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Diana, Princess of Wales; Photo Credit – http://www.npg.org.uk/

August 31, 1422 – Death of King Henry V of England at Bois-de-Vincennes, France, buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
On June 2, 1420, King Henry V married Catherine of Valois. In June 1421, Henry V returned to France to continue his military campaigns. Catherine was already several months pregnant and gave birth to a son, the soon-to-be King Henry VI of England.  Henry V never saw their child. The warrior king, the victor against the French at the Battle of Agincourt, determined to conquer France once and for all, succumbed to dysentery, a disease that killed more soldiers than battle, at the age of 35, leaving a nine-month-old son to inherit his throne.
Unofficial Royalty: King Henry V of England

August 31, 1602 – Birth of Amalia of Solms-Braunfels, Princess of Orange, wife of Frederik Hendrik, Prince of Orange, at Schloss Braunfels in Braunfels, County of Solms-Braunfels now in Hesse, Germany
Amalia was the mother of Willem II, Prince of Orange who married Mary, Princess Royal, eldest daughter of King Charles I of England. They had one son Willem III, Prince of Orange, later King William III of England. Amalia had influence in politics, initially as Frederik Hendrik’s adviser, and then, after 1640, when her husband became ill, she became openly involved in political life and received foreign diplomats and envoys.
Unofficial Royalty: Amalia of Solms-Braunfels, Princess of Orange

August 31, 1724 – Death of King Luis I of Spain in Madrid, Spain; buried at Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in Spain
After the abdication of his father, Luis I, King of Spain had a very short reign, from January 14, 1724 to August 31, 1724. In 1722, Luis married Princess Louise Élisabeth of Orléans. The marriage was not successful and resulted in no children due to the young age of Louise Élisabeth and because she became increasingly known for her erratic and impulsive behavior. On January 14, 1724, Luis’s father King Felipe V abdicated the Spanish throne in favor of Luis for reasons that are still unclear. Perhaps it was because Felipe suffered from mental instability and did not wish to reign due to his increasing mental decline. King Luis I contracted smallpox in July 1724. His wife Louise Élisabeth was his only company because his parents, fearful of the illness, left the Palacio del Buen Retiro in Madrid, Spain. Luis’s smallpox was complicated by pneumonia. Fourteen-year-old Louise Élisabeth cared for and remained with her seventeen-year-old husband until his death, on August 31, 1724. She also contracted smallpox but recovered from the illness.
Unofficial Royalty: King Luis I of Spain

August 31, 1871 – Birth of Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg in Altenburg, Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg, now in Thuringia, Germany
Full name: Ernst Bernhard Georg Johann Karl Friedrich Peter Albrecht
In 1898, Ernst married Princess Adelheid of Schaumburg-Lippe and the couple had four children. Ernst became Duke following his uncle’s death in 1908. He was a popular ruler who made efforts to be close to his subjects. He would hold audiences for any and all who wanted to meet with him. He also pursued his interests in science and technology, opening an airfield in 1911, and owning one of the first cars in the duchy. Ernst was the last reigning Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, abdicating on November 13, 1918, following the end of World War I. He was the only former German ruler who was a citizen of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), and the last surviving sovereign from the German Empire. The East German government expropriated his beloved Schloss Fröhliche Wiederkunft in 1946, but Ernst was given the use of the residence for the remainder of his life. At the age of 83, Ernst died at Schloss Fröhliche Wiederkunft on March 22, 1955.
Unofficial Royalty: Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg

August 31, 1872 – Birth of Mathilde Feliksovna Kschessinskaya, mistress of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia before his marriage, mistress of Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich of Russia, and mistress and wife of Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich of Russia, in Ligovo, Peterhof, Russia
Mathilde Feliksovna Kschessinskaya was one of the most famous ballerinas of the Maryinsky Ballet (now the Kirov Ballet) in St. Petersburg, Russia. She was awarded the title prima ballerina assoluta, traditionally reserved only for the most exceptional ballerinas of their generation.  Mathilde, who was ambitious, used her connections with the Romanovs to promote her career. Mathilde and Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich escaped from Russia after the Russian Revolution and married in 1921. Mathilde had previously had one son whose father was either Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich’s or Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich’s. In 1926, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, Head of the Romanov Family, gave Mathilde and her son Vladimir the title and surname of the Prince/Princess of Krasinsky. In 1935, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich gave Mathilde and her son the surname Romanovsky-Krasinsky, and so they were formally styled Princess Maria Romanovsky-Krasinsky and Prince Vladimir Andreievich Romanovsky-Krasinsky. Mathilde opened a ballet studio in Paris and trained some of the most famous ballet dancers of the 20th century. She lived a long life dying in 1971, at the age of 99.
Unofficial Royalty: Mathilde Feliksovna Kschessinskaya

