Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 1, 2021

Yes another issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly (no. 1, 2021) has arrived in the mailbox and I am happy to continue my reviews again after a little break. I didn't comment on the third and fourth issues of last year mainly due to my work and a genealogy project which took most of the fall as well as this spring. So my last RDQ article was published in June 2020. I could of course have written the articles now, but I find it to be less newsworthy. I should add that I write these presentations/reviews on my own initiative, it is not something «I have to do», but I enjoy writing them when I have the opportunity.

Liechtenstein on the front cover! The photo is of Prince Franz Joseph II of Liechtenstein (1906–1989), his wife Princess Georgine (Gina) of Liechtenstein, née Countess von Wilczek (1921–1989) and their two eldest sons, Prince Hans-Adam and Prince Philip. I am not sure when the photo is taken, maybe late 1946 or early 1947. The choice of front cover photo reveals that Charlotte Zeepvat this time has chosen the Princely House of Liechtenstein for her her traditional Family Album. Besides a 2 pages long introduction to the family history, the readers are treated with 72 illustrations of various family members and of the castle. The princely house is so large that the article also contain 5 pages with genealogical tables.

© 2005 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth.

I would love to visit Liechtenstein again one day. My only visit took place in 2005 when the Schloss Vaduz was under renovation. With a better camera I hope to take better photos and also see other parts of the principality.

Charlotte Zeepvat, who is an historical consultant to the magazine, has also written the first article of the present issue, An Extraordinary Life. The Story of Cyril von Sellheim. It is not proven, but in my opinion very likely that Cyril Albert Robert von Sellheim (1897–1983), who was adopted by Peter Alexander von Sellheim (1830–1913) and Philomena Maria (Mary) de Cock (1844–1915), was the son of Princess Marie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1878–1948), eldest daughter of Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich V (1848–1914) and Grand Duchess Elisabeth, née Princess of Anhalt (1857–1933). It is a well-written and interesting article to read, and it also has a page with short genealogies of the Sellheim and Mecklenburg-Strelitz families.

A Guiness for Monaco? Stephen Bunford asks. He tells the story of the Grimaldis and who the current head of state could have been if Prince Louis II of Monaco (1870–1949) had not adopted and legitimated his natural daughter Charlotte (1898–1977) in 1919.

I really enjoyed Bearn Bilker's article Clothilde von Merenberg – the last Nassau. He has both met and interviewed the countess and gives a good outline of the history of the Nassau and Merenberg family. Clothilde von Rintelen, née Countess of Merenberg, b. 1941, is the great-great-granddaughter of Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau (1832–1905), who is 1868 married Natalia Alexandrovna Pushkina (1836–1913). The Merenberg title was granted by Nikolaus' brother-in-law Prince Georg Viktor of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1831–1893). The countess is related to most royal families of Europe, including the Norwegian, as Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm was a brother of Princess Sophia (1836–1913), who in 1857 married Prince Oscar of Sweden (1829–1907), from 1872 King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway. This means that Clothilde and Crown Prince Haakon are fourth cousins. There are other connections as well, but I will leave it at that.

Ove Mogensen from Denmark has traveled the whole world to take photos of royal graves. This time he presents the Saxe-Altenburgs as no. III in his series Tombs, Graves and Monuments in Thuringia.

In the series of Little-known Royals Coryne Hall has this time decided to present Princess Gundelinde of Bavaria (1891–1983), the youngest and 13th child of Prince Ludwig of Bavaria (1845–1921), from 1913 King Ludwig III, and Princess Maria Theresa of Bavaria, née Archduchess of Austria-Este. Princess Gundelinde married in 1919 Count Johann Georg von Preysing-Lichtenegg-Moos (1887–1924). The article reminded me of the somewhat unusual names (at least to me) of some of Gundelinde's siblings, including Helmtrud, Notburga and Dietlinde.

The columns The World Wide Web of Royalty gives us genealogical news from the Imperial, Royal or Princely houses of Austria, Bourbon-Parme, Hohenberg, Leiningen, Norway (Erling Lorentzen), Sweden and Thurn and Taxis.

Really newsworthy are the book titles Royal Books have «in the pipeline», among them the third edition of Bernadotteättlingar (Bernadotte Descendants), which is expected in the summer of 2021, and Genealogie des Fürstlichen Hauses Kinsky, which will come out in the winter of 2021/2022. Really something to look forward to!

Information about Royalty Digest Quarterly can be found at its editor's website Royalbooks.se. See earlier presentations of RDQ here. See also its Facebook page.

Longest reigns page finally updated

I have not been able to do much work on my website the last few months, which has meant that the much needed updating on some of the subpages had to be put on hold.

My subpage Longest reigns, which is a survey of the longest reigns among the reigning monarchs, has now finally been updated. Since the last update both Spain and Saudi Arabia have got new kings and Monaco has got a hereditary prince, so it certainly was on time.

I hope that I will be able to do more work on my website in the months to come. But I also hope that I will not have to update the Longest reigns page for a while, as that usually means that someone on the list has passed away.

