April 27, 1967: Birth of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands.

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Abdication, Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, House of Orange-Nassau, King Willem IIII of the Nethlands, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands., Kingdom of the Netherlands, Prince Constantijn, Prince Johann Friso, Prince of Orange, Princess of Orange, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, Queen Juliana of the Netherlands

Today is King’s Day in the Netherlands: The celebration of the 53rd birthday of King Willem-Alexander.

Generally, this is a day with huge celebrations, everybody goes out to party. This time, because of Covid-19 it’s totally different sadly.

Willem-Alexander (Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand; born April 27, 1967) is the reigning King of the Netherlands, having acceded to the throne following his mother’s abdication in 2013.

Willem-Alexander was born in Utrecht as the oldest child of Princess Beatrix and diplomat Claus van Amsberg. His mother, Beatrix, became Queen of the Netherlands on April 30, 1980 after his grandmother Queen Juliana abdicated. He then received the title of Prince of Orange as heir apparent to the throne of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. From birth, Willem-Alexander has held the titles Prince of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau, and Jonkheer of Amsberg. He was baptised as a member of the Dutch Reformed Church on September 2, 1967.

Willem-Alexander is interested in sports and international water management issues. Until his accession to the throne, he was a member of the International Olympic Committee (1998–2013),chairman of the Advisory Committee on Water to the Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment (2004–2013),and chairman of the Secretary-General of the United Nations’ Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation (2006–2013)

He had two younger brothers: Prince Johann Friso (1968–2013) and Prince Constantijn (born in 1969). He lived with his family at the castle Drakensteyn in the hamlet Lage Vuursche near Baarn from his birth until 1981, when they moved to the larger palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague.

On January 28, 2013, Beatrix announced her intention of abdicating. On the morning of April 30, Beatrix signed the instrument of abdication at the Moseszaal (Moses Hall) at the Royal Palace of Amsterdam. Later that afternoon, Willem-Alexander was inaugurated as king in front of the joint assembly of the States General in a ceremony held at the Nieuwe Kerk.

As king, Willem-Alexander has weekly meetings with the prime minister and speaks regularly with ministers and state secretaries. He also signs all new Acts of Parliament and royal decrees. He represents the kingdom at home and abroad.

At the State Opening of Parliament, he delivers the Speech from the Throne, which announces the plans of the government for the parliamentary year. The Constitution requires that the king appoint, dismiss and swear in all government ministers and state secretaries. As king, he is also the chairman of the Council of State, an advisory body that reviews proposed legislation. In modern practice, the monarch seldom chairs council meetings.

At his accession at age 46, he was Europe’s youngest monarch. On the inauguration of Spain’s Felipe VI on June 19, 2014 he became, and remains, Europe’s second-youngest monarch. He is also the first male monarch of the Netherlands since the death of his great-great-grandfather Willem III in 1890.

On February 2, 2002, he married Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. Máxima is an Argentine woman of Basque, Portuguese and Italian ancestry, who prior to their marriage worked as an investment banker in New York City. The marriage triggered significant controversy due to the role the bride’s father, Jorge Zorreguieta, had in the Argentinian military dictatorship.

The couple have three daughters:
* HRH The Princess of Orange (Catharina-Amalia Beatrix Carmen Victoria; born December 7, 2003 at HMC Bronovo in The Hague)
* HRH Princess Alexia Juliana Marcela Laurentien of the Netherlands (born June 26, 2005 at HMC Bronovo in The Hague)
* HRH Princess Ariane Wilhelmina Máxima Inés of the Netherlands (born April 10, 2007 at HMC Bronovo in The Hague)

Here is the link to an earlier blog post which discusses why Willem-Alexander reigns under his double names and not as Willem IV of the Netherlands.

https://europeanroyalhistory.wordpress.com/2019/10/08/the-naming-of-a-king-willem-alexander-of-the-netherlands/

This date in History October 7, 1840. Abdication of King Willem I of the Netherland.

