Dr Kat and Sophia of Hanover

[@Lynn-r8h]

After I read “Daughters of the Winter Queen,” I became enamored with the strength of these women. Clearly, these women would have made far better rulers than their husbands. What wonderful role models.

[@karlkarlos3545]

Sophia also was a promoter of the composer George Frideric Handel, who, of course, came to England with her oldest son, King George.

[@williethomas5116]

Sophia was such a great woman before time. She was well educated and challenged the great minds of her day as a peer. She would have been such a great Queen.

[@kimberlyperrotis8962]

Sophia’s questioning of the scientists and mathematicians is the mark of an educated, inquiring mind.

[@kateh2007]

Congratulations on your lecture at Kensington palace, I'm sure that it will be brilliant, I wish I had still been living in London as I would have heard about it and been first in the queue to say Hello to you xxx. Thankyou so much for these fantastic videos, I've been binging on them whilst at home and have enjoyed every minute. You are an extremely articulate, knowledgeable and charismatic lady who brings history to life xx.

[@katescrimgeour3884]

I am working my way through all of your videos - about 5 a day - and loving them all.

[@luisam6596]

That's perfect! I wanted to learn something more about Sophia since my grandma is from Loccum and she always talks to me about Sophia of Hanover as a role model. She keeps various memorabilia about her at home (news articles, book pages, museum tickets with her likenesses). You could say she is a superfan!

[@DipityS]

That was fascinating as I'd only ever heard about Queen Anne's aunty overseas who was lining up to be Queen and their relationship, such as it was, from Anne's perspective. It took me until you began to talk about Anne to realise who this Sophia was - and to hear who she was beyond being the aged old lady who thought she should be England's queen for some reason - well it was so interesting. Thank you.

[@stoker1931jane]

Leiden (Leyden) is our oldest University in The Netherlands. It being established by William of Orange in 1575. Many greats have studied there. Our last 3 reigning Monarchs: Queen Juliana, Queen Beatrix and King Alexander have all studied and graduated from Leiden University. ✌🏻

[@InkyPages]

Could you do a video about Christina of Denmark, Duchess of Milan please?

[@frightbat208]

Sophia sounds like an amazing woman.

[@sirwelch9991]

She was.

[@dssouza1982]

Yes - I agree pity she was never a queen

[@mayajrj]

@@dssouza1982 Missed being one by a few weeks sadly. But Sophie had a lot of influence that lasted for years.

[@Grace-tc1lq]

Thank you Dr. Kat, for sharing your wealth of knowledge, especially in such an interesting way. One thing to be sure my mind never wanders on any of your videos, I’m listening to every word.

[@SeeJayCampbell]

Imagine if she and Charles II had married. It would have saved everyone a lot of trouble if you think about it. No Jacobites, no Hanoverians, no act of settlement, no act of union. Basically Sophia’s rejection of the merry monarch resulted in a century of unnecessary strife!

[@officiallymrp]

Brits wouldn't have tea, orange marmelade or the use of forks ... !

[@Starae336]

Officially Mr P well they certainly would one way or another especially by now lol

[@beth7935]

@@officiallymrp Who are you crediting with bringing those things to England? I think I've heard that Catherine of Braganza brought tea, but also that that's a myth?- & while I know forks came into use surprisingly recently (partly because of church objections, lol), I think Catherine de Medici introduced them to the French court, & they were certainly used in England by Tudor times. Please educate me about marmalade though! :)

[@clewrites]

They would have probably had kids, they were both definitely fertile.

[@beth7935]

@@clewrites Yup, don't think there's much doubt about that in Charles' case!

[@mscott3918]

I have researched Sophia for an article. What I found makes me agree with you. Anne was undoubtedly jealous of Sophia. It was a letter from Anne that upset her, and which made her go for a brisk walk in the garden, where she was caught in the thunderstorm that soaked her and led to her death. She would have been a much better monarch than her son.

[@OkieJammer2736]

⚘ Such an interesting video! The 'living in exile' part has been the plight of many royal families of Europe .. including the exiled family of the young Prince Philip, thr Duke of Edinburgh. Difficult to relate to these kind of issues. SUCH a great watch, this!

[@801walt]

A recent favorite epic novel of mine has been The Baroque Trilogy, by scifi writer Neal Stephenson, which revolved around the time of Issac Newton and The Enlightenment. It was in this I learned much about Gottfried Leibnitz and Sophia, who by all accounts was an extraordinary woman. While led by fictional characters, it was full of historical events and people that I subsequently learned to be quite true to history, including Caroline, wife of George II, herself quite well educated and a patron of the Natural Philosophers.

[@hazelmalcolm-walker4143]

Sophia's correspondence with Leibniz is undoubtedly her most intellectual relationship, any chance of a leader comment on her relationship/correspondence with her niece Liselotte, Duchess of Orleans (second wife of Philippe younger brother of LouisLIV?

[@janicesnyder9305]

Interesting discussion of a queen that is noted mentioned much by most historical scholars. I must find and watch The Favorite. You have also explained how England came to be ruled by a German monarch.

[@livesouthernable]

I just discovered your channel, and I love it! I particularly appreciate your biographies of charismatic women throughout history. Your descriptions are succinct, eloquent, and balanced. And your voice is easy to listen to. Keep it coming!

[@cacamoto5395]

I just found out shes my 10-11th great grandma and 4th cousin, lowkey happy she was so cool thank you

[@mishapurser7542]

Thank you for this video! Sophia of Hanover is a great inspiration for me. I'm a transgender philosophy student who admires Leibniz greatly too. I have even chosen Sophia as the first of my two middle names in my new name because of her. My name is going to be Misha Sophia Ekaterina Purser.

[@ReadingthePast]

Dearest Misha, thank you for sharing this with me. I am so pleased you enjoyed the video and I think you have chosen some truly beautiful, meaningful and powerful names!

[@mishapurser7542]

@@ReadingthePast Thank you so much! That's very kind of you.

[@ivyrose779]

That’s lovely! Hope you’re well ❤️

[@BeeKool__113]

I agree with you. From what I have read about her, I believe Sophia would have made a wonderful queen. How groovy you had the chance to speak at Kensington Place!! I wish I could have been there! Visiting Kensington Place is on my bucket list and I do so love hearing your videos. Your delivery of these epic historical stories is truly amazing and so very informative. I learn something new with every video. 💚

[@dssouza1982]

Dr Kat - congratulations for all work and thanks, I was for a long time looking for a Sophia of Hanover’s biography.... she was a very bright, amazing and intelectual lady and would make a very good queen... Pity that there is not a movie or series about her as she was a very important transition point in the British monarchy even not being a monarch as Queen Sophia of Great Britain - a tragedy not having her as a 👑

[@robbiemclaurin1852]

Dr. Kat I just love listening to your stories about the past.....thank you..🙂

[@susannam3923]

When you said Leibniz "is most famous for", I'm proud to say my mind auto-completed that as "inventing the Leibniz biscuit"

[@olwens1368]

Oh good, not just me then.

[@trudies4791]

@@olwens1368 No, first thought: biscuit. Chocolate, yum.

[@williethomas5116]

I immediately thought of Calculus. But then again I am a mathematician.

[@tristanbaravraham6349]

I strongly agree your assertion regarding when you ask for clarification. To me that is a sign of genuine intelligence and curiosity. Our world is full of folks who think they know and undrstand everything they run accross. Her questioning shows a bright mind.

[@beth7935]

I couldn't agree with you more! So many people today think they know more than world experts, but when I hear someone like Dr. Kat being cautious with their conclusions & open to new evidence, instead of dogmatically asserting their opinion as fact & claiming to know everything, I know I'm listening to an expert & a true scholar. That's how academics & scientists work- how could you learn & discover anything otherwise??

[@kimberlyperrotis8962]

I think that the more educated people are, and the greater their faculty of critical thinking, the more humble they are about what they don’t know, and the more they desire to learn. Know-it-alls are always really kniw-mothings, who believe in aliens in high government, conspiracy theories, etc., that they get from junk TV.

[@mscott3918]

It was actually through Sophia that it wasn't really necessary for the Duke of Edinburgh to become a British citizen before he married The Queen in 1947. He was entitled to it through his descent from Sophia, as confirmed in the terms of the Sophia Naturalisation Act of, I think, 1705.

[@robertwescott8894]

would love to see a video about Anne Hyde Duchess of York!!

[@sarahpurcell1109]

Loved watching this video following the video on how the Hanoverians came to the throne and I can't help but do even more digging! Could you please make more videos around the Hanoverians/Georgians please

[@realityslidersmandelaeffec6594]

What a shame she never became our Queen...what a fascinating woman. I love your work.

[@dssouza1982]

Totally agree

[@breannestone3817]

I'm from the US but am in love with history and have watched quite a few of your videos. I really enjoy the way you present the information and the pictures you put in to help us imagine better. Thank you for all the work and care you put into your videos for us. 💜

[@maureenlippincott9528]

Dr. Kat, just catching up on some previous videos. GREAT JOB. Holler from the Allegheny Mtns. xoxo maureen

[@janicefound6831]

Thanks for bringing this very interesting history of Sophia of Hanover to us. Love your channel.

