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Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart, daughter of the deposed 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, and 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. He succeeded his childless elder brother Leopold III, Prince of Lippe upon his death in 1875. 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 and had been declared incapacitated and therefore, was incapable of governing. A regency was necessary during the reign of Alexander. This created a succession crisis. After the death of Woldemar’s successor and brother Alexander 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 building 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 as 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
At the time of her marriage in 2005, she left the Imperial Family and took the surname of her husband as required by Imperial Household Law.
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
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Lerotholi Seeiso of Lesotho

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

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 in 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. Joseph’s reign lasted just six years. During the smallpox epidemic of 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. He died, aged thirty-two, on April 17, 1711, 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, The 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 had officially abdicated in 1870 and after the First Spanish Republic collapsed, 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 that 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 as Schloss Langenburg. After her mother’s death in 1920, Alexandra inherited Palais Edinburg in Coburg, and, along with her sisters and 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.
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, held in June each year. 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 King Philippe King of the Belgians.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Eléonore of Belgium

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King Henry IV of England; Credit – Wikipedia

April 15, 1367 – Birth of King Henry IV of England at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, England
King Henry IV of England, who usurped the throne from his first cousin King Richard II of England, and became the first Lancaster king, was the eldest surviving son of John of Gaunt (third surviving son of King Edward III of England) and his first wife Blanche of Lancaster. In 1380, Henry married heiress Mary de Bohun. Henry and Mary had six children but Mary died giving birth to their last child at the age of 25. In 1403, Henry married Joan of Navarre. They had no children but Joan got along well with her stepchildren. During much of King Henry IV’s 13-year reign, he was occupied with war. While in prayer at the shrine of Edward the Confessor at Westminster Abbey, Henry suffered a fatal attack, possibly a stroke.  He was carried to the Jerusalem Chamber, a room in the house of the abbot, where he died at age 45. Henry was not buried at Westminster Abbey but instead requested that he be buried at Canterbury Cathedral, presumably because of an affinity towards St. Thomas Becket whose shrine was there.
Unofficial Royalty: King Henry IV of England

April 15, 1646 – Birth of King Christian V of Denmark and Norway at Duborg Castle in Flensburg, Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein
In 1667, Christian married Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel and the couple had seven children. Upon his father’s death in 1670, Christian succeeded him as Christian V, King of Denmark and Norway. Christian’s major disappointment was his unsuccessful attempt in the Scanian War to regain Skåne, Halland, and Blekinge, which had been annexed by Sweden during his father’s reign. Christian introduced the 1683 Danish Code (Danske Lov), the first law code for all of Denmark. He also introduced a similar 1687 Norwegian Code (Norske Lov) to replace Christian IV’s 1604 Norwegian Code in Norway. During Christian’s reign, colonies were established in Africa and the Caribbean as part of the Danish triangle trade. The city of Charlotte Amalie, on the island of St. Thomas, is the capital and the largest city of the United States Virgin Islands and was named after Christian V’s wife. Christian suffered severe injuries in a hunting accident on October 19, 1698, and never recovered, dying on August 25, 1699, aged 53.
Unofficial Royalty: King Christian V of Denmark and Norway

April 15, 1684 – Birth of Catherine I, Empress of All Russia, in Jakobstadt, Semigallia, Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, now Jēkabpils, Latvia.
Born Marta Helena Skowrońska, Catherine was the daughter of Samuil Skowroński, an ethnic Polish Roman Catholic peasant. She was the second wife of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia. Catherine and Peter had Catherine and Peter had twelve children, all of whom died in childhood except Anna, who died in childbirth at age 20, and Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia. Catherine became Empress in her own right after Peter’s death in 1725. During her short reign, Catherine was happy to leave the job of governing to her advisers. She was interested only in issues regarding the navy as Peter’s love for the sea had also touched her. Catherine’s health was adversely affected by living a difficult life, giving birth to twelve children, venereal disease that she contracted from Peter, and her heavy drinking after Peter’s death. 43-year-old Catherine died of tuberculosis in 1727.
Unofficial Royalty: Catherine I, Empress of All Russia

April 15, 1719 – Death of Françoise d’Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon, mistress and morganatic second wife of King Louis XIV of France, at Saint-Cyr-l’École, France; buried in the chapel at Maison royale de Saint-Louis in St-Cyrr-l’École, France
Françoise was first a mistress of King Louis XIV and became his morganatic second wife after the death of his first wife. She founded the Maison Royale de Saint-Louis, endowed by Louis XIV in Saint-Cyr, France. The Maison Royale was designed to be a school for girls from poorer noble families, much as Françoise had been in her childhood. Following Louis XIV’s death, Françoise retired to Saint-Cyr where she died and was buried in the school’s chapel.
Unofficial Royalty: Françoise d’Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon

April 15, 1729 – Death of Countess Maria Anna Katharina of Oettingen-Spielberg, the third of the four wives of Josef Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein; buried at the Parish Church of St. Nicholas at Glogów, in Silesia, now in Poland. The church was destroyed in 1945 and the tomb was not preserved.
On August 3, 1716, in Vienna, Maria Anna married Josef Johann Adam. Josef Johann Adam and Maria Anna had five children including Josef Johann Adam’s successor Johann Nepomuk Karl, Prince of Liechtenstein. Maria Anna died on April 15, 1729, at the age of 35.
Unofficial Royalty: The Four Wives of Josef Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein

April 15, 1764 – Death of Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Madame de Pompadour, mistress and confidante of King Louis XV of France, in her apartments at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France; buried at the chapel of the Capuchin convent in Paris, France
Madame de Pompadour was the official mistress of King Louis XV of France from 1745 until 1750 and continued to serve as one of the King’s closest confidantes until her death.
Unofficial Royalty: Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Madame de Pompadour

April 15, 1776 – Death of Grand Duchess Natalia Alexeievna of Russia in childbirth, first wife of the future Paul I, Emperor of All Russia, in St. Petersburg, Russia; buried in the Annunciation Church at the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg, Russia
The daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, in 1773, Wilhelmine married Grand Duke Paul Petrovich (the future Paul I, Emperor of All Russia), the son and heir of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia. After her marriage, she was known as Grand Duchess Natalia Alexeievna. After two-plus years of marriage, Natalia became pregnant. Sadly, she died at the age of 20 after six days of agonizing labor. Her child, a son, also died.
Unofficial Royalty: Wilhelmina Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt, Grand Duchess Natalia Alexeievna of Russia

