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Philippa of Lancaster, Queen of Portugal; Credit – Wikipedia

July 19, 1415 – Death of Philippa of Lancaster, Queen of Portugal, daughter of John of Gaunt, granddaughter of King Edward III of England, wife of King João I of Portugal, in Sacavem, Portugal; buried at Batalha Monastery in Leiria, Portugal
Philippa married King Joáo I of Portugal in the Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady in Porto, Portugal on February 2, 1387, sealing the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance, a treaty that is still in effect. She is known as the mother of the “Illustrious Generation” of infantes (princes) and infantas (princesses). Philippa died at the age of 55 of the plague.
Unofficial Royalty: Philippa of Lancaster, Queen of Portugal

July 19, 1543 – Death of Mary Boleyn, mistress of King Henry VIII of England, probably buried at St. Peter Churchyard in Hever, Kent, England
After Mary Boleyn was sent back from France where she had been one of Mary Tudor’s English ladies during her short marriage to King Louis XII of France, her father arranged for her to be a maid-of-honor to Catherine of Aragon, King Henry VIII’s first wife. She married Sir William Carey who served King Henry VIII as a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber. At some point, perhaps even before her marriage, Mary became Henry VIII’s mistress, supplanting Elizabeth Blount, but the starting date and length of the relationship are unknown. Wiliam Carey profited from his wife’s affair as he was granted manors and estates by King Henry VIII. Two children were born during the marriage of Mary and William. Because of Mary’s affair with King Henry VIII, it has been suggested that one or both of the children may have been Henry VIII’s biological children.  Although there is no proof, this claim has been a continued subject of debate. On June 22, 1528, at the age of 28, William Carey died of the sweating sickness. By the time of William’s death, Mary’s sister Anne had already caught the attention of King Henry VIII.
Unofficial Royalty: Mary Boleyn, mistress of King Henry VIII of England

July 19, 1578 –  Birth of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor at the Schlossberg in Graz, Duchy of Styria, Archduchy of Austria, now in Austria
In addition to being Holy Roman Emperor (reigned 1619 – 1637), Ferdinand was also Archduke of Inner Austria (reigned 1590 – 1637), King of Bohemia (1st reign 1617 – 1619, 2nd reign 1620 – 1637), and King of Hungary and Croatia (reigned 1618 – 1637). In 1600, he married his 26-year-old first cousin Maria Anna of Bavaria. They had seven children but only four survived childhood. After Maria Anna’s death, Ferdinand married his first cousin once removed Eleonora Gonzaga of Mantua but their marriage was childless. The Thirty Years’ War (1618 – 1648) began in 1618 as a result of the inadequacies of Ferdinand II’s predecessors Rudolf II and Matthias. The war was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, with an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians dying as a result of battle, famine, and disease. On February 15, 1637, at the age of fifty-eight, Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor died in Vienna, Archduchy of Austria, now Austria.
Unofficial Royalty: Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, Archduke of Inner Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia

July 19, 1770 – Birth of Lucia Migliaccio, Duchess of Florida, the morganatic second wife of Ferdinando I, King of the Two Sicilies, in Syracuse, Kingdom of Sicily, now in Italy
Lucia was the daughter of Vincenzo Migliaccio, 8th Duke of Floridia, a Sicilian nobleman, and Dorotea Borgia dei Marchesi del Casale who was from a Spanish noble family. In 1791, Lucia married Benedetto Grifeo, Prince of Partanna, and the couple had seven children. Lucia’s husband died in 1812. In 1814, Maria Carolina, the wife of King Ferdinando I of the Two Sicilies died. Wanting to remarry, the 63-year-old Ferdinando turned his attention to the 44-year-old Lucia, whom he had met frequently at court. Because Lucia was not royal, the marriage caused a considerable scandal. Lucia did not receive the title of queen and any children from the marriage would not be in the line of succession. However, the marriage remained childless. Ferdinando died from a stroke in 1825, and Lucia survived her husband by a little more than a year, dying on April 26, 1826, aged 55.
Unofficial Royalty: Lucia Migliaccio, Duchess of Florida

July 19, 1810 – Death of Luise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen of Prussia, wife of King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia, at Schloss Hohenzieritz in Hohenzieritz, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany; buried in the garden at Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany, where a mausoleum was built over her grave
Luise married the future King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia. Luise was wildly popular in Prussia from the start, and descriptions of her from this time speak of her grace, goodness, and beauty. The marriage was happy and the couple raised their nine children quietly at Paretz Palace west of Berlin. Friedrich Wilhelm became King of Prussia in 1797. As queen, Luise traveled around Prussia with her husband, becoming more well-known and well-liked. On July 19, 1810, while visiting her father, 34-year-old Luise died in her husband’s arms from an unidentified illness. Her grieving husband later instituted the Order of Louise in her name and her family mourned her death each year on July 19.
Unofficial Royalty: Luise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen of Prussia

July 19, 1822 – Birth of Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz,  wife of Friedrich Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, at the Palace of Montbrillant in Hanover, Kingdom of Hanover, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
Full name: Augusta Caroline Charlotte Elizabeth Mary Sophia Louisa
Augusta was a granddaughter of King George III of the United Kingdom, first cousin of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and aunt of Queen Mary, wife of King George V of the United Kingdom.  Even though Augusta lived in the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz after her marriage, she and her husband visited London frequently, staying with the Duchess of Cambridge at Kensington Palace. Augusta retained close ties with the British Royal Family. Before the coronation of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and his wife Queen Alexandra in 1902, Augusta was consulted on matters of ceremony and attire as she was almost the only person alive who could remember the coronation of King William IV and Queen Adelaide.  Her recollection of Queen Victoria’s coronation also proved invaluable.
Unofficial Royalty: Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

July 19, 1884 – Birth of Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Albany, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, grandson of Queen Victoria, at Claremont House in Esher, Surrey, England
Full name: Charles Edward George Albert Leopold
Charles Edward’s father Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany died three months before he was born. Prince Leopold, who inherited hemophilia from his mother Queen Victoria, died at age 30 from a fall that caused a cerebral hemorrhage. Charles Edward inherited his father’s title Duke of Albany at birth. In 1900, he became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha upon the death of his uncle Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Duke of Edinburg. In 1905, Charles Edward married Princess Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. The couple had five children including Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha who married Prince Gustav Adolf of Sweden, Duke of Västerbotten, and is the mother of  Carl XVI Gustaf, the current King of Sweden. At the end of World War I, Charles Edward was deposed and signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. In 1933, he joined the Nazi Party. After the end of World War II, Charles Edward was placed under house arrest because of his Nazi sympathies. In 1949, a denazification appeals court classified Charles Edward as a Nazi Follower, Category IV. He was heavily fined, several properties were seized, and he was almost bankrupted. Some of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha properties that were now in East Germany were seized. Charles Edward spent the last years of his life in seclusion. He died of cancer on March 6, 1954, at the age of 69 in his apartment on Elsässer Straße (Street) in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany.
Unofficial Royalty: Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

