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The Royal Diaries facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts


The Royal Diaries is a cool series of 20 books published by Scholastic Press between 1999 and 2005. Each book is like a secret diary written by a real princess or queen when she was a child. The stories are made up, but they feature real historical figures from all over the world!

This series was inspired by Scholastic's popular Dear America series. While Dear America focused on young girls living during important times in American history, The Royal Diaries takes you on a journey to different countries and centuries. Even though the diaries are fictional, each book includes real facts and pictures about the historical person it's about. These books are usually for kids aged 9 to 12.

Meet the Royal Figures

The Royal Diaries introduces you to many famous royal women. You can read about Jahanara, Marie Antoinette, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Queen Elizabeth I, Mary, Queen of Scots, Isabella I of Castile, Cleopatra VII, the Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna, Catherine the Great, Empress Elisabeth, and Queen Victoria.

The series also features less known but equally fascinating women. These include Anacaona of the Taínos, Weetamoo of the Pocassets, the Lady of Ch'iao Kuo of the Hsien, the Lady of Palenque of the Mayans, and Nzingha of Ndongo. Reading these books helps you learn about their lives and the customs of their time.

Books in the Series

Here is a list of all the books in The Royal Diaries series:

  • Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor, England, 1544 by Kathryn Lasky (1999)
  • Cleopatra VII: Daughter of the Nile, Egypt, 57 B.C. by Kristiana Gregory (1999)
  • Isabel: Jewel of Castilla, Spain, 1466 by Carolyn Meyer (2000)
  • Marie Antoinette: Princess of Versailles, Austria-France 1769 by Kathryn Lasky (2000)
  • Anastasia: The Last Grand Duchess, Russia, 1914 by Carolyn Meyer (2000)
  • Nzingha: Warrior Queen of Matamba, Angola, Africa, 1595 by Patricia McKissack (2000)
  • Kaiulani: The People's Princess, Hawaii, 1889 by Ellen Emerson White (2001)
  • Lady of Ch'iao Kuo: Warrior of the South, Southern China, 531 A.D. by Laurence Yep (2001)
  • Victoria: May Blossom of Britannia, England, 1829 by Anna Kirwan (2001)
  • Mary, Queen of Scots: Queen Without a Country, France, 1553 by Kathryn Lasky (2002)
  • Sŏndŏk: Princess of the Moon and Stars, Korea, 595 A.D. by Sheri Holman (2002)
  • Jahanara: Princess of Princesses, India, 1627 by Kathryn Lasky (2002)
  • Eleanor: Crown Jewel of Aquitaine, France, 1136 by Kristiana Gregory (2002)
  • Elisabeth: The Princess Bride, Austria-Hungary, 1853 by Barry Denenberg (2003)
  • Kristina: The Girl King, Sweden, 1638 by Carolyn Meyer (2003)
  • Weetamoo: Heart of the Pocassets, Massachusetts-Rhode Island, 1653 by Patricia Clark Smith (2003)
  • Lady of Palenque: Flower of Bacal, Mesoamerica, A.D. 749 by Anna Kirwan (2004)
  • Kazunomiya: Prisoner of Heaven, Japan, 1858 by Kathryn Lasky (2004)
  • Anacaona: Golden Flower, Haiti, 1490 by Edwidge Danticat (2005)
  • Catherine: The Great Journey, Russia, 1743 by Kristiana Gregory (2005)

TV Movies Based on the Books

In 2000, HBO made three TV movies based on some of The Royal Diaries books:

  • Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor (England, 1544)
  • Isabel: Jewel of Castilla (Spain, 1466)
  • Cleopatra: Daughter of the Nile (Egypt, 57 BC)

The actresses who played these royal characters were Tamara Hope as Elizabeth I, Lisa Jakub as Isabel, and Elisa Moolecherry as Cleopatra. You might have also seen reruns of these movies on Qubo.

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