Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 2, 2024

The latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly - no. 2, 2024 – arrived in my mailbox on 4 July. It has been a busy summer, so I haven't much time to write a commentary until now.

The contents:

• Olivier Defrance. A Life Without Tenderness. Princess Marie Louise of Bourbon-Parma II, pp. 1–10.
• Martijn Arts: Sigismund and Charlotte Agnes of Prussia. From Palace to Nature, pp. 11–17.
• Elisabeth Jane Timms: Losing Ludwig, pp. 18–28.
• Bearn Bilker: The Princely House zu Wied – A Family Album, pp. 29–49.
• Coryne Hall: Little-Known ROYALS. Prince Christian of Schaumburg-Lippe, pp. 50–52.
• Stephen Bunford: The Pursuit of Pleasure - the Georgian Mistresses, pp. 53–62.
• The World Wide Web of Royalty, p. 64.

The main cover photo is of Schloss Monrepos near Neuwied, one of the palaces of the Wied family, while the inserted photo is of  Princess (Fürstin) Marie, née Princess of  Nassau-Weilberg (1825–1902), who was married to Prince Hermann (1814–1836–1864). They were 4xgreat-grandparents of the current head, Prince Maximilian, b. 1999, if I have done my maths correctly.

Ted Rosvall opens his Editor's Corner this way: "The Duke of Sussex is now definitely "Persona non Grata" within the British Royal Family. This is hardly a secret and every new scandal seems to confirm it. Not to mention his easily hurt, spoiled and scheming duchess. Without being too harsh, one must probably conclude that their place in the cold is more than well deserved."

Well, we certainly agree that the ducal couple are "Persona non Grata". But I don't think it is fair to put all the  blame on them. The king, his brother and the media also have a share in my opinion, even if the couple has made the situation much worse by their TV interview, book publication etc. after moving to the States. It is all a very sad story ...

I feel that I have learned a lot about Princess Marie Louise of the Bulgarians, née Princess of Bourbon-Parma (1870–1899), wife of Prince Ferdinand (1861–1887–1918–1948) by reading Oliever Defrance's article, which was written with the collaboration of Joseph van Loon and Damien Bilteryst. What a sad marriage and what a selfish husband ...

Prince Sigismund (1896–1978), the second son of Prince Heinrich of Prussia (1862–1929) and a nephew of Emperor Wilhelm II, had an interesting life as a farmer in Guatemala and later in Costa Rica, together with his wife Princess Charlotte Agnes, née Princess of Saxe-Altenburg (1899–1989). I have read about them before, but it was a nice "return visit".

The article about king Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845–1886) by Elisabeth Jane Timms is based among others on the diary of Archduchess Marie Valerie (1868–1924), whose mother was Empress Elisabeth "Sissi" of Austria, née Duchess in Bavaria (1837–1898).

The main article of this issue is of course Bearn Bilker's Family Album of the House of Wied. The article follows the same pattern as previous family albums – a short introduction followed by a large collection of photos of various family members and then finally a genealogical table. Bilker could perhaps have mentioned Prince Wilhelm of Wied (1876–1945), who reigned as Prince (Mbret) of Albania for a short period in 1914, but at least it is mentioned in the genealogy (provided by Ted Rosvall, I gather?).

Prince Christian of Schaumburg-Lippe (1898–1974) was certainly not among the best-known members of royal Europe, and you would have to be very interested in royal history to know much about him these days. He was the son of Prince Friedrich (1868–1945), head of the Náchod branch, and Princess Louise of Denmark (1875–1906), the eldest daughter of Crown Prince, later King Frederik VIII) of Denmark (1843–1906–1912). Prince Christian, a first cousin of among others King Frederik IX of Denmark (1899–1947–1972) and King Olav V of Norway (1903–1957–1991), married his first cousin Princess Feodora of Denmark (1910–1975), eldest daughter of Prince Harald (1876–1949). Prince Christian and Princess Feodora's second son was the notorious Prince Waldemar (1940–2020), who caused so headlines of the years for the wrong reasons ...

When Stephen Bunford writes about "the Georgian Mistresses" he refers to the various Kings named George (of Hannover and the United Kingdom), but if you read the headline fast without thinking too much, you could easily wonder if the article was about mistresses from Georgia, and that would have made it more eccentric, wouldn't it?! Bunford doesn't hide the truth about King George IV: "[He] was an egotistical, romantic, dramatic, foolhardy, untruthful, narcistic, self-interested, self-absorbed sybarite." If you want to see the full list of George's over 70 known and alleged mistresses (and children) you should see Anthony Camp's website https://anthonyjcamp.com/pages/anthony-j-camp-nos-1-29.

Finally, the column The World Wide Web of Royalty this time brings you genealogical news of Hohenlohe-Öhringen, Lippe-Weissenfels, Schleswig-Holstein, Austria and Bavaria.

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. 

This article was last time updated on Tuesday 20 August 2024 at 21:20 (a link was corrected).

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 3, 2023

The third issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly in 2023 was published some time last fall and should of course have been commented on a long time ago. There are two reasons for this lag – the first is that I focused so much on various genealogy projects last fall that I didn't blog much at all. The other is that I misplaced my copy of RDQ before I got the chance to read it. It was rediscovered in a bag I normally don't use around Christmas time. And so far this month I have written so much about the events in Denmark besides commenting on other periodicals. I now realize that I haven't commented on issue no. 2 from last year either. No, I haven't lost that copy, but I think the train has passed for commenting on it. Anyway, no. 3 has been read and it's on time to write a few words. 

Contents:

• Marlene A. Eilers Koenig: The Wedding of Gusty and Louise, pp. 1–10.
• Ted Rosvall: The Landgraves of Hessen-Homburg, pp. 11–20.
• Susan Symons: The Princesses of Hessen-Homburg, pp. 23–30.
• Elizabeth Jane Timms: Imperial Governess. Miss Throckmorton and Marie Valerie, pp. 31–41.
• Ove Mogensen: Tombs, Grave and Monuments in Romania, pp. 42–48.
• Ted Rosvall: A Double Jubilee in Sweden, pp. 49–55.
• Ted Rosvall: Royal Bustards, p. 56.
• Stephen Bunford: George III's illegitimate grandchildren, pp. 57–61.
• Coryne Hall: Little-Known ROYALS. Princess Zorka of Montenegro, pp. 62–63.
• The World Wide Web of Royalty, p. 64.

In other words plenty of articles worth reading. First one out is Marlene Koenig's article on the wedding of the then Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden to Lady Louise Mountbatten in 1923. Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf, eldest son of King Gustaf V and Queen Victoria, née Princess of Baden, had earlier been married to Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, who died in 1920, only 38 years old. Margaret was the eldest daughter of the Duke of Connaught and the Duchess of Connaught, nee Princess Luise Margarete of Prussia. Lady Louise Mountbatten was born in 1889 as Princess of Battenberg, the second daughter of Prince Louise of Battenberg and Princess Victoria of Battenberg, née Princess of Hesse and by Rhine. As is well known, Prince Louis relinquished his his title Prince of Battenberg and style of Serene Highness in July 1917 and anglicised his family name to Mountbatten. In November 1917 Louis was created Marquess of Milford Haven. His eldest daughter Alice, mother of Prince Philip, was already married at the time, so only the three younger children stopped using their princely titles and assumed courtesy titles as children of a British Marquess. I make a point of this because it meant that Louise was not a princess in 1923, and the Swedish Act of Succession at the time said that a a Prince would lose his rights if he married «a private man's daughter», i.e. was not a royal or equal. Lady Louise would thus come into this category, but the matter was «solved» when the British prime minister at the time confirmed that she was a member of the British Royal Family and was included in the list of precedence at the court. Obviously the understanding ot the article in the Act of Succession was stretched a bit for the marriage to go ahead without consequences. But married they were, and upon Gustaf Adolf's succession in 1950 as King Gustaf VI Adolf, Crown Prince Louise became Queen of Sweden. She died in 1965, 75 years old.

Ted Rosvall then tells the story of the Landgraves of Hesse-Homburg (or Hesse-Homburg if you like), perhaps one of the less known houses of Hesse. The last Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg was Ferdinand (1783–1866), second youngest son of Landgrave Friedrich V (1748–1820) and Landgravine Karoline, née Princess of Hesse-Darmstadt (1746–1821). His elder brothers Friedrich, Ludwig, Philipp and Gustav had also been Landgraves, but none of them left a male heir to carry on the line. Besides the short presentation the article includes 35 illustrations of family members, palaces/castles and even a map.Thankfully Rosvall has also provided a «select family tree», which is useful when reading Susan Symon's article The Princesses of Hessen-Homburg. The said princesses were the five sisters of the above-mentioned landgraves who survived childhood. All in all Friedrich V and Karoline had 15 children (An Online Gotha lists 13 of them). Symons, whos known for her book series about German palaces and castles, gives a good outline of the princesses and their marriages and offspring.

Elizabeth Jane Timms's article Imperial Governess. Miss Throckmorton and Marie Valarie is based on among others the Throckmorton papers (correspondence etc.) kept in the Warwickshire County Record Office and the court archives in Vienna. Miss Mary Throckmorton (1832–1919) was a daughter of Sir Robert George Throckmorton, 8th Baronet and his wife, Elizabeth Acton, daughter of Sir John Francis Edward Acton, Baronet of Aldenham. Miss Throckmorton served as Governess to Archduchess Marie Valerie (1868–1924), youngest child of Emperor Franz Joseph (1830–1916) and Empress Elisabeth, née Duchess in Bavaria (1837–1898), from 1869 to 1874. In this first (of two) articles on the Imperial Governess we follow the lives of Marie Valerie and her former governess through the correspondence they kept. As I have written on so many occasions, I love these articles where you read about royalty through people who were employed at a court. The article is well written and well researched. And thankfully, as already mentioned, there is a second article on the relationship between the Archduchess and her former governess.

Ove Mogensen has traveled all over the world to visit and take photographs of tombs, graves and monuments of the many royal and princely houses and have written numerousn articles about these visits in RDQ. This time we learn about the graves of various members of the Romanian royal family in and outside Romania. This sort of articles is another – and good – way to learn more about royal history. And as always well illustrated

The editor of Royalty Digest Quarterly, Ted Rosvall, has contributed to several articles in this issue. In A Double Jubilee in Sweden, we learn both about the 500th anniversary of Gustav Vasa's succession to the Swedish throne and Carl XVI Gustaf's 50th anniversary as King of Sweden. The author also gives us a short presentation of the monarchs between 1523 and 2003. In his Royal Bustards series, Rosvall then tells the story of the Swedish singer Carl-Erik Olivebring (1919–2002), who might have been the illegitimate son of King Gustaf VI Adolf (also mentioned above). Her mother was a lady-in-waiting at the Royal Court in Stockholm, Judith Cecilia Serafia Andersson (1877–1924). The official records say that his father was a farmer named Lars Ersson, b. 1844. Other than the connection to the court, there is nothing that backs up the claim, other than that the singer had an «uncanny resemblance to some of the king's sons, especially Prince Sigvard and Prince Bertil». Oh well. 

Stephen Bunford follows up with a good discussion about and outline of King George III of Great Britain and Ireland's illegitimate grandchildren.

I have earlier questioned some of che choices for the series Little-Known ROYALS written by Coryne Hall, but of course it will depend how much knowledge you have about the present and former monarchies. Princess Zorka of Montenegro (1865–1890) was the eldest daughter and child of Prince Nikola, later King Nikola of Montenegro (1841–1860–1921) and Princess, latger Queen, Milena, née Vukotic (1847–1923). She married Prince Peter Karadjordjevic (1844–1921), who became King of Serbia in 1903, but by then Zorka had been dead for 13 years. I am not sure if she had been better known if she had lived longer and become Queen. One could say that the kingdom of Serbia is better known than the smaller neighbour kingdom of  Montenegro, but again it all depends on your knowledge. I think she fits the category, and anyway, Coryne Hall tells her story well.

The genealogical news included in the The World Wide Web of Royalty column are from events in July, August and September 2023, so they are a bit old now, but such records of events can be useful nevertheless. This time the readers are given news from the Imperial, royal and princely houses of Austria, Bavaria, Bourbon-Parme, Denmark (Rosenborg), France-Orléans, Schleswig-Holstgein and Württemberg.

If you are not already a subscriber to Royalty Digest Quarterly, please consider it! Information about the magazine can be found at its editor's website Royalbooks.se. See earlier presentations of RDQ here. See also its Facebook page.

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 4, 2022

The fourth and last issue of the Royalty Digest Quarterly in 2022 arrived just before Christmas. What a cover! The Albanian royal family. The red color is darker than the red color of the Albanian flag, but other than that it is perfect. I can't find any mentioning of who is who in the photo, but of course King Zog is in the middle together with four of his sisters, his mother Sadijé, née Toptani, and a nephew.

The article ALBANIA – the House of Zogu. Family Album is written by the Albanian Royal House expert Neil Rees and Ted Rosvall. The readers get the familiar introduction with a short history of Albania, including the short reign of Prince Wilhelm of Wied (I had forgotten that he is actually buried in the protestant church of Bucharest – I have been to Bucharest twice without knowing, so I would have to go another time!) and then the history of the short-lived Albanian kingdom and of the Royal House of Zogu. The photo album includes 40 images and in addition there is a family table as well. Some of the photos have been provided by the current head of the Royal House of Albania, Crown Prince Leka (b. 1982).

The Balkan monarchies have always interested me the most, and that certainly includes Albania. I have always wanted to see more of the country – so far I have only been on a day visit to the Northern city of Shkodër and the Rozafa castle ruins. I really wanted to go to Tirana when Crown Prince Leka married Elia Zaharia in 2016, but I was in Spain with my family at the time.

In 2009 I visited Cimetière de Thiais in Paris, France, where King Zog and some family membes were buried at the time. In 2012 the king's coffin was brought home to Tirana to be reburied in the Royal Mausoleum there. I would like to go to Tirana one day to visit the mausoleum and of course the city itself. And what about a few days at the beach of Sarandë, or maybe Vlorë?

The former grave of King Zog of the Albanians at the Cimetière de Thiais in Paris, France. Photo: © 2009 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth.

Over the years I have collected a few items connected to the  Royal House of Albania, one of them is the two-volume Oxhaku Famëmadh ZOGU. Album historik i përzgjedhur by Ramiz Lushaj (Shtëpia Botuese "Dardania", Tiranë, 1995). The two volumes are full of articles, documents and photos about King Zog and the Albanian Royal Family.  I am not bothered that most of the texts are in Albanian ... It is great to have the two volumes in my book collection.

