Being Queen of Spain isn’t the easiest
royal role around. Ask the two women who currently hold that title
– neither Sofia of Greece nor Letizia Ortiz have enjoyed totally
smooth sailing. And a century ago, the woman who reigned as Spanish
consort had more than her fair share of problems. She was Victoria
Eugenie, known as Ena, and she was the youngest of the women who
were granddaughters of…
On Monday 10th August, Queen Elizabeth II
arrived for her annual summer holiday at the Scottish retreat of
Balmoral Castle. For the next two months, she will reside at this
50,000-acre estate in Aberdeenshire. Originally purchased in 1852
by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert…
On this day in 1786 a baby girl was born
to a German noble and his wife. They weren’t the wealthiest of
families and already had a large family to look after. But they
were ambitious and determined and their daughter inherited those
traits. For that baby would grow up to…
Palaces to pixels: how the royal web presence has developed over the years
16th August 2015
137 years ago, on 14 January 1878, Queen
Victoria became one of the first people to see Professor Alexander
Graham Bell’s brand new invention in action. Bell’s demonstration
of the telephone, which took place at Osborne House, was a roaring
success, and it went on to become one of our history’s greatest
inventions. Indeed, years later, its widespread usage helps us all
to…
‘No one has ever had a sister like her’.
The words of King George V, written about a younger sibling known
to her family as Toria, perhaps best sum up the life of one of the
quietest of Queen Victoria’s granddaughters. When she
died many had almost forgotten about…
If, like me, you are a massive fan of all
things Harry Potter, then I am sure you would have visited the
dedicated Wikipedia site to all things related to the boy
wizard and his world. Just recently I visited the site and was
surprised at how much thought had been put in to…
Entertainment fit for a King or Queen: The Royal Variety Performance
15th August 2015
Dating back to 1912, the Royal Variety
Performance has seen an outstanding 87 spectacular shows. View
image | gettyimages.com King George V and Queen Mary first agreed
to attend a ‘Royal Command Performance’ which was to take place at
the Palace Theatre in London. The performance supported the Variety
Artistes’ Benevolent Fund (the previous name of the Entertainment…
The stories of Queen Victoria's granddaughters: Princess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein
12th August 2015
In the winter of 1900, Princess Christian
of Schleswig-Holstein fled in a panic from Cumberland Lodge,
clutching an alarming telegram. Arriving at Windsor Castle, she
frantically explained to her mother, Queen Victoria, that the Duke
of Anhalt had tersely demanded that her…
Many interviews, articles, and books were
published during Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012. There is
one individual who shared personal stories and not the kind that
may come into question as true. These stories were from someone who
has seen the transformation…
It is fitting that this Hessian
granddaughter of Queen Victoria was christened ‘Irene’ – a name
meaning “peace” – an appropriate choice in more ways than one, as
her character and the circumstances of her birth would prove.
Perhaps the one of Princess Alice’s surviving daughters about which
least is known, she was destined to outlive all her immediate
family, dying in 1953. Princess…
