Happy Birthday HRH Prince George of Cambridge!!

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Duchess of Cambridge, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Duke of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, Kensington Palace, Prince George of Cambridge, Prince William

Happy Birthday HRH Prince George of Cambridge!!

From Kensington Palace: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very pleased to share new photographs of Prince George to mark His Royal Highness’s sixth birthday.

These photographs were taken recently in the gardens at Kensington Palace by The Duchess of Cambridge.

Thank you everyone for your lovely messages on Prince George’s Birthday! 🎂

On this date in History: April 29, 2011. The wedding of Prince William of Wales and Catherine Middleton.

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The Kiss

The wedding of Prince William of Wales and Catherine Middleton took place on April 29, 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London, United Kingdom. The groom, Prince William of Wales (now the Duke of Cambridge) is second in the line of succession to the British throne. The bride, Catherine Middleton, had been his girlfriend since 2003.

HRH The Duke of Cambridge

Prince William Arthur Philip Louis, KG, KT, PC, ADC. (Born June 21, 1982) He is the eldest son of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales. Since birth, he has been second in the line to succeed his grandmother Elizabeth II, who is the Queen of the United Kingdom and 15 other Commonwealth realms.

On the morning of his wedding Her Majesty the Queen bestowed upon Prince William of Wales the hereditary titles of Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn, and Baron Carrickfergus. These titles were formally patented on May 26 that year.

HRH The Duchess of Cambridge.

Catherine Elizabeth Middleton was born at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading on January 9, 1982 into an upper-middle-class family. She is the eldest of three children born to Michael Middleton (b. 1949),and his wife, Carole (née Goldsmith; b. 1955), Catherine was baptised at St Andrew’s Bradfield, Berkshire, on June 20, 1982.

On November 16, 2010, Clarence House stated that Prince William of Wales was to marry Catherine Middleton “in the Spring or Summer of 2011, in London.” They were engaged in October 2010, while on a private holiday in Kenya; Prince William gave Middleton the same engagement ring that his father had given to William’s mother, Diana, Princess of Wales an 18-karat white gold ring with a 12-carat oval Ceylon (Sri Lankan) sapphire and 14 round diamonds.

Engagement Ring

The Dean of Westminster, John Hall, presided at the service; the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, conducted the marriage; Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, preached the sermon; and a reading was given by the bride’s brother, James. William’s best man was his brother, Prince Harry, (now the Duke of Sussex) while the bride’s sister, Pippa, was maid of honor.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

The ceremony was attended by the bride’s and groom’s families, as well as members of foreign royal dynasties, diplomats, and the couple’s chosen personal guests. After the ceremony, the couple made the traditional appearance on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. As Prince William was not the heir apparent to the throne, the wedding was not a full state occasion and many details were left to the couple to decide, such as much of the guest list of about 1,900.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

The build-up to the wedding and the occasion itself attracted much media attention, being compared in many ways with the 1981 marriage of William’s parents. The occasion was a public holiday in the United Kingdom and featured many ceremonial aspects, including use of the state carriages and roles for the Foot Guards and Household Cavalry.

Events were held around the Commonwealth to mark the wedding; organisations and hotels held events across Canada, over 5,000 street parties were held throughout the United Kingdom, and one million people lined the route between Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace. The ceremony was viewed live by tens of millions more around the world, including 72 million live streams on YouTube. In the United Kingdom, television audiences peaked at 26.3 million viewers, with a total of 36.7 million watching part of the coverage.

In accordance with the settled general rule that a wife takes the status of her husband Catherine is a Princess of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Duchess of Cambridge, Countess of Strathearn, and Baroness Carrickfergus.

On this Date in History: April 6, 1889. Death of Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, Duchess of Cambridge.

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Today is the 130th anniversary of the death of the Duchess of Cambridge, (born Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel), on April 6, 1889.

Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel

Augusta was the Last holder of the title Duchess of Cambridge prior to the current Duchess of Cambridge. Augusta is the Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandmother of the current Duke of Cambridge.

Princess Augusta Wilhelmine Luise of Hesse-Cassel (July 25, 1797 – April 6, 1889) was the wife of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, the tenth-born child, and seventh son, of George III of the United Kingdom and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. The longest-lived daughter-in-law of George III, she was the maternal grandmother of Mary of Teck, wife of George V of the United Kingdom.