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Abdication, Count of Nassau, Frederick the Great, Frederick William II of Prussia, Grand Duke Luxembourg, King Willem IIII of the Nethlands, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, Willem I of the Netherlands, Willem III of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander of the netherlands

Willem I (August 24, 1772 – December 12, 1843) was a Prince of Orange and the first King of the Netherlandsand Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Willem-Frederik, Prince of Orange.

King Willem I’s parents were the last stadtholder Willem V, Prince of Orange of the Dutch Republic, and his wife Wilhelmina of Prussia (the fourth child of eight born to King Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia and Queen Frederica Louisa (of Hesse-Darmstadt). Her upbringing was dominated by the strict regime of her great-uncle, Friedrich II the Great, but in general very little is known about her youth)

Willem I of the Netherlandsand Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Until 1806, Willem was formally known as Willem VI, Prince of Orange-Nassau,and between 1806 and 1813 also as Willem-Frederik, Prince of Orange. In Berlin on October 1, 1791, Willem married his first cousin (Frederica Louisa) Wilhelmina of Prussia, born in Potsdam. And as mentioned was She the daughter of King Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia. Wilhelmina died in 1837.

Constitutional changes were initiated in 1840 because the terms which involved the United Kingdom of the Netherlands had to be removed due to the loss of Belgium in 1830. These constitutional changes also included the introduction of judicial ministerial responsibility. Although the policies remained uncontrolled by parliament, the prerogative was controllable now. The very conservative Willem could not live with these constitutional changes.

Wilhelmina of Prussia, Queen Consort of the Netherlands

Around 1840, King Willem found himself in discord with much of the Dutch population, not only due to his resistance to the Constitutional changes, it was also due to his refusal to implement demanded reforms. This discord was enhanced when the king, head of the strictly Protestant and royal House of Orange-Nassau, announced his intention to marry the Catholic Countess Henriëtte d’Oultremont de Wégimont (February 28, 1792 – October 26 1864) who had been a lady-in-waiting to his first wife, the late Queen consort Wilhelmine (1774-1837).

The resistance was so great—Henriëtte, who was Catholic and a native of Belgium, which had seceded from the Netherlands—that Willem abdicated on October 7 1840 in favour of his son The Prince of Orange who took the throne as Willem II.

King Willem II of the Netherlands

After abdication, he styled himself King Willem-Frederik, Count of Nassau. He married Henriëtte on 17 February 17, 1841; he was 69 years old at the time, she was 47, and the couple would have no children. Since the marriage was morganatic she received the Dutch title, Countess of Nassau on February 7, 1841, by which she was known during the couple’s subsequent retirement in Berlin. King Willem-Frederik, Count of Nassau died in Berlin on December 12, 1843 aged 71.

Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands and Princess Juliana

Incidentally, the abdication of King Willem I did not start the tradition of abdication in the kingdom of the Netherlands. Willem I’s son Willem II died as King in 1849 as did his son and successor Willem III, who died as King in 1849. It was Wilhelmina, the daughter of Willem III, who started this tradition when she abdicated September 4, 1948. Her daughter, Juliana and granddaughter, Beatrix, both abdicated. The current King of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander, is under no obligation to abdicate in time for abdication is a tradition and not a law.

6th Anniversary of the Accession of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands.

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House of Orange-Nassau, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherland., Kingdom of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange, Prince of Orange-Nassau, Princess Catharina-Amelia., Princess of Orange, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands

April 30th should be renamed “Abdication Day.” Today the Heisei Emperor Akihito abdicated the Chrysanthemum Throne of Japan in favor of his son, Naruhito (徳仁, born 23 February 1960) who is now the current Emperor of Japan. He succeeded to the Chrysanthemum Throne on May 1, 2019, following the abdication of his father Akihito on April 2019. (As I type this today, April 30, 2019, it is already tomorrow in Japan). The Emperor of Japan is the only head of state in the world with the English title of “Emperor.” The Era of Naruhito’s reign bears the name “Reiwa” (令和), and according to custom he will be renamed Emperor Reiwa(令和天皇 Reiwa Tennō) by order of the Cabinet after his death.

