Prince Roberto Hugo of Bourbon-Parma, Duke of Parma

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Roberto Hugo was the head of the house of Bourbon-Parma and pretender to the former throne of the Duchy of Parma from 1959 until 1974.

source: Wikipedia

Prince Roberto Hugo was born on August 7, 1909 at Weilburg Palace in Baden bei Wien, Austria. He was the second son of Prince Elia of Bourbon-Parma and Archduchess Maria Anna of Austria. Roberto Hugo had eight siblings:

  • Princess Maria Elisabetta (1904) – unmarried
  • Prince Carlo Luigi (1905) – died in childhood
  • Princess Maria Francesca (1906) – unmarried
  • Princess Maria Antonia (1911) – married Prince Gottffried of Thurn und Taxis, had issue
  • Prince Francesco Alfonso (1913) – unmarried
  • Princess Giovanna Isabella (1916) – unmarried
  • Princess Alicia Maria (1917) – married Infante Alfonso of Spain, Duke of Calabria, had issue
  • Princess Maria Cristina (1925) – unmarried

He succeeded his father as head of the House of Bourbon-Parma and pretender to the throne in 1950, and took over the management of the family’s estates. He never married.

Roberto Hugo died in Vienna on November 25, 1974. As he had no heirs, he was succeeded by his half-uncle, Prince Xavier of Bourbon-Parma.

* * * * * * * * * *

Duchy of Parma Resources at Unofficial Royalty

* * * * * * * * * *

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

September 27: Today in Royal History

© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Sophia Alekseyevna, Regent of Russia, Credit – Wikipedia

September 27, 1601 – Birth of King Louis XIII of France at the Château de Fontainebleau in Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne, France
Louis XIII became King of France at the age of eight upon the assassination of his father King Henri IV of France. His mother Marie de’ Medici was appointed Regent. In 1615, Louis married Anne of Austria. They had two sons King Louis XIV and Philippe I, Duke of Orléans. Although best associated with later generations of French monarchs, the Palace of Versailles has its origins with Louis XIII. Having gone on several hunting trips in the area, King Louis XIII ordered the construction of a hunting lodge in 1624. Several years later, he acquired the surrounding land and began to enlarge the building. It was under his son’s reign that the small hunting lodge was transformed into a grand palace, and became the seat of the French monarchy.
Unofficial Royalty: King Louis XIII of France

September 27, 1657 – Birth of Tsarevna Sophia Alekseyevna, Regent of Russia, daughter of Alexei I, Tsar of All Russia, in Moscow, Russia
Sophia was the Regent of Russia for seven years during the early co-reign of her brother Ivan V and her half-brother Peter I (the Great). During her regency, Sophia continued the military reforms of her father Alexei I and brother Feodor III. However, Russian military defeats led to her downfall. With Peter’s reputation as a military leader, his coming of age and his marriage, the possibility of Sophia’s dismissal as Regent seemed a very real possibility. Therefore, Sophia and her followers planned to assassinate Peter but he was told of the plot and escaped. Eventually, Sophia had no followers ready to take risks for her interests. She was arrested, forced to give up her position as a member of the royal family, and forced to withdraw to the Novodevichy Convent under guard. During the Streltsy Uprising of 1698, the Streltsy secretly contacted Sophia and asked for her help. After Peter put down the rebellion, Sophia was forced to become a nun. She remained in the strictest seclusion with the other nuns allowed to see her only on Easter.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia Alekseyevna, Regent of Russia

September 27, 1760 – Death of Maria Amalia of Saxony, Queen of Spain, wife of King Carlos III of Spain at Buen Retiro Palace in Madrid, Spain; buried at the Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in El Escorial, Spain
Maria Amalia of Saxony was the wife of King Carlos III of Spain who also was King Carlo VII of Naples from 1735 – 1759 and King Carlo V of Sicily from 1734 – 1759. The couple had thirteen children but only seven survived childhood. Maria Amalia’s husband became King of Spain after the death of his childless half-brother Fernando VI, King of Spain in 1759. Maria Amalia had lived in her husband’s Italian kingdoms for twenty-one years and did not like Spain. On September 27, 1760, a year after arriving in Spain, 35-year-old Maria Amalia died from tuberculosis.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Amalia of Saxony, Queen of Spain

September 27, 1781 – Birth of King Wilhelm I of Württemberg in Lüben, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Lubin, Poland
Full name: Friedrich Wilhelm Karl
Before he became King of Württemberg, Wilhelm had married twice. His marriage to Princess Karoline Auguste of Bavaria resulted in divorce and no children. His first cousin Grand Duchess Ekaterina Pavlovna of Russia, daughter of Paul I, Emperor of All Russia, was his second wife.  The couple had two children but Ekaterina died three years after the marriage. Wilhelm’s third wife was another first cousin Duchess Pauline of Württemberg who gave birth to three children including his heir. Wilhelm’s reign saw the economic boom of the 1830s, the expansion of roads and shipping routes, and a healthy and prosperous economy. But by the mid-1840s, several years of poor harvests had led to a rise in famine and calls for a more democratic government. Protests in 1848, as well as yet another revolution in France, led to Wilhelm conceding many of the demands being made – reinstating freedom of the press, and agreeing to form a liberal government.
Unofficial Royalty: King Wilhelm I of Württemberg

September 27, 1788 – Death of Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Princess of Württemberg, first wife of the future King Friedrich I of Württemberg, at Koluvere Manor, Kullamaa near Reval, Estonia; buried at the Church of Kullamaa in Lääne County, Estonia
Augusta was the daughter of Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Princess Augusta of Great Britain, a sister of King George III. In 1780, Augusta married Prince Friedrich of Württemberg, later King Friedrich I of Württemberg. Despite a very unhappy marriage, Augusta and Friedrich had four children. Augusta wanted to leave her husband as early as her first pregnancy.  In 1782, Friedrich impressed Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia while visiting Russia, and she made him Governor-General of Eastern Finland. Four years later, while they were visiting Catherine II in St. Petersburg, Augusta asked Catherine for protection from her husband. She claimed that Friedrich was abusive to her, and was having affairs with several men. Catherine took Augusta in and told Friedrich to leave the country. Augusta hoped to obtain a divorce, but her father would not permit it. So Catherine provided Augusta with a home at Koluvere Castle in Estonia, along with a custodian, Wilhelm von Pohlmann. Soon, Augusta and von Pohlmann began an affair and she became pregnant. On September 27, 1788, Augusta went into premature labor. Fearing that their affair would become known, von Pohlmann refused to call for a doctor and Augusta died of blood loss.
Unofficial Royalty: Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Princess Friedrich of Württemberg

September 27, 1820 – Birth of Elizabeth Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington, Queen Victoria’s Mistress of the Robes 1861–1868, 1874–1880, at Yester House, in East Lothian, Scotland
Born Lady Elizabeth Hay, daughter of George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale, she married Arthur Wellesley, 2nd Duke of Wellington.
Unofficial Royalty: Elizabeth Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington

September 27, 1940 – Birth of Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait, in Kuwait

Unofficial Royalty: Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait

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

Margarita Teresa of Spain, Holy Roman Empress, first wife of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Margarita Teresa of Spain, Holy Roman Empress; Credit – Wikipedia

Margarita Teresa of Spain was the first of the three wives of her uncle and first cousin Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary, King of Bohemia, Archduke of Austria, King of Croatia, Duke of Teschen, King of the Romans, Archduke of Further Austria, and Prince of Transylvania. Born on July 12, 1651, at the Royal Alcazar in Madrid, Spain, Margarita Teresa was the eldest of the five children and the elder of the two daughters of Felipe IV, King of Spain and his second wife Mariana of Austria, who were uncle and niece, an example of inbreeding. Margarita Teresa’s paternal grandparents were Felipe III, King of Spain and Margarete of Austria, who were both children of parents who were an uncle and his niece, and were first cousins once removed and second cousins. Her maternal grandparents were Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor and his first wife Maria Anna of Spain who were first cousins.

Margarita Teresa had four siblings but only one survived childhood:

Margarita Teresa had eight half-siblings from her father’s first marriage to Elisabeth of France who died in 1644, at the age of forty-one, after miscarrying a son. Only one half-sister survived to adulthood, Maria Theresa who married King Louis XIV of France.

  • Maria Margarita of Austria, Infanta of Spain (born and died 1621)
  • Margarita Maria Catalina of Austria, Infanta of Spain (born and died 1623)
  • Maria Eugenia of Austria, Infanta of Spain (1625 – 1627)
  • Isabella Maria of Austria, Infanta of Spain (born and died 1627)
  • Balthasar Carlos of Austria, Infante of Spain, Prince of Asturias (1629 – 1646), died at age 16 from smallpox
  • Francisco Fernando of Austria, Infante of Spain (born and died 1634)
  • Maria Ana Antonia of Austria, Infanta of Spain (born and died 1636)
  • Maria Theresa of Austria, Infanta of Spain (1638 – 1683), married King Louis XIV of France, had six children but only one son survived childhood

Las Meninas (Spanish for ‘The Ladies-in-Waiting), 1656 by Diego Velázquez – Five-year-old Margarita Teresa is surrounded by her entourage of maids of honor, a chaperone, a bodyguard, two dwarfs, and a dog in a room in the Royal Alcazar of Madrid; Credit – Wikipedia

Margarita Teresa was raised in the chambers of her mother Margarete of Austria at the Royal Alcazar in Madrid, surrounded by numerous ladies-in-waiting and servants. Brought up with the strict etiquette of the Spanish court, she received an excellent education.

The House of Habsburg, which then ruled in Spain, Holy Roman Empire, and the various hereditary Habsburg lands, was notorious for its inbreeding. The Habsburgs had built their empire by marriage and they wanted to keep the land they amassed all in the family, so they began to intermarry more and more frequently among themselves. Seven of Margarita Teresa’s eight great-grandparents were descended from Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Aragon and her husband Philip of Habsburg, Duke of Burgundy.  While a person in the fifth generation normally has thirty-two different ancestors, Margarita Teresa had only ten different ancestors in the fifth generation.

