The Prince of Wales at 70: Happy Birthday!

Tags

Happy Birthday, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Prince William of Wales, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

In honor of the 70th birthday of the Prince of Wales I will give some limited biographical information along with sharing some of my own thoughts.

His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales was born Prince Charles Philip Arthur George; born on this day November 14, 1948. At the time of his birth he was the eldest son and eldest child to HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh (Princess Elizabeth) and her husband HRH The Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark). Prince Charles was born second in line to the throne and was the first grandchild of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. He was baptised in the palace’s Music Room by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, on 15 December 1948.

The death of his grandfather and the accession of his mother as Queen Elizabeth II in 1952 made Charles her heir apparent. As the monarch’s eldest son, he automatically took the titles Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland. Charles attended his mother’s coronation at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953. He is the oldest and longest-serving heir apparent in British history. He is also the longest-serving Prince of Wales, having held that title since 1958.

Charles was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 26 July 1958, though his investiture was not held until 1 July 1969, when he was crowned by his mother in a televised ceremony held at Caernarfon Castle. He took his seat in the House of Lords in 1970, and he made his maiden speech at a debate in June 1974, becoming the first royal to speak in the Lords since his great-great-grandfather, later Edward VII, also speaking as Prince of Wales, in 1884. Charles began to take on more public duties, founding The Prince’s Trust in 1976, and travelling to the United States in 1981.

In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer and they had two sons: Prince William (b. 1982)—later to become Duke of Cambridge—and Prince Henry (b. 1984)—later to become Duke of Sussex. In 1996, the couple divorced following well-publicised extramarital affairs by both parties. Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris the following year. In 2005, Charles married long-time friend Camilla Parker Bowles. Instead of assuming her rightful title of HRH Princess of Wales, Camilla has assumed the title Duchess of Cornwall.

My thoughts.

Yesterday I watched the BBC special on the Prince of Wales 70th Birthday. It is an excellent program that highlights his life without being biographical. One of the issues he put to rest was if he’ll continue with his charities and other issues he is passionate about. He said he would not and that he understands the differences between the role he is in now and the role he will someday take on. This puts to rest the question, the rumor, that the Prince would reign differently than his mother when he becomes king. The fear has been that if the Prince of Wales continues with his charities and causes he may overstep his constitutional bounds as king and meddle in affairs of State. I for one am glad to hear he will not for it will maintain the tradition of the Crown being above Party Politics.

I have a great admiration for the Prince of Wales. He is an intelligent, articulate man with warmth and charm and a sense of humor and very personable. He has a passionate care and concern for the environment and the wellbeing of people in general. Though he has been in training for his ultimate role of king for years he has carved out his own meaningful life and identity and developed qualities that will serve him well as king. Though I hope it will be many more years before the Prince of Wales assumes the august role for which he was born, in his own time I believe the personal qualities he possesses will enable the Prince to become an excellent king and a noble servant to his nation. God bless the Prince of Wales.

Advertisements

Anniversary of the birth of the Old Pretender

Tags

Bonnie Prince Charlie, House of Stuart, James Francis Stuart, John III Sobieski of Poland, Kings and Queens of England, Kings and Queens of Great Britain, kings and queens of Scotland, The Old Pretender

James Francis Edward, Prince of Wales (June 10, 1688-January 1, 1766), nicknamed the Old Pretender, was the son of King James II and VII of England, Scotland and Ireland, and his second wife, Mary of Modena. Only months after James Francis Edward’s birth, his Catholic father was deposed and exiled in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. James II’s Protestant elder daughter, Mary II, and her husband, William III, became co-monarchs and the Bill of Rights 1689 and Act of Settlement 1701excluded Catholics from the British throne.

James Francis Edward was raised in Continental Europe and after his father’s death in 1701, he claimed the English, Scottish and Irish crown as James III of England and Ireland and James VIII of Scotland, with the support of his Jacobite followers and his cousin Louis XIV of France. Fourteen years later, he unsuccessfully attempted to gain the throne in Britain during the Jacobite rising of 1715.

Marriage and progeny

Louise Adélaïde d’Orléans (Mademoiselle d’Orléans), daughter of Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, was at one time suggested as a wife for James Francis Edward Stuart, but nothing came of it.

In March 1717, while James was visiting Modena, he became engaged to his cousin Benedetta d’Este, but her father Rinaldo III put an end to the engagement to preserve his relations with Hanover and Great Britain.

