When Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of
Västerbotten, died in 1947, he left behind a nine-month-old son and
heir and four daughters who collectively became known as the Haga
Princesses. Although the four Princesses were older than their
brother, they were not in the line of succession as Sweden did not
adopt absolute primogeniture until 1980. So who were these sisters?
The eldest of the four is…
The Spanish Royals are enjoying their
summer holidays in Palma de Mallorca, as they do every year. After
a first week full of official engagements, King Felipe hung up his
business suits and exchanged them for his nautical polo and
trousers, as he boarded the Aifos…
She was the royal who insisted she would
only marry for love while he was a prince with a broken heart and
no desire to wed again. However, on a summer’s day, exactly a
century ago, they fell in love in London and began a royal romance
that would lead to a crown and…
Blood is thicker than water! A look at how King Carl XVI Gustaf's parents shaped his reign
5th August 2023
King Carl XVI Gustaf is about to
celebrate his Golden Jubilee. And after 50 years of reign, many
Swedish citizens barely remember a life without the current King on
the throne. His reign has another peculiarity: Carl Gustaf
inherited the throne directly from his grandfather at 27. His
father, Prince Gustaf Adolf, never had a chance of even becoming
Crown Prince, passing away in an…
Only Queen Margrethe could sport one of
the most unusual tiaras in existence: the Golden Poppies tiara.
Designed in 1976 by Arje Griegst, Queen Margrethe was only four
years into her reign when she started wearing the Golden Poppies.
It was the Queen’s own commission…
The Princess of Asturias is set to begin
her military education in mid-August. Princess Leonor will enter
the General Military Academy of Zaragoza on 17 August to start her
training in the Spanish Armed Forces. Leonor joins the academy just
weeks after graduating from…
The steel of Sweden: the unusual tiaras that sparkle in the Bernadotte collection
4th August 2023
The Swedish Royal Family has a knack for
jewellery, and that’s especially true of their steel tiaras. There
are two steel cut tiaras in their vault: the Steel Cut Tiara and
the Steel Cut Bandeau. The Cut Steel Tiara dates back to Queen
Hortense of Holland’s time—she was the granddaughter of Empress
Joséphine—and lived as queen consort between 1806 and 1810. The
steel tiara is…
One of Queen Sonja’s most modern and
unique tiaras was a gift from her husband on her 60th birthday. In
1997, Queen Sonja was presented with the Modern Gold Tiara, crafted
by Millie Behrens. The tiara features golden strips of metal set
with diamonds in the spacing and…
King Felipe, Queen Letizia and Queen
Sofía have welcomed political authorities and representatives from
across society in Palma de Mallorca to the traditional royal
reception that rounds off their public appearances on the island
every summer. On the evening of 3rd…
The stones at the heart of this
Luxembourg tiara have long been a mystery to royal watchers: are
they topazes or are they citrines? The Grand Ducal Household has
never officially declared which gemstones are used in the tiara, so
nearly every article about it calls it the Citrine (or Topaz) and
Pearl Bandeau. The tiara is made up of oval citrines—or topazes—set
on a yellow gold band and…
