New portrait unveiled for Queen Elizabeth’s birthday

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British Royal Family, Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II, photo by David Bailey

The portrait by David Bailey, released by Buckingham Palace for the monarch’s 88th birthday, shows her looking relaxed and happy, in a refreshing departure from her formal responsibilities. David Bailey said: “I’ve always been a huge fan of the Queen. She has very kind eyes with a mischievous glint. I’ve always liked strong women and she is a very strong woman.”

The Queen is wearing pearls and a dress by Angela Kelly, who has served as her personal assistant and senior dresser since 2002. Her brooch, a large pearl button surrounded by diamonds with a pearl pendant, was passed down to her from her great-great-grandmother.

Commemoration: 140 years ago Maria of Hohenzollern died

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King Carol I of Romania, Maria Hohenzollern, Romanian Royal Family

Maria Hohenzollern, the only child of  Carol I and Elizabeth of Romania, was born on 8 September 1870 and baptised in the  Orthodox Greek rite. She was meant to be the first scion born on the native soil of the new dynasty, in effect the first Romanian Hohenzollern.

Elisabeth with her daughter, 1871 (CNM)

Elizabeth, Leopold Hohenzollern & Carol I of Romania (right), May 1874, Cotroceni (DM)

 

Sadly she died at the infant age of nearly 4, on 9 April 1874, a victim of scarlet fever, like so many children from the Victorian epoch. The funeral service took place at the Cotroceni Church within the grounds of the Cotroceni Royal Palace. The coffin was covered with white satin, criss-crossed with silver lace ornaments and was as large as one for an adult, because the infant princess’ body was enclosed in several decreasing size caskets placed one inside another. After the religious service in the Romanian Orthodox rite, the cortege walked through the palace gardens to the burial place next to the palace church. Those gardens were the favorite playing grounds for the young princess, where only half a dozen days previously she played with her nurse. On the headstone were engraved the words of St. Luke viii.53: “”Weep not, for she is not dead, but sleepeth”.

Maria of Hohenzollern: Death certificate 28 March/9 April 1874 (Source: RNA)

On 5th May 1874, Carol wrote to his father Prince Karl Anton of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen that they decided to have their residence at the Cotroceni Palace to be close by the resting place of their daughter: “Elizabeth’s nerves are so shaken that the greatest care is necessary. I must confess to you - noted Carol – that I am often anxious myself, and am much depressed by pain, sorrow, and apprehension. I get but very little sleep at night, and have repeatedly heard my poor Elizabeth cry out in her dreams: ‘Dead, dead!’. This cry of pain is each time a fresh stab in my wounded heart!” In another letter to the Romanian prime minister, Carol said: “The sweetest memory which our lost daughter has left us as an inestimable treasure is her boundless love for the country in which she was born, a love so strong that despite her tender age she felt the pangs of homesickness during her first stay abroad”. When Queen Elizabeth died in 1916, according to her wishes, her daughter’s remains were exhumed and the casket placed on her coffin for the public procession. Mother and daughter were then buried together in the same tomb at Curtea de Arges Church.  Diana M

 

 

Queen Elizabeth meets Pope Francis for the first time

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British Royal Family, Pope Francis, Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II, Vatican

Queen Elizabeth II meets Pope Francis for the first time on 3 April 2014 on a visit that coincides with the anniversary of the start of the Falklands War between Britain and Argentina. Previously, Elizabeth II had met with four Pontiffs, starting with Pius XII in 1951, a year before her accession to the throne. The queen has visited the Vatican twice during her reign, once to meet John XXIII in 1961 and again in 2000 to see John Paul II, and met Benedict XVI in Britain, during his Apostolic Visit in September 2010.

