272 Items Tagged

Royalty

Taken in 1917 at Tsarskoye Selo, outside St. Petersburg, this is the only known color photo of the original Amber Room.

The Enduring Mystery of the Amber Room, Coveted by Tsars, Nazis, and Treasure Hunters

Crafted from amber and gold, it enthralled all who saw it. Then, near the end of World War II, it disappeared.

Stefan Bachmann and April Genevieve Tucholke February 14, 2024

Royal Palace of Madrid Statues

After the queen of Spain had a dream where these statues fell and crushed her, they were removed from the palace and given new homes around Madrid.

Park rangers at Culloden Battlefield have deployed some unusual lawnmowers, such as this Highland cow.

How Highland Cows Are Restoring Culloden Battlefield’s Historic Bog

Heritage breed cattle make quick work of the battlefield’s invasive plant species.

Kinsey Gidick January 4, 2024

Two stone tombs on a raised stone platform

New Delhi, India

Razia Sultan Tomb

Delhi's only female ruler is buried in this neglected, forgotten tomb.

Church View, Barbados

Gravesite of Ferdinand Paleologus

One of the last members of the Byzantine Empire's last ruling dynasty is buried in the far-off soil of Barbados.

A stone tower with brown pointed roof surveys a mountainous valley

Vaduz, Liechtenstein

Schloss Vaduz

Liechtenstein's royal family calls this medieval alpine castle home.

Houyet, Belgium

Halte Royal d'Ardenne

The private train station King Leopold II built for the Belgian royal family now lies abandoned.

Seoul, South Korea

Hwangudan

The site where the Emperor of Korea performed the long-forbidden "rite of heaven" to demonstrate his absolute sovereignty.

Budapest, Hungary

Empress Sissi Statue

This memorial to a murdered empress took 20 years to design, then spent 30 years hidden away in storage.

The Rise and Fall of the Mormon King of Beaver Island

Rumors of piracy, polygamy, and betrayal shape the tumultuous history of King James Jesse Strang.

Roxanne Hoorn August 28, 2023

Podcast: Pā‘ula‘ula / Russian Fort Elizabeth

What do Russians have to do with this Indigenous Hawaiian fort?

The Podcast Team August 7, 2023

The Bore Stone

Edinburgh, Scotland

The Bore Stane

This ordinary-looking rock may have played an important role in a 16th-century Scottish battle.

Guy Fawkes is the most notorious member of England’s 1605 Gunpowder Plot, a Catholic conspiracy to blow up Westminster Palace and assassinate Protestant King James I.

How a Threadbare 'Bag of Secrets' Led to Guy Fawkes's Gruesome Execution

The documents that convicted the infamous traitor were all kept in this unassuming leather pouch.

Kavitha Rao May 19, 2023

Coronation quiche was served at an event at Westminster Abbey in April.

Eat Like a King With the Official Coronation Quiche

Can Charles III's recipe live up to his mother's curried chicken?

Chloe Faure May 4, 2023

The Gloucester Cathedral–shaped lamprey pie for Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.

5 of Our Favorite Odd Traditions of English Royalty

From a coronation pie made of lampreys to someone to chat with you in the loo.

April White April 26, 2023

<em>The Vizier's Gambit</em> just doesn't have the same ring to it.

How Did the Chess Pieces Get Their Names?

One player’s pawn is another’s farmer. And at one time, the queen was the virgin, and rather powerless.

Frank Jacobs, Big Think April 21, 2023

A commemorative head, part of the so-called Benin Bronzes, which were looted from the royal palace in Benin City in 1897. The image was taken in December 2022 in Nigeria's capital, Abuja, when the piece and several other objects were formally repatriated from Germany to their homeland.

Are the Benin Bronzes Made From German Brass—And Does It Matter?

The famous West African artworks, long at the center of repatriation debates, were made from materials sourced in Rhineland.

Gemma Tarlach April 5, 2023

The trove of spices was found in the stern of the ship by Brendan Foley and a team of archaeologists.

How Did a Medieval Spice Cabinet Survive 500 Years Underwater?

Exotic saffron, black pepper, ginger, cloves, and more offer a look into how Scandinavian royalty lived.

Line Sidonie Talla Mafotsing March 28, 2023