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00:00Queens wear crowns, but some royal mistresses hold the real power behind closed palestines.
00:05These women controlled kings, influenced laws, decided marriages, and even shaped women.
00:10A mistress who overruled the queen in court appointments, another
00:15who dictated foreign policies from the bedroom, and women whose influence terrified royal families
00:20more than rebellion ever did.
00:21These weren't affairs of passion, they were alliances of power.
00:25So, which royal mistresses?
00:27Ruled kingdoms from the shadows?
00:28There are twelve women who were more-
00:30powerful than the queen herself.
00:31At number twelve, we have Madame de Pompadour de France, the Antoinette.
00:35Paulson Marquise de Pompadour rose from bourgeois roots to become King Louis XV.
00:40The Antoinette's official Petra Santilla.
00:42More than a royal favorite, she became his close confidant and advised her.
00:45Introduced at Versailles' wall by a wealthy patron, she quickly captivated the king into
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01:46...
01:48taking
01:50Louis XV's reign by eclipsing even the Queen.
01:51For number 11, we have Lady Elizabeth Cunningham of the
01:5318th.
01:54Written.
01:55was the last chief mistress of King George IX, a well-connected Irish noble.
02:00He began to captivate the prime region around 1819 and cement her hold, when he began
02:05King in 1820, known in different obligatory names among commentators.
02:10He quickly supplanted the Marchionettes of Hertford as George's confidant, notably King George
02:15was estranged from Queen Caroline.
02:17During the infamous 1820 horse trial, Caroline was
02:20banned from Corinth, and George could openly entertain Cunningham instead.
02:24He reportedly grew.
02:25He was sodded with Elizabeth, according to contemporaries, giving her priceless jewelry and estates.
02:30When his coronation took place July 1821, without Caroline, George was frequently
02:35seen nodding and smiling at Lady Cunningham.
02:37Her influence was both personal and political.
02:40As the King's confidant, she interceded in patronage.
02:43For example, the Duke of Wellington noted she
02:45maneuvered to obtain favors and positions for her relatives.
02:48Cunningham was nicknamed Vice Queen.
02:50for wielding the King's ear at Arlton House.
02:52Key episodes include her role in the Tangled
02:55Royal Marriage Saga.
02:56George relied on her counsel when pressing Parliament to dissolve his marriage.
03:00with Caroline.
03:01She escorted him on travels and isolated him from unfriendly relatives, though
03:05Queen Caroline was technically on the throne Cunningham's presence to find the 1820
03:101830 court.
03:11Next, we have Arkady Clara of Belgium.
03:13Arkady was the long term.
03:15the mistress of King Leopold I of the Belgiums.
03:17Of English-Spanish descent, she became Leopold's
03:20lover in the early 1840s and remained so until his death in 1865.
03:24Because Queen
03:25Louise of Orleans died in 1850, Arkady effectively served as the King's constant female.
03:30companion during his widowhood.
03:31Leopold even arranged a clandestine marriage for her to ascend
03:35the stable master and acknowledged their two illegitimate sons as his own.
03:39Her very presence
03:40was a scandal
03:41in the salons.
03:42openly discussed the King's mistress
03:44with the Queen gone
03:45Arkady.
03:46Tended court events.
03:47Leopold built her a lavish townhouse, and though she held
03:50no formal power, she influenced the King's domestic affairs.
03:53He showered her with estates.
03:55and included positions for relatives.
03:56For example, Arkady's son was ennobled and created
04:00a Belgian count after her death.
04:02In essence, Arkady rose to the station of de facto
04:05the first lady of Belgium.
04:06During critical moments, she often took precedence
04:08over distant relatives.
04:09Her influence
04:10was
04:10personal
04:11rather than
04:12policy-driven.
04:13She maintained Leopold's favor
04:14and bore him
04:15heirs whom
04:15provided
04:16According to Belgian historians, Arkady's story
04:18reflected the King's devotion.
04:19She was
04:20part of his inner circle, supervising his household
04:22and playing hostess
04:23where the Queen could not.
04:24Coming up, a Romanian
04:25mistress
04:26who ruled
04:27beside a king
04:28Italian favorite
04:29who became a secret queen
04:30and a Russian woman
04:30whose intimacy
04:31shaped an empire.
