Earl of Snowdon, former husband of Princess Margaret, has died.

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2nd Earl of Snowdon, Armstrong-Jones, Baron, Earl of Snowdon, House of Lords, of Nymans, Princess Margaret, Viscount Linley

It has been reported that Lord Snowden died in his sleep aged 86. His son, with Princess Margaret, David Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley, becomes the 2nd Earl of Snowdon.

Here is some biographical info on him related to royal history.

Antony Charles Robert Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, GCVO, RDI (7 March 1930 – 13 January 2017), commonly known as Lord Snowdon, was an English photographer and film maker. He was married to Princess Margaret, younger daughter of King George VI and younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II.

In February 1960, Snowdon, then known as Antony Armstrong-Jones, became engaged to the Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret, and they married on 6 May 1960 at Westminster Abbey. The couple made their home in apartments at Kensington Palace. As he was a commoner, he was created Earl of Snowdon and Viscount Linley, of Nymans in the County of Sussex on 6 October 1961 due to concerns over the prospect of a British princess giving birth to a child without a title. The Snowdon title has centuries-old royal associations, since the name Snowdon was borne by the Welsh princes and the House of Gwynedd before 1282, though here it was granted as a nod to Armstrong-Jones’s Welsh ancestry. A Barony of Snowdon (sometimes spelled Snaudon) was a subsidiary title of King George II’s son Frederick, Prince of Wales. The subsidiary Linley title honoured Lord Snowdon’s great-grandfather Linley Sambourne as well as Nymans, the Messel family estate in West Sussex.

The couple had two children: David Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley, born 3 November 1961, and Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones, born 1 May 1964.

The marriage began to collapse early and publicly.

On 16 November 1999 Lord Snowdon was created Baron Armstrong-Jones, of Nymans in the County of West Sussex This was a life peerage given him so that he could keep his seat in the House of Lords after the hereditary peers had been excluded. An offer of a life peerage was made to all hereditary peers of the first creation (those for whom a peerage was originally created, as opposed to those who inherited a peerage from an ancestor) at that time.

The government of the day had expected Lord Snowdon to follow the example of members of the royal family and turn down his right to a life peerage. At the time, Labour MP Fraser Kemp said he was “shocked and surprised that someone who achieved their position in the House of Lords by virtue of marriage should accept a seat in the reformed Lords”.

He retired from the House of Lords on 31 March 2016.

 

Queen has cancelled her plans to travel to Sandringham today due to illness.

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Illness, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Sandringham

BREAKING NEWS: The Queen has cancelled her plans to travel to Sandringham today.

Further details to follow when available.

I do not want to be an alarmist, but when I first saw the picture attached here, I didn’t think Her Majesty looked too well. I hope this is nothing and that things will be alright.

Queen Cancels Plans due to illness.

 

64 Years on the Throne

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Buckingham Palace, Elizabeth II, England, George VI, King George VI of the United Kingdom, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Queen Elizabeth II

Today HM Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland marks the 64^th year on the throne. Her father, King George VI, died on this date, February 6, 1952. Last September 2015, Her Majesty became Britain’s longest ruling monarch when she surpassed her great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria (1837-1901) who reigned for 63 years and seven months.

Her Majesty is also the oldest sovereign to reign. Queen Victoria also held that record. She was 82 when she passed away in 1901. At age 89 Her Majesty broke that record seven years ago. This April 21, Her Majesty will turn 90 and many celebrations are planned in Britain for this momentous milestone.

Almost 90 and having been queen for 64 years Her Majesty shows no sign of slowing down. Her calendar is full, although maybe not as full as years past for the Prince of Wales has taken over some of her work. Still, unless some heath crisis appears Her Majesty will continue to press forward.

Although today we mark the 64^th year Her Majesty came to the throne, within the Royal Family itself these dates are rarely acknowledged publicly. For royal historians such as my self and other royal enthusiasts this is a special day, for Her Majesty this is the day her father died and that is something to be noted but not celebrated. What we will celebrate is the dedication and the long life of service to her country and long may she continue to reign.

