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Showing posts from January, 2013

75 Facts about Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands

Princess Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard was born 31 January 1938 { Source } She was born at Soestdijk Palace { Source }. She is the eldest of Queen Julianna & Prince Berhard's daughters{ Source } At her birth, she held the titles: Princess of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange-Nassau and Princess of Lippe-Biesterfeld{ Source } She was named: Beatrix:? Wilhelmina: For her grandmother, Queen Wilhelmina Armgard: ? She has three younger full sisters, Princess Margriet, Princess Irene & Princess Christina{ Source } Through her father, she also has two half-sisters who are illegitimate and were not acknowledged until after his death{ Source }:  Alicia von Bielefeld (1952) Alexia Grinda (1967) During WWII, the family took refuge in the United Kingdom and Canada { Source } She was only two years old when her family fled from The Netherlands in 1940, just ahead of the Nazi occupation during World War II { Source }.   She spent the war in Canada, and her family retur

Royal Profile:Felipe, Prince of Asturias

Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos (aka Felipe, Prince of Asturias ) is the only son of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain  on 30 January 1968, in Madrid, Spain, as the only son and middle child. He was named for: Felipe: No idea? Juan: His paternal grandfather Pablo ( aka Paul ) : His maternal grandfather Alfonso: His paternal great-grandfather Todos los Santos:  a traditional Bourbon name  At his birth, since his father was not yet King nor he heir apparent, he was titled Infante of Spain. Upon his father's succession when he was seven years old, he became His Royal Highness The Prince of Austrias. He swore allegiance to the Constitution and to the King in the Spanish Parliament, fully accepting his institutional role as successor to the Crown on his 18th birthday on 30 January 1986. Felipe started school at Santa Maria de los Rosales (the same institution now attended by his daughter, Leonor). For his high school, he attended Lakefield Colle

Royal Profile: Prince Hashem bin Al Abdullah

Prince Hashem bin Al Abdullah of Jordan was born 30 January 2005, the youngest child and second son of King Abdullah & Queen Rania of Jordan. He has an older brother and two older sisters. At the present time, he is second in line for the Jordian throne after his older brother.  Because he is so young, he is not regularly seen attending to public duties, like most young royals. However, during a 2009 working visit to the US, he was spotted out and about with his mother and siblings { Photos }. Also in 2009, he attended an air show which was organized by the military in cooperation with the British Embassy to celebrate his father's 10th anniversary of his succession to the throne { Source }. In June 2009, he along with his parents, attended the awards ceremony for the 2009 King Abdullah II Award for Physical Fitness awards in which his sister won 4th place { Source }.

Royal Profile: King Abullah II of Jordan

Prince Abdullah bin Al-Hussein ( now King Abdullah II of Jordan )  was born 30 January 1962 the eldest son of King Hussein and his 1st wife, Princess Muna al-Hussein. He has one older half sister from his father's 1st marriage, two younger full brothers, and two younger full sisters, as well as 4 younger half sisters, and 3 younger half brothers. Under the 1952 Constitution, he was considered heir to his father, but due to the unstable times in the 1960s,  his father named his brother, King Abdullah's uncle the heir. The future king attended to his education at various institutions around the world. He attended St. Edmund's School in Hindhead, Surrey, England from 1964-1975. After that, he moved on to Eaglebrook School and then to Derrfield Academy in the United States. Upon graduation, he went back to England to attend the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where he graduated in 1980, and was subsequently commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and served as a troop command

BREAKING: Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands to abdicate in favor of Prince Williem-Alexander & Princess Maxima

