Right at the start of the first episode of the miniseries Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Tale, narrator Lady Whistledown (Julie Andrews) says, “It’s not a history lesson, it’s fiction inspired by fact.” But what exactly has been invented and what corresponds to the historical facts? For example, at the very beginning it is claimed that Charlotte (India Amarteifio) before her marriage to King George III. (Corey Mylchreest) was a German princess…
And that’s actually true: married in 1761 Sophie Charlotte, Duchess of Mecklenburg, born in Mirow, the six years older Georg III. William Frederick, King of Great Britain and Ireland. Charlotte was at this point 17 years old – this is also correctly reflected in the spin-off “Bridgerton”. And that the two only met on the day of their wedding, also corresponds to historical facts, just like the 15 children the couple would have.
Was the queen black?
In Bridgerton, Charlotte is played by black actresses. Golda Rosheuvel takes on the role of the older queen when Charlotte is young India Amarteifio to see. And now many viewers will undoubtedly wonder: whether artistic liberties were taken here – or whether the Queen of the United Kingdom was actually black.
In general, many of the roles in the “Bridgerton” universe are cast with people of color. Showrunner Chris van Dusen explained at the beginning of the first season of “Bridgerton” that Shonda Rhimes’ production company Shondaland always follows one principle anyway: “We always cast the best actors* in a way that represents the world today.” Called color-blind casting, where casting decisions are made regardless of skin color (this has been common in theater much longer than in films and series), is not why Queen Charlotte and many members of the royal household are black.
A historical debate about Charlotte
In fact, the occupation is based on a historical debate that has been going on since the 1940s. There is a theory that Charlotte may have been Britain’s first (and then only) black queen. Especially in the past 20 years, there has been more and more talk about it – but also extensive doubts. Among other things, some historical descriptions and a painting give rise to the discussion, the latter is even briefly discussed in “Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story”.
The creators of “Bridgerton” then used this theory to give their story an exciting twist: Namely, to ask what a black queen could have accomplished for equality in the 18th century. As part of the launch of the parent series “Bridgerton”, Shworunner Van Dusen spoke about these aspects: “Could she use her power to raise other people of color in society? give titles? give countries? duchies?”
Thinking game about equality
Exactly these topics, only hinted at in “Bridgerton” so far, are now specifically addressed in the Queen Charlotte prequel. An important part of the plot is the so-called Grand Experiment, tackling Princess Augusta (Michelle Fairley) and the British government, including the King’s marriage to a black woman: to ennoble people of color, thereby gaining more support for the monarchy.
But when it comes to real equality in society and the inheritance of titles and estates, the experiment quickly ends. And those are the challenges that Charlotte takes on – but they must be pointed out above all by the young Lady Danbury (Arsema Thomas).
The Queen does not appear in Julia Quinn’s original “Bridgerton” books, but in the series she is even part of the so-called main cast, and now has her own Netflix role with “Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story” a spinoff. This has led to the release of a new Bridgerton book – the book for the series, written by Julia Quinn and Shonda Rhimes, goes on sale May 9, 2023. The title: “Queen Charlotte – Before the Bridgertons existed, this love changed the world”.