July 19, 1890 – Birth of King George II of Greece at Tatoi Palace near Athens, Greece
George II was the eldest son of King Constantine I of Greece and Princess Sophie of Prussia. Due to unrest in Greece, George was King of Greece twice (1st reign 1922 – 1924, monarchy abolished; 2nd reign 1935 – 1947)  and forced into exile three times. Also unlucky in marriage, he married his second cousin, Princess Elisabeta of Romania. Their marriage was childless and ended in divorce. His health declining, George was found unconscious in his office at the Royal Palace in Athens, Greece on April 1, 1947. Several hours later, it was announced that he had died of arteriosclerosis.
Unofficial Royalty: King George II of Greece

July 19, 1940 – Birth of  Princess Hitachi of Japan, wife of Prince Hitachi of Japan, born Hanako Tsugaro at her family home in Tokyo, Japan
The wife of Prince Hitachi of Japan, son of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito), Princess Hitachi is the youngest of the four daughters of Count Yoshitaka Tsugaru and Hisako Mōri. Both her parents were descendants of the Japanese nobility. Prince and Princess Hitachi had no children.  Because her husband was the son and then the brother of The Emperor, Prince and Princess Hitachi were expected to represent Japan internationally and participate in charitable works. As the Prince and Princess got older, these responsibilities lessened.
Unofficial Royalty: Hanako, Princess Hitachi

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Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia; Credit – Wikipedia

July 18, 1501 – Birth of Isabella of Austria, Queen of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, wife of King Christian II of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, in Brussels, Duchy of Burgundy, now in Belgium
The daughter of Philip, Duke of Burgundy and Juana I, Queen of Castile and Aragon, Isabella was born an Archduchess of Austria and an Infanta of Castile and Aragon. Isabella’s brother was the powerful Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor who was also King of Spain. Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII of England, was her maternal aunt, and Catherine and Henry VIII’s only surviving child, Queen Mary I of England was her first cousin. In 1514, Isabella married Christian II, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden who was deposed in 1523 causing them to the rest of their lives in exile. Even with family support, they had a difficult time, with many worries, and a lack of money. In late 1525, Isabella became seriously ill and died on January 19, 1526, at the age of 24.
Unofficial Royalty: Isabella of Austria, Queen of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden

July 18, 1552 – Birth of Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria, Margrave of Moravia, in Vienna, Archduchy of Austria, now in Austria
Rudolf never married. In 1568, as part of the Habsburg marriage policy, sixteen-year-old Rudolf had been betrothed to his first cousin, two-year-old Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain, the daughter of Rudolf’s maternal uncle King Felipe II of Spain. Isabella Clara Eugenia had to wait more than twenty years before Rudolf declared that he had no intention of marrying anybody. In 1572, Rudolf’s father Maximilian II passed the crown of Hungary to his son, and in 1575, Rudolf was also granted the crown of Bohemia and the Habsburg hereditary territories. Rudolf was elected King of the Romans in 1575, ensuring that he would succeed his father as Holy Roman Emperor. Rudolf is considered an ineffective ruler whose mistakes directly led to the Thirty Years’ War (1618 – 1648), one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history.
Unofficial Royalty: Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria, Margrave of Moravia, in Vienna, Archduchy of Austria, now in Austria

July 18, 1712 – Birth of Karl Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen in Meiningen, Duchy of Meiningen, now in Thuringia, Germany
Karl Friedrich’s father died in November 1724, making his elder brother, Ernst Ludwig II, the reigning Duke. As both brothers were underage, their two uncles, Friedrich Wilhelm and Anton Ulrich, oversaw the running of the duchy. Ernst Ludwig II died in 1729, and Karl Friedrich became the reigning Duke. Despite his uncles’ guardianship ending in 1733 when Karl Friedrich reached his majority, he continued to leave the daily running of the duchy to his uncles and his court officials. In poor health, he was unable to walk had to be carried and driven everywhere, and had little interest in anything requiring responsibility.
Unofficial Royalty: Karl Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

July 18, 1793 – Birth of Marie Caroline Gibert de Lametz, Princess of Monaco, wife of Florestan I, Prince of Monaco, in Coulommiers, France
Full name: Marie-Louise Charlotte Gabrielle
Prince Florestan of Monaco attended his half-sister’s wedding celebrations and met Maria Caroline Gibert de Lametz, the half-sister of the groom. Because Florestan’s family did not approve of the marriage, the wedding was quiet and modest. Florestan and Maria Caroline had two children including Charles III, Prince of Monaco. Florestan succeeded his brother Honoré V, who had never married. During Florestan’s reign, the real power lay in the hands of his wife Maria Caroline. She took over the finances of Monaco and ruled Monaco with an iron fist because her indecisive and politically disinclined husband left all affairs of state to her. When Marie Caroline’s son Charles III succeeded his father, she continued to have a role in governing as she was alive for twenty-three years of his thirty-three-year-long reign. The idea of opening a gambling casino in Monaco and developing Monaco into a seaside resort was Maria Caroline’s idea. The Casino de Monte-Carlo, named after Charles III as Carlo is the Italian for Charles (Monte-Carlo = Mount Charles in English), opened in 1865 and saved Monaco from bankruptcy. Fearing that the citizens of Monaco would squander their money on gambling, Maria Carolina had the idea to ban all citizens of Monaco from gambling at the casino. That rule is still in effect.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie Caroline Gibert de Lametz, Princess of Monaco

July 18, 1918 – Execution of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia, daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, and five other Romanovs in Alapaevsk, Russia; her remains were reburied at the Church of Mary Magdalene in Jerusalem
The day after the execution of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia and his family, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (age 53) and five other Romanovs, Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich (age 59), Prince Ioann Konstantinovich (age 32), Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich (age 28), Prince Igor Konstantinovich (age 24), and Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Paley (age 21) along with Varvara Alexeievna Yakovleva, a nun from Elizabeth’s convent, and Feodor Semyonovich Remez, Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich’s secretary, were executed by the Bolsheviks. They were thrown down an abandoned mine shaft that was partially filled with water and then grenades were thrown down the mine shaft.
Unofficial Royalty: Execution of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia and five other Romanovs

July 18, 1920 – Death of Prince Joachim of Prussia, son of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia, at Villa Leignitz in Sanssouci Park in Potsdam, Germany; first buried in the Friedenskirche in Sanssouci Park in Potsdam before being moved to the nearby Antique Temple in 1931
After World War I and the fall of all the German monarchies, Prince Joachim struggled to accept his status as a commoner and became greatly depressed. On the evening of July 18, 1920, he shot himself with a revolver at Villa Leignitz in Sanssouci Park in Potsdam, Germany. He was found by his elder brother August Wilhelm and taken to the Saint Joseph Hospital in Potsdam, where he died the following day.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Joachim of Prussia

July 18, 1938 – Death of Marie of Edinburgh, Queen of Romania, wife of King Ferdinand I of Romania, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Peles Castle, Sinaia in Romania, buried at the Monastery of Curtea de Arges, Romania
Marie was the daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna of Russia. Just after the beginning of World War I, her husband’s uncle King Carol I of Romania died and Ferdinand ascended the Romanian throne. Drawn quickly into the war, Queen Marie threw herself into her charitable work, rallying support for the war effort, and serving tirelessly as a nurse. In 1919, after World War I, she represented Romania at the Paris Peace Conference, replacing the Romanian delegation that had left due to extreme conflict with the French prime minister. Marie is often credited with smoothing the situation and helping to bring about Romania’s huge gains at the end of the conference.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Edinburgh, Queen of Romania

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On floor: Tsarevich Alexei; Seated: Grand Duchess Maria, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, Emperor Nicholas II, Grand Duchess Anastasia; Standing: Grand Duchess Olga, Grand Duchess Tatiana; Credit – Wikipedia

July 17, 924 – Death of Edward the Elder, King of the Anglo-Saxons, son of Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, King of the Anglo-Saxons, at the royal estate of Farndon-on-Dee in Mercia now in Chesire, England; buried in the New Minster in Winchester, England, later moved to Hyde Abbey Church which was destroyed in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the reign of King Henry VIII
According to Asser, the Welsh monk who was Alfred the Great’s contemporary biographer, Edward was brought up with his youngest sister Ælfthryth. They were educated at court by tutors and read ecclesiastical and secular works in English. Edward was a child throughout the wars his father Alfred the Great fought with the Danes and was more of a soldier than a scholar like his father. By 892, he was commanding part of the Anglo-Saxon army, and upon his father’s death in 899, the Anglo-Saxons were prepared to accept him as their leader. Edward was crowned on June 8, 900 by Plegmund, Archbishop of Canterbury at Kingston-upon-Thames, where the ancient coronation stone can still be seen.
Unofficial Royalty: Edward the Elder, King of the Anglo-Saxons

July 17, 1645 – Death of Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, favorite of King James I of England; buried at St. Paul’s Churchyard in London, England
In 1607, probably thanks to the influence of Thomas Overton, Robert participated in a tournament attended by King James I and attracted the king’s attention by breaking his leg. King James I immediately took a liking to nineteen-year-old Robert, got him some medical treatment and decided to improve his education. Robert did not have great intellectual gifts, however, he was good-looking, had a good temperament, and had good character and this must have been enough for King James who knighted him and kept him under his wing. Robert Carr is best known for being implicated with others in the murder of his friend Thomas Overbury. Read about it in the link below.
Unofficial Royalty: Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, favorite of King James I of England

July 17, 1762 – Assassination of Peter III, Emperor of All Russia at Ropsha, Russia; first buried without honors in the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg, Russia; reburied by his son Paul, Emperor of All Russia at Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia; Peter’s wife succeeds him as Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia
Peter III, Emperor of All Russia was born Karl Peter Ulrich of Holstein-Gottorp. His father was Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp. His mother was Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna of Russia, daughter of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia. Peter III’s life dramatically changed when his unmarried maternal aunt, his mother’s younger sister, Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia, declared him her heir and brought him to St. Petersburg, Russia. He married his second cousin, Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst (later Catherine II the Great). Peter succeeded his aunt in 1762. A conspiracy to overthrow Peter was planned and centered around the five Orlov brothers with Grigory, Catherine’s favorite, and Alexei being the main conspirators. Peter III, Emperor of All Russia died at the age of 34 on July 17, 1762, at Ropsha Palace, a country estate outside of St. Petersburg, Russia. He was probably murdered but the circumstances of his death remain unclear. His wife became the Empress of All Russia and is known as Catherine the Great.
Unofficial Royalty: Assassination of Peter III, Emperor of All Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Peter III, Emperor of All Russia

July 17, 1771 – Death of Count Alexei Grigorievich Razumovsky, lover of Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia, at Anichkov Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia; buried in the Annunciation Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg, Russia
Alexei’s singing brought him to the Russian court where he joined the Court Choir. His beautiful singing and good looks earned him the interest of Tsesarevna Elizabeth Petrovna, daughter of Peter I (the Great), Emperor of All Russia, the future Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia  In 1732, Elizabeth made Alexei a member of the choir in her private chapel. Soon, he had a room near her apartments. Alexei had personality qualities that made him a good choice to be Elizabeth’s favorite and lover. He was a simple and decent person and well-liked for his kindness, good nature, and tact. He had no ambition and never interfered in politics. Alexei survived Empress Elizabeth and was one of the people at her bedside when she died in 1762. Shortly after Elizabeth’s death, Alexei submitted his resignation from his various positions and moved from the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to the nearby Anichkov Palace which Empress Elizabeth had built for Alexei.
Unofficial Royalty: Count Alexei Grigorievich Razumovsky, lover of Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia

July 17, 1859 – Death of Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Queen of Portugal, wife of King Pedro V of Portugal, in Lisbon, Portugal; buried at the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora in Lisbon, Portugal
After a visit to the town of Vendas Novas, Stephanie fell ill with diphtheria and died at the age of 22. Her husband, King Pedro V, was greatly saddened by his wife’s death and fell into a deep depression. He died of typhoid fever just two years later and was succeeded by his brother, King Luís I.
Unofficial Royalty: Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Queen of Portugal

July 17, 1917 – House of Windsor established by royal proclamation
By 1917, during World War I, anti-German sentiment had reached a fevered pitch in the United Kingdom. The British Royal Family’s dynastic name had gone from one German name to another, the House of Hanover to the decidedly more Germanic-sounding, House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Many British people felt that this implied a pro-German bias. King George V’s  Private Secretary Arthur Bigge, 1st Baron Stamfordham came up with the House of Windsor. When Wilhelm II, German Emperor, a grandson of Queen Victoria and a first cousin of King George V, received the news, he smiled, got up from his chair, and said in his perfect English that he was off to the theater to see Shakespeare’s play The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. A number of King George V’s relatives who had Germanic titles and were British subjects exchanged their old names and titles for new English-sounding ones.
Unofficial Royalty: July 17, 1917: The Birth of the House of Windsor
Unofficial Royalty: House of Windsor Index

July 17, 1918 – Execution by firing squad of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia and his family along with three of their most loyal servants and the court doctor in Yekaterinburg, Siberia, Russia; buried on July 17, 1998, the 80th anniversary of their deaths, in St. Catherine Chapel at the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
The family had been in exile in the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg, Siberia, Russia since the previous spring. The residence was also known as The House of Special Purpose, as the Bolsheviks had wanted to eventually bring Nicholas to trial. At the time of the family’s execution, the Bolshevik Red Army controlled Yekaterinburg with the anti-communist White Army gaining strength in the surrounding area. To prevent the family from possible escape into White Army hands, the decision was made to execute them.
Unofficial Royalty: Execution by firing squad of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia and his family
Unofficial Royalty: Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Alix of Hesse and by Rhine (Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Tsesarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia

July 17, 1945 – Birth of Alexander, Crown Prince of Serbia, current pretender to the former Serbian throne, at Suite 212 of Claridge’s Hotel in Brook Street, London, England
Crown Prince Alexander II of Serbia is the son of King Peter II of Yugoslavia and Princess Alexandra of Greece and is the current pretender to the former Serbian throne. He was born in Suite 212 of Claridge’s Hotel in London, England where his parents were living in exile. Under the orders of Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the British government ceded sovereignty of the suite to Yugoslavia for the day so the new Crown Prince could be born on Yugoslav soil.
Unofficial Royalty: Alexander, Crown Prince of Serbia

