There are many people who, throughout history, have pretended to be royal. The desire for power and wealth have enticed many to falsely pretend to be a royal who has either died or disappeared. Not many of them are women; however, a ship once came to Norway with a woman who wanted to be the nation’s queen.
That woman has been known as “False Margrete.” She was a Norwegian woman who…
On 21 August 1930, one of the most famous royal stories of the 20th century began with the birth of Princess Margaret. The Princess lived an eventful life and died in 2002. On what would have been her 90th birthday, Royal Central rounds ups some of the most fascinating facts…
It might be the height of summer but August has plenty of royal history within its 31 days. From birthdays to wedding anniversaries to coronations, here are some of the most famous royal August anniversaries.
August 4, 1981
On this day in 1981 Meghan, the Duchess of…
The former church Haga Sophia has been widely reported in the media over recent weeks after the building has been converted into a mosque for the second time. However, what isn’t known to many is that right next to the famous building is a unique hidden story. In a burial chamber, 19 Ottoman princes are buried next to each other, all of whom were killed on the same evening, by their only…
Lady Jane Grey, or Lady Jane Dudley, was proclaimed Queen on this day in 1553. She has been commonly referred to as The Nine Days Queen. She was the great-granddaughter of Henry VII through his daughter Mary, Queen of France. From 10 July to the 19 July, she was the de facto…
A chance listing on the Public Catalogue Foundation Art UK, for an oil on canvas painting (35.8 x 30.7 cm) said to be of Russia’s last Empress, Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna, when she was Princess Alix of Hesse (1872-1918) led me to investigate this extraordinary artwork…
Archduchess Mathilde of Austria was born in 1849 as the daughter of Archduke Albert, Duke of Teschen and his wife, Princess Hildegard of Bavaria. She grew up in a wealthy and charming home with a kind family. During the summer, the family spent their time at the Weilburg Palace in Baden bei Wien. The winters were spent in the royal residence in downtown Vienna. The family was very close to the…
London has many plaques and memorials with royal connections but in fact, rather fewer statues. Some of these statues have interesting hidden histories of their own, of how they were made, how they came to be in the places that they are and why. Some of these statues may be…
The 7th of June is a special day in Norwegian history. On that day, the Norwegians celebrated both the end of the Union with Sweden in 1905 and the return of King Haakon in 1945 following the Second World War. This year, there was no celebration because of the coronavirus…
In 1997, the life of the Spanish King came under threat as a plot was made to kill him during the opening of a new museum. The failed assassination attempt on King Juan Carlos was discovered by Spanish police by chance and resulted in an international hunt for the men who wanted to kill the Spanish monarch. Eneko Gogeaskoetxea Arronategui was the master of the plan together with some other members…