HM King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau.

On 30 April 1980, Beatrix became Queen of the Netherlands when her mother, Queen Juliana, abdicated. Queen Beatrix herself abdicated in favor of her eldest son, Prince Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, on April 30 2013.

The rest of this blog post will have some biographical information on King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and also information on the Dutch inauguration ceremony

Willem-Alexander (born Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand, 27 April 1967) was born in Utrecht as the oldest child of Princess Beatrix and diplomat Claus van Amsberg. He became Prince of Orange as heir apparent upon his mother’s accession as queen on 30 April 1980, and succeeded her following her abdication on 30 April 2013. He went to public primary and secondary schools, served in the Royal Netherlands Navy, and studied history at Leiden University.

On January 31, 2013, Beatrix announced her intention of abdicating. On the morning of 30 April, Beatrix signed the instrument of abdication at the Moseszaal (Moses Hall) at the Royal Palace of Amsterdam. Later that afternoon, Willem-Alexander was inaugurated as king in front of the joint assembly of the States General in a ceremony held at the Nieuwe Kerk.

As king, Willem-Alexander has weekly meetings with the prime minister and speaks regularly with ministers and state secretaries. He also signs all new Acts of Parliament and royal decrees. He represents the kingdom at home and abroad. At the State Opening of Parliament, he delivers the Speech from the Throne, which announces the plans of the government for the parliamentary year. The Constitution requires that the king appoint, dismiss and swear in all government ministers and state secretaries. As king, he is also the chairman of the Council of State, an advisory body that reviews proposed legislation. In modern practice, the monarch seldom chairs council meetings.

The Dutch Royal Family.

On February 2, 2002, he married Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. Máxima is an Argentine woman of Basque, Portuguese and Italian ancestry, who prior to their marriage worked as an investment banker in New York City. The marriage triggered significant controversy due to the role the bride’s father, Jorge Zorreguieta, had in the Argentinian military dictatorship. The couple have three daughters:

* The Princess of Orange (Catharina-Amalia Beatrix Carmen Victoria; born 7 December 2003 at HMC Bronovo in The Hague)
* Princess Alexia Juliana Marcela Laurentien of the Netherlands(born 26 June 2005 at HMC Bronovo in The Hague)
* Princess Ariane Wilhelmina Máxima Inés of the Netherlands(born 10 April 2007 at HMC Bronovo in The Hague).

HRH Prince Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, The Princess of Orange.

Willem-Alexander is the first Dutch king since Willem III, who died in 1890. Willem-Alexander had earlier indicated that when he became king, he would take the name Willem IV, but it was announced in January 2013 that his regnal name would be Willem-Alexander.

Inauguration Ceremony

Upon his or her accession to the throne, the new Dutch monarch undergoes an inauguration ceremony as required by the constitution. The ceremony is taken as a joint session of the two houses of the States General, and is held at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam.

The King and Queen of the Netherlands at their Inauguration Ceremony.

As with many other European monarchic customs, in the Netherlands new monarchs are not crowned. (Only the British Monarchy continues a coronation ceremony) The Dutch crown and other regalia have never been physically bestowed. Article 32 of the Dutch constitution states that as soon as the monarch assumes the royal prerogative, he is to be sworn-in and invested in Amsterdam at a public joint session of the two houses of the States General. The monarch may not exercise the royal prerogative until reaching the age of 18.

Crown of the Netherlands.

Inauguration is strictly ceremonial as the successor to the throne instantly becomes the new monarch at the moment the former monarch dies or abdicates. The last Dutch monarch to rule until his death was Willem III in 1890. His successor was his daughter, Wilhelmina; however, she was not inaugurated until her coming of age in 1898. Her mother Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont was regent from 1890 to 1898. Wilhelmina passed the throne via abdication to her daughter Juliana in 1948. Every monarch since Wilhelmina have so far chosen to abdicate their thrones after a certain time. This is a custom or tradition and not required by the constitution. The monarch can choose to reign until their death if her or she so chooses.