July 17, 1947 – Birth of Queen Camilla of the United Kingdom, second wife of King Charles III of the United Kingdom, born Camilla Rosemary Shand at King’s College Hospital in London, England
Alice Keppel, Camilla’s great-grandmother, was the mistress of King Edward VII, King Charles III’s great-great-grandfather, from 1898 until King Edward’s death in 1910. Camilla, along with Diana, Princess of Wales and Sarah, Duchess of York, is a descendant of King Charles II of England through one of his illegitimate children, Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond, son of Charles II and his mistress Louise de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth. In addition, Camilla is the great-great-great-granddaughter of Sir Allan MacNab, who was Premier of the Province of Canada before Confederation in 1867.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Camilla of the United Kingdom

July 17, 1963 – Birth of Letsie III, King of Lesotho at Scott Hospital in Morija, Lesotho
Letsie III is the current King of Lesotho, located in Africa. In 2000, King Letsie married Anna Karabo Mots’oeneng in a Roman Catholic ceremony at the national sports stadium with a crowd of 40,000 people watching. The couple has one son and two daughters.
Unofficial Royalty: Letsie III, King of Lesotho

July 17, 2004 – Death of Susan Cullen-Ward, Crown Princess of Albania, wife of Crown Prince Leka I of Albania, pretender to the Albanian throne, in Tirana, Albania; buried at Sharra Cemetery in Tirana, Albania, in 2012, her remains were moved to the newly rebuilt Royal Mausoleum in Tirana, along with the remains of her husband and his parents
After living in exile, the royal family was invited to return to Albania in June 2002. Arriving with her husband, son, and mother-in-law Queen Geraldine, Susan continued her work for improving conditions for the Albanian people and remained steadfast in her unyielding support for her husband’s efforts. Sadly, just two years later, she died after having been diagnosed with lung cancer.
Unofficial Royalty: Susan Cullen-Ward, Crown Princess of Albania

July 17, 2020 – Wedding of Princess Beatrice of York and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in a private ceremony at the Royal Chapel of All Saints, on the grounds of Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park in Windsor, England
The wedding was scheduled to take place on May 29, 2020, at the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace in London, England, followed by a private reception in the gardens of Buckingham Palace. However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the wedding was postponed.  The wedding was rescheduled and new arrangements were made. In line with British government guidelines for COVID-19, all social distancing measures were followed. After July 4, 2020, weddings with up to 30 attendees were allowed to take place. It is known that there were approximately twenty guests including the bride and groom’s parents and siblings, and the bride’s paternal grandparents Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Prayers were said but in accordance with British government guidelines for COVID-19, no hymns were sung, but a selection of music was played. The National Anthem was played but not sung.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi

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Anne of Cleves, Queen of England; Credit – Wikipedia

July 16, 1517 – Birth of Lady Frances Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk, daughter of Mary Tudor, Queen of France, Duchess of Suffolk, and niece of King Henry VIII, at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire, England
The second child of the four children and eldest daughter of Mary Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England, and Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, Lady Frances Brandon was born on July 16, 1517, at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire, England. At the time of her birth, Hatfield House belonged to the Bishop of Ely. Her mother was making a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk, England when she unexpectedly went into labor, so she stopped at Hatfield House to have her baby. Lady Frances married Henry Grey, 3rd Marquess of Dorset and they were the parents of the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey.
Unofficial Royalty: Lady Frances Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk

July 16, 1557 – Death of Anne of Cleves, Queen of England, fourth wife of King Henry VIII of England, at Chelsea Old Palace in London, England; buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
Anne of Cleves is often considered the most fortunate of Henry VIII’s wives. Henry was terribly disappointed by his new bride. He found Anne humorless and boring. She looked unimpressive in her German costume, acted shy, and did not speak English. Six months after the marriage, Anne was informed that Henry wanted to end the marriage and Anne agreed to an annulment on the grounds of non-consummation. Henry gave her a generous settlement and the use of Richmond Palace and Hever Castle. Anne was frequently at court, had a cordial relationship with Henry and his children, and was referred to as “the King’s Beloved Sister.” Anne of Cleves survived Henry and all his wives. Her last public appearance was at the coronation of her stepdaughter Queen Mary I. As the third lady in the land, she rode behind the new queen beside Mary’s sister Elizabeth.
Unofficial Royalty: Anne of Cleves, Queen of England

July 16, 1672 – Birth of Lady Barbara FitzRoy, acknowledged by King Charles II of England as his child by Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, at Cleveland House in London, England
There are questions about Lady Barbara’s paternity. Barbara Palmer had several lovers before Lady Barbara’s conception. Her mother claimed that she was King Charles II’s daughter but possibly she was the daughter of her mother’s second cousin and lover John Churchill, later the 1st Duke of Marlborough. Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield, who Lady Barbara resembled, was also a lover of Barbara Palmer. Roger Palmer, 1st Earl of Castlemaine, the husband of Lady Barbara’s mother, believed her to be his daughter, and left his estate to her. King Charles II informally recognized Lady Barbara by giving her the surname Fitzroy. 1689, 17-year-old Lady Barbara became a novice at the Benedictine English Priory of St. Nicholas in Pontoise, Normandy, France, taking the name Sister Benedicta. On April 2, 1691, Lady Barbara professed her final vows as a nun. In 1721, Lady Barbara became prioress of the convent. On May 6, 1737, Lady Barbara, aged sixty-five, died at the Benedictine English Priory and was buried in the church there.
Unofficial Royalty: Lady Barbara FitzRoy (article coming soon).

July 16, 1740 – Death of Maria Anna of Neuburg, Queen of Spain, second wife of Carlos II, King of Spain, at the Palacio del Infantado in Guadalajara, Spain; interred in Chapel IX of the Pantheon of the Infantes at the Royal Basilica of San Lorenzo de El Escorial in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain
In 1689, Maria Anna married King Carlos II of Spain, developmentally disabled, both physically and mentally, due to the long-time inbreeding of the House of Habsburg. Likely, the marriage was never consummated. Carlos II died in 1700. The Spanish House of Habsburg became extinct and the Spanish throne was inherited by Philippe of France, Duke of Anjou who reigned as Felipe V, King of Spain, the first monarch of the House of Bourbon which still reigns in the Kingdom of Spain today. Due to a political situation, Maria Anna lived in exile in France from 1708 – 1739. In 1739, elderly and in ill health, Maria Anna was allowed to return to Spain. This was probably due to the influence of her niece Elisabeth Farnese, the daughter of Maria Anna’s sister Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg and Francesco Farnese, Duke of Parma, who had become the second wife of King Felipe V of Spain in 1714. Maria Anna was given a home at the Palacio del Infantado in Guadalajara, Spain, where she died on July 16, 1740, at the age of 72.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Anna of Neuburg, Queen of Spain

July 16, 1764 – Murder of Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia at the Fortress of Shlisselburg in Russia; buried at the Fortress of Shlisselburg
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 in 1740 at the age of two months. A little more than a year later, Ivan was deposed by Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia, the only surviving child of Peter I the Great, Emperor of All Russia, and spent the next 23 years imprisoned before being murdered in 1764 on the orders of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia. Ivan’s parents spent the rest of their lives imprisoned and, all Ivan’s other siblings were born while their parents were in prison except his sister Catherine. Ivan’s siblings remained imprisoned until 1780 when they were released into the custody of their maternal aunt, born Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, but then the Queen Dowager of Denmark.
Unofficial Royalty: Assassination of Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia
Unofficial Royalty: Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia

July 16, 1782- Death of Louisa Ulrika of Prussia, Queen of Sweden, wife of King Adolf Frederik of Sweden, at Svartsjö Palace in Svartsjö, Sweden; buried at Riddarholm Church in Stockholm, Sweden
Upon her wedding in 1744, her father-in-law King Fredrik I gave Louisa Ulrika the ownership of Drottningholm Palace, not too far from the Swedish capital of Stockholm. During Louisa Ulrika’s ownership of Drottningholm Palace, the palace’s interior was redecorated in a more sophisticated French rococo style. On Louisa Ulrika’s 33rd birthday, her husband Adolf Fredrik presented her with the Chinese Pavillion, located on the grounds of Drottningholm Palace. Louisa Ulrika was also responsible for rebuilding the Drottningholm Palace Theatre, also on the grounds of Drottningholm Palace, after the original building burned down in 1762.
Unofficial Royalty: Louisa Ulrika of Prussia, Queen of Sweden

July 16, 1879 – Death of Maria Teresa of Savoy, wife of Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma, at the Tenuta Villa Maria in San Martino, Vignale in the hills, just north of Lucca in Italy; buried in the Chapel of the Dominican Order at the Verano Cemetery in Rome, Italy
In 1820, Maria Teresa married the future Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma. The couple had two children but the marriage was a mismatch. Maria Teresa was very religious and a secular member of the Dominican Order. Carlo Ludovico lived for his own pleasure and preferred entertainment and travel to prayer. Eventually, Maria Teresa left her husband’s court and surrounded herself with priests and nuns, and dedicated her life to religion. After 1840 she lived in complete religious seclusion. Maria Teresa of Savoy died on July 16, 1879, aged 75. Her funeral was held on July 23, 1879, at Saint Romano Church in Lucca, Italy. Her body, dressed in a Dominican nun’s habit, was taken by train to Rome, Italy where it was buried in the Chapel of the Dominican Order at the Verano Cemetery.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Teresa of Savoy, Duchess of Savoy

July 16, 1884 – Birth of Anna Alexandrovna Vyrubova, lady-in-waiting and favorite of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia, in Oranienbaum, Russia
Anna became a maid of honor at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1903, serving various female members of the Romanov family. In 1905, Anna was summoned to Tsarskoye Selo, the town containing residences of the Imperial Family located 15 miles south of St. Petersburg, to fill in for a lady-in-waiting to Empress Alexandra who became ill. Thus began her longtime relationship with Empress Alexandra. The position of lady-in-waiting was rotating – one month on duty, one month at home. Anna became a close friend of Empress Alexandra, was close to the Imperial Family for many years, accompanied them on many trips, and attended private family events.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna Alexandrovna Vyrubova, lady-in-waiting and favorite of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia

July 16, 1946 – Death of Charlotte of Schaumburg-Lippe, Queen of Württemberg, 2nd wife of King Wilhelm II of Württemberg, at Schloss Bebenhausen, in Bebenhausen,  Baden-Württemberg, Germany; buried in the Old Cemetery on the grounds of Ludwigsburg Palace in Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
At the end of World War I, when the German monarchies all came to an end, Charlotte’s husband King Wilhelm II of Württemberg negotiated with the new German state to ensure that he and his wife would receive an annual income, as well as a residence for life, Schloss Bebenhausen. The two retired to Bebenhausen, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. where Wilhelm died in 1921. Queen Charlotte remained there, going by the title Duchess of Württemberg, for another 25 years. Two years before her death, Charlotte suffered a stroke that confined her to a wheelchair. In addition to being the last Queen of Württembeg, Charlotte was also the last living Queen from any of the German states.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte of Schaumburg-Lippe, Queen of Württemberg

July 16, 1956 – Death of Irene Mountbatten, Marchioness of Carisbrooke, born Lady Irene Denison, daughter of William Denison, 2nd Earl of Londesborough and wife of Queen Victoria’s grandson Alexander Mountbatten, Marquess of Carisbrooke, in London, England; she was cremated and ashes were interred at St. Mildred’s Church in Whippingham, Isle of Wight, England
Irene married Alexander Mountbatten, Marquess of Carisbrooke, the eldest son of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom and Prince Henry of Battenberg. Irene and Alexander lived at King’s Cottage, overlooking Kew Gardens, one of the grace and favor houses at the disposal of the Sovereign. They spent their last years living in apartments at Kensington Palace.
Unofficial Royalty: Irene Mountbatten, Marchioness of Carisbrooke

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Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; Credit – Wikipedia

July 15, 1445 – Death of Lady Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scots, wife of James I, King of Scots at Dunbar Castle in Scotland; buried at the Carthusian Charterhouse of Perth in Scotland
After the assassination of her husband James I, King of Scots, Joan married Sir James Stewart, known as the Black Knight of Lorne. Due to the many intrigues of the Scottish nobles, Joan was at Dunbar Castle for her protection. After a ten-month siege of Dunbar Castle, Joan died at around 41 years of age. She was buried beside her first husband James I, King of Scots in the Carthusian Charterhouse of Perth, which he had founded. On May 11, 1559, following a sermon by John Knox, a leader of the Scottish Reformation and the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland, the Carthusian Charterhouse in Perth was attacked by a mob of Protestant reformers. Everything was destroyed including the royal tombs and remains.
Unofficial Royalty: Lady Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scots

July 15, 1685 – Execution of James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, an illegitimate son of King Charles II Of England by Lucy Walter, for treason at Tower Hill in London, England; buried at the Chapel Royal of St. Peter ad Vincula, Tower of London in London, England
James was the eldest of Charles II’s illegitimate children. Sarah, Duchess of York, Princess Alice of Gloucester, Diana, Princess of Wales and her sons Prince William and Prince Harry are among his descendants.  James was convicted of treason for leading a rebellion against his uncle King James II of England. Apparently, he groveled at the feet of his uncle, begging for his life.  James was sent to the Tower of London and beheaded on Tower Hill on July 15, 1685.
Unofficial Royalty: James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth

July 15, 1750 – Birth of Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany
Franz Friedrich Anton was the grandfather of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. In 1777, Franz married Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf. They had nine children including Franz’s successor and Prince Albert’s father Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Queen Victoria’s mother Victoria, and Leopold, the first King of the Belgians. In 1775, Franz began a print collection that ultimately consisted of 300,000 prints. The collection can be visited at the Veste Coburg. Because of Franz, the family’s library had an extensive collection of books. Franz conducted an extensive renovation of the family castles. Walls, ditches, and towers were demolished and replaced by gardens and other green areas. In 1805, Franz bought back Schloss Rosenau which the family had been forced to sell in 1704 due to debts.
Unofficial Royalty: Franz Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