But I am getting off track here. From the contents of the fourth issue:

• Marlene A. Eilers Koenig: A Delphinium Wedding. The Marriage of Lord Louis Mountbatten and Edwina Ashley, pp. 1–8.
• David Horbury: The Final Year. Queen Helen of Romania in 1947, pp. 9–20.
• Stefan Haderer: Loyal to the bitter end. Archduke Albrecht of Austria, Duke of Teschen, pp. 21–28.
• Neil Rees and Ted Rosvall: ALBANIA - the House of Zogu. Family Album, pp. 29–42.
• Richard Jay Hutto: "Aunt Muriel – a Queen's Mentor, pp. 43–48.
• Datiu F. Salvia Ocaña: Ladies' Royal Orders in Europe, pp. 49–56.
• Ove Mogensen: Tombs, Graves and Monuments in Baden, pp. 57–59.
• Coryne Hall: Little-Known ROYALS. Prince Francisco José of Braganza, pp. 60–61.
• Ted Rosvall: Debate. The Perils of Change, pp. 62–63.
• The World Wide Web of Royalty, p. 64.

The photo album was not the only article related to Albania. Queen Geraldine's "Aunt Muriel" was Muriel White (1880–1943) and married to Geraldine's father's first cousin Count Hermann von Seherr-Thoss (1879–1959) (and not Count Hans Christoph von Seherr-Thoss, as the article says, although he had those given names as well). Muriel followed Geraldine to Tirana when she got engaged and married to King Zog and was present for the birth of Zog's son Leka in 1939. Muriel has a really interesting story of her own, and the author of the article, Rick Hutto, is currently writing a book about her. 

In his Editor's Corner Ted Rosvall has this time compiled a list of the oldest European royals to succeed to the throne. Charles III of the United Kingdom was 73 when he succeeded, for instance, but he was not on top of the list ...  Missing in the list was Grand Duke Adolph of Luxembourg (1817–1905), who was also 73 when he succeeded to the throne in 1890, although a few months younger than Charles was at the time of succession. Rosvall focuses on kings in his list, but includes Grand Duke Ludwig I of Baden, so why not Adolph as well? Because he didn't inherit the throne of Luxembourg from his father, but due to the different succession laws that dissolved the personal union between Luxembourg and the Netherlands in 1890?

There are many good and well-researched articles in this issue, including Marlene Koenig's wedding article and David Horbury's detailed account of Queen Helen of Romania's experiences in 1947. I didn't know much about Archduke Albrecht of Austria (1817–1895), so I enjoyed that article as well. Ladies' Royal Orders in Europe was also an interesting read, although I miss a list of sources at the end of the article.

The column The World Wide Web of Royalty this time included genealogical news about the royal, princely or ducal houses of Bulgaria, Hohenzollern, Norway, d'Otrante, Russia/Prussia and Waldburg-Zeil-Hohenems.

And finally the readers got a reminder that it is on time to renew their subscription. Yes, I will get it done soon!

All in all several articles worth reading this time as well. If you are not subscriber yet, 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.

Updated on Sunday 15 January 2023 at 14.00 (typo corrected).

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 1, 2020

I received the latest issue of the Royalty Digest Quarterly about 6 weeks ago. I had intended both to read it and write about it some time in March, but so many things have happened in the meantime. First of all, the corona pandemic has lead to long hours at work. As the acting editor of the Norwegian Leagal Gazette, I have naturally been very much involved in the publishing of all the laws and regulations related to the pandemic. I usually do most of my reading on the subway on my way to the office and home again, but taking the subway in these times is not the best idea, so I have taken the car instead (I have done work from home as well, but it is more practical to work in the office). Most of my sparetime the last weeks have been spent with my family. And when I have got some time on my own I have worked on various genealogy projects instead of blogging.

But here we go again! It's on time! In his Editor's Corner Ted Rosvall gives some historical examples of «royal bolting» following the Duke and Duchess of Sussex' decision to step back as senior members of the British royal family. I agree with Rosvall's views on the subject: «Far be it from this magazine to pass judgement over the couple's singular decision other than to give them a reprimand over how it was done, surprising the Queen and the Crown with a fait accompli via social media, rather than discussing the matter calmly and sensibly before advertising it to the whole world». As I commented myself back in January: «It seems to have become an established fact that the Sussexes didn't respect the Queen's request that they waited with making their decision public. It certainly showed poor judgment and disrespect to the Queen and other members of the family if that was the case. There might have been good reasons for making the decision public prematurely, but I can well understand the criticism on this point.»

The illustration on the cover is of King Felipe V of Spain and his family. The magazine's historical consultant, Charlotte Zeepvat, has again returned with A Family Album where the focus is on The Royal House of Spain, with the subtitle 1: From Habsburg to Borbón. Besides the introduction the readers can enjoy as many as 99 illustrations and 5 pages with genealogical tables.

The first article of this issue, however, is written by another returning contributor, Lucas Szkopinski, who has brought us back in history to The Iturbides – a forgotten dynasty. It is not so often you read about the Iturbides these days, and it has been a while since last time I read about them. It is a great article with many nice illustrations. The booklet I have about the dynasty – The Imperial House of Mexico. The House of Iturbide by Charles Mikos de Tarrodhaza, Teodora Amerlinck y Zirion and David Williamson – is packed with text, but has few illustrations. I note that the booklet is used as a source for the article, but the author has used other sources as well. The only objection I have this time is that I feel the article was too short on Augustín Iturbide's climb to the top. Granted that he was from a noble family and a had made a career in the army, but how did he end up becoming involvd in the Plan of Iguala etc.? Concerning the illustrations, among them photos of the Iturbide family vault in Philadelphia, it is still one of my regrets that I didn't visit the cemetery during my visit to Philadelphia in 1999. I knew about the family grave, and I think I even passed the cemetery, but I missed the connection during my visit. I have to go to Philadelphia again! And Mexico too! My third visit was planned for this summer, but obviously I will have to stay in Norway instead.

As I have written many times before, I always like reading articles about royal connections (court and staff members, friends etc.) and not only about the royals themselves. Elizabeth Jane Timms has written an interesting piece about the German-born Mrs. Louisa Louis (1771–1838), once a member of the household of Princess Xharlotte, daughter of the Prince Regent and later King George IV, but who also became close to Queen Victoria.

The next one out is The Six Stunning Infantas – Part II. The unexpexted fortune of the daughters of exiled King Miguel I of Portugal by Datiu Salvia Ocaña. The second part covers the Infantas María José and Adelgundes, and I suppose the last two daughters will be covered in the third and last part of this article. I learn so much new from reading this article series and look forward to the last chapter, in which the notes will also be included.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt made friends with many royals, including Crown Princess Märtha of Norway. Edward W. Hanson has, however, chosen another subject, the president's meetings and correspondence with Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg in the article "Dear Lottie". The Grand Ducal Famkily of Luxembourg and President Roosevelt.

Michael L. Nash then gives a nice portrait of The Duke of Sussex and his wives - Prince Augustus Frederick, one of eight sons of King George III and Queen Charlotte.