April 15, 1883 – Death 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
At the age of 21, Friedrich Franz succeeded his father Paul Friedrich as Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. He married three times: to Princess Auguste of Reuss-Köstritz (six children), Princess Anna of Hesse and by Rhine (one daughter), and Princess Marie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (four children including Heinrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin who married Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands). During his reign, which lasted over 40 years, Friedrich Franz II oversaw numerous reforms in the Grand Duchy, including the improvement of the national hospital system, reform of the judicial system, and the state church. Against the interests of his own relatives in neighboring Mecklenburg-Strelitz, he issued a liberal constitution in 1849. While the constitution was repealed the following year, his efforts made him immensely popular amongst his people. Friedrich Franz II died in 1883 at the age of 61.
Unofficial Royalty: Friedrich Franz II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

April 15, 1953 – Death of Luise Charlotte of Saxe-Altenburg, former wife of the future Eduard, Duke of Anhalt, in Altenburg, Germany; buried in the Saxe-Altenburg Ducal Cemetery in Trockenborn-Wolfersdorf, Germany
In 1895, Luise Charlotte married the future Eduard, Duke of Anhalt and they had six children. Luise Charlotte and Eduard divorced on January 26, 1918, a few months before her husband became Duke of Anhalt. She spent her remaining years in Altenburg, Germany
Unofficial Royalty: Luise Charlotte of Saxe-Altenburg

April 15, 1960 – Birth of King Philippe of the Belgians, at Château de Belvédère in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium
Full name: Philippe Léopold Louis Marie
Philippe ascended to the Belgian throne on July 21, 2013, upon the abdication of his father King Albert II. On December 4, 1999, Philippe married Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz and the couple had four children. Philippe’s eldest child Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant will become the first female monarch of Belgian due to changes in the succession law in 1991.
Unofficial Royalty: King Philippe of the Belgians

April 15, 1969 – Death of Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain (Ena), born Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, wife of King Alfonso XIII of Spain, at Lausanne, Switzerland; originally buried at the Church of Sacré Coeur in Lausanne, France, reinterred in the Royal Vault in the Escorial near Madrid, Spain
Known as Queen Ena of Spain, she was the daughter of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom and Prince Henry of Battenberg. The current Spanish Royal Family are her descendants. In 1906, Ena married King Alfonso XIII of Spain. The couple had seven children and Ena passed on hemophilia to two of her sons. She threw herself into her new role as Queen and began working with charities that supported the poor, promoted education, and took a particular interest in nursing and hospital care. Following the establishment of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931, the family went into exile and Ena and Alfonso soon went their separate ways. In February 1968, Ena returned to Spain for the first time since going into exile in 1931 to serve as godmother to her new great-grandson, the future King Felipe VI of Spain. After she returned to her home in Switzerland, and soon her health began to fail. Ena died, aged 87, at her home in Lausanne, Switzerland, surrounded by her family.
Unofficial Royalty: Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, Queen of Spain

April 15, 1974 – Death of Princess Irene of Greece, Duchess of Aosta, daughter of King Constantine I of Greece, at her home in Fiesole, Italy; buried at the Basilica of Superga in Turin, Italy
Irene was the daughter of King Constantine I of Greece and Princess Sophie of Prussia, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Irene and her sister Katherine served as bridesmaids for their cousin Princess Marina of Greece when she married Prince George, Duke of Kent in 1934.  In 1939, Irene married Prince Aimone of Savoy, 4th Duke of Aosta, and the couple had one son. After the fall of the Italian monarchy in 1946, Irene and her son escaped to Switzerland while Aimone fled to Argentina. The couple was effectively separated after this time, having spent little time together during the preceding years. Aimone died in Buenos Aires in 1948. Irene lived at Villa Domenico in Fiesole, Italy, near her sister Helen, who lived in Villa Sparta. Irene died in 1974, after a long illness, at her home in Fiesole, Italy.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Irene of Greece, Duchess of Aosta

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Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom; Credit – Wikipedia

April 14, 1578 – Birth of King King Felipe III of Spain at the Royal Alcázar of Madrid in Madrid, Spain
Felipe III was the son of King Felipe II of Spain and his fourth wife and niece Anna of Austria. Felipe III had four siblings who all died in childhood. Felipe III’s elder half-brother Carlos, Prince of Asturias, who died ten years before Felipe III’s birth, had poor health, was deformed, and was mentally disabled. Many of his physical and mental disabilities may have stemmed from the inbreeding common in the Spanish House of Habsburg. Twenty-year-old Felipe III succeeded his father Felipe II in 1598. Besides being King of Spain, Felipe III was also King of Portugal, King of Sardinia, King of Naples, King of Sicily, and Duke of Milan.
Unofficial Royalty: King Felipe III of Spain

April 14, 1578 – Death of James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, after ten years of imprisonment in Dragsholm Castle in Denmark;  allegedly buried at Fårevejle Church in Denmark
Bothwell was one of those accused of murdering Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Mary, Queen of Scots’ second husband. Darnley’s relatives demanded vengeance and charges were brought against Bothwell. On the day of the trial, Bothwell rode magnificently through Edinburgh to the trial flanked by nobles and members of the Hepburn family. The trial lasted for seven hours. Bothwell was acquitted and it was widely rumored that he would marry Mary. Mary and Bothwell were married on May 15, 1567. The marriage angered many Scottish nobles who raised an army against Mary and Bothwell. After the downfall of Mary, Queen of Scots, Bothwell was forced to flee Scotland for Norway where he was detained because he did not have the proper papers. His detainment turned into imprisonment because of an alleged jilted Danish bride years ago. King Frederik II of Denmark and Norway kept Bothwell as a political pawn. After realizing that Mary would never again be Queen of Scots and that Bothwell was politically insignificant, King Frederik II transferred him to Dragsholm Castle where he was kept in appalling conditions. A pillar to which he was chained for the last ten years of his life can still be seen, with a circular groove on the floor around it. A body, allegedly said to be Bothwell’s, was buried at Fårevejle Church, nearby the castle. Bothwell’s ghost is said to haunt the castle, riding through the courtyard with a horse and carriage.
Unofficial Royalty: James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell

April 14, 1711 – Death of Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin, eldest son and heir of King Louis XIV of France, at the Château de Meudon in France; buried at the Basilica of St. Denis near Paris, France
Louis of France was the only child of King Louis XIV of France and Maria Theresa of Spain to survive childhood but he predeceased his father and never became king. He caught smallpox, apparently from a priest who was distributing Holy Communion after he had visited a smallpox victim. As Louis had always been healthy and robust, his illness shocked the people of Paris, the French court, and the royal family. His son Louis, who had been styled Le Petit Dauphin, became the heir to the throne but in less than a year, he too was dead from measles.
Unofficial Royalty: Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin

April 14, 1765 – Birth of Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Zweibrücken, first wife of Maximilian I Joseph, King of Bavaria, in Darmstadt, Landgraviate of Hesse- Darmstadt, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Marie Auguste Wilhelmine
Princess Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt was the first wife of the future Maximilian I Joseph, King of Bavaria. 31-year-old Augusta Wilhelmine weakened from five pregnancies and the travails of war died from pulmonary tuberculosis. Although she died before her husband became King of Bavaria, she was the mother of his successor King Ludwig I of Bavaria.
Unofficial Royalty: Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Zweibrücken