July 15, 1823 – Birth of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine, son of Ludwig II, Grand Duke of Hesse and by the Rhine, in Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Alexander Ludwig Georg Friedrich Emil
The Battenberg/Mountbatten family descends from Alexander and his morganatic wife Countess Julia von Hauke. Alexander had fallen in love with Julia Hauke, a lady-in-waiting to his sister Marie who had married the future Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. Although forbidden by Nicholas I, the current Emperor of All Russia, to marry, the couple married anyway as Julia was already pregnant with their first child. The marriage forced the couple to leave Russia, but the two were allowed to settle in the Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine. The marriage was viewed as morganatic and removed any future children from the Hesse and by Rhine line of succession. Julia was granted the title of Countess of Battenberg, a castle in Hesse and by Rhine. Eventually, the two regained some of their favor in Russia and Hesse and Hesse and by Rhine. Alexander and Julia had five children.  Through their son Louis, they are the ancestors of the British Royal Family and through their son Henry, they are ancestors of the Spanish Royal Family.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine

July 15, 1837 – Birth of Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Queen of Portugal, wife of King Pedro V of Portugal, in Krauchenwies, Principality of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Full name: Stephanie Josepha Friederike Wilhelmine Antonia
In 1858, Stephanie married King Pedro V of Portugal. The marriage lasted a little more than one year. 22-year-old Stephanie died from diphtheria on July 17, 1859. Her husband, King Pedro V, was greatly saddened by his wife’s death and fell into a deep depression. He died of typhoid fever just two years later and was succeeded by his brother King Luís I.
Unofficial Royalty: Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Queen of Portugal

July 15, 1911 – Death of Louisa Montagu, Duchess of Manchester, Queen Victoria’s Mistress of the Robes 1852–1853, then Louise Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, after suffering a seizure during the races at the Sundown Park Race Course in Esher, Surrey, England; buried in the churchyard at St. Peter’s Church in Edensor, England, the traditional burial site of the Dukes of Devonshire and their families
Born Luise Friederike Auguste, Countess von Alten, the daughter of Karl Franz Viktor, Count von Alten, Louisa first married William Montagu, 7th Duke of Manchester. After his death, she married Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire.
Unofficial Royalty: Louisa Montagu, Duchess of Manchester

July 15, 1946 – Birth of Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan of Brunei in Brunei Town, now called Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
On October 4, 1967, upon his father’s abdication, Hassanal Bolkiah became the 29th Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan (Head of State) of Brunei. He resides at Nurul Iman Palace, a massive place with nearly 1,800 rooms. According to Guinness World Records, it is the largest residential palace in the world, and the largest single-family residence ever built.
Unofficial Royalty: Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan of Brunei

July 15, 1949 – Birth of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Emir of Dubai in Al Shindagha, Dubai, Trucial States, now in the United Arab Emirates
Sheikh Mohammed became the Emir of Dubai in 2006 after the death of his brother Sheikh Maktoum. Of the seven rulers in the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed is the most widely known around the world. An avid fan of horse racing and breeding, he owns several major horse farms around the world. He is often seen at races in the United Kingdom, the most prominent being Royal Ascot, held each year in Windsor.
Unofficial Royalty: Rulers of the United Arab Emirates

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Tsarevna Sophia Alexeievna, Regent of Russia; Credit – Wikipedia

July 14, 1486 – Death of Margaret of Denmark, Queen of Scots, daughter of King Christian I of Denmark and wife of James III, King of Scots, buried at Cambuskenneth Abbey in Scotland
Margaret, a popular queen, was described as beautiful, gentle, and reasonable. Many later historians called her far better qualified to rule than her husband. During the crisis of 1482, when her husband was deprived of power for several months, Margaret showed a greater interest in the welfare of her children than that of her husband, leading to the couple’s alienation. When Margaret died at the age of 30, there were suspicions that she had been poisoned by John Ramsay, 1st Lord Bothwell, a confidant of James III, although no evidence was found to support the charge. At the request of James III, Pope Innocent VIII commissioned an investigation of Margaret’s virtues and alleged miracles for possible canonization as a saint, but without result.
Unofficial Royalty: Margaret of Denmark, Queen of Scots

July 14, 1602 – Birth of Cardinal Jules Mazarin, favorite of King Louis XIV of France, born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino in Pescina, Abruzzo Ultra, Kingdom of Naples, now in Italy
Cardinal Mazarin was a favorite of King Louis XIV of France, and perhaps the most influential person in the French court at the time. Having served prominently in the court for several years during the reign of King Louis XIII, he was formally appointed Chief Minister by Queen Anne when she assumed the regency for her young son King Louis XIV, and Mazarin remained in that position until he died in 1661.
Unofficial Royalty: Cardinal Jules Mazarin, favorite of King Louis XIV of France

July 14, 1704 – Death of Tsarevna Sophia Alexeievna, Regent of Russia during the minority of her brothers Peter I and Ivan V, at Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, Russia; buried at the Smolensk Cathedral at the Novodevichy Convent
Regent of Russia for seven years during the early co-reign of her brother Ivan V and her half-brother Peter I (the Great), Tsarevna Sophia Alexeievna was the daughter of Alexei I, Tsar of All Russia and his first wife Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya. Because of her plotting against her half-brother Peter, Sophie 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. Sophia was forced to become a nun under the name of Susanna. She remained in the strictest seclusion with the other nuns allowed to see her only on Easter.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia Alekseyevna, Regent of Russia

July 14, 1711 – Death by drowning of Johan Willem Friso, Prince of Orange while crossing the Hollands Diep, a wide river in the Netherlands; buried at the Grote of Jacobijnerkerk in Leeuwarden, Friesland now in the Netherlands
Johan Willem Friso became Prince of Orange in 1702, after the death of the childless Willem III, Prince of Orange who was also King William III of England. Johan Willem Friso married Marie Luise of Hesse-Kassel. They had two children including Willem IV, Prince of Orange. In July 1711, Johan Willem Friso traveled from the battlefields of the War of the Spanish Succession to The Hague to meet with King Friedrich I of Prussia about their succession dispute. To cross the Hollands Diep, a wide river in the Netherlands, Johan Willem Friso and his carriage traveled on a ferry. The captain had trouble with the sails and suddenly a great gust of wind filled the sails, the ferry capsized and Johan Willem Friso drowned at the age of 23 on July 14, 1711. His body was found floating in the river eight days later.
Unofficial Royalty:  Johan Willem Friso, Prince of Orange

July 14, 1824 – Death of Kamehameha II, King of the Hawaiian Islands, in London, England; buried at Mauna ʻAla (Fragrant Hills), the Royal Mausoleum of Hawaii in Honolulu, Hawaii
While on a visit to London, England, Kamehameha II and the favorite of his five wives, Queen Kamāmalu, caught measles and died. They had no natural immunity because the people of the Hawaiian Islands had lived in isolation until their contact with Europeans.
Unofficial Royalty: Kamehameha II, King of the Hawaiian Islands

July 14, 1884 – Birth of Prince Adalbert of Prussia, son of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia, at Marmorpalais in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Full name: Adalbert Ferdinand Berengar Viktor
During World War I, Adalbert served in the Prussian Navy, eventually taking command of the SMS Dresden in 1917. During this time, his family lived in Kiel, the home of the Prussian Navy. Following the end of the monarchy in November 1918, Adalbert left his family in Kiel and initially took refuge on his yacht. He soon moved to Bad Homburg, Germany where he purchased Villa Adelheidswert and was joined by his wife and children. Due to his wife’s health, they often traveled to Switzerland and eventually settled there permanently in 1928. They lived under the names Count and Countess von Lingen, keeping themselves out of the public and political realms and living a quiet and private life.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Adalbert of Prussia

