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Prince Hendrik of the Netherlands;  Credit – Wikipedia

April 19, 1390 – Death of Robert II, King of Scots at Dundonald Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland; buried at Scone Abbey in Scone, Scotland
The first monarch of the House of Stewart, Robert II, King of Scots was the only child of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland and Marjorie Bruce, the daughter of Robert I the Bruce, King of Scots. Fortunately, Robert II’s reign was more peaceful than previous reigns. Hostilities with England were renewed in 1378 and continued intermittently for the rest of Robert II’s reign. In 1384, when Robert II became senile, he left the administration of the kingdom to his eldest son John, Earl of Carrick, who succeeded him as Robert III, King of Scots.
Unofficial Royalty: Robert II, King of Scots

April 19, 1658 – Death of Kirsten Munk, Countess of Schleswig-Holstein, morganatic second wife of King Christian IV of Denmark, at Boller Castle in Horsens, Denmark; buried at Saint Canute’s Cathedral in Odense, Denmark
When widower King Christian IV became attracted to 18-year-old Kirsten, her astute mother did not want her daughter to become Christian’s mistress, and instead negotiated a morganatic marriage between Christian and her daughter due to Kirsten’s status as a noble. Kirsten received properties in her name and was assured of a widow’s pension. Christian IV and Kirsten’s ten children were styled Count and Countess of Schleswig-Holstein and did not have succession rights. On April 19, 1658, Kirsten died at Boller Castle, her estate near Horsens on Jutland in Denmark at the age of 60. Her remains were brought to the city of Odense, Denmark. She was given a splendid funeral at St. Canute’s Cathedral, where she was also buried.
Unofficial Royalty: Kirsten Munk, Countess of Schleswig-Holstein

April 19, 1680 – Death of Maria Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen, first wife of Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen in Ichtershausen, Duchy of Anhalt, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany; first buried in the crypt of the city church in Meiningen, Duchy of Anhalt, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, before being moved to the castle church at Elisabethenburg Palace in Meiningen
In 1671, Marie Hedwig married Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. The couple had seven children. In 1680, Marie Hedwig’s husband Bernhard and his six brothers, who collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Meinigen, and Bernhard became the first Duke of Saxe-Meinigen. A few weeks after giving birth to her youngest child, Marie Hedwig died.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen

April 19, 1689 – Death of Queen Christina of Sweden in Rome, Italy; buried at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Italy
Christina, Queen of Sweden was the only surviving child of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, and became Queen of Sweden at the age of six upon her father’s death in battle. Christina caused a scandal when she decided not to marry, and when she abdicated her throne and subsequently converted to Roman Catholicism. She left Sweden and lived most of the rest of her life in Rome, where she played a prominent role in the city’s cultural life. Christina is one of three women interred in the crypt at St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Christina of Sweden

April 19, 1733 – Death of Elizabeth Hamilton, Countess of Orkney, mistress of King William III of England, at her London, England home in Albemarle Street; buried at Taplow Court, in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, England
Born Elizabeth Villiers, she was the first cousin of another royal mistress, Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, born Barbara Villiers, a mistress of King Charles II of England.  Within a year of the death from smallpox of Queen Mary II, his wife and first cousin, William III ended his relationship with Elizabeth Villiers, motivated by the wishes of his wife expressed before her death. He arranged for Elizabeth to marry one of his regimental commanders and thereafter ignored her. Both Elizabeth and her husband went from serving the Stuart monarchs to serving the Hanoverian monarchs.
Unofficial Royalty: Elizabeth Hamilton, Countess of Orkney, mistress of King William III of England

April 19, 1793 – Birth of Ferdinand I, Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary and Bohemia, in Vienna, Austria
Full name: Karl Leopold Joseph Franz Marcellin
Ferdinand was developmentally delayed and suffered from epilepsy, hydrocephalus, neurological problems, and a speech impediment. His epilepsy caused him to have as many as twenty seizures per day, and this severely restricted his ability to rule with any effectiveness.  Ferdinand abdicated the throne in favor of his nephew Franz Joseph during the Revolutions of 1848.
Unofficial Royalty: Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria

April 19, 1822 – Death of Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov, lover of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia, at Rundāle Palace in Rundāle, Russian Empire, now in Latvia; buried in the Zubov family crypt at the Coastal Monastery of Saint Sergius in Strelna near St. Petersburg, Russia
Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov was the last lover of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia. There was a thirty-eight-year age difference between Platon and Catherine. He was one of the conspirators in the assassination of Catherine II’s son and successor, Paul I, Emperor of All Russia, and one of the fourteen people present at Paul’s murder.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Platon Alexandrovich Zubov, lover of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia

April 19, 1876 – Birth of Prince Hendrik of the Netherlands, born Prince Heinrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, husband of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, in Schwerin, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Full name: Heinrich Wladimir Albrecht Ernst
Heinrich was the youngest of the four children of Friedrich Franz II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his third wife Marie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. Among his half-siblings were Friedrich Franz III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (Maria Pavlovna of Russia), who married Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia. Their son Kirill became a pretender to the Russian throne after the assassination of his cousin Nicholas II of Russia.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Heinrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Prince of the Netherlands

April 19, 1902 – Death of Heinrich XXII, 5th Prince of Reuss of Greiz, in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, now in Thuringia, Germany; first buried in the Waldhaus Mausoleum in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, 1969 remains cremated and buried at the Neue Friedhof (New Cemetery) in Greiz, Thuringia, Germany; 1997 remains moved to Stadtkirche St. Marien in Greiz, Thuringia, Germany
When Heinrich XXII was thirteen years old, his father Heinrich XX, 4th Prince of Reuss of Greiz died. He then succeeded his father as the 5th Prince Reuss of Greiz. Heinrich XXII’s mother Caroline Amalie was Regent of the Principality of Reuss-Greiz from 1859 until 1867. In 1872, Heinrich XXII married Princess Ida of Schaumburg-Lippe, and they had one son and five daughters, including Princess Hermine Reuss of Greiz, the second wife of the former German Emperor and King of Prussia, Wilhelm II. Heinrich XXII, 5th Prince of Reuss of Greiz died from heart disease on April 19, 1902, aged 56, in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz. Heinrich XXII’s disabled son Heinrich XXIV succeeded him nominally as the 6th Prince Reuss of Greiz. However, two regents from the House of Reuss-Gera (also called the Younger Line) successively ruled the Principality of Reuss-Greiz for the disabled Heinrich XXIV: Heinrich XIV, 4th Prince Reuss of Gera from 1901 – 1913, and then his son Heinrich XXVII, 5th and last Prince Reuss of Gera from 1913 – 1918, when the monarchy was abolished in 1918 at the end of World War I.
Unofficial Royalty: Heinrich XXII, 5th Prince of Reuss of Greiz

April 19, 1956 – Wedding of Prince Rainier III of Monaco and Grace Kelly at St. Nicholas Cathedral in Monaco
Before her marriage, Grace Kelly was a well-known film actress who won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Country Girl, which also starred Bing Crosby and William Holden. Since much of Grace and Rainier’s lives were in the public eye, a private courtship was difficult, especially considering the distance between the United States and Monaco. After meeting the Prince in Monaco during the Cannes Film Festival in May 1955, Grace corresponded with Rainier until he made a trip to the United States in December of that year. He asked Grace to marry him over the Christmas holiday, and on January 5, 1956, their engagement was announced in a press conference held at her family’s home in Philadelphia.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Prince Rainier III of Monaco and Grace Kelly

April 19, 1968 – Birth of King Mswati III of Eswatini at Raleigh Fitkin Memorial Hospital in Manzini, then in Swaziland (name changed to Eswatini in 2018)
Born: Prince Makhosetive Dlamini
King Mswati is one of many sons fathered by King Sobhuza II, who married 70 wives and had 210 children between 1920 and 1970.  King Sobhuza II died in 1982, at the age of 83, having reigned for 82 years. Kings cannot appoint their successors, nor is there a line of succession. A traditional council called the Liqoqo decides which of the wives shall be “Great Wife” and “Indlovukati” (She-Elephant / Queen Mother) after the death of a king. The “Great Wife” must be of good character and cannot be one of the first two wives (known as ritual wives) chosen for the king by the national councilors. The son of this “Great Wife” will automatically become the next king. 14-year-old Mswati was selected to be the next king.
Unofficial Royalty: King Mswati III of Eswatini

