All About Royal Families

Anna Maria of Brandenburg - Ansbach was born on December 28th. 1526 at Jägerndorf as a daughter of George, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach and his second wife Hedwig of Münsterberg-Oels. Anna Maria of Brandenburg - Ansbach was raised with the Lutheran faith and on February 24th. 1544 she became the wife of Christof, Duke of Württemberg. 12 Children were born from this marriage. In 1568 Anna Maria of Brandenburg- Ansbach lost both her husband and her eldest son. After that drama she fell madly in love with the young Landgrave George I of Hesse - Darmstadt. She became confused and was locked up. Later George I of Hesse-Darmstadt would marry Eleonore. She was one of Anna Maria's daughters. Anna Maria of Brandenburg-Ansbach died on May 20th. 1589 in Nürtingen, a town in southern Germany. She was buried at the St. George's Collegiate Church in Tübingen. Source picture: Wikipedia

Ernest Alexandre Dominique d'Arenberg was born on December 26th.1643 as a son of Philippe de Ligne d'Arenberg and Theodora Maximilienne van Gaveren Herimez. After the death of his father Ernest Alexandre Dominique d'Arenberg became the 10th. Fürst - Prince de Chimay. Escutcheon de Chimay - Source: Wikipedia Prince de Chimay is a title associated with the town of Chimay, which is now located in Belgium. Ernest  Alexandre Dominique d'Arenberg, the 10th. Prince de Chimay served for the Spanish King in the Netherlands. In 1675 he became a knight in the Order of the Golden Fleece. The same year Ernest Alexandre Dominique d'Arenberg married Maria de Cardenas. She was a lady-in-waiting of the Spanish Queen. There were no children from this marriage. From 1680 till 1684 he was governor from Luxembourg. As a governor of  Luxembourg he had to protect the capital against King Louis XIV of France. During the siege of 1684 he first cou

The weather doesn't make it obvious, but today it is Christmas. Maastricht The Netherlands Last year, I visited Maastricht in the Netherlands during this period of the year. All the shopping centers were very well decorated and the atmosphere in the city was great. Maastricht The Netherlands Maastricht is located on both sides of the Meuse river in the southeast of the Netherlands, in the Province of Limburg. In 1992 the Maastricht Treaty was signed there, which led to the creation of the Euro. There are a lot of amazing main sights to visit in Maastricht, like the Vrijthof, this is a famous square with many pubs and restaurants. The well known Dutch violist André Rieu is born in Maastricht. A Merry Christmas With this blogpost I want to wish all the readers of my blog, the friends on Google+ and the followers on Twitter a very Merry Christmas!

Willem van den Bergh was born on December 24th. 1537 in 's Heerenberg, Gelderland, The Netherlands. His parents were Count Oswald II van den Bergh and Elisabeth van Dorth. He lived for a while at the Royal Court of Mary of Austria in Brussels (capital of present day Belgium), then located in the Habsburg Netherlands. On November 11th. 1556 Willem van den Bergh married Maria of Nassau. She was the elder sister of William of Orange (the Silent). 17 Children were born from this marriage. In 1566 he was a prominent member of the League of Nobles. They presented a petition with their grieves to the Brussels government of the new Regent Margaret of Parma (who acted for her half brother King Philip II of Spain). When King Philip of Spain didn't agree with the League of Nobles, Willem escaped with his family to Bremen to flee for the Council of Troubles of the Iron Duke of Alba. In 1572 Willem commanded one of the little armies financed by his brother-in-law.

Ernest Casimir, Count of Nassau-Dietz was born on December 22nd. 1573 in Dillenburg (Germany). His parents were John VI, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg and Countess Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg. After the death of John VI the County of Nassau was divided between his 5 living sons. Ernest Casimir succeeded him as Count of Nassau-Dietz. Ernest Casimir served under Maurits, Prince of Orange during the Eighty Years War. He also served under Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange, by the siege of the cities Steenwijk and Oldenzaal. In 1607 Ernest Casimir married Sophie Hedwig of Brunswick-Lüneburg. They would have nine children. Ernest Casimir owned little in Friesland (now part of The Netherlands), however he was very popular there. During the siege of Roermond Ernest Casimir was killed by a bullet on June 2nd. 1632. He was succeeded by his son as Count of Nassau-Dietz.

On July 27th. 1599, Albert IV, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach was born as a son of Johann, Duke of Saxe-Weimar and Dorothea Maria of Anhalt. Albert received his education from field Marshall Frederick of Kospoth. Later he studied at the university of Jena, just like his brothers. Between 1619 and 1621 Albert made a Study Tour together with his brother, John Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Weimar. The two princes traveled inter alia to France and to Switzerland. From 1621 till 1626 he made some administrative work in the Duchy and he represented his brother during his absence. On June 24th. 1633 Albert married Dorothea of Saxe-Altenburg. This marriage stayed childless and she survived her husband for more than 31 years. Due to an accord with his brother Albert received the Duchy of Eisenach in 1640. Albert died on December 20th.1644 at the age of 45. After his death his state was merