Who can turn down a fascinating royal story set in our favourite historical periods? Here is a list of comics and graphic novels centred around European kings and queens adorned with crowns, tiaras and coronets, and brimming with ambition to rule.
At sixteen, Princess Charlotte falls in love with an Austrian archduke, Maximilian of the House of Habsburg. Soon enough, she finds herself enmeshed in the cruel and unpredictable world of international diplomacy as her marriage founders. Increasingly shrewd, naïveté and idealism replaced by practicality and skepticism, Charlotte will help ensure that she and Maximilian are sent to Mexico to reign as emperor and empress…
Moscow, September 17th, 1904. A crowd, brandishing sticks, stones and rotten vegetables, gathers in the forecourt of the palace of Moscow’s Governor. They’re not happy. The state of their country and their standard of living is rapidly becoming intolerable. Up on the balcony, Governor Sergei Alexandrovitch drops his handkerchief…
Was it intentional? Or a tragic accident? Whatever the case may be, it’s the signal: the soldiers open fire on the crowd. In an explosive political context, where the people are gathering together in the fight against an autocratic regime, this unfortunate event is nothing short of a death sentence for the Governor of Moscow…
Entering life at the French royal court, a world in which “what is shown is rarely the truth,” the young Princess of Clèves learns of passion’s torments, of heartbreak, and of the agony of love. Claire Bouilhac and Catel Muller’s graphic-novel adaption of this classic tale—often referred to as the forerunner of the modern psychological novel—remains faithful to the original 17th-century text, while also providing surprising and original insight into both the mystery of the creative act, and the link between the author, Madame de La Fayette, and her heroine, the Princess of Clèves.
In this final volume, Kita and Jay plot their ultimate revenge against the “Glorious Eries,” the secret cabal of Royalists that’s seeking to take back the newly independent American colonies with the covert help of Queen Victoria herself. Meanwhile, the ruthless police commissioner Kurb is on their trail and finds unexpected and unwitting help from the street urchin Pickles. Jay’s family continues to come apart but her estranged mother makes one last attempt to reach out to her. Everything is set in motion now: can anyone change the course of events, or is it too late?
n 1812, in order to keep his stranglehold on Europe, Napoleon had no choice but to declare war on the Russian emperor, Alexander. After three months of marching, his men, starved and exhausted, finally made it to Moscow… only to discover that the city had been deserted. Thus Napoleon and his army took up residence in the Russian capital without even the slightest resistance. But by nightfall, Moscow was on fire. Houses, churches and even the Kremlin were ablaze, and the entire French army risked being reduced to ashes. Caught in the trap, Napoleon was forced to leave the city and get back on the road to face his enemy.
The BattleIt’s May 1809. Napolean’s great army is getting ready to cross the Danube on the immense floating bridge that they constructed overnight on the orders of the France’s most famous military genius. On the other side of the river, Archduke Charles and his Austrian army are waiting for them, determined to get their revenge for the humiliating defeat they suffered at Austerlitz. And so the horror begins…
Game of MasksParis, 1802. Bonaparte has just been proclaimed First Consul, provoking Fouché’s departure from the Police headquarters. The two men are now both set on finding a certain object, stolen by a beautiful prostitute, which could change their destiny. Bonaparte calls on the services of François, a petty thief otherwise known as “The Torpedo,” to recover the mysterious object.
History’s Greatest Villains: 1. Dracula
Everyone knows about Dracula the vampire, but have you ever heard of Voivode Vlad Dracula of Wallachia? Perhaps you know him better by his nickname: Vlad the Impaler! The bloodthirsty prince was the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s notorious character, but although the real Dracula gained infamy for his favorite method of execution—impaling—few know the true details of his life. Swysen and Solé have created an intimate and accurate portrait of this vicious tyrant, allowing you to follow his journey from childhood to death, with guaranteed laughs along the way.
1066King Edward of England is dead. Edward’s son Harold, one of the potential successors, renounces his oath to yield the throne to William of Normandy. From that day forth, William will have no peace until his rightful claim to the throne is acknowledged. As the famous Halley comet soars across the heavens, giving rise to much speculation among the scholars of the time, William, Duke of Normandy, launches into the arrangements for the conquest that will change the face of England — one of the most formidable military expeditions History has ever seen.
Cover banner from Empress Charlotte © Fabien Nury, Matthieu Bonhomme / Dargaud
