Philippe d’Auvergne’s life was that of a
great adventurer. In his life, he rose through the ranks of the
Royal Navy, saw service in the American Revolution, earned the
confidence of an ageing duke, led the defence of his homeland
against the barbarity of the French Revolution, funded the royalist
cause, and marched with his contingent at the Battle of Waterloo.
His is a life that is…
‘Where is Pollie?’ (Lotte Hofmann-Kuhnt,
Briefe der Zarin Alexandra von Russland an ihre Jugendfreundin Toni
Becker-Bracht, 2009). Princess Alix of Hesse paused to add these
words, almost as an afterthought, to a letter to her close friend,
Toni Becker-Bracht, from…
Depicted by many a story and film
presentation in years past and present, Cleopatra has represented
the epitome of feminine beauty. Many ascertain her as an example to
look up to when in need of advice to accomplish a well-maintained
life of beauty and romance. But who…
As his name suggests, Crown Prince
Mohammad is the son of King Salman. He was born on the 31st August
1985 as the son of King Salman and his third wife, Fahda bint Falah
bin Sultan bin Hathleen. He is the eldest of her children and is
considered to be the power behind the throne and has brought in
many reforms which have given women relatively more freedom in
Saudi Arabia. Crown Prince Mohammad…
Frederick II, King ‘in’ Prussia, upon
whom was bestowed the celebrated sobriquet of ‘the Great’ in his
lifetime, was in his own words ‘a philosopher and want[ed] to be
buried as such…” This was eventually carried out in 1991, in
accordance with his wishes…
The marriage of Harald and Sonja of
Norway on August 29th 1968 was a groundbreaking royal wedding. But
the bride chose some very traditional blooms for her bouquet while
the church where she said ‘I do’ was decked with popular flowers
and foliage. As Sonja Haraldsen…
This month, King Harald and Queen Sonja
of Norway celebrate their golden wedding anniversary. The then
Crown Prince of Norway married Sonja Haraldsen on 29 August1968 at
Oslo Cathedral. Their wedding, attended by royalty from around
Europe, came five months after the announcement of their engagement
which was marked by Harald presenting his bride with a diamond and
ruby ring with a very…
Today marks 50 years since then Crown
Prince Harald married Sonja Haraldsen, and she became Crown
Princess of Norway. The day will be celebrated today with a
service in the same church as the wedding took place 50 years ago.
However, you could not have a proper royal…
In the last days of August 1968, the
Royal Family made a sad and surprising announcement. Princess
Marina, Duchess of Kent’s health was ”giving rise to anxiety”
following the diagnosis of an inoperable brain tumour. There
was sympathy for the duchess, a…
Queen Victoria kept her journals from the
year 1832 up until around two weeks before her death in 1901. Her
voluminous correspondence is well known; indeed, it was averaged by
the author Giles St Aubyn that the Queen wrote up to some 2,500
words per day (Christopher Hibbert, Queen Victoria: A Personal
History, XV). Three volumes of her letters were edited by Arthur C.
Benson and Viscount Esher…