[@mishapurser7542]

Demanding clarification of what may appear to lay people to be basic terms is a fundamental part of semantics, an important part of philosophy that has become somewhat underappreciated since the 1960s.

[@Foxiepawstotti]

Oh yeah would have loved That! I only just found you in the COVID lockdown though. I did Social and Economic history at college and it interests me as all history does. I am loving your channel. Oh wow Sophia really looks like my sister!

[@aagold76]

So what happened to Sophia's 12 older siblings? Where they and their descendants all Catholic or did they all die off like Anne's children?

[@apsistj5828]

Several died without heirs (two sisters became nuns...one protestant, one catholic), a brother converted to catholicism and his descendents include Marie Antoinette, so it ended up with Sophia's family

[@Billie-vv8rl]

Dr Kat is awesome! So glad I found you! Such interesting topics!!

[@nicholaus3248]

Thank you so much for this video! I am writing a paper on her Memoir and you named several sources that may prove to be helpful.

[@glitter.gollum6984]

I think she could've definitely brought some useful and well informed insight into England! It is a shame she was never queen.

[@rebeccacarson9113]

Hi Dr Kat. Thankyou so much for all your interesting talks. I thoroughly enjoy listening to everything you discuss. And yes. Sophia sounds like a very intelligent woman of her time. Thanks again and I will continue to listen and catch up on your video links. Bec

[@DOCTORWOOF]

Hi Dr Kat, big fan of your work thanks. Loved the video on Sophia. Would be curious to see a video of who the 57 individuals were who were passed over for being catholic. Hugs Andy

[@Gardentogriddle]

I would just like to say how much I truly enjoy your videos! Very in depth always interesting and so well told. Thank you!

[@hedipes]

I’m so glad I found this channel. Learning from you feels wonderful.

[@carola-lifeinparis]

I enjoyed this video, and having grown up in Hildesheim in the middle between Hannover and Braunschweig, this is particularly interesting to know. Sophia probably would have been able to communicate better than her son did :D

[@dfuher968]

Indeed! I always wondered, how the son and heir to such an accomplished woman could be so utterly unprepared for the throne, he knew, would be his someday, that he knew nothing about the country and didnt speak a single word of the language.

[@borikkiv]

@@dfuher968 The contrast and divisions between the generations of the Hanoverian monarchs perhaps started early.

[@McRambleOn]

Very interesting. Great vid! Plus, I FINALLY understand William and Mary coming over to rule and why/how- I never had before! Wow,Sophia was such a brilliant lady. Was her son smart like her?

[@roxannemcmann1497]

I desperately want a chart showing all those passed over and where her connection came from I've looked for one and it's really hard to follow but I've always been curious as to how the hanoverians came about

[@megremisfamily4music]

Sophia certainly sounded like a woman ahead of her time. Keep the videos coming, Dr Kat!

[@fridayhunt7075]

Could you do an episode expanding on it? I would love to know the events or circumstances that you think would have turned out differently if Sophia did rule. Like many of your fans I’m American, so please give us a lot of background.

[@meenalaregina7770]

Hi! I looooove your channel! I would love to learn about the viceroys of India and the governors of Upper and Lower Canada (I am a Canuck of South Asian origin).

[@puckdefellow2987]

Greetings from Neustadt am Rübenberge which is 20 Minutes away from Hannover where I was born

[@LittleWaffle]

Thank you for this informative and enjoyable video. Sophia is a most fascinating character and one could only dream of what might have been, had she become Queen of England ! Take care and stay safe ^^

[@christinec7892]

Congratulations!!! 🎉🎈

[@markstevenson9080]

I always enjoy your lectures. Keep up the great work!

[@louisapdjones]

Alternative history is such a facinating pursuit. I wonder where it would have led had Sophia reigned. What would those particular butterfly wings have caused to happen in the world, not just England.

[@shelleygibbons1065]

Enjoyed this video . Dr. KAT i believe she would have made an amazing queen . Such a smart woman

[@Isrjisoneavalable]

Have you done a review of The Favorite and Queen Anne’s personal relationships?

[@stoker1931jane]

Yes, she did👍🏻. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJiTpZuJqrGKb6c

[@craigking8398]

Does a list of the 57 Catholics passed over by the Act of Settlement exist? Would imagine there are French and Savoy royals who would be on it, but who else? Have always wondered.

[@beth7935]

I'd love to see that too!

[@sandraswannell4170]

I’d like to meet Sophia now ….. she sounds magnificent!!!!!

