rulers had sharply protruding chins, bulging lower lips and long noses. A new analysis published in the Annals of Human Biology suggests that this remarkable "Habsburg chin" is most
A German-Austrian ruling family stretching from Portugal to Transylvania, the Habsburgs' family tree is quite complex. Like many royal families, the Habsburgs made strategic marriages to consolidate their power, often to close relatives.
But while the dynasty's clothes were glittering and their palaces sumptuous, the royals themselves were not particularly pleasing to the eye: Generation after generation of Habsburg rulers had sharply protruding chins, bulging lower lips and long noses. A new analysis published in the Annals of Human Biology suggests that this remarkable "Habsburg chin" is most likely the result of inbreeding.
The researchers, led by geneticist Román Vilas from the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, focused on 15 members of the so-called Spanish Habsburgs. While the Habsburg family rose to power in Central Europe as rulers of Austria, Germany and eventually the Holy Roman Empire, the family's influence spread westward to Spain after Philip I, son of the second Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor, married Joan of Castile in 1496. The Spanish Habsburgs' various health problems and infertility are often attributed by scholars to violent inbreeding. The Spanish Habsburgs ruled for two centuries until the 38-year-old Charles II died in 1700 without leaving an heir.
Vilas and his colleagues focused on the Spanish Habsburgs, whose appearance was documented in realistic portraits by artists including Diego Velázquez. Using a large family tree spanning more than 20 generations, the scientists found that the average inbreeding coefficient for the Habsburgs they analyzed was 0.093. According to National Geographic's Ed Yong, this means that roughly 9% of a given royal's related genes are identical because they descended from the same ancestor. (For comparison, first cousins have an inbreeding coefficient of 0.0625, while two third cousins, such as Prince Charles of England, have an inbreeding coefficient of 0.004).
In addition to measuring how related each nobleman was, the researchers asked oral and maxillofacial surgeons to look at portraits and determine how many abnormal facial features each Habsburg had that were typical for mandibular prognathism (MP or protruding chin) and maxillary deficiency (sunken midface). Higher scores indicated a stronger occurrence of dysmorphic features.
Vilas' team found that Habsburgs with high MP scores, the "Habsburg chin", were more likely to have a high inbreeding coefficient. In fact, differences in inbreeding levels explained 22 percent of the variation in the severity of mandibular prognathism among the Habsburgs studied.
Portrait of King Charles I of Spain (also known as Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor).
Philip IV, Charles I and Charles II each displayed around five of the seven defining characteristics of the MP, more than any of his other relatives included in the study. Charles I, also known as Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, had, as the Italian diplomat Antonio di Beatis wrote in 1517, "a long, cadaverous face and a disproportionate mouth, which remains open when not careful". Although he had a relatively low inbreeding coefficient of 0.038, the genetic impact of intermarriage increased with subsequent generations.
Charles II, called "El Hechizado" or "the bewitched", with his oversized tongue, epilepsy and other ailments, had an inbreeding coefficient of 0.25, about the same as the offspring of two siblings. Charles' parents were in fact nephews and uncles, so this high value suggests that his parents also practiced considerable inbreeding. Four years before Charles's death, the English ambassador Alexander Stanhope, in a letter to the Duke of Shrewsbury, described the king's Habsburg features, writing
He has a greedy stomach and swallows everything he eats whole, because his lower jaw is so far out that the two rows of teeth cannot meet.
Based on this correlation between the level of inbreeding and MP, Vilas' team suggests that the Habsburg jaw is caused by a recessive gene. Recessive genes only manifest as a recognizable phenotype when an individual's two copies of a gene are both identical; therefore, duplicate genes passed on through inbreeding make a recessive trait statistically more likely to occur. This finding contrasts with the previous belief that a dominant gene influenced the Habsburg's distinctive appearance. Nevertheless, the scientists acknowledge that they cannot completely rule out an alternative hypothesis: The increasing frequency of the "Habsburg chin" may not have been caused by inbreeding, but by the random accumulation of genetic changes, but they consider this possibility "unlikely".
Moreover, the Habsburgs' ugly facial features were not the only negative side effect of inbreeding: Geneticists at the University of Santiago de Compostela had previously found that inbreeding reduced the chances of Habsburg offspring surviving by up to 18 percent. They attributed the "extinction of the dynasty" to two rare, recessive disorders that Charles II may have had, possibly the result of inbreeding. Inbreeding had helped the Habsburgs rise to power, but the resulting tangled family tree eventually led to their fall from the throne.
The Habsburgs once controlled almost all of Europe. For example, Charles V was the Holy Roman Emperor, King Spain and Germany, Lord of The Netherlands, Archduke of Austria and Duke of Burgundy. The Habsburgs also managed to marry their way into almost every country in Europe. Elisabeth of Austria, Anne of Austria, Maria Theresa of Spain and Marie Antoinette were all Habsburg Queens of France. Isabella of Austria ruled Denmark, Norway and Sweden during her husband’s absence. Through the marriage between the Spanish King, Charles V, and the Portuguese Infanta, Isabella of Portugal, facilitated t
The Habsburgs once controlled almost all of Europe. For example, Charles V was the Holy Roman Emperor, King Spain and Germany, Lord of The Netherlands, Archduke of Austria and Duke of Burgundy. The Habsburgs also managed to marry their way into almost every country in Europe. Elisabeth of Austria, Anne of Austria, Maria Theresa of Spain and Marie Antoinette were all Habsburg Queens of France. Isabella of Austria ruled Denmark, Norway and Sweden during her husband’s absence. Through the marriage between the Spanish King, Charles V, and the Portuguese Infanta, Isabella of Portugal, facilitated the acquisition of Portugal by the Habsburg King, Philip II of Spain. The reason the Habsburgs managed to social climb from Swiss counts to Austrian emperors was by marrying powerful heiresses. Albert von Habsburg married Elisabeth of Luxembourg, Queen of Bohemia and Hungary. Maximilian von Habsburg married Mary The Rich, Duchess of Burgundy. Philip von Habsburg married Joanna of Trastámara, Queen of Castile and Aragon. Through these advantageous marriages, the Habsburg Empire stretched all the way from Spain in the south to The Netherlands in the north to Austria in the west and Transylvania in the east. There have also been Habsburg royal consorts upon the thrones of England and Ireland, Denmark and Norway, Sweden, France, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Bavaria, Saxony, Savoy, Bohemia and Hungary and Poland and Lithuania.
European monarch were always marrying their cousins with the result that there was a serious inbreeding problem, especially among the Hapsburgs. Charles II of Spain had a jaw that was so deformed, as the result of inbreeding, that he had trouble talking and eating. The result of the marriage of cousin, Don Carlos had serious mental health issues. Queen Victoria married her first cousin. Her grandaughter Victoria Melita married her first cousin. Irene of Hesse also married her first cousin. George III married his first cousin Caroline of Brunswick. Richard III married his second cousin. Mary I
European monarch were always marrying their cousins with the result that there was a serious inbreeding problem, especially among the Hapsburgs. Charles II of Spain had a jaw that was so deformed, as the result of inbreeding, that he had trouble talking and eating. The result of the marriage of cousin, Don Carlos had serious mental health issues. Queen Victoria married her first cousin. Her grandaughter Victoria Melita married her first cousin. Irene of Hesse also married her first cousin. George III married his first cousin Caroline of Brunswick. Richard III married his second cousin. Mary I married a distant cousin.
Usually, if the pope was asked for a dispensation he granted it. He didn’t care and it wasn’t his job to be concerned about the health of the offspring, he probably never gave it a thought and if he did he would have been told to mind his own business. It was much more important for him to keep well in with the Hapsburgs, who were major supporters of the papacy, and who demanded to keep their blood line pure. His only concern was to give the required consent and get the fee. It was also important to keep thrones in the hands of people who would be supporters of the papacy and avoid wars and su
Usually, if the pope was asked for a dispensation he granted it. He didn’t care and it wasn’t his job to be concerned about the health of the offspring, he probably never gave it a thought and if he did he would have been told to mind his own business. It was much more important for him to keep well in with the Hapsburgs, who were major supporters of the papacy, and who demanded to keep their blood line pure. His only concern was to give the required consent and get the fee. It was also important to keep thrones in the hands of people who would be supporters of the papacy and avoid wars and succession crises. Only had there been a possibility of a major conflict with another important ruler would he have thought twice - as with Henry VIII’s annulment from Katherine of Aragon, where he was torn between displeasing two important rulers and decided that at least for the papacy, Henry was less important than the Hapsburg Emperor, Henry was far away and pretty powerless for him, compared with the Emperor Charles, who had held the pope captive before and could easily do so again.
Inbreeding doesn’t necessarily mean that someone definitely will suffer from genetic and health problems, but it does make it more likely than they will. The deformed and disabled Carlos II of Spain’s sister and half-sister, Margarita Teresa, Holy Roman Empress and María Teresa, Queen consort of France, were as inbred as he was, yet neither of them were physically or mentally disabled.
