Posts

Showing posts from August, 2013

Royal Profile: Queen Rania of Jordan

Queen Rania of Jordan was born 31 August 1970 as Rania  al Yassin and the daughter of two Palestinians form Tulkarm. During her youth, she attended schools in Kuwait and Turkey, earning a degree in Business Adminstration. After graduation, she worked for marketing departments for various international banks and computer companies { Source }. In January 1993, she met her future husband and then Crown Prince of Jordan at a dinner party, and after a brief courtship and engagement, they were married in June 1999{ Source }. Their first child was born a year later in June 1999, followed by baby # 2 two years later, and two more children after that in 2000 and 2004{ Source }. She once said, “I just wake up and feel like a regular person. At the end of the day you are living your life for the people that you represent. It’s an honour and a privilege to have that chance to make a difference – a qualitative difference in people’s lives – and it’s my responsibility to make the most out of

Royal Profile: Queen Anne-Marie of Greece

Queen Anne-Marie Dagmar Ingrid of Greece was born Princess Anne-Marie Dagmar Ingrid of Denmark, the third child of King Fredrick IX of Denmark and Queen Ingrid of Denmark on 30 August 1946 {Source}. She has two older sisters, Queen Margarethe II of Denmark & Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg  { Source }. Her godparents were:  King Christian X of Denmark (paternal grandfather) Queen Alexandrine of Denmark (paternal grandmother) King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden (maternal grandfather) Prince Bertil of Sweden (maternal uncle) King Haakon VII of Norway (maternal 1st cousin 1x removed) Prince Geogre of Greece (paternal 1st cousin 1x removed) Crown Princess Märtha of Norway (maternal 1st cousin 1x removed) Queen Juliana of the Netherlands (maternal 1st cousin 1x removed) Princess Dagmar of Denmark (paternal great-aunt) Queen Mary of the United Kingdom The young princes attended schools in Denmark, and Switzerland. She began attendi

Royal Profile: Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark

Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark , was born 26 August 1980 as  Tatiana Ellinka Blatnik in Venezula but raised primarily in Europe by her mother and stepfather { Source } Tatiana's biological father died when she was six, and she has an older brother { Source }. She studied at Georgetown University, recieving her bachelors degree in sociology in 2003 { Source }. After graduation, she began to work in the publicity department  as an event planner for fashion designer  Diane von Fürstenberg { Source }. Princess Tatiana resigned in July 2010 to focus on her wedding plans { Source }. She had become engaged to Prince Nikolas of Greece and Denmark in July 2009 { Source }. They were married in a ceremony in Greece in August 2010 { Source } Since her marriage, she has made numerous public appearances.  She has attended numerous royal weddings including Crown Princess Victoria's , Prince William's , Princess Nathalie's  and  Princess Madeleine's , numerous Fashion W

Royal Profile: Prince Nikolai of Denmark

His Highness Prince Nikolai William Alexander Fredrik of Denmark, Count of Monpezat was born 28 August 1999, the elder of the two sons of Prince Joachim and Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg{ Source }. His is the oldest of Queen Margarethe II and Henrik, Prince Consort's grandchildren{ Source }. At present, he has one younger brother, one younger half brother and a younger half-sister, the half-siblings being from his father's second marriage to Princess Marie{ Source }. His siblings are Prince Felix , Prince Henrik , and Princess Athena { Source }. Prince Nikolai was christened in chapel of Fredensborg Palace on 6 November 1999. At the christening the musical work Lys på din vej composed by Frederik Magle, dedicated to Prince Nikolai, was given its first performance. His godparents are: Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark (his paternal uncle) Nicola Baird (his maternal aunt) The Prince Edward, The Earl of Wessex Peter Steenstrup Camilla Flint He is named for: Nikol

Royal Profile: Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester

Prince Richard Alexander Walter George, The Duke of Gloucester  was born 26 August 1944, the second son of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Princess Alice, The Duchess of Gloucester { Source }. He is the youngest grandchild of King George V and a first cousin to Queen Elizabeth  { Source }. It was not anticipated that he would become the Duke of Gloucester as his elder brother Prince William of Gloucester stood in front of him for the role{ Source }. However, when his brother was killed in a flying accident on 28 August 1972, that changed { Source }. He succeeded his father in the role of Duke of Gloucester in June 1974 { Source }. Although distantly in line for the throne, he began taking on a public duty very early on in life. At four months old, he accompanied his parents to Australia while his father served as Australia's Governor General from 1945-1947 { Source }. His education began as most royals did during that time, at home  { Source }. He then attended The We