04:32At number 9, we have
04:33Elena Magna
04:34Lupesco
04:35in Romania.
04:36Elena Lupesco
04:37was the mistress
04:38and later Morgan Maddock
04:39wife of King Karl II
04:40of Romania.
04:40A Romanian aristocrat
04:41by birth,
04:42Lupesco met Karl
04:43in 1924
04:44when he was
04:45the crown prince.
04:46By the early 1930's
04:47she had become
04:48his intimate companion
04:49and her influence
04:50on
04:50Romanian politics
04:51grew steadily.
04:52King Karl was estranged
04:53from Queen Helen
04:54under Lupesco
04:55influence
04:56he's systemically
04:57replaced ministers
04:58with her favorites
04:59and indulged
05:00in
05:00corruption.
05:01After Karl
05:02reclaimed the throne
05:03in 1930,
05:04Lupesco effectively
05:05became queen
05:06in all but now.
05:05the name.
05:06Historians describe
05:07Karl and Lupesco
05:08as, quote,
05:09the power couple
05:10who manipulated
05:10the Romanian state.
05:11Lupesco accompanied
05:12Karl on foreign trips
05:13and sat beside him
05:14at court.
05:15his own
05:16perceptions
05:17pushing for his
05:18authoritarian policies.
05:19Crucially,
05:20she was blamed
05:21by the
05:20far-right for encouraging
05:21Karl's unpopular alliances.
05:23Contemporary critics
05:24even labeled
05:25her the ruler
05:26of Romania
05:27accusing her
05:28of profiting
05:29from royal
05:30bribes
05:31and engineering.
05:30government dismissals.
05:31Despite never
05:32holding office,
05:33Lupesco's informal power
05:34was palpable.
05:35According to one account,
05:36she was the power
05:37behind the throne
05:38as Karl sought
05:39her counsel
05:40under the throne.
05:40in foreign policy
05:41and leadership changes.
05:42Key moments include
05:431938 establishment
05:44of a royal
05:45dictatorship.
05:46Karl abolished
05:47political parties
05:48and suspended
05:49the constitution
05:50at Lupesco's insistence.
05:50with her
05:51often sitting
05:52in unroyal
05:53cabinet meetings.
05:54Next, we have Rosa
05:55Vercellana of Italy.
05:56Rosa Vercellana,
05:57known affectionately as
05:58La Bella Rosa,
05:59was the long-time
06:00mistress and later
06:01the wife of King Victor
06:02Emmanuel II
06:03of Sardinia.
06:04Orphaned young,
06:05Rosa Vercellana,
06:05met Crown Prince Victorio
06:06at age 14
06:07and soon attracted
06:08his ardor.
06:09He installed her
06:10at court as his
06:10companion,
06:11even though the queen
06:12remained in the king's bed.
06:13Over two decades,
06:14Rosa became inseparable
06:15from Vittorio.
06:16After Queen Maria's death
06:17in 1855,
06:18Rosa's influence only grew
06:20in 1869.
06:21Victor Emmanuel married her
06:22in a secret ceremony
06:24and in 18...
06:251977,
06:26by public morgomatic
06:27nuptial rights.
06:28He conferred on her
06:29the title of
06:30Countess Mirafiori
06:31and Fontana Freda
06:33and legitimized
06:34her two sons.
06:35Rosa's influence
06:36was unique,
06:37though without official rank,
06:38she shaped the king's
06:39personal and private life.
06:40She managed the royal household
06:41and patronized charities.
06:42Politically,
06:43however,
06:44Rosa's role was...
06:45avoided.
06:46She avoided overt
06:47involvement in state matters
06:48and the king's ministries
06:49publicly downplayed her.
06:50significance.
06:51Nonetheless,
06:52as his wife and mother
06:53of his children,
06:54Rosa effectively outranked
06:55any queen.
06:55and filled the role
06:56similar to a queen consort.
06:57Key episodes reflecting
06:58her status include
06:59the constitution...
07:00the constitutional crisis
07:01in 1860
07:02when Victoria Emanuel
07:03had to delay
07:04his marriage ceremony
07:05to...