Monaco: Ordinances conferring titles on the princely twins

The Sovereign Prince Albert II of Monaco and his wife Charléne became parents to the twins Princess Gabriella and Hereditary Prince Jacques on Wednesday 10 December 2014. In the press bulletin it was informed that Hereditary Prince Jacques was to receive the title of Marquis of Baux, while Princess Gabriella was to receive the title of Countess of Carladès.

The ordinances conferring the said titles were published in the Monegasque Official Gazette, Journal de Monaco. Bulletin Officiel de la Principauté on Friday 12 December 2014:

• Ordonnance Souveraine n° 5.105 du 11 décembre 2014 conférant le titre de Marquis des Baux à S.A.S. le Prince Héréditaire Jacques
• Ordonnance Souveraine n° 5.106 du 11 décembre 2014 conférant le titre de Comtesse de Carladès à S.A.S. la Princesse Gabriella

Monaco: Twins born

Princess Charlène of Monaco, wife of Prince Albert II, gave birth to twins at the Maternity of the Princess Grace Hospital Monaco today (10 December 20114). The following press bulletin was issued:

LL.AA.SS. le Prince et la Princesse de Monaco ont l’immense bonheur d’annoncer la naissance de Leurs enfants prénommés :

• Gabriella, Thérèse, Marie (née à 17h04)
• Jacques, Honoré, Rainier (né à 17h06)

Ces naissances ont eu lieu, le 10 décembre 2014 à la maternité du Centre Hospitalier Princesse Grace de Monaco.
La Princesse et les Enfants se portent bien.
Le Prince Jacques, Honoré, Rainier, a la qualité de Prince Héréditaire. Selon l’usage historique établi par le traité de Péronne (1641), Il reçoit le titre de Marquis des Baux (en Provence).
La Princesse Gabriella, Thérèse, Marie, deuxième enfant dans la ligne de succession, reçoit le titre de Comtesse de Carladès (en Auvergne). 

***

It is with immense joy that TT.SS.HH the Prince and Princess of Monaco have the great pleasure to announce the birth of Their children named: 

• Gabriella, Thérèse, Marie (born at 17h04)
• Jacques, Honoré, Rainier (born at 17h06)

The births took place on 10^th December 2014 at the Maternity of the Princess Grace Hospital Monaco.
The Princess and the Children are doing well.
The Prince Jacques, Honoré, Rainier is the Crown Prince. In accordance with the historic custom established by the treaty of Péronne (1641), He shall receive the title of Marquis of Baux (in Provence).
The Princess Gabriella, Thérèse, Marie, second child in the line of succession, shall receive the title of Countess of Carladès (in Auvergne).

Princess Charlène's pregnancy was announced on 30 May this year. On 9 October it was finally confirmed that she was carrying twins.

Although Princess Gabriella was born first, Prince Jacques is first in line of succession in accordance with the Constitution Article 10:

The succession to the throne, opened by death or abdication, takes place direct and legitimate issue of the reigning prince, by order of primogeniture with priority given to males within the same degree of kinship. 

 The updated line of succession to the Monegasque throne is as follows:

1. HSH Hereditary Prince Jacques, Marquis of Baux (b. 2014)
2. HSH Princess Gabriella, Countess of Carladès (b. 2014)
3. HRH The Princess of Hannover (Princess Caroline) (b. 1957)
4. Andrea Casiraghi (b. 1984)
5. Alexandre "Sasha" Casiraghi (b. 2013)*
6. Pierre Casiraghi (b. 1987)
7. Charlotte Casiraghi (b. 1986)
8. HRH Princess Alexandra of Hannover (b. 1999)
9. HSH Princess Stéphanie of Monaco (b. 1965)
10. Louis Ducruet (b. 1992)*
11. Pauline Ducruet (b. 1994)*

Prince Albert has two children from earlier relationships - Alexandre Coste (b. 24 August 2003) and Jazmin Grimaldi (b. 4 March 1992), who are not in the line of succession.

* Sasha, Louis and Pauline were born out of wedlock, but legitimized by their parents' marriage, cf. the the Monegasque Civil Code Article 227, and are thus in the line of succession unlike Louis' and Pauline's half-sister Camille Grimaldi (Gottlieb), b. 1998. 

Three weddings and a pregnancy

I haven't been able to update my blog lately, so here is a short summary of recent wedding and pregnancy news:

• Prince Muhammad Ali of Egypt married Princess Noal Zaher Shah of Afghanistan at the Çirağan Palace in Istanbul, Turkey on Friday 30 August 2013. Prince Muhammad Ali, b. 1979, is the son of the former King Fuad II of Egypt and his former wife Fadila, née Dominique-France Loeb, while Princess Noal, b. 1978, is the only daughter of Prince Muhammad Daud Pashtunyar Khan of Afghanistan and his wife, Princess Fatima Begum. The bride's father is the fifth son of the late and last king of Afghanistan, Muhammad Zahir Shah (1914-1933-1973-2007). For photos, go here and here (the latter is King Fuad II's official Facebook page).
• Andrea Casiraghi and Tatiana Santo Domingo Rechulski were married at the Princely Palace, Monaco on 31 August 2013. Andrea, b. 1984, is the eldest son of HRH The Princess of Hannover (Princess Caroline of Monaco) and the late Stefano Casiraghi, while Tatiana, b. 1983, is the daughter of Julio Mario Santo Domingo and  Vera Rechulski from Colombia and Brazil respectively. Andrea and Tatiana became parents to Sacha Casiraghi on 21 March 2013 in London. Upon marriage Sacha entered the line of succession to the Monegasque throne due to the rather liberal succession law. See Huffington Post and the Telegraph for photos and more information.
• Gustaf Magnuson and Vicky Andrén were married at Ulriksdal Palace Chapel on 31 August 2013. Gustaf, b. 1975, whose full name is Carl Gustaf Victor Magnuson, is the eldest son of Princess Christina of Sweden and Tord Magnuson and thus a nephew of King Carl XVI Gustaf. Vicky Elisabeth Andrén, whose parents are Elisabeth Malm and Kenneth Andrén, is born in 1983. Among the many guests were King Carl Gustaf, Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Prince Carl Philip, his girlfriend Sofia Hellqvist as well as Queen Sonja of Norway, who is one of Gustaf's sponsors. See photos at Expressen and Svensk Damtidning.
• The Royal Court of Sweden announced on 3 September 2013 that Princess Madeleine and her husband Chris O'Neill are expecting their first child in early March 2014: "Princess Madeleine and Mr. Christopher O'Neill are delighted to announce that The Princess is expecting their first child. The birth is expected to take place in beginning of March of 2014. No changes to the schedule of The Princess's engagements and work for Childhood are planned during the fall of 2013." (See also Expressen.se.) Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neill were married at Stockholm Palacce Church on 8 June 2013. As of now the couple lives in New York City, and as far as I know the court has not revealed if the couple plans to move to Sweden before the birth. This could be interesting constitutionally speaking, as the Swedish Act of Succession Article 4 says among others that "princes and princesses of the Royal House shall be brought up [...] within the Realm". However, the poorly formulated article doesn't say anything about what consequence it would have if a prince or princess is brought up outside the realm. Then again, one might ask if the text should be taken literally. Will non-titled children be affected? Personally I would be surprised if the future child becomes a Prince of Princess, but surely we will get more information from the court on this in due time. The preparatory works to the changes to the succession law in 1979 (Prop. 1977/78 no. 71) mentions the possibility of conditional consent to marriage, but I haven't heard anything about such a clause in the marital agreement.

Princely Wedding in Monaco 1 and 2 July 2011

HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco married Charlène Lynette Wittstock, daughter of Michael Wittstock and his wife Lynette, née Humberstone, in a civil ceremony in the Throne Room at the Prince's Palace on Friday 1 July 2011. The ceremony was officiated by Mr. Philippe Narmino, President of the Council of State and the Sovereign Family's civil registrar.

Following the ceremony, the newly-wed couple greeted the people from the balcony of the Hall of Mirrors.

The religious wedding took place in the Main Courtyard of the Prince's Palace on Saturday 2 July 2011. The Archbishop of Monaco, Bernard Barsi, celebrated the mass. A most beautiful ceremony attended by representatives of almost all the royal families of Europe as well an impressive number of celebrities.

I will come back to the list soon, but would first like to say how impressed I was by how everything was carried out and the excellent service the information office at the Palace has provided. Even the order of presedence followed seemed to make sense, as opposed to the (also wonderful) British Royal Wedding in April this year. I watched parts of the ceremony on Swedish and Norwegian TV. I started with Swedish TV4, but when it took a commercial break, I switched to the Norwegian channel NRK1. On the latter you got the ceremonial program subtitled, which made all the difference, I would say. The Swedish commentators talked too much as well.

After the wedding, the princely couple (funnily enough the Official Wedding Website says "the royal couple") left the Palace for Sainte Dévote's Church so that the Princess could lay down her wedding bouquet. I only saw parts of this on TV before I had to move on to other matters.

The official dinner and the ball took place in the Opera Garnier and the Casino Terraces, concluded by a firework display at midnight.

Shortly before the wedding weekend, the Princely Court published two guest lists with lots of biographical details - "Biographical Information of the Heads of State and other Official Personalities present at the Religious Wedding Ceremony July 2nd 2011" (pdf) and "Biographical Information of a Selection of Private Guests present at the Religious Wedding Ceremony July 2nd 2011" (pdf).

Besides the bride and groom, HRH The Princess of Hanover (Princess Caroline), her children Andrea, Pierre and Charlotte Casiraghi as well as HRH Princess Alexandra of Hanover and also Princess Stephanie of Monaco and her children Louis Ducruet, Pauline Ducruet and Camille Gottlieb attended the wedding, as well as members of the late Princess Antoinette's family. Princess Caroline's husband Prince Ernst August was - quite understandably - not present, but his two sons Ernst August and Christian from his former marriage, were present. Members of Prince Albert's US American family was of course present, including his best man and cousin Chris Le Vine, and also members of the Wittstock family.