Royal Profile: Princess Maria Laura Zita Beatrix Gerhard of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este

Princess Maria Laura Zita Beatrix Gerhard of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este was born 26 August 1988, the second child and oldest daughter of Prince Lorenz, Archduke of Austria-Este and Princess Astrid of Belgium at the University Clinic St. Luc,Woluwe-St-Lambert, Belgium{ Source }. She is currently seventh in line to the Belgian throne after her four cousins, mother and elder brother. She has one older brother, Prince Amedeo (b. 1986), one younger brother, Joachim and two younger sisters: Princess Luisa Maria and Princess Laetitia Maria   { Source }.  Her godparents are her paternal uncle Archduke Gerhard of Austria-Este and her elder paternal aunt Archduchess Maria Beatrix of Austria-Este, Countess von und zu Arco-Zinneberg{ Source }. Until 1993, she resided in Basel, Switzerland, at which point her parents relocated to Belgium{ Source }. She was educated at the Jesuit school College Sint Jan Berghmans in Brussels{ Source }. She completed her secondary education at the St

The Royal Recap of the Royals You Love: August 19-25

Belgium -Prince Gabriel  celebrated his 10th birthday on Tuesday. Germany -Duchess Eilika of Oldenburg  celebrated her 41st birthday on Thursday. Great Britian -Gary Lewis  celebrated his 43rd birthday on Sunday. Jordan -Queen Noor  celebrated her 62nd birthday on Friday. Monaco -K. Sébastien Knecht de Massy   celebrated his 41st birthday on Saturday. -Alexandre Éric Stéphane Coste  celebrated his 10th birthday on Saturday. Morocco -King Mohammed VI  celebrated his 50th birthday on Wednesday. Norway - Crown Prince Haakon & Crown Princess Mette-Marit  celebrated their 12th wedding anniversary on Sunday.   - Crown Princess Mette-Marit  celebrated her 40th birthday on Monday. Spain -King Juan Carlos  attended the XXXV edition Santiago Bernabeu Trophy on Thursday { Source } Sweden -King Carl XVI Gustaf & Queen Silvia  visited Örebro County on Tuesday { Source }. On Wednesday, they visited Västra Götaland County { Source }. On Thursday, the R

Royal Profile: Gary Lewis

Gary Lewis  was born 25 August 1970, the 2nd of 4 children, with an older sister and two younger brothers, is the son of Larry Lewis & Viki Carr. He was previously married and has a son from that relationship, Ari { Source } He married Lady Davina Lewis on 31 July 2004 at the Chapel at Kensington Palace { Source }. They met while  they were both on vacation in Bali in 2000-she was recovering from her university studies in the US, while he was on a surfing holiday { Source }. Before their wedding ceremony, thirty members of his family were treated to a London sight seeing tour by The Duchess of Gloucester { Source }. After their wedding ceremony, the couple moved to New Zeland, anticipating a stay of six months-that was 9 years ago { Source }. Together, they have two children: Senna Kowhai Lewis (2010) Tāne Mahuta Lewis (2012) Like his wife, he does not carry out any official functions on behalf of the Queen. However, they are invited to family events, such as weddings (t

Royal Profile:Alexandre Éric Stéphane Coste

Born Alexandre Éric Stéphane Tossoukpé in Paris, France on 24 August 2003, Alexandre Éric Stéphane Coste is the son of Prince Albert of Monaco and Nicole Coste, which makes him the younger half-brother of Jazmin Grace Grimaldi { Source }. He also has two older half-brothers who live with their father, Nicole's ex-husband, in South America. He is also the step-son of Princess Charlene of Monaco , and nephew of Princess Caroline & Princess Stephanie of Monaco, Countess of Polinac . His mother Nicole changed their surname to Coste on 10 November 2004, a move in which is believe to be in homage to Prince Albert's lawyer, Thierry La Coste. His mother owns a villa just outside of Monaco in Villefranche-sur-Mer, France and has an apartment in Paris{ Source }. It is believed that one of these is their primary residence and that Alexandre attends school in either Paris or Villefranche-sur-Mer. At present, Alexandre should be preparing to enter 8ème, this is equal to the 4th gra