[@John-Smith-999]

I'd love to know more about her mum. The British throne revolves around her. She was named after her great Aunt Elizabeth the elderly and childless queen of England. The hope being her Dad would become England's next King. The second part of the Gunpowder Plot would have had her abducted and rule England for her regents. Forced to live in exile her children fight the English civil war. Finally through her daughter we get the modern royal family

[@tc2334]

So happy I found this video!!

[@kimclarke5018]

Dr Kat so glad I’ve found you and many others. Hope you subscriptions go up to 25000 by next week.

[@catherineervin2630]

My 2nd youngest daughter is named Sophia after Sophia of Hanover!!!

[@Sharmelle586]

Is there a video of you speaking at Kensington Palace?

[@FanFicnic]

Ohhh Sophia, the queen that never was. Any time she spent on the throne would have been fascinating.

[@barbaraleonard8379]

I love your videos. Learning made fun .

[@rosemarienin9823]

Well, what about her actual life? Other than her intellect, what were her accomplishments? What was her role in the Hanoverian court? Thank you for helping me understand how the Georges came to the throne of England. If I remember correctly, when George l came to England’s throne he didn’t speak English, and neither did his wife. What kind of education did Sophia provide for her children? Did she not prepare her son for his eventual destiny?

[@apsistj5828]

There's a great book by Nancy Goldstone called the Daughters of the Winter Queen that looks at the lives of Princess Elizabeth Stuart and her daughters including Sophia.

[@rosemarienin9823]

I got the book and was halfway into it when I had to return it. Obviously it didn’t quite grab me. Too much war, too little about the women who are supposed to be the main theme. Talk about a disfunctional family!

[@Ulsna]

By the time Sophia was anywhere near the succession, George was already an adult (and married). By the time he became King, he was in his 50s. He, as well as Sophia's other children, did speak several languages (like most of German nobility at the time, he was bilingual lin French and German; he also spoke Dutch, some Italian, and Latin), English wasn't regarded as an important language if your likely life was ruling Hannover. As for Sophia's actual life, she wrote her memoirs when she was 50 (decades before her death) which show her snarky personality and wit beautifully. Allow me to link a review with some quotes illustrating this: rheinsberg.dreamwidth.org/51538.html , and a review of another book that portrays her and her daughter, Sophie Charlotte, which contains yet more info on her life and politics: rheinsberg.dreamwidth.org/39873.html She was in fact the de facto ruler of Hannover, given her husband tended to spend half the year in Venice, and instrumental for both making the Hannover Dukes Princes Electors and Prussia going from a Dukedom for a Kingdom. (The first King of Prussia was her son-in-law.)

[@leanie9660]

Very interesting !! For some reason, I had always seen Sophia as an outcast...a grasping social-climber. This video certainly showed me a different possibility.

[@EGChurchofChrist]

Thank you. I wondered how the Hanovers came to be English monarchs. A cousin of Charles II

[@funtimefoxy6136]

Dr Kat, I think you should make a video, ‘What if Sophia of Hanover had become Queen of Great Britain’, explaining how Sophia could've been as a monarch

[@IbnTufayl1]

Loved this! Thank you!

[@saydvoncripps]

Very interesting video. I wonder what she might have done for women had she become queen. Ideas for a video? I've been looking at slavery and the two opposing positions; did we do well or is it our shame?

[@shawn6669]

Also in rewatching this, on the list of reasons that Anne was so standoffish to Sophia, as well as the ones you mention, is her fecundity. Anne had 17 pregnancies, only one of whom lived...to 12 yrs old? Whereas Sophia was a mother of 7, all of whom reached adulthood with children of their own. Sophia is an ancestor. Anne, for all intents and purposes, had failed at the most important responsibility of a royal female. Not that it isn't sad, and I can't know how this affected her state of mind, but it wouldn't surprise me if it affected her in such a way that she felt angry and threatened by Sophia. My 2c. FWIW.

[@jacquelineolson719]

For a wonderful novel that features Sophia, Liebnitz and more see Neal Stehenson, "The System of the world

[@greggi47]

Yes--that's one part of Stephenson's entertaining series THE BAROQUE CYCLE.

[@tabbykitty994]

Discrimination against Roman Catholics.(barring them from the throne) Is that law still in effect? Can we have a Roman Catholic King or Queen in England/Britain now ?

[@StabsWithPaste]

English monarchs have to be Anglican, as they are considered the head of the Church of England.

[@denisehall4818]

Dr. Kat, I love your channel.

[@paulinebaron6200]

Loved your video .please keep them coming .xo xo

[@Valcour]

I don't believe a man like that would waste his words on a woman who didn't show some knowledge or ability.

