ON THIS DAY IN HERSTORY—A dreaded wedding that will lead to bloodshed.

When Marguerite de Valois first arrived at Court to be with her mother—the powerful Queen Catherine de Médicis—she was eager to be an obedient daughter, and thus embraced her duty to make a political marriage.

Then Margot found herself charmed by the powerful and charismatic Duc de Guise and fell in love with him. This fact didn’t matter one whit when it came to the Princess’s destiny.

While her heart belonged to the Duc de Guise, Margot’s hand in marriage was brokered to Henri of Navarre, her cousin and a powerful Huguenot leader. The match was publicly presented part of a truce and to calm the violence and bring an end to the Wars of Religion in France between the Crown/Catholics and the Protestants. Many accept that at face value and the city of Paris filled with Protestant guests for the big day.

The wedding —which Margot had come to dread—Took place on August 18, 1572. It would be followed only days later by the bloodshed of the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. The impact of that horrific event had a profound effect on Margot’s relationship with her mother.