Henrietta of Haense

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Henrietta of Haense Queen-Consort of Marna Tenure: 1640-1652 Predecessor: Title Created Successor: Theodosia Horen (as Queen-Consort of Renatus-Marna) Born: 2nd of the First Seed, 1625 Died: Unknown Spouse: Frederick I of Marna House: Barbanov Father: Otto II of Haense Mother: Eleanor of Lotharingia

Henrietta of Haense (2nd of the First Seed, 1625 - Unknown), who was also known as Henrietta of Alban, Henrietta Louise, and Henrietta Barbanov, was a Princess Royal of Haense and later the first Queen-Consort of Marna as the wife of King Frederick.

She is mostly known for being the first Haeseni royal to marry outside of Haense.

Family and Childhood

Henrietta was born in Alban on the 2nd of the First Seed, 1625, as the only daughter and third child of the King of Haense at the time, Otto II, and his Lotharingian consort, Eleanor. Strangely, the girl did not inherit her father and brother’s black hair, and instead was born with a head full of chestnut tresses. Many present at the birth are said to have observed that Henrietta was very much her mother’s twin, seeing as she had Eleanor’s eyes, nose, and general facial structure; the only thing the baby was missing was Eleanor’s golden hair.

Shortly after her birth, she was christened ‘’Henrietta Louise’’. Her first name was chosen in honor of Heinrik Otto Barbanov, a renowned Lord Palatine of Haense. As for her middle name, it was simply an Auvergnian name that her mother always had an affinity for.

Growing up, Henrietta did not receive an upbringing that was the norm for a Haeseni princess, mostly due to her foreign mother. Eleanor constantly reminded Henrietta that all of her maternal uncles and aunts were either monarchs or consorts to monarchs, and that she was descended from a ‘line of consorts’, since her maternal grandmother and great-grandmother was a queen and an empress respectively. Due to her mother’s obsession with maintaining her gilded lineage, she made sure that Henrietta received a rigorous southern education that prepared her for possible queenship, much like the one Eleanor and her sisters received. The Haeseni princess even briefly had a tutor from the prestigious Aeldinic Academy of Brillantmont, however, the tutor was unable to find Haense’s cold climate agreeable and had to respectfully resign.

Due to her mother’s incessant micromanaging, they commonly argued, however, these spats were always short-lived due to the great deal of underlying love between the two. As for her relationship with her father, Henrietta was the apple of King Otto’s eye and he apparently frequently spoiled her. Henrietta’s two older brothers, Otto and Karl, were very protective of her, and at times she would get frustrated with them because she felt as though they were being too gentle with her.

Marriage

On the 11th of the First Seed, 1640, Henrietta was wed to the Marnan king, Frederick. The ceremony was reportedly an appropriate mixture of pomp and austerity, and the couple seemed eager enough to wed each other.

At the time of her wedding, Henrietta was only fifteen years old and opted to wear a gown that complimented her considerable youth, rather than one that would have made her look like a child playing dress up. She wore a cream colored square-necked dress with trumpet sleeves and a cloth of gold underskirt. To conceal her décolletage, she wore an opaque partlet completely covered in pearls. The whole gown itself was also apparently trimmed in silver lace.

In the days leading up to her wedding, it is alleged that the Haeseni court at the time, besides Henrietta’s southern mother who was a fervent advocate for the match, was reluctant to witness the first instance of a Barbanov princess marrying out of Haense. Many were rightfully afraid that since she would be residing so far away, out of Haense’s reach, that they would not be able to help her in a timely manner if she were to ever be in danger. Additionally, the Horenic track record of multiple bloody coups certainly did not help bolster excitement for the wedding. Thankfully, Henrietta’s alleged excitement for the wedding and reports that she and Frederick got along wonderfully helped ease the worrying of some courtiers.

Queen-Consort

As the Queen-Consort of Marna, Henrietta excelled in her courtly duties and apparently had a great fondness for any and all things pertaining to religion. Being the daughter of a fashion icon, Henrietta at first wore many of her mother’s gowns but as she matured and became more pious, she seems to have done away with her mother’s decadent Auvergnian dresses and even apparently donated one of her mother’s handed down golden tiaras. It is alleged that Henrietta took the aforementioned extravagant tiara clean off her head after listening to a passionate sermon and tossed it into the offering plate.

For the most part, the citizenry of Marna adored their pious and dutiful queen and she was commonly praised by the clergy for reintroducing the wimple back into women’s fashion. As for the Marnan courtiers, at first they were apprehensive to the idea of a Raevir consort for their king, many worried she would be too demanding or uncouth. However, the worries of the court were quickly dashed upon being made familiar with the Haeseni royal. Allegedly, the vast majority of Henrietta’s contemporaries at court found her to be exceedingly polite and agreeable, and many claimed she was a good and calm match for their fiery, strong willed king.

Fall of Marna

Unfortunately for the promising young Queen Henrietta, her reign would be cut short decades before it rightfully should have been. In a strange, confusing, and poorly recorded turn of events, her husband randomly gave up his throne to King Aurelius of Renatus. Then, after Frederick had commited such a shocking act, he disappeared without a trace, leaving behind his dutiful wife and his two children.

At this point in her life, Henrietta was the epitome of depression. She felt as though she somehow failed as a wife or queen, and now her son was being robbed of his regnal future for her sins. Merely a day after her husband's abdication, the entire court deserted the displaced royal consort and her children. Then, on the next day, Henrietta's father, King Otto, caught word of Aurelius preparing to march on the Marnan capital in order to claim his inheritance, so the Haeseni king ventured to Senntisten to personally retrieve his daughter and grandchildren.

Upon her safe arrival in her native country, it is accounted by many Haeseni that Henrietta was a shell of her former self. All of her regalia and finery was gone, and instead she opted to outfit herself in drab brown garments; she refused to participate in courtly events and small talk, and instead spent all of her time tending quietly to her children or at church, repenting for sins she never truly committed.

Henrietta's mother, Eleanor, being the transcontinental socialite she was, started a correspondence with multiple Aeldinic kings who wished to wed her widowed daughter. Henrietta was only twenty-seven at the time of her displacement, and thanks to her aforesaid youth, her proven fertility, and her being descended from one of the "Lotharingian Sisters", her hand in marriage was highly sought after. However, for obvious reasons, a troubled Henrietta denied all marriage proposals.

Death

The death of Henrietta is shrouded in mystery and rumors. No one even knows the true date of her death. Amongst various tales, some frightful, some provocative, the most commonly accepted narrative is that the hapless queen ran away from the court of her parents with a nameless priest. It is believed she lived out the rest of her days simply, yet happily, in some nondescript cottage in Aeldin, where she had many children with her priestly husband and spent the remainder of her life in plebeian merriment, rather than royal sorrow.

Issue

Name	Birth	Death	Marriage	Notes
Frederick Otto Horen-Marna	1641	Missing	Unwed	Firstborn son of Frederick I and Henrietta, Twin to Beatrix.
Beatrix Cecelia Horen-Marna	1641	Missing	Unwed	Firstborn daughter of Frederick I and Henrietta, Twin to Frederick.