Sayako Kuroda was born on 18 April 1969
as the first daughter and third child of the then Crown Prince
Akihito and then Crown Princess Michiko. Her grandfather, Emperor
Shōwa, named her Sayako and gave her the title of The Princess
Nori. From birth, she was also entitled to the style of Imperial
Highness. According to her mother, Sayako was born two weeks before
expected and was a genuinely…
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…
When Sophie Rhys Jones married Prince
Edward on June 19th 1999 at St. George’s Chapel, she carried a
bouquet with more than a hint of the past about it. The couple who
starred in the last big Windsor wedding of the 20th century had
gone for something of a medieval…
You’ve probably seen the acronym CHOGM a
lot lately, or you’ve heard about a Commonwealth meeting that
begins today in London. What is CHOGM? And what’s the meeting?
CHOGM stands for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting,
which is a large meeting of all the…
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 attachable pieces of the robe de
cour,such as the corset. Whilst many are within the collections but
mostly not exhibited for…
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…
Philippe of the Belgians was an unlikely
king. Although born second in line to the throne, he was never
expected to succeed. In fact, his whole royal life has been filled
with surprises. Yet since his accession, in July 2013, he has been
praised as a successful sovereign, a…
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…
