Left Bank Pictures, the production company behind Netflix’sThe Crown, and Netflix are intalks to produce a prequel to the series. This is not a surprise, asThe Crownis one of the streaming giant’s most popular shows,earning multiple Emmy Awardsand reuniting a five-star cast during its seasons. The show tells the story of the British Royal Family during the reign of Elizabeth II, the current monarch, focusing on its most famous stories and members.This includes Princess Dianaand Prince Charles' divorce, Princess Margaret’s complicated marriage and scandalous affairs, and government crises.
The Crown’sofficial synopsis reads:
The Netflix-original drama chronicles the life of Queen Elizabeth II from the 1940s to modern times. The series begins with an inside look at the early reign of the queen, who ascended the throne at age 25 after the death of her father, King George VI. As the decades pass, personal intrigues, romances, and political rivalries are revealed that played a big role in events that shaped the later years of the 20th century.
The prequel is expected to highlight the lives of Queen Elizabeth II’s royal ancestors. So, let’s take a look at which royal family members and stories we could see in the series.
Henry VIII and His Six Wives
Henry VIII is probably one of the most infamous members of British royalty. His break-up with the Catholic Church and numerous marriages with different women while trying to have a male heir to continue the Tudor dynasty are widely discussed and studied, and even adapted to cinema and television:The TudorsandThe Other Boleyn Girlare two popular adaptations about the King and his life.
But we can’t ever get enough of one of the most controversial kings in history, and aThe Crown: Tudor Dynastyseason telling his story through the eyes of his six wives could be really interesting to see. Also, the series could talk about the death of his older brother, Prince Arthur, Henry’s rise to the throne, being a second son, and the complicated relationship that he had with his two daughters, Mary and Elizabeth.
George III & Queen Charlotte’s Reign During the French Revolution
We can already watch Queen Charlotte and King George III on Netflix’sBridgerton. Charlotte was a significant influence in England’s high society during the regency of her husband, King George III. The streaming service is currently working ona Queen Charlotte spin-off series.
But aThe Crownprequel focused on this couple could further approach the African origins of Charlotte, her friendship with Marie Antoinette during the French Revolution, the mental illness that made King George’s reign become a regency, the battles during his period as a King, and the descendants of them both. The life of granddaughter Queen Victoria has already been adapted for the big screen with Emily Blunt playing the role.
Princess Charlotte of Wales’ Brief Life
Princess Charlotte of Wales is an interesting character of the British royalty: grandchild of a king and only legitimate child of a prince, she would be Queen at some point of her life. But her destiny was interrupted by an early death after delivering a stillborn son.
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Charlotte was only 21 years old when she died. Still, her life has some points that could make an excellent plot for a series. It could follow her arranged marriage, separation from her parents (King George IV and Caroline of Brunswick), her broken engagement to the Hereditary Prince of Orange, her love story with Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (who would become her husband and father of her stillborn child), and her relationship with British people. Her death set off a mourning period among the British people, who believed that Charlotte could be a sign of hope after two unpopular kings.
Curiously, her death opened the way for another woman to occupy the throne, as Queen Victoria was Charlotte’s cousin and became Queen of England some years after the princess’s death.
The Princes in the Tower
Doing aThe Crownprequel based onthe story ofThe Princes in the Towerwould add a touch of mystery to the series. This story is about the apparent murder of the deposed King Edward V of England and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, children of King Edward IV. The children were 12 and 9 years old when they were locked up in the Tower of London by their paternal uncle, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who was also regent of Edward’s reign. Soon after, the Duke of Gloucester plotted to declare the children illegitimate and then ascend the throne as Richard III.
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After that, the children disappeared from the tower and no one ever heard from them again. Is widely assumed that Richard killed their nephews to secure his claim to the throne, while other theories argue that the children escaped from the tower or even took new identities. The destiny of Edward and Richard is unknown, but in 1674, workers found two human skeletons while working on the stairs of the tower, which could be the skeletons of the children. However, it could not be proved.