I have from time to time discussed how «little-known» the royals treated in the article series Little-Known Royals really are. It will of course depend much on how knowledgable the readers are. The average subscriber to Royalty Digest Quarterly certainly know a thing or two about royal history. But I would say that Princess Eudoxia of Bulgaria fits the bill. She certainly is not among the best-known royals, to turn it around! Coryne Hall has given the readers more insight in the subject. I wonder, however, if one had mastered the Bulgarian language and had got access to Bulgarian archives – and German archives following her exile – if one would have found enough material to write a book about her? Are any Bulgarian historians these days interested in the history of the former royal family? Yes, there are books on the subject in English, French and surely also German, but I am doubt that most of the authors of foreign-language biographies etc. on the subject have had access to Bulgarian primary sources and the ability to read Bulgarian.

And finally, but not least, The World Wide Web of Royalty, which brings genealogical news of the Imperial, Royal and Princely houses of Europe. This time we get news from and about Hesse, Norway, Spain and Sweden.

If you are not a subscriber yet, get your act together! You will not regret it! Information on Royalty Digest Quarterly can be found at its editor's website Royalbooks.se. See earlier presentation of RDQ here. See also its Facebook page.

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 4, 2019

I am not completely done with 2019 yet, because I have left to make a few comments on the latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly (no. 4, 2019). The magazine was waiting for me when I returned to Oslo on Boxing Day (that is 26 December for those who don't know the expression), so it must have arrived on either the 23rd or 24th of December while I was away). I would normally have written this blog article earlier this month, but January has been rather hectic with many royal events to comment on.

Ted Rosvall is not happy about the Swedish king's decision to take away the style Royal Highness for the children of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia and of Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neill, we learn when we read his Editor's Corner. Rosvall says that the title change is a breach of tradition and also finds it unneccessary. His main objection seems to be that the title changes are «retroactive or have retroactive effects» which are «contrary to all legal principles». Yes, I can see that objection, but I have argued earlier that the changes were bound to happen one day, and of course it would have been better if King Carl Gustaf had ruled out titles for his younger children's children before they were born. Constitutionally speaking it is much easier to give a title or another privilege than to take it away.

What about the front page? The photo shows Prince Victor Napoléon Bonaparte, his wife Princess Clémentine Bonaparte, née Princess of Belgium and their daughter Princess Marie Clothilde Bonaparte. The photo is the hint we need to know the topic of this issue's A Family Album. The magazine's historical consultant, Charlotte Zeepvat, is as always responsible for the introduction to the Bonapartes. In addition we get lots of photos - 80 portraits as well as two photos of  palaces and one of  St. Michael's Abbey in Farnborough, the last resting place of Emperor Napoléon III.

St. Michael's Abbey, Farnborough, England. Photo: Photochrom Print Collection/Wikimedia Commons.

The opening article, The Other Mrs. Simpson, is provided by Marlene A. Eilers Koenig. She tells the story of the American divorcee Romaine Simpson, née Pierce (1923–1975) and her marriage to David Mountbatten, 3rd Marquess of Milford Haven (1919–1970), a first cousin of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. They married in 1950 and divorced four years later. 

The next article starts with the quote «Geneva is my favourite place – I am safe there among cosmopolitians». Empress Elizabeth was tragically enough very wrong about her own safety while in Geneva. Elizabeth Jane Timms has written the article Empress Elizabeth if Austria and Geneva. The Visit of 1898, which ends with her assassination.

Then it is Douglas Scott Brookes to continue his series of excerpts from the memoirs of Prince Philipp zu Eulenberg – Two Emperors and One King on the Waters.

When commenting on issue 3, 2019 back in November last year, I thought that we had now come to the end of Bearn Bilker's article series The November 1918 Abdications, but I had obviously lost track of how many monarchs he had actually presented. This time he covers the abdications in Saxe-Meiningen, Saxe-Altenburg, Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the Reuss elder and younger lines, Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. Prince Günther Victor (1852–1925) was the reigning Prince of both Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. On 23 November 1918 the prince gave consent to the abdication law passed in the Landtag of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, and two days later the time had come for Schwarzburg-Sondershausen, which, as the author points out, meant that the last monarchy to exist in Germany was in fact Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. This would also mean that we have come to the end of Bilker's very interesting series on the abdications in Germany in 1918.

Datiu Salvia Ocaña has made contributions to Royalty Digest Quarterly before, and now he has returned with the first part of The Six Stunning Infantas. The unexpexcted fortune of the daughters of exiled King Miguel I of Portugal. King Miguel also had a seventh daughter (actually his first), Maria da Assunçao de Bragança (1831–1887), who obviously will not get her story told in this series. But I like the idea of a presentation of the six infantas and look forward to reading the second part.

Another set of articles which returns regularly is Little-Known Royals, and in this issue Coryne Hall presents Prince Gustav of Denmark (1887–1944), the youngest son of King Frederik VIII and Queen Louise. I agree that Prince Gustav fits the bill, not many people today would know who he was or could tell much about him. Those of us who covers Europan royal history would know, but we are hardly representative.

Finally the readers are treated with genealogical news in the column The World Wide Web of Royalty. This time we get news from France (Bonaparte), Baden, Prussia, Two Sicilies and Württemberg.

Lots to read this time as well. If you are not a subscriber yet, I highly recommend you to join up! Information on Royalty Digest Quarterly can be found at its editor's website Royalbooks.se. See earlier presentation of RDQ here. See also its Facebook page.

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 3, 2019

The third issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly was posted from Sweden on 25 September and I received it soon after, but I have been busy with travelling in October (Cyprus, Poland and the United Kingdom) and have also been busy with other commitments, including my administration work for Slektshistoriewiki, the Norwegian Genealogy Wiki. In other words, I have not found the time to update my blog for a while, and I am not sure if I will have much time in the nearest future either, so this will be a shorter RDQ commentary than usual.

If you wonder about the cover, it shows a photo from the wedding of Princess Diane of Orleans to Duke Carl of Württemberg in 1960, with all the «children of France», i.e. the children of the then Count of Paris (Henri, 1908–1999) and Isabella, née Princess of Orléans and Braganza (1911–2003): Seated: François, Claude, Thibaut, Diane, Henri, Chantal. Standing: Michel, Hélène, Anne, Prince Michael of Greece (first cousin and foster brother), Isabelle and Jacques.

Contents:

• The Wedding of King Peter II of Yugoslavia and Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark by Marlene A. Eilers Koenig
• Princess Maximiliane of Bavaria 1810–1821 by Elizabeth Jane Timms
• 'Utterly Mrs Ronald Greville...' by Coryne Hall
• The Royal Houses of France. A Family ALbum II: The House of Bourbon-Orléans by Charlotte Zeepvat
• The November 1918 Abdications, part IV by Bearn Bilker
• Two Emperors and One King on the Water [part I] by Douglas Scott Brookes
• World Wide Web of Royalty

Marlene Koenig's article describes how the couple met and all the political discussions and quarrels in advance of the wedding. The marriage itself, which she doesn't comment on, was not a success and the couple lived separately for most of their married life. But of course something positive came out of the marriage – Crown Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia (Serbia), one of the most sympathetic royals around.

In Coryne Hall's article we meet Margaret Helen Anderson (1863–1942), who was married in 1891 to Hon. Ronald Greville (d. 1908), eldest son of the 2nd Baron Greville. She inherited her fortune from her father, William McEwan. The article describes among others her friendship with members of the Royal Family, especially King Edward VII and King George VI.