Royal Profile: K. Sébastien Knecht de Massy

Keith Sébastien Knecht de Massy was born the son of Christine Alix de Massy and Charles Wayne Knecht on 24 August 1971, in Philadelphia, PA{ Source }. In addition to being a 1st cousin once removed of the present reigning Monégasque Princely Family, he is also a distant cousin of the family on their maternal side as his father was a cousin of Princess Grace { Source }. He is a member of his aunt Elisabeth-Anne de Massy’s organization, All-sports Country team ( A.S.Co.T., Team Monaco captain of the tennis tournament. He also serves as founder and director of the board to his wife's organization, ConservationGuardians { Source }. After obtaining his BA in business, Sébastien moved to Lima, Peru to work for Grana y Montero Petrolera { Source }.. After living in Peru he moved back to Monaco and started his shipping career with the V. Ships Group{ Source }.. This brought him to live in London, Singapore and Paris. In 2005 Sébastien founded Madison Marine and today controls a flee

Royal Profile: Queen Noor of Jordan

Queen Noor was born 23 August 1951 as Lisa Najeeb Halaby  { Source }. She attended Princeton University  as part of it's first co-educational class, earning a B.A. in Architecture and Urban Planning in 1974  { Source }. After graduation, she began a career working  on international urban planning and design projects in Australia, Iran, the United States and Jordan { Source }. Four years after graduating university, she gave up her American citizenship and converted to the Muslim religion in order to marry King Hussein bin Talal of Jordan  { Source }. Together, they have 2 sons and 2 daughters, as well as 4 children-in-law and 5 granddaughters: Prince Hamzah bin al Hussein of Jordan (1980)-->married secondly to Princess Basma Bani-Ahmad Princess Haya bint Hamzah (2007, from his 1st wife) Princess Zein bint Hamzah (2012, from his second wife) Prince Hashim bin Al Hussein of Jordan (1981)--->married Princess Fahdah Princess Halaah bint Hashim of Jordan (2007)

Royal Profile: Duchess Eilika of Oldenburg

Duchess Eilika Helene Jutta Clementine of Oldenburg was born 22 August 1972, the daughter of    Johann Friedrich Adolf of Holstein-Gottorp , Duke of Oldenburg and Countess Ilka to Ortenbourg { Source }.  She married Archduke Paul of Austria in October 1997 { Source }. Together, they have three children{ Source }: Archduchess Zsófia Mária Tatjana Monika Erzsébet Katalin of Austria (Sophie Maria Tatiana Monica Elisabeth Catherine)(2001) Archduchess Ildikó Mária Walburga of Austria (Hilda Maria Walburga) (2002) Archduke Károly-Konstantin Mihály István Mária of Austria (Karl-Konstantin Michael Stephan Maria) (2004) She resides in Hungary with her family and more than likely leads a fairly normal life.

Royal Profile:50 Facts about King Mohammed VI

King Mohammed VI  was born 21 August 1963 { Source } He is the eldest son of King Hassan II and his wife Lalla Latifa Hammou{ Source } He has three sisters and a brother{ Source } He was educated primarily in Morocco { Source } When he was 4 years old, he began attending the Koranic School at the Royal Palace { Source } He attended to the rest of his primary education at Royal College  { Source } He earned the bacclaurate in 1981 { Source } He obtained a Bachelor's degree in law at the Mohammed V University at Agdal in 1985{ Source } His B.A. Thesis was entitled  The Arabo-African Union and the Kingdom’s strategy in the international relations  { Source }. He earned a First Certificate of High Studies in Political Sciences and a Second Certificate in Public Law in July 1988  { Source } He interned at the  Commission of the European Economic Communities  { Source }. In 1993, he received a doctor in law with distinction from University of Nice-Antipolis  { Source } He wa

Royal Profile: 10 Facts about Prince Gabriel of Belgium

Prince Gabriel Baudouin Charles Marie of Belgium was born 20 August 2003{ Source } He is the eldest son of King Philippe & Queen Mathilde  { Source } He has one older sister and two younger siblings{ Source }: The Duchess of Brabant(2001) Prince  Emmanuel   (2005) Princess Eléonore   (2008) His godparents are{ Source }: Baroness Maria Christina von Freyberg (Second cousin of his father) Count Charles-Henri d'Udekem d'Acoz (maternal uncle) Education: Sint-Jan Berchmanscollege (2005-Present) He was named: Gabriel:  Continues the tradition of El-/-el names in the family Baudouin : For his great-uncle, King Baudouin of Belgium. Charles : For his maternal uncle and godfather, Count Charles-Henri d'Udekem d'Acoz Marie: For the Virgin Mary, as per tradition with Catholic royalty. He is 2nd in line for the Belgian throne after his sister, Princess Elisabeth, The Duchess of Brabant He likely speaks Dutch, French and German. He is the 7th grandc