HRH The Dowager Duchess of Cambridge

Princess and Landgravine Augusta of Hesse-Cassel, third daughter of Landgrave Friedrich of Hesse-Cassel and his wife, Princess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen, was born at Rumpenheim, Offenbach am Main, Hesse. Through her father, she was a great-granddaughter of George II of Great Britain, her grandfather having married George II’s daughter Mary. Her father’s older brother was the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel. In 1803, her uncle’s title was raised to Imperial Elector of Hesse—whereby the entire Cassel branch of the Hesse dynasty gained an upward notch in hierarchy.

Marriage

Prince Adolphus Frederick, The Duke of Cambridge

On May 7, 1818 in Cassel, and then, again, on June 1, 1818 at Buckingham Palace, Princess Augusta married her second cousin, Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, when she was 20 and he 44. Their marriage was a result of the “rush to the alter” for the unmarried sons of George III after the death in childbirth of their niece Princess Charlotte of Wales the previous year. The death of Princess Charlotte meant there was no legitimate heir to the throne of the United Kingdom in the third generation.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had three children: George, 2nd Duke of Cambridge (1819-1904); Augusta of Cambridge (1822-1916)(who married Friedrich Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenberg-Strelitz); Mary Adelaide of Cambridge (1833-1897) (who married Prince Francis, Duke of Teck, the parents of Princess Mary of Teck wife of George V of the United Kingdom).

At this time in the history of the British Monarchy the King of the United Kingdom was also the King of Hanover, a state within the German Confederation of the Rhine. The union of these two crowns was a personal union and not a political union. Shortly after their marriage in 1818 the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge moved to Hanover where her husband served as viceroy on behalf of his brothers, George IV (1820-1830) and William IV (1830-1837). The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to Great Britain, in 1837 when Prince Ernest-Augustus, Duke of Cumberland became King of Hanover (1837-1851).

Since Hanover was ruled by the Salic Law which barred women from inheriting the throne, Victoria (1837-1901) inherited the British throne and her uncle Prince Ernest-Augustus, Duke of Cumberland inherited the Hanoverian crown. With the King of Hanover now living in Hanover there was no longer a need for a Viceroy and therefore the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to Britain where they lived at Cambridge Cottage, Kew, and later at St. James’s Palace.

Prince Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland and King of Hanover

The Duke of Cambridge died on July 8, 1850 at Cambridge House, Piccadilly, London, at the age of 76 and was buried at St Anne’s Church, Kew. His remains were later removed to St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. His only son, Prince George, succeeded to his peerages. The 2nd Duke of Cambridge married privately and in contravention of the 1772 Royal Marriages Act at St. John’s Church, Clerkenwell, London, on January 8, 1847 to Sarah Fairbrother (1816 – January 12, 1890), the daughter of John Fairbrother, a servant in Westminster. As the marriage was contrary to the Royal Marriages Act, the Duke’s wife was not titled Duchess of Cambridge or accorded the style Her Royal Highness, nor was their son born after the marriage eligible to succeed to the Duke’s titles. This was why Augusta was the last Duchess of Cambridge until Kate Middleton married the current Duke of Cambridge, Prince William of Wales in 2011.

Death

The Duchess of Cambridge survived her husband by thirty-nine years, dying on April 6, 1889, at the age of ninety-one. Queen Victoria wrote of her aunt’s death: “Very sad, though not for her. But she is the last of her generation, & I have no longer anyone above me.”

Kate Middleton? NO, HRH The Duchess of Cambridge!

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Kate Middleton, Prince Charles, Prince William, styles, The Duchess of Cambridge, titles, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

After more than five years of marriage to HRH The Duke of Cambridge, his wife, the former Kate Middleton, is still often called Kate Middleton or many other incorrect titles. Her correct title, simply is, HRH The Duchess of Cambridge. I swear if by some unfortunate tragedy the Duke of Cambridge were to wake up tomorrow to find that he is the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain the press and others would still call his wife Kate Middleton!

She is a Princess of the United Kingdom via her marriage to HRH The Duke of Cambridge, but because she was not born a member of the royal family she is not entitled to be called Princess Catherine. That right is reserved for women who are the daughter of the sovereign or the granddaughter of the sovereign in the male line. (an exception has been made for little Princess Charlotte of Cambridge who is a great-granddaughter of the sovereign in the male line…more on that in another post).

