Darling of the Anglo-Catholics.
My favorite kind of Queen.
There's actually a statue of him, complete with a full bank of votive candles, at Grace and St. Peter's Episcopal (Anglican) Church in Baltimore, MD. No doubt, there are other shrines in The Episcopal Church to his honor and for his intercessory prayer - but I haven't seen them. That was the first time I realized just how serious some Anglo-Catholics can be.
In honor of his feast day, everyone make a fashion statement. Something in silk with TONS of brocade and up to your armpits in lace. Votive candle mandatory. Incense and rosary beads optional.
Don't know about Bonnie Prince Charlie? Here you go:
Stuart, Charles Edward, called The Young Pretender, The Young Chevalier, and Bonnie Prince Charlie (1720-88), claimant to the British throne who led the Scottish Highland army in the Forty-five Rebellion.
The son of James Francis Edward Stuart and grandson of James II of England, Charles Edward was born December 31, 1720, in Rome. In 1744, after his father had obtained the support of the French government for a projected invasion of England, Charles Edward went to France to assume command of the French expeditionary forces. Unfavorable weather and the mobilization of a powerful British fleet to oppose the invasion led to cancellation of the plan by the French government.
The Jacobite cause was still supported by many Highland clans, both Catholic and Protestant, and the Catholic Charles hoped for a warm welcome from these clans to start an insurgency by Jacobites throughout Britain, but there was no immediate response. Charles raised his father's standard at Glenfinnan and there raised a large enough force to enable him to march on the city of Edinburgh, which quickly surrendered.
On 21 September 1745 he defeated the only government army in Scotland at the Battle of Prestonpans, and by November was marching south at the head of around 6,000 men. Having taken Carlisle, Charles' army progressed as far as Derby. Here, despite the objections of the Prince, the decision was taken by his council to return to Scotland, largely because of the almost complete lack of the support from English Jacobites that Charles had promised. By now he was pursued by the King George II's son, the Duke of Cumberland, who caught up with him at the Battle of Culloden on 16 April 1746.
At Culloden his forces were utterly routed . He was hunted as a fugitive for more than five months, but the Highlanders never betrayed him, and he escaped to France in September 1746. Two years later he was expelled from that country in accordance with one of the provisions of the second Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), which stipulated that all members of the house of Stuart were to be driven from France. For a number of years Charles Edward wandered about Europe. Secretly visiting London in 1750 and in 1754, he attempted without success on both occasions to win support for his cause.
In 1766, on his father's death, Charles Edward returned to Italy, where he spent his last years. Charles died in Rome on 31 January 1788. He was first buried in the Cathedral of Frascati, where his brother Henry Benedict Stuart was bishop. At Henry's death in 1807, Charles's remains were moved to the crypt of Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican where they were laid to rest next to those of his brother and father. When the body of Charles Stuart was transferred to the Saint Peter's Basilica, his "praecordia" were left in Frascati Cathedral: a small urn encloses the heart of Charles, placed beneath the floor below the funerary monument
The shrine at GASP is, actualy for Bonnie Prince Charlie's Great Grandfather Charles I, teh White King and Martyr.
ReplyDeleteIt's also the White Kings feast day today.
We have historical confusion! Today's commemoration in the Anglican Calendar is Charles King and Martyr 1600-1649. I fear all the very interesting information on the Young Pretneder is an historical, liturgical red herring(albeit with the bluest of blood). Sorry to rain on this hagiographical parade. I am sure the Statue you refer to is of Charles the first and he is a darling of the section of the Church, being an Irishman but a priest of the Church of England I shall keep my opinions to myself.
ReplyDeleteLee
Oops! Never mind. As you were.
ReplyDeleteWell, you did tell the odd story of the Prince very well.
ReplyDeleteHis claim tot he title is now posessed by the would be king of Bavaria, the last male of the direct line having been a Cardenal and hence having no heirs.
I suspect you will find that the statue and the feast day in question refer to Prince Charles Edward's great-grandfather, Charles I (aka Charles King and Martyr) who was executed by the puritans.
ReplyDeleteGiven our present battles with puritans, I'd have thought we'd feel some kinship with the martyr-king.
BTW, the "Charlie" in "Bonnie Prince Charlie" is not a diminutive, but rather reflects the Gaelic form of the name "Charles" which is "Tearlagh."
ReplyDeleteElizabeth this feast is for Charles I Stuart who was beheaded by Oliver Cromwell
ReplyDeleteThe short version with thank to Wikipedia:
Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649)[1] was King of England, King of Scotland and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution.
Charles famously engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England. He was an advocate of the Divine Right of Kings, and many in England feared that he was attempting to gain absolute power. Many of his actions, particularly the levying of taxes without Parliament's consent, caused widespread opposition.
Religious conflicts permeated Charles's reign. He married a Catholic princess, Henrietta Maria of France, over the objections of Parliament and public opinion. He further allied himself with controversial religious figures, including the ecclesiastic Richard Montagu and William Laud, whom Charles appointed Archbishop of Canterbury. Many of Charles's subjects felt this brought the Church of England too close to Roman Catholicism.[2] Charles's later attempts to force religious reforms upon Scotland led to the Bishops' Wars that weakened England's government and helped precipitate his downfall.
His last years were marked by the English Civil War, in which he was opposed by the forces of Parliament, which challenged his attempts to augment his own power, and by Puritans, who were hostile to his religious policies and Catholic sympathy. Charles was defeated in the first Civil War (1642 - 1645), after which Parliament expected him to accept demands for a constitutional monarchy. He instead remained defiant by attempting to forge an alliance with Scotland and escaping to the Isle of Wight. This provoked a second Civil War (1648 - 1649) and a second defeat for Charles, who was subsequently captured, tried, convicted, and executed for high treason. The monarchy was then abolished and a republic called the Commonwealth of England was declared. Charles's son, Charles II, became King after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660.
[1] Notice the date of death.
[2] The C of E wasnt ready for this for this till the Tractarians about 200 years later.
He looks gay.
ReplyDelete