Jacqueline of Eiffelland, Empress of the North

Jacqueline of Eiffelland ("Jacqueline the Jewel") (1696 - 1726) was the first wife of Gustav V, King of Arendaal and Emperor of the North and thus the Queen Consort of Arendaal and the Empress Consort of the North between 1715 and 1726. She was a daughter of the King of Eiffelland, and through her marriage was the mother of the Aren Queen Beatrix I. After her death, her husband married Sophie of Zähringen (Wendmark).

The marriage of Emperor Gustav V and Princess Jacqueline coincided with a heightened both German and French influence in the Empire of the North, an influence which would continue in Arendaal through the 18th and 19th centuries. Jacqueline herself was a francophile and many of her ladies-in-waiting were from the noblest families in French speaking countries like Montelimar and Lorraine. Through her retinue the Queen supported many enduring French customs introduced into the Imperial Aren court, not least the increased use of the French language among the aristocracy.

The dynastic match was also considered extremely advan -tageous by the Kingdom of Eiffelland. Gustav V of Arendaal was the eldest child of perhaps the most powerful Royal couple in Europe, Kristianna I, Queen Regent of Arendaal and Empress Regent of the North and Emperor Theodore VII of the Talemantine Empire. In 1715, once his father was crowned Talemantine Emperor, Gustav's mother abdicated and he was crowned Isacco Beniamino II for the title of Talemantine Emperor, a costly campaign which would bring about the dissolution of the Northern Empire. Gustav and Jacqueline's daughter Beatrix sought to salvage Aren finances by abandoning her claim to the titles of Talemantine and Northern Empress, allowing the KNH trading company to retain its post in former imperial territory and thereby securing Aren wealth.

The match gave Eiffelland greater access to both Northern and Southern markets and trade routes. Given Arendaal's inumerable connections to the greatest powers of the age, notably its prominent dynastic matches, the union of Emperor Gustav V and Princess Jacqueline was seen as desirable for both the prestige and material advantages it afforded.

Although initially the young Empress is said to have felt daunted by the formality of etiquette at the Imperial Aren Court, it was over their mutual dislike of ritualistic formalities that Jacqueline and Gustav V first bonded. Their wedding in 1712 at the Palace of Versailles was attended with every circumstance of splendour. The marriage is viewed as a success, and Jacqueline gave birth to the couple's first child, the future Beatrix I, a year after their marriage.

She shared her husband's passion for music, although she favoured French composers over the Aren and German composers admired by Gustav. Regardless of her partiality, she helped found the Royal Conservatory of Music which would rise to its best known prominence during the reign of her grandson, King Edvard IV.

After her death in 1726, her husband had to be greatly pressured by his ministers to consent to remarriage. Two years later, he agreed to wed Sophie of Zähringen (Wendmark) to facilitate the trading ties of the KNH trading comoany into Wendmark.

Family, Marriage and Children
Princess Jacqueline of Eiffelland married Gustav V of Arendaal, Emperor of the North and King of Arendaal in 1712. Their children included:
 * Beatrix I of Arendaal (1713 - 1762) - who succeeded her father as ruler of Arendaal in 1740

Siblings

 * Phililip IV of Eiffelland, who married Jacqueline's sister-in-law (her husband's sister), Kristine of Arendaal

Other Royal Relations

 * Kristine of Arendaal, Queen of Eiffelland - sister-in-law (brother's wife and Gustav V's sister) Consort of Phillip IV of Eiffelland
 * Thomas of Franken, Prince Consort of Arendaal - son-in-law
 * Isacco Beniamino II of the Talemantine Empire - brother-in-law (Gustav V's brother)
 * Liliana of Arendaal, Queen of Montelimar - sister-in-law (Gustav V's sister) Consort of King Michel II of Montelimar
 * Heloise of Arendaal, Empress of Wiese - sister-in-law (Gustav V's sister) Consort of Emperor Emperor Karl I of Wiese
 * Adelina of Arendaal, Queen of Ormssex-Colne - sister-in-law (Gustav V's sister). Consort of King Christian II of Ormssex-Colne
 * Emperor Theodore VII of the Talemantine Empire - father-in-law
 * Kristiana I of Arendaal - mother-in-law
 * Edvard IV of Arendaal - grandson
 * Hathor III of Arendaal - grandson
 * Trigve, Prince of Arendaal - grandson
 * Evelina of Arendaal, Empress of the Talemantine Empire - granddaughter. Consort of Stefano Emanuelle IV of the Talemantine Empire
 * Adelaide of Arendaal, Queen of Anglyn - granddaughter. Consort of Alfred IV of Anglyn
 * Helene I of Arendaal - great-granddaughter
 * Karl V of Arendaal - great-grandson
 * Rurik, Prince of Arendaal - great-grandson

Ancestors
's ancestors in four generations: