Top 10 Most Tragic Love Stories In History

This is one of the most tragic love stories in history that Shakespeare focused on. The two met when the Roman Republic was crashing. Cleopatra, an Egyptian queen, seduced the powerful general who was already married into a romantic political alliance between the two territories. The alliance later became sour when Octavian, the future emperor, convinced the senate that Mark Anthony was hungry for power and had been bewitched by the Egyptian queen. Cleopatra and Anthony chose to commit suicide instead of being captured.

The story of Heloise and Abelard was turned into one of the best pieces of classic literature by Alexander Pope – a British poet. Heloise and Abelard were in love before everything ended tragically in France back in the 12th century. Abelard was twenty years older than Heloise. The romance was disapproved of by her uncle. It was so serious that Abelard was castrated when they were discovered. Stressed out, the lovebirds entered the monastery and wrote each other love letters. Till their death, they never saw each other again.

You’ve probably heard of the Taj Mahal, right? While it’s a famous tourist destination in the world, it was once a declaration of love. Shah Jahan built it back in the 17th century as a final resting place for his wife. Mumtaz Mahal was the third wife of the ruler. He loved her more than the other wives. She died during childbirth. His grief propelled him to start building the Taj Mahal. The palace took 23 years to be completed. And he finally joined her when he died in 1666.

This love story is added to the list: Top 11 Most Famous Lovers In Indian History

Ines de Castro stole the heart of prince Pedro who was heir to the throne of Portugal. In 1349, Constance died and Pedro did his best to make Ines his queen. At this moment, the two had three children. However, Pedro’s father intervened bashed Ines, and had her murdered when distance couldn’t keep them apart. This act led to a civil war and Pedro claimed victory. He later exhumed the body, built a royal tomb, and had everyone in Portugal swear allegiance to his love.

This is one of the most tragic love stories in history that happened close to a decade ago from one of the unlikeliest sources – The Royal Family. Queen Victoria genuinely loved Prince Albert. The untimely death of Prince Albert devastated Queen Victoria and shook the foundation of the most powerful monarch. Victoria wore black clothes for the rest of her life and spent most of her time in seclusion. When she passed away in 1901, she was laid to rest in their mausoleum.

Rachel Donelson was one of the most controversial first ladies. She was married to Lewis Robards before she fell in love with Andrew Jackson and wed in 1791. She believed that Lewis had finalized the divorce process. However, he didn’t file the papers till 1793. Back then, a divorce was something that was highly frowned upon. Jackson’s opponents used this story against him when he was running for the presidency. They referred to her as a woman of loose morals. She got stressed out and aggravated a pre-existing heart condition. Rachel passed away two months before Jackson became president. Jackson was shocked by the incident. He clung to his wife for a long time hoping that she would wake up.

The famous French soldier, Napoleon Bonaparte married Josephine de Beauharnais, a widow with two children from the previous marriage. A few days after their marriage, Napoleon left for a military campaign and left Josephine alone. She later initiated an affair with Hippolyte Charles – a lieutenant. When Napoleon discovered this, he started an affair too. Later, he found out that Josephine couldn’t bear children. Therefore, he divorced her. Despite his anger toward her, he loved her to the end.

The relationship between the Serbian King and a widow who was 12 years older led to outrage across the country. However, nothing stopped the king from marrying the love of his life. The King was so in love with Draga that he wanted one of her brothers to be declared heir to the throne. The Senate didn’t approve this and later, a group of military officers took action. They invaded the palace and murdered the couple.

There is no list of tragic love stories in history that is complete without this masterpiece that was written by Shakespeare back in the 16th century. His work was inspired by an Italian tale. The one thing that makes this story unique is the inclusion of family members of both Romeo and Juliet who were feuding. This is one of the most tragic love stories.

Tristan and Isolde is a classic romance about a princess who pledged to marry a king and later got involved with his nephew – Tristan. The two lovebirds eventually separate.

If you want to learn more about this tragic love story, you can watch this movie – “Tristan and Isolde”