Pope Francis presented the Queen with a priceless gift for Prince George at the Vatican. The orb made from lapis lazuli semi-precious stone featuring a silver cross of St Edward the Confessor was given to the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh to pass on to her heir. This was accompanied by a manuscript dating back to 1679 proclaiming the saint day of Edward the Confessor. The Pope explained “it’s for the little boy” as he handed the gifts over. The ornament – made especially for the occasion – featured an inscription saying: “From Pope Francis to Prince George of Cambridge.” Prince Philip was delighted with his gift from the Pope – three gold medals bearing the Pontiff’s face. He joked: “That’s very kind of you, that’s the only gold medal I have ever won.” In a friendly exchange they presented two signed pictures of themselves in silver frames and a hamper of goodies from the Royal Estates.

More photos

Maria Cristina di Savoia: Italian queen beatified

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Beatification, King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, Maria Cristina di Savoia, Queen Maria Cristina of Savoy

Queen Maria Cristina of Savoy (1812-36), whose husband, King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, ruled the largest of the Italian kingdoms before national unification, was beatified in Naples on 25 January 2014.

TRH the Duke and Duchess of Noto, The Duchess of Calabria, the Duke and Duchess of Castro, the Duke of Capua, the Duchesses of Palermo and Capri, Archduchess Maria and Archduke Simeon of Austria, Princess Ines de Borbon Dos Sicilias de Carelli Palombi, Princess Beatrice de Bourbon-Deux Siciles, Prince Casimiro di Borbone-Due Sicilie and his sons Prince Luigi Alfonso and the Rev Alessandro di Borbone-Due Sicilie, the Duke of Braganza, the Duke and Duchess of Savoy (Amadeo and Silvia), Princess Maria Gabriela of Savoy, Archduke Martin of Austria-Este, Prince Serge of Yugoslavia, Countess Maria Beatrix von und zu Arco-Zinneberg, her daughter Countess Margherita and Prince Manfred of Windisch-Graetz, attended the Beatification and afterwards paid homage at the tomb of the Blessed Queen.

Basilica of Santa Chiara in Naples. Courtesy of Manuel Beninger

In his homily at the Mass of beatification, Cardinal Angelo Amato, the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, discussed the queen’s innocence, modesty, and mortification with respect to food and entertainment, as well as her love for the poor and sick. All Christians, the prelate emphasized, are given opportunities to become holy, whatever their state of life.

Following his Sunday Angelus address, Pope Francis described Queen Maria Cristina as a “woman of deep spirituality and great humility. She was able to bear the suffering of her people, becoming a true mother of the poor,” he added. “Her extraordinary example of charity shows that the good life of the Gospel is possible in every environment and social status.”

see Regina di Cuore; “Credo, Domine! Credo, Domine!”

Conference invitation: the formative years of King Michael and Queen Marie – 15 Jan. ’14

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Conference invitation, Diana Mandache, Eastwell Manor, King Michael of Romania, Queen Marie of Romania, Valentin Mandache

Valentin and I would like to invite you to the new conference from the already traditional series inaugurated last year at the Liberal Cafe in Bucharest, on the royal and architectural history of Romania.

The subjects this year are the following:

Diana Mandache:

“King Michael as a school pupil: curriculum, marks, field trips”

Valentin Mandache:

“Eastwell Manor: the birthplace of Queen Marie”

The event is organised by the National Liberal Party’s Bloggers’ Club, and is scheduled to take place on Wednesday 15 January, starting at 6.30 pm (The Liberal Cafe: 9, Doamnei Street, Lipscani quarter, just across the road from the National Bank).

Conference: *King Michael as a school pupil, *Eastwell Manor: the brithplace of Queen Marie

There will be shown and discussed photographs and period newsreel footage about the school pupil Michael, from the Regency period and then as a Crown Prince, and architectural photographs of Eastwell Manor, images of Queen Marie during her childhood and as an adult visiting her birthplace, and how these formative years in such significant circumstances and environments influenced those two royal figures later in their life.

Conference: *King Michael as a school pupil, *Eastwell Manor: the brithplace of Queen Marie

The Bloggers’ Club of the National Liberal Party and the presenters are looking forward to welcoming you at the conference!