The monarch, the heir to the throne, the royal family and the cabinet led by the prime minister meet in the Royal Palace of Amsterdam in the State Hall. The monarch signs the instrument of abdication, which is then signed by the heir, members of the royal family and members of government. As soon as the instrument is signed, the new monarch’s accession is complete. The previous monarch then steps on the balcony of the palace, where the new monarch is introduced to the waiting public outside.

The ritual is held at the Nieuwe Kerk, in the capital city of Amsterdam. Regalia such as the crown, orb and sceptre are present but are never physically given to the monarch, nor are they worn by him or her, instead they are placed on cushions, on what is called a credence table. The royal regalia surround a copy of the Dutch constitution. Two other regalia–the sword of state and the standard of the kingdom bearing the coat of arms of the Netherlands–are carried by two senior military officers. During the ceremony, the monarch, wearing a ceremonial mantle, is seated on a chair of state on a raised dais opposite members of the States General.

Abdication: What To Call A Former Monarch, Part V.

Tags

Abdication, Duke of Aosta, Edward VIII, House of Savoy, King Manuel II of Portugal, Kingdom of Spain, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Queen Isabella II of Spain, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands

In the previous entries I examined how Richard II of England and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V still retained their title of King and Emperor respectively after their abdications. Here are other examples of monarchs who abdicated or were dethroned yet they kept their royal title.

King Wilhelm II of Württemberg 1891-1918

King James II-VII of England, Scotland and Ireland 1685-1688
King Louis Philippe of the French 1830-1848
King Miguel I of Portugal 1828-1834
King Manuel II of Portugal 1908-1910
Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany 1888-1918
Emperor Karl I-IV of Austria-Hungary 1916-1918
Queen Isabella II of Spain 1833-1868
King Alfonso XIII of Spain 1874-1885
King Mihail of Romania 1927-1930 and 1940-1947
King Simeon II of Bulgaria 1943-1946
King Peter II of Yugoslavia 1934-1954
King Constantine II of Greece 1964-1973
King Ludwig III of Bavaria 1913-1918
King Wilhelm II of Württemberg 1891-1918
King Friederich August III of Saxony 1904-1918
King Juan Carlos of Spain 1975-2014
King Albert II of the Belgians 1993-2013

By remaining kings, those who married after abdicating/being dethroned could even transmit their royal style to their wives – Anne of Bourbon-Parma who married King Mihail Romania and Augusta Victoria of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen wife of King Manuel II of Portugal all were wed and titled Queen long after their husbands ceased to reign.

Queen Isabella II of Spain 1833-1868

In one case a monarch who abdicated did grant himself a lesser title and yet also kept the title of King. King Willem I of the Netherlands, after his abdication in 1840, styled himself King Willem-Frederick, Count of Nassau. Speaking of the Kingdom of the Netherlands it was only with the abdications of Queens Wilhelmina, Juliana and Beatrix did they downgrade themselves to Royal Highnesses and Princesses.

Here is an example of a monarch that did downgrade his title after his abdication. After the abdication of Queen Isabella II of Spain the Spanish Cortes decided to continue as a monarchy. They chose as their king, Amadeo I (Italian: Amedeo, sometimes anglicized as Amadeus; May 30, 1845 – January 18, 1890) and he was the only King of Spain from the House of Savoy. He was the second son of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy and was known for most of his life as the Duke of Aosta, but he reigned briefly as King of Spain from 1870 to 1873.