As far as I understand The November 1918 Abdications, part IV, was the last part of the series Bearn Bilker has written on the the abdications in Germany in November 1918. I have really enjoyed reading the articles.

The World Wide Web of Royalty column this time takes us to the Imperial, Royal, Princely and/or mediatized houses of Austria-Este (Belgium), Hohenberg, Liechtenstein, Lippe, Netherlands and Prussia.

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

Updated on Saturday 18 January 2020 at 19.25 (correcting the numeral from V to IV in the reference to Bearn Bilker's series The November 1918 Abdications).

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 2, 2019

The latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly arrived in my mailbox two weeks ago or so. The green and beautiful cover includes an image of the French royal family in 1823, showing from left to right Marie Thérèse, Duchess of Angouleme, Louis Antoine, Duke of Angouleme, Henri, Duke of Bordaux in the arms of his grandfather Charles, Duke of Artois, in front Louis XVI, Louise Marie Thérèse of Artois and her mother the Duchess of Berry.

We are in other words going French this time, with the traditional Family Album by Charlotte Zeepvat covering The Royal Houses of France, Part I, The House of Bourbon – Henri IV to Henri V. I count 99 images of various members of the House of Bourbon and of the palace of Versailles, in addition to 3 pages with family tables.

Charlotte Zeevat, the historical counsultant to Royalty Digest Quarterly, has also made another large contribution, 'Dearest Millie'. Letters to a royal nurse, telling the story of Millicent Elizabeth Crofts (1852–1941), who from the 1870s until 1887 was a nurse to the children of Grand Prince Vladimir of Russia and his wife Grand Princess Marie, née Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin: Kirill (1876), Boris (1877), Andrei (1879) and Elena (1882) and perhaps also the eldest, Alexander (1875). The article is based on the collection of Millicent Croft's papers sold by auction by Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh in February 2018. It is both a well researched and well written article which I enjoyed very much.

Another great contribution this time is Stefan Haderer's article The Baltazzis. A family's rise and fall in the Habsburg Empire. The Baltazzis was a prominent family of Levantine origin, Phanariot Greeks from Constantinople who were close both the the court of Constantinople and later of Vienna. Theodore and Eliza Baltazzi had 10 children, of whom the eldest Elizabeth «Lizzie» married Albert Llewellyn Nugent,3rd Baron Nugent, while the second oldest Helen married Baron Albin Vetsera. Their daughter Marie (Mary) (1871–1889) was a mistress to Crown Prince Rudolf (1858–1859) and killed at Mayerling in 1889, a tragedy that of course explains the fall of the Baltazzis from the court in Vienna. The website of the Levantine Heritage Foundation, has, by the way, a collectionn of Baltazzi documents at their website which is worth having a look at. The Baltazzi family had many other interesting connections as well. Christopher Long has worked on the family's genealogy, but it doesn't seem to be available at the moment. Haderer's article is really interesting, please read it! More of this!

And if this is not enough, Bearn Bilker continues with the 3rd part of his The November 1918 Abdications in Germany, this time covering grand duchies of Baden and Oldenburg and the duchy of Anhalt.

Bilker has also made a second contribution to the issue, Woizlawa-Feodora. Royal Centenarian, which also is worth reading. Princess Woizlawa-Feodora Reuss, née Duchess of Mecklenburg, only daughter of Duke Adolf Friedrich of Mecklenburg (1873–1969) and his first wife Priness Victoria Feodora Reuss (younger line) (1889–1918), was born on 17 December 1918 and celebrated her 100th birthday last fall, with among others the author present at the party. Woizlawa-Feodora was in 1939 married to Prince Heinrich I Reuss (1910–1982) of the younger line and had 5 sons and one daughter. As Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich was a brother to Heinrich, who in 1901 married Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, Princess Woizlawa-Feodora was a first cousin to Queen Juliana and was a bridesmaid to her wedding to Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld. Princess Woizlawa-Feodora sadly passed away on 3 June 2019.

Finally, the readers are treated with the traditional column The World Wide Web of Royalty, which this time has genealogical news of the Imperial, Royal, Princely and/or Mediatized families of Bavaria, United Kingdom, Hessen-Phillipsthal-Barchfeld, Hohenberg, Luxembourg, Reuss, Rothan and Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg.

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

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 1, 2019

It is Hanover time! Or should I say Cumberland time? The latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly – no. 1, 2019 – has a cover photo of Ernst August of Hanover, Duke of Brunswick and his sister Alexandra, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin with their partners and children. The photo was taken in 1917.

The cover photo hints at the fact that Hanover is the topic for this issue's Family Album by Charlotte Zeepvat. One observant reader commented recently in the Royalty Digest Quarterly's Facebook group that the very first issue of the magazine (no. 1, 2006) covered a Hanover album as well. Editor Ted Rosvall replied that «Yes, but that was long before we found the format and concept of the family albums. It only ahd [sic!] a few pages and very limited illustrations. This time we have done it properly.» Later in the same discussion another observant reader points out the same, and Rosvall refers to the 2006 album as «only an embryo, a tryout, to the Family Albums we have since produced». He continues: «Since Ms Zeepvat and I thought we did not handle that dynasty properly, we decided that it would be a good idea to redo it, this time with all the Brunswick background in the 17th and 18th centuries. The dynasties next to come are FRANCE (Bourbon/Orléans/Bonaparte), Two Sicilies, Schwarzburg-Sondershausen, Reuss-Schleiz, Spain and Sweden.»

And the redo is properly done indeed, with the traditional introduction to the family besides a large collection of photos of the members of the royal house and the palaces – 84 in all – as well as 6 pages with genealogical tables. Cleverly enough, the editor has also included the article The Cumberland Princesses by Marlene A. Eilers-Koenig.

In his Editor's Corner Ted Rosvall dwells on abdications in royal Europe prior to WW1 and lists examples from among others France, Spain and Austria. He could of course have mentioned abdications closer to his home country, such as King Christian Frederik's abdication of the Norwegian throne in 1814 and King Oscar II's of the same in 1905. The reason for Rosvall's list is to point to the second part of Bearn Bilker's The November 1918 Abdications, which is included in the present issue. I really enjoyed the first part published in no. 4, 2018, and Bilker delivers once again! This time we can read about the abdications in Saxe-Weimar, Hesse and by Rhine, Württemberg, Saxony, Mecklenburg and Waldeck-Pyrmont. Concerning the royal house of Saxony, Bilker correctly points out that the royal house is now extinct while one morganatic branch still remains. Oddly enough the editor has  included a photo of «Prince Alexander of Sachsen-Gessaphe» (Alexander de Afif), who claimed the headship following the death of his uncle, Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meißen, in 2012. But otherwise de Afif is not mentioned at all. It is a trifle, though, but it might have been more fitting to include a photo of either Maria Emanuel or Albert.

In the last issue of 2018, Stefan Haderer was the author of the article A Fairytale Palace on Corfu. I: The Achilleion and Empress Elisabeth of Austria. This time Haderer returns with the second part, The Achilleion and German Emperor Wilhelm II. It is once again worth reading, and the information that the Achilleion and its park today is a museum certainly tempts my desire to visit Corfu one day.