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Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart, daughter of  King James II of England; Credit – Wikipedia

April 18, 1712 – Death of Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart, daughter of the deposed King James II of England, at the Château of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France; buried at the Chapel of Saint Edmund in the Church of the English Benedictines in the Rue St. Jacques in Paris, France
Louisa and her brother James Francis Edward both fell ill with smallpox.  Her brother recovered, but Louisa’s condition became steadily worse, resulting in her death. Louisa was buried with her father at the Chapel of Saint Edmund in the Church of the English Benedictines in the Rue  St. Jacques in Paris, France.  In 1793, the Chapel of Saint Edmund and all the English Benedictine buildings were destroyed by a mob along with the remains of King James II and his daughter, Louisa Maria Teresa.  Some of their remains were discovered after the French Revolution and reburied in 1824 at the Parish Church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in France
Unofficial Royalty: Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart

April 18, 1713 – Death of Dorothea Maria of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen, first wife of Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, in Meiningen, Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen, now in Thuringia, Germany; buried in the Castle Church at Elisabethenburg Palace in Meiningen
Dorothea Maria’s marriage to her first cousin, Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, was a happy one. Both she and her husband shared the same interests in music and the arts. The couple had five children. She devoted much of her time to charitable works, including supporting the orphanage in Meiningen. Because of a condition referred to as facial fluxes, probably a nervous condition, she spent much of her time living in the countryside. Sadly, Dorothea Maria died at the age of 39.
Unofficial Royalty: Dorothea Maria of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen

April 18, 1824 – Birth of Woldemar, Prince of Lippe in Detmold, Principality of Lippe, now in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
Full name: Günther Friedrich Woldemar
In 1858, Woldemar married Princess Sophie of Baden, but their marriage was childless. In 1875, he succeeded his childless elder brother Leopold III, Prince of Lippe. Apart from his grandmother, Princess Pauline, who served as Regent for eighteen years for her son Leopold II until he reached his majority, no other Prince of Lippe dealt with government affairs as successfully as Woldemar did. Woldemar and his elder brother Leopold were the only ones of eight siblings who married, and neither had any children. Woldemar died in 1895, aged 70. His only surviving brother Alexander suffered from mental illness, had been declared incapacitated, and was incapable of governing. A regency was necessary during Alexander’s reign. This created a succession crisis. After Alexander died and the extinction of the Lippe-Detmold line, the throne of the Principality of Lippe went to Count Leopold of Lippe-Biesterfeld, who would be the last Prince of Lippe.
Unofficial Royalty: Woldemar, Prince of Lippe

April 18, 1861 – Birth of Eduard, Duke of Anhalt in Dessau, Duchy of Anhalt, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
Full name: Eduard Georg Wilhelm
Eduard, Duke of Anhalt ruled for less than five months, just before World War I and the German Empire ended.  He was succeeded by his son Joachim Ernst. As Joachim Ernst was not yet of age, Eduard’s brother Aribert served as Regent. With the German Empire crumbling at the end of World War I, Aribert, who had served as Regent for only two months, abdicated on Joachim Ernst’s behalf on November 12, 1918.
Unofficial Royalty: Eduard, Duke of Anhalt

April 18, 1865 – Birth of Johanna Loisinger, morganatic wife of Prince Alexander of Battenberg, former Prince of Bulgaria, in Preßburg, Hungary, now Bratislava, Slovakia
Full name: Johanna Maria Louise
Johanna was an opera singer who sang soprano operatic roles in Prague and Opava (now in the Czech Republic), in Linz, Austria, and at the court theater in Darmstadt in the Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (now in Hesse, Germany).  She was one of the best-known singers of Mozart’s music of her time.  After her husband’s death, Johanna and her children moved to Vienna, Austria, where she was active in Viennese musical life and was involved in the building of the Academy Mozarteum in Mozart’s birthplace, Salzburg, Austria. Johanna served as president of the Vienna Mozart Society, the Vienna Concert Association, and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.
Unofficial Royalty: Johanna Loisinger, Countess von Hartenau

