A Family Affair
You probably can't imagine even looking at your cousin romantically, but for much of history, marrying within the bloodline wasn’t all that taboo. In fact, it was a common affair, as many royal families used marriages to preserve dynasties and inheritance. That doesn't mean you won't still balk at these 20 incestuous marriages.
Peter Cooke for Gunn & Stuart on Wikimedia
1. Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II
It probably comes as no surprise that the first pair on this list is an Egyptian pair, considering the ancient royals often married within the family. Case in point: Ptolemy II of Egypt married his sister, Arsinoe II, sometime during the 270s BCE. The couple even went on to promote themselves as the Theoi Adelphoi, or “Sibling Gods,” giving the marriage an important place in the dynasty’s religious and political image.
2. Mary, Queen of Scots and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley
Though both were the grandchildren of Margaret Tudor, meaning they were close blood relatives, Mary, Queen of Scots married Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, in 1565. He was her second husband, though their marriage would, too, be cut short: shortly after the birth of their child, James VI of Scotland and I of England, Darnley was murdered in 1567.
3. Isabella II and Francisco de Asís
Queen Isabella II of Spain married Francisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz, in 1846, a pairing that was set up by European diplomacy, as it was heavily debated at the time who the young Spanish queen could marry. They eventually settled on Isabella’s double first cousin—strange as that sounds, it’s because their parents came from two sets of siblings!
Unidentified photographer on Wikimedia
4. Alfonso XII and María de las Mercedes
Not his double first cousin, but his first cousin, King Alfonso XII of Spain married María de las Mercedes of Orléans in January 1878. Despite the blood relationship, the two reportedly developed a personal attachment to each other even before the politically arranged marriage. Alas, their alliance lasted only about five months, as Mercedes died at 18.
Casa Moreno. Archivo de Arte Español (1893-1953) on Wikimedia
5. Umberto I and Margherita of Savoy
In 1868, Italy’s future King Umberto I married Princess Margherita of Savoy. Both of them were first cousins within the House of Savoy, and both belonged to the dynasty that had recently become Italy’s ruling royal family. This never deterred them, of course, and they later had one son, Victor Emmanuel III, who eventually took over his father’s throne to become king.
6. Princess Mary and William Frederick
It wasn’t until she was 40 years old that Princess Mary, one of the daughters of Britain’s King George III, finally got married. The year was 1816, and her husband was Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, who was her first cousin and also 40 at the time. In fact, the couple shared the same royal grandparents!
7. Maud of Wales and Prince Carl
Though an unlikely childhood-to-lovers story, being first cousins with her husband didn’t stop Princess Maud of Wales from marrying Prince Carl of Denmark. How were they related? Carl’s father was the brother of Maud’s mother, Alexandra of Denmark. The wedding took place at Buckingham Palace in 1896, and Carl later became King Haakon VII of Norway, making Maud queen.
Peter Cooke for Gunn & Stuart on Wikimedia
8. George V and Mary of Teck
Princess Mary of Teck had actually been engaged to the elder brother of George V, Prince Albert Victor, but when he died during a pandemic, she was betrothed to George in 1893. Blood relatives through King George III, though a little more distant than some of the others on this list, their marriage produced six children and lasted until George’s death in 1936.
9. Ernest I and Marie of Württemberg
If marriages between cousins didn’t sound odd enough, Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, decided to marry his sister’s daughter after divorcing his first wife. In 1832, it was official: he and his niece, the Duchess Marie of Württemberg, were wedded. The union also meant Marie became both stepmother and first cousin to Ernest’s son, Prince Albert, who subsequently became the husband of Queen Victoria.
Unidentified painter on Wikimedia
10. Philippe I, Duke of Orléans and Henrietta of England
The first wife of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, was Princess Henrietta of England, his first cousin. Their blood relations were tied since Henrietta’s mother, Henrietta Maria of France, was the sister of Philippe’s father, Louis XIII. They wed in 1661 and had several children before Henrietta’s death in 1670.
