Nobility

To be born into a noble house in sixteenth century Europe, was to win the lottery of life. Surrounded on every side by luxury and plenty, provided you stayed on the right side of the monarch, you were pretty much in clover. However, nothing is free, and every member of a noble family was expected to sacrifice his or her personal inclinations to enhancing the power and prestige of the family unit. This might be through marriage, or, for men, risking life and limb on the battlefield.

Wives of course, were expected to produce numerous children, but they also had more freedom and power than we often think. Their job was to manage the estates, and maximise local power and influence whilst their husbands were dancing attendance on the monarch, at Court or at war.

Nobility in Britain was fluid, and people could rise into it. In Germany, the rules about what constituted noble birth were rigid and there was no room for new people to break in.