The marriage of James Edward Stuart to Clementine Mary Sobieski can safely be described as 'unexpected'. The Sobieskis and the Stuarts had not previously maintained close contacts, nor were there any between the Commonwealth and Scotland. It is true that thousands of Scots emigrated to the Crown, but they were fleeing religious persecution and poverty.

The marriage of James Edward to Clementine was largely a coincidence. James Edward was, he claimed, madly in love with Benedicta, daughter of the Duke of Modena, but when her father, negative about the possibility of his returning to the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland, did not approve of the union, it ended in a sigh. But the king had to have a wife and children. The task of finding a suitable candidate fell to Charles Wogan, a participant in the 1715 Scottish uprising. Wogan went to Germany, but none of the candidates at the courts of Westphalia and Bavaria appealed to him. He finally made his way to Olawa, where he met Klementyna Maria Sobieska.

She had everything Jakub Edward needed. She was young, 16 at the time of their meeting, and beautiful. She belonged to one of the greatest Polish families, and the memory of her grandfather John III's victory over the Turks at the gates of Vienna was still vivid. Besides, the Sobieskis had a huge fortune, and Jacob Edward, like any exiled ruler, needed money. For the Sobieski family, the marriage was a great opportunity to raise the family's profile. James Edward Stuart was a ruler in exile, but had royal titles recognised by such important European rulers as the King of France and the Pope. Clementine also readily agreed - Wogan was a handsome and charming bachelor. Had she seen James Edward, or spoken to him, her decision might have been entirely different. James Edward was neither handsome, charming nor eloquent. Instead, he was depressed by the continuing failures of his efforts to regain power, his financial problems and the intrigues of his miniature court, which was teeming with government spies in London. The first meeting between James Edward and Clementine took place on the morning of 2 September 1719, a few hours before the actual wedding ceremony. James Edward was delighted with his wife-to-be, Clementine was disappointed, and so it sadly remained. However, it was too late to withdraw.

The text comes from PASAŻ WIEDZY , where you can find more reliable texts on Old Polish history and culture

Courtesy of the King John III Wilanów Palace Museum