That being said, it can be observed that both Margarita Teresa and María Teresa had trouble giving birth to healthy children. Margarita had four children and María had six, but only one of each of their children
Inbreeding doesn’t necessarily mean that someone definitely will suffer from genetic and health problems, but it does make it more likely than they will. The deformed and disabled Carlos II of Spain’s sister and half-sister, Margarita Teresa, Holy Roman Empress and María Teresa, Queen consort of France, were as inbred as he was, yet neither of them were physically or mentally disabled.
That being said, it can be observed that both Margarita Teresa and María Teresa had trouble giving birth to healthy children. Margarita had four children and María had six, but only one of each of their children lived until adulthood. That the problem lay with them seems likely because their husbands, Leopold of Austria, and Louis XIV of France fathered countless children who survived with other women.
Leopold’s marriage to Eleonore Magdalene of Neuburg, who was not as closely related to him as his first two wives have been, can be viewed as something that saved the male Austrian Habsburgs, because it was one the verge of extinction. Leopold’s sons both failed to produce male heirs, but his line lived on because of his extremely fertile granddaughter, Maria Theresa of Austria, who gave birth to seventeen children.
It’s always the same old story… or at least it WAS. For a long time, a king, queen, prince or princess could only marry another person of royal blood… even marrying one of noble blood wasn’t good enough. If you married a Duke or Duchess, it better be an imperial “Elector” or the ruler of their own duchy.
As hard as this is to believe now, when Charles picked Diana, some royal observers noted that she was a “commoner” because she was not of royal blood — she was “only” the daughter of an Earl! So she was the “People’s Princess.”
As for Edward VIII marrying Mrs. Simpson, a commoner and an American
It’s always the same old story… or at least it WAS. For a long time, a king, queen, prince or princess could only marry another person of royal blood… even marrying one of noble blood wasn’t good enough. If you married a Duke or Duchess, it better be an imperial “Elector” or the ruler of their own duchy.
As hard as this is to believe now, when Charles picked Diana, some royal observers noted that she was a “commoner” because she was not of royal blood — she was “only” the daughter of an Earl! So she was the “People’s Princess.”
As for Edward VIII marrying Mrs. Simpson, a commoner and an American? Forgetaboutit! (Yes, she was also a divorcee, but now that’s no longer a barrier.)
So, faced with the fact that there were very, very few candidates for marriage…. limited mostly to foreign princes and princesses… it’s not surprising that the major royal families of Europe got very inbred after a while.
The Hapsburgs, no…too Catholic…they would have refused to renounce their faith for Russian Orthodoxy.
The House of Saxe-Cobourg, yes…indirectly…Queen Victoria of the UK was married to Albert of Saxe-Cobourg in 1840…their granddaughter, Alix of Hess-Darmstadt (by their second daughter, Princess Alice), married Tsar Nicholas II Russia in 1894 and became Alexandra Feodorovna.
The younger of Victoria’s and Albert’s son, Prince Alfred, married Maria Alexandrovna Romanov, one of the daughters of Tsar Alexander II of Russia, in 1874. Alexander was a Romanov too.
Finally, again indirectly, Victoria’s and
The Hapsburgs, no…too Catholic…they would have refused to renounce their faith for Russian Orthodoxy.
The House of Saxe-Cobourg, yes…indirectly…Queen Victoria of the UK was married to Albert of Saxe-Cobourg in 1840…their granddaughter, Alix of Hess-Darmstadt (by their second daughter, Princess Alice), married Tsar Nicholas II Russia in 1894 and became Alexandra Feodorovna.
The younger of Victoria’s and Albert’s son, Prince Alfred, married Maria Alexandrovna Romanov, one of the daughters of Tsar Alexander II of Russia, in 1874. Alexander was a Romanov too.
Finally, again indirectly, Victoria’s and Albert’s heir, Bertie (the future King Edward VII), was married to Alix of Denmark whose younger sister, Dagmar, married the future Tsar Alexander III, in 1866…Alexander being a member of the Romanov family.
It should be pointed out Alix of Hess-Darmstadt and Dagmar converted to Russian Orthodoxy when they married.
So yes, there were marriages, happy ones although some of them ended in tragedy such as Alexandra’s when the Bolsheviks killed her and her family.
Elizabeth (Sissi) was convinced Stephanie of Belgium was unfit to marry to a Habsburg since the Belgian monachy was a very junior one, and Stephanie was only 3rd generation royalty. Form the perspective of mighty Habsburgs this made her almost a peasant :)
But her word seemed to have little worth, her son was determined and her husband Franz Joseph approved of the marriage. It was also a matter of political need. Rudolph had already refused to marry princesses of Saxony, Portugal and Spain, so they were actually running out on available catholic princesses.