July 14, 1933 – Birth of Franz, Duke of Bavaria, the current Head of the House of Wittelsbach, pretender to the former throne of Bavaria, and the current heir to the Jacobite Succession, in Munich, Germany
Full name: Franz Bonaventura Adalbert Maria
Unofficial Royalty: Franz, Duke of Bavaria
Unofficial Royalty: The Jacobite Succession – Pretenders to the British Throne

July 14, 1958 – Assassination of King Faisal II of Iraq in Baghdad, Iraq; Army of Iraq overthrows the monarchy; buried at the Royal Mausoleum in Adhamiyah, Iraq
On July 14, 1958, twenty-three-year-old Faisal II, the last King of Iraq, was assassinated at al-Rihab Palace in Baghdad, Iraq along with members of the Iraqi royal family and palace staff during the 14 July Revolution, also known as the 1958 Iraqi military coup. This ended the thirty-seven-year-old Hashemite monarchy in Iraq.
Unofficial Royalty: Assassination of Faisal II, King of Iraq

July 14, 1977 – Birth of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden at Karolinska University Hospital in Solna, Sweden
Full name: Victoria Ingrid Alice Désirée
In 1979, the Riksdag, the Swedish legislature, introduced an Act of Succession changing the succession to absolute primogeniture, meaning that the eldest child of the monarch, regardless of gender, is first in the line of succession. This Act of Succession became law on January 1, 1980, making Sweden the first monarchy to adopt absolute primogeniture. The previous 1810 Act of Succession allowed for only males to inherit the throne. Victoria’s brother Carl Philip was born Crown Prince in May 1979 and retained his title and first place in the succession for seven months until January 1, 1980, when his elder sister became Crown Princess and heir apparent.
Unofficial Royalty: Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden

July 14, 1994 – Wedding of Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones, daughter of Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom, and Daniel Chatto, at St. Stephen Walbrook Church in London, England
The bride and groom met on a movie set.  He was an actor and she was a wardrobe assistant.  He was the son of an actor and a theatrical agent.  She was the daughter of a princess and the granddaughter of a king. He played a prince (one of her cousins) in a film.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones and Daniel Chatto

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Caroline of Baden, Queen of Bavaria; Credit – Wikipedia

July 13, 1608 – Birth of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor in Graz, Archduchy of Austria, now in Austria
In 1636, Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor arranged for his son to be elected King of the Romans, ensuring he would be the next Holy Roman Emperor as Ferdinand III. On February 15, 1637, at the age of fifty-eight, Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor died and his son was elected Holy Roman Emperor. Ferdinand III became Holy Roman Emperor at the beginning of the last decade of the Thirty Years’ War (1618 – 1648) and had been commander-in-chief of the army since 1634. The Thirty Years’ War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, with an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians dying as a result of battle, famine, and disease. During Ferdinand III’s reign, the power of the Holy Roman Empire, which had increased during his father’s reign, declined.
Unofficial Royalty: Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, Archduke of Lower and Inner Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia

July 13, 1776 – Birth of Caroline of Baden, Queen of Bavaria, the second wife of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria, in Karlsruhe, Margraviate of Baden, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Full name: Friederike Caroline Wilhelmine
Caroline and her family had numerous additional ties to the Russian, German, and Swedish thrones. She had a deep love of and talent for painting. On March 9, 1797, in Karlsruhe, shortly before her 21st birthday, Caroline married Maximilian, Duke of Zweibrücken (the future King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria). Maximilian was twenty years older than Caroline and had been widowed the previous year. In addition to the four surviving stepchildren from Maximilian’s first marriage, Caroline and her husband had seven children including two sets of twins. Caroline was the mother of two Queens of Saxony and a Queen of Prussia and the grandmother of Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria and his wife Elisabeth of Bavaria.
Unofficial Royalty: Caroline of Baden, Queen of Bavaria

July 13, 1783 – Birth of August I, Grand Duke of Oldenburg at Schloss Rastede near Oldenburg, Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
Full name: Paul Friedrich August
In 1817, August married Princess Adelheid of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym. They had two daughters including Amalie who married Prince Otto of Bavaria, later King of Greece. After his first wife died, August married two more times. August became Grand Duke of Oldenburg upon his father’s death in May 1829 and was the first ruler to formally use the title of Grand Duke. His reign saw the development of Oldenburg into one of the cultural centers of Germany, with August also promoting social causes along with the arts and sciences. However, he was unwilling to establish a Constitution, despite being obligated by the rules of the German Confederation. It was only in 1849, after the Revolutions of 1848, that he relented. August I died on February 27, 1853, at the age of 70, and was succeeded by his son Peter II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg from his second marriage.
Unofficial Royalty: August I, Grand Duke of Oldenburg

July 13, 1798 – Birth of Charlotte of Prussia, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, wife of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia, at Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Full name: Friederike Louise Charlotte Wilhelmina
Name after marriage: Alexandra Feodorovna
Charlotte was the eldest of the four daughters and the third of the nine children of King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia and Luise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Charlotte’s two elder brothers both became Kings of Prussia and the younger of the two brothers was the first German Emperor.  In 1817, Charlotte married Grand Nicholas Pavlovich of Russia, a brother of Alexander I, Emperor of Russia, who had no surviving children. Charlotte took the Russian name Alexandra Feodorovna and gave birth to seven children who would revive the Romanov dynasty. Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, the heir to the Russian throne, forfeited his rights to the Russian throne when he made a morganatic marriage. On December 1, 1825, 47-year-old Alexander I, Emperor of All Russia died and Charlotte’s husband became Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte of Prussia, Alexandra Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia

July 13, 1807 – Death of Henry Stuart, Cardinal Duke of York and King Henry IX to the Jacobites, at the Episcopal Palace in Frascati, Italy, buried in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City
Cardinal Henry Benedict Stuart was the younger of the two sons of James Francis Edward Stuart, The Old Pretender, who was the son of the exiled King James II of England/VII of Scotland.  In 1748, Henry was ordained a priest and then made a Cardinal-Priest.  He was created Cardinal-Bishop of the Diocese of Frascati near Rome in 1761. Henry became Dean of the College of Cardinals, who is often, but not necessarily, the longest-serving member of the whole College of Cardinals in 1803. Henry was a Cardinal for fifty-six years and is the longest-serving Cardinal in Roman Catholic Church history.  However, in modern times it is virtually impossible to become a Cardinal at the age of 22 as Henry did. With Henry’s death, the male line of the Royal House of Stuart was extinct. The Jacobite line of succession passed to King Carlo Emanuele IV of Sardinia through the line of Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans, the youngest child of King Charles I of England. The Jacobite line of succession has proceeded over the years to the House of Savoy, the House of Austria-Este, and the House of Wittelsbach. It appears in the future, that it will proceed to the House of Liechtenstein.
Unofficial Royalty: Henry Stuart, Cardinal Duke of York
Unofficial Royalty: The Jacobite Succession – Pretenders to the British Throne