Amadeo I of Spain 1870-1873

Amadeo’s reign was fraught with growing republicanism, Carlist rebellions in the north, and the Cuban independence movement. With the possibility of reigning without popular support, Amadeus issued an order against the artillery corps and then immediately abdicated from the Spanish throne on February 11, 1873. At ten o’clock that same night, Spain was proclaimed a republic, at which time Amadeo made an appearance before the Cortes, proclaiming the Spanish people ungovernable. Completely disgusted, the ex-monarch left Spain and returned to Italy, where he resumed the title of Duke of Aosta.

In the final entry I will show why it was deemed necessary to downgrade Edward VIII of the United Kingdom.

Death of Kaiser Wilhelm II: June 4, 1941.

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Friedrich III of Germany, German Emperor, German Empire, Huis Doorn, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Kingdom of Prussia, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Queen Victoria, Wilhelm II of Germany

On this date in History: June 4, 1941. Death of former German Emperor and King of Prussia Wilhelm II at his home in exile, Huis Doorn, the Netherlands.

Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert von Hohenzollern; January 27, 1859 – June 4, 1941) was the last German Emperor (Kaiser) and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from June 15, 1888 to his abdication November 9, 1918. He was the eldest grandchild of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe, most notably King George V of the United Kingdom and Emperor Nicholas II of Russia.

Wilhelm was born on January 27, 1859 at the Crown Prince’s Palace, Berlin, to Prince Friedrich-Wilhelm of Prussia (the future Friedrich III) and his wife, Victoria, Princess Royal, the eldest daughter of Britain’s Queen Victoria. At the time of his birth, his great-uncle Friedrich-Wilhelm IV was king of Prussia, and his grandfather and namesake Wilhelm was acting as Regent. He was the first grandchild of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, but more important, as the first son of the Crown Prince of Prussia, Wilhelm was second in the line of succession to Prussia, from 1861 onwards and also, after 1871, to the newly created German Empire, which, according to the constitution of the German Empire, was ruled by the King of Prussia.

Wilhelm died of a pulmonary embolus in Doorn, Netherlands, on June 4, 1941, at the age of 82, just weeks before the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union. German soldiers had been guarding his house. Hitler, however, was angered that the former monarch had an honor guard of German troops and nearly fired the general who ordered them when he found out. Despite his personal animosity toward Wilhelm, Hitler wanted to bring his body back to Berlin for a state funeral, as he regarded Wilhelm a symbol of Germany and Germans during World War I. Hitler felt that such a funeral would demonstrate to the Germans the direct descent of the Third Reich from the old German Empire, thereby giving his regime a sense of continuity.

However, Wilhelm’s wished to return to Germany only after the restoration of the monarchy. The Nazi occupational authorities granted him a small military funeral, with a few hundred people present. The mourners included August von Mackensen, fully dressed in his old imperial Life Hussars uniform, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, and Reichskommissar for the Netherlands Arthur Seyss-Inquart, along with a few other military advisers. However, Wilhelm’s request that the swastika and other Nazi regalia be not displayed at his funeral was ignored, and they are featured in the photographs of the event taken by a Dutch photographer.

Wilhelm was buried in a mausoleum in the grounds of Huis Doorn, which has since become a place of pilgrimage for German monarchists. Small but enthusiastic and faithful numbers of them gather there every year on the anniversary of his death to pay their homage to the last German Emperor.

Three Events in History, March 16.

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Assassination, Charles II of England and Scotland, Frederick the Great of Prussia, General Monck, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Gustav III of Sweden, Kingdom of England, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Prussia, The Long Parliament, William I of the Netherlands

Three significant events on this date in History. March 16.

The Netherlands, March 16, 1815.

Prince Willem VI of Orange-Nassau becomes King of the Netherlands.

Willem I (Willem Frederik, Prince of Orange-Nassau; August 24, 1772 – December 12, 1843) was a Prince of Orange and the first King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Prince Willem VI was the ruler of the Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda from 1803 until 1806 and of the Principality of Orange-Nassau in the year 1806 and from 1813 until 1815. In 1813 he proclaimed himself Sovereign Prince of the United Netherlands. He proclaimed himself King Willem I of the Netherlands and Duke of Luxembourg on March 16, 1815. In the same year on June 9, Willem I became also the Grand Duke of Luxembourg and after 1839 he was furthermore the Duke of Limburg. After his abdication in 1840 he styled himself King Willem-Frederik, Count of Nassau.

