Category Archives: Who Knew?!

Prince Henrik and a Very Generous Giraffe

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

photo credit: Amazon.co.uk

In keeping with the theme of the last installment of Who Knew?!, I’ve found that Queen Fabiola isn’t the only one whose writing has been transformed into another artistic work. Prince Henrik, of Denmark, the husband of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, has written and published several books of poetry, his memoirs, and even a couple of cookbooks. For now, we’ll look at one of his poetry collections. Cantabile, is a collection of his poems written in French, with Danish translations, and illustrations by his wife, Queen Margrethe.

A few years later, Cantabile became the basis for a symphonic suite composed by Frederik Magle. It was written in three movements, based on several poems from the book. The first movement – Souffle le vent – premiered at the Prince’s 70th birthday celebrations in 2004, while the second and third – Cortège & Danse Macabre and Carillon – premiered at the Prince’s 75th birthday celebrations in 2009.

One of the strange facts I found is one of the ‘instruments’ used in the second movement… a giraffe’s thigh bone!  The score called for a thigh bone (not specifically from a giraffe). The composer spent an entire day, just a week before the premiere, at the Zoological Museum in Copenhagen trying out various bones searching for the exact look and tone he envisioned.  After passing on the elephant thigh bone (so big that it would require two percussionists to use), he ended up borrowing a giraffe thigh bone from the museum.

No word whether the giraffe received any royalties…

Who Knew?!

Unofficial Royalty: Prince Henrik of Denmark
Cantabile: A Symphonic Suite by Frederik Magle

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Queen Fabiola’s Indian Water Lilies

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2013

Credit – https://www.todocoleccion.net

In 1955, Doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón wrote “Los Doce Cuentos Maravillosos” (The Twelve Marvellous Tales), a book of twelve fairy tales, published in her native Spain. It was later translated and published in other countries, including The Netherlands in 1961. By that time, Doña Fabiola had gotten married and was the Queen of Belgium.

One of the tales – ‘The Indian Water Lilies’ – caught the attention of the creators of Efteling, a large amusement park in The Netherlands. Peter Reijinders – part of the creative team for Efteling – met with Queen Fabiola in 1962 hoping to get her permission to use the story to develop a ride at the park. The Queen agreed quickly, with the only condition being that a large contribution to charity would be made as part of the arrangement. It took four years, but in 1966, The Indian Water Lilies ‘ride’ was opened at the park. It isn’t actually a ride – visitors walk through the show area and experience the story through displays, puppets, lights, and music.

While other royals have contributed to artistic performances, such as Queen Margrethe of Denmark is known for her costume design and artwork, only Queen Fabiola can claim her own Amusement Park ride!

Who Knew?!

Unofficial Royalty: Queen Fabiola of Belgium
Wikipedia: The Indian Water Lilies

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

The Blue Diamond Affair

by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2013

A huge stash of jewels stolen from a Saudi palace, hidden in a vacuum cleaner bag… an alleged 50-carat blue diamond… many of the jewels found and returned… but were they real? And who is the Elvis impersonator caught up in the whole thing? Sounds like the plot of a movie-of-the-week. But it’s all real! It’s (cue the theme music) The Blue Diamond Affair!

Back in 1989, a Thai worker at Prince Faisal bin Fahd’s palace snuck into one of the princesses’ bedrooms and helped himself to a huge stash of jewels and gems. Hiding them in a vacuum cleaner bag, he got them out of the palace and quickly shipped them off to Thailand, and then high-tailed it out of Saudi Arabia. Once back in Thailand, he found it difficult to sell the treasures. A jeweler heard of the whole affair and purchased many of the pieces for just a fraction of their worth.

The Saudis quickly figured out they’d been robbed and notified the Thai authorities. A Thai Police team, led by Lt-General Chalor Kerdthes, quickly found the thief. He was sentenced to 7 years in jail (reduced to 3 once he confessed to the crime). The Lt-General also tracked down the stolen jewels and personally flew to Saudi Arabia to return them to Prince Faisal.

Here’s where the intrigue really gets good! Upon examining the returned jewels, it was discovered that many of the pieces were fakes – most of the gems having been replaced with paste copies – and the famed 50-carat blue diamond was still missing. Suspecting the Thai authorities of not being completely honest about the whole situation, the Saudis sent a representative to Bangkok to get to the bottom of things. But before he could figure things out, the plot takes a more sinister turn. First, the Saudi consul was killed, as well as two Saudi embassy staff members. Two days later, the businessman disappeared, presumed to have been murdered as well. So far, these four murders remain unsolved.

Convinced that the Thai police were involved in the murders, Saudi Arabia severely restricted their diplomatic relations with Thailand. They canceled visas and work permits for the Thais, and barred Saudi citizens from traveling to Thailand. A new Saudi representative was sent to investigate. He claims that the four Saudis had found vital information regarding the jewels and were murdered to keep them from passing the information along. A few years later, the jeweler (generally believed to have been the one who replaced the gems with fakes) was kidnapped and tortured, and then his wife and son were found dead. It was quickly discovered that all of this was all done at the orders of Lt-General Kerdthes.

Kerdthes was charged with the murder of the jeweler’s family. He was found guilty and sentenced to death in October 2009. (In 2001, King Bhumibol Adulyadej reduced the sentence to 50 years in prison). He was also convicted, in 2006, of receiving the stolen Saudi jewels. However, neither the jeweler nor Kerdthes have revealed anything more about the whereabouts of the jewels. Lt-General Kerdthes remains in jail, where he has put a band together, and recorded a cover version of Elvis Presley’s “Jailhouse Rock.” He continues to profess his innocence.

