OTD February 13th. 1457 Mary of Burgundy

February 13th. 1457 marks the birth of Mary of Burgundy. This took place
at the Coudenberg Palace in Brussels (now capital of Belgium).



Family

Mary of Burgundy was the only child of Charles the Bold and
Isabella of Bourbon. Her godfather was Louis, Dauphin of France.

Her grandfather, Philip the Good was not impressed by her birth because
she was a girl, Isabella of Portugal, Mary's grandmother, on the other hand
was delighted at the birth of her granddaughter.

Her baptism in 1457 had been a splendid affair. Louis XI of France, then
the dauphin, was one of her godfathers.

Most of her childhood was spent at Castle Ten Waele in Ghent, under the
care of Lady Hallewijn.

Anne of Burgundy, later the wife of lord Ravenstein, was responsible
for her education.

At Brussels, Mary liked the Warende, a deer park, near the ducal palace,
she grew up with a keen interest in animals, hunting and other outdoor
sports.

She also had a taste for music, chess and art.

Reign

Mary started reigning on January 5th. 1477, with the death of her father.

Love & Marriage

Mary was an attractive wedding candidate to any prince looking
for a wife and hoping for territorial advancement.

These were some of the possible wedding candidates of
Mary of Burgundy:

Ferdinand of Aragon;
Nicholas of Lorraine;
George, Duke of Clarence;
Duke Francis II of Brittany;
the Dauphin Charles;
Charles, Duke of Berry (brother of King Louis XI of France);
Philibert of Savoy;
Nicholas of Anjou;
Archduke Maximilian of Austria.

In 1472, Mary wrote to Nicholas of Lorraine that she would have
no other husband but him. He died in July of the following year.

However on August 16th. 1477 she married in Ghent, to
Archduke Maximilian of Austria,
who became later Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor.
They would have 3 children. The youngest child, who was called
Francis, died only a few months after his birth.



Death & Burial

On March 27th. 1482 Mary of Burgundy died from a fall of her horse at
Wijnendale Castle. She was buried in the Church of or Lady in Bruges.

See also the page House of Habsburg on top of my blog or on this
link

Source pictures: Wikipedia

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