On October 1, 1791, Prince Willem VI of Orange-Nassau married his cousin Princess Wilhelmina of Prussia, in Berlin. Princess Wilhelmine was the fourth child of eight born to King Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia and Queen Frederica-Louisa (the daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, and Caroline of Zweibrücken). Her upbringing was dominated by the strict regime of her great-uncle, Friedrich II the Great, but in general very little is known about her youth. The marriage was arranged as a part of an alliance between the House of Orange and Prussia, but it was also, in fact, a love match and became very happy.

Sweden, March 16, 1792

Assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden.

Gustav III (January 24, 1746 – March 29, 1792) was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of King Adolf-Frederik of Sweden and Queen Louise Ulrika (a sister of King Friedrich II the Great of Prussia), and a first cousin of Empress Catherine the Great of Russia by reason of their common descent from Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin, and his wife Albertina Frederica of Baden-Durlach.

Gustav III married Princess Sophia Magdalena of Denmark, by proxy in Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen, on October 1, 1766 and in person in Stockholm on November 4, 1766. Sophia Magdalena of Denmark was the eldest daughter of Frederik V of Denmark and his first wife Louise of Great Britain. Louise of Great Britain was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1746 until her death, as the first wife of King Frederick V. She was the youngest surviving daughter of King George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach. Gustav III was first impressed by Sophia Magdalena’s beauty, but her silent nature made her a disappointment in court life. The match was not a happy one, owing partly to an incompatibility of temperament, but still more to the interference of Gustav’s jealous mother, Queen Louisa Ulrika.

Assassination

Gustav III’s war against Russia and the implementation of the Union and Security Act in 1789 helped to increase a hatred against the king among the nobility that had been growing ever since the coup d’état in 1772. A conspiracy to have the king killed and reform the constitution took place within the nobility in the winter of 1791-92. Among those involved were Jacob Johan Anckarström, Adolph Ribbing, Claes Fredrik Horn, Carl Pontus Lilliehorn and Carl Fredrik Pechlin.
The assassination of the king took place at a masked ball at the Royal Opera House in Stockholm at midnight on March 16, 1792. Gustav had arrived earlier that evening to enjoy a dinner in the company of friends. During dinner, he received an anonymous letter that contained a threat to his life (written by the colonel of the Life guards Carl Pontus Lilliehorn), but, as the king had received numerous threatening letters in the past, he chose to ignore it. After dining, he left his rooms to take part in the masquerade.

Soon upon entering, he was surrounded by Anckarström and his co-conspirators, Count Claes Fredrik Horn and Count Adolf Ludvig Ribbing. The king was easily spotted, mainly due to the breast star of the Royal Order of the Seraphim that glowed in silver upon his cape. The conspirators were all wearing black masks and accosted him in French with the words: Bonjour, beau masque (“Good-day, fine masked man”). Anckarström moved behind the king and fired a pistol-shot into the left side of his back. The king jumped aside, crying in French: Ah! Je suis blessé, tirez-moi d’ici et arrêtez-le (“Ah! I am wounded, take me away from here and arrest him!”)

The king was carried back to his quarters, and the exits of the Opera were sealed. Anckarström was arrested the following morning and immediately confessed to the murder, although he denied a conspiracy until informed that Horn and Ribbing had also been arrested and had confessed in full.
The king had not been shot dead; he was alive and continued to function as head of state. The coup was a failure in the short run. However, the wound became infected, and on March 29, the king finally died with these last words: Jag känner mig sömnig, några ögonblicks vila skulle göra mig gott (“I feel sleepy, a few moments’ rest would do me good”)

Ulrica Arfvidsson, the famous medium of the Gustavian era, had told him something that could be interpreted as a prediction of his assassination in 1786, when he visited her anonymously – a coincidence – but she was known to have a large network of informers all over town to help her with her predictions, and she was in fact interrogated about the murder.