 

HRH Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge

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Constitutional Monarchy, Diana, Duke of Edinburgh, Elizabeth II, George III, George IV, King George V of Great Britain, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, Princess of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the prince of Wales

Some interesting facts about the new Princess Charlotte of Cambridge and the history of the name in the Biritish Royal Family.

Princess Charlotte is 4th in line to the throne after her grandfather, The Prince of Wales, her father, the Duke of Cambridge, and her brother Prince George of Cambridge. Should she have a younger brother he will not supplant her in the line of succession due to the change in succession laws. She is the first female in line to the throne. She will only be supplanted in the succession if and when her brother Prince Gorge of Cambridge has children in the future. God forbid anything happening to Prince George of Cambridge, but if it did Charlotte would become her father’s heir and eventually Queen Regnant. This would happen even if Charlotte were to have younger brothers.

She is the first Princess of Cambridge born since 1833 when HRH Princess Mary-Adelaide of Cambridge (1833-1897) was born. Princess Mary-Adelaide of Cambridge was the daughter of HRH Prince Adolphus-Frederick, Duke of Cambridge (1774-1850) (7th son of King George III) and HSH Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel (1797-1889). Princess Mary-Adelaide of Cambridge was a first cousin of Queen Victoria and married Francis, Duke of Teck (1837-1900) in 1866. Their daughter, Mary of Teck (1867-1953) married the future King George V of the United Kingdom 1893 making her the grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II. This means that Princess Mary-Adelaide of Cambridge is the great-great-great-great grandmother of the newest Princess of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge.

There have been other Princesses named Charlotte in the Royal Family. First of all there was Queen Charlotte (1744-1818) wife of King George III of the United Kingdom. Queen Charlote was born HSH Princess Sophia-Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and daughter of Duke Carl-Ludwig of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1708-1752) and HSH Princess Elizabeth of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1713-1761). It has been said that Queen Mary resembled her great-grandmother Queen Charlotte and that in turn, Queen Elizabeth II resembles Queen Mary and conversely, Queen Charlotte.

The eldest daughter of King George III and Queen Charlotte was HRH The Princess Charlotte, The Princess Royal (1762-1828). In the future she would marry King Friedrich of Würrtemberg (1754-1816) as his second wife. This is the same royal dynasty that produced Francis, Duke of Teck.

King George III’s eldest son, the future George IV (1761-1820), had only one daughter, Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796-1817) from his disastrous marriage with his cousin Princess Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. In 1817 Charlotte married HSH Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. Sadly, Princess Charlotte of Wales never lived to succeed her father as Queen. She died in childbirth in 1817. Her husband went on to be elected King of the Belgians in 1831.

Another aspect of the birth of Princess Charlotte of Cambridge is that everyone in line after her takes one step back in the sucession. Princess Charlotte’s uncle, Prince Harry of Wales, is now 5th in line to throne. He was born 3rd in line. But who it affects most is Princess Beatrice of York who falls beck to 7th in line to the throne. Under the new laws of succession only the first 6 in line to the throne have to seek permission of the Sovereign to marry. This means that Princess Beatrice of York does not have to ask the Queen permission to marry. Should the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have another child this would push the Duke of York to 7th inline to the throne meaning he would no longer need his mother’s permission to marry once again.

Lastly, The Duke of Cambridge’s uncle, The Earl Spencer, has a two year old daughter named Lady Charlotte Diana Spencer. So the name Charlotte has a strong history behind it!

It’s a Princess!!

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Prince Harr, Prince Philip, The Duchess of Cambridge, The Prince of Wales & The Duchess of Cornwall, The Queen

Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge was safely delivered of a daughter at 8.34am. The baby weighs 8lbs 3oz. The Duke of Cambridge was present for the birth. The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales & The Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Harry & members of both families have been informed. Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well.

As soon as the names are announced I will do a nice blog post on the new Princess of Cambridge!

