© Unofficial Royalty 2024

Prince William of Gloucester: Credit – Wikipedia

August 28, 1592 – Birth of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, favorite of King James I of England and King Charles I of England, in Brooksby, Leicestershire, England
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, a courtier and favorite of King James I of England and his son King Charles I until a disgruntled army officer assassinated him. In 1615, George was knighted and became a Gentleman of the Bedchamber. He became Master of the Horse in 1616, was raised to the peerage as Baron Whaddon, Viscount Villiers, and was also made a Knight of the Garter. In 1619, George was made Lord High Admiral of England. In 1617, George was created Earl of Buckingham and climbed the steps of peerage when he was created Marquess of Buckingham in 1618, and Duke of Buckingham in 1623.
Unofficial Royalty: George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, favorite of King James I of England and King Charles I of England

August 28, 1667 – Birth of Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Queen of Denmark and Norway, first wife of King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway, in Güstrow, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Louise grew up at her father’s modest court at Güstrow Castle. Her parents were adherents to Pietism, a movement that originated in the Lutheran Church in the 17th century that stressed personal piety over religious formality and orthodoxy. In 1695, Louise married the future Frederik IV, King of Denmark and Norway. Louise and Frederik had four sons and one daughter. Sadly, three sons died in infancy. Louise found it difficult to endure her husband’s infidelities and even worse, his two bigamous marriages. At times, Louise reproached her husband which often led to embarrassing situations at court. It is suspected that Louise’s deep religiousness was also an escape from her disappointing marriage. Louise took part in the official court life and fulfilled her ceremonial duties. Otherwise, she led a withdrawn and quiet life. Queen Louise died on March 15, 1721, aged 53, at Charlottenborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Unofficial Royalty: Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Queen of Denmark and Norway

August 28, 1676 – Birth of Isabel Stuart at St. James’s Palace in London, England
Isabel was the second of the seven children and the second of the five daughters of the future King James II of England, who was then Duke of York, and his second wife Maria Beatrice of Modena. Isabel’s mother Maria Beatrice had twelve pregnancies and gave birth to seven live children, four of whom died in infancy. To her father James, this seemed a repeat of his first marriage to Lady Anne Hyde when six of their eight children died young. Only the last two of Isabel’s six siblings survived childhood. For most of her short life, Isabel was her parents’ only child and was fourth in line to the throne behind her father and her elder half-sisters Mary and Anne from her father’s first marriage. Isabel died on March 2, 1681, five months before her fifth birthday, at St. James’s Palace in London while her parents were still in Scotland. Her father regretted that he “could not have the satisfaction of seeing and assisting her in her sickness.” When he was King James II of England, he named the royal yacht Isabella in her memory. Her mother consoled herself with “thoughts that I have more angels to pray for me.”
Unofficial Royalty: Isabel Stuart

August 28, 1691 – Birth of Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, wife of Karl VI, Holy Roman Emperor, in Brunswick, then located in the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, now in the German state of Lower Saxony
Elisabeth Christine was the eldest of the four children, all daughters, of Ludwig Rudolf, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. In 1708, she married the future Karl VI, Holy Roman Emperor. Elisabeth Christine and Karl had one son who died in infancy and three daughters, with one dying in childhood. including Maria Theresa of Austria, in her own right Archduchess of Austria, and Queen of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia because she succeeded to her father’s Habsburg hereditary lands. In 1740, at the age of 55, Elisabeth Christine’s husband Karl VI, Holy Roman Emperor died after a ten-day illness. His symptoms were typical of death cap mushroom poisoning but the definitive cause of Karl’s death remains unknown. Elisabeth Christine survived her husband by ten years, dying, aged 59, in Vienna, Austria, on December 21, 1750.
Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Holy Roman Empress

August 28, 1779 – Birth of Antoinette of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Duchess of Württemberg in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany
Full name: Antoinette Ernestine Amalie
Antoinette was the sister of Leopold I, the first King of the Belgians and an aunt to both Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. In 1798, Antoinette married Duke Alexander of Württemberg whose brother Friedrich would become the first King of Württemberg. Antoinette and her husband had five children including Marie who would become the second wife of her maternal uncle Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.  Antoinette died from erysipelas, a bacterial infection of the superficial layer of the skin, at the age of 44 on March 14, 1824, in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Unofficial Royalty: Antoinette of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Duchess of Württemberg

August 28, 1789 – Birth of Stéphanie de Beauharnais, wife of Karl, Grand Duke of Baden, at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France
Full name: Stéphanie Louise Adrienne
Stéphanie was from the same family as the first husband of Napoleon’s wife Josephine, Alexandre, Vicomte de Beauharnais. Alexandre had been guillotined during the French Revolution. After the death of Stéphanie’s mother, Napoléon brought her to Paris and placed her under the care of his wife Joséphine. After becoming Emperor in 1804, Napoléon sought to strengthen alliances with several of the European dynasties by arranging several marriages of his extended family. One of these marriages was between Stéphanie and the future Karl I, Grand Duke of Baden. Before the marriage, Napoléon adopted Stéphanie and elevated her to an Imperial Highness and French Princess. Through the marriages of her children, Stéphanie’s descendants include the former Kings of Romania and Yugoslavia, as well as the royal families of Belgium, Luxembourg, and Monaco.
Unofficial Royalty: Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Grand Duchess of Baden

August 28, 1814 – Birth of Susanna Innes-Ker, Duchess of Roxburghe, Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Victoria, in Heningford, Yorkshire, England
Born Susanna Stephania Dalbiac, she was the daughter of Lieutenant-General Sir James Dalbiac, a British Army officer and Member of Parliament. She married James Innes-Ker, 6th Duke of Roxburghe.
Unofficial Royalty: Susanna Innes-Ker, Duchess of Roxburghe

August 28, 1853 – Birth of Prince Franz I of Liechtenstein at Schloss Liechtenstein near Vienna, Austria
Full name: Franz de Paula Maria Karl August
In 1914, Franz met Elisabeth von Gutmann, the widow of the Hungarian Baron Géza Erős of Bethlenfalva. The couple wanted to marry in 1919 but Franz’s brother Johann II, Prince of Liechtenstein refused to consent to the marriage because of Elsa’s lower social status and Jewish background, although she had converted to Catholicism before her first marriage. Elsa and Franz secretly married in 1919, and that same year, Pope Benedict XV received the couple at the Vatican. Johann II died in 1929, and as he was unmarried with no children, his only brother succeeded to the throne as Franz I, Prince of Liechtenstein. Now that Franz was the  Sovereign Prince, he could officially marry Elsa. Their marriage was childless and upon Franz’s death, he was succeeded by his great-nephew, Franz Josef II, Prince of Liechtenstein.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Franz I of Liechtenstein