07:05Rosa to avoid
07:06domestic backlash.
07:07Her very presence
07:08symbolized the kingdom's
07:09modernity.
07:10challenging traditional norms.
07:12At number seven,
07:13we have Kathryn Dolkharaki
07:14of Russia.
07:15Ekaterina Mikhailovna,
07:16the rookie,
07:17was the secret mistress
07:18of Tsar Alexander II.
07:20of Russia.
07:21The daughter of a general,
07:22she caught the Tsar's eye
07:23in the 1960s
07:24as his empress...
07:25Maria,
07:26became increasingly distant.
07:27By the early 1870s,
07:28Catherine was
07:29Alexander's...
07:30elephant.
07:31She accompanied him
07:32on travels,
07:33entertained his guests,
07:34and even saved his life
07:35during an 1860s...
07:35assassination attempt.
07:36In 1880,
07:37Alexander promised
07:38to marry her,
07:39and after...
07:40Bruce Marie's death,
07:41he married Catherine
07:42more dramatically
07:43in 1880,
07:44declaring her...
07:45Princess Yuriev Scalia.
07:46During her decade-long affair,
07:48Catherine exercised subtle influence
07:50and contemporaries,
07:51accused her of pushing
07:52Alexander towards liberal reforms,
07:54for example.
07:55encouraging him
07:56to end serfdom
07:57and abolish corporal punishment.
07:58Some claim she even advocated for...
08:00more radical policies,
08:01or at least sympathize
08:02with modernizing ministers.
08:03Others suggest Catherine...
08:05simply enjoyed Alexander's trust.
08:06The empress wrote
08:07that the emperor
08:08was...
08:09entirely empowered...
08:10the power of this girl,
08:11whom he treated
08:12like a second wife.
08:13Alexander indeed
08:14made Catherine the patron...
08:15of charity,
08:16and gave her lavish jewels,
08:17but also,
08:18he insulated her
08:19from government...
08:20a scandal.
08:21Key moments include
08:22Alexander's final years.
08:23He often spent evenings
08:24discussing state affairs
08:25with...
08:25Catherine instead of officials,
08:26including influencing
08:27the Laura Mellikov constitution.
08:29Ironically,
08:30Catherine...
08:30Catherine's influence ended
08:31with the Azar's assassination
08:32in 1881,
08:33and she was widowed almost...
08:35immediately.
08:36Still ahead,
08:37a dancer who toppled
08:38a Bavarian king,
08:39a Polish noblewoman who...
08:40influenced Napoleon's map of Europe,
08:42and a Prussian mistress
08:43who governed like a queen.
08:44Next...
08:45we have Lola Montez of Bavaria.
08:47Eliza Rossana Gilbert,
08:48known as Lola Montez...
08:50was an Irish-American dancer
08:52who became King Ludwig I
08:53of the Bavaria's
08:54most dramatic...
08:55mistress.
08:56Arriving in Munich in 1846,
08:57she quickly enthralled
08:58the 53-year-old king...
09:00with her exotic beauty and wit.
09:01Ludwig lavished her
09:02with the title Countess of Lansfield,
09:04an unparalleled...
09:05assassinated...
09:06privileges.
09:07She banned Catholic clergy.
09:08She disliked and demanded Ludwig's...
09:10support for her liberal causes.
09:11During the turbulent revolutions of 1848,
09:14Lola's...
09:15influence reached its zenith.
09:16She held courtly sway over Ludwig,
09:18persuading him to fight...
09:20hire his conservative minister,
09:21and even closed the University of Munich,
09:23because students mocked her...
09:25Bavarian newspapers rallied against Lola's regime,
09:28blaming her for the king's erratic...
09:30governance.
09:31In fact, for over a year,
09:32Lola effectively ran the kingdom's social scene,
09:34welcoming foreign...
09:35liberals and authors to Munich Salons.
09:37This ĂŠmigrie of tyrannies also propelled Bavarian...
09:40anti-clerical policies.
09:41She openly championed liberalism and attacked Jesuits,
09:44provoking...
09:45outrage in Catholic barriers...
09:46or direct intervention in state affairs...
09:48unheard of for a mistress.
09:50led to street demonstrations.