And to this day, there’s still no word about whatever happened to the famed Blue Diamond…

Who Knew?!

Wikipedia: Blue Diamond Affair

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Fort Belvedere, Windsor Great Park

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2013

source: www.historyworld.co.uk

Fort Belvedere is best known as being the residence of the future King Edward VIII / Duke of Windsor. It was where he signed the Instrument of Abdication. However, there’s much more to the history of the Fort.

Located in Windsor Great Park, adjoining Windsor Castle, Fort Belvedere is part of the Crown Estate. It was built between 1750-1755 for Prince William Augustus, The Duke of Cumberland (son of King George II), and used as a summer house. Later, in 1828, it was enlarged to be used as a hunting lodge. From 1910, it was used as a grace-and-favor residence for Sir Malcolm Murray, the Comptroller to the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, who lived nearby at Bagshot Park.

In 1930, it became the residence of The Prince of Wales (future Edward VIII). Even after becoming King, Edward continued to use Fort Belvedere as his Windsor residence. It was here, in December 1936, that King Edward VIII signed the Instrument of Abdication, in the presence of his three brothers. The following night, after a radio address given from Windsor Castle, the now-former King left the Fort for Austria where he awaited Mrs. Simpson’s divorce to become final.

During World War II, Fort Belvedere was used for offices and then sat empty for some time. In 1956, it was leased to The Hon. Gerald Lascelles, the younger son of Princess Mary, The Princess Royal. Lascelles lived at the Fort until 1976, and the following year the lease was granted to a son of the Emir of Dubai. From the early 1980s until his death in 2021, Fort Belvedere was leased to the Canadian billionaire businessman Galen Weston and his wife Hilary Weston, the former Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario. The Weston family continues to live there. The Weston family are long-time occupants and have been close to the British Royal Family for years.

Wikipedia: Fort Belvedere

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Queen Marie of Romania and the Maryhill Museum

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2013

photo credit: Wikipedia

Many of us have never had the opportunity to see some real, honest-to-God royal artifacts. For most, it would require a flight to Europe, and hoping to get tickets to see the limited exhibit at, perhaps, Buckingham Palace or the Royal Palace of Stockholm. But there’s a whole treasure trove of royal stuff right here in the United States!

In 1926, Queen Marie of Romania (along with her son Nicolas and daughter Ileana) came to Washington State to preside at the dedication of The Maryhill Museum, which was being opened by her dear friend Samuel Hill. She brought along 15 crates full of items to donate to the museum, including a large collection of Orthodox icons. Two of her daughters, Queen Elisabeth of Greece and Queen Marie of Yugoslavia, also donated some items. In fact, the museum’s first donation came from Queen Marie of Yugoslavia.

It was after the deaths of Hill and Queen Marie that the museum received the majority of what is now the Queen Marie collection. Another patron, Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, had been acquiring items from Queen Marie that were intended for another museum. Instead, she donated all of these pieces to Maryhill in 1938 after the Queen’s death. Included are Queen Marie’s gold throne, her coronation gown, and a replica of her crown, as well as furniture, silver, and jewelry. All of these now form a permanent exhibit dedicated to Queen Marie.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Maryhill Museum of Art
YouTube video featuring photos of the Queen Marie collection
HistoryLink: Queen Marie of Romania dedicates Maryhill Museum of Art on November 3, 1926

The Empress of … Philadelphia?

by Scott Mehl 
© Unofficial Royalty 2013

photo credit Wikipedia

We’ve often talked about King Peter II of Yugoslavia being the only European monarch buried in the United States. After being deposed, he settled in the United States. King Peter died in 1970 and was buried at the Saint Sava Monastery Church in Libertyville, Illinois. Recently, his remains were repatriated to Serbia where they will be reburied at the Serbian Royal Family Mausoleum along with several other members of the Yugoslavian/Serbian royal family.

However… not many people know that there is also an Empress buried in Philadelphia!

Ana María Josefa Ramona de Huarte y Muñiz (1786-1861) was the Empress Consort of the first Mexican Emperor, Agustín de Iturbide. The daughter of Spanish nobility, Ana María married Agustín in 1805. Later, after the Mexican War of Independence, he was proclaimed President, and then the first Emperor of Mexico in 1822. However, his reign was short-lived and he abdicated in March 1823. The family went into exile in Tuscany and then London. In 1824, Agustín was encouraged to return to Mexico, however, he was immediately arrested and executed. Ana María was allowed to leave Mexico and settled in the United States, even receiving an annual pension from the Mexican government for many years.

She initially settled in New Orleans, followed by Baltimore, Washington DC, and then finally in Philadelphia. The former Empress of Mexico died in March 1861 and was buried at the Church of Saint John the Evangelist in Philadelphia.

Who knew?!

Wikipedia: Ana María de Huarte y Muñiz

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Beam Me Up… Abdullah?

by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2013

photo: Wikipedia

photo: Wikipedia

Along with various other interests and hobbies, King Abdullah II of Jordan is a huge Star Trek fan. In fact, in 1996 while still Prince Abdullah, he appeared briefly in an episode of Star Trek: Voyager as a science officer. Because he wasn’t a member of the Screen Actor’s Guild, it was only a non-speaking role, but Abdullah made the best of his 5 seconds of screen time!

The Prince so enjoyed his appearance that he invited some of the cast to be his guests in Jordan, and arranged a small convention for other Jordanian fans. In 2011, it was announced that a Star Trek theme park is being built as part of a huge resort complex – the Red Sea Astrarium – being built in Aqaba, Jordan. King Abdullah is a primary investor in the project, estimated to cost $1.5 billion, which opened in 2014.

Who knew?!

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.