April 18, 1890 – Birth of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia, daughter of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia and Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark, at her father’s palace on the English Embankment in St. Petersburg, Russia
A first cousin of both Nicholas II, the last Emperor of All Russia and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Maria Pavlovna made an unsuccessful marriage to Prince Wilhelm, Duke of Södermanland, son of King Gustav V of Sweden. She left her husband and son and returned to Russia, which caused a great scandal in Sweden. The marriage was officially dissolved, and Maria’s son Lennart remained in his father’s custody, was raised primarily by his paternal grandmother, Queen Victoria of Sweden, and rarely saw his mother during his childhood.
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna (the Younger) of Russia

April 18, 1905 – Birth of Princess Margarita of Greece and Denmark, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, at the Royal Palace in Athens, Greece
One of the four elder sisters of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in 1931, Margarita married Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, and the couple had five children. Although Margarita and her sisters were not invited to their brother Philip’s wedding in 1947 due to the strong anti-German sentiment so soon after World War II, she and Philip remained close. In 1950, she was named one of the godparents of Philip’s daughter, Princess Anne. In 1953, Margarita, her surviving sisters, and their mother were prominent guests at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Margarita of Greece and Denmark, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

April 18, 1917 – Birth of Princess Frederica of Hanover, wife of King Paul I of Greece, in Blankenburg am Harz in the Duchy of Brunswick, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
Full name: Frederica Louise Thyra Victoria Margaret Sophie Olga Cecily Isabelle Christina
Frederica’s father, Prince Ernst August of Hanover, Duke of Brunswick, was the senior male-line descendant of King George III of the United Kingdom via his son Ernest Augustus, King of Hanover and Duke of Cumberland. Her mother, Princess Viktoria Luise of Prussia, was the only daughter of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Frederica is the maternal grandmother of Felipe VI, the current King of Spain.
Unofficial Royalty: Frederica of Hanover, Queen of Greece

April 18, 1969 – Birth of Sayako Kuroda, born Princess Nori of Japan, daughter of Emperor Akihito of Japan, at the Aoyama Detached Palace in Tokyo, Japan
Born Her Imperial Highness Princess Nori, she was the third of the three children and the only daughter of Emperor Akihito. Princess Nori had a career as a researcher at Yamashina Institute for Ornithology, where she specialized in the study of kingfishers. In 2004, the Imperial Household Agency announced the engagement of Princess Nori to Yoshiki Kuroda, an urban designer with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Upon her marriage, as required by Imperial Household Law, Princess Nori had to relinquish her title from birth, her official membership in the Imperial Family, and any monetary allowance from the state. Known as Sayako Kuroda after her marriage, she has continued to appear at some formal occasions with other members of the Imperial Family.
Unofficial Royalty: Sayako Kuroda, formerly Princess Nori of Japan

April 18, 2007 – Birth of Prince Lerotholi Seeiso of Lesotho, heir apparent and son of King Letsie III of Lesotho, in Maseru, Lesotho
The heir apparent to the throne of Lesotho, Prince Lerotholi Mohato Bereng Seeiso, is the third child and the only son of King Letsie III of Lesotho.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Lerotholi Seeiso of Lesotho

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Francisco, Duke of Cadiz, King Consort of Spain; Credit – Wikipedia

April 17, 1080 – Death of King Harald III of Denmark; buried in Dalby Church in Dalby, now in Sweden, part of Denmark at the time
King Harald III of Denmark was born circa 1042 and reigned as King of Denmark from 1076 to 1080. He was the first of five illegitimate sons of Sweyn II Estridsson, King of Denmark, to become King of Denmark. Harald III married Margareta Asbjørnsdatter, the daughter of Jarl Asbjörn Ulfsen, a Danish nobleman. There are no known children from the marriage. Harald succeeded his father, Sweyn II Estridsson, King of Denmark in 1076. He died on April 17, 1080, aged around 38, and was succeeded by his brother, King Cnut IV of Denmark. A 2015 study suggested that King Harald III may have died of Brugada syndrome, a genetic disorder in which the electrical activity in the heart is abnormal. It increases the risk of abnormal heart rhythms and sudden cardiac death. The study showed that perhaps up to fourteen Danish kings who suddenly died at a relatively young age without being ill possibly died of Brugada Syndrome.
Unofficial Royalty: Harald III, King of Denmark