[@samanthadarnbrough1128]

I have just watch the video on Sophia of Hanover and was just wondering why the succession went to her and not one of her elder siblings

[@HabrenOdinsdottir]

What about a video on Robert the Bruce in the days and years after the death of William Wallace? Or the Queen of England that is portrayed in Braveheart as having the progeny of William.

[@ruthanneseven]

That movie is great fiction. Not historically correct. The list of inaccuracies is lengthy, so I'd advise you to research on your own.

[@HabrenOdinsdottir]

@@ruthanneseven Oh, I have.

[@craykanne]

Dr Kat, had they not been Catholic, who would have been the next to inherit after Anne died?

[@boredofmindgames4662]

Why do I always miss out on all the good things that are right around the corner from me

[@mikereger1186]

Another “if only”. The same could be said for Princess Charlotte, a century later.

[@chrish8754]

Thank you - great video!

[@amerkakos5850]

I enjoyed the video a lot !

[@deanmcmurtry]

Can we please have a talk on William the third and Queen Mary the second thanks Dr Kat

[@v8infinity8]

I would love to have had a Queen Sophia ! I have always thought it a Disgrace that Anne Hydes daughters Reigned.

[@officiallymrp]

Queen Anne's reign was a brilliant one though, specially in the culture and military fields.

[@marywells6048]

I believe that Sophia would have been a wonderful Queen and an excellent mate to Charles II. Both of them seem to have had a mind and an intense wonder of the world around them. Both of them were patrons to both science and philosophy. What a wonderful couple they would have made.

[@katharper655]

Sophia's legacy includes, in addition to other notable achievements, an ongoing, one might even say equal to equal, correspondence with a noted polymath of the Day., along with acknowledgment of her undoubted intellectual skills by various authorities of her Time. Anne's history includes an enormous number of pregnancies most to no avail; a close, often tempestuous friendship with the future wife of the Victor Of The Battle Of Blenheim, the future Duke of Marlborough; revelling in the trappings of Queenship: she was the last British Monarch to carry out the ancient practice of "Touching For The King's" or in Anne's case, "The QUEEN'S EVIL". a practice whereby the touch of the Monarch was said to cure scrofula- swollen neck glands from tuberculosis--and playing cards more or less incessantly. I know I would have chosen Sophia in the blink of an eye.

[@kaarlimakela3413]

I have a long list of what-ifs ... starting with What if we never descended from the trees 😆 Sophia's a good what-if ... I think also of Henry VIII older brother Arthur ... What if Uncle Richard had better protected the boys in the tower and proved in his transparent responsible Regent position to continue his very good policies? What if Victoria had many fewer children after taking a few years to grow up?

[@melissajackson79]

I swear as a car was passing when you spoke that latin phrase it sounded like you said "go hard and water the magnolias". Lol darn that car.

[@mayajrj]

Sophia left a very lasting legacy in the naturalisation act of 1705 : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophia_Naturalization_Act_1705. This act was not repealed until the mid 1900's

[@joostvanlinge263]

This is an interesting proof of the relativity of history. Sophia lived in the Netherlands when 'we' were fighting the 80 Years War against Spain. In our scope nothing interesting happened in the rest of the world between 1568 and 1648, when with the Peace of Munster 'we' gained independence.

[@florian8599]

When you realize, that the Netherlands had a war that was 50 years longer, going on at the same time...

[@stoker1931jane]

I'd never heard of her living in excile here in The Netherlands....and was preparing the way for "The Hanoverians" to take the English throne. Interesting.👌🏻

[@dianesicgala4310]

Yes

[@srobs1216]

Sophia sounds like an able and interesting woman. Too bad we can never know how she would have reigned. Yet, it appears she had a fulfilling and stimulating life. Thank you for sharing her story.

[@IntrepidFraidyCat]

I've always wondered what Sophia would have been like as Queen. I'm sure she would have done a far better job that Georges I-III.

[@metalsomemother3021]

So for those of us in the United States, this explains why the Hanovarians came to the throne resulting in Victoria.

[@madmonkee6757]

It would be nice to fit one more queen into the list of monarchs. There have been far too few. Hopefully, that will rectify itself in the future, although the next three monarchs are likely to be male.

[@charliesworldx]

Could you do a video on George III

[@Tina-ig3be]

Thank you for a VERY interesting video. Just one little hint. Leibniz is German and in German "ei" is pronounced like "I" in Englisch. I know that it's the other way around in English but I believe that names should be pronounced the way they are in the original language (as far as possible).

[@giselematthews7949]

WEll, Sophia would have been a kick-ass queen.