New Book: King Michael of Romania. A Historical Album

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King Michael of Romania, Regele Mihai, Romanian Royal Family

King Michael of Romania. A Historical Album, hardback, 352 pages, Litera Publishing, Bucharest, 21 Nov. 2013.

The book is structured in three main chapters: education and formative years (i.e. school documents, Michael’s herbarium, photographs with his colleagues, at the Baccalaureate etc); ceremonies and solemnities peculiar to the Parliament and the Throne Hall, parades, religious ceremonies, visits and receptions, charity functions, menus and dinners etc; spare time activities such as holidays, hunting or the King’s hobbies. This volume contains a selection of 454 pictures, many of them never published, with detailed captions pointing out in detail aspects of the King’s life and reign, and a multitude of previously unpublished documents sourced from several Romanian archives, including pieces issued by the communist regime and its political police services. The introduction and the text that accompany the images, and also the analyses of the written archive documents, are methodically researched and structured making them easy to read or make reference to.

Contents:

• Introduction
• Formative years
• Ceremonies
• Spare time
• Annexes
• Sources

King Michael of Romania. A Historical Album presents for the first time condensed within 352 pages the life of the monarch for the period starting with 1921 until the communist forced abdication in 1947 and subsequent imposed exile.

Order here

Prince George’s Christening Official Photos

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British Royal Family, Prince George of Cambridge

The official portrait for the christening of Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge, photographed in The Morning Room at Clarence House in London, 23 October  2013. PICTURED: (back, left-right) HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, HRH Prince of Wales, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, HRH Prince Harry of Wales; (front, left-right) HM Queen Elizabeth II, HRH Duchess of Cambridge carrying HRH Prince George with HRH Duke of Cambridge. Prince George is wearing an outfit made of delicate Honiton lace and white satin by Angela Kelly, an exact replica of the one worn before him by every baby born to the British Royal family since 1841. The Duchess is wearing Alexander McQueen dress and a Jane Taylor hat.  Photo by Jason Bell.

HM Queen Anne of Romania: 90th Birthday Anniversary

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Queen Anne of Romania, Romanian Royal Family

HM King Michael of Romania & HM Queen Anne of Romania, attending the book launch  ‘Marie of Romania.Images of a Queen‘(DM) Foto (c)

 A very Happy Birthday to HM Queen Anne of Romania, 18 September 2013

Queen Anne of Romania, daughter of Prince René of Bourbon-Parma and Princess Margrethe of Denmark, celebrates today her 90th anniversary!

Point De Vue, 24 Oct 1991

New Book: The Assassination of the Archduke

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Archduke Franz Ferdinand

In The Assassination of the Archduke, Greg King and Sue Woolmans offer readers a vivid account of the lives – and cruel deaths – of Franz Ferdinand and his beloved Sophie. Combining royal biography, romance, and political assassination, the story unfolds against a backdrop of glittering privilege and an Imperial Court consumed with hatred, taking readers from Bohemian castles to the horrors of Nazi concentration camps in a compelling, fascinating human drama. As moving as the fabled romance of Nicholas and Alexandra, as dramatic as Mayerling, Sarajevo resonates with love and loss, triumph and tragedy in a vibrant and powerful narrative. It lays bare the lethal circumstances surrounding that fateful Sunday morning in 1914, examining not only the Serbian conspiracy that killed Franz and Sophie but also insinuations about the hidden powers in Vienna that may well have sent them to their deaths. With a Foreword from the Archduke’s great-granddaughter, Princess Sophie von Hohenberg, and drawing on a wide variety of unpublished sources and with unique access to previously restricted Hungarian and Czech archives, including Sophie’s diaries and family papers, King and Woolmans have written the most comprehensive account of this momentous event available in English. In doing so, they offer readers an intriguing and startlingly revisionist look at this most famous of Archdukes, his family, and their momentous collision with destiny in 1914.