Happy Tenth Wedding Anniversary to the Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall: Time to Heal

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Diana, Diana Princess of Wales, HM Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh, the prince of Wales

It has been 10 years since the Prince of Wales married Camilla Parker-Bowles at Windsor Guildhall.  After 10 years the marriage seems as strong as every and I personally think that HRH The Duchess of Cornwall is an excellent companion and spouse for her husband. This marriage was not without controversy and many were against this marriage and are against the Duchess of becoming queen upon the succession to the throne by the Prince of Wales.

Although the Duchess of Cornwall is legally the Princess of Wales it is a title she doesn’t use out of deference to the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Clarence House announced at the time of the marriage that when the Prince of Wales becomes king the Duchess of Cornwall will be called HRH The Princess Consort instead of Queen. Now the truth is the Duchess will legally be Queen and that it will take an act of Parliament to remove the title Queen from the Duchess. Despite a growing attitude that more people want the Duchess to be queen it still seems like a controversial topic.

http://royalcentral.co.uk/charlesandcamilla/half-of-brits-want-camilla-to-be-queen-new-poll-shows-47011

I am an American and most of my observation on this topic comes from social media. I belong to several groups and pages dedicated to royalty (I even run one myself) and this is still a hot topic for both sides. There seems to be an equal mix of those that support the Duchess and those that…well, there is no other way to put it….they hate her! The hatred comes from what I call overzealous Diana supporters. The sad thing to me about that is the fact that it has been eighteen years since Diana, Princess of Wales died and there are some who have not, or will not, let go of their hatred. I just don’t think holding onto that much anger or resentment is healthy. My thought is, if Diana had lived she would have forgiven the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall moved on with her life, possibly even remarried. So I wonder why those that still love and support her do not let go of their anger like she would have?

Her sons, The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry of Wales, have accepted the Duchess of Cornwall as have Her Majesty the Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh and the rest of the royal family. They all know her more intimately than any of us, so I trust their judgment. From all accounts that I have read the Duchess of Cornwall is a kind and caring woman. She is much better suited for the Prince of Wales than Diana was. That is a sad truth and that takes nothing away from the good heart and loving caring ways in which Diana, Princess of Wales lived her life. I also loved and admired Diana, Princess of Wales and that leads me to my closing point.

There is enough love to go around for both of them. In my life one of the things that gives me meaning is seeking healing. I long for people to heal on the inside and I long to help heal the discord between people. A lot of time has passed and it is time to heal the rift between those that support the Duchess of Cornwall and those that still remember fondly Diana, Princess of Wales. For me the bigger picture is the future of the monarchy. And as I said at the conclusion of my series, Survival of Monarchies, the monarch rules by the will of the people and if the divide continues and is very vocal it could have a negative affect on the monarchy.

The Duchess of Cornwall is a great support for the Prince of Wales and I think she has shown herself to be an important member of the royal family. It is time to heal and let us all show support for the entire royal family and be grateful they are still around providing welcome service to their country. Here is wishing the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall a happy tenth wedding anniversary and praying for more happy years to come!

King Philippe of the Belgians

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California, Duchess of Brabant, King Albert II of the Belgians, King Leopold I of Belgium, King Leopold III, King Philippe of the Belgians, Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, Oxford, Princess Elisabeth Thérèse Marie Hélène, Salic Law, Stanford University, Trinity College

Edit: I was going to post this last week but with all the news surrounding the birth of Prince George of Cambridge this got bumped.

On Sunday, July 21, 2013 HM King Albert II of the Belgians abdicated, due to health reasons, and his eldest son, HRH The Duke of Brabant, took the throne as King Philippe of the Belgians. He is the 7th King of the Belgians since that country became independent in 1830. This is Belgium’s second abdication of one of their kings. In 1951 King Leopold III abdicated under pressure due to his actions during World War II.

Prior to the accession of Albert II in 1993 many thought that Philippe would be king after the death of his uncle, King Baudouin, (Albert’s elder brother) and that he was being groomed for the throne. Instead Prince Albert, Philippe’s father, took the throne as King Albert II of the Belgians.