August 28, 1895 – Death of Elisabeth Anna of Prussia, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Oldenburg, first wife of the future Friedrich August II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg, in Fulda, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Hesse, Germany; buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in St. Gertrude’s Cemetery in Oldenburg, Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
In 1878, Elisabeth Anna married the future Friedrich August II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg but she died before he became Grand Duke.  The couple was married in a double wedding, along with Princess Charlotte of Prussia and Bernhard, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Meiningen. Elisabeth Anne and Friedrich had two daughters.
Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth Anna of Prussia, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Oldenburg

August 28, 1941 – Birth of Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps Boël, former mistress of Albert II, King of the Belgians
Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps was the mistress of the future King Albert II of the Belgians from the mid-1960s until the early 1980s. Their child, Delphine Boël, now Her Royal Highness Princess Delphine of Belgium, is well-known for pursuing legal acknowledgment of her parentage. This was finally received in early 2020.
Unofficial Royalty: Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps Boël, Mistress of Albert II, King of the Belgians

August 28, 1942 – Death of Archduke Giuseppe Ferdinando of Austria in Vienna, Austria, pretender to the Grand Ducal Throne of Tuscany; buried in the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna, Austria
Archduke Giuseppe Ferdinando of Austria was the Pretender to the Grand Ducal Throne of Tuscany from 1908 until 1921 when he married unequally and was forced to renounce his rights.
Unofficial Royalty: Archduke Giuseppe Ferdinando of Austria

August 28, 1943 – Death of Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria at Sofia, Bulgaria; originally buried at Rila Monastery in Rila, Bulgaria, re-buried in the courtyard of the Vrana Palace during the Communist regime, at a later date the Communist regime moved the coffin to an unknown location
Boris was the Tsar of the Kingdom of Bulgaria from 1918 until his death.  In 1930, he married Princess Giovanna of Italy and the couple had two children. With the outbreak of World War II, Boris tried to retain Bulgaria’s neutrality. After the threat of a German invasion, and with the promise of regaining territory formerly ceded to Greece, Boris signed a treaty aligning Bulgaria with the Axis powers.  In 1941, Boris signed into law the Law for Protection of the Nation, which imposed restrictions on Jewish Bulgarians. Despite signing the law, Boris helped to prevent the forced deportation of the Bulgarian Jews. In August 1943, Boris was summoned to a meeting with Hitler, who wanted Boris to deport Bulgarian Jews, and to declare war on Russia – both of which Boris strongly refused to do, making Hitler furious. Just weeks later, 49-year-old Boris died. The circumstances of his death remain mysterious, with many believing that Boris had been poisoned because of his refusal to concede to the demands of the Nazis.
Unofficial Royalty: Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria

August 28, 1972 – Death of Prince William of Gloucester in an airplane accident at an air show at Halfpenny Green, near Wolverhampton, England; buried at Royal Burial Grounds, Frogmore in Windsor, England
Prince William was the first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II and brother of the current Duke of Gloucester.  William would have been Duke of Gloucester had he lived. He was a licensed pilot, owned several airplanes, and enjoyed competing in air shows. On August 28, 1972, the prince planned on competing at the Goodyear International Air Trophy races at Halfpenny Green, near Wolverhampton, England. Express and Star photographer Ray Bradbury, an eyewitness, described what happened: “I saw Prince William’s Piper, number 66, and another Piper, number 69, take off. Number 69 appeared to get airborne before the prince. Then it seemed he was in some sort kind of trouble. He banked to port. It looked as though the Prince might have been troubled by the other aircraft making a turn but at a higher altitude. His port wing seemed to hit the trees and he disappeared from view. Then there was an explosion.”
Unofficial Royalty: Prince William of Gloucester
Unofficial Royalty: Tragedy in the British Royal Family at the End of August

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Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma; Credit – Wikipedia

August 27, 1487 – Birth of Anna of Brandenburg, first wife of the future King Frederik I of Denmark and Norway, in Berlin, Margraviate of Brandenburg, now in the German state of Brandenburg.
Anna died before her husband became King of Denmark and Norway but she was the mother of his heir. ,  Anna and Frederik, who was the Duke of Schleswig and Holstein at that time, lived at Gottorp Castle in the Duchy of Schleswig, now in Schleswig in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Anna often accompanied her husband on his travels and she was very popular with the people of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. Apparently having two children during her teenage years weakened Anna’s health. She contracted tuberculosis and died on May 3, 1514, aged 26, while six months pregnant.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna of Brandenburg, Duchess of Schleswig and Holstein

August 27, 1669 – Birth of Anne Marie d’Orléans, Queen of Sardinia, first wife of Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia, at the Château de Saint-Cloud in France
Anna Marie was the daughter of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, the only sibling of Louis XIV, King of France, and Princess Henrietta of England, the youngest child of Charles I, King of England. In 1684, she married Vittorio Amedeo II, Duke of Savoy, the future King of Sardinia and the couple had six children. Anne Marie is an important link in the Jacobite succession to the thrones of England and Scotland, and now to the United Kingdom. In 1688, Anne Marie’s maternal uncle James II, King of England/James VII, King of Scots was deposed. After James II lost his throne, the Jacobite (from Jacobus, the Latin for James) movement formed. The goal of the Jacobites was to restore the Roman Catholic Stuart King James II of England/VII of Scotland and his Roman Catholic heirs to the thrones of England and Scotland. When the line of the deposed King James II of England died out the Jacobite claims to the British throne descended from the line of Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans, James II’s sister and Anne Marie’s mother. Since Anne Marie’s elder sister had died and had no children and her brother died in childhood, the Jacobite claims descended through Anne Marie.
Unofficial Royalty: Anne Marie d’Orléans, Queen of Sardinia
Unofficial Royalty: The Jacobite Succession – Pretenders to the British Throne

August 27, 1758 – Death of Bárbara of Portugal, Queen of Spain, wife of King Fernando VI of Spain, at Palacio Real de Aranjuez; buried at Salesas Reales Church (Santa Barbara) in Madrid, Spain
The daughter of João V, King of Portugal, Bárbara married King Fernando VI of Spain but the couple had no children except a stillborn son. Benevolent but weak, Fernando VI left the government mostly to others. Bárbara was the conduit through which the government ministers worked with Fernando VI. She was presented with all documents of state before they were given to Fernando VI because only she knew what should be said or hidden from him. Bárbara suffered from severe asthma for most of her life and became obese in the years before her death. Bárbara’s death at the age of 46,  broke Fernando’s heart. During the last year of his reign, probably at least partially caused by his wife’s death, Fernando VI rapidly lost his mental capacity and was held at the Castle of Villaviciosa de Odón, near Madrid, where he died less than a year after Barbara’s death, on August 10, 1759, as the age of 45.
Unofficial Royalty: Bárbara of Portugal, Queen of Spain