April 14, 1818 – Birth of Marie of Saxe-Altenburg, Queen of Hanover, wife of King George V of Hanover, in Hildburghausen, Duchy of Saxe-Hildburghausen, now in the German state of Thuringia
Full name: Alexandrine Marie Wilhelmine Katharine Charlotte Theresia Henriette Luise Pauline Elisabeth Friederike Georgine
Marie was the eldest daughter of the six daughters of Joseph, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg and Amalie of Württemberg. In 1843, she married the future and last King of Hanover, George V, and they had three children. George succeeded his father in 1851 but reigned for only 15 years, being exiled from Hanover as a result of his support for Austria in the Austro-Prussian War. In 1866, Hanover was annexed by Prussia. George never abdicated from the throne of Hanover and he and Marie lived in exile at Gmunden, Austria. After George’s death, Marie continued living in the Villa Thun in Gmunden which became known as the Queen’s Villa and is still owned by the House of Hanover. Through her son Ernst Augustus, Marie is the ancestor of former King Constantine I of Greece, his sister Queen Sofia of Spain, Sofia’s son King Felipe VI of Spain, and Prince Ernst Augustus of Hanover (third husband of Princess Caroline of Monaco).
Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Saxe-Altenburg, Queen of Hanover

April 14, 1857 – Birth of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom, daughter of Queen Victoria, at Buckingham Palace in London, England
Full name: Beatrice Mary Victoria
The youngest of the nine children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, by the time she was three years old, Beatrice was an aunt twice over.  Only four and a half when her father died, Beatrice had lost one of her principal role models. Because of her mother’s prolonged grief and mourning, Beatrice’s life would forever be shaped by her father’s death. She became a great solace to her mother, and as the years progressed Queen Victoria hoped that Beatrice would always be her constant companion. Beatrice finally got her mother’s permission to marry Prince Henry of Battenberg after promising that Henry would renounce his military career, nationality, and home and agree to live with Beatrice and the Queen. Beatrice and Henry had three sons and one daughter. Through their daughter, they are ancestors of the Spanish royal family. Beatrice was a hemophilia carrier. Her son Leopold was a hemophiliac and her daughter Victoria Eugenie was a carrier. Beatrice’s youngest Maurice was killed in action during World War II. Beatrice, rather infamously, edited her mother’s journals, deleting two-thirds of the original content. As she aged, Beatrice became very infirm with arthritis and needed to use a wheelchair. She died at the age of 87, the last surviving child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Her funeral was held at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. Queen Elizabeth, the wife of King George VI, Beatrice’s great-nephew, led Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, Beatrice’s daughter, to the open vault in the choir where they both curtsied. Behind them in the choir stalls stood a young woman dressed in black, 18-year-old Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth II.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom

April 14, 1867 – Birth of Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein, grandson of Queen Victoria, at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
Full name: Christian Victor Albert Ludwig Ernst Anton
Christian was the son of Princess Helena of the United Kingdom and Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. In 1888, Christian joined the British Army reaching the rank of Major. In 1899, Christian began duty in the Boer War fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics. At the age of 33, Christian died of enteric fever during the Boer War in South Africa, having fallen ill with malaria. Although preparations were made to return his body to the United Kingdom, he was buried in a soldier’s grave in Pretoria, now in South Africa, at the wishes of his grandmother Queen Victoria.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein

April 14, 1874 – Birth of Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone, husband of Queen Victoria’s granddaughter Princess Alice of Albany, at Kensington Palace in London, England
Full name: Alexander Augustus Frederick William Alfred George
Born Prince Alexander of Teck, and called Alge, his mother was Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge, a male-line granddaughter of King George III and a first cousin of Queen Victoria.  His sister was Queen Mary, wife of King George V. In 1904, Alge married Princess Alice of Albany, the daughter of Queen Victoria’s hemophiliac son Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany. Alice and Alge had two surviving children, a son Rupert and a daughter May. In 1928, 20-year-old Rupert died from an injury received in a car accident which he probably would have recovered from had he not been a hemophiliac. Upon the orders of King George V, during World War I, Alge and other royal family members relinquished the use of all German titles and dignities. Alge became Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone. From 1924 to 1930, Alge was the Governor-General of South Africa and he was the Governor-General of Canada from 1940-1946. In 1946, Alge retired and he and Alice took a grace and favor apartment at Kensington Palace in London. Alge died on January 16, 1957, at Kensington Palace at the age of 82. His wife Alice survived him by 24 years, dying on January 3, 1981, one month short of her 98th birthday, the last surviving grandchild of Queen Victoria.
Unofficial Royalty: Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone

April 14, 1906 – Birth of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh, then in the Emirate of Nejd and Hasa, now the capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
King of Saudi Arabia from 1964-1975, King Faisal was shot and killed by his nephew Prince Faisal bin Musaid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at a majlis, an event where the king opens up his residence to the citizens to enter and petition the king.  A sharia court found Prince Faisal bin Musaid guilty of King Faisal’s murder and he was publicly beheaded hours later.
Unofficial Royalty: King Faisal of Saudi Arabia
Unofficial Royalty: Assassination of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia (1975)

April 14, 1940 – Birth of Princess Marie of Liechtenstein, wife of Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein, born Countess Marie Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau in Prague, Czechoslovakia, now in the Czech Republic
Full name: Marie Aglaë Bonaventura Theresia
In 1967, Marie married her second cousin, once removed, Hereditary Prince Hans-Adam of Liechtenstein and they had four children. In November 1989, Hans-Adam succeeded his father as the reigning Prince of Liechtenstein. Princess Marie was involved in many organizations within Liechtenstein, with her focus being on education, culture, and the arts. After suffering a stroke three days earlier, Princess Marie died at a hospital in Grabs, Switzerland on August 21, 2021, at the age of 81.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Marie of Liechtenstein

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Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily, Empress of Austria; Credit – Wikipedia

April 13, 1275 – Death of Eleanor of England, Countess of Leicester, daughter of King John of England, at Montargis Abbey, France; buried at Montargis Abbey
After a seven-year, childless marriage, to the much older William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, Eleanor married Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester. The displeasure of the English nobility with Eleanor’s brother King Henry III resulted in the Second Barons’ War. The leader of the forces against Henry III was led by Eleanor’s husband who wanted to reassert the Magna Carta and force the king to surrender more power to the baron’s council. Henry III’s son, the future King Edward I led the royalists into battle, defeating and killing de Montfort and his eldest son Edward at the Battle of Evesham. Today, Simon de Montfort is considered one of the fathers of representative government. Eleanor lived the rest of her life as a nun at Montargis Abbey where she died and was buried.
Unofficial Royalty: Eleanor of England, Countess of Leicester

