Random Most Lavish Dowries In History (16 items)

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  (#8) Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland

  • Dec. at 61 (1379-1440)

  A 15th century king of Scotland, the future James I, was captured by the English at an early age and raised in captivity for 18 years. James's uncle liked ruling his court and refused to pay his nephew's ransom. But, while in bondage, the future Scottish King fell in love with Joan Beaufort, Henry IV's eventually legitimized niece. James even wrote Joan an epic love poem that survives today.

  Marrying a relative to the King of Scotland was a pretty good alliance for the English royal family, so they had an incentive to let James go. Eventually, his uncle-regent died, and his cousin came to power, making the Scots more amenable to welcoming James home, as well. James finally went back after insisting he'd marry Joan and would pay his ransom in installments – by sending Scottish hostages from noble families in his place. However, one of the ransom payments was discounted, serving as Joan's dowry.
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  (#12) Catherine of Aragon

  • Dec. at 51 (1485-1536)

  Catherine of Aragon married Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales, in 1501, bringing with her a sizable dowry of 200,000 escudos. However, Arthur died in 1502, and only half of that bridal money had been paid to the English crown. Normally, it would be considered a bit outré for a king to marry his dead brother's widow - but with the promise of more riches to come, how could Henry VIII resist? The marriage was settled, and Catherine became the first of Henry's many wives.

  Just how much was Catherine's dowry worth? Historians estimate that her fortune would have been worth approximately £100,000 at the time, the equivalent of a whole year's income for the English government. It's difficult to say how that would stack up in terms of modern U.S. dollars, but rest assured, it's enough to comfortably retire on.
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  (#16) Consort Jin

  • Dec. at 51 (1873-1924)

  Qing Dynasty concubine Consort Jin received as a part of her dowry settlement an object that has only increased in value and esteem with the passage of time. The Jadeite Cabbage as it is known, is housed in Taiwan's National Palace Museum. The sculpture, which is carved from a single piece of milky white and green jade, features insects hidden among the bok-choy's leaves, as bok-choy was seen as a symbol of purity in the period. The insects symbolize fertility and reproduction, a hope for the newlyweds.

  Though the Jadeite Cabbage was likely not worth an outlandish sum at the time of its creation, it has come to be viewed as an irreplaceable national treasure.
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  (#15) Hannah Sewall Received Her Own Weight In Pine Tree Shillings 

  Hannah Sewall, the daughter of 17th-century Massachusetts Bay Colony mint master John Hull, acquired an unusual albeit fitting dowry: her weight in pine tree shillings made from her father's mint. As the story has it, on the day of her wedding, Hannah was placed upon a scale; on the other side went the shillings, and the bride price was reached when the scale evened out. 

  Though the shillings' worth probably didn't equate to an obscene price (100 pounds of silver was only worth the equivalent of about $1,600), the Hulls get bonus points for good old-fashioned American ingenuity.
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  (#13) Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia

  • Dec. at 67 (1853-1920)

  The daughter of Russian Emperor Alexander II and his first wife Empress Maria Alexandrovna, Maria Alexandrovna brought a great deal of wealth to her marriage with Queen Victoria's son Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. Still, despite Maria Alexandrovna's immense wealth, Queen Victoria was not particularly happy with the match, writing that although she blessed their marriage, she did so "with a very heavy heart."

  Regardless of Queen Victoria's feelings on the nuptials, Emperor Alexander II sent his daughter down the aisle and into her new life in style. For her dowry, he gave 100,000 pounds (a massive sum in 1873), and he granted her another 32,000 pounds a year to live on. Not satisfied with just giving his daughter money, Emperor Alexander is also said to have granted her many precious jewels from the Romanov line, including ones worn by Catherine the Great. And he didn't just gift things to his daughter. Alexander named a ship after his new son in law and made him honorary chief of a Russia Guards regiment.
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  (#14) Mary Tudor, Queen of France

  • Dec. at 37 (1496-1533)

  Henry VIII's sister Mary Tudor's dowry can really best be understood as more of a fine than a gift. After her marriage to France's King Louis XII ended as a result of his demise, Mary Tudor did the unthinkable: she married a man named Charles Brandon for love, and she did so without asking her brother's permission. When Henry VIII found out about the clandestine nuptials, he was furious, and he levied a fine against his sister that roughly corresponded to the dowry from her first marriage plus interest.

  Henry VIII required the couple to return all of the dowry from Mary's first marriage, and he took the famous Mirror of Naples jewel from them. Henry also required the couple to pay a fine of £24,000 (£11,610,000 today) in yearly instalments of £1,000 (£484,000). 

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