August 27, 1789 – Birth of Joseph, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg in Hildburghausen, Duchy of  Saxe-Hildburghausen, now in Thuringia, Germany
Joseph became Duke of Saxe-Altenburg upon his father’s death in 1834. As a ruler, Joseph was very conservative and against any sort of reform. With unrest spreading through Europe in 1848, Joseph quickly brought in troops to squash the growing demands for a free state in Altenburg. Despite his attempts, the people refused to back him and Joseph was forced to abdicate on November 30, 1848, just two days after the death of his wife. As he had no male heirs, he was succeeded by his younger brother Georg.
Unofficial Royalty: Joseph, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg

August 27, 1851 – Death of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in Vienna, Austria; buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany
Ferdinand was the uncle of both Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and founded the Koháry branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He married Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya, the daughter of Ferenc József, Prince Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya and Countess Maria Antoinetta Josefa of Waldstein-Wartenburg. Although Ferdinand was Lutheran and Maria Antonia was Catholic. The couple married in the Catholic Church, with the condition that they would raise their children Catholic. The couple had four children including Ferdinand who married Queen Maria II of Portugal. Ferdinand’s wife was the sole heiress to her father’s vast fortune, which she inherited upon his death in 1826. At the time, Ferdinand converted to Catholicism.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

August 27, 1968 – Death of Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent at Kensington Palace in London, England; buried at Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore in Windsor, England
Princess Marina was the daughter of Prince Nicholas of Greece and Grand Duchess Helen Vladimirovna of Russia. She married Prince George, Duke of Kent, son of King George V, and was the last foreign princess to marry into the British royal family. The couple had three children, the first cousins of Queen Elizabeth II. In July 1968, Princess Marina spent several days in the hospital, where it was discovered that she was suffering from an inoperable brain tumor. Sadly, her condition diminished very quickly. At 11:40 am, on August 27, 1968, Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent passed away peacefully in her sleep at her home at Kensington Palace, surrounded by her children, and her sister Olga.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent
Unofficial Royalty: Tragedy in the British Royal Family at the End of August

August 27, 1979 – Assassination of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, son of Prince Ludwig (Louis) of Battenberg (later 1st Marquess of Milford Haven) and Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine and uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, at Mullaghmore, County Sligo in the Republic of Ireland; buried at Romsey Abbey in England
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, was a member of the extended British Royal Family and a distinguished Naval officer. A great-grandson of Queen Victoria, he was born a Prince of Battenberg but grew up fiercely British. In addition to his naval career, he also served as the last Viceroy and first Governor-General of India. Lord Mountbatten was killed on August 27, 1979, when his boat was blown up by the Provisional Irish Republican Army on Donegal Bay, in County Sligo, Ireland. He had been staying at his summer home, Classiebawn Castle, in County Sligo, Ireland, with much of his family. Mountbatten, his grandson Nicholas, his son-in-law’s mother, The Dowager Baroness Brabourne, and a young crew member, Paul Maxwell, all died as a result of the blast. Mountbatten’s daughter Patricia, her husband John, and their son Timothy were all critically injured but they survived.
Unofficial Royalty: Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Unofficial Royalty: Tragedy in the British Royal Family at the End of August

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Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (left) with his brother and mother; Credit – Wikipedia

August 26, 1551 – Death of Margareta Leijonhufvud, Queen of Sweden, second of the three wives of King Gustav Vasa I of Sweden; died at Tynnelsö Castle in Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland, Sweden; buried at Uppsala Cathedral in Sweden
Margareta was selected as the king’s second wife because she belonged to one of the leading Swedish noble families which created an alliance between the king and one of the most powerful factions of the nobility. Although Margareta was twenty years younger than her husband, she felt very comfortable in her role as Queen of Sweden and had a great influence on King Gustav I Vasa. Margareta gave birth to ten children. Her constant pregnancies took a toll on her health and she died from pneumonia at the age of 35.
Unofficial Royalty: Margareta Leijonhufvud, Queen of Sweden

August 26, 1728 – Death of Anne Marie d’Orléans, Queen of Sardinia, wife of Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia, at Villa della Regina in Turin, Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy
Anne Marie is an important link in the Jacobite succession to the thrones of England and Scotland, and now to the United Kingdom. In 1688, Anne Marie’s maternal uncle James II, King of England/James VII, King of Scots was deposed. After James II lost his throne, the Jacobite (from Jacobus, the Latin for James) movement formed. The goal of the Jacobites was to restore the Roman Catholic Stuart King James II of England/VII of Scotland and his Roman Catholic heirs to the thrones of England and Scotland. When the line of the deposed King James II of England died out the Jacobite claims to the British throne descended from the line of Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans, James II’s sister, and Anne Marie’s mother. Since Anne Marie’s elder sister had died and had no children and her brother died in childhood, the Jacobite claims descended through Anne Marie. The Jacobite line of succession has proceeded over the years from the House of Savoy to the House of Austria-Este, and to the House of Wittelsbach (Bavaria). It appears in the future, that it will proceed to the House of Liechtenstein.
Unofficial Royalty: Anne Marie d’Orléans, Queen of Sardinia
Unofficial Royalty: The Jacobite Succession – Pretenders to the British Throne

August 26, 1819 – Birth of Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, husband of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, at Schloss Rosenau in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany
Full name: Franz Albrecht August Karl Emanuel
The husband and first cousin of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, Albert was the second of the two sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his first wife Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. The Coburg family had strong ties to the British royal family. Albert’s uncle Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (the future King of the Belgians) had married Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of King George IV, who had died in childbirth. His aunt Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld had married King George III’s son, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, and was the mother of the future Queen Victoria. Plans for a possible marriage between first cousins Victoria and Albert had first been mentioned by their grandmother the Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saafeld in letters to her daughter the Duchess of Kent in 1821. The idea was later taken up by their uncle Leopold.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

August 26, 1836 – Birth of Louisa Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Queen Victoria’s Mistress of the Robes 1885–1886, 1885–1886, 1895–1901 and Queen Alexandra’s Mistress of the Robes 1901-1912, in Brighton, Sussex, England
Born Lady Louisa Hamilton, she was the daughter of James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn and married William Montagu Douglas Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch and 8th Duke of Queensberry. They are the grandparents of the late Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester and the great-great-grandparents of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester and Sarah, Duchess of York.
Unofficial Royalty: Louisa Montagu Douglas Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch and Queensberry