April 17, 1662 – Birth of Erdmuthe of Dietrichstein, Princess of Liechtenstein, wife of her first cousin Hans-Adam I, Prince of Liechtenstein, probably either in Vienna, then in the Duchy of Austria, now in Austria, or in Nikolsburg, then in the Principality of Dietrichstein-Nikolsburg, now the city of Mikulov in the Czech Republic
Full name: Erdmuthe Maria Theresia
In 1681, nineteen-year-old Erdmuthe married her nineteen-year-old first cousin, Hans-Adam, heir to the Principality of Liechtenstein. The couple had eleven children, but all their sons predeceased Hans-Adam. Hans-Adam died in 1712, at the age of 49. After the death of her husband, Erdmuthe spent most of her time in Vienna and Judenau-Baumgarten, which was owned by the House of Liechtenstein and where Erdmuthe founded a hospital. She devoted herself to philanthropic activities, including providing shelters for the poor. Erdmuthe survived her husband by twenty-five years, dying on March 16, 1737, in Vienna, Austria, at the age of 84.
Unofficial Royalty: Erdmuthe of Dietrichstein, Princess of Liechtenstein

April 17, 1711 – Death of Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Archduke of Austria, King of Croatia, and King of Hungary, at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria; buried in the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna
Joseph ruled over the hereditary Habsburg lands and was elected Holy Roman Emperor in 1705. His reign lasted just six years. During the 1711 smallpox epidemic 1711, which killed Louis, Le Grand Dauphin of France, the only surviving child and heir of King Louis XIV of France, and three siblings of the future Holy Roman Emperor Franz I, Joseph also became ill with smallpox. On April 17, 1711, Joseph died, aged thirty-two, at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna.
Unofficial Royalty: Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Archduke of Austria, King of Croatia, and King of Hungary, in Vienna, Austria

April 17, 1818 – Death of Heinrich XLII, 1st Prince Reuss of Gera in Schleiz, Principality of Reuss-Gera; buried in the Princely Crypt at the Bergkirche St. Marien now in Schleiz, Thuringia, Germany
In 1779, Heinrich XLII married Princess Caroline of Hohenlohe-Kirchberg in Kirchberg an der Jagst. The couple had eight children, but only three survived to adulthood. When Heinrich XLII’s father died in 1784, he became Count Reuss of Schleiz. In 1802, when Heinrich XXX, Count Reuss of Gera died without an heir, Heinrich XLII also became Count Reuss of Gera. In 1806, Heinrich XLII received the title of Prince from Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, and his two counties were raised to the Principality of Reuss-Gera or Reuss Younger Line, and Heinrich XLII was then titled 1st Prince Reuss of Gera. Heinrich XLII, 1st Prince of Reuss of Gera died on April 17, 1818, aged 66.
Unofficial Royalty: Heinrich XLII, 1st Prince Reuss of Gera

April 17, 1838 – Birth of Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg, Duchess of Anhalt, wife of Friedrich I, Duke of Anhalt, in Bamberg, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in Bavaria, Germany
Full name: Antoinette Charlotte Marie Josephine Karoline Frida
In 1854, Antoinette married the future Friedrich I, Duke of Anhalt, and they had six children. At the age of 70, four years after the death of her husband, Antoinette, Dowager Duchess of Anhalt died.
Unofficial Royalty: Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg, Duchess of Anhalt