Here are the guest lists, with some additional comments by me (I cannot guarantee that everyone mentioned actually attended, as I was not able to follow the whole broadcast, and I would not be able to recognize everyone either - with a few exceptions I have followed the order given by the court):

Heads of state, in Order of Protocol, with spouses

• HE Mr. Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the French Republic (and HE Co-Prince of Andorra as well, but he did not attend in that capacity)
• HM King Carl XVI Gustaf and HM Queen Silvia of Sweden
• (HM King Juan Carlos of Spain (no, he didn't attend, but the court obviously didn't update the list))
• HM King Albert and Queen Paola of the Belgians
• HM King Letsie III of Lesotho
• HE Mr. Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, President of Iceland
• HE Ms. Mary McAleese, President of Ireland (Prince Albert paid the Republic of Ireland an official visit not a long time ago and he has Irish roots through his mother, the late Princess Grace)
• HRH Grand Duke Henri and HRH Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg
• HE Mr. Michel Sleiman, President of Lebanon
• HE Mr. George Abela, President of Malta
• HE Mr. Christian Wulff, President of Germany
• HE Mr. Pál Schmitt, President of Hungary
• HE Ms. Maria Luisa Berti, Captain Regent of San Marino
• HE Mr. Filippo Tamagnini, Captain Regent of San Marino

Heirs of reigning monarchies, with spouses

• HRH Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain
• HRH Prince Philippe and HRH Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Duke and Duchess of Brabant
• HRH Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange and HRH Princess Máxima of the Netherlands
• HRH Crown Prince Frederik and HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark
• HSH Hereditary Prince Alois and HRH Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein
• HRH Crown Prince Haakon and HRH Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway
• HRH Crown Princess Victoria and HRH Prince Daniel of Sweden
• HRH Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg

Other royals

• HRH The Earl of Wessex (Prince Edward) and HRH The Countess of Wessex
• HRH Prince Michael and HRH Princess Michael of Kent
• HRH Princess Astrid and HRH Prince Lorenz of Belgium
• HRH Princess Lalla Meriem of Morocco and her daughter, HRH Princess Lalla Soukaïna
• HRH Prince Faisal bin Hussein of Jordan
• HRH Prince Laurent and HRH Princess Claire of Belgium
• HRH Prince Joachim and HRH Princess Marie of Denmark
• HRH Prince Carl Philip and his sister HRH Princess Madeleine of Sweden
• HRH Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana of Thailand (granddaughter of King Bhumibol)
• HRH Prince Henri of Orléans, Count of Paris (one of the 3 pretenders to the French throne)
• HRH Margrave Maximilian and HRH Margravine Valerie of Baden
• HH Prince Aga Khan IV, Imam of the Shia Imami Nizari Ismaili Muslims
• HRH Prince Vittorio Emanuele (Duke of Savoy, Prince of Naples) and HRH Princess Marina of Italy (the Prince of Naples is the son of the last King of Italy, Umberto II, but his claim of the former throne of Italy is disputed)
• HIM Empress Farah Pahlavi of Iran
• HSH Princess Virginia of Fürstenberg
• HRH Prince Leopold and HRH Princess Ursula of Bavaria
• HRH Duarte Pio and HRH Isabel of Portugal, Duke and Duchess of Braganza
• HRH Crown Prince Alexander and HRH Crown Princess Katarina of Yugoslavia (Serbia)
• HRH Princess Margarita and HRH Prince Radu of Romania
• HIH Grand Princess (Duchess) Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (head of the Imperial Russian Family) as well as her son, HIH Grand Prince George
  
• HRH Prince Carlo and HRH Princess Camilla of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke and Duchess of Castro (Prince Carlo is one of the two claimants to the headhip of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies)
• HRH Hereditary Prince Bernard and HRH Hereditary Princess Stephanie of Baden
• HRH Emanuele Filiberto and Clotilde of Italy, Prince and Princess of Venice and Piedmont
• HRH Louis, Duke of Anjou (one of 3 claimants to the French throne)
• HRH Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia and his fiancée, HSH Princess Sophie of Isenburg
• HM King Leruo Molotlegi of the Kingdom of Bafokeng (I have brought him up from the friends list)
  

Other representatives of Heads of State

• Mr. Marthinus van Schalkwyk, South-Afrian Minister of Tourism
• Mr. Karlheinz Töchterle, Austrian Federal Minister for Science and Research
• HE Mr. Missoum Sbih, Ambassador of Algeria to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Marc Lortie, Ambassador of Canada to Monaco and France
• HE Ms. Salma Ahmed, Ambassador of Kenya to France
• HE Mr. Lejeune Mbella Mbella, Ambassador of Cameroon to France
• Mr. Jeffrey Radebe, South African Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development
• HE Ms. Veronika Stabej, Ambassador of Slovenia to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Charles Rivkin, Ambassador of the USA to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Constantin Chalastanis, Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Viraphand Vacharathit, Ambassador of Thailand to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Kornelios Korneliou, Ambassador of Cyprus to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Mirko Galic, Ambassador of Croatia to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Ulrich Lehner, Amassador of the Swiss Confederation to Monaco and France
• HE Mr. Thomasz Orlowski, Ambassador of Poland to Monaco and France
  

Selection of VIP personalities

• Mrs. Bernadette Chirac, wife of former President Jacques Chirac
• Count Jacques Rogge, President of the International Olympic Committee
• Mr. Jean Todt, President of the FIA
• Ms. Michelle Yeoh, actress and dancer