August 26, 1850 – Death of Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, in exile at Claremont, Surrey, England; buried at the Chapelle Royale in Dreux, France
The economic crisis of 1847, led to the French Revolution of 1848 and, once again, the end of the French monarchy. On February 24, 1848, Louis Philippe abdicated in favor of his grandson, Philippe, Count of Paris. Afraid that he may be imprisoned and executed, he quickly left Paris, and using a disguise, made his way to England. Two days later, the Second Republic was declared, once again ending the monarchy in France. In England, Louis Philippe and his wife took up residence at Claremont, a country house in Surrey, England where he died in 1850.
Unofficial Royalty: Louis-Philippe I, King of the French

August 26, 1944 – Birth of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester at Barnwell Manor in Northamptonshire, England
Full name: Richard Alexander Walter George
A first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, Richard had one elder brother, Prince William of Gloucester who was killed in an airplane accident at an airshow in 1972. At that time, Prince Richard became the heir to his father’s titles. In 1963, Richard began studying architecture at Magdalene College, Cambridge University where he received a Diploma of Architecture. He was a partner in a London architecture firm and planned to make it his career. However, upon his brother’s death in 1972, when Richard became his father’s heir, he took on increased royal duties and the responsibility for the family estate, so he resigned from his partnership. On June 10, 1974, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester died and Prince Richard succeeded his father as Duke of Gloucester.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester

August 26, 1954 – Birth of Archduke Carl Christian of Austria, husband of Princess Marie Astrid of Luxembourg, at the Château de Belœil in Belœil, Belgium
Full name: Carl Christian Maria Anna Rudolph Anton Marcus d’Aviano
Carl Christian is a grandson of the last Austrian Emperor Karl I and his wife Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma. In 1982, Archduke Christian married his second cousin, Princess Marie-Astrid of Luxembourg, the daughter of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg and Princess Joséphine Charlotte of Belgium. The couple had five children.
Unofficial Royalty: Archduke Carl Christian of Austria

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King Ludwig I of Bavaria; Credit – Wikipedia

August 25, 1160 – Death of Gervase of Blois, Abbot of Westminster, illegitimate son of King Stephen of England; buried in the south cloister of the old Westminster Abbey in London, England
Gervase was the illegitimate son of King Stephen of England and his mistress Damette. In 1138, when Gervase was no older than his early 20s, his father arranged for him to be appointed Abbot of Westminster, giving Westminster Abbey hope of receiving additional royal funds. Gervase was certainly too young to hold this position and was neither a monk nor a priest. Alberic of Ostia, the papal legate to England, immediately ordained Gervase as a priest. In 1139, Gervase attended the Second Lateran Council in Rome, the tenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church. King Henry II came to the throne after defeating Gervase’s father King Stephen in the terrible civil war known as The Anarchy. Henry had no love lost for Gervase and accused him of mishandling the abbey’s estates and he was dismissed as Abbot of Westminster in 1157.
Unofficial Royalty: Gervase of Blois, Abbot of Westminster, illegitimate son of King Stephen of England

August 25, 1482 – Death of Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England, wife of King Henry VI of England, at Château de Dampiere in Anjou, France, buried at St. Maurice’s Cathedral in Angers, France
In 1445, Margaret married King Henry VI of England and had one son Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales. Margaret was one of the principal players in the Wars of the Roses, the battle for the English crown between the House of Lancaster and the House of York.  Her son was killed at the Battle of Tewkesbury where Margaret led the Lancastrian forces. Her husband was sent to the Tower of London where he died, probably murdered on orders from King Edward IV from the House of York. Margaret was imprisoned at Wallingford Castle in England while her father René, Duke of Anjou worked tirelessly to arrange his daughter’s release. In 1475, King Louis XI agreed to pay Margaret’s ransom provided that her father would cede to France his territories of Anjou, Bar, Lorraine, and Provence. Margaret returned to France and died on August 25, 1482.
Unofficial Royalty: Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England

August 25, 1699 – Death of King Christian V of Denmark and Norway in Copenhagen, Denmark after a hunting accident; buried at Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark
Christian V died from the after-effects of a hunting accident that occurred on October 19, 1698. Christian was hunting with his two surviving sons and his half-brother. While they were taking a break, they received the news that the hunting dogs had exhausted and surrounded a deer. Christian immediately left to give the deer the death blow. Instead, he missed and the deer kicked him. The injuries were severe and Christian never recovered,
Unofficial Royalty: King Christian V of Denmark and Norway

August 25, 1707 – Birth of King Luis I of Spain at Buen Retiro Palace in Madrid, Spain
After the abdication of his father, Luis I, King of Spain had a very short reign, from January 14, 1724 to August 31, 1724. Luis married Princess Louise Élisabeth of Orléans in 1722 but the marriage was unsuccessful and resulted in no children due to the young age of Louise Élisabeth and because she became increasingly known for her erratic and impulsive behavior. On January 14, 1724, Luis’s father King Felipe V abdicated the Spanish throne in favor of Luis for reasons that are still unclear. Perhaps it was because Felipe suffered from mental instability and did not wish to reign due to his increasing mental decline. King Luis I contracted smallpox in July 1724. His wife Louise Élisabeth was his only company because his parents, fearful of the illness, left the Palacio del Buen Retiro in Madrid, Spain. Luis’s smallpox was complicated by pneumonia. Fourteen-year-old Louise Élisabeth cared for and remained with her seventeen-year-old husband until his death, on August 31, 1724. She also contracted smallpox but recovered from the illness.
Unofficial Royalty: King Luis I of Spain

August 25, 1786 – Birth of King Ludwig I of Bavaria at the Hôtel des Deux-Ponts in Strasbourg, France
Full name: Ludwig Karl August
In 1810, Ludwig married Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The wedding was held in a large outdoor space called the Theresienwiese in Munich. Named for his bride, Theresienwiese is the site of Oktoberfest, held every year to commemorate the wedding. Ludwig became King of Bavaria upon his father’s death in 1825. However, by 1848, Ludwig’s reign was ending abruptly. Facing protests and demonstrations by students and the middle classes, the King had ordered the university to close. Shortly after, the crowds raided the armory on their way to storm the Munich Residenz. Ludwig’s brother Karlappeased the protesters, but the damage was done. The King’s family and advisors turned against him, forcing him to sign the March Proclamation, giving substantial concessions toward a constitutional monarchy. Unwilling to rule this way, King Ludwig I abdicated on March 20, 1848. Ludwig spent the rest of his life in Bavaria, devoting his time to supporting and fostering the arts. He published several books of poems during his reign and translated several plays. On February 29, 1868, Ludwig died in Nice, France, aged 81, having survived his wife and five of his children.
Unofficial Royalty: King Ludwig I of Bavaria
Unofficial Royalty: Oktoberfest’s Royal Connection

Sophia Sidney, Baroness De L’Isle and Dudley was born Sophia FitzClarence on August 25, 1796, in London, England.