On 28 January 2013, it was announced that Queen Beatrix was speaking to the nation for undisclosed reasons at approximately 1900 Dutch time. Speculations began at that point if she were planning on abdicating in favor of her eldest son. Sure enough, that was her announcement . In her announcement, she made it clear that: She believes the time is right for her to abdicate This year is the 200th year of the anniversary of The Netherlands becoming a monarchy. She's not abdicating because she no longer thinks she can handle the position or is tired. She believes it's time for a new generation to lead and that Williem-Alexander & Maxmia will be good for the monarchy. Titles & Line of Succession: Per the websites of the Dutch Royal Court : Prince Williem-Alexander of Oranje will become King Willem-Alexander. Princess Maxima will be come Queen Maxima Princess Catharina-Amalia will become Princess Catharina-Amalia of Oranje (her father's present title, a

The Recap of the Royals You Love: Jan 21-27

Belgium -King Albert II & Queen Paola  attended a reception for representatives of the European Commission on Wednesday { Photos } -Prince Philippe & Princess Mathilde  attebded the "Crystal Awards Ceremony-Exploring Arts in Society" on Tuesday{ Photos } Bhutan -King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck & Queen Jetsun  began a 7 day tour of India on Wednesday { Source } Check back for a full recap soon. Denmark -Crown Prince Fredrik  participated in the Prince Henrik Silver Trophy yacht race on Saturday { Photo } -Crown Princess Mary  attended day 1 of the World Economic Forum (WEF)   on Wednesday { Photo } -Prince Joachim presided over the 2013 Dansk Industris Initiativpris on Wednesday { Source } -Princess Marie  attended the 2013 Prix Littéraire des Ambassadeurs (PLA) on Monday { Photos } -Princess Athena celebrated her 1st birthday on Thursday. German Prussia -Prince Georg Fredrich & Princess Sophie   announced the birth of their

Royal Profile: 35 Facts of Princess Charlene of Monaco

Charlene Lynette Wittstock was born on 25th January 1978 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, Africa { Source } She is the eldest child and only daughter of Michael Kenneth & Lynette Wittstock { Source } She has two younger brothers, Gareth (1980) & Sean Wittstock (1983) { Source } She learned to swim by the time she was 3 years old, because a dog had pushed her into the pool accidentally. She began to swim competitively by the time she was 8 years old. When she was just six years old, she told her mother that she was going to one day win an Olympic Medal for swimming (She came close! See point #10!) In 1989, her family moved from Zimbabwe to South Africa { Source } She developed a passion for swimming at a very early age { Source } When she was 18 years old, she became South Africa's Swimming Champion { Source } She competed in the 2000 Sydney Olyfmpic Games, where South Africa came in 5th in her event.{ Source } In 2000, she won the gold medal for the 200m backstroke event a

Royal Profile: Princess Athena of Denmark

Princess Athena Marguerite Françoise Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat was born 24 January 2012, the 2nd child and only daughter of Prince Joachim & Princess Marie. She has three older brothers, Prince Felix & Prince Nikolai from her father's 1st marriage, and a full brother, Prince Henrik. The young princess was born at Copenhagen University Hospital, weighing 3032 grams (6 pounds, 11oz). Per family tradition, her name was whithled until her christening. Her godparents consisted of: Mr.Gregory Grandet  (her mother's materal half-brother, her uncle) Mr. Edouard Cavallier (her mother's paternal half-brother, her uncle) Miss Carina Axelsson (her father's cousin's long-time girlfriend) Mrs. Julie Mirabaud (her mother's best friend) Mr.  Diego de Lavandeyra (friend of her parents)  Henriette Steenstrup (friend of her parents) She was named for her mother and grandmothers.  Marguerite is the French form of Margarethe. She is presently

Royal Profile: 56 Facts about Princess Caroline of Hanover

Princess Caroline's full title and style at birth was Her Serene Highness Princess Caroline Louise Marguerite, Hereditary Princess of Monaco { Source } Her present full title and style is: Her Royal Highness The Princess Caroline Louise Marguerite of Hanover,  , Hereditary Princess of Monaco  { Source } She has held the title Hereditary Princess of Monaco twice in her lifetime: the time in between  her birth and her brother's from January 1957-March 1958, and from the death of her father in April 2005 to present day. If her brother fails to give an legitimate child or legislation changes to allow Prince Albert’s present offspring to inherit, Princess Caroline will be the 1st reigning Sovereign Princess in 250+ years, and the 1st without a male regent. The last was in 1731, Princess Louise-Hippolyte (who's regent was her husband and cousin, Prince Jean, who also reigned after her death). Princess Louise-Hippolyte was Caroline's 7x great grandmother. She was born on