King Carlos II of Spain, Margarita Teresa’s brother who had serious health issues and disabilities due to inbreeding; Credit – Wikipedia

Although Margarita did not develop the serious health issues and disabilities that her younger brother King Carlos II of Spain had shown since his birth (she did have the Habsburg jaw as did her husband Leopold), the inbreeding could have been a cause of the early deaths of three of her four children and the three children of her only surviving child. Margarita’s brother Carlos was a weak, sick child from birth. He did not learn to talk until he was four years old and could not walk until he was eight years old. Like many of the Habsburg family, Carlos had the Habsburg jaw (mandibular prognathism), a disfiguring genetic disorder in which the lower jaw outgrows the upper jaw. However, Carlos’ very pronounced Habsburg jaw was so severe that he swallowed his food without thoroughly chewing. Carlos’ condition showed clear signs of the long-time inbreeding of the House of Habsburg.

Margarita Teresa’s husband Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor; Credit – Wikipedia

On April 6, 1663, twelve-year-old Margarita Teresa was betrothed to her 23-year-old uncle and first cousin Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, the son of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor and the first of his three wives who was also his first cousin Maria Anna of Austria. It was felt that Leopold and Margarita Teresa’s marriage between the Spanish and Austrian branches of the House of Habsburg was needed to strengthen the position of both countries, especially against the Kingdom of France. The marriage between Leopold and Margarita Teresa was delayed because of the age of the bride. The couple was married by proxy in Madrid, Spain on April 25, 1666, with the groom represented by Antonio de la Cerda, 7th Duke of Medinaceli.

Three days later, Margarita Teresa began her journey, via ship and then over land, from Madrid to Vienna. At each stop, where Margarita Teresa spent time resting, there were celebrations in her honor. On November 25, 1666, in Schottwien, twelve miles from Vienna, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I came to receive his bride. Margarita Teresa formally entered Vienna on December 5, 1666, and 26-year-old Leopold and 15-year-old Margarita, first cousins, uncle and niece, were married seven days later. Despite the age difference, the couple had a happy marriage. Margarita Teresa always called her husband “Onkel”, German for uncle, and Leopold called her “Gretl”, a German diminutive of Margarita. Margarita Teresa and Leopold had many common interests, especially in art and music.

Margarita Teresa and her only surviving child Maria Antonia; Credit – Wikipedia

Margarita Teresa and Leopold had four children but only one survived to adulthood:

  • Archduke Ferdinand Wenzel of Austria (1667 – 1668), died in infancy
  • Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria (1669 – 1692), married Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, had three sons, none survived childhood
  • Archduke Johann Leopold of Austria (born and died 1670), died on the day of his birth
  • Archduchess Maria Anna Antonia of Austria (born and died 1672), died fourteen days after her birth

Margarita Teresa was very religious and was the driving force behind Leopold’s expulsion of the Jews from Vienna in 1670. She blamed the Jews for her two miscarriages, the early deaths of her two sons, and the fire in the newly built Leopoldine wing of the Hofburg Palace. During her marriage, Margarita Teresa kept her Spanish customs, was surrounded almost exclusively by her Spanish retinue, and hardly learned the German language. Due to the aloofness and arrogance of the Spanish retinue, an anti-Spanish mood spread at court, which also turned against Margarita Teresa. The courtiers unashamedly expressed their hope that Margarita Teresa, who was often ill, would soon die so that Leopold could marry someone more acceptable to them.

Tomb of Margarita Teresa; Credit – Von krischnig – selbst fotografiert, Bild-frei, https://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3431689

Weakened from six pregnancies in six years (four living childbirths and two miscarriages), and four months into her seventh pregnancy, Margarita Teresa died at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, then in the Archduchy of Austria, on March 12, 1673, at the age of 21, and was buried in the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna. Despite his grief and because he had no male heir, several months later, Leopold married Archduchess Claudia Felicitas of Austria, from the Tyrol branch of the House of Habsburg. After giving birth to two daughters who did not survive infancy, Claudia Felicitas died from tuberculosis three years after her marriage. Leopold’s third wife Eleonore Magdalene of Neuberg finally provided him with male heirs, two sons who both became Holy Roman Emperors.

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

Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2022) Felipe IV, King of Spain, Filipe III, King of Portugal, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/felipe-iv-king-of-spain-filip-iii-king-of-portugal/ (Accessed: 10 July 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2023) Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/leopold-i-holy-roman-emperor-king-of-hungary-king-of-bohemia-archduke-of-austria-king-of-croatia-duke-of-teschen-king-of-the-romans-archduke-of-further-austria-and-prince-of-transylv/ (Accessed: 10 July 2023).
  • Margaret Theresa of Spain (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Theresa_of_Spain (Accessed: 10 July 2023).
  • Margarita Theresa von Spanien (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margarita_Theresa_von_Spanien (Accessed: 10 July 2023).
  • Wheatcroft, Andrew. (1995) The Habsburgs. London: Viking.
  • Wilson, Peter H. (2016) Heart of Europe – A History of the Holy Roman Empire. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

September 26 – Today in Royal History

© Unofficial Royalty 2023

King Christian X of Denmark, Photo Credit – Wikipedia

September 26, 1796 – Birth of Princess Ida of Waldeck and Pyrmont, wife of Georg Wilhelm, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe, in Rhoden, then in the County of Waldeck and Pyrmont, later in the Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont, and now in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt

Unofficial Royalty: Ida of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Princess of Schaumberg-Lippe (Article coming soon.)

September 26, 1870 – Birth of King Christian X of Denmark at Charlottenlund Palace in Gentofte Municipality near Copenhagen, Denmark
Full name: Christian Carl Frederik Albert Alexander Vilhelm
Through his paternal aunts and uncles, Christian X was related to many European royals. Among his first cousins were Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia, King Constantine I of Greece, King George V of the United Kingdom, and Maud of Wales, Queen of Norway who married his brother Carl who became King Haakon VII of Norway. In 1898, Christian married Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. The couple had two sons including Frederik IX, King of Denmark. In 1940, during World War II, Germany occupied Denmark. Unlike King Haakon VII of Norway (Christian’s brother, born Prince Carl of Denmark) and Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, both of whom went into exile during the German occupation of their countries, King Christian remained in Denmark. He is remembered for his daily horse ride without a guard through the streets of Copenhagen during the Nazi occupation of Denmark, a symbol of Danish sovereignty. After a fall from his horse in October 1942, Christian was more or less an invalid for the rest of his life. King Christian X died at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen on April 20, 1947, aged 76.
Unofficial Royalty: King Christian X of Denmark

September 26, 1922 – Birth of Prince Nicholas Romanov at the villa of his grandfather Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia in Cap d’Antibes, France
Prince Nicholas Romanov, a great-great-grandson of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia, was one of the disputed pretenders to the Headship of the Russian Imperial Family from 1992 – 2014.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Nicholas Romanov

September 26, 1994 – Death of Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, son of Crown Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, in Bremen, Germany; buried in the castle cemetery at Hohenzollern Castle in Bisingen, Zollernalbkreis, Germany
Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, a grandson of Wilhelm II, King of Prussia and German Emperor, was the pretender to the Prussian throne and Head of the House of Hohenzollern from 1951 until his death in 1994.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia

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

Ancestors of Infanta Leonor of Spain, Princess of Asturias

compiled by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Infanta Leonor 2023

Infanta Leonor of Spain, Princess of Asturias is the elder of the two daughters of Felipe VI, King of Spain. Leonor is the heir presumptive to the Spanish throne, not the heir apparent. Currently, Spain’s succession law is male-preference cognatic primogeniture. This means that Leonor, as the elder of King Felipe’s two daughters, is first in line to inherit the throne, and she is the heir presumptive. However, if her parents had a son, which seems unlikely at this point, he would be the heir apparent and Leonor would forfeit the title of Princess of Asturias to her brother who would be Prince of Asturias. There have been discussions of changing the succession law to absolute primogeniture, where the eldest child, regardless of gender, inherits the throne, but no legislation has been forthcoming. If Leonor ascends to the throne, she will be Spain’s first queen regnant since Isabella II, who reigned from 1833 to 1868.

Through her father King Felipe VI, Leonor has a stellar royal pedigree. Her father is the only current European monarch to be descended from Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom via three of his grandparents. Leonor’s paternal grandfather King Juan Carlos I of Spain is descended from Queen Victoria’s youngest child Princess Beatrice whose daughter Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg married King Alfonso XIII of Spain. Leonor’s paternal grandmother Queen Sofia, born Princess Sophia of Greece, is descended from Queen Victoria’s eldest child Victoria, Princess Royal via both her parents King Paul of Greece and Princess Frederica of Hanover. Among Infanta Leonor’s ancestors in the last six generations are the monarchs of Denmark, the German Empire, Greece, Prussia, Spain, and the United Kingdom. If we go back a couple more generations, there are monarchs of Austria, France, the Holy Roman Empire, and Russia.

Leonor’s mother Queen Letizia was born Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano in Oviedo, Asturias, Spain. She is of Spanish, Filipino, French, and Occitan descent. Occitan is an ethnic group that originated in the historical region of Occitania, located in southern France, northeastern Spain, northwestern Italy, and Monaco. Letizia’s paternal grandmother María del Carmen “Menchu” Álvarez del Valle was a famous radio broadcaster in Asturias, Spain for over forty years.

Parents, Grandparents, Great-Grandparents, Great-Great-Grandparents, and Great-Great-Great-Grandparents of Infanta Leonor of Spain, Princess of Asturias (born October 31, 2005)

The links below are from Unofficial Royalty,  Wikipedia, Leo’s Genealogics Website, The Peerage, or Geni.