April 13, 1519 – Birth of Catherine de Medici, wife of King Henri II of France, in Florence, Republic of Florence, now in Italy
Catherine de’ Medici was a member of the Italian House of Medici, a banking family and political dynasty that first came into prominence during the first half of the 15th century in the Republic of Florence. In 1533, Catherine married Henri, Duke of Orléans (the future King Henri II), the second son of François I, King of France. They had ten children including three Kings of France. In 1536, Henri’s elder brother François died and Henri became the heir to the French throne. He succeeded his father on March 31, 1547, his 28th birthday. After the death of her husband in 1559 due to injuries suffered while jousting in a  tournament, Catherine played an important role in the government of France as three of her sons reigned as King of France. She continued to play a role in the government until the last few weeks of her life, dying on January 5, 1589, aged 69.
Unofficial Royalty: Catherine de Medici, Queen of France

April 13, 1573 – Birth of Christina of Holstein-Gottorp, Queen of Sweden, second wife of King Karl IX of Sweden, in Kiel, Duchy of Holstein-Gottorp, now in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
In 1592, Christina married the future King Karl IX of Sweden as his second wife. They had four children including Gustavus II Adolphus the Great, King of Sweden. In 1611, Christina’s husband died. Christina was co-regent for her son Gustavus II Adolphus during his short regency. Christina was considered the real power behind the throne during the early years of her son’s reign. In 1622, Christina’s younger son Karl Philip died at the age of twenty after a serious illness. Christina was heartbroken after the death of her younger son, and she retired from public life and lived in seclusion. She survived her husband by fourteen years, dying at the age of 52.
Unofficial Royalty: Christina of Holstein-Gottorp, Queen of Sweden

April 13, 1807 – Death of Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily, Empress of Austria, second of the four wives of Emperor Franz I of Austria; at Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria; buried at the Imperial Crypt in Vienna, Austria
Maria Theresa married her double first cousin then Archduke Franz of Austria. This was Franz’s second marriage and the only one of his four marriages that resulted in surviving children. Seven of their twelve children survived to adulthood. Among the children of Franz and Maria Theresa were: Marie-Louise, the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte; Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria, and Maria Leopoldina, the wife of Emperor Pedro I of Brazil.  The marriage lasted nearly seventeen years and was said to be a happy one. Maria Theresa died soon after giving birth to her twelfth child, who also died.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily, Empress of Austria

April 13, 1866 – Birth of Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia, husband of Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia (daughter of Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia), in Tbilisi, Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, now the capital of Georgia
Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia, known as Sandro, was the son of Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia (son of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia). In 1894, Sandro married Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia, the sister of Sandro’s friend, the future Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia, and the daughter of Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia and Dagmar of Denmark (Empress Maria Feodorovna). The couple had one daughter and six sons and they are the ancestors of most of the current Romanov descendants. Sandro and Xenia escaped during the Russian Revolution, and Sandro was the only one of four surviving brothers to escape Russia. His brother Sergei was killed by the Bolsheviks in July 1918 with Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna and four other Romanovs. His brothers Nicholas and George along with two other Grand Dukes were shot in January 1919 at the Fortress of St. Peter and Paul in St. Petersburg.
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia

April 13, 1870 – Death of Sarah Lyttelton, Baroness Lyttelton, Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Victoria and Governess to the Royal Children, at Hagley Hall in Hagley,  Worcestershire; buried in the Lyttelton family plot in the cemetery at St. John the Baptist Church in Hagley
Born Lady Sarah Spencer, the daughter of George Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer, she married Sir William Henry Lyttelton, 3rd Baron Lyttelton. She was in Queen Victoria’s service from 1837 – 1850. Upon her retirement from service, Sarah returned to her family at Hagley Hall and settled into life as a grandmother. She kept in contact with the Royal Family and occasionally met them at social functions. In January 1858, she was a guest at the wedding of The Princess Royal and Prince Friedrich of Prussia (the future German Emperor Friedrich III). Ten years later, she hosted a visit from the couple at her home in London. At the age of 82, The Dowager Baroness died at Hagley Hall on April 13, 1870.
Unofficial Royalty: Sarah Lyttelton, Baroness Lyttelton

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King Christian IV of Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

April 12, 1555 – Death of Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Queen of Aragon at the Royal Convent of Santa Clara in Tordesillas, Castile, now in Spain; buried at the Royal Chapel of Granada, now in Spain
Juana was the daughter of Ferdinand II, King of Aragon and Isabella I, Queen of Castile and León, and the elder sister of Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII of England. She married Philip of Austria, often called Philip of Habsburg or Philip the Handsome. He was the heir of Mary, Duchess of Burgundy in her own right, the ruler of a collection of states known as the Burgundian State, and Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor. Juana was declared insane and confined in the Royal Convent of Santa Clara in Tordesillas under the orders of her father, who ruled as regent until his death in 1516, when she inherited his kingdom as well. From 1516, when her son Charles I ruled as king, she was nominally co-monarch but remained confined until her death. Joanna’s death resulted in the personal union of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire, as her son Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, also became King of Castile and Aragon. Most historians now agree Juana was clinically depressed and not insane as commonly believed.
Unofficial Royalty: Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Queen of Aragon

April 12, 1577 – Birth of King Christian IV of Denmark at Frederiksborg Palace in Hillerød, Denmark
Having reigned for 59 years, Christian IV, King of Denmark and Norway is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark and one of the most beloved. In 1588, Christain IV succeeded to the throne at the age of eleven. He married Anna Katharina of Brandenburg in 1597 and the couple had six children. Christian had affairs and illegitimate children. After his wife’s death, he married 18-year-old Kirsten Munk, from a wealthy, untitled noble Danish family in 1615.  Kirsten was not the Queen due to the morganatic marriage and was given the title Countess of Schleswig-Holstein. Their ten children married into the Danish nobility, were styled Count and Countess of Schleswig-Holstein, and did not have succession rights. Christian IV and Kirsten’s stormy marriage ended in divorce in 1630, amid mutual allegations of infidelity and much bitterness. During his long reign, Christian IV, repeatedly and unsuccessfully attempted by military means to make the Kingdom of Denmark and Norway into a great power, especially during the Thirty Years War. However, his legacy would be his building projects and his cipher C 4 can be seen on many buildings in Denmark. Sensing he did not have a long time to live, Christian IV requested to be brought to his beloved Copenhagen. On February 21, 1648, he was carried in a litter from Frederiksborg Palace to Copenhagen. He died a week later, on February 28, 1648, at Rosenborg Castle, at the age of 70.
Unofficial Royalty: King Christian IV of Denmark and Norway