August 25, 1805 – Death of Prince William Henry of Wales, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, son of Frederick, Prince of Wales and brother of King George III, at Gloucester House on Upper Grosvenor Street in London, England; buried in the Gloucester Vault at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
William Henry was one of the two brothers of King George III whose marriages caused the passing of the Royal Marriages Act in 1772. The act stipulated that no descendant of King George II under the age of 25, except descendants of princesses who married into foreign families, could marry without obtaining the sovereign’s consent. Over the age of 25, those wishing to marry without obtaining consent needed to inform the Privy Council of their intention. If Parliament did not object, they would be free to marry in a year  In 1766, William Henry married Maria Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave, née Walpole. William Henry and Maria’s marriage was held in secret as William Henry’s marriage to a widow of non-royal rank and illegitimate birth would not have been acceptable. King George III was unaware of this marriage until 1772. The Royal Marriages Act was repealed on March 26, 2015, due to the 2011 Perth Agreement. The Royal Marriages Act’s provisions were replaced by less limited restrictions that apply only to the first six people in the line of succession to the British throne.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince William Henry of Wales, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh

August 25, 1845 – Birth of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in Nymphenburg Palace in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in Bavaria, Germany
Full name: Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm
Ludwig was just 18 years old when he became king upon his father’s death. He continued with his father’s policies and retained his ministers, but his interests were not in ruling the country. His interests lay almost solely in the arts and he is probably best known for his love of architecture. Using his personal funds, he built several magnificent palaces and castles, the most famous being Neuschwanstein Castle. By 1885, the king was millions of marks in debt due to spending on his castles and palaces and had all but withdrawn from his duties as King. Several of his ministers began trying to find grounds to depose him, believing him to be mentally ill. Ultimately, Ludwig II had a mysterious end. On June 13, 1886, Ludwig went for a walk on the castle grounds, accompanied by Dr. von Gudden, his doctor, and several attendants. They went out again that evening without servants but never returned. Several hours later, King Ludwig II’s body was found in the water of Lake Starnberg, along with that of Dr. von Gudden. His death remains a mystery. It was ruled a suicide by drowning, but no water was found in his lungs during an autopsy. One belief is that Ludwig II was murdered while trying to escape; another is that he died of natural causes, possibly due to the extremely cold temperature of the water.
Unofficial Royalty: King Ludwig II of Bavaria

August 25, 1862 – Death of Mathilde of Bavaria, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine,  wife of Ludwig III, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, in Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine, now in Hesse, Germany; buried at St. Ludwig’s Catholic Church in Darmstadt
Mathilde Karoline married the future Grand Duke Ludwig II of Hesse and by Rhine. They had no children. She became Grand Duchess upon her husband’s accession in 1848. She died of cancer at the age of 48. Because  Mathilde Karoline had remained Catholic after her marriage and the Grand Ducal family who was Lutheran, she is buried at St. Ludwig’s Catholic Church in Darmstadt.
Unofficial Royalty: Mathilde of Bavaria, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine

August 25, 1942 – Death of Prince George, Duke of Kent, son of King George V of the United Kingdom and brother of King George VI of the United Kingdom, when a military plane taking him to Iceland, crashed in Scotland, buried at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore in Windsor, England
Prince George, Duke of Kent was the father of Queen Elizabeth II’s first cousins Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, Princess Alexandra of Kent, and Prince Michael of Kent. On August 25, 1942, just six weeks after the birth of his youngest child, George boarded a Royal  Air Force plane in Scotland, headed for Iceland. The plane crashed near Dunbeath, Caithness in Scotland, killing all except for one person aboard. There is much speculation as to the nature of this trip. While officially it was a standard visit to troops in Iceland, there are allegations and suggestions that it was a “secret mission”. The Duke’s body was found with a briefcase handcuffed to his wrist, full of 100 kroner notes. These had no value in Iceland at the time.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince George, Duke of Kent
Unofficial Royalty: Tragedy in the British Royal Family at the End of August

August 25, 2001 – Wedding of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby at Oslo Cathedral in Oslo, Norway
Crown Prince Haakon and Mette-Marit first met in the mid-1990s at a garden party during the Quart Festival, Norway’s largest music festival, in her hometown of Kristiansand. The two met at the Quart Festival again in 1999 and began a relationship. On December 1, 2000, the couple’s engagement was announced, but it was not without controversy. Mette-Marit was a commoner, had a child born out of wedlock, and was surrounded by rumors of a party-girl past and alleged drug use. The couple was living together which did not sit well with the Church of Norway. Surveys at that time reported that most Norwegians did not mind the couple living together or that she was a single mother. However, public support for the monarchy suffered as the details emerged about Mette-Marit’s drug past and there were calls for Haakon to relinquish his place in succession if he chose to marry Mette-Marit. The couple did, however, have the support of the King and Queen, and after a series of public interviews, they also regained the support of the Norwegian people.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby

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King Ferdinand I of Romania; Credit – Wikipedia

August 24, 1113 – Birth of Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, father of King Henry II of England
After the death of William Ætheling, King Henry I’s only legitimate son,  in the White Ship disaster, Henry I needed male heirs from his daughter Matilda who was quite unhappy about the marriage to Geoffrey. This would be her second marriage. When she was twelve years old, Matilda married 28-year-old Heinrich V, Holy Roman Emperor. Matilda returned to England when she was widowed eleven years later. She was eleven years older than Geoffrey and marriage to a mere future Count would diminish her status as the widow of an Emperor. The couple was married in 1128 and produced three sons including King Henry II of England. The couple did not get along and their marriage was stormy with frequent, long separations. Matilda insisted on retaining her title of Empress for the rest of her life.
Unofficial Royalty: Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou

August 24, 1507 – Death of Cecily of York, Viscountess Welles, daughter of King Edward IV of England; the place of her death and burial site are uncertain, most likely she died on the Isle of Wight, England was buried at Quarr Abbey, Isle of Wight
Cecily was the daughter of Edward IV, the first King of England from the House of York, and Elizabeth Woodville. In 1485, Cecily’s uncle King Richard III arranged for a marriage for Cecily to Ralph Scrope, who was much below her in status to rule out her claim to the throne. When Henry VII, the first Tudor king, came to the throne, Cecily’s marriage to Ralph Scrope was annulled because the marriage was not in the interests of the new Tudor dynasty. Cecily was married to a nobleman loyal to King Henry VII, John Welles, 1st Viscount Welles, the younger half-brother of King Henry VII’s mother Lady Margaret Beaufort. Cecily and John had two daughters who both died in childhood. After the death of her husband and daughters, Cecily returned to the court seeking comfort and protection from her older sister Elizabeth of York who had married King Henry VII. Lady Margaret Beaufort, Henry VII’s mother, helped Cecily protect her rights to her deceased husband’s property, claimed by his half-sisters. Cecily married Sir Thomas Kyme without the permission of King Henry VII.
Unofficial Royalty: Cecily of York, Viscountess Welles

August 24, 1545 – Death of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 2nd Husband of Mary Tudor at Guildford Castle in Surrey, England; buried at St. George Chapel, Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
Charles Brandon’s father was the standard banner for Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond (the future King Henry VII). He was killed by King Richard III during the Battle of Bosworth Field while defending the standard banner of Henry Tudor. After his mother died, Charles was raised at King Henry VII’s court and became a close friend of Henry VII’s son, the future King Henry VIII. Charles had two marriages before he married Mary Tudor.  After the death of Mary Tudor’s first husband King Henry XII of France, Charles and Mary secretly married, greatly angering Mary’s brother King Henry VIII. Eventually, Henry forgave them. Charles and Mary had two sons and two daughters, but only their daughters survived childhood. Their daughter Lady Frances Brandon was the mother of the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey. After Mary Tudor’s death, Charles married one more time. Throughout the reign of King Henry VIII, Charles Brandon remained close to the king, acting as a companion at court and often accompanying him on his travels. He accompanied Henry VIII to his famous 1520 summit with King François I of France known as the Field of the Cloth of Gold. In 1536, Brandon stood at the scaffold at the Tower of London, representing Henry VIII, at the execution of Anne Boleyn.
Unofficial Royalty: Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk

August 24, 1739 – Birth of Elizaveta Romanovna Vorontsova, mistress of Peter III, Emperor of All Russia
Elizaveta’s father, Count Roman Illarionovich Vorontsov, took part in the 1741 coup that brought Elizabeth Petrovna, the only surviving child of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia, to the throne as Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia. Empress Elizabeth never married and her sister’s son Karl Peter Ulrich of Holstein-Gottorp, whose name was changed to Grand Duke Peter Feodorovich (the future Peter III, Emperor of All Russia), was her heir. Elizaveta was assigned to the court of Grand Duke Peter where she was to serve Peter’s wife Grand Duchess Catherine Alexeievna (the future Catherine II the Great, Empress of All Russia). Peter and Catherine’s marriage was not a happy one but Catherine did have one son, Paul, the future Emperor of All Russia, and one daughter Anna Petrovna, who died in early childhood, although neither of them may have been Peter’s children. Peter took Elizaveta Romanovna Vorontsova as his mistress and Catherine had affairs.
Unofficial Royalty: Elizaveta Romanovna Vorontsova, Mistress of Peter III, Emperor of All Russia

August 24, 1758 – Birth of Sophia Friederike of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Hereditary Princess of Denmark and Norway in Schwerin, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Sophia Friederike married Hereditary Prince Frederik of Denmark and Norway, the only child of King Frederik V of Denmark and Norway and his second wife Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. They were the parents of King Christian VIII of Denmark. Through their daughter Louise Charlotte, they are the ancestors of the Belgian, British, Danish, Luxembourg, Norwegian, and Spanish royal families and the former royal families of Greece and Romania.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia Friederike of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Hereditary Princess of Denmark and Norway

August 24, 1772 – Birth of King Willem I of the Netherlands at Huis ten Bosch in The Hague, the Netherlands
Full name: Willem Frederik
Willem was the eldest surviving son of Willem V, Prince of Orange, the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic. The Napoleonic Wars disrupted Willem’s life. The French invaded the Dutch Republic in 1795 and the family went into exile first in England and then in 1796 in Prussia where they lived until 1813. In 1806, Willem’s father died and he inherited the title Prince of Orange.  After the defeat of Napoleon, the Dutch Republic was proclaimed the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Willem became its first king. King Willem I abdicated in 1840 due to constitutional changes he disagreed with, anger over the loss of Belgium, and his desire to make a morganatic second marriage with Henriëtte d’Oultremont after the death of his first Wilhelmine of Prussia in 1837.  His eldest son succeeded him as Willem II.  After his abdication, Willem was styled King Willem Frederick, Count of Nassau.
Unofficial Royalty: King Willem I of the Netherlands

August 24, 1865 – Birth of King Ferdinand I of Romania at Sigmaringen Castle, in Sigmaringen, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Born: Prince Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
In 1866, his uncle, Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, had been elected Ruling Prince of the Romanian United Principalities, and in 1881 was proclaimed King Carol I of Romania. King Carol and his wife, Princess Elisabeth of Wied, had only one daughter who died when she was three years old. With no sons to inherit the throne, the succession passed to his younger brother Leopold, Ferdinand’s father. Leopold renounced his rights in 1880, as did his eldest son Wilhelm in 1886. The second son Ferdinand became heir-presumptive to the Romanian throne. the Romanian government formally recognized him as Crown Prince in 1889. On October 10, 1914, Ferdinand became King of Romania upon the death of his uncle.
Unofficial Royalty: King Ferdinand I of Romania

August 24, 1888 – Death of Lord Alfred Paget, Queen Victoria’s Chief Equerry and Clerk Marshal 1846 – 1858 and 1859-1874 and Clerk Marshal 1874 – 1888, on his yacht off the coast of Inverness, Scotland; buried at St. Mary’s Church in Hampton, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England
Lord Alfred Paget served Queen Victoria as Chief Equerry and Clerk Marshal 1846 – 1858 and 1859-1874 and as Clerk Marshal 1874 – 1888. Nearly everything about Lord Alfred in the series “Victoria” is incorrect.
Unofficial Royalty: Lord Alfred Paget

August 24, 1909 – Birth of Prince Hubertus of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, son of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, at Reinhardsbrunn Castle, in Friedrichroda, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany
Full name: Dietmar Hubertus Friedrich Wilhelm Philip
At the end of World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed Hubertus’ father as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Five days later, Charles Edward signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne but remained Head of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. In 1932, Hubertus’ elder brother Johann Leopold made an unequal marriage against the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha House Act of March 1, 1855, and renounced succession rights for himself and any children from the marriage. As the next son, Hubertus was designated the heir to his father as Head of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Hubertus became a member of the Nazi Party and saw action with the German Army on the Eastern Front during World War II. He served as a first lieutenant on the High Command of the Army and was deployed as a Luftwaffe pilot serving as a squadron leader. Hubertus was killed in action in an airplane crash at the age of 34 on November 26, 1943, in Velyki Mosty, in present-day Ukraine.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Hubertus of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