Parents

King Felipe VI of Spain and Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano, parents; Credit – By Ministry of the Presidency, Government of Spain, Attribution, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=97985420

Grandparents

King Juan Carlos of Spain and Princess Sophia of Greece, paternal grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Grandparents

King Paul of Greece and Princess Frederica of Hanover, great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Great-Grandparents

King Alfonso XIII of Spain and Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, great-great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Great-Great-Grandparents

Friedrich III, Emperor of Germany and Victoria, Princess Royal, great-great-great-grandparents by Hills & Saunders, albumen carte-de-visite, circa 1870, NPG Ax132839 © National Portrait Gallery, London

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

Sources:

September 25: Today in Royal History

© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Philip of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, King of Castile and León; Credit – Wikipedia

September 25, 1506 – Death of Philip of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, King of Castile and León, husband of Queen Juana I of Castile, at Burgos, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain; buried at the Capilla Real in Granada, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain
Philip was the son of Maximilian I, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola, and Holy Roman Emperor, and the first of his three wives, Mary, Duchess of Burgundy, the ruler of the Burgundian State in her own right. He was the heir and the eventual ruler of both his father’s and mother’s dominions.  In 1496, Philip married the future Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Queen of Aragon. Philip and Juana had six children, all were kings or queen consorts.  Philip died on September 25, 1506, aged 28, apparently of typhoid fever, although an assassination by poisoning was rumored at the time.
Unofficial Royalty: Philip of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, King of Castile and León

September 25, 1697 – Birth of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, in Saalfeld, Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld, now in Thuringia, Germany
Christian Ernst, Franz Josias’s elder half-brother had made a morganatic marriage which meant that any children from the marriage would not be entitled to titles and privileges or be in the line of succession. As the elder son, Christian Ernst was his father’s heir but because of his unequal marriage, Franz Josias claimed the sole inheritance of the duchy. However, his father decided that both his sons should reign jointly, and upon his death in 1729, his will forced the joint reign.  From 1735, with the support of the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, Franz Josias effectively ruled in his own right. In 1745, Christian Ernst died and his half-brother Franz Josias became the sole Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. After the death of his brother, Franz Josias introduced primogeniture in the duchy so there would be no question about the succession.
Unofficial Royalty: Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

September 25, 1744 – Birth of King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia at the Stadtschloss in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Friedrich Wilhelm became King of Prussia in 1786, upon the death of his uncle, King Friedrich II, better known as Frederick the Great. By that time, he had little respect for his uncle and ignored the late King’s wishes relating to his burial. He moved the Prussian court – for many years based in Potsdam – back to Berlin, and overturned many of his uncle’s policies. Through his patronage of the arts and work toward improving trade and transportation, he became quite popular with the Prussian people. However, that popularity soon faded, when he began to impose consumption taxes on items such as sugar, flour, and beer. He also depleted the country’s treasury, from overspending during military ventures and his personal projects, such as the construction of the Marble Palace. When he came to the throne, the treasury had over 50 million dollars. But by the time his reign ended, just 11 years later, the country was in debt of 48 million.
Unofficial Royalty: King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia

September 25, 1792 – Death of Adam Gottlob Moltke, favorite of King Frederik V of Denmark, in Haslev, Sjælland, Denmark; buried at Karise Church in Karise, Denmark
Through the influence of his uncle, twelve-year-old Adam was employed as a page for Crown Prince Christian of Denmark in 1722. When Christian came to the throne in 1730 as Christian VI, King of Denmark, Adam was appointed chamberlain to Christian VI’s 7-year-old son Crown Prince Frederik (later Frederik V). The close relationship between Adam and Frederik was established and lasted until Frederik’s death. In 1746, when King Frederik V became King of Denmark, Adam was appointed Court Marshal of Denmark and was made a Privy Councilor. In addition, Adam was given the Bregentved estate in Haslev on the Danish island of Zealand and it is still owned by Adam’s descendants. In 1750, Frederik V created Adam a Count. Although Frederik V took part in the government by attending council meetings, he suffered from alcoholism, and therefore, most of his reign was dominated by his very able ministers led by Adam Gottlob Moltke.
Unofficial Royalty: Adam Gottlob Moltke, favorite of King Frederik V of Denmark

September 25, 1826 – Death of Frederica of Baden, Queen of Sweden, former wife of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden, at Lausanne, Switzerland; buried at Schlosskirche St. Michael in Pforzheim, Grand Duchy of Baden, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
In 1797, Frederica married King Gustav IV Adolph of Sweden and the couple had five children.
After a 17-year-reign, Frederica’s husband was deposed in 1809, and the couple and their family went to Frederica’s homeland, the Grand Duchy of Baden. However, the couple became incompatible and divorced in 1812. In the divorce settlement, Gustav Adolf renounced all his assets in favor of his mother and his children. He also renounced the custody and guardianship of his children. Two years later, Frederica placed her children under the guardianship of her brother-in-law, Alexander I, Emperor of Russia. Frederica acquired several residences and spent much time at her brother’s court in Karlsruhe, but she also traveled around Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, using the name Countess Itterburg after a ruin in Hesse she had acquired. During her final years, Frederica was often ill and she died from heart disease at the age of only 45.
Unofficial Royalty: Frederica of Baden, Queen of Sweden

