As the last Emperor of Russia, Tsar
Nicholas II’s twenty-three-year reign came to an abrupt end when he
abdicated on 15 March 1917. Those tumultuous years of his reign
were defined by the Russo-Japanese War that saw the annihilation of
the Russian Baltic Fleet, Bloody Sunday and an estimated 3.3
million Russians die during World War I. The relatives of
Nicholas’s extended family tree insisted…
While the coronavirus continues to
spread, we can rewind a little over a hundred years in time. In
1918 and 1919, another virus as ravaged countries across the globe.
It caused widespread devastation but, despite its origins, it
became known as Spanish flu because of a much…
While most of our “Last Queens” series
focuses on consorts, this particular last queen was a reigning
monarch. Liliuokalani was the only queen regnant and the last
monarch of Hawaii before the Hawaiian kingdom was overthrown. It
became the shortlived Republic of…
The life and times of the 18th Duchess of Alba, who had more titles than Queen Elizabeth II
2nd March 2020
The 18th Duchess of Alba, María del
Rosario Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart y Silva, was born on 28 March
1926 at the vast Liria Palace, which has served as the Madrid
residence of the Dukes of Albas for generations (most of the home
was destroyed during the Spanish Civil War and was rebuilt by the
Duchess’s father and the Duchess). The Fitz-James Stuarts, the most
powerful aristocratic…
Every royal life is peppered with
milestones, the moments that mark beginnings and ends, filled with
joy and sometimes sadness. On Royal Central, we’re charting
the famous dates throughout the year in our Calendars of Kings and
Queens. And as March gets well and truly…
Early Life Born on 14 October 1938,
Empress Farah Pahlavi was the only child of Sohrab Diba and Farideh
Diba Ghotbi in Tehran. Less than ten years later, in 1947, she
would lose her father at an early age; as Farah was very close to
her father, his death deeply…
When Princess Patricia of Connaught,
granddaughter of Queen Victoria, wed Alexander Ramsay in London in
1919, she more than made her mark. For not only had Patricia wed a
man with no royal title. She had given up her own HRH to
become his wife. Victoria Patricia Helena Elizabeth, second
daughter of Victoria’s third son, the Duke of Connaught, walked
into Westminster Abbey on February 27th…
Oslo City Hall stands out in many ways
from other city halls. It is best known for hosting the Nobel Peace
Prize Ceremony every December 10 with the entire Norwegian Royal
Family present. Construction was completed in 1950. But an unknown
side of the building is that it also…
Royal history is so rich that the year is
peppered with anniversaries and milestones. From births to deaths,
coronations to weddings, each month brings the memory of another
landmark moment. Britain’s queens, past and present, have written
themselves into the history…
Our royal history is filled with major
moments and those attached to the monarchs and consorts whose names
are all too familiar take on a significance all of their own. Each
month, at Royal Central, we’re taking a look at the monarchical
milestones that pepper the past and as the year winds on, here is a
Calendar of Kings for February. To Crown a King February is rather
light on kingly birthdays…