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King Louis XVI of France; Credit – Wikipedia

August 23, 1628 – Assassination of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, favorite of King James I of England and King Charles I of England, at the Greyhound Pub in Portsmouth, England; buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, a courtier and favorite of King James I of England and his son King Charles I until a disgruntled army officer assassinated him. In 1615, George was knighted and became a Gentleman of the Bedchamber. He became Master of the Horse in 1616, was raised to the peerage as Baron Whaddon, Viscount Villiers, and was made a Knight of the Garter. In 1619, George was made Lord High Admiral of England. In 1617, George was created Earl of Buckingham and climbed the steps of peerage when he was created Marquess of Buckingham in 1618, and Duke of Buckingham in 1623.
Unofficial Royalty: George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, favorite of King James I of England and King Charles I of England

August 23, 1740 – Birth Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia in St. Petersburg, Russia
The story of Ivan VI and his family is one of the most tragic stories in royal history. Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia (Ivan Antonovich) succeeded to the throne at the age of two months. A little more than a year later, Ivan was deposed and spent the next 23 years imprisoned before being murdered during the reign of Catherine II (the Great). His parents spent the rest of their lives imprisoned and except for his sister Catherine, all his other siblings were born while their parents were imprisoned. His siblings remained imprisoned until 1780.
Unofficial Royalty: Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia

August 23, 1754 – Birth of King Louis XVI of France at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France
King Louis XVI of France reigned from 1774 until 1792, losing his throne and his life as a result of the French Revolution. He was born Louis-Auguste, Duc de Berry, the third son of Louis, Dauphin of France (son of King Louis XV) and Maria Josepha of Saxony. Upon his grandfather’s death, Louis-Auguste became King Louis XVI of France. Just 19 years old, and notably unprepared for his role, he faced growing distrust of the monarchy and a country deeply in debt.
Unofficial Royalty: King Louis XVI of France

August 23, 1836 – Birth of Queen Marie-Henriette of the Belgians, wife of King Leopold II of the Belgians, born Marie Henriette of Austria at Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary
In 1852, Marie-Henriette married Leopold II, the future King of the Belgians. The marriage started unhappy, remained unhappy, and the couple lived mostly separate lives. Leopold had many mistresses and made no real attempt to have a successful marriage. Marie Henriette was cold and inaccessible. Her only passion remained her Hungarian horses. Their children were brought up very strictly and with discipline. In 1869 when her only son Leopold died, Marie Henriette was devastated. Leopold blamed Marie Henriette for their son’s death. Little Leopold had fallen into a pond, caught pneumonia, and died. Hoping for a crown prince she became pregnant again, but the long-awaited crown prince did not materialize as the child was a girl, Clémentine. The couple completely separated after the birth of Clémentine and in 1895 Marie Henriette moved to Spa, Belgium where she lived out the rest of her life at Hôtel du Midi, the home she had bought there.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie Henriette of Austria, Queen of the Belgians

August 23, 1863 – Birth of Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia, 1st husband of Princess Maria of Greece, born in Bielyi-Kliutsch in the Tiflis Governorate of the Russian Empire, now in the country of Georgia
The first husband of Princess Maria of Greece, the daughter of King George I of Greece, Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia was executed in 1919  by the Bolsheviks along with his brother Nicholas and two other Russian Grand Dukes. George had a military career and served as a General in the Russian Army. He was a passionate coin collector and his collections of Russian coins and medals included practically every coin ever used in the Russian Empire. George wrote ten books on coins and one of them, Catalogue of Imperial Russian Coins 1725–1891, was reprinted in the United States in 1976 and is still an important reference for coin collectors
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: January 28, 1919 – Execution of Four Grand Dukes

August 23, 1904 – Birth of Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness, mistress of King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, born Thelma Morgan at the Grand Hotel National in Lucerne, Switzerland
Thelma was the identical twin sister of Gloria Morgan, the mother of Gloria Vanderbilt, the fashion designer and artist, and the mother of news anchor Anderson Cooper.
Unofficial Royalty: Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness, mistress of King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom

August 23, 1945 – Death of Stéphanie of Belgium, Crown Princess of Austria at the Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma in Hungary; buried the Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma in Hungary with her second husband
Stéphanie was the wife of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria who died by suicide with his mistress at Mayerling, his hunting lodge outside of Vienna, Austria.  Their marriage was happy at first, but shortly after the birth of their daughter, the relationship between Stéphanie and Rudolf began to deteriorate. Rudolf likely infected Stéphanie with a sexually transmitted disease, causing her to be infertile and unable to provide a male heir for the Austrian throne.  After Rudolf’s suicide, the custody of Stéphanie’s daughter Elisabeth Marie was taken over by her grandfather Emperor Franz Joseph.  In 1900, Stéphanie married Hungarian Count Elemér Lónyay de Nagy-Lónya et Vásáros-Namény. After the marriage, Stéphanie’s daughter Elisabeth broke off all contact with her mother. Stéphanie lost her imperial and royal titles because the marriage was unequal and incurred her father’s wrath.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Stéphanie of Belgium, Crown Princess of Austria

August 23, 1951- Birth of Queen Noor of Jordan, fourth wife of King Hussein I of Jordan, born Lisa Najeeb Halaby in Washington, DC
Lisa attended Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey, as a member of the first coed class, graduating in 1974 with a degree in architecture and urban planning. In 1977, Lisa met her future husband, King Hussein of Jordan, while working on developing of Queen Alia Airport in Jordan, named after the King’s recently deceased wife. Before her marriage, Lisa converted to Islam and relinquished her American citizenship. Upon marriage, Lisa was given the name Noor Al-Hussein and was made Queen of Jordan.  Noor and Hussein had four children. In addition, she raised three of her stepchildren, the children of King Hussein and his third wife Queen Alia who had died in a helicopter crash.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Noor of Jordan

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Maria Christina of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Queen of Spain; Credit – Wikipedia