July 13, 1840 – Death of Charlotte Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Hereditary Princess of Denmark, first wife of the future King Christian VIII of Denmark, in Rome, Italy; buried at the Teutonic Cemetery adjacent to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City
Charlotte Frederica was divorced from her husband after an alleged affair.  She was sent into exile and never again saw her son, the future King Frederik VII of Denmark. She finally settled in Rome where she converted to Roman Catholicism. She died in Rome in 1840, at the age of 55. Charlotte Frederica was buried in a tomb paid for by her son and created by the Danish sculptor Jens Adolf Jerichau at the Teutonic Cemetery, a burial site adjacent to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City that had been dedicated to the German-speaking residents of Rome. On July 11, 2019, the tomb of Charlotte Frederica and the adjacent tomb of Princess Sophia of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Bartenstein were opened to search for the remains of Emanuela Orlandi, a 15-year-old who disappeared in 1983. Not only was there no sign of Emanuela’s remains, but the remains of Princess Sophia and Duchess Charlotte Frederica were missing. Vatican officials said they would research the burial records to discover what happened to their remains. It is possible that their remains were moved due to renovations at the end of the 1800s and again in the 1960s and 1970s.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Hereditary Princess of Denmark
Unofficial Royalty: The Strange Case of the Tombs of Two 19th Century Princesses and a 20th Century 15-Year-Old Missing Girl.

July 13, 1842 – Death of Ferdinand-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, Prince Royal, Prince of Orléans, eldest son and heir of King Louis Philippe I of the French, in Sablonville, France due to a coach accident; buried at Royal Chapel in Dreux, France
In July 1842, Ferdinand was scheduled to leave on a trip to review French troops. Before he left on the trip, he planned to travel from the Tuileries Palace in Paris to nearby Neuilly-sur-Seine where his wife and two sons were staying. On July 13, 1842, Ferdinand left Paris in an open carriage. During the short trip, the horses became out of control and Ferdinand either jumped or was projected out of the carriage, resulting in a skull fracture. Despite the best attention of the doctors, 31-year-old Ferdinand died a few hours later, surrounded by family members who had rushed to the scene.
Unofficial Royalty: Ferdinand-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, Prince Royal, Prince of Orléans

July 13, 1861 – Birth of Maria Ana of Portugal, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, wife of Grand Duke Guillaume IV of Luxembourg, at Schloss Bonnbach in Wertheim am Main, Grand Duchy of Baden, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Full name: Maria Ana do Carmo Henrique Teresa Adelaide Joana Carolina Inês Sofia Eulália Leopoldina Isabel Bernardina Micaela Gabriela Rafaela Francisca de Assisi and Paula Inácia Gonzaga
Maria Ana was the daughter of the deposed King Miguel I of Portugal and Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. She grew up mostly in Austria and Germany due to her father’s exile from Portugal. Despite the family’s status as ex-royalty, Maria Ana and her sisters all married well due in large part to the efforts of their mother. In 1893, Maria Ana married Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Maria Ana was Catholic and Guillaume was Protestant. They agreed that their children would be raised as Catholics because the majority of the population of Luxembourg was Catholic. The Grand Ducal Family has been Catholic ever since.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Ana of Portugal, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg

Lady Mary Fox, aged 65, died on July 13, 1864, in London, England. Her husband Charles survived her by nearly nine years, dying at the age of 76, on April 13, 1873, in London. They are both buried at Kensal Green Cemetery in London, England.

July 13, 1884 – Birth of Caroline Reuss of Greiz, Grand Duchess of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, first wife of Wilhelm Ernst, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, now in Thuringia, Germany
Full name: Caroline Elisabeth Ida
In 1903, Caroline married Grand Duke Wilhelm Ernst of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. The wedding was attended by the groom’s second cousin, Wilhelm II, German Emperor, King of Prussia and his wife Augusta Viktoria, as well as his first cousin, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands and her husband Prince Hendrik. Caroline was against the arranged marriage, and it was only through the insistence of Wilhelm II and his wife Augusta Viktoria that she went through with the ceremony. They had no children.  Their marriage lasted less than two years. Caroline died on January 17, 1905, at just 20 years old. Officially, the cause of death was pneumonia, but there were many rumors that she died by suicide.
Unofficial Royalty: Caroline Reuss of Greiz, Grand Duchess of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

July 13, 1889 – Birth of Louise of Battenberg (later Lady Louise Mountbatten), Queen of Sweden, second wife of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden, at Schloss Heiligenberg in Seeheim-Jugenheim, Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine, now in Hesse, Germany
Full Name: Louise Alexandra Marie Irene
Louise was the daughter of Prince Louis of Battenberg and Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, the granddaughter of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, the great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and the maternal aunt of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. In 1923, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden visited London and met Louise at a party. Gustaf Adolf had been a widower for three years following the death of his wife Margaret of Connaught, who was Louise’s first cousin once removed. The couple’s engagement was announced on July 1, 1923. They were married on November 3, 1923, in the Chapel Royal at St. James’s Palace in London. The marriage was a happy one, but unfortunately, they had a stillborn daughter in 1925 and no more children after that. In 1950, Louise’s husband became King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden upon the death of his father, and she became queen.
Unofficial Royalty: Louise of Battenberg, Queen of Sweden

July 13, 1957 – Birth of Princess Soamsawali of Thailand, 1st wife of King Vajiralongkorn of Thailand, born Soamsawali Kitiyakara at Guy’s Hospital in London, United Kingdom
Soamsawali’s father was the elder brother of Queen Sirikit, the wife of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand. On January 3, 1977, nineteen-year-old Soamsawali married her twenty-four-year-old first cousin Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, the only son and the heir of King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand and his wife, Queen Sirikit, Soamsawali’s paternal aunt.  The couple had one daughter. Shortly after his first marriage, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn began living with Yuvadhida Polpraserth, a Thai actress. They had four sons and one daughter. Princess Soamsawali refused divorce for many years, but in 1993, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn sued for divorce in the family court. Despite the divorce, Vajiralongkorn and Soamsawali remain on cordial terms. Soamsawali was allowed to keep her title of princess and remain a member of the Thai royal family. In 2016, Vajiralongkorn became King of Thailand upon the death of his father. Soamsawali and her daughter continue to play a significant role in royal ceremonies and perform many duties on behalf of the Thai royal family.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Soamsawali of Thailand

July 13, 1966 – Death of Beatrice of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duchess of Galliera, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at her estate El Botánico in Sanlucar de Barrameda, Spain; buried at the convent of the Capuchin Fathers at Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain
Full name: Beatrice Leopoldine Victoria
Beatrice was the daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duke of Edinburgh and Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna of Russia. She married Infante Alfonso d’Orleans-Bourbon of Spain, the first cousin of Alfonso XIII, King of Spain who had married Beatrice’s first cousin Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg. After the Spanish monarchy was overthrown, the country was thrown into the Spanish Civil War. Beatrice’s second son Alonso was killed in action during the Spanish Civil War, and the family lost their properties. Initially exiled to England, Beatrice and Alfonso eventually returned to Spain in 1937 and settled at a new estate El Botánico in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, where they would live for the rest of their lives.
Unofficial Royalty: Beatrice of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duchess of Galliera

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