Royal Profile:40 Facts about Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway

Crown Princess Mette-Marit was born Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby on 19 August 1973{ Source }. Her parents divorced { Source } Her parents have both since remarried { Source } She has a sister, and two older brothers{ Source } When her mother remarried in 1994, she gained at least a stepbrother. The Crown Princess completed her upper secondary education at Kristiansand Katedralskole in 1994{ Source }. During her time at upper secondary school, she spent a year abroad as an exchange student at Wangaratta High School in Australia{ Source }. Later the Crown Princess attended Bjørknes Private School { Source }.  In 1997 she took Examen philosophicum (the preliminary university examination) as well as examinations in chemistry and information technology at Agder University College{ Source }.  In 2000-2002 she studied ethics at the Faculty of Social Science and the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Oslo{ Source }. In 2003 the Crown Princess followed courses at the School of

The Royal Recap of the Royals You Love: August 12-18

Denmark -Princess Isabella  started her first day of school at Tranegard school on Tuesday { photos } -Prince Joachim & Princess Marie  attended the launch of the new Nydambåd. Nydam yard, Sottrupskov 15, Sønderborg on Saturday { Source } -Princess Marie  visited the H.C. Andersen Børnehospital { Source } and the Espergærde Skole { Source }on Tuesday. -Countess Ingrid Alexandra Irma Astrid Benedikte von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth  celebrated her 10th birthday on Friday. Great  Britain -Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh   presented the Royal Medals of the Royal Society of Edinburgh on Monday { Source } -The Princess Anne, The Princess Royal  celebrated her 63rd birthday on Thursday. -Prince William, The Duke of Cambridge visited the Anglesey Agricultural Show on Wednesday { Photos } -The Lady Fredrick Windsor gave birth to her first child on Wednesday { Source }. Lady Fredrick and Lord Fredrick named their daughter Maud Elizabeth Daphne Marina Windsor { Sou

Royal Profile: Countess Ingrid Alexandra Irma Astrid Benedikte von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth

Countess Ingrid Alexandra Irma Astrid Benedikte von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth was born 16 August 2003 in Denmark, the daughter of Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth & Princess Alexandra  of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, Countess von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth { Source }. She has one older brother, Count Friedrich Richard Oscar Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth{ Source }. She was christened in Germany in December 2003, with the following as her godparents { Source }: Countess Bettina von Pfeil and Klein-Ellguth (her paternal aunt) Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (her maternal aunt) Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark (her maternal 1st cousin 1x removed) Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark  (her maternal 1st cousin 1x removed) Prince Georg of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein Martin Bleyer She is named for: Ingrid : For her maternal great-grandmother Queen Ingrid of Denmark Alexandra : For her mother, Princess Alexandra  of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berlebur

Royal Profile: Princess Luisa of Savoy

Princess  Luisa Giovanna Agata Gavina Bianca Maria o f Savoy is the younger of the two biological children of Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice and Piedmont & his wife, French actress Clotilde Courau , and was born 16 August 2006 in Geneva, Switzerland{ Source }. She is a great-grandchild of the last King of Italy and the granddaughter of the present pretender to the throne, Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, and his wife Marina. She also has two adopted brothers who were adopted from Kenya in January 2011, Alan and Moses, and a sister named Vittoria, who was born in 2003 { Source }. I imagine the family is living a relatively normal life in either France or Switzerland, where she likely goes to school. I also imagine that with a French mother and Italian father, she speaks at least both French and Italian.

Royal Profile: The Princess Anne, The Princess Royal

The Princess Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise, The Princess Royal was born 15 August 1950, the second child and only daughter of The Duke of Edinburgh and Queen Elizabeth II  { Source }. She has three brothers, one older and two younger{ Source }: The Prince Charles of Wales The Prince Andrew, Duke of York The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex In October 1950 at two months old, she was baptized Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise Mountbatten-Windsor { Source }, with the following as godparents: The Queen--later Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother (her maternal grandmother) (where Elizabeth likely comes from) The Hereditary Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (her paternal aunt) (Princess Margarita) Princess Alice of Greece and Denmark (her paternal grandmother) (where Alice comes from likely) The Earl Mountbatten of Burma (her paternal granduncle) (Louis) The Hon. and Rev. Andrew Elphinstone (her mother's cousin, her 1st cousin once removed) She was named: Anne:  likely a name her