Selection of private guests

• Mr. Bernard Arnault, businessman, chairman and CEO of LVMH and Mrs. Hélène Mercier-Arnault
• Mr. Francisco Flores, former President of El Salvador
• Mr. Guy Laliberté, among others a Canadian entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Mr. Eric Peugeot, marketing engineer (several positions in the Peugeot company)
• Mr. Yves Piaget, President of Piaget SA
• Mr. Bertrand Piccard, Swiss psychiatrist and balloonist
• Mr. Johann Rupert, South African businessman
• Mr. Sonu Shivdasani, British-born Indian entrepreneur
• Sir Michael Smurfit, Irish businessman
• Mr. Andrea Bocelli, Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist
• Mr. Gerard Butler, Scottish actor
• Ms. Bernice Coppieters, Belgian ballet artist
  
• Ms. Donna D'Cruz, Indian-born US American DJ and model
• Ms. Renée Fleming, US American soprano
• Mr. Juan Diego Florez, Peruvian operatic tenor
• Mr. Jean-Christophe Maillot, French dancer and choreographer
• Ms. Pumexa Matshikiza, South-African lyrical soprano
• Sir Roger Moore, British actor and his wife Christina, née Tholstrup
• Ms. Victoria Silvstedt, Swedish model, actress, singer and TV personality
• Mr. Umberto Tozzi, Italian pop/rock artist
• Mr. Giorgio Armani, Italian fashion designer
• Mr. Terrence Bray, South-African fashion designer
• Ms. Naomi Campbell, British model
• Mr. Roberto Cavalli, Italian fashion designer
• Ms. Inès de la Fressange, French model and designer of fashion and perfume
• Mr. Sébastien Jondeau, former professional boxer, now personal assistant to Karl Lagerfeld
• Ms. Isabell Kristensen, Danish designer
• Ms. Karolina Kurková, Czech model
• Mr. Karl Lagerfeld, German fashion designer
• Ms. Tereza Maxová, Czech model
• Mr. Gerhard Berger, Austrian former Formula One racing driver
• Ms. Pernilla Bjerke (née Wiberg), Swedish former alpine ski racer and her husband Bödvar Bjerke
  
• Mr. Jonas Björkman, Swedish former tennis player
• Mr. Sergey Bubka, Ukrainian former athlete (pole vaulter)
• Ms. Nadia Comãneci, Romanian former gymnast
• Ms. Charmaine Crooks, Canadian former athlete
• Mr. Bob Ctvrlik, US American former volleyball player
• Ms. Sophie Edington, Australian backstroke and freestyle swimmer
• Mr. Patrice Evra, French football player (Manchester United)
• Mr. Frank Fredericks, Namibian former athlete
• Mr. Graham Hill, South African swimming coach and former competitive swimmer
• Mr. Jacky Ickz, Belgian former racing driver
• Mr. Branislav Ivkovic, Serbian swimming coach (trained the now Princess Charlène ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, before she had to pull out due to a shoulder injury)
• Mr. Byron Kelleher, New Zealand rugby player
• Mr. Henri Leconte, French former tennis player
• Mr. Axel Lund Svindal, Norwegian alpine ski racer
• Ms. Julia Mancuso, US American alpine ski racer and girl-friend of the former
• Mr. Ian Mcintosh, Zimbabwean-South African rugby union coach
• Ms. Elana Meyer, South African former long-distance runner
• Mr. Ilie Nastase, Romanian former tennis player
• Mr. Ryk Neethling, South African swimmer
• Mr. Terence Parkin, South Afrian swimmer
• Mr. François Pienaar, South-African former rugby player
• Mr. Nicola Pietrangeli, Italian former tennis player
• Ms. Sarah Poewe, South African-born German swimmer
• Mr. Wayne Riddin, South African swimming coach and former competitive swimmer
• Mr. Roland Schoeman, South African swimmer
• Sir Jackie Stewart, Scottish former racing driver
• Ms. Franziska van Almsick, German former swimmer

Many of these friends might have attended with their partners, but for the most part they are not mentioned in the guest list. There was no representation from the Imperial Family of Japan, the Royal Family of Spain and the Royal Family of Romania.

Updated on Wednesday 6 July 2011 at 23.00 (spelling of one name corrected), last time on Tuesday 2 August 2011 at 13.30 (see comments section).

Anne Michelle Lütken (1959-2001), formerly Baroness de Massy

The following article was published at the royalty forum Nobiliana.de 6 June 2006 and at the newsgroup alt.talk.royalty on 16 June 2006. This was before my blog was created so I have decided to re-publish the article here, with some minor corrections and additions.

«Anne Michelle Lütken, formerly married to Baron Christian de Massy, died in London on 25 November 2001.

Anne Michelle Lütken was born at Oslo kommunale kvinneklinikk, Josefines gate 30 in Oslo on Saturday 28 November 1959 as the first child of Carl Fredrik Lütken and his first wife Bjørg, née Christiansen. The birth announcement in Aftenposten 30 November 1959 No. 555, p. 10, only said:

«Født:

[...]

- Josefinesgt. klinikk, 28 ds.:

En pike.

Bjørg og Calle.»

Josefinesgates klinikk was the popular name of Oslo kommunale kvinneklinikk (Oslo Municipal Women's Clinic).