King Philippe attended the Belgian Royal Military Academy appointed the rank of second lieutenant. He continued his education at Trinity College, Oxford and did his graduate studies at Stanford University, California, where he graduated in 1985 with an Master’s Degree in Political Science. In 1999 Philippe  married Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz, daughter of a was Count Patrick d’Udekem d’Acoz and Polish Countess Anna Maria Komorowska. Through both her parents the new Queen of the Belgians is a descendant of Belgian nobility and Polish nobility such as the Princes Sapieha and Counts Komorowski.

They have four children.

• Princess Elisabeth Thérèse Marie Hélène, Duchess of Brabant, born 25 October 2001
• Prince Gabriel Baudouin Charles Marie, born 20 August 2003
• Prince Emmanuel Léopold Guillaume François Marie, born 4 October 2005
• Princess Eléonore Fabiola Victoria Anne Marie, born 16 April 2008

The Belgian Royal Family descends from the German House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (Leopold I, the first King of the Belgians, was the uncle of both Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her consort, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha) This makes King Philippe and Queen Elizabeth II of the UK 3rd cousins once removed. German royal houses often had agnatic primogeniture (the Lex Salica, or Salic law) which gave rights to the throne to males only and women could not even inherit the throne they could not pass on succession right to their children. In 1991 the succession laws were changed to  absolute primogeniture (in which the eldest child is always heir apparent).

With Philippe now the king his eldest child, Princess Elisabeth, is next in the line of succession after her father, followed by her younger brothers, Prince Gabriel and Prince Emmanuel, and her younger sister Princess Eléonore. Upon his mounting the throne Princess Elisabeth became the new Duchess of Brabant and in due course, when she takes the throne she will be Belgium’s first Queen Regnant. The Duchess of Brabant is the third female heir to the throne currently in Europe along with Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange of the Netherlands.

I wish the new king a long and prosperous reign with good health!

HRH Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge

As I type this on Wednesday, July 24, 2013 the name of the new royal prince has been announced. his name and title are…His Royal Highness Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge. Here are my thoughts. First of all I am very happy with the names! They are all very royal and traditional names. His first name, George, was after the Queens father, George VI, and the name Alexander is the masculine form of Alexandra, one of the middle names of Queen Elizabeth II. Louis is for Lord Louis Mountbatten (born HSH Prince Louis of Battenberg) uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. I would have been happy if the prince had been named Alexander for that was one of my guesses. I like that the continued to honor Lord Mountbatten by giving him the name Louis.

I am happy and also relived that they did select a very traditional name. I know the Duke of Cambridge likes to be more independent and may not always want to adhere to tradition so I have to be honest and say that I was a bit worried that they would really go in a different direction. But George was the name I was rooting for and I am happy it was chosen. God willing in the due corse of time, he will become HM King George VII of the United Kingdom of Great Britain. But as I said before probably will not happen for 50-60 years in time.

There was another Prince George of Cambridge, who later also became the Duke of Cambridge, and I will write about him nest week. That Prince George of Cambridge was a grandson of King George III and a first cousin to Queen Victoria. His father was HRH Prince Adolphus Frederick, 1774-1850, was the tenth child and seventh son of King George III and Queen Charlotte. The new Prince George of Cambridge is a direct descendant of Prince Adolphus Frederick, Duke of Cambridge.

Adolphus Frederick was married to Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel and had three children. George, Augusta and Mary Adelaide. I will speak more about George in his own blog post. His sister Augusta married Friedrich-Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. The youngest child, Mary Adelaide, married Prince (later Duke) Franz of Teck, a morganatic scion of the Wurttemberg royal family. Mary Adelaide and Franz had a daughter, Princess Mary of Teck who married the future King George V of the United Kingdom. Their son was King George VI, father of Queen Elizabeth II, who is the great-grand mother of the new Prince George of Cambridge.

