Hair works like a symbolic thread
throughout a person’s life history. For Queen Victoria, this was no
exception. Indeed, for a royal personage, hair plays a massive part
in ceremonial display and formal dressing as well as private
ritual. The role of royal hairdresser is also one that enables
exceptional intimacy, thereby an indication of great privilege.
Today we can visit Queen Victoria’s…
Throughout history, many royals have died
in brutal and bizarre ways. Royals have been killed in attacks, by
illnesses and by accidents. In 1889, a tragic incident happened
that ended up with not one, but two dead royals. Still to this day,
the event has not been clarified…
Today we’re looking at the Luxembourgish
line of succession, which has seen some changes to its rules since
current Grand Duke Henri ascended to the throne. Luxembourg now
practices absolute primogeniture, which Grand Duke Henri
established in 2011 to apply to his heirs.
For Queen Victoria, the number fourteen
held a terrible power. This date, the ‘14th’, could seem to haunt
the Queen like the shadow of death. Much as she later tried to
reclaim it as a sacred date, she beheld it with an almost mystical
sense of dark fascination and dread. Her feelings for this day of
the month were well founded and can be traced back to the date of
the death of her beloved…
We’ve just had another royal silver
wedding anniversary although the couple involved is so discreet,
it’s perhaps not a surprise that it’s passed pretty much under the
radar. Lady Sarah Chatto, niece of the Queen, celebrated twenty
five years of marriage…
In Berlin, there is a missing queen. Her
burial place in the historic Hohenzollerngruft [Hohenzollern vault]
in Berlin Cathedral is disputed and may be lost. Elisabeth
Christine, Frederick II’s (‘the Great’) unloved queen was a victim
of historical banishment, in…
This summer, Royal Central is taking a
look at the lines of succession across Europe and this latest
installment looks at the first twenty with a claim on the British
throne. Elizabeth II has achieved much in her long reign and from a
dynastic point of view she has another success to celebrate. For
the line to the throne under the Queen is as about as secure as it
could be. In fact, so solid…
Today we’re looking at the history of the
Palace of Zarzuela, which is the home of King Felipe, his wife,
Queen Letizia, and their two daughters, Princess Leonor and Infanta
Sofía; as well as King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía. Construction
began on Zarzuela Palace back in…
In June, the temporary summer exhibition
opened at the Royal Palace in Oslo. This is an excellent exhibition
that anyone who visits Norway’s capital should see. For those of
you who cannot visit Oslo this summer, you can see the presentation
here: The backyard of the…
It’s set to be a right royal turnout at
Wimbledon this weekend as the famous tennis tournament comes to a
close. Leading the way will be the Duke of Kent who is President of
the All England Club and whose presence at the finals is a long
standing royal commitment. But he’ll have company this weekend in
the famous royal box as the titles at Wimbledon 2019 are decided.
Embed from Getty…