According to VG of 29 November 2001, Anne grew up at Skillebekk in Oslo. She had a difficult relationship with her father, especially after he left her mother for another woman, and moved out and got her own apartment at Skillebekk only 16 years old. 2 years later she moved to Milan in Italy to study, was discovered by a photographer and started working as a model. She became more interested in partying than studying. At the time she became a model she had already tried amphetamine (speed) and later moved on to cocaine.

She met the Swedish tennis player Björn Borg who introduced her to another tennis player, Vitas Gerulaitas. They were an item for about a year. The abuse of cocaine continued. At a night club she met Baron Christian de Massy, son of Princess Antoinette of Monaco and nephew of Prince Rainier III. They married at Ramatuelle, St. Tropez on 11 September 1982. (*) The jetset life continued in Monaco, London, New York and France.

- We slept at daytime and partied all night long. Our life was alcohol, wild parties and shallow friends, Anne Lütken once said in an interview with Se og Hør. According to VG, they moved to New York in an effort to get away from their cocaine addiction. Christian de Massy served as Ambassador of Monaco for a while (can this really be true?) and represented the tiny principality on behalf of the Grimaldis.

But as Anne's addiction got worse, she moved home to Oslo, once again in an effort to get away. The marriage turned into a public conflict when the baron wrote in an advertisement in Aftenposten that he did not take any responsibility for his wife any longer, neither morally nor financially. But he claimed in a VG interview the day after that he still loved his wife. He returned home without Anne, and they got divorced in 1985.(**)

2 years earlier she had been charged on indictment for purchase of 7 g cocaine and 3 g amphetamine, but the case was later dropped.

She continued to make headlines. In 1990 she was in company with the Bergen man nicknamed «Hallik-Frank» («Frank the Pimp») when he fired shots against another dubious character, the «torpedo» (debt collector) Espen Lie. In 1999 her boyfriend, the Greek multi-billionaire Constantine Niarchos, died of an overdose of cocaine. Anne Lütken was in the same apartment when he died. After her friend's death she went public warning young people against the dangers of drugs. She planned to found a charity organisation to help out young girls who «had wandered from the straight and narrow».

Anne Lütken never got that far. On Sunday 25 November 2001, 3 days before her 42nd birthday, she was found lifeless in her luxury apartment at Phillimore Place in Kensington, London. According to her sister-in-law, Anne had got respiratory problems and died in her sleep. A friend attempted to resuscitate her, but to no avail. It shouldn't be too difficult to read between the lines and realize the real cause of death, but the result of the autopsy was as far as I know never published.

The sister-in-law described Anne as «a warm person» with lots of love for those close to her. «Even when her life was tough, she always had something to give others. Our children loved her dearly.»

The funeral service took place at Vestre krematorium (crematorium), Oslo, on Wednesday 12 December 2001 at 1130. The death announcement in Aftenposten on Thursday 6 December 2001 No. 564, p. 13, was signed by her mother Bjørg, her full brother Eirik and sister-in-law Marianne and their children Isabella and Nicolas (Anne’s father had died in 1998). The urn was interred at Vestre gravlund (Western cemetery) in Oslo on 16 May 2002 (grave no. 20.059.09.11).

Photo taken in June 2006. Grave no. 20.059.09.11.

Lütken ancestry

According to the genealogical work «Slekten Lütken i Norge», 1997, by Helen, Ferdinand and Frances Lütken (editorial committee), the Lütken family probably originates in the Bremen area in Germany.

Johan Caspar Lütken, Anne's g-g-g-great-grandfather, was born in Hamburg on 19 April 1734 and died on 14 January 1798 at Østby gård (farm), Rakkestad, Smålenene (now county of Østfold). The names of his parents have not been established yet. He was married 3 times. His second wife was Daarthe Helene Paasche (1743-1781), daughter of Captain Christian Heidemarch Paasche, Rakkestad, by his wife Ellen Catharina Christensdatter Bjørnestad. They married in 1770.

J.C.L. had 10 children, of which 8 with his 2nd wife. His 8th child was Lucas Johan Caspar Lütken, born at Østby, Rakkestad on 6 January 1778, d. at Rakkestad on 29 October 1850. He married 2ndly Randine Waarum (1786-1812), daughter of goldsmith Amund Waarum., and they had 3 children (Lucas got a fourth child with his 3rd wife; he was married four times). The youngest of the 3 was Randin Fredrik Lütken (1812-1902).

Randin Fredrik was married in 1839 to Caroline Marie Larsen (1824-1899), daughter of Iver Larsen and his wife Ellen Marie ---. They had 17 children, of which 12 sons! The 14th child was Georg Herman Nicolai Lütken (1861-1937). He was married to Klaudine Wilhelmine Engström (1873-?), daughter of Otto Engström and his wife Mathea, in 1895 and they had 8 children.

The fifth child was Karl Randin Lütken (1902-1981), m. Halldis Camilla Dahle (1907-1771), daughter of Oscar Dahle and Ottilie Olsen. They had 3 children, among them Carl Fredrik Lütken, b. 1935.