This was the same case/situation for the late Diana, Princess of Wales (her correct title after the divorce). While Diana was married to HRH The Princes of Wales her correct title was, again simply,  HRH The Princess of Wales. Since Diana was not born either as daughter of the sovereign or the granddaughter of the sovereign in the male line it was not correct to call her “Princess Diana.”

The press never got that right and that is why they and others flounder in what to call the wife of the Duke of Cambridge…Duchess Kate: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (this way of referring to her indicates she is divorced for that is how Diana was referred to after her divorce): Princess Catherine: Princess Kate and a combination of all the above. All are wrong. Her correct style is, Her Royal Highness, and her correct title is…The Duchess of Cambridge. That is it! If you have a peerage title you are known by that peerage title (along with the style His or Her Royal Highness in the case of the royal family members that hold peerage titles) and not your first name. If you are a wife of a peer you take the feminine form of your husband’s title…in the case of the lovely lady formerly known as Kate Middleton, the title is Duchess of Cambridge.

In the future HRH The Duchess of Cambridge will be known as HRH The Princess of Wales when her father-in-law (the current Prince of Wales) becomes king and eventually invests his son as Prince of Wales. Further in the future, and God willing, when the Duke of Cambridge becomes King, as King William V of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (assuming he doesn’t select another regnal name) and the simple correct way to refer to him will be, His Majesty the King, and his his wife’s correct style and tittle will be Her Majesty The Queen. So lets stop calling her Kate Middleton.

Maybe tomorrow or very soon I will write a post on the history of titles and their correct forms and usage.

Portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge

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Buckingham Palace, Elizabeth II, Kate Middleton, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Paul Emsley, Portrait, The Duchess of Cambridge, UnCanny Valley, United Kingdom of Great Britain, Wikipedia

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o306/WmHohenzollern/537991_10151428856877502_604833870_n.jpg

Last week the first official portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge was unveiled in London. I have to be honest and say my heart sank when I first saw the portrait. My initial reaction was one of repulsion and sadness. I was repulsed, I understand that is a strong word, and sad that the first official portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge was so awful that I fell bad for her. Award-winning artist Paul Emsley, spent three-and-a-half months painting the Duchess’s portrait and he is said to have wanted to capture the her warmth and personality.

The positive aspect of the portrait is its warmth. The color and hues of the flesh tones and the entire ambiance of the portrait do convey a sense of warmth. However, what is so off-putting and aversion inspiring is that there is no spark of life in the picture. They eyes and over all expression seem flat, dead and lifeless to me. The artist also made her look older than 31 years of age and he also succeeded in making her look masculine.

All of these qualities of the picture lead to what is called a sense of the Uncanny Valley. I will copy the definition from wikipedia:

The uncanny valley is a hypothesis in the field of robotics^[ and 3D computer animation, which holds that when human replicas look and act almost, but not perfectly, like actual human beings, it causes a response of revulsion among human observers. The “valley” refers to the dip in a graph of the comfort level of humans as a function of a robot‘s human likeness.

 We can look at a cartoon of a person from Disney or Pixar and think it is cute. But the closer you get to actually looking human…yet there is something isn’t quite right…will cause an emotional response of aversion. As an artist myself who is working very hard at creating realistic portraits I understand this phenomenon. I can draw a portrait and if the mouth is a little large or the nose is out of proportion and if the eyes look dead then I have entered the Uncanny Valley.

I know I am being harsh but I was disappointed in the portrait. News reports say that the Duchess of Cambridge was happy with the results although the general public and art critics were also not happy with the results. I am glad the Duchess was happy with the results, although I wonder if those are her true feelings, is she in a position to be critical?

On a better note, Buckingham Palace announced earlier this week confirming that the Duchess of Cambridge will give birth in July and her symptoms of nausea continue to improve.

Duchess of Cambridge has left the Hospital.

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Buckingham Palace, Elizabeth II, England, Kate Middleton, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Charles, Prince William, The Duchess of Cambridge, The Duke of Cambridge

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2243915/Kate-Middleton-pregnant-Duchess-leaves-hospital-Prince-William-side.html

I am glad to see that she has left the hospital. I just hope that she is able to get more rest and have this problem behind her.

 

 

 

 

TRH the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are Expecting a Child!!!

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BBC News, Buckingham Palace, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Elizabeth II, England, Kate Middleton, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince William, Queen Elizabeth II, The Duchess of Cambridge, United Kingdom of Great Britain

Duchess of Cambridge pregnant

The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting a baby, St James’s Palace has announced.

