They are filled with tradition and part
of history and there’s no doubt about it, they’re popular. A royal
wedding has a power to fascinate that continues, however much time
and society change around it. In the first of a special summer
series, Lydia Starbuck, Brittani Barger and Moniek Bloks discuss
what makes a royal wedding so…
It’s been a seat of royal tradition for
centuries, a place of coronations, kings and queens. But for much
of its ancient history, Westminster Abbey was far from a go to
place for royal weddings. From the end of the 14th century until
the beginning of the 20th, no regal…
The Prince of Wales will follow in the
footsteps of his grandfather on the 75th anniversary of VE Day.
Prince Charles will read extracts from the diaries of King George
VI in a specially recorded programme to mark the event. Charles’
readings will form part of a day…
The year 1923 saw the marital calendar
was packed with princely nuptials. The springtime wedding of
Albert, Duke of York had brought huge crowds to London, and there
was an impressive turnout in the city that autumn when Lady Louise
Mountbatten wed Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden and began a
path that would lead to a crown. This second royal wedding of 1923
was a happy ending for a…
Princess Alexandra has thanked staff
working at a hospital treating patients with Covid-19. The Queen’s
cousin praised their efforts in a message sent to the Princess
Alexandra Hospital in Essex as it marked its 55th anniversary. The
hospital, in Harlow, was named…
A memorial service for Jean, Grand Duke
of Luxembourg will be held in early May. However, owing to the
coronavirus pandemic and the restrictions currently in place, it
will be an online Mass. The Grand Ducal Court announced that a
service marking the anniversary of his…
A special royal tradition that sees the
Swedish Royal Family give their support to children in need has had
a very different look this year because of the coronavirus
pandemic. The annual event, which sees Queen Silvia welcome
fundraisers to the Royal Palace in Stockholm, has gone online.
Queen Silvia usually invites school pupils selling mayflower pins
to her home as the annual campaign gets…
The Queen Mother’s determination to keep
her distance from Wallis Simpson is well known, with Her Majesty
once writing a letter describing the American socialite as a
‘’naughty lady’. The description of Wallis came in a letter penned
by Elizabeth to her own…
It was a famous royal love story that
shocked as much as it thrilled. John of Gaunt was the
ultra-ambitious prince whose desire to be a king almost cost him
his life, Katherine Swynford was the mysterious commoner who
supplanted a queen in his affections. Their relationship…
In February 1308, England welcomed its
new queen to her realm for the first time. Isabella, consort to
King Edward II, arrived with her husband at Dover after an
elaborate wedding in her home country. Isabella expected adulation
and respect. Instead, she watched as Edward showered kisses on a
court favourite. It would set the template for a marriage that
ultimately led to betrayal, a fight for the…