09:52In March 1848, amid rising unrest...
09:55Ludwig abdicated in favor of his son,
09:57famously citing Lola's influence as a factor.
09:59Though her reign...
10:00was brief.
10:01It was a visceral example of a royal mistress...
10:03overriding a queen consort...
10:05as Queen 3 thought...
10:06a placid queen...
10:07was sidelined.
10:08And at number 5, we have Countess Maria Walusco...
10:10was a Polish noblewoman...
10:13who became Emperor Napoleon I...
10:15mistress at the height of his power...
10:17a passionate patriot.
10:18Maria accepted Napoleon's advances in 1880...
10:20partly to influence him on behalf of Poland.
10:23She soon bore him a son, Alexander...
10:25when Maria used her position to lobby Napoleon...
10:27most notably...
10:28she pressed him to establish a Polish...
10:30Dutchie...
10:31a neutral Polish state...
10:32during his reorganization of Europe.
10:33Several sources credit her...
10:35were with helping to persuade Napoleon...
10:37to create the Duchy of Warsaw in 1807...
10:40restoring...
10:40Polish hopes after the country's partitions...
10:43in effect as Napoleon's intimate...
10:45she became an informal diplomat...
10:47for Polish interest.
10:48Beyond politics...
10:49Maria was a...
10:50cultural muse...
10:51she managed Napoleon's country estates...
10:53when he was away...
10:54and he entrusted her...
10:55with his letters...
10:56in confidential documents.
10:57One contemporary said...
10:58she sought to influence...
11:00his eastern policy...
11:01and help move him to create...
11:02the Duchy of Warsaw...
11:03after Napoleon divorced...
11:04Josephine and...
11:05married Marie-Louise...
11:06Maria...
11:07quietly resigned her role...
11:08and eventually...
11:09married a Polish...
11:10Count in 1816.
11:11Key moments include...
11:12her recurring meetings...
11:13with Napoleon...
11:14at Talleyrands...
11:15her influence...
11:16was indeed real...
11:17but it was...
11:18centered on the Treaty of Telsec.
11:19Maria Woluska...
11:20his influence...
11:21was subtle...
11:22but symbolically significant.
11:23Next...
11:24we have Wilhelm L...
11:25Countess of Lichten...
11:25of Russia...
11:26Wilhelmina Enki...
11:27later Countess von Lichtenau...
11:29was the official...
11:30mistress...
11:31of King Frederick...
11:32William II...
11:33of Prussia...
11:34introduced...
11:35the future king...
11:35in 1867...
11:36she became his...
11:37lifelong companion...
11:38when he ascended...
11:39the throne in 1786.
11:40Frederick...
11:40William showered her...
11:41with wealth and titles...
11:42eventually creating her...
11:43Countess of Lichtenau...
11:44crucially...
11:45Wilhelmina...
11:46exercise real...
11:47political influence...
11:48she advised the king...
11:49on domestic...
11:50informed policy...
11:50and managed a court salon...
11:51frequented by ministers...
11:52and diplomats...
11:53historians agree...
11:54that she was...
11:55politically active...
11:56and influential in policy...
11:57in Russia...
11:58in practice...
11:59she functioned...
12:00much like a queen...
12:00relied on her judgment...
12:01to fill positions...
12:02negotiate with allies...
12:03and curate the court's...
12:04cultural project...
12:05for example...
12:06she directed...
12:07the interior decoration...
12:08of the marble palace...
12:09in Ponsdam...
12:10according to her...
12:10during the 10th...
12:111790s...
12:12Wilhelmina...
12:13often relayed...
12:14the king's directives...
12:15to...
12:15generals...
12:16and dignitaries...
12:17her dominance...
12:18is underscored...
12:19by the fact that...
12:20Queen Frederica Luisa...
12:20was sidelined...
12:21she rarely...
12:22influenced...
12:23state politics...
12:24and affairs...
12:25reports from...
12:25to circles...
12:26describe...
12:27Wilhelmina...
12:28as the true power...
12:29behind the throne...
12:30one controversial...
12:30episode...
12:31was her alleged...
12:32involvement...
12:33with reactionary...
12:34ministries...
12:35seeking to control...
12:36the king's mind...