August 22, 1358 – Death of Isabella of France, Queen of England, wife of King Edward II of England, at Castle Rising in Norfolk, England, buried at Grey Friars Church in Newgate, London, England
In 1326, Isabella and her lover Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March deposed King Edward II. Edward II and Isabella’s son was crowned King Edward III, and Isabella and Mortimer served as regents for the teenage king. In 1330, the 18-year-old King Edward III conducted a coup d’état at Nottingham Castle where Mortimer and Isabella were staying.  Mortimer was arrested and then executed on fourteen charges of treason, including the murder of Edward II. After the coup, Isabella was taken to Berkhamsted Castle and then held under house arrest at Windsor Castle until 1332, when she was moved to her own Castle Rising in Norfolk.  Edward III granted his mother a yearly income of £3,000, which by 1337 had increased to £4,000. She enjoyed a regal lifestyle, maintaining minstrels, huntsmen, and grooms and being visited by family and friends.
Unofficial Royalty: Isabella of France, Queen of England

August 22, 1485 – Death of King Richard III of England at the Battle of Bosworth Field; Henry Tudor becomes King Henry VII of England; the remains of King Richard III discovered in 2012 were reburied at Leicester Cathedral on March 26, 2015.
On August 22, 1485, at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the last king of the House of York and the Plantagenet dynasty, 32-year-old King Richard III of England, lost his life and his crown. The battle was a decisive victory for the House of Lancaster, whose leader Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, became the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Richard III had entered the battle as a seasoned soldier, wearing a battle crown on top of his helmet. During the battle, he saw an opportunity to strike directly at Henry Tudor and his personal guard and sped off on his horse. After killing Henry Tudor’s standard-bearer, Richard saw something he had not expected. Sir William Stanley changed sides. Instead of supporting Richard and the Yorkists, Stanley attacked them, helping to secure a victory for Henry Tudor and the Lancastrians. The site of Richard III’s remains remained a mystery for centuries. On September 12, 2012, an archaeological team announced that the human remains could possibly be those of Richard III. DNA from Michael Ibsen, a direct descendant of Richard’s sister Anne of York, and an unnamed direct maternal line descendant matched the mitochondrial DNA extracted from the remains. On February 4, 2013, the University of Leicester confirmed that the remains were those of King Richard III.
Unofficial Royalty: King Richard III of England
Unofficial Royalty: Richard III: Lost and Found

August 22, 1658 – Birth of Johann Ernst IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany
Johann Ernst was the founder of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, the precursor to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and the ancestor of all British monarchs since Queen Victoria. His father Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg had seven sons and disliked primogeniture in which the eldest son is the sole heir. When he died all seven brothers governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. Johann Ernst IV became Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld. Joann Ernst’s elder brothers Albrecht of Saxe-Coburg and Heinrich of Saxe-Römhild died without male heirs. Upon their deaths, Johann Ernest took possession of Coburg and Römhild, and then became Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.
Unofficial Royalty: Johann Ernst IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

August 22, 1787 – Birth of Baron Christian Friedrich von Stockmar, advisor to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert from 1837-1847, in Obersiemau, the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany
Unofficial Royalty: Baron Christian Friedrich von Stockmar

August 22, 1854 – Birth of King Milan I of Serbia in Mărășești, then in Moldavia, Ottoman Empire, now in Romania
Milan’s father was a member of the House of Obrenović which vied for control of Serbia, often violently, with the House of Karađorđević. In 1868, Milan’s childless uncle Mihailo Obrenović III, Sovereign Prince of Serbia was assassinated. Sympathizers of the House of Karađorđević were suspected of being behind the assassination. Fourteen-year-old Milan became the Sovereign Prince of Serbia. In 1882, the Principality of Serbia was elevated to the Kingdom of Serbia and so Milan became the first King of Serbia. In 1889, Milan suddenly abdicated the throne without any apparent reason and his twelve-year-old son Alexander became king. Milan lived in Paris, France until 1897 when he returned to Serbia. He became Commander-in-Chief of the Army, which he completely reformed and modernized. Milan and his wife strongly opposed his son’s marriage to Draga Mašin, a widow and a former lady-in-waiting to his mother, who was twelve years older than Alexander. Milan resigned his post as Commander-in-Chief of the Army and subsequently, King Alexander banished both his parents from Serbia.
Unofficial Royalty: King Milan I of Serbia

August 22, 1860 – Birth of Tsaritsa Eleonore of Bulgaria, second wife of Tsar Ferdinand of Bulgaria, born Eleonore of Reuss-Köstritz in Trebschen, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Poland
Full name: Eleonore Caroline Gasparine Louise
Following a bit of match-making by Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia, Eleonore became engaged to Ferdinand of Bulgaria (born Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Koháry)  in December 1907.  Ferdinand’s first wife, Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma, died in 1899, after the birth of the youngest of their four children. Eleonore and Ferdinand did not have any children however, Eleonore was instrumental in raising her four stepchildren.  With very little attention or affection from her husband, Eleonore focused on the welfare of the Bulgarian people. She quickly became involved with the Bulgarian Red Cross, and later set up the Queen Eleonore Fund in 1910 to raise funds to build institutes for children who were blind and deaf. She also founded an orphanage for Jewish children, which exists today as The Queen Eleonore Orphanage.
Unofficial Royalty: Eleonore of Reuss-Köstritz, Tsaritsa of Bulgaria

August 22, 1878 – Death of Queen Maria Christina of Spain, born Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies, fourth wife of Ferdinand VII of Spain, at Le Havre, France; buried at the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in Spain
Maria Christina was the fourth wife of King Ferdinand VII of Spain and the wife who finally gave him an heir. King Ferdinand VII died on September 29, 1833, and his daughter, not quite three years old, succeeded to the throne as Queen Isabella II with Maria Christina acting as Regent. Two months after Ferdinand died, Maria Christina secretly married an ex-sergeant of the royal guard Agustín Fernández Muñoz and the couple had eight children. The marriage was very unpopular and the government demanded that Maria Christina resign as regent. She lived most of the rest of her life in exile. However, As the widow of Ferdinand VII and mother of Isabella II, Maria Cristina was buried in the Pantheon of Kings in the Royal Crypt of El Escorial Monastery.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies, Queen of Spain

August 22, 1893 – Death of Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha at Reinhardsbrunn Castle in Friedrichroda, 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
Ernst was the elder brother of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband. He had at least three illegitimate children, but his marriage to Princess Alexandrine of Baden was childless, perhaps due to Ernst passing the venereal disease to Alexandrine causing her to become infertile. Alexandrine was loyal and devoted to her husband despite his infidelities and believed their lack of children was her fault. In 1844, Ernst’s father died and he became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Ernst had financial difficulties throughout his reign due to his extravagance.  He was an excellent musician, an amateur composer, and a great patron of the arts and sciences in Coburg. Ernst II died after a short illness at the age of 75. Thousands of people came to view his funeral procession.
Unofficial Royalty: Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

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