The king was succeeded on the throne by his eldest son who became King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden.

England. March 16, 1660

The Long Parliament is dissolved.

The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament which had been held for three weeks during the spring of 1640, and which in its turn had followed an 11-year parliamentary absence. In September 1640 writs were issued summoning a parliament to convene on 3 November 1640 by King Charles I. The parliament was summoned to pass financial bills, a step that was necessary as a result of the cost of the Bishops’ Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could be dissolved only with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War was close to the end of the Interregnum on 16 March 1660.

It sat from 1640 until 1648, when it was purged by the New Model Army. In the chaos following the death of Oliver Cromwell in 1658, General George Monck allowed the members barred in 1648 to retake their seats, so that they could pass the necessary legislation to allow the Restoration and dissolve the Long Parliament. This cleared the way for a new Parliament to be elected, which was known as the Convention Parliament. Some key members of Long Parliament, such as Sir Henry Vane the Younger and General Edmond Ludlow, barred from the final acts of the Long Parliament, claimed it was not legally dissolved; its final votes a procedural irregularity (words used contemporaneously “device” and “conspiracy”) by General George Monck to ensure the restoration of King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland. On the restoration the general was awarded with a Dukedom.

Death of Grand Duke William IV of Luxembourg

Tags

Adolphe of Luxembourg, Charlotte of Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Marie-Adelaide of Luxembourg, Salic Law, William III of the Netherlands, William IV of Luxembourg

On this date in History, February 25, 1912 the death of Grand Duke William IV of Luxembourg and the accession of his eldest daughter as Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde of Luxembourg.

William IV (William Alexander; April 22, 1852 – February 25, 1912) reigned as the Grand Duke of Luxembourg from November 17, 1905 until his death. He succeeded his father, Adolphe.

William IV was a Protestant, the religion of the House of Nassau. He married Infanta Marie Anne of Portugal, believing that a Roman Catholic country ought to have a Roman Catholic monarch. Thus his heirs have been Catholic. Infanta Marie Anne of Portugal was the fifth child and second-youngest daughter of the deposed King Miguel of Portugal and his wife Princess Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. As such, she was titled and styled from birth as an infanta of Portugal. At the time of her birth, her father had been exiled, and the family lived as guests in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

From 1815 to 1839, the grand duchy of Luxembourg was ruled by the kings of the Netherlands as a province of the Netherlands. Following the 1839 Treaty of London, Luxembourg became independent but remained in personal union with the Netherlands. Following the death of his sons, King Willem III, had no male heirs to succeed him. In the Netherlands, females were allowed to succeed to the throne in 1887. Luxembourg, however, followed salic law which barred females from succession. Thus, upon William’s death, the crown of the Netherlands passed to his only daughter Wilhelmina while that of Luxembourg passed to Adolphe, in accordance with the Nassau Family Pact.

Grand Duke Adolphe died in 1905 and was succeeded as Grand Duke by his son, William IV. However, the Salic Law did not last in Luxembourg. At the death of Prince Nikolaus-Wilhelm of Nassau-Weilburg, uncle of Grand Duke William IV in 1905, the only other legitimate male in the House of Nassau-Weilburg was William IV’s cousin, Georg Nikolaus, Count of Merenberg, the product of a morganatic marriage. So in 1907, William declared the Counts of Merenberg non-dynastic, naming his own eldest daughter Marie-Adélaïde (1894–1924) as heir presumptive to the grand ducal throne. She became Luxembourg’s first reigning grand duchess upon her father’s death in 1912, and upon her own abdication in 1919, was succeeded by her younger sister Charlotte (1896–1985). Charlotte’s descendants reign until the present day.

He was the last monarch of Luxembourg to die whilst still on the throne.