12:37regardless...
12:38Wilhelmina...
12:39effectively...
12:40outranked...
12:41the queen consort...
12:42between 1786...
12:43and 1793...
12:43next...
12:44a Danish court consort...
12:45who broke...
12:46royal law...
12:47Versailles...
12:48most notorious...
12:48beauty...
12:49and the final favorite...
12:50who calmed...
12:51the volatile emperor...
12:52at number 3...
12:53we have...
12:54Anna Sophia...
12:53Reventlo...
12:54of Denmark...
12:55Anna Sophia...
12:56Reventlo...
12:57was a mistress...
12:58of King Frederick...
12:58the fourth...
12:59of Denmark...
13:00Frederick the fourth...
13:01had publicly...
13:02acknowledged her...
13:03as a mistress...
13:04making Charlotte...
13:05one of the...
13:06King's mistress...
13:07she wielded influence...
13:08simply by proximity...
13:09Frederick openly...
13:10favored her...
13:11over Queen...
13:11for two weeks...
13:12staging hunts...
13:13and entertainments...
13:14to please Charlotte...
13:15she bore Frederick...
13:16his own...
13:17and he lavished...
13:18upon her...
13:19grand estate...
13:20and the title...
13:21of...
13:22Countess...
13:23of Frederick's home...
13:24Charlotte...
13:25was a...
13:26King...
13:27of...
13:28King...
13:29of...
13:30King...
13:31of...
13:32King...
13:33of...
13:34King...
13:35of...
13:36King...
13:37of...
13:38King...
13:39of...
13:40King...
13:41of...
13:42King...
13:43of...
13:44King...
13:45of...
13:46King...
13:48Yeah...
13:49Yeah...
13:5015...
13:52everyone...
14:08You...
14:09Who?
14:10You...
14:11If you...
14:12I...
14:13should...
14:14beauty of humble origins she won the king's passion in the late 1760s new berry
14:19moved into the newly widowed king's apartment and quickly became his chief confidant and influence
14:24publicly active as pompadour contemporary accounts show duper a suede court affairs she
14:29signed against minister shazul revealing shazul schemes to louis and hasting is dismissed
14:34in 1770 the king thereafter allowed to bury into state councils despite her
14:39lack of official role she used her influence judiciously once charged with only caring for
14:43spectacle and
14:44fashion she nonetheless ensured that louis the 15th's decisions reflected her favorites interest
14:48politically
14:49she remained aloof but her intimate access gave her soft power ministers and nobles
14:54vied for her favor culturally she continued the opulent style of pompadour's court answering
14:59salons and the arts in some duperi for several years was the dominant woman in versailles
15:04she outranked the absent queen and even the dauphin duperi's tragedy was the king's day
15:09yeah his successor marie intranet banished her from court but during louis the 15th's final years
15:14she had wielded the sway of a queen securing offices for allies impacting high
15:19politics through the king's ears and at number one we have princess anna lupakina of russia princess
15:24lena petrovna lupakina was the secret mistress of emperor paul the first of russia and
15:291818 she caught the attention of the middle-aged emperor during court fall in 1789
15:34empress maria feodorovna initially attempted to expel anna from the court
15:39but her letter backfired and incited paul's jealousy prompting him to bring anna to saint
15:43peter
15:44berg and shower her with honors her rapid rise illustrates her influence the emperor rewarded
15:49father lorraine prince and made anna a lady of bedchamber and herself was granted the order of saint
15:54john and naval ships were named after she gathered power at court until 1801 when she pragmatically
15:59agreed to marry a friend securing protection from public scandal and his impact on the
16:04monarchy was more personal than political contemporary sources suggested her calm temperament soothed
16:09paul's volatile nature making her a quote-unquote remedy against court intrigue indeed
16:14one historian notes her influence on paul was beneficial like diverting paul's attention anna also
16:19indirectly allowed the empress more freedom for a brief period she held exceptional standing as paul's confidence
16:24she outranked noble rivals and influenced the emperor's decisions on appointments in that sense she
16:29eclipsed even empress marina on a personal level at least for a time with this we in today's video we'll be back
16:34with a new video shortly until then happy watching and do subscribe to our channel if you still haven't
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