What’s the Big Idea?
It’s actually a very small idea: that someone who loves history and has a brain could set out to write about historical figures. I don’t have a PhD. I’m not a trained historian. I’m just a writer, armed with a bachelor’s in history, a Master’s in English, and an internet connection.
There are moments when I believed – and still believe – that I’m crazy to attempt any of this.
I respect actual scholars and professors so much. They’re the ones who are qualified to do this work. But I’m the one who cares about little-known royal women. Who else is talking about Eleonora von Schwarzenberg, Marie Louise of Nowhere, or Alexandra Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein? Who else is crazy enough to find and translate sources in multiple languages they don’t speak? Who else is going to take the time to write scripts, source images, and make documentaries about their lives? These stories are too interesting, too powerful, and – sometimes – too relevant to wait.
So I decided to trust my heart rather than my brain. I nominated myself to bring as many of these stories to you as I could. It was the right decision. It led to a discovery that became a book that I’m so excited to share with you – I’ll tell you all about it below. I hope there are many more stories like that one in our future. There are so many little-known royal women who deserve their turn to shine in the spotlight!
Want to get in on all the fun? Here’s what I’m up to.
Website: GirlInTheTiara.com
This is where I’m keeping all the new content about little-known historical women and their jewels. Every post has an audio player, so you can either read the post or have me read it to you! Most posts also have an embedded video, so you can get the information any way you like.
- Epic blog posts? Check.
- Excellent tidbits for dinner party conversation? Check – and see below!
- Mailing list signup so you can get notified when new videos (or, less frequently, books) drop: Check.
All that’s missing is you!
- On surviving an assassination attempt in 1882, Queen Victoria told her daughter, “It is worth being shot at to see how much one is loved.”
- One day, Marie-Antoinette’s son, Louis Charles, began to “boo” and “hiss.” When Marie Antoinette and a loyal servant, François Hüe, told him to stop, he said, “I did my lesson so badly that I’m booing myself.” Isn’t that the cutest thing?
- The Savoy family – kings of Sardinia and, later, of Italy – had an interesting ancestor: Eleanor Oglethorpe, the sister of the dude who founded the colony of Georgia. Who knew?
- Prior to World War I, Tsar Ferdinand of Bulgaria was about to give a valuable armaments contract to Krupp. But while in Potsdam, Kaiser Wilhelm II slapped him on the ass. Ferdinand was so disturbed by the incident that he gave the contract to a French firm instead.
- Pauline Bonaparte was determined to outshine her sister-in-law Josephine. One time, she arrived at Josephine’s in a green velvet dress, dripping in diamonds. But Josephine had found out which dress Pauline would be wearing and redecorated her salon in blue, which clashed with Pauline’s dress. She wore a super-simple muslin dress and no jewelry, the epitome of elegance, making Pauline look gauche and overdone.
YouTube Channel: The Girl in the Tiara
Want some free entertainment? I have hours and hours of documentaries for you! Here are a few of the viewer favorites:
Book: The Hunt for Anna Pavlovna’s Stolen Jewels (2026)
A heist gone wrong, a thief betrayed, and a U.S. president caught between the old world and the new — this is the forgotten true story of a crime that captivated the world.
On the night of September 25, 1829, a grand duchess’s diamonds disappeared from the royal palace in Brussels. The thief took 77 jewels, including a bouquet of gemstone flowers and a strand of Marie Antoinette’s pearls, leaving only his footprints, a pane of broken glass, and several drops of blood. Suspicion fell on the grand duchess’s husband, a Waterloo veteran paying blackmail to keep his bisexuality a secret. For one year, investigators scoured the continent for clues, all to no avail. Suddenly, in 1831, the stolen jewels surfaced in New York City in the hands of a former Napoleonic deserter named Constant Polari. Dutch officials were desperate to reclaim the jewels and extradite Polari, hoping a public trial would clear their prince’s name.
But Andrew Jackson’s corrupt customs collector preferred to confiscate the jewels, sell them, and pocket his share of the proceeds. As Jackson, Martin Van Buren, and James A. Hamilton (Alexander’s son) entered the fray, the case devolved into a legal free-for-all. No one counted on Polari’s lover and her paramour stealing the jewels and sailing for Europe, triggering a race across the Atlantic, a kidnapping from Bellevue prison, and a surprising courtroom confession. This is the true story of a long-forgotten caper, one that pitted the old world and its ancien régime diplomacy against the new world’s self-determinism, cronyism, and greed. Drawing on previously neglected case files and sources in four languages, The Hunt for Anna Pavlovna’s Stolen Jewels tells a riveting tale of war, revolution, corruption, ambition, and betrayal.
Coming from Pen & Sword in 2026!
Meet the Characters