As of Today, here is the line of succession to the British throne:

• Charles, Prince of Wales (b 1948), eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II
• Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (b 1982), elder son of Charles, Prince of Wales
• Prince George of Cambridge (b 2013), son of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge
• Prince Henry of Wales (b 1984), younger son of Charles, Prince of Wales
• Prince Andrew, Duke of York (b 1960), second son of Queen Elizabeth II
• Princess Beatrice of York (b 1988), elder daughter of Prince Andrew, Duke of York
• Princess Eugenie of York (b 1990), younger daughter of Prince Andrew, Duke of York
• Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex (b 1964), youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II
• James, Viscount Severn (b 2007), son of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
• Lady Louise Windsor (b 2003), daughter of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex

The New Royal Baby

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Buckingham Palace, Duchess of Cambridge, Elizabeth II, England, Kaiser Wilhelm I of Germany, Kaiser Wilhelm II, King James III of England, King Louis XIV of France and Navarre, King Louis XV of France, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Queen Victoria, The Duke of Cambridge, the prince of Wales, Wilhelm II of Germany, Winston Churchill

Yesterday was an historic moment. The Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to a royal prince yesterday. This was the first time since Queen Victoria had three direct heirs to the throne. First in line was The Prince of Wales (Edward VII), then came her grandson The Duke of York (George V) and her great-grandson Prince Edward of York (Edward VIII). Queen Victoria actually lived to see George VI, Edward VIII’s brother, but there are not any pictures of her with her son, grandson and both great-grandsons.

There has not been too many monarchs who have lived to see an heir in the third generation. Louis XIV of France and Navarre was one such monarch. He lived to see his great-grandchildren. However, he also outlived most of them and his successor, Louis XV, was one of his great-grandchildren.  Wilhelm I, German Emperor & King of Prussia also lived to see three generations of successors. In 1882 his grandson, Prince Wilhelm, future German Emperor Wilhelm II, gave birth to the future Crown Prince Wilhelm. Sadly, Crown Prince Wilhelm was not able to inherit the Royal and Imperial thrones due to the monarchy in Germany being abolished in 1918 at the end of World War I.

It seemed like we waited for a long time for the Duchess of Cambridge to give birth to the new little prince. Now the wait begins to see what the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will name the future King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

So what will the name be? George and James seem to be popular choices right now. Both names have historical precedence in British history. George is the name Elizabeth II’s father chose to reign under, although he was named Albert after having the bad luck of being born on December 14, 1895, the 34 anniversary of the death of his great-grandfather, Prince Albert, the Prince Consort, husband of Queen Victoria. James is the name of Catherine’s brother (as well as the Duke of Cambridge’s cousin, James Viscount Severn, son of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex).

If the name James is chosen we will see if Winston Churchill’s suggestion that the highest ordinal between England and Scotland should be used. When England and Scotland shared a monarch they used an ordinal, or regnal number, for both crowns. For example, James VI of Scotland was also James I of England. His grandson was James VII of Scotland and James II of England. This is the only name affected. When Charles I came to both the English and Scottish thrones neither England or Scotland had had a king by that name before. William III of England was William II of Scotland. His wife, Mary II, was also Mary II of England and Scotland, with Mary Stuart being the first queen named Mary in Scotland and Mary Tudor being the first queen named Mary in England.

When the countries were united in 1707 the monarchs were settled in England and Scotland was often ignored by the monarchs. They have followed the English system of numbering kings. The first thee kings of the House of Hanover did not have a problem with their regnal number since neither England or Scotland had kings named George before. There seems to be no controversy in Scotland with William IV and his regnal umber. The first time we begin to see some conflict is with the reigns of both Edward VII and Edward VIII. In Scotland there were times thier regnal numbers were omitted even in the Scottish Church. This issue did become more prominent with the reign of Elizabeth II. Since Elizabeth I of England never ruled over Scotland many in Scotland did not think she should be called Elizabeth II in Scotland. Many things such as mailboxes carrying the II in the royal cypher were defaced or destroyed. This is what prompted Winston Churchill to offer the solution that he did.