11. Philippe II, Duke of Orléans and Françoise Marie de Bourbon
Philippe I wasn’t the only one to marry his cousin. In fact, a generation later, Philippe II continued the family pattern: he wed Françoise Marie de Bourbon, the daughter of Philippe’s uncle, Louis XIV. Like the generations before, their tangled bloodline didn’t deter them, and the couple went on to have eight children.
12. Charles Darwin and Emma Wedgwood
Charles Darwin, famous English naturalist and geologist, didn’t have to look far when he decided to marry. Emma Wedgwood, later Emma Darwin, was his first cousin: his mother was siblings with Emma’s father. Charles and Emma married in January 1839 and eventually had a whopping 10 little ones together.
13. Albert Einstein and Elsa Löwenthal
Even Albert Einstein once married within his own blood! In particular, his second wife, Elsa Löwenthal, was actually born Elsa Einstein—their mothers were sisters, meaning Albert and Elsa were first cousins maternally, and second cousins paternally. They married in 1919, only months after he divorced his first wife.
Underwood and Underwood, New York on Wikimedia
14. Edgar Allan Poe and Virginia Clemm
Writer Edgar Allan Poe didn’t stray away from mingling with his own cousins, either. In 1836, at 27 years old, he married Virginia Clemm, the daughter of his aunt. Here’s the kicker, though: Virginia was only 13. They lived with Virginia’s mother for much of their marriage until Virginia’s death in 1847.
15. Jesse James and Zee Mimms
After a lengthy engagement, outlaw Jesse James married Zerelda “Zee” Mimms in 1874. Zee’s mother was the sister of Jesse’s father, making the couple—surprise, surprise—first cousins. They had four children together, though only two would survive infancy, and Jesse was later killed in 1882.
Photographer unknown. Scan by LoC. on Wikimedia
16. Johann Sebastian Bach and Maria Barbara Bach
The Bach family produced so many musicians that Johann Sebastian Bach grew up surrounded by relatives who shared both his surname and profession. Given that, it probably wasn’t so shocking when he eventually married Maria Barbara Bach, his second cousin, in 1707. Several of their seven sons even became accomplished musicians and composers as well!
http://www.bachueberbach.de on Wikimedia
17. Sergei Rachmaninoff and Natalia Satina
In 1902, after years of engagement, composer Sergei Rachmaninoff married his first cousin, Natalia Satina. That might not sound all too different from the other stories on this list, but their marriage was actually prohibited under Russian civil and Russian Orthodox Church canon law. That didn’t stop the couple, however, and they had a small, private ceremony near Moscow, later raising two daughters.
Unknown authorUnknown author, probably Mario Nunes Vais on Wikimedia
18. Igor Stravinsky and Yekaterina Nosenko
Here’s another unorthodox childhood-to-lovers tale for you: Igor Stravinsky knew Yekaterina Nosenko years before she became his wife, as their mothers were sisters. Having seen each other all the time growing up, their relationship blossomed, and they eventually married in 1906. But because there were strict religious restrictions between first-cousin marriages, their wedding was held discreetly.
19. Thomas Jefferson and Martha Wayles Skelton
Before becoming the third president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, primary author of the Declaration of Independence, married a widow. This wasn’t just any widow, though—Martha Wayles Skelton and he were actually third cousins. Their marriage lasted about a decade and produced six children before Martha died in 1782.
James Westhall Ford on Wikimedia
20. Jerry Lee Lewis and Myra Gale Brown
Rock-and-roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis caused enormous controversy when the public learned about his marriage to Myra Gale Brown in 1957. But it wasn’t just because Brown was Lewis’s first cousin once removed. The uproar was over the fact that she was just 13 years old when the 22-year-old singer married her in Mississippi. News of this spread like wildfire during Lewis’s 1958 British tour, which seriously tarnished his career and image at the time.
photographer:Maurice Seymour, Chicago. on Wikimedia
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