September 25, 1968 – Birth of Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau, son of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, at the University Medical Center in Utrecht, The Netherlands
Full name: Johan Friso Bernhard Christiaan David
Prince Friso was the second of the three sons of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and a younger brother of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands. In 2004, Friso married Mabel Wisse Smit. Because of some controversy regarding Mabel’s past, Friso did not request formal consent from the Dutch parliament for the marriage. In doing so, Prince Friso relinquished his rights to the Dutch throne and his title of Prince of the Netherlands. However, he retained his personal title of Prince of Orange-Nassau and was granted the hereditary title Count of Orange-Nassau, with the surname Orange-Nassau van Amsberg. The couple had two daughters. On February 17, 2012, while on the royal family’s annual skiing holiday in Lech, Austria, Prince Friso was buried under an avalanche and was in a coma. He passed away on August 12, 2013, after being in a coma for 18 months.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau

September 25, 1983 – Death of former King Leopold III of the Belgians at Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, Belgium; buried in the Royal Vault at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken in Brussels, Belgium
At the beginning of World War II, Leopold tried to maintain Belgian neutrality, but after the German invasion in May 1940, he surrendered his country, earning him much hostility, both in Belgium and around the world. Leopold and his family found themselves under house arrest at the Royal Palace of Laeken. He attempted to assert his position as King of the Belgians, but the Germans were having no part in that, and his own Belgian government, by now settled in London, had declared his actions unconstitutional. In 1944, Leopold and his family were moved to Germany and then Austria, before being liberated by the Americans. However, Leopold was banned for some years from returning to Belgium, where his brother Prince Charles had been declared regent. Leopold’s eventual return to Belgium in 1950 nearly caused a civil war, and under pressure from the government, he abdicated in favor of his son Prince Baudouin in July 1951. Leopold died at the age of 83, a few hours after undergoing emergency heart surgery. He was buried in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, alongside his first wife, Queen Astrid who died in a car accident, and later his second wife, Princess Lilian, who died in 2002.
Unofficial Royalty: King Leopold III of Belgium

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

Ancestors of Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange

compiled by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange; Credit – By Ian Jones – Buckingham Palace reception, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=132803882 (2023)

Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange, the eldest of the three daughters of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, is the heir apparent to the Dutch throne. As the heir apparent, she is titled The Princess of Orange. The Netherlands changed its succession law in 1983 to absolute primogeniture where the succession passes to the eldest child of the sovereign regardless of gender. Males and females have equal succession rights.

Catharina-Amalia is a descendant of the monarchs of the Netherlands and before the establishment of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815, the Princes of Orange. However, a good portion of her ancestors were members of the German untitled and titled nobility. Her paternal grandfather Claus von Amsberg was a member of the Amsberg noble family which belonged to the untitled nobility of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.

Through her great-great-grandfather, Duke Heinrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, son of Friedrich Franz II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Catharina-Amalia is a descendant of reigning Dukes and Grand Dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Among the last six generations of Catharina-Amalia’s ancestry, there were no marriages with current monarchies. However, there are marriages with members of the former royal monarchies of the Kingdom of Prussia, the Russian Empire, the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, and the Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

Catharina-Amalia’s mother Queen Máxima was born Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Máxima has Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian ancestry. Via her father, she also has Basque ancestry. Around 1790, her ancestor José Antonio Zorreguieta y Oyarzábal Gamboa y Sagastume, migrated to Argentina from Basque country, located in the western Pyrenees, straddling the border between France and Spain on the coast of the Bay of Biscay. Máxima’s maternal great-grandparents Oreste Stefanini and Tullia Borella migrated to Argentina from Italy in 1900.

Parents, Grandparents, Great-Grandparents, Great-Great-Grandparents, and Great-Great-Great-Grandparents of Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange (born December 7, 2003 )

The links below are from Unofficial Royalty,  Wikipedia, Leo’s Genealogics Website, The Peerage, or Geni.

Parents

King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti, parents; Credit – By Quirinale.it, Attribution, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=133267418

Grandparents

Claus von Amsberg and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, paternal grandparents

Great-Great-Grandparents

Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld and Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Great-Grandparents

Duke Heinrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, great-great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Great-Great-Grandparents

King Willem III of the Netherlands and Princess Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, great-great-great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Sources:

Royal Birthdays & Anniversaries: September 24 – September 30

© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Below is a select list of birthdays and wedding anniversaries for current monarchies. It does not purport to be a complete list. Please see the Current Monarchies Index in the heading above for more information on current monarchies.