If the new baby prince is named James he will be called James VIII of the United Kingdom of Great Britain instead of James III. The name also carries a little controversy seeing that the pretender to the throne, James Francis, son of deposed king James II-VII of England and Scotland was also called James III-VIII by himself and his supporters. But that was centuries ago I am sure there wouldn’t be a problem now. It also follows that if the prince is named Richard, he will be Richard IV since there was not one named Richard who was king of Scotland. However, if he is named Robert or Alexander he would be Robert IV or Alexander IV since there have been three kings of Scotland with that name respectively.

Although we cannot predict the future the new little prince will not sit on the throne for a very long long time. Her Majesty the Queen is still going strong at the age of 87. Her son, the Prince of Wales is also healthy at the age of 64 and at the age of 31 the Duke of Cambridge will also likely see a long life. So it is possible that the new royal prince will not sit on the throne until he is in his 50s or 60s.

It will be interesting to see what the new baby will be named. Whatever the name shall be I wish the new baby prince a long healthy and happy life!

King Albert II and Abdication. My thoughts.

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Albert II of Belgium, King George IV of the United Kingdom, King Leopold III of Belgium, Kingdom of Belgium, Philippe Duke of Brabant, Pope Benedict XVI, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands

As I write this post it was announced that HM King Albert II of Belgium will abdicate the throne on July 21 due to health. The king is 79 years old and his 53 year old son, Prince Philippe, the Duke of Brabant will take the throne.  I wonder if the abdication by the Dutch monarch in April is what started Albert II to think of abdication?

Albert came to the throne 20 years ago in 1993 when his brother, King Baudouin died at the age of 62. Many were surprised that Albert to the throne because it has been assumed for years that Prince Philippe, the Duke of Brabant, would succeed his childless uncle, King Baudouin. Albert did become king and it has been a difficult 20 years on the throne.

Belgium has seen political crises and ethnic and cultural strife. Like all of the constitutional monarchs Albert doesn’t have any real political power and his role is mostly ceremonial, he did, at one point in his reign exercised some political authority. In 2010-2011 the Belgian Parliament was at a stalemate unable to form a government for 541 days after  elections failed to find a clear winner. The king took an advisory role with the political leaders helping to resolve the stalemate. Although it was a difficult time for him he demonstrated the positive role a neutral head of state can play in the daily running of the government.

Respect for the royal family seems to be one of the forces holding the country together. There has often been tensions between the two main language communities of Flemish and French in Belgium. This issue divisive issue has brought down several governments, creating frequent political instability.

This will be the second abdication of a Belgian monarch. Albert II was the 6th Belgian monarch since the creation of that throne in 1831. In 1830 a revolution in the Netherlands happened and the Southern Provinces separated from the Netherlands forming the state of Belgium. In 1831 they selected Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha as their king. Leopold was the uncle to both Queen Victoria of Great Britain and her husband Prince Albert. For a time Prince Leopold was married to Princess Charlotte of Wales who was second in line to the British throne until her death in childbirth in 1817.

In 1951, King Leopold III abdicated shortly after his return from exile which occurred during World War II. Many in Belgium felt his actions during the war were treasonous so in an effort to avoid tearing the country apart, and to preserve the monarchy, Leopold decided on August 1, 1950 to withdraw in favour of his 20-year-old son Baudouin. The abdication went into effect on July 16, 1951.

This will be the third abdication this year following Pope Benedict XVI and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. I have softened my view on abdication. I f you look at the list of any monarchy in Europe you will see that people are living much longer than they used to. With that in mind I am beginning to see that there is no valid reason why a monarch should carry the burdens of state when their health declines. Now some may prefer that the monarch retire, keep the title, and allow the hier to take the throne as regent. This is similar to how the future George IV took over for his ailing father. This makes the regent king…or queen…in all but name.

I still like that arrangement and prefer it actually, but I do not feel so rigidly attached to it as I have in the past. I have no problem when a monarch feels the need to step down and pass the crown to the next in line.