Bearn Bilker has also made a second contribution this time – a review of  John van der Kiste's book Daughter of Prussia. Louise, Grand Duchess of Baden and her family (A&F Publications, South Brent Devon, UK, 2017, ISBN 978-1546960379). As of today the Kindle edition only costs USD 5,61, the paperback edition USD 10,09.

The editor has found space for two of his own (smaller) articles this time: Royal Monograms, based on and old album containing a large collection of among others royal and noble monograms and which he found in a second hand book store many years ago, and Little-Known Royals. Prince Erik of Sweden.

Finally the readers are treated with The World Wide Web of Royalty, the column covering genealogical news of the Imperial, royal, princely and/or mediatized houses of Europe, this time Austria, Castell-Rüdenhausen, France, Fürstenberg. Hohenzollern, Luxembourg and Spain (or France again, depending on your view on Luis Alfonso, Duke of Anjou's claims).

In other words, plenty of good articles to read this time as well!

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

Updated on Thursday 4 April 2019 at 21.20 (reference to Cumberland article corrected, see comments section).

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 4, 2018

The front cover of the latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly (no. 4, 2018) is blue and beautiful, and in the photo we can se the royal family of Montenegro in around 1910, the year when the principality was declared a kingdom. I have happy memories of my visit to Montenegro and the former capital of Cetinje in 2009. I will come back to this later in the blog article.

So, what is on the mind of the editor, Ted Rosvall, this time? He starts with mentioning the 100th birthday of Princess Woizlawa Feodora Reuss and then lists other royals (by birth or by marriage) who reached the same milestone. Members of royal as well as princely and mediatized families are included. Strictly speaking I wouldn't have included Elsa Cedergreen, née Bernadotte Countess of Wisborg, as she was only a decendant of the Swedish royal family, but I will leave it at that.

The first article, 'The Blue Flower' a Romanian Mystery, is written by the magazine's historical consultant, Charlotte Zeepvat. She writes about, and make extracts, of a collection of postcards signed by «Floare Albastra».While her identity is never disclosed, she obviously was close to the Romanian royal family and court.

Then Ove Mogensen follows up with the second part of his series Tombs, Graves and Monuments. Burial Places of the Bonaparte Dynasty. My, my, hasn't he been all over the place! Would love to visit some of the places as well as the graves he has visited.

Another regular contributor, Marlene A. Eilers Koenig, has researched and written the story of the American-born Nonnie May Stewart (1878–1923), who in 1920 married Prince Christopher of Greece (1888–1940), youngest son of King George I and Queen Olga, née Grand Princess of Russia. Prince Christopher was her third husband. Funny how she lied about her age to make her closer in age to her husband. As of today, her Findagrave.com entry still gives her birth year as 1883 ...

The front cover photo obviously reveals which royal family Charlotte Zeepvat will cover this time in her Family Album series. I find the history of the former royal familiy of Montenegro to be one of the most fascinating ones, and once again I cannot say how much I enjoyed my visit in 2009, three years after the former monarchy regained its independence. Following a 3 pages long historical introduction, the readers can enjoy 61 illustrations besides the photo of the royal palace and a map. And of course, there is a genealogical table as well.

Here is a small collection from my own visit to Cetinje in 2009, the first two shows the royal palace, the third was taken of the chapel in which King Nikola I and Queen Milena were reburied in 1989. I was not allowed to take photos inside. The last two photos show the birth house of King Nikola in the village of Njeguši. There is a museum inside.

Photos: © 2009 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth.

The royal palace in Cetinje is open for tours, but you are not allowed to visit by your own, only groups are allowed. At least that was the case in 2009. So I had to wait half an hour or so until a group of Russian tourists arrived and I could join them for the sightseeing. I was the only one who left money in the book shop, though. I bought lots of cards as well as the book The Court of King Nikola by Milan Jovićević, Anđe Kapičić and Tatjana Jović, published by The National Museum of Montenegro, Cetinje in 1999.

Of course I took loads of photos during my visit to Cetinje (and other royalty-related places), including many tombs, but I will have to come back with another article on this later on. It is on time, considering the fact that it is close to 10 years since my visit! Then again, my visit to Norse, Texas in 2005 was covered as late as in 2018, so I guess it is never too late ...

Returning to the article and specifically the genealogical table for a minute, I note that Zeepvat and Rosvall list two daughters of Prince Boris of Montenegro, Milena, b. 2008, and Antonia, birth year not given, while An Online Gotha only mentions Milena. Has the birth of Antonia never been officially confirmed? I know that it is almost impossible to get any news or any information at all about the present head of the royal family, Prince Nikola, and his children and grandchildren. With no male heirs (after Boris) in sight, the house seems destined to die out with him.

The article The November 1918 Abdications, part I by Bearn Bilker gives a presentation of abdications of Emperor Wilhelm II and the monarchs of the various kingdoms, duchies and principalities of the German Empire. It was a good idea to write such an article, and I look forward to the follow-ups.

I have never really understood the fascination for Sisi, the Empress of Austria (1837–1898). I think other members of the imperial family of Austria are far more interesting. But of course there are many aspects of Empress Elisabeth's life which are interesting to pay attention to, and the story of her property at Corfu, Greece, A Fairytale Palace on Corfu. I: The Achilleion and Empress Elisabeth of Austria by Stefan Haderer, is at least new to me and is worth reading.

Then Coryne Hall is back with her Little-Known Royals series, this time writing about Princess Therese of Bavaria (1850–1925), younger (and only) sister of King Ludwig III. I have earlier put a question marks of some of the royals covered in this series, but Princess Therese certainly deserves to be included. But I am sure there are many Bavaria experts out there who will disagree with me ...

Last, but not least, The World Wide Web of Royalty column, is put at the end of the magazine again. The column lists genealogical news of the Imperial, Royal, Princely and/or mediatized families of Europe and this time we are treated with news from Austria, France, Reuss, Romania, Schönburg-Hartenstein, Sweden and Two Sicilies.

Now I just have to remember to renew my subscription!

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

Updated on Sunday 20 January 2019 at 14.15 (grammatical error corrected).

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 3, 2018

I really enjoyed the latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly (no. 3, 2018). There were several articles about royals and royal families that I knew little about, so I felt I got full value this time, and I trust that other readers feel the same.

The five daughters of Heinrich XXII, Prince (Fürst) Reuss zu Greiz, adorn the front page this time, meaning that Charlotte Zeepvat has devoted her traditional Family Album to the House of Reuss zu Greiz. The daughters were Emma, Marie Agnes, Karoline, Hermine and Ida. The latter is surely the one in the middle, while I will not make a guess on the others. Hermine (1887–1947) is the most famous of the sisters, as she in 1922 married the exiled Emperor Wilhelm II. She was previously married to Prince Johann Georg of Schoenaich-Carolath (1873–1920) and had 5 children by him. Interestingly enough, a second cousin of Prince Johann Georg, Princess Karin-Elisabeth (1900–1966) married in 1933 the Norwegian banker Christoffer Blom Heimbeck (1885–1967). They were both members of the Norwegian nazi party Nasjonal Samling during WW2, but that is a story I will get into another time. Karin-Elisabeth and Christoffer's eldest daughter Ingrid (1934–2016) was in 2000 married to her second cousin Count Wolfgang von Schimmelmann (1921–2004). Of course none of this was mentioned in Zeepvat's article, I just get carried away here because of the Norwegian connections. There might be other family connections between Hermine Reuss zu Greiz and the Schoenaich-Carolaths which make the connection between her and Karin-Elisabeth closer than through her husband, but I haven't got the time to look into it right now. Two of Hermine's children were present at the Heimbeck wedding, I should add. But I cannot forget to mention that the said Reuss sisters had a brother, Prince Heinrich XXIV (1878–1927), who was the last (at least in name) reigning Prince (Fürst) of the small Reuss zu Greiz principality. According to Zeepvat, «the mental and physical disabilities he suffered as the result of a childhood accident made him incapable of reigning», and his regent was originally Heinrich XIV, Prince (Fürst) Reuss zu Schleiz (1832–1913). I gather that his son Heinrich XXVII (1858–1928) was the second regent.