April 17, 1902 – Death of Francisco, Duke of Cadiz, King Consort of Queen Isabella II of Spain; at the Château of Épinay-sur-Seine in France; buried at the Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in El Escorial, Spain
In 1846, at the age of 24, Francisco married his double first cousin, the sixteen-year-old Queen Isabella II of Spain. Francisco and Isabella’s marriage was not happy, and there were persistent rumors that few, if any, of her children, were fathered by her husband. Nevertheless, Francisco claimed all the children as his.  Only five of the nine reached adulthood.  His wife Isabella officially abdicated in 1870, and after the First Spanish Republic collapsed, and their son, Alfonso XII, became king. Francisco accompanied his deposed wife into exile in 1868, but they soon separated. However, Francisco and Isabella formed a friendly relationship after their separation. Francisco died on April 17, 1902, in Épinay-sur-Seine, France.
Unofficial Royalty: Francisco, Duke of Cadiz, King Consort of Spain

April 17, 1940 – Death of Katharina Schratt, the confidante of Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Austria; buried at Hietzing Cemetery in Vienna, Austria, adjacent to Schönbrunn Palace
In December 1873, Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria and his wife Empress Elisabeth attended a gala performance of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew at the Stadttheater in Vienna, Austria. No one could have foreseen that Katharina Schratt, the actress playing the female lead role, whom Franz Joseph saw for the first time that evening, would become an important person in his life. Katharina had a long-standing private relationship with Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Austria, however, the exact nature of their relationship is unclear. Some believe that Katharina and Franz Joseph were lovers. Others believe that their relationship was platonic and that Franz Joseph, whose wife was emotionally distant from him and fled from him as well as her duties at court by frequent traveling, needed someone to support him emotionally. Franz Joseph also had to deal with the violent deaths of relatives. Certainly, Katharina’s emotional support helped Franz Joseph to deal with all these tragedies. Katharina always maintained the strictest discretion regarding her relationship with Franz Joseph. Katharina Schratt died on April 17, 1940, at the age of 86.
Unofficial Royalty: Katharina Schratt, Confidante of Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Austria

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Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma; Credit – Wikipedia

April 16, 1687 – Death of George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, favorite of King Charles II of England, in Kirkbymoorside, Yorkshire, England; buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and his brother Lord Francis Villiers were brought up in the household of King Charles I with Charles I’s sons, the future King Charles II and the future King James II. George and his brother Francis actively supported and fought with the Royalists during the English Civil War. After the death of his brother in a battle near Kingston upon Thames, George Villiers fled England and took refuge like many other royalists in the Netherlands. After the restoration of King Charles II, George held several positions, including Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, Minister of State, and Master of the Horse. His endeavor to influence English politics was stymied by the Lord Chancellor Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon, and in 1667, George took an active part in the overthrow of Hyde. He then played an important role in the group of five royal advisors that called itself the CABAL, formed from the letters of its members’ names. George was one of the Restoration rakes, which included John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester, Sir Charles Sedley, and Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset. Following the example of King Charles II, they distinguished themselves in drinking, sex, and witty conversation. George died on April 16, 1687, aged 59, from complications of a cold he caught while participating in a fox hunt.
Unofficial Royalty: George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, favorite of King Charles II of England

April 16, 1693 – Birth of Anna Sophie Reventlow, mistress, bigamous wife, and then legal wife of King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway, at Clausholm Castle in Jutland, Denmark
After having two previous mistresses, making a bigamous marriage to one and wanting to make a bigamous marriage to the other, Frederik IV fell in love with 19-year-old Anna Sophie after meeting her at a masked ball. He abducted Anna Sophie from her parents’ home and bigamously married her as Frederik’s wife, Queen Louise, was still alive. After Queen Louise’s death, Frederik IV and Anna Sophie were married in a second formal wedding conducted with great ceremony. Although the marriage was still scandalous, it was not declared morganatic, and Anna Sophie was crowned as Queen of Denmark and Norway.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna Sophie Reventlow, Queen of Denmark

April 16, 1865 – Death of Anna of Hesse and by the Rhine, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, 2nd wife of Friedrich Franz II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, in Schwerin, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany; buried in Schwerin Cathedral
The sister of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine who married Queen Victoria’s daughter Alice, Anna married Friedrich Franz II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1864. She died at the age of 21 from puerperal fever (childbed fever), a week after giving birth to a daughter who died in her teens.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna of Hesse and by Rhine, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