April 12, 1834 – Death of Isabella Ingram-Seymour-Conway, Marchioness of Hertford, mistress of King George IV of the United Kingdom, at Ragley Hall in Alcester, Warwickshire, England;  buried at the Holy Trinity Church in Arrow, Warwickshire, England
Isabella was the daughter of Charles Ingram, 9th Viscount of Irvine and Frances Shepherd. Charles Ingram was a prominent landowner and politician and served as a Groom of the Bedchamber to King George III from 1756 until 1763. Isabella replaced Maria Fitzherbert, the long-time mistress of the Prince of Wales, the future King George IV, and was his mistress from 1807-1819. She died on April 12, 1834, having lived through the entire reign of her former lover as King George IV and the succession of his younger brother, King William IV.
Unofficial Royalty: Isabella Ingram-Seymour-Conway, Marchioness of Hertford, mistress of King George IV of the United Kingdom

April 12, 1866 – Birth of Princess Viktoria of Prussia, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Neues Palais in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Full name: Frederica Amalia Wilhelmine Viktoria
Princess Viktoria, known in the family as Moretta, was the daughter of Victoria, Princess Royal and Friedrich III, German Emperor, King of Prussia. In 1890, she married Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe. Moretta suffered a miscarriage early in the marriage and the couple never had children.  After Adolf’s death, she made a controversial marriage to Alexander Zoubkov, a Russian refugee described as a “dancer”, who was 35 years younger and carelessly spent her money. Moretta was forced to sell the contents of Palais Schaumburg, her home in Bonn, Germany, but the sale did not net much money and she moved into a single furnished room in the Bonn suburb of Mehlem. In 1929, Moretta announced that she was divorcing her second husband but she died of pneumonia a few days later at the age of 63.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Viktoria of Prussia, Princess of Schaumburg-Lippe, Mrs. Zoubkoff

April 12, 1869 – Death of Ida of Waldeck and Pyrmont, wife of Georg Wilhelm, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe, in Menton, Alpes-Maritimes, France; buried in the Princely Mausoleum at the Evangelical Lutheran St. Martini Church in Stadthagen, Principality of Schaumberg-Lippe, now in the German state of Lower Saxony
The daughter of Georg I, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Ida married Georg Wilhelm, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe in 1816. The couple had nine children whose births spanned twenty-four years. As the Princess of Schaumburg-Lippe, Ida was concerned with social issues, arranging food for the poor, providing debt relief, and other humanitarian initiatives. Ida survived her husband by nine years, dying on April 12, 1869, in Menton, Alpes-Maritimes, France at the age of 72. She was buried with her husband in the Princely Mausoleum at St. Martini Church.
Unofficial Royalty: Ida of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Princess of Schaumberg-Lippe

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Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, German Empress; Credit – Wikipedia

April 11, 1240 – Death of Llywelyn Fawr (the Great), Prince of Gwynedd, Prince of Southern Powys at the Abbey of Aberconwy in Wales, buried at the Abbey of Aberconwy
Llywelyn was the topic of Sharon Kay Penman’s excellent historical novel “Here Be Dragons.” Llywelyn ap Iorwerth (“ap” means “son of”), later known as Llywelyn Fawr (Llywelyn the Great) was the longest-reigning ruler of Welsh principalities, maintaining control for 45 years. He was Prince of Gwynedd and Prince of Powys Wenwynwyn. In 1216, Llewellyn received the fealty of other Welsh lords and although he never used the title, was the de facto Prince of Wales. Llywelyn dominated Wales for 45 years and was one of only two Welsh rulers to be called “the Great”, the other being his ancestor Rhodri the Great.
Unofficial Royalty: Llywelyn Fawr, Prince of Gwynedd, Prince of Southern Powys

April 11, 1611 – Birth of Karl Eusebius, Prince of Liechtenstein
In 1627, when Karl Eusebius was fifteen years old, his father Karl I, the first Prince of Liechtenstein died, and he became the second Prince of Liechtenstein. In 1644, Karl Eusebius married his niece Johanna Beatrix of Dietrichstein and they had nine children. Karl Eusebius I successfully consolidated and rebuilt the territories of the House of Liechtenstein that were devastated by the Thirty Years’ War. He left his son and successor Hans-Adam I, Prince of Liechtenstein a rich inheritance and an extensive collection of artworks that were both multiplied by his son and other descendants. The current Prince of Liechtenstein, Hans-Adam II, is the richest European monarch. After a reign of 57 years, Karl Eusebius, died at the age of 72, on April 5, 1684.
Unofficial Royalty: Karl Eusebius, Prince of Liechtenstein

April 11, 1624 – Birth of Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya, Tsaritsa of All Russia, first wife of Alexei I, Tsar of All Russia, in Moscow, Russia
In 1648, Maria Ilyinichna married Alexei I, Tsar of All Russia. They had thirteen children including two Tsars of All Russia, Fyodor III and Ivan V, and Sophia Alexeevna, who served as Regent for her brother Ivan V and half-brother Peter I (the Great). During this time, the life of Russian noblewomen, including the Tsaritsa of All Russia, was not a public one. They were expected to live in seclusion with little contact with men. Maria Ilyinichna was mainly involved in charitable and religious activities such as donating to facilities for the poor, sick, and disabled. On March 13, 1669, 45-year-old Maria Ilyinichna died of puerperal fever (childbed fever) five days after her most difficult childbirth. Her thirteenth child Yevdokia Alexeevna lived for only two days.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya, Tsaritsa of All Russia

April 11, 1921 – Death of Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg (called Dona), German Empress, first wife of Wilhelm II, German Emperor, at Huis Doorn in the Netherlands; buried in the Antique Temple in the garden of Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam, Germany
Known as Dona, she was a great-niece of Queen Victoria, a niece of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, the husband of Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Helena, and a descendant of Danish and British kings. In 1881, Dona married the future Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia. They had six sons and one daughter. When Dona became German Empress and Queen of Prussia in 1888, she took up and enjoyed the traditional roles of a consort, serving as a hostess and working with charities. Dona’s health had started to fail even before Wilhelm lost his throne in the aftermath of World War I which necessitated their going into exile in the Netherlands. In 1920, Dona and Wilhelm’s youngest son Joachim died by suicide. Dona never got over her son’s death and she died five months later. Dona had wanted to be buried in Germany, but this meant that Wilhelm would never be able to visit her grave as he was exiled.  The German government agreed to the burial but insisted that the special train that carried Dona’s coffin only travel at night and that there should be no announcement of the arrangements. Dona was still popular with the German people and even though there were no announcements about the arrangements, the 600-kilometer route through Germany was lined with people.
Unofficial Royalty: Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, German Empress, Queen of Prussia

