Barbara Blomberg

Barbara Blomberg, born in 1527 in Ratisbon, was a talented singer and the eldest daughter of Wolfgang Plumberger or Blomberg and Sibilla Lohman. Her life took a significant turn in 1546 when she became the mistress of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V during his visit to Regensburg for the Imperial Diet. This brief liaison led to the birth of her son, John of Austria, on February twenty-fourth, 1547, who was taken from her shortly after birth to be raised in Spain.

Following this pivotal moment, Blomberg married Hieronymus Kegel, an imperial official, and together they moved to Brussels in 1551, where Kegel managed the equipment for the imperial mercenary army. The couple had three children, but their fortunes changed dramatically when Kegel passed away in 1569, leaving Blomberg and her children in financial distress. Fortunately, at the request of the Duke of Alba, the governor of the Netherlands, she received a pension from King Philip II of Spain, her son's half-brother.

In November 1576, Blomberg had the rare opportunity to meet her son John of Austria for the first time since his birth. Following this emotional reunion, she entered a Dominican convent in Castile, located seventy kilometers south of Valladolid. After John of Austria's death in 1578, King Philip II granted her the freedom to choose her residence, leading her to settle first in the village of Colindres and later purchase an estate in Ambrosero, Cantabria, in 1584.

Barbara Blomberg lived out her final years at her estate in Ambrosero, where she passed away at the age of seventy. She was laid to rest in the Church of San Sebastian at the monastery of Montehano, situated between Ambrosero and Santoña, leaving behind a legacy intertwined with the history of her notable son.