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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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