In a way this was karma. Sissi was
Elizabeth (Sissi) was convinced Stephanie of Belgium was unfit to marry to a Habsburg since the Belgian monachy was a very junior one, and Stephanie was only 3rd generation royalty. Form the perspective of mighty Habsburgs this made her almost a peasant :)
But her word seemed to have little worth, her son was determined and her husband Franz Joseph approved of the marriage. It was also a matter of political need. Rudolph had already refused to marry princesses of Saxony, Portugal and Spain, so they were actually running out on available catholic princesses.
In a way this was karma. Sissi was an equal disappointment to her oen mother in law and would never have been Empress if Franz Joseph listend to his mother.
The Plantagenets did not so much strategize their way to the Angevin Empire as to stumble into it. King Henry I of England married his daughter Matilda to the German Emperor Henry V. When she became a widow untimely, he married her next to Geoffrey Plantagenet, the Count of Anjou. Their son was Henry Fitzempress.
When Eleanor of Aquitaine found herself the unexpected divorcee of King Louis VII of France, she called out to Henry Fitzempress to come get her lest she be abducted by a fortune hunter. Their marriage led to their later becoming the King and Queen of England, Duke and Duchess of Aquit
The Plantagenets did not so much strategize their way to the Angevin Empire as to stumble into it. King Henry I of England married his daughter Matilda to the German Emperor Henry V. When she became a widow untimely, he married her next to Geoffrey Plantagenet, the Count of Anjou. Their son was Henry Fitzempress.
When Eleanor of Aquitaine found herself the unexpected divorcee of King Louis VII of France, she called out to Henry Fitzempress to come get her lest she be abducted by a fortune hunter. Their marriage led to their later becoming the King and Queen of England, Duke and Duchess of Aquitaine, Brittany, and Normandy, and Count and Countess of Anjou.
So the Plantagenets benefited from several other persons strategically dying.
Actually, the Habsburgs were more known for marrying each other(see Carlos II “The Unfortunate” and his family tree with, if I remember correctly, eight great-great grandparents, one of whom was also a grandparent) But the major reason was that the Habsburgs were Catholic and the Saxe-Coburg-Gothas were Protestant.
“Yes, there were marriages between the Romanov family and both the House of Habsburg and the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha:
- “Romanov-HabsburgGrand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia married Archduke Joseph of Austria, Palatine of Hungary. She was the daughter of Emperor Paul I of Russia and the sister of Emperors Alexander I and Nicholas I.
- “Romanov-Saxe-Coburg and GothaGrand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia married Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. She was the only Romanov to marry into the British royal family.
“Yes, there were marriages between the Romanov family and both the House of Habsburg and the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha:
- “Romanov-HabsburgGrand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia married Archduke Joseph of Austria, Palatine of Hungary. She was the daughter of Emperor Paul I of Russia and the sister of Emperors Alexander I and Nicholas I.
- “Romanov-Saxe-Coburg and GothaGrand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia married Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. She was the only Romanov to marry into the British royal family.
- “Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Romanov Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha married into the Romanov family as the consort to the Head of the House of Romanov.
“The Romanov Saxe-Coburg and Gotha families met on the Isle of Wight in 1909 and in Germany in 1913. In 1917, British King George V changed the name of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to "the ‘House of Windsor’. “
I will state at the outset that I am not a geneticist, though I’ve read a good bit on the subject. I think that, though inbreeding can have disastrous consequences, as in the case of Carlos II of Spain, this is more often the exception rather than the rule. As evidence I will point out that Carlos’ full sister Margarita Teresa was intellectually and physically normal (though she appears to have inherited the Habsburg jaw). Also Alfonso XII of of the Spanish Bourbons was fully as inbred as Carlos II, and yet showed no congenital defects.
The marriage strategies of the Plantagenets and the Habsburgs, though differing in context and outcome, were both pivotal in shaping their respective dynasties’ fortunes. The Plantagenets, ruling England from the 12th to the 15th centuries, primarily employed marriage as a means to consolidate territorial holdings and secure alliances within the British Isles and France. Through unions such as Eleanor of Aquitaine’s marriage to Henry II, they acquired vast continental territories, laying the foundation for the Angevin Empire. Similarly, later Plantagenet marriages sought to strengthen claims t
The marriage strategies of the Plantagenets and the Habsburgs, though differing in context and outcome, were both pivotal in shaping their respective dynasties’ fortunes. The Plantagenets, ruling England from the 12th to the 15th centuries, primarily employed marriage as a means to consolidate territorial holdings and secure alliances within the British Isles and France. Through unions such as Eleanor of Aquitaine’s marriage to Henry II, they acquired vast continental territories, laying the foundation for the Angevin Empire. Similarly, later Plantagenet marriages sought to strengthen claims to French lands or maintain domestic stability, as seen in the matrimonial alliances that intertwined their fortunes with the houses of Lancaster and York.