*****************

Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg and Sibilla Weiller, Photo Credit – your-indulgence.blogspot.com

29th wedding anniversary of Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg and Sibilla Weiller; married at St. Louis Cathedral in Versailles, France on September 24, 1994
The civil service was held on September 8, 1994, and the church service was held on September 24, 1994.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg

********************

 

23rd birthday of Princess Salma of Jordan, daughter of King Abdullah II of Jordan; born in Amman, Jordan on September 26, 2000
Wikipedia: Princess Salma of Jordan

 ********************

 

27th birthday of Princess Iman of Jordan, daughter of King Abdullah II of Jordan; born in Amman, Jordan on September 27, 1996
Wikipedia: Princess Iman bint Al Abdullah

 ********************

September 24: Today in Royal History

© Unofficial Royalty 2022

Pedro I, Emperor of Brazil/Pedro IV, King of Portugal; Credit – Wikipedia

September 24, 1513 – Birth of Katharina of Saxe-Lauenburg, Queen of Sweden, first wife of King Gustav I of Sweden, in Ratzeburg, Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein
The first of the three wives of Gustav Vasa I, King of Sweden, Katharina was the daughter of Magnus I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg and Katharina of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. The fledgling King of Sweden needed heirs for his new House of Vasa. After being rejected by several potential brides’ families, Gustav Vasa was advised to consider the Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg. Although the duchy was small and poor, the ducal family was related to many of the most powerful dynasties of Europe and was Protestant, which was important for the ongoing Swedish Reformation. With all this in mind, Gustav Vasa chose Katharina to be his wife.
Unofficial Royalty: Katharina of Saxe-Lauenburg, Queen of Sweden

September 24, 1704 – Birth of Karl August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont in Hanau, Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont, now in Hesse, Germany
As the second son, Karl August was destined for a military career. He served briefly in a French regiment and then entered the Prussian army. Upon the death of his father on January 1, 1728, his elder brother Christian Philipp briefly was Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont until his death on May 17, 1728. Karl August then became the reigning Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont.
Unofficial Royalty: Karl August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont

September 24, 1812 – Death of Friedrich Karl August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont in  Arolsen, Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont, now in Hesse, Germany; first buried at the Stadt-Kirche Bad Wildungen in Bad Wildungen now in the German state of Hesse. In 1962, his remains were transferred to the Princely Burial Chapel of St. Nicholas at the Church of St. Mary in Netze, a district of Waldeck, now in the German state of Hesse.
Full name: Friedrich Karl August Friedrich
In 1763, Friedrich Karl August’s father died and he succeeded him as reigning Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont. However, his mother Christiane Henriette served as Regent of the Principality of Waldeck-Pyrmont until 1766. After a visit to England in 1775 to learn about ways to modernize Waldeck-Pyrmont, Friedrich Karl August instituted plans for road construction, improvements to agriculture, production of wool and linen, and the mining of iron. The education system was improved and a gymnasium, the term for a German secondary school was constructed in Korbach. Friedrich Karl August died at age 68 and because he was unmarried, his brother Georg succeeded him.
Unofficial Royalty: Friedrich Karl August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont 

September 24, 1834 – Death of King Pedro IV of Portugal/Emperor Pedro I of Brazil at Queluz Palace in Lisbon, Portugal; first buried at the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora in Lisbon; re-buried in 1972 at the Museu do Ipiranga in São Paulo, Brazil
As Emperor Pedro I, he was the founder and first ruler of the Empire of Brazil. As King Pedro IV, he reigned briefly over Portugal. On April 7, 1831, after a political crisis that ended with the resignation of his ministers and in the middle of an economic crisis, Pedro abdicated the throne of Brazil in favor of his six-year-old son who reigned as Emperor Pedro II of Brazil. Pedro returned to Portugal where he died at the age of 35, from tuberculosis at his birthplace.
Unofficial Royalty: Pedro I, Emperor of Brazil/Pedro IV, King of Portugal

September 24, 1860 – Death of Marie of Württemberg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, second wife and niece of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany; buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany
Marie was the eldest child and the only daughter of Duke Alexander of Württemberg and Antoinette of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.  Marie had four brothers, but only two survived childhood. Marie and her brothers were first cousins of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.  In 1832, Marie married her uncle Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The groom was 48 and the bride was 33. Ernst had been anxious to find a new bride after the death of his first, estranged wife, Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. However, Ernst’s age and his negative reputation left him with limited choices for a bride. His mother, Augusta, Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, arranged the marriage between her son and her granddaughter. After her marriage, Marie was not only the first cousin but also the stepmother of her husband’s sons from his first marriage, Ernst (later Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) and Albert (later husband of Queen Victoria). Marie and Ernst had no children, but Marie had a good relationship with her stepsons and maintained a correspondence with Albert throughout their lives.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Württemberg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

 September 24, 1861 – Birth of Prince Franz Joseph of Battenberg, son of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine, in Padua, Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, now in Italy
The Battenberg /Mountbatten family descends from Franz Joseph’s parents Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine and his morganatic wife Countess Julia von Hauke. While visiting Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom who was on holiday in Cimiez, France, Franz Joseph met Princess Anna of Montenegro. She was the daughter of King Nikola I of Montenegro and Milena Vukotić, and was in Cimiez visiting her sister and brother-in-law. The two quickly fell in love, and their engagement was announced. They married in Cetinje, Montenegro on May 18, 1897, in both Eastern Orthodox and Protestant ceremonies. The marriage was a very happy one from all accounts, but the couple did not have any children.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Franz Joseph of Battenberg

