Your challenge, should you choose to
accept it, is to find a royal who isn’t called Albert or Victoria.
OK, slightly OTT, but the fact is that two of the hot favourite
names for Royal Baby Cambridge number three are as close as you can
get to ubiquitous in royal circles. Ever since the time of the
second longest reigning monarch in British history and her beloved
consort, their names have done…
If you think royal baby fever is a new
thing, think again. Back on April 21st 1926, when the Queen was
born, there was plenty of excitement over the arrival of a new
princess who – at the time – was several steps removed from the
Crown and never expected to rule. No…
‘Though I stood for the ninth time near a
child and for the fifth time near a daughter, at the altar, I think
I never felt more deeply than I did on this occasion… When the
blessing had been given, I tenderly embraced my darling “Baby” ‘
(op. cit, Christopher…
Close to Balmoral Castle is a small
church, which is – almost – unique. With the exceptions of St
Mildred’s Church, Whippingham – where Queen Victoria’s family would
sometimes worship when in residence at Osborne and where the
marriage of her daughter, Princess Beatrice was celebrated – or the
country parish church of St Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham
estate, where the…
Whilst musical talent in the eighteenth
century was judged to be an appropriate feminine accomplishment,
Marie Antoinette’s personal relationship with music was a special
one, which reached far beyond mere natural inclination. Music
proved to be in many ways, perpetually…
The site of Christchurch Greyfriars, is a
strange, haunting place, redolent of history. It is now a ruined,
public garden and a popular place for Londoners to take their
sandwiches for lunch. Long gone is the atmosphere of bells and
prayer from the Middle Ages; although in…
The country estate of Eastwell Park, in
the parish of Eastwell, near Boughton Lees, Ashford in Kent, is not
perhaps a name which immediately comes to mind when thinking of a
one-time royal residence. It was, however, the Kent home of Prince
Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and his family, when they were not at
their official London residence at Clarence House. The fact that
the sons of Queen Victoria…
Within the historical collections of the
Royal Armoury [Livrustkammeran] in Stockholm are preserved some
astonishing examples of Swedish royal wedding dresses. Some are in
the forms of fully preserved dresses, others sections from the
same, such as trains or loosely…
In 1874, Queen Victoria’s second son,
Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh got married. In great contrast,
however, to the weddings of his other siblings, he did not marry in
Great Britain, but instead, in Russia. The marriages of his
brothers all took place at St George’s…
Queen Victoria’s love of orange blossom
properly began with her wedding to Prince Albert in 1840; however,
this marked only the start of what would be an enduring association
within the Royal Family, and not just for weddings. Orange blossom
is, of course, traditionally linked with marriages, being a symbol
of chastity in the language of flowers. Its links with the Queen
would however, prove…