Carl Fredrik Lütken was first married to Bjørg Christiansen, and they had 2 children, Anne Michelle and Eirik. The marriage ended in divorce. His second marriage was to Kathe Kvaale and they had 2 children, Christin, b. 1979, and Christian Georg, b. 1983. Carl Fredrik died on 12 June 1998 (cf. Disnorge.no/gravminner).

In summary
Johan Caspar Lütken (1734-1798) --> Lucas (1778-1850) --> Randin Fredrik (1812-1902) --> Georg Herman Nicolai (1861-1937) --> Karl Randin (1902-1981) --> Carl Fredrik (1935-1998) --> Anne Michelle Lütken (1959-2001).»

Footnotes
(*) The sources I have collected don’t say whether Christian de Massy and Anne Lütken had both a civil and a religious wedding ceremony. But I know that the civil marriage took place at Ramatuelle on 11 September 1982 (Ramatuelle Marriage Certificate No. 16/1982).

(**) In VG’s article 4 July 1999, based on an interview with Anne Lütken, the divorce year is stated as 1987, as I wrote in my original article. However, according to the said marriage certificate, the divorce was granted at Monaco on 13 June 1985.

Sources and other information

• Aftenposten 30 Nov 1959 No. 555, p. 10 (birth announcement); 6 Dec 2001 No. 564, p. 13 (death announcement)
• An Online Gotha. Monaco
• Dagbladet.no 29 Nov 2001
• Disnorge.no/gravminner (cemetery records)
• Gravferdsetaten i Oslo commune (The Oslo Municipality Cemetery Office), cemetery register Begravedeioslo.no
• Lütken, Helen/Lütken, Ferdinand/Lütken, Frances (ed. committee). Slekten Lütken i Norge, Asker/Bærum/Sylling: [Privately published], 1997. Printed at Falch Hurtigtrykk, Oslo
• VG 29 Nov 2001 No. 324, pp. 6-7. See also the electronic version (VG Nett)
• A summary in English written by Dag T. Hoelseth at alt.talk.royalty 29 November 2001
• VG Nett 4 July 1999
• Nobiliana.de. Information about the marriage certificate no. 16/1982 posted by Emilien on 24 June 2006.

Updated on Wednesday 26 December 2011 at 10.50 (missing word inserted).

Princess Antoinette of Monaco (1920-2011): Obituary in The Sunday Telegraph

Princess Antoinette of Monaco, b. Paris 28 December 1920, died at Monaco on 17 March 2011, 90 years old. She was the oldest child of Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois (1898-1977) and Count Pierre de Polignac (1895-1964) and thus the sister of Prince Rainier III (1923-2005) and the aunt of Prince Albert II.

The princess, who was married 3 times, left behind 2 children (Elisabeth and Christian), 6 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. Her youngest daughter Christine died in 1989.

The funeral service took place at the Cathedral of Monaco on Thursday 24 March 2011, followed by burial in the Chapelle de La Paix.

Princess Antoinette's obituary was published in The Sunday Telegraph on 27 March 2011. The obituary seems to contain at least one mistake. The paper states that she died on 18 March 2011. But the press release from the court was released on 18 March 2011 and said that "Following a long stay in hospital, Princess Antoinette of Monaco passed away last night in the Principality, at the age of 90, at the Princess Grace Hospital." So I think the date 17 March 2011 is correct.

Then there is the story about Princess Charlotte's mother Marie Juliette Louvet (1867-1930) being a washerwoman. I haven't done any original research on the question, so I can only say that most experts in the field say it was Princess Charlotte's grandmother who was the cleaning lady. I am not sure if this is the best question to put forward to the court, though... One could of course check out what the press wrote at the time Princess Charlotte was legitimated, but then one should also be pretty sure that the press at the time had got the facts right in the first place.

Official Website for the Princely Wedding in Monaco

The Princely Court of Monaco has launched an official website for the wedding between Prince Albert and Charlène Wittstock:

http://www.mariageprinciermonaco2011.mc/

The civil wedding takes place on Friday 1 July 2011 in the Throne Room, while the religious ceremony takes place the day after in the Main Courtyard of the Palace of Monaco.

Monaco: New wedding date

The date of the religious ceremony for the wedding of Prince Albert II and Charlène Wittstock has been changed from 9 July to 3 July 2011, the Princely Court of Monaco announced last Sunday, 1 August 2010. The civil ceremony will take place on 2 July 2011.

The reason for the change of dates is that a meeting of the International Olympic Committee is scheduled to take place in Durban in the period of 5-9 July 2011, and "the couple wished for the presence of the Olympic family by their sides". I am not sure if this means that all members of the "Olympic family" will be invited to the wedding, or if this was a reference to the Monegasque presence at the meeting in Durban. Prince Albert II has been a member of the IOC since 1985.

The Prince also wanted that their first trip abroad as husband and wife should go to Ms. Wittstock's homeland, the Republic of South Africa.

(Updated on Friday 19 October 2010 at 0800 (link corrected).

Monaco: Wedding date set to 9 July 2011

The Princely Court of Monaco announced today, 22 July 2010, that the religious ceremony for the wedding between HSH Prince Albert II and Charlène Wittstock will take place on Saturday 9 July 2011.

The civil wedding will take place at the Palace on Friday 8 July 2011.