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James V, King of Scots; Credit – Wikipedia

April 10, 1512 – Birth of James V, King of Scots at Linlithgow Palace in Scotland
James V was the son of James IV, King of Scots and Margaret Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England and sister of King Henry VIII of England. In 1513, 30-year-old James IV was killed in the Battle of Flodden and 17-month-old James V succeeded his father. In 1537, James married Madeleine of Valois, daughter of King François I of France. Already ill with tuberculosis, Madeleine died six months after the wedding. Less than a year later, James married another French bride, Marie of Guise, the eldest daughter of Claude of Lorraine, Duke of Guise. The couple had two sons who died in infancy, and one daughter, the future Mary, Queen of Scots. When Henry VIII of England broke from the Roman Catholic Church, he asked James V, his nephew, to do the same. James ignored his uncle’s request and further insulted him by refusing to meet with Henry VIII at York. Furious, Henry VIII sent troops against Scotland. In retaliation for the English raid into Scotland, James raised an army and attacked England. On November 24, 1542, the Battle of Solway Moss resulted in a decisive English victory. After the battle,  James V fled to Falkland Palace where he became ill and took to his bed. Overcome with grief and shame about the Battle of Solway Moss, James V lost the will to live. The news that his wife Marie of Guise had given birth to a daughter did nothing to raise his spirits, and he died at the age of 30 and was succeeded by his only surviving legitimate child, six-day-old Mary.
Unofficial Royalty: James V, King of Scots

April 10, 1533 – Death of King Frederik I of Denmark and Norway at Gottorp Castle in Schleswig, now in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany; buried at the Cathedral of St. Peter in Schleswig
Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway was the youngest of the four sons and the youngest of the five children of Christian I, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Frederik’s nephew Christian II, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden had been deposed in Sweden in 1521 and replaced by Gustav Vasa, the first monarch of the Swedish House of Vasa, and in 1523, Christian II was forced to abdicate by the Danish nobles. Frederik, his paternal uncle, was offered the crown. Frederik was the last Roman Catholic Danish monarch. All subsequent Danish monarchs have been Lutheran. Although Frederik remained Catholic, he was somewhat tolerant of the new Protestant Lutheran religion. He ordered Lutherans and Roman Catholics to share the same churches and encouraged the first publication of the Bible in the Danish language. Frederik’s attitude toward religion postponed the all-out warfare between Protestants and Roman Catholics that occurred during the reign of his son King Christian III which ultimately turned Denmark into a Protestant nation. After a reign of ten years, King Frederik I died on April 10, 1533, aged 61.
Unofficial Royalty: King Frederik I of Denmark

April 10, 1599 – Death of Gabrielle d’Estrées, mistress of King Henri IV of France, in Paris, France; buried at the Notre-Dame-La Royale Church at Maubuisson Abbey on the outskirts of Paris, France
Gabrielle d’Estrées was the mistress of King Henri IV of France from 1591 until her death in 1599. In addition to being his mistress, she was one of his closest confidantes and advisers and was instrumental in Henri’s renunciation of Protestantism and conversion to Catholicism. Pregnant with her fourth child, Gabrielle suffered an attack of eclampsia and gave birth to a stillborn son. Grief-stricken, King Henri IV decreed that she be given the funeral of a Queen, and wore all black while he was in mourning – something that had never been done before in the French royal family. Gabrielle’s funeral was held at the Church of Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois, with her coffin traveling in a procession that included princes, princesses, and many of the highest nobility of France.
Unofficial Royalty: Gabrielle d’Estrées, mistress of King Henri IV of France

April 10, 1742 – Death of Wilhelmine Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Holy Roman Empress, wife of Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor, at the Monastery of the Visitation of Mary in Vienna, Austria that she had founded; buried in the crypt under the high altar of the monastery’s church where the Salesian nuns are buried
When the future Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I began having affairs at the age of 15, his mother thought the pious Roman Catholic Wilhelmine Amalie, who was five years older than Joseph, would be a positive influence on Joseph and he would then stop having affairs. The couple married in 1699, and had three children but their only son died from hydrocephalus before his first birthday. Joseph did not stop his affairs, and the affairs combined with the death of his only son took a toll on his marriage. In 1705,  Joseph succeeded his father in the Habsburg hereditary lands and was elected Holy Roman Emperor. Six years later, Joseph died from smallpox. In 1722, after both her daughters had married, Wilhelmine Amalie retired to the convent she had founded for the Salesian nuns, the Monastery of the Visitation of Mary in Vienna where she died eleven days before her sixty-ninth birthday.
Unofficial Royalty: Wilhelmine Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Holy Roman Empress

April 10, 1811 – Birth of Charlotte Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Queen Victoria’s Mistress of the Robes 1841–1846, at Longleat in Wiltshire, England
Born Lady Charlotte Thynne, the daughter of Thomas Thynne, 2nd Marquess of Bath, Charlotte married Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch and 7th Duke of Queensberry, in 1829.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch and Queensberry

April 10, 1897 – Death of Friedrich Franz III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin at Villa Wenden in Cannes, France; buried in the Helena Pavlovna Mausoleum on the grounds of Ludwigslust Palace in Ludwigslust, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
In 1879, Friedrich Franz married Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia, the daughter of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich of Russia and Princess Cecilie of Baden. The couple had three children and they are ancestors of the Danish royal family through his daughter Alexandrine who married King Christian X of Denmark. Friedrich Franz suffered from severe bronchial asthma and a weak heart that plagued him his entire life. Because the climate in Schwerin was not good for his health, he spent November through May in Cannes, France, living at Villa Wenden which he had built there. With his health rapidly deteriorating in the spring of 1897, his family gathered at Villa Wenden, anticipating the worst. On the evening of April 10, 1897, he was found unconscious at the bottom of the villa’s 25-foot retaining wall and he soon died. Officially, the cause of death was an accident. Likely gasping for air, he had gone out onto the balcony and fell accidentally. However, rumors quickly spread that he had died by suicide.
Unofficial Royalty: Friedrich Franz III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

April 10, 1904 – Death of Queen Isabella II of Spain in exile in Paris, France; buried at the Monasterio de El Escorial near Madrid, Spain
Isabella’s father Ferdinand VII died in 1833, and she succeeded to the throne, not quite three years old. Isabella married her double first cousin Infante Francisco de Asís de Borbón, Duke of Cadiz. Her marriage was not happy and there were rumors that few, if any, of her children, were fathered by her husband. Isabella had nine children, but only five reached adulthood. Her only surviving son was King Alfonso XII of Spain, who is the great-great-grandfather of the current Spanish monarch, King Felipe VI. Isabella’s authoritarianism, her religious fanaticism, her alliance with the military and the chaos of her reign — sixty different governments — helped bring about the Revolution of 1868 that exiled her to Paris. The new government replaced Isabella with Amadeo I, the second son of King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy.  During Amadeo’s reign, there were many republican uprisings and he abdicated in 1873 and returned to Italy. The First Spanish Republic was declared, but it lasted a little less than two years.  Isabella had officially abdicated in 1870 and after the First Spanish Republic collapsed, her son Alfonso XII became king. She lived out the rest of her life in exile and died from influenza complications in Paris, France.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Isabella II of Spain