Marie-Adélaïde (Marie Adelheid Thérèse Hilda Wilhelmine; June 14, 1894 – January 24, 1924), reigned as Grand Duchess of Luxembourg from 1912 until her abdication in 1919. She was the first Grand Duchess regnant of Luxembourg (after five grand dukes), its first female monarch since Duchess Maria Theresa (1740–1780, who was also Austrian Empress) and the first Luxembourgish monarch to be born within the territory since Count John the Blind (1296–1346).

Named as heir presumptive by her father Grand Duke William IV in 1907 to prevent a succession crisis due to his lack of a son, Marie-Adélaïde became Grand Duchess in 1912. She ruled through the First World War, and her perceived support for the German occupation forces led to great unpopularity in Luxembourg as well as neighbouring France and Belgium. In 1919, on the advice of Parliament and after enormous pressure from the Luxembourgish people, she abdicated on January 14, 1919 in favour of her younger sister Charlotte who managed to save the monarchy and the dynasty in a national referendum (September 28, 1919).

After abdicating, Marie-Adélaïde retired in a monastery in Italy, before leaving due to ill health. She died of influenza in Germany on January 24, 1924 at the age of 29.

Abdication

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Abdication, Buckingham Palace, Diamond Jubilee, Elizabeth II, Grand Duchy of Luxembourgt, King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, the prince of Wales, United Kingdom of Great Britain

I have always been against abdication but I have found that my position on abdication has softened a bit over the years. My position has come from the way I view kingship. It doesn’t stem from any religious theology. I certainly do not subscribe to any theory of the divine right of kings. I do see kingship differently from the position of an elected official. One of the aspects of monarchy is its continuity with the past. Here it is 2012 and Queen Elizabeth II is 86 and has been on the throne for 60 years. I can pop open a book and look at pictures of the queen as a young girl with her grandfather, King George V, who himself was a grandson of Queen Victoria. George V was born in 1865 and to me the queen represents an important bridge to both the past and the future. This bridge is weakened to some extent with abdication.

I also think the heart of monarchy is one of duty and dedicated service. The queen pledge her life to the duty and service of her country whether it be short or long. Thank God it has been a long life! With kingship being about service and duty to ones country and ones people and the fact that a constitutional monarch embodies the noble aspects of the country, kingship is more than just a job or a position. If kingship is just a job like any other job then why not just have an elected head of state like they do in other European countries?

Having said all of that I will say my position has softened a bit. Ironically the Diamond Jubilee for Queen Elizabeth II has helped me with this change. It has been quite a year for Her Majesty. She has had a full schedule of official visits and celebrations and twice her 90 year old husband was hospitalized with health problems. As if the year was not busy enough London hosted the Olympics this year with Her Majesty attending the opening ceremony and officially opening the Olympic games. The Duke of Edinburgh was in the hospital at that moment and Her Majesty certainly looked worn and ragged at that time and who could blame her?

People on average are living longer and as a Head of State she has access to excellent health care. As the role of Head of State is a demanding one, I do question the sensibility about working the queen so hard. Now I do not want to see the queen abdicate but I wouldn’t mind seeing the Prince of Wales beginning to take over more of the queens duties and give the poor gal a break. In having more understanding and compassion toward the heavy burden these monarchs carry as they age I have more empathy and understanding for those countries where abdication has become the tradition.

Happy Birthday…

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House of Orange-Nassau, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau, Queen Beatrix

The European Royal History Blog wishes a Happy Birthday to..

Her Royal Highness Princess Mabel Martine of Orange-Nassau, Countess of Orange-Nassau, Mrs. van Amsberg!

Happy Birthday….

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Kingdom of the Netherlands, Princess Irene of the Netherlands, Queen Beatrix

European Royal History blog wishes a happy birthday to…

HRH Princess Irene of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange-Nassau, Princess of Lippe-Biesterfeld, Dowager Duchess of Parma. August 5, 1939.