Anyway, Zeepvat tells the story of the Reuss elder line and all the Heinrich princes (all the princes are named Heinrich followed by numerals which were supposed to go up to 100 before it would start all over with no. I again, it never did as the house died out with Heinrich XXIV mentioned above. In addition to the introduction to the Reuss zu Greiz family, the readers are treated with 43 illustrations of various family members and palaces, as well as two pages with genealogical tables. The first shows one (of surely many more) connection between Reuss zu Greiz and the Norwegian Royal Family.

But before we come as far as to the Family Album, Charlotte Zeepvat has also made another contribution, 'My Dear Miss Howard. Serving the Kaiser's family', which tells the story of Ethel Howard (1865–1931), who served as the governess of Emperor Wilhelm II and Empress Auguste Victoria's elder sons from 1895 to 1897, while from 1900 to 1908 she was in charge of the upbringing and education of five orphaned Japanese princes! She later published her memoirs (Potsdam Princes, 1916, and Japanese Memories, 1918, but the article is mainly based on a collection of her papers which have recently emerged on the collector's market.

Before the Reuss article starts, the readers have arrived at column The World Wide Web of Royalty, which usually is placed at the end of each issue, but this time appears quite early on. Anyway, the column this time gives us genealogical news from the imperial, royal or princely houses of Austria, Denmark, Bourbon-Parma, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Saxony, Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Solms-Laubach, Waldeck and Pyrmont and Thurn and Taxis.

Following the Reuss article, Michael L. Nash takes over with the article The Belle of the Coronation Ball. Emperor Alexander II had succeeded the year before, but because of the ending of the Crimean war, the coronation was delayed. The belle of the ball was Princess Ekaterina Dadiani (1816–1882), née Chavchavadze, who served as Regent of Mingrelia (Western Georgia) for some time. Not often we can read about the various monarchies and reigning families in Georgia, so this was an interesting encounter.

Queen Marie of Bavaria, née Princess of Prussia (1825–1889) had a life-long love of the mountains, of climbing and hiking, and Elizabeth Jane Timms takes us to Marie's retreat in Elbigenalp in the Austrian state of Tyrol.

It is not the first time that Royalty Digest Quarterly provides an article about the royal family of Montenegro, but I am confident that it is the first time that Jutta, née Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1880–1946) is portraited. The author is Marlene A. EIlers Koenig. Jutta was married to Prince Danilo of Montenegro in 1899 and took the name Militza following her conversion to Orthodoxy. WW1 and later Montenegro's incorporation into the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Kingdom of Yugoslavia) forced Danilo and Militza into exile. They lived rather separate lives. Danilo died in Vienna in 1939. Militza lived in France and later in Italy, where her sister Elena was Queen, and died in Rome in 1946. Koenig mentions that Militza was buried at the Non-Catholic Cemetery for Foreigners in Testaccio, Rome, i.e. Il Cimitero Acattolico di Roma. I might not have paid enough attention to Militza's life in exile, as the information on her place of burial was new to me. I visited the cemtery around a year ago and thought I had prepared well for the visit! I can't find Jutta or Militza's name listed at the website at all. I photographed numerous graves of people of Norwegian or Scandinavian origin, including the last resting places of the historian Peter Andreas Munch (1810–1863), in addition to the grave of Prince Felix Youssoupoff (1856–1928), the grave of the poet John Keats (1795–1821) and many others. When you visit the cemetery, you are able to search for the names of all the people buried there, but as I didn't know of Militzia's grave, I never looked for it. Surely I must have passed the grave, but when looking at a photo of it tonight, I must say it was certainly not a headstone that would scream out for my attention. Well, well, it only means that I have to visit the cemetery again another time.

Speaking of royal graves, the Danish Ove Mogensen has for many years taken a great interest in this topic, and there is hardly a royal grave he hasn't been to. Well, not to the grave of Karin-Elisabeth Heimbeck, Princess of Schoenaich-Carolath, I am sure! But anyway, I just love his articles on royal graves, and his contribution Tombs, Graves and Monuments. Burial Places of the Bonaparte Dynasty [Part] I certainly didn't disappoint me. I look forward to reading the second part!

Coryne Hall then gets the honor of providing the last article of the present issue, Prince Ataulfo of Bourbon-Orleans (1913–1974) in the series Little-Known Royals. He certainly deserved the description little-known, and Hall gives a good survey of his miserable life. Ataulfo, his brothers and parents, Infante Alfonso, Duke of Galliera (1886–1975) and Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1884–1866) are buried in the Capuchin convent in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain, yet another place I hope to visit one day.

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

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 2, 2018

The latest issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly (no. 2, 2018) was waiting for me on my return from Australia 12 days ago. The cover is green and beautiful, and the family photo is from the christening of Prince Michel of Bourbon-Parma in 1926, third child of Prince René and Princess Margrethe, née Princess of Denmark and a brother of the late Queen Anne of Romania. Prince Michel died on 7 July this year.

The choice of cover photo signals which family has been rewarded with A Family Album article by the magazine's returning contributor and historical consultant, Charlotte Zeepvat. The readers are treated with the traditional introductory piece about The House of Bourbon-Parma and a large selection of photos and other illustrations – 99 in all, if I have got it right – a number which includes a map and a photo of the Ducal Palace (Palazzo del Giardino) in Parma. The family is large, so you will also find four pages with family tables as well.

Palazzo del Giardino, Parma. Photo: © 2007 Szeder László/Wikimedia Commons.

The first article in this issue, Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, is written by Marlene A. Eilers Koenig. The duchess, b. 1878, d. 1948, who was the daughter Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich (1848–1914) and Grand Duchess Elizabeth, née Princess of Anhalt (1857–1933), had quite a challenging life, having among others an illegitimate child with a footman named Hecht and a rather sad marriage to a Count George Jamatel. Koenig gives a good account of it all. The baby was adopted, and naturally I keep wondering if he or she has ever been identified.

100 years ago this summer, Emperor Nicholas II of the Russias and his family as well as many other members of the Romanov dynasty were murdered. Coryne Hall has contributed with the excellent article Caught in Revolution – Miss White and the Paley Family. Annie Mary White (1873–1940s) was in 1914 employed by Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich (1860–1919) and Olga Countess of Hohenfelsen, née Karnovitz (1866–1929), later created Princess Paley. Miss White played the role as a companion to their daughters. If you only have time for one article in the current issue, this is the one! The genealogist in me of course wonders if it is possible to find the exact date of death for Miss White. A common name, yes, but her death is of course registered somewhere. I had no immediate success when searching for it on Ancestry.com and Findmypast.co.uk, though. I guess I will leave it to someone else ...

The next one out, the article Double Wedding. Two Princesses and Their Different Destinies by Alberto Penna Rodrigues, covers the weddings in 1802 of Princess Maria Antonia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1784–1806) to the then Prince of Asturias, later Fernando VII (1784–1833) and Infanta Maria Isabel (1789–1848) to the then Duke of Calabria, later King Francis I (Francesco I)  of Bourbon Two-Sicilies (1777–1830). An interesting read, but a bit heavy, packed with details and with so many names that a little family table of the two most important families had been in place.

In the series  Little-Known Royals Coryne Hall pays attention to Princess Eugenie of Greece and Denmark (1910–1989), daughter of Prince George (1869–1957) and Princess Marie Bonaparte (1882–1962), and a first cousin to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. She made two marriages, the first to Prince Dominic Radziwill, the second to Prince Raymundo della Torre e Tasso, Duke of Castel Duino, and divorced both of them. She is described as a talented writer, but did she ever publish anything?

Finally, The column The World-Wide Web of Royalty brings news from the royal or princely families of Isenburg, United Kingdom, Denmark, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Saxony, Saxony-Weimar, Sweden, Waldeck and Pyrmont and Württemberg.

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

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 1, 2018

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 1, 2018 arrived just in time for Easter, but with so many books and magazines on my reading list, I didn't finish reading it until this week. Is this the first time King Haakon VII, Queen Maud and the then Crown Prince Olav has been put on the front cover of the RDQ? I think so. The cover photo also reveals that it is the Royal House of Norway's turn to be treated with A Family Album, a series authored by the magazine's historical consultant, Charlotte Zeepvat. As usual she provides an introductory to the history of the Norwegian monarchy before the album starts. All in all there are 54 illustrations of the various members of the Norwegian royal family and some of the estates connected to them. The genealogical table, most likely provided by Ted Rosvall himself. only covers one page this time, starting with King Haakon VII. A few minor mistakes though. The Bernadotte Descendants author always insists on writing «Beckmann» with two n's instead of the correct spelling, Beckman (surname of Elisabeth Ferner's former husband) with one n. Not sure why. And yes, I have commented on this before. And there is no hyphen in Märtha Louise. Minor trifles, yes, but considering the size of the survey it should't be too difficult to get it right.

There is more about the history of the Norwegian monarchy in this issue, as Trond Norén Isaksen has written the article From Patriotic Desire to Colonial Stigma. The Viceroyalty of Norway, 1814–1891. Isaksen provides a short summary of the article in his own blog.

But back to the beginning. In his Editor's Corner Ted Rosvall has this time decided to write about ... Ted Rosvall ... and rightly so! In late January 2018 Rosvall went to the Royal Palace in Stockholm to receive the Royal Golden medal «for his meritorious efforts as a genealogist and an intermediary of culture» from the king. So well deserved! The HM The King's Medal is divided into several classes, the medal Rosvall received was, as far as I understand it, the «8th size gold (silver-gilt) medal worn on the chest suspended by a blue ribbon».

In addition to Isaksen's contribution mentioned above, the magazine can boast of several interesting and well-written main articles:

• In Favour of Grand Duke Kirill by Marlene A. Eilers Koenig
• Princess Alix of Hesse's Visit to Harrogate (the future Alexandra Feodorovna, Empress of the Russias) by Elizabeth Jane Timms
• Beatriz, the Roman Infanta (third child of King Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenie) by Dativo Salvia y Ocaña

In the series Little-known royals Coryne Hall gives a glimpse into the life of Princess Dagmar of Denmark (1890–1961), who married Jørgen Castenskiold (1893–1978) in 1922. Dagmar was a younger sister of King Christian X of Denmark and King Haakon VII of Norway.

John Wimbles (1935–2015) was well-known for his collection of letters and other material from among others the Romanian National Archives. David Horbury has in a seven-part series called Half a Century of Royal Letters; 1899–1946 compiled excerpts of letters from and to various members of the Romanian royal family. The present issue provided the 7th and last part.

Finally the column The World Wide Web of Royalty returns with genealogical news, this time including the Imperial, Royal and/or Princely houses of bavaria, Bourbon-Parma/Austria, Denmark, France, Hannover, Hohenzollern and Serbia.

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

Royalty Digest Quarterly no. 4, 2017

The fourth and last issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly this year arrived just in time for Christmas, and I had the pleasure of reading it on the train on my way back to Oslo last night. There is nothing like having five hours for yourself on the train where you can do nothing but to read and relax ...

While the editorial is dedicated to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of the United Kingdom, who celebrated their platinum wedding earlier this year, the front page is dedicated to Denmark and Queen Alexandrine, here sitting together with her grandchildren (from left to right)  Princesses Benedikte, Margrethe, Anne-Marie and Elizabeth and Princes Christian and Ingolf. The cover photo tells that inside the magazine the readers are treated with the third and last part of Charlotte Zeepwat's The Royal House of Denmark – A Family Album. Besides the introduction the article offers as many as 92 illustrations as well as two pages with genealogical tables. And if this is not enough, there is yet another Danish-connected article further back in the issue, as Princess Thyra (1880–1945), the younger sister of King Christian X of Denmark and King Haakon VII of Norway, appears in the series Little-Known Royals, with Coryne Hall as the author.

My favourite article of this issue, however, is written by Joseph van Loon and Oliver Defrance and titled The Last Kohary. The life of  Prince Phillipp Josias of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. I learnt a lot about the Coburg-Kohary Trust and the prince in particular. More of this, please!

The documents the late John Wimbles collected from the Romanian National Archives and other sources seem to have no end, fortunately, and in the latest issue of RDQ the readers can enjoy the 6th part of the series Half a Century of Royal Letters; 1899–1947.

Susan Symons has now written four books on German palaces – Schloss: The Fascinating Royal History of 25 German Castles (2014), Schloss II: More Fascinating Royal History of German Castles (2015), Schloss III: The Fascinating Royal History of 25 Castles in Central Germany (2016) and finally Schloss in Bavaria: The Fascinating Royal History of German Castles (2017). I own the two first volumes, so not only do I need to get hold of the last two books, but I realize that there are so many interesting palaces in Germany I need to visit! In the article My favourite 'Schlösser', Symons lists her top ten facourites. I have only been to two of her favourites – Hohenschwangau and Berchtesgaden. I don't think I was ever inside the palace in Berchtesgaden, so I guess it shouldn't been counted. Symons is, by the way, also the author of three books on the life of Queen Victoria: Young Victoria (2016), Victoria & Albert (2016) and Victoria the Widowed Queen (2017). Quite a production during such a short period of time!

After the German palaces, Charlotte Zeepvat returns with her second article, this time a review of Edward Hansons book The Wandering Princess. Princess Hélène of France, Duchess of Aosta (1871–1951), Stroud: Fonthill Media, 2017. ISBN 978-1781555927.

In the final column The World Wide Web of Royalty, the readers can find genealogical news from the Imperial, Royal and/or Princely houses of Bourbon-Orléans, Brazil, Erbach-Fürstenau, Hannover, Leiningen/Prussia, Liechtenstein, Romania and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Concerning Romania, we learn that the editior will return with the obituary of King Michael in the next issue of Royalty Digest Quarterly. Trond Norén Isaksen has also written an obituary which was printed in the January 2018 issue of Majesty, which now should be available both in print and in electronic form.

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