August 31, 1879 – Birth of Emperor Taishō of Japan at Tōgū Palace in Tokyo, Japan
Birth name: Yoshihito
Emperor Taishō’s mother, Lady Naruko Yanagihara, a concubine to his father Emperor Meiji, and the daughter of imperial chamberlain Mitsunaru Yanagihara, was the last concubine to give birth to a Japanese emperor. Three weeks after his birth, Yoshihito suffered from cerebral meningitis and this affected his health and his mental capacity, including a speech disorder and difficulty walking, for the rest of his life. In 1900, Taishō married Lady Sadako Kujō (Empress Teimei), daughter of Prince Michitaka Kujō, the head of the five senior branches of the Fujiwara clan. Because of Taishō’s diminished mental capacity, Emperor Meiji wanted an intelligent, articulate, and dignified wife for his son, and he found those qualities in Sadako. The couple had four sons including Hirohito, Emperor Shōwa. In 1912, Taishō succeeded his father as Emperor of Japan. He was kept out of public view as much as possible because of his mental incapacity.  It soon became apparent that he could not carry out any public functions, participate in daily government matters, or make decisions. This was all left to his ministers and his son Crown Prince Hirohito.
Unofficial Royalty: Emperor Taishō of Japan

August 31, 1880 – Birth of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands at Noordeinde Palace  in The Hague, the Netherlands
Full name: Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Marie
Queen Wilhelmina holds the record for the longest-reigning Dutch monarch, 58 years. Her reign spanned World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II. Queen Wilhelmina’s father, King Willem III, was the third monarch of the Netherlands and had married his cousin Sophie of Württemberg in 1839. The couple had three sons,  all of whom predeceased their father without any legitimate children. Queen Sophie died in 1877 and Willem was eager to remarry. After considering some other princesses, the 62-year-old Willem married Princess Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont who was 21 years old. 19 months later, Willem and Emma’s only child Wilhelmina was born on August 31, 1880, at Noordeinde Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. At the time of her birth, Wilhelmina was third in the line of succession after her half-brother Alexander and her great-uncle Prince Frederick of the Netherlands. By the time Wilhelmina was four years old, both men had died and Wilhelmina was the heir presumptive.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands

August 31, 1970 – Birth of Queen Rania of Jordan, wife of King Abdullah II of Jordan, born  Rania Al-Yasin in Kuwait City, Kuwait
In January 1993, Rania met Prince Abdullah of Jordan, the eldest son of King Hussein I of Jordan and his second wife Princess Muna, at a dinner party hosted by mutual friends. Quickly smitten, he proposed just two months later and the couple was married on June 10, 1993. At the time, neither likely suspected that they would one day become King and Queen of Jordan. Queen Rania and King Abdullah II have four children.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Rania of Jordan

August 31, 1985 – Birth of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, son of King Salman of Saudi Arabia, born in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Since the founding of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932 by Abdulaziz “Ibn Saud”, the first King of Saudi Arabia, all six of his successors have come from among his 45 sons. In Saudi Arabia, there is no clear line of succession. Crown Princes have been appointed according to male line seniority from among the sons of Abdulaziz “Ibn Saud”. If Crown Prince Mohammad, a grandson of Abdulaziz “Ibn Saud”, becomes king, he will be the first king of the next generation.
Unofficial Royalty: Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman of Saudi Arabia

August 31, 1997 – Death of Diana, Princess of Wales at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris, France; buried at Althorp in Northamptonshire, England
After her divorce, Diana had a relationship with Dr. Hasnat Khan, a British-Pakistani heart surgeon, which ended in June 1997. She then became involved with Dodi Fayed, son of Mohamed Al-Fayed, the owner of Harrods and the Ritz Hotel in London. Diana and her sons joined the Fayed family in the south of France for a vacation that summer where she and Dodi reportedly began their romance. Following a trip to Bosnia, Diana again joined Dodi Fayed on a private cruise aboard the Fayed’s yacht, returning to Paris on August 30. Later that night, hounded by paparazzi, the couple left the Ritz to go to Dodi’s apartment in Paris. Just minutes later, their car crashed in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel, killing Dodi and the car’s driver, Henri Paul, instantly. Diana was critically injured and eventually taken to the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital. Diana, Princess of Wales was pronounced dead at 4 am.
Unofficial Royalty: Diana, Princess of Wales
Unofficial Royalty: Death of Diana, Princess of Wales
Unofficial Royalty: In Memoriam – Diana, Princess of Wales (1961-1997)
Unofficial Royalty: Tragedy in the British Royal Family at the End of August

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