Catherine of Braganza’s Long Road to the Crown
by Susan Abernethy
In 1662, Catherine of Braganza arrived in England to marry King Charles II, but her path to the crown was anything but smooth. The marriage, arranged under the Anglo-Portuguese Treaty of 1661, was not only a personal union but also a political alliance that redefined England’s presence on the global stage. Catherine brought with her a remarkable dowry, including Bombay and Tangier, which would have long-lasting effects on English colonial expansion. Yet, her arrival was met with hostility from a Protestant court, rumours of infertility, and fierce rivalry from the king’s many mistresses.
Despite these challenges, Catherine left a lasting legacy. She introduced tea-drinking to the English court and stood her ground through decades of religious suspicion and personal heartbreak. The article follows her from her quiet, cloistered upbringing in Portugal to her tumultuous life in Restoration England, revealing a queen whose dignity and endurance helped shape the course of British history. Readers are invited to revisit a figure often overshadowed in popular memory, yet deeply influential in the political and cultural shifts of the 17th century.
Editor’s Note: Although this event occurred in the early modern period, it is included here due to its dynastic roots in late medieval alliances and its significance in Anglo-Portuguese relations that originated in the 14th century.
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