Amalia of Cleves

Amalia of Cleves
Portrait by Hans Holbein the younger, 1539.
Born (1517-10-17)17 October 1517
Died 1 March 1586(1586-03-01) (aged 68)
Noble family La Marck
Father John III, Duke of Cleves
Mother Maria of Jülich-Berg
Religion Protestantism

Amalia of Cleves (German: Amalia von Kleve-Jülich-Berg; 17 October 1517, Düsseldorf – 1 March 1586, Düsseldorf), sometimes spelled as Amelia, was a princess from the House of Von der Mark. She was the fourth and youngest child of John III, Duke of Cleves, and his wife Maria of Jülich-Berg, born shortly after the birth of her brother William.[1]

Amalia and her siblings had a rather grand lineage. She was descended from both the kings of England and France, and was closely related to Louis XII of France and the duke of Burgundy.[1]

Early life and education

Duke William of Jülich-Cleves-Berge, engraving from Heinrich Aldegrever

All four children spent their early years together under the care of their mother, Maria, before William went to be educated as a future duke of Cleves.[1] On the other hand, Amalia and her two sisters, Sibylle and Anne, had an old-fashioned and limited education from a 16th century viewpoint, where household chores such as needlework and cooking were emphasized to equip the daughters for their roles as wives and consorts to princes, while music and playing instruments, for instance, were not taught.[1] Furthermore the small German court didn't follow the Italian fashion which was common in noble families at the time.

Possible marriage to Henry VIII

Portrait of Henry VIII by Hans Holbein the Younger, 1537–1547

King Henry VIII of England was considering a royal marriage with Cleves, so following negotiations with the duchy, Hans Holbein the Younger, Henry's court painter, was dispatched to paint Amalia and Anne, both of whom were possible candidates, for the freshly widowed king in August 1539.[2] After seeing both paintings, Henry chose Anne. It is probable that he chose Anne over her younger sister Amalia was because the latter had less favorable hereditary rights in her father's duchy.[2]

Marriage attempts

In the following years, Amalia's family attempted to secure her a marriage with as much profit as possible. There were long negotiations with the Margraviate of Baden concerning a possible strategic marriage between the two dynasties. The Margrave had two sons; first, Bernard, who had been turned out due to his immoral and raucous behavior, before being welcomed back after his sisters pleaded with the Margrave; and second, Charles, who was born in July 1529 and thus, almost twelve years younger than Amalia.[3]

William, respecting his sister, refused to marry Amalia off to someone like Bernard, whom he believed could not have heirs with Amalia due to his dissolute life. The duke also refused to force Amalia to marry Charles, who was but a child. As a result, Amalia remained unmarried.[3]

Later life

Her brother, William, on the contrary, went on to have four daughters and two sons with his wife, Maria of Austria. Amalia helped raise her nieces, who received a Lutheran education, whereas the two sons received a Catholic education. Amalia herself observed the Lutheran faith and was unwilling to allow her nieces to adhere to Catholicism. Amalia’s dedication to Lutheranism so enraged her brother that allegedly, at one point, he drew his sword and went after Amalia, before being stopped by a servant.[3]

Amalia also seems to have had a fondness for music and poetry. There is a songbook, the original of which can be found in Berlin, in which Amalia was very interested. The book was owned by a friend of Amalia's, which contains five religious songs, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and twenty-seven love songs. Amalia hand-wrote a poem into the book, about longing for a beloved.[3]

Amalia also authored a song book which is currently found in the German national library in Berlin, with copies in the public library of Frankfurt and the university library of Frankfurt.

Before her sister, Anne of Cleves, who had been living in England since her marriage to Henry VIII and continued to reside there after the annulment, died of cancer, Anne bequeathed a diamond ring to Amalia.[4]

Amalia died on the first of March of 1586 in Düsseldorf, aged 68 years old, having outlived both her sisters.

Ancestry

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Norton, Elizabeth (2009). Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII's Discarded Bride. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 9781445606774.
  2. 1 2 M. Warnicke, Retha (2000). The Marrying of Anne of Cleves: Royal Protocol in Early Modern England. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521770378.
  3. 1 2 3 4 R. Darsie, Heather. "Amalia of Cleves, sister of Anne of Cleves". The Tudor Society. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  4. ↑ Saaler, Mary (1995). Anne of Cleves: Fourth Wife of Henry VIII. Rubicon Press. ISBN 9780948695414.

Notes

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