April 10, 1959 – Wedding of Emperor Emeritus Akihito of Japan and Michiko Shōda at the Kashiko-dokoro, the Shinto shrine of Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess, on the grounds of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan
Crown Prince Akihito and Michiko Shōda first met on a tennis court on August 19, 1956, at Karuizawa, a summer resort. Akihito and Michiko were in opposing mixed pairs in a tournament. Michiko and her partner won the match.  Michiko was the first commoner to marry into the Imperial Family and that did cause some controversy.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Emperor Akihito of Japan and Michiko Shōda

April 10, 1973 – Birth of Princess Tatjana of Liechtenstein, daughter of Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein, born in St. Gallen, Switzerland
Full name: Tatjana Nora Maria
As Liechtenstein follows agnatic primogeniture (male-only), neither Princess Tatjana nor her children are in the line of succession to the throne of Liechtenstein. In 1999, Princess Tatjana married Baron Philipp von Lattorff and the couple has seven children.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Tatjana of Liechtenstein

April 10, 2007 – Birth of Princess Ariane of the Netherlands, daughter of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, at Bronovo Hospital in The Hague, the Netherlands
Full name: Ariane Wilhelmina Máxima Inés
Ariane is the youngest of the three daughters of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Queen Máxima (née Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti).
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Ariane of the Netherlands

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Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh; Credit – Wikipedia

April 9, 1483 – Death of King Edward IV of England at the Palace of Westminster in London, England; buried at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle
The first Yorkist King of England, Edward was the son of Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York and Cecily Neville, both great-grandchildren of King Edward III of England.  Edward’s father could claim descent from Edward III’s second and fourth surviving sons, Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence and Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York. He was the Yorkist leader during the Wars of the Roses until his death in battle when his son Edward became the leader of the Yorkist faction. His decisive victory over the Lancastrians at the Battle of Towton on March 29, 1461, cemented his status as King of England. He was crowned at Westminster Abbey on June 29, 1461. In 1464, King Edward IV married the widowed Elizabeth Woodville and they had ten children. If King Edward IV lived longer, perhaps he would have become one of England’s most powerful kings. He died a few weeks before his 41st birthday. His cause of death is not known for certain. Pneumonia, typhoid, malaria, poison, and an unhealthy lifestyle are some possibilities. King Edward IV was buried at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle close by his rival King Henry VI.
Unofficial Royalty: King Edward IV of England

April 9, 1484 – Death of Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales, son of King Richard III of England, at Middleham Castle in Middleham, England; his burial place is unknown
Edward of Middleham was one of the seven Princes of Wales who never became King. At the time of his birth, his parents were the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the future King Richard III and his wife Lady Anne Neville. Edward was a sickly child and spent most of his time at Middleham Castle. King Richard III and Queen Anne were on a royal progress and had reached Nottingham when they heard that on April 9, 1484, their son Edward died of unknown causes at the age of ten at his birthplace, Middleham Castle. The Croyland Chronicle reported, “You might have seen his father and mother in a state almost bordering madness, by reason of their sudden grief.” His burial place is unknown.  For a very long time, it was thought that an effigy of a young boy on a cenotaph (empty tomb) in St. Helen and Holy Cross Church in Sheriff Hutton, England was Edward, but it is now thought to be an earlier member of the Neville family.
Unofficial Royalty: Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales

April 9, 1649 – Birth of James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, the illegitimate son of King Charles II of England and one of his mistresses Lucy Walter, in Rotterdam, the Netherlands
James was the eldest of Charles II’s illegitimate children. Sarah, Duchess of York, Princess Alice of Gloucester, and Diana, Princess of Wales are descendants of the Duke of Monmouth.  James was convicted of treason for leading a rebellion against his uncle King James II of England. James groveled at the feet of his uncle, begging for his life.  James was sent to the Tower of London and beheaded on Tower Hill on July 15, 1685.
Unofficial Royalty: James Scott, Duke of Monmouth

April 9, 1765 – Death of Marie Luise of Hesse-Kassel, Princess of Orange, wife of Johan Willem Friso, Prince of Orange, in Leeuwarden, Friesland, now in the Netherlands; buried with her husband at the Grote of Jacobijnerkerk in Leeuwarden
When she was 21-years-old, Marie Luise’s marriage was arranged by her future mother-in-law Henriëtte Amalia of Anhalt-Dessau who was concerned that her son Johan Willem Friso, Prince of Orange had been almost killed twice in battle and had no heir. Sadly, their marriage lasted only two years. While Johan Willem Friso’s carriage was crossing a river by ferry, the ferry capsized and Johan Willem Friso drowned at the age of 23. At the time of her husband’s death, Marie Luise was pregnant with her second child. Six weeks later, she gave birth to a son who immediately became Willem IV, Prince of Orange.  On April 9, 1765, Marie Luise died at the age of 77. She had survived her husband Johan Willem Friso by 54 years. Until 2022, Marie Luise of Hesse-Kassel and her husband held the distinction of being the most recent common ancestors to all currently reigning European monarchs. Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and his wife Countess Palatine Caroline of Zweibrücken became the most recent common ancestors of all current hereditary European monarchs on September 8, 2022 after Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, who was not a descendant, died and her son, Charles III, a descendant through his father, became king.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie Luise of Hesse-Kassel, Princess of Orange

April 9, 1806 – Death of Willem V, Prince of Orange in Brunswick, Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, now in Lower Saxony, Germany; first buried in Brunswick, reinterred at the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft, the Netherlands on April 29, 1958
Willem was the son of Willem IV, Prince of Orange and Anne, Princess Royal, the eldest daughter of King George II of Great Britain. In 1767, Willem married Princess Wilhelmina of Prussia. They had five children, but only three survived infancy including Willem I, the first King of the Netherlands. In 1795, the revolutionary Patriots in the Dutch Republic, supported by the French Army, replaced the Dutch Republic with the Batavian Republic which remained in power until 1806. Willem V and his family fled to England where they lived in exile until 1802 in the part of Kew Palace known as the Dutch House with the permission of Willem’s first cousin King George III. In 1802, the family went to the European mainland where they lived in the Principality of Orange-Nassau and the Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Willem spent the rest of his life in exile. Willem was vilified during his lifetime and is still considered a failure as a ruler. Queen Wilhelmina refused to attend the reburial of Willem V at the Nieuwe Kerk. When asked why, she said that she did not want to walk behind the coffin of a fool.
Unofficial Royalty: Willem V, Prince of Orange