Members of the royal family and the duchess’s family, the Middletons, are said to be delighted.

A spokesman said the duchess has been admitted to King Edward VII Hospital in central London with very acute morning sickness and is expected to stay for several days.

Catherine and William were married at Westminster Abbey in April 2011

source: BBC NEWS

 

HRH The Duke of Cambridge

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Today’s featured Royal is HRH The Duke of Cambridge.

HRH Prince William Arthur Philip Louis was born June 21, 1982 to HRH the Prince of Wales and and the late Diana, Princess of Wales. I remember watching and waiting for his birth from the day it was announced that the Princess of Wales was pregnant. Guessing and wondering about the names of future royals is part of the fun of watching royals for those of us that engage in that activity. When it was announced that it was a boy I pondered would they call him George, Charles, Edward? Would they pick something new like Louis which had been the first name of Charles’s great-uncle and much loved “honorary grandfather” Lord Louis Mountbatten? I was very pleasantly surprised to hear that they chose William as his first name since it is also my first name.

I have watched with a keen eye to how the future King William V of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland grew up. He broke tradition by attending Eaton College instead of Gordonstoun where his father and grandfather and other royals have attended. After his gap year he attended University of St Andrews where he studied geography. While at St. Andrews he met his future wife Kate Middleton. After graduating college he joined the military which is a general training ground for the majority of British princes. He entered the British Armed Forces after graduating from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in January 2006 and was a commissioned lieutenant. William desired to enter active duty but because of his position as second in line to the throne this was not a realistic option. Despite that let down William trained with both the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. Initially he was only going to do a three year stint in the military but in 2009 expressed a desire to continue his military service. He transferred to the Royal Ar Force and began training as a search and rescue helicopter pilot.

William lost his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997 when he was just 15. The affect of his mothers death at such a young age can be devastating. I myself lost my father when I was 17 and then my mother when I was 22. How much this has adversely affected him we may never know. I do see, however, the positive affects she has had on him. While doing charitable work is a hallmark of being royal, William seems to have inherited his mother’s personal charm and being at ease with other people. To his credit the Prince of Wales also has these qualities. He has a warm and friendly demeanor which has made him approachable and personable. His mother tried to the best of her ability to give them as normal of an upbringing as she was able to and to a large extent this has helped in becoming a royal with the common touch.

I have had my concerns about William. Being royal means one does have to walk a fine line between being too distant to where one is viewed as being cold and aloof, or too warm and friendly to where there is no difference between them and other people. There needs to be some mystique with royalty. I think William strikes a healthy balance between the two. When William was younger I had my concerns that maybe he wasn’t happy being a royal. There were times I think he just wanted to be an ordinary person. That left me a little fearful for the future of the monarchy. However, those fears have passed because I see William as someone who now accepts his role and thrives in what he is called to do. I see him as a young Prince trying to have a meaningful life while trying to make the difference in the lives of others.

On May 29 2011 Prince William married his long time girlfriend Kate or Catherine Middelton at West Minster Abbey. The couple began dating in 2003 and split up briefly in 2003. Although both Pince William’s mother and Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother were all technically commoners they did come from families that were titled members of the aristocracy. Kate, However, does not come from the aristocracy. I personally have no problem with this and feel Kate will be an exemplary queen in due time. The morning of his wedding the Queen bestowed Prince William with titles of the nobility creating him Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus. Officially he is known as HRH The Duke of Cambridge and his wife is HRH The Duchess of Cambridge. The last time the title Duke of Cambridge was created was in 1801 for Prince Adolphus 10th child and 7th son of King George III. Prince Adolphus passed the title to his son, Prince George, but he died in 1904 without legitimate issue and the title merged with the crown. Prince William is however a descendant of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge via his great-great grandmother Queen Mary (1868-1953) wife of King George V (1865-1936) who was his granddaughter.

It is more than likely that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will not inherit the throne for decades. Her Majesty the Queen has been blessed with good health and the genes of her mother who lived to be 101. Prince Philip is still going strong at aged 91 and the Prince of Wales, aged 63, is also in fine health. He has been blessed with good genes. In that time I hope the Duke and Duchess enjoy as much of a private life together as they can. Although in the coming years his royal duties will undoubtedly increase I still think he has time before he wears the crown. It will be interesting to see how they monarchy has changed by then and how the reign of King William V will change the monarchy itself. I think the future of the monarchy is in well and capable hands.