September 24, 1891 – Death of Alexandra of Greece and Denmark, Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgievna of Russia, daughter of King George I of Greece, wife of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, at Ilyinskoye, the country estate outside of Moscow of her brother-in-law Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia; originally buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1939, she was reburied at the Royal Cemetery in the grounds of Tatoi Palace in Greece
Alexandra gave premature birth to a son, Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich (a conspirator in the murder of Grigori Rasputin), and then she lapsed into a coma. She did not recover consciousness and died six days later.
Unofficial Royalty: Alexandra of Greece and Denmark, Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgievna of Russia

September 24, 1930 – Death of Marie Juliette Louvet, mistress of Prince Louis II of Monaco, mother of his only child Princess Charlotte of Monaco, grandmother of Prince Rainier III of Monaco, great-grandmother of Prince Albert II of Monaco, in Paris, France
In 1898, Marie Juliette gave birth to the future Prince Louis II’s daughter Charlotte. While Louis’ father Prince Albert I would not permit the couple to marry, their daughter Charlotte was later recognized as a member of the Monegasque Princely Family, and in 1919, was formally adopted by Prince Louis, becoming Princess Charlotte of Monaco, Duchess of Valentinois. She would also later become heir to the Monegasque throne following her father’s accession in 1922, later relinquishing her succession rights in favor of her son, the future Prince Rainier III.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie Juliette Louvet

September 24, 1950 – Death of Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, Marchioness of Milford Haven, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Kensington Palace in London, England; buried at St. Mildred’s Church Cemetery, Whippingham on the Isle of Wight, England
Victoria was the daughter of Princess Alice, daughter of Queen Victoria, and Grand Duke Ludwig IV of Hesse and by Rhine.  She married Prince Louis of Battenberg and was the maternal grandmother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. By the 1930s, Victoria had become a surrogate mother to her grandson Prince Philip. Her daughter Alice had suffered several breakdowns and spent many years institutionalized. Victoria, along with her two sons, took over the care of the young Philip, overseeing his education and social ventures. In 1948, Victoria served as godparent to her great-grandson Prince Charles.  In the summer of 1950, while staying at Broadlands, the home of her son Lord Mountbatten, Victoria developed bronchitis and suffered a heart attack in August. Sensing the end was near, she insisted on returning home to Kensington Palace. It was here, on the morning of September 24, 1950, that she passed away, surrounded by her three surviving children.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, Marchioness of Milford Haven

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

Ancestors of Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant

compiled by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant; Credit – By Ian Jones – Buckingham Palace reception, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=131631531

Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant is the heir apparent to the Belgian throne. Belgium changed its succession law in 1991 to absolute primogeniture where the succession passes to the eldest child of the sovereign regardless of gender. Males and females have equal succession rights. This means that Elisabeth is the heir apparent and comes first in the line of succession as the eldest child. She is expected to become the first Belgian Queen Regnant. When her father Philippe became King of the Belgians, Elisabeth automatically became Duchess of Brabant, the title used by the female heirs to the Belgian throne and the wives of male heirs.

From her father Philippe, King of the Belgians, Elisabeth has the typical royal pedigree with Belgian, Danish, Portuguese, and Swedish monarchs among her ancestors, in addition to Dutch, Bavarian, and other German royalty. From Elisabeth’s paternal grandmother, there is a lot of Italian nobility with a smattering of Belgian and French ancestors. Adrienne Jenny Florimonde de Fay de La Tour-Maubourg, one of Philippe’s great-great-great-grandmothers, is the granddaughter of Gilbert Motier, Marquis de Lafayette. Better known as just Lafayette in the United States, Philippe’s great-great-great-great-great-grandfather was a French aristocrat and military officer who fought in the American Revolutionary War, commanding American troops in several battles. After returning to France, he was a key figure in the French Revolution of 1789 and the July Revolution of 1830. Lafayette is known as “The Hero of the Two Worlds” for his service to both France and the United States.

Elisabeth’s mother Queen Mathilde, born Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz, is the first native-born Belgian queen consort. Through her mother, Mathilde has Polish noble and Polish–Lithuanian princely ancestry. Mathilde’s father descends from Walloon (a French-speaking people who live in Belgium) nobles and was titled Jonkheer, the lowest title within the Belgian nobility system.  When Mathilde married Philippe in 1999, her father was created Count d’Udekem d’Acoz by Albert II, King of the Belgians, Philippe’s father.

Parents, Grandparents, Great-Grandparents, Great-Great-Grandparents, and Great-Great-Great-Grandparents of Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant (born October 25, 2001)

The links below are from Unofficial Royalty,  Wikipedia, Leo’s Genealogics Website, The Peerage, or Geni.

Parents

Philippe, King of the Belgians and Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz, parents; Credit – By Liesbeth Driessen – UHasselt, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28712939

Grandparents

King Albert II of the Belgians and Paola Ruffo di Calabria, paternal grandparents

Great-Grandparents

Leopold III, King of the Belgians and Princess Astrid of Sweden, great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Great-Grandparents

Prince Carl of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark, great-great-grandparents; Credit – Wikipedia

Great-Great-Great-Grandparents

King Frederik VIII of Denmark and Princess Louise of Sweden, great-great-great-grandparents

Sources:

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