April 9, 1835 – Birth of King Leopold II of the Belgians in Brussels, Belgium
Full name: Léopold Louis Philippe Marie Victor
Leopold II was the second-born but first surviving child of King Leopold I of the Belgians. His father was formerly Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, uncle of both Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Leopold II was the first cousin of both Victoria and Albert. In 1853, he married Marie Henriette of Austria. They had three daughters and one son who died young. The marriage was not a happy one, and the couple lived mostly separate lives. After the death of their only son, Leopold and Marie Henriette tried to have another son, but the result was another daughter Clémentine. The couple completely separated after the birth of Clémentine. Leopold II was the second monarch of Belgium and is known for his exploitation of the Congo Free State for his personal gain and the horrendous atrocities committed against the native people. When Leopold II died at the age of 74, he was so unpopular with the Belgian people that his funeral procession was booed.
Unofficial Royalty: King Leopold II of the Belgians

April 9, 1882 – Birth of Friedrich Franz IV, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in Palermo, Kingdom of Italy, now in Italy
Full name: Friedrich Franz Michael
Friedrich Franz became Grand Duke upon his father’s death in April 1897. Because he was still a minor, his uncle Duke Johann Albrecht, served as regent until Friedrich Franz came of age in 1901. Once he had taken control of his government, the young Grand Duke attempted to reform the Mecklenburg constitution. However, his efforts failed when the government of Mecklenburg-Strelitz refused to agree to his ideas. In 1904, he married Princess Alexandra of Hanover and Cumberland and they had five children. Friedrich Franz was the last Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, abdicating on November 14, 1918. Forced to leave Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Friedrich Franz and his family traveled to Denmark at the invitation of his sister, Queen Alexandrine where they lived for a year, before being permitted to return to Mecklenburg, Germany, and recovering several of the family’s properties. At the end of World War II, with the advance of the Soviet Union’s Red Army, Friedrich Franz, his wife, and son Christian Ludwig, fled to Glücksburg Castle, in Glücksburg, Germany, the home of his youngest daughter and her husband, intending to return to Denmark. However, he became ill, and while under house arrest at Glücksburg  Castle, died at the age of 63.
Unofficial Royalty: Friedrich Franz IV, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

April 9, 1914 – Death of Empress Shōken of Japan, wife of Emperor Meiji of Japan, at the Imperial Villa in Numazu, Japan; buried in the East Mound of the Fushimi Momoyama Ryo in Kyoto, Japan, her soul was enshrined in Meiji Shrine in Tokyo, Japan
Born Lady Masako Ichijō, Empress Shōken would be the first Empress Consort of Japan to play a public role but sadly, she had no children. Emperor Meiji had fifteen children by five official ladies-in-waiting but only five children survived to adulthood. Empress Shōken officially adopted Yoshihito, her husband’s eldest surviving son by a concubine, as was the custom. Emperor Meiji died in 1912, at the age of 59. He had suffered from diabetes, nephritis, and gastroenteritis, and died of uremia. Yoshihito succeeded his father as Emperor and is known as Emperor Taishō, his posthumous name. Empress Shōken survived her husband by less than two years, dying on April 9, 1914, at the age of 64.
Unofficial Royalty: Empress Shōken of Japan

April 9, 1953 – Wedding of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg and Princess Josephine-Charlotte of Belgium at Notre Dame Cathedral in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
Rumors of a Belgian-Luxembourg engagement began appearing in the press in November 1952. While Joséphine-Charlotte and Jean were indeed officially engaged the previous month, the engagement was not made official to the public until December 26, 1952. The April 9, 1953 wedding date was announced the following day. The wedding was attended by 2500 guests, including three kings, three queens, 40 princes, and princesses, all from ruling and former houses of European royalty.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg and Princess Josephine-Charlotte of Belgium

April 9, 1955 – Birth of Princess Tomohito of Mikasa, widow of Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, born Nobuko Asō in Tokyo, Japan
Princess Tomohito was married to Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, a first cousin of Emperor Emeritus Akihito, who died in 2012 from cancer complications. Princess Tomohito supports many Japanese and international organizations dealing with cancer research and the promotion of the welfare of people with physical or mental disabilities.  She serves as President of the Tokyo Jikeikai, a foundation to fund the Tokyo Jikeikai Hospital and the Jikeikai University School of Medicine.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Tomohito of Mikasa

April 9, 1961 – Death of King Zog I of the Albanians at the Foch Hospital in Suresnes, Hauts-de-Seine, France;  first buried in the Thiais Cemetery in Paris, France, in November 2012, his remains were reinterred in the newly rebuilt Royal Mausoleum in Tirana, Albania
After Albania achieved independence, Ahmed Muhtar Zogu held numerous positions within the government, including Minister of the Interior, Chief of the Albanian Military, Prime Minister, and President. In 1927, several Albanian politicians suggested that Albania should become a monarchy again. A commission was quickly established and on August 30, 1928, the Constitutional Assembly overwhelmingly approved the vote. The Kingdom of Albania was established, and President Zogu was offered the throne. The following day, September 1, 1928, Ahmet Zogu took the oath, becoming King Zog I of the Albanians, the country’s first and only reigning King. In 1938, King Zog married Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Appony. On April 7, 1939, just two days after Queen Geraldine gave birth to the couple’s only child, Italian forces invaded Albania. Despite attempts to hold them off, the Albanian military was unsuccessful and the royal family was forced into exile. After several years of ill health, King Zog passed away on April 9, 1961, at the age of 66.
Unofficial Royalty: King Zog I of the Albanians

April 9, 2005 – Wedding of King Charles III of the United Kingdom and Queen Consort Camilla at the Guildhall in Windsor, England
King Charles III, then The Prince of Wales, and Camilla Parker Bowles were married in a civil ceremony at the Windsor Guildhall in Windsor, England followed by a Service of Prayer and Dedication at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in Windsor, England.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of King Charles III and Camilla Parker Bowles

April 9, 2021 – Death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England; buried in the King George VI Memorial Chapel at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
Born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, he was the son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and  Princess Alice of Battenberg. In 1947, he married the future Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and they had four children. Prince Philip was the patron of over 800 organizations in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth with special interests in scientific and technological research and development, the encouragement of sport, the welfare of young people, and conservation and the environment. He accompanied Queen Elizabeth on her Commonwealth tours and State visits, as well as on most of her public engagements in the United Kingdom. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh died at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England on April 9, 2021, at the age of 99, just two months short of his 100th birthday.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Unofficial Royalty: Funeral of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Unofficial Royalty: Service of Thanksgiving for Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

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