The engagement was announced on 23 June 2010.

Monaco: Charlène Wittstock's ancestry

Earlier this week I wrote in connection with Prince Albert's engagement to Ms. Charlène Wittstock that I expected more details about her ancestry to be revealed before the wedding next year.

Ronald Elward, who has his own blog, Heirs of Europe, has already started to work on Ms. Wittstock's ancestry (or rather the ancestry of the couple's future children (!)):

• Heir of Europe 23 June 2010

There is also a new thread titled Ancestry of Charlene Wittstock at the Nobiliana Forum (you will have to get registered in order to read it).

Updated on Monday 28 June 2010 at 08.00 (minor language correction).

Monaco: Princely wedding set for summer 2011

Following the engagement between Prince Albert and Charlène Wittstock yesterday, the French newspaper Nice Matin published a short interview with the prince in today's edition. The Sovereign Prince informed that the wedding is going to take place during the summer of 2011.

The exact date will obviously be published later. In other words, there will be plenty of time for Charlène Wittstock to adjust to her future position as the principality's first lady.

Prince Albert seems to have much more contact with the other royal families of Europe than his father used to, so I think we can expect a large gathering of royals in Monaco at the wedding next year.

Monaco: Prince Albert II and Charlène Wittstock engaged

The Princely Court of Monaco announced today the engagement between Prince Albert II and his long-time girl-friend Charléne Lynette Wittstock. The wedding date has not yet been set.

Prince Albert, b. Monaco 14 March 1958, is the only son of Prince Rainier III (1923-2005) and Grace Kelly (1929-1982). Charlène Lynette Wittstock, who has competed for South Africa as a swimmer and is a former youth worker, was born in Bulawayo, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) on 25 January 1978. She moved with her family (parents are Lynette and Mike Wittstock) to South Africa when she was 11 years old. I am sure that more details of the ancestry of Ms. Wittstock will be available before the wedding takes place.

The Sovereign Prince of Monaco has two children from earlier relationships - Alexandre Coste (b. 24 August 2003) and Jazmin Grimaldi (b. 4 March 1992).

Prince Albert brought Charlene Wittstock along for the royal wedding in Stockholm last weekend, something many interpreted as a sign that a formalization of their relationship was imminent.

Sources and references

• Press release from the Princely Court of Monaco 23 June 2010
• YourMonaco.com (date unknown; the subpage which partly gave information for the blog article has expired, hence the link has been made unactive)
• New York Times 5 May 2005
• A 'Princess Diaries' Moment for Prince Albert's daughter (The Washington Post 5 June 2006)
• Bye to bachelorhood, Monaco's Prince Albert says (Associated Press 23 June 2010)

Corrected on Friday 25 June 2010 at 11.30 (Ms. Wittstock was originally presented as a former teacher, while according to the Court "youth worker" would be a more correct translation.). Last time updated on Monday 16 May 2011 (birth dates corrected, cf. the comments section below); Friday 23 May 2014 at 08.00 (link made unactive).

Cimetière de Passy, Paris, France

Pearl White (1889-1938, US American silent film star.

Bao Dai (1913-1997), the last Emperor of Vietnam.

The last resting place of the Georgian Prince David Dimitry Tsouloukidze and his wife Princess Emma, née Dunbar.

Tomb of the Russian artist Marie Bashkirtseff (1860-1884). According to Wikipedia her tomb is a recreation of her studio and has been declared a historical monument by the French government.

Grave of Prince Leila of Iran (1970-2001), daughter of the last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

Grave of Princess Ghislaine of Monaco (1900-1991), née Dommanget, spouse of Prince Louis II (1870-1922-1949).

Grave of the artist Édouard Manet (1832-1883).

Grave of Maurice Bellonte (1896-1984), who together with Dieudonné Costes made the first east to west crossing of the Atlantic by plane in 1930.

Grave of Princess Nathalia Romanovskaya-Brassova (1880-1952), née Cheremetevskya, wife of Grand Prince Michael of Russia (1878-1918), and of their son Count Georgy Brassov (1910-1931).

Grave of (among others) Prince Claude Beguin Billecoco, Duke of Durazzzo (1914-2001), Charles Baron Tascher de La Pagerie (1811-1869) and Princess Sophie Therese of Leyen and Hohengeroldseck (1798-1876), née Countess of Schönborn-Bucheim.

Grave of Count Louis Nicolas Wilmar de La Roche d'Oisy (1806-1885).

No doubt about the profession of this bloke!

General view of the cemetery.

Artistic.

Grave of Count Stefan Czarnecki (1904-1971).

General view of the cemetery.

I wonder if the deceased's grave can be identified by the arms?

The graves of noble families at Passy Cemetery are numerous...

All photos: © 2009 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth

Cimetière de Passy at 2 Rue du Commandant-Schloesing in Paris can be reached by the metro. The nearest station is Trocadéro (line 6 and 9), but it is also only a short walk from the Eiffel Tower.

References

• Cimetière de Passy (Wikipedia)
• Cimetière de Passy (Cimetières de France et d'ailleurs)
• Point d'Interrogation
• Mas Bellonte
• Von der Leyen (Wikipedia, in German)