Born Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano
on 15 September 1972 in Oviedo, Asturias, Spain, the
future royal was the eldest daughter of the journalist Jesús
José Ortiz Álvarez and registered nurse and hospital union
representative María de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodríguez.
Letizia has two younger sisters, Telma and the late Érika. Her
compulsory education saw her attend the public La Gesta School in…
If you haven’t been living under a rock,
then you surely know that the Netherlands has a monarch. Following
the abdication of Queen Beatrix on 30 April 2013, Willem-Alexander
became the very first Dutch king in the last hundred years. Holland
is one of the many European…
“For centuries the Tsars of Russia have
been waging wars simply for the lust of territory and for the glory
of Autocracy. The rulers of Russia have sown the wind and they are
now beginning to reap the whirlwind.” -Carl Joubert The story of
Russia’s last Tsar and his…
Sonja Haraldsen was born on 4 July 1937
as the youngest child of Karl August and Dagny Haraldsen at
the Red Cross Clinic in Oslo. Her elder brothers were Haakon (b.
1921) and Karl (1929-1936), and her elder sister was Gry (b. 1924).
However, her brother Karl died the year before Sonja was born, and
as a result, her parents were very protective of their
youngest child. Also, due to the age gap…
The personal jewellery of the last Tsarina, Alexandra Feodorovna
14th August 2018
The personal jewellery of the last
Tsarina of Russia, Alexandra Feodorovna (1872-1918) provides a
living, tangible timeline of her private life, quite apart from the
glittering jewels which she would have worn as a Romanov bride.
Inevitably though, the public life and the…
‘Never, never can I forget this brilliant
year… so full of marvellous kindness, loyalty & devotion of so many
millions which I really could hardly have expected’. (Quoted in
Christopher Hibbert, Queen Victoria, A Personal History, 379). With
these words, Queen Victoria…
The Duchess of Sussex pulled a style
surprise on her wedding day when she chose an all but forgotten
royal tiara as the finishing touch to her bridal outfit. Meghan’s
pick has put Queen Mary’s Bandeau Tiara back in the regal spotlight
and reignited interest in the set of stones that make up this
sparkler. And at their heart is a pretty brooch that already had a
royal wedding history all of its…
Queen Sirikit is the Queen Mother in
Thailand, having married the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 1950
shortly before his coronation; sadly she has not been seen much in
public recently following a stroke in 2012. She was born on 12th
August 1932, at the home of her maternal…
Europe Editor, Brittani Barger gives her
opinion on the top ten tiaras across the globe: 10: Crown Princess
Mette-Marit’s Wedding Tiara I just love the simplicity of this
piece, which fits so well with Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s
personality. She wore it during…
She is set to become Japan’s next Empress
in May 2019, but today we take a look at the life of Crown Princess
Masako of Japan before she married Crown Prince Naruhito. Born
Masako Owada on 9 December 1963 at the Toranomon Hospital in
Tokyo, Japan, she is the eldest daughter of Hisashi Owada
and Yumiko Egashira. Masako’s younger sisters are
twins Reiko and Setsuko. Her father recently…