On September 3, 1719, James Francis Edward Stuart married Maria Clementina Sobieska (1702–1735), granddaughter of King John III Sobieskiof Poland. The wedding was held in the chapel of the Episcopal Palace in Montefiascone, near Viterbo. By his wife he had two sons:

1. Charles Edward Stuart (31 December 1720 – 31 January 1788), nicknamed “Bonnie Prince Charlie”
2. Henry Benedict Stuart (11 March 1725 – 13 July 1807), a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church

Following his death in 1766, his elder son, Charles Edward Stuart, continued the claim the British crown as part of the Jacobite Succession.

Incidentally, had James Frances Edward reigned as James III-VIII, he would have reigned as one of the longest British monarchs with his reign lasting 64 years, 3 months, 16 days. This would have been about a year longer than Queen Victoria but not as long as the present Queen, Elizabeth II, who has reigned, as of today, 66 years, 4 months, 4 days.

Tags

Consorts, Happy Birthday, Kingdom of Greece, Prince Philip, Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The Duke of Edinburgh, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Happy Birthday HRH The Duke of Edinburgh

Exerts from Wikipedia

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, 10 June 1921) is the husband and consort of Queen Elizabeth II.

Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark was born in Mon Repos on the Greek island of Corfu on 10 June 1921, the only son and fifth and final child of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg. Philip’s four elder sisters were Margarita, Theodora, Cecilie, and Sophie. He was baptised into the Greek Orthodox Church. His godparents were Queen Olga of Greece (his paternal grandmother) and Alexandros S. Kokotos (the Mayor of Corfu).

A member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Philip was born into the Greek and Danish royal families. He was born in Greece, but his family was exiled from the country when he was an infant. After being educated in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, he joined the British Royal Navy in 1939, aged 18. From July 1939, he began corresponding with the 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth, whom he had first met in 1934. During the Second World War he served with the Mediterranean and Pacific fleets.

After the war, Philip was granted permission by King George VI to marry Elizabeth. Before the official announcement of their engagement in July 1947, he abandoned his Greek and Danish royal titles and became a naturalised British subject, adopting the surname Mountbatten from his maternal grandparents. He married Elizabeth on 20 November 1947. Just before the wedding, he was created Baron Greenwich, Earl of Merionethand Duke of Edinburgh. Philip left active military service when Elizabeth became monarch in 1952, having reached the rank of commander, and was formally made a British prince in 1957.

Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth have four children: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward. He has eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Through a British Order in Council issued in 1960, descendants of Philip and Elizabeth not bearing royal styles and titles can use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor, which has also been used by some members of the royal family who do hold titles, such as Prince Andrew, Princess Anne and Prince Edward.

A keen sports enthusiast, Philip helped develop the equestrian event of carriage driving. He is a patron, president or member of over 780 organisations and serves as chairman of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award for people aged 14 to 24. He is the longest-serving consort of a reigning British monarch and the oldest-ever male member of the British royal family. Philip retired from his royal duties on 2 August 2017, at the age of 96, after having completed 22,219 solo engagements since 1952.

Happy Birthday HRH Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland

Tags

Happy Birthday, Housevof Bernadotte, HRH Princess Madeleine of Sweden, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Kingdom of Sweden

Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland (Madeleine Thérèse Amelie Josephine; born 10 June 1982), is the second daughter and youngest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia. Upon her birth, she was third in line of succession to the Swedish throne. She is currently seventh in the line of succession. Princess Madeleine is married to British-American financier Christopher O’Neill. They have three children, Princess Leonore, Prince Nicolas and Princess Adrienne.

Charles II: Anniversary of his birth and restoration.

Tags

Charles I of England, Charles II, Charles II of England and Scotland, Declaration of Breda, English Civil War, Henri IV of France, Henrietta Maria de Bourbon, Kings and Queens of England, Kings and Queens of Ireland, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Louis XIII of France, Louis XIV, Oliver Cromwell

On this date in history: May 29, 1630. The birth of Charles II, King of England, Scotland and Ireland. On this date in history, May 29, 1660 the restoration of Charles II.


The future Charles II was born at St James’s Palace on May 29, 1630. His parents were Charles I, King of England, Scotland and Ireland) and Henrietta Maria de Bourbon of France, the youngest daughter of Henri IV, King of France and Navarre and Marie de’ Medici. This made Henrietta Maria the sister of the French king Louis XIII and aunt of Louis XIV. Charles was their second child. Their first son was Charles James, Duke of Cornwall born and died on March 13, 1629.