The Habsburgs, by contrast, elevated marital diplomacy to a cornerstone of their imperial strategy, encapsulated in the adage, “Bella gerant alii, tu felix Austria, nube” (“Let others wage war; you, fortunate Austria, marry”). From the late Middle Ages into the Early Modern period, they pursued marriages that expanded their dominions across Europe without the need for conquest. Notable examples include Maximilian I’s union with Mary of Burgundy, which brought the wealthy Burgundian territories under Habsburg control, and subsequent alliances that secured Spain, the Netherlands, and vast portions of Central Europe.
While the Plantagenets often sought immediate military or territorial advantages, the Habsburgs focused on creating a vast, interconnected empire through patient and calculated matrimonial diplomacy. Both dynasties, however, relied on marriage as an essential tool to enhance their power and influence, though the Habsburgs’ approach proved more enduring and far-reaching.
The same reason why the sultans generally did not marry nobles or princesses, and made their children with the concubines. Or why they fostered and raised the devshirme boys as high ranking officials, instead of selecting from noble families:
Preventing a noble class to gain power, nepotism, rivalry and corruption.
That was why there were no inherited Lordships in the Ottoman politics, and people had to rise to power depending on their own potentials, success and loyalty. Because there was no one to back them up.
This, in a way, resulted in meritocracy, instead of aristocracy, which was more prev
The same reason why the sultans generally did not marry nobles or princesses, and made their children with the concubines. Or why they fostered and raised the devshirme boys as high ranking officials, instead of selecting from noble families:
Preventing a noble class to gain power, nepotism, rivalry and corruption.
That was why there were no inherited Lordships in the Ottoman politics, and people had to rise to power depending on their own potentials, success and loyalty. Because there was no one to back them up.
This, in a way, resulted in meritocracy, instead of aristocracy, which was more prevalent in Europe.
Primogeniture rules. These meant that the whole estate and titles of a dying lord passed to the eldest son. The intention was to stop the land based fortunes of the rich being broken down into smaller and smaller parts through inheritance by multiple children.
I mean to be honest, I can’t really think of a reason other than the fact that both the House of Habsburg’s power was waning by the 19th Century, which was around the time when the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was gaining power through advantageous marriages to powerful European heiresses such as Queen Victoria of The United Kingdom and Queen Maria II of Portugal.
The bridegroom would have had to be a Muslim, because a Muslim woman can only marry a Muslim man. And then her husband and her children might well have formed a challenge to the throne and at least a potential focus for rebellion. Safer to keep them away from any possibility of that. Also they may well have taken the view that no one was high enough in rank to be worthy of them - the ancient Egyptians also never married their Princesses outside Egypt, for similar reasons.
The Ptolemies married their siblings in multiple generations. This makes the Habsburg cousin marriages plus a couple of Uncle / Niece marriages look relatively sane. Charles II of Spain is often presented as an example of the horrors of inbreeding, but it's unclear how much his poor health was a result of recessive genetic disorders.
In my opinion they were equal. Towards the end 1916 Kaiser Franz Joseph Habsburg died of old age and grieve of the death of his wife and son.He sealed with his brother going to Serbia and he and wife murdered. The Austrian-Hungarian Empire was huge “Greater Austria-Hungarian Empire “. A complicated Empire. Kaiser Wilhelm 2 was excellent Kaiser but loved to argue.
I would say the Hohenzollerns just by virtue of winning the Austro-Prussian War.
I am sure they are one and the same .. only a miss spelling , Hagsburg were better known as the House of Austria and ruled a good part of Europe for the best part of six centuries from about 1200 to the 1900 .. Some of their relations was Charles the 1st and Charles the 4th. and i am sure one was a king of Spain .. i hope this is of help to you ..
Well, the Hapsburg’s had the most noticeable effects of what inbreeding can do but the Ptolemies were probably more prolific in their incestuous behaviour.
If memory serves me well, and I will stand to be corrected if I’m wrong, very handicapped babies at that time would often be taken to the hills and left to die. And that probably included those of the Royal Family