Royal Profile:Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway

Princess Ingrid Alexandra was born 21 January 2004 at 9:13am in Rikshospitalet University Hospital in Oslo, Norway, the only daughter and oldest child of Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit. She has one older half-brother from her mother, Marius Borg Høiby and one full brother, Prince Sverre Magnus. She is presently 2nd in line for the throne of Norway (thus it's future Queen. When her father takes the role as King of Norway, she will become Crown Princess of Norway). She is also distantly in line for the British throne as a descendant of Edward VII of the United Kingdom (his youngest daughter Princess Maud was her great-great grandmother). She was christened on 14 April 2004, where he godparents were:  King Harald V of Norway (her grandfather) Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden (CP V's greatx4 grandmother was also Ingrid Alexandra's greatx4 grandmother) Felipe, Prince of Asturias (his great-great grandmother was  he

Royal Profile: Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant

Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant  was born 20 January 1973, the daughter of Count Patrick d'Udekem d"Acoz & his wife Countess Anna Maria d'Udekem d'Acoz. She attended primary schools in Bastogne, Belgium before attending Institut de la Vierge Fidèle . She also attended Institut Libre Marie Haps in the early 1990s to become a speech therapist. She began to practice speech therapy in the mid 1990s after graduating while studying for a master's degree in psychology, a degree in which she received in 2002. The future Belgian consort has had a special interest in working with vulnerable people, especially children. In December 2000, she created the Princess Mathilde Fund , which funds projects with the aim at making a difference in the lives of vulnerable people. She also serves as patron to several organizations which deal with the issues and concerns of vulnerable people. She also is an advocate for education, women's rights and projects th

Royal Profile: Sophie, The Countess of Wessex

Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones was born on 20 January 1964 the daughter of Christopher Bournes Rhys-Jones and his wife, Mary (née O'Sullivan; 1934–2005). She was the second of their children and first daughter. Sophie has an older brother, David. Sophie was named after her father's sister, Helen, who died in a riding accident more than a decade before Sophie was born. Her godfather is actor Thane Bettany who is her father's stepbrother. In her early life, her family moved to Brenchley, Kent, where she began to attend school at the Dulwich Preparatory School , before moving on to Kent College, Pembury where she was friends with Sarah Sienesi. She then trained as a secretary at West Kent College, Tonbridge . Sophie started working in the field of Public Relations for a variety of firms, including four years at Capital Radio . She also worked as a ski representative in Switzerland and spent a year travelling and working in Australia. In 1996, with enough experience behind her,she t

The Recap of the Royals You Love: Jan 14-20

Belgium -King Albert II, Queen Paola, Prince Phillippe & Princess Mathilde hosted a New Year reception on Tuesday { Photo } -Princess Mathilde, Duchesfs of Brabant  celebrated her 40th birthday on Sunday. -Princess Claire celebrated her 39th birthday on Friday. Bhutan -Queen Jetsun Pema Wangchuck  attended a presentation of the book entitled  Jewel in the Crown on Saturday { Photo } Denmark -Crown Princess Mary attended the Danish Twin Register’s 60th anniversary symposium at the University of Southern Denmark on Tuesday { Source }. On Tuesday evening, she attended the Hjemmeværnets (Home Guards) New Year concert { Source } Germany -Prince Ernest-August of Hanover  attended the   opening of the rebuilt castle Herrenhausen on Thursday. -Princess Margarita of Baden  died  after a brief illness on Wednesday. Great Britain -Prince Charles of Wales opened the recently restored Florence Institute for Boys, visited Jaguar Land Rover plant, Harrison Advance