Charles was baptized in the Chapel Royal, on June 27, 1630 by the Anglican Bishop of London, William Laud. The three kingdoms were experiencing great religious diversity at this time. England was predominantly Anglican, while Scotland was staunchly Presbyterian and Ireland was dominantly Catholic. He was brought up in the care of the Protestant Countess of Dorset, though his godparents included his maternal uncle Louis XIII and his maternal grandmother, Marie de’ Medici, the Dowager Queen of France, both of whom were Catholics. With his mother being Catholic this would heavily influence Charles throughout his life.

Upon his birth Charles automatically became inherited the titles Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay. When he became eight he was designated Prince of Wales, though he was never formally invested. Despite never being formally vested with that title he was officially referred to as the Prince of Wales and is counted as one of the 21 heirs to the throne that borne that prestigious title.


At the end of the Second English Civil (1648–1649) his father, Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on January 30, 1649. Shortly thereafter the monarchy was officially abolished in England. Charles was publicly proclaimed King Charles II of Scotland on February 5, 1649 in Edinburgh. On the Isle of Jersey on February 17, 1649 in the Royal Square in St. Helier the former Prince of Wales was proclaimed King. Despite the Parliament of Scotland proclaiming Charles II king, England entered the period known as the English Interregnum or the English Commonwealth, and the country was a de facto republic, led by Oliver Cromwell.


The new king was still willing to fight for his crown. The Parliamentary Army proved to be the greater force and Cromwell defeated Charles II at the Battle of Worcester on September 3, 1651, and Charles fled to mainland Europe. Cromwell became virtual dictator of England, Scotland and Ireland. Charles spent the next nine years in exile in France, the Dutch Republic and the Spanish Netherlands. Life was difficult for the king-in-name-only as finances were slim and he relied on the good graces of others.


A political crisis followed the death of Cromwell in 1658. Cromwell’s son, Richard, ruled as Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland. Richard’s regime soon collapsed and as the three kingdoms teetered on the brink of anarchy, General George Monck, Governor of Scotland under the Cromwells, believed the only one that could restore order was the King. Monck marched south with his army from Scotland and communications with Charles began.

On April 4, 1660, Charles II released the Declaration of Breda, which made known the conditions of his acceptance of the Crown of England, Scotland and Ireland. Monck organised the Convention Parliament, which met for the first time on April 25, 1660. On May 8, 1660, the Convention Parliament declared that King Charles II had reigned as the lawful monarch since the execution of Charles I in January 1649. Charles returned from exile on May 23, 1660. On May 29, 1660, the populace in London acclaimed him as king. It was his 30th Birthday. A new era had begun.

50th Birthday of Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark

Tags

50th Birthday, Birthday, Copenhagen, Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, European Royalty, Frederik IX of Denmark, Gustaf VI Adolph of Sweden, Kings and Queens of Denmark, Prince Henrik of Denmark, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.

Today HRH Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, Count of Monpezat, celebrates his 50th Birthday!


Frederik was born at Rigshospitalet which is the Copenhagen University Hospital in Copenhagen, on May 26, 1968, to the then Princess Margrethe, heir presumptive to the Danish throne, and Prince Henrik, Count of Monpezat. Princess Margrethe was oldest daughter of King Frederik IX of Denmark and Princess Ingrid of Sweden. At the time of Crown Prince Frederik’s birth, his maternal grandfather was on the throne of Denmark and his matrilineal great-grandfather (Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden) was on the throne of Sweden.

He was baptized on June 24, 1968, at Holmens Kirke, in Copenhagen. He was christened Frederik after his maternal grandfather, King Frederik IX, continuing the Danish royal tradition of the heir apparent being named either Frederik or Christian. His middle names honor his paternal grandfather, André de Laborde de Monpezat; his father, Prince Henrik; and his maternal great-grandfather, Christian X.


Frederik’s godparents include Count Etienne de Laborde de Monpezat (paternal uncle); Queen Anne-Marie of Greece (maternal aunt); Prince Georg of Denmark; Baron Christian de Watteville-Berckheim; Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg; and Birgitta Juel Hillingsø.


He became Crown Prince of Denmark when his mother succeeded to the throne as Queen Margrethe II of Denmark on January 14, 1972. Upon his fathers death this past April, Crown Prince Frederik also inherited the title Count of Monpezat.


In the Council of State on October 8, 2003, Queen Margrethe II gave her consent to the marriage of Crown Prince Frederik to Mary Elizabeth Donaldson, an Australian marketing consultant whom the prince met when he was attending the Sydney Olympics in 2000. The wedding took place on May 14, 2004 at Copenhagen Cathedral, Copenhagen.