April 16, 1883 – Death of Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma in Nice, France; buried at the Chapel of the Villa Borbone, now in Viareggio, Italy
Carlo Ludovico was born in Spain because, in 1796, the Duchy of Parma was occupied by French troops. After the fall of Napoleon in 1814, the Duchy of Parma was not returned to the Bourbon-Parma family. Instead, the Congress of Vienna gave it to Napoleon’s second wife, Marie-Louise of Austria. In 1820, Carlo Ludovico married Maria Teresa of Savoy, one of the twin daughters of King Vittorio Emanuele I of Sardinia. In 1847, at the death of Napoleon’s second wife Marie-Louise of Austria, Duchess of Parma, Carlo Ludovico succeeded her as the reigning Duke of Parma according to the stipulations of the Congress of Vienna. However, the reign of Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma was short. He was very unpopular with the citizens of Parma, and within a few months, he was ousted by a revolution. Carlo Ludovico regained control of Parma with the help of Austrian troops, but finally abdicated in favor of his son Carlo III, Duke of Parma in 1849. After his abdication, Carlo Ludovico lived at Weistropp Castle, a castle he had purchased in Klipphausen, Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony. He also spent time in Paris, France, and Nice, France, where he died on April 16, 1883, at the age of 83.
Unofficial Royalty: Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma

April 16, 1940 – Birth of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark at Frederik VIII’s Palace at the Amalienborg palace complex in Copenhagen, Denmark
Full name: Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark succeeded her father King Frederik IX in 1972. In 1967, she married Henri de Laborde de Monpezat, known as Prince Henrik after his marriage. Margrethe and Henrik had two sons. Prince Henrik died on February 13, 2018, at the age of 83. On January 14, 2022, Queen Margrethe II marked fifty years on the Danish throne. She is the second longest-reigning Danish monarch after King Christian IV, who reigned for 59 years, 330 days, from April 4, 1588 until February 28, 1648. Queen Margrethe abdicated in favor of her elder son, King Frederik X of Denmark, on January 14, 2024, the 52nd anniversary of her accession.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Margrethe II of Denmark

April 16, 1942 – Death of Princess Alexandra of Edinburgh, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, in Schwäbisch-Hall, Baden-Württemburg, Germany; buried in the family cemetery at Schloss Langenburg in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Alexandra was the daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. She married Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. Alexandra and Ernst were second cousins – their grandmothers, Queen Victoria and Princess Feodora of Leiningen – were half-sisters. The couple had five children. In 1913, her father-in-law died, and she and her husband became the Prince and Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, taking up residence at Schloss Langenburg. After her mother died in 1920, Alexandra inherited Palais Edinburg in Coburg. Along with her sisters, she leased Schloss Rosenau from the state until the late 1930s. In 1937, Alexandra joined her husband, and some of her children, as a member of the Nazi Party. Alexandra died on April 16, 1942, aged 64.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Alexandra of Edinburgh, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

April 16, 1955 – Birth of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg at Betzdorf Castle in Betzdorf, Luxembourg
Full name: Henri Albert Gabriel Felix Marie Guillaume
Henri is the current Grand Duke of Luxembourg, having succeeded his father Grand Duke Jean upon his abdication in 2000. In 1981, Henri married María Teresa Mestre y Batista-Falla, and the couple had five children. In his Christmas Eve speech on December 24, 2024, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg announced that he would abdicate in favor of his eldest son, Prince Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg, on October 3, 2025.
Unofficial Royalty: Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg

April 16, 1992 – Birth of Prince Sébastien of Luxembourg, son of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, born at the Grand Duchess Charlotte Maternity Hospital in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
Full name: Sébastien Henri Marie Guillaume of Luxembourg
Sébastien is the youngest of the five children of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg. He often participates in official events and functions in Luxembourg, such as National Day, each year in June. He also serves as patron of the Luxembourg Federation of Swimming and Lifesaving.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Sébastien of Luxembourg

April 16, 2008 – Birth of Princess Eléonore of Belgium, daughter of Philippe, King of the Belgians, born at Erasmus Hospital in Anderlecht, Belgium
Full name: Eléonore Fabiola Victoria Anne Marie
Eléonore of Belgium is the youngest of four children of Philippe, King of the Belgians.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Eléonore of Belgium

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