The couple have four children:

* Prince Christian Valdemar Henri John, born October 15, 2005
* Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe, born April 21, 2007
* Prince Vincent Frederik Minik Alexander, born January 8, 2011
* Princess Josephine Sophia Ivalo Mathilda, born January 8, 2011

Tonight in Copenhagen there are festivities being planed with many, many reigning and non-reigning royals in attendance.

Birth of Queen Victoria

Tags

Edward Duke of Kent, George IV, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, The Prince Regent, William IV of the United Kingdom

On this date: May 24, 1819. Birth of future Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India. She was the daughter Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (4th son of King George III of the United Kingdom) and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

Victoria was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on June 24, 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace. She was baptised Alexandrina, after one of her godparents, Emperor Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. Additional names proposed by her parents—Georgina (or Georgiana), Charlotte, and Augusta—were dropped on the instructions of the Duke’s eldest brother, George, the Prince Regent.

At birth, Victoria was fifth in the line of succession after the four eldest sons of George III: George, the Prince Regent (later George IV); Frederick, the Duke of York; William, the Duke of Clarence (later William IV); and Victoria’s father, Edward, the Duke of Kent.

The Prince Regent had no surviving children, and the Duke of York had no children; further, both were estranged from their wives, who were both past child-bearing age, so the two eldest brothers were unlikely to have any further children. The Duke of Clarence and the Duke of Kent married on the same day in 1818, but both of Clarence’s daughters (born in 1819 and 1820) died as infants. Victoria’s father died in January 1820, when Victoria was less than a year old.

A week later her grandfather died and was succeeded by his eldest son, George IV. The Duke of York died in 1827. When George IV died in 1830, he was succeeded by his next surviving brother, William IV, and Victoria became heir presumptive. The Regency Act 1830 made special provision for the Duchess of Kent (Victoria’s mother) to act as regent in case William died while Victoria was still a minor. King William IV distrusted the Duchess’s capacity to be regent, and in 1836 he declared in her presence that he wanted to live until Victoria’s 18th birthday, so that a regency could be avoided.

In 1837 she succeeded to the throne on the death of her uncle King William IV. She reigned over her vast Empire until her death on January 22, 1901 and a reign of 63 years. At the time she was Britains longest ruling monarch until she was surpassed by her great-great granddaughter Queen Elizabeth II in 2015...

Happy Birthday Your Majesty!

Tags

Duke of Edinburgh, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II, the prince of Wales, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Today is the 92nd birthday of Her Majesty, The Queen.

Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; born 21 April 1926) Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms.

Elizabeth was born in London as the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and she was educated privately at home. Her father acceded to the throne on the abdication of his brother King Edward VIII in 1936, from which time she was the heir presumptive. She began to undertake public duties during the Second World War, serving in the Auxiliary Territorial Service. In 1947, she married Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, a former prince of Greece and Denmark, with whom she has four children: Charles, Prince of Wales; Anne, Princess Royal; Andrew, Duke of York; and Edward, Earl of Wessex.

Happy 92nd Birthday Your Majesty, long may you reign!

</






strong>

Happy Birthday Your Majesty

Tags

Elizabeth II, Happy Birthday, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Happy Birthday 91st to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

October 22…Royal History

Tags

Birthdays, Kaiser Wilhelm II, King George II of Great Britain, King John V of Portugal, Princess Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein

Today is my birthday!! So let’s see what royal related things happened on this day!!

1383 – The 1383–85 Crisis in Portugal: King Fernando dies without a male heir to the Portuguese throne, sparking a period of civil war and disorder.

1727 – George II and Caroline of Ansbach were crowned King and Queen of Great Britain.

1978 – Papal inauguration of Pope John Paul II.

Births:

1071 – William IX, Duke of Aquitaine (d. 1126)
1689 – John V of Portugal (d. 1750) (pictured below)
1701 – Maria Amalia of Austria (d. 1756)
1858 – Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein (d. 1921) Last German Empress, wife of Kaiser Wilhelm II of German, King of Prussia. (Pictured above)

Deaths:

741 – Charles Martel, King of the Franks (b. 688)
1383 – Ferdinand I of Portugal (b. 1345)
1751 – Willem IV, Prince of Orange (b. 1711)
1761 – Ludwig-Georg, Margrave of Baden-Baden (b. 1702)
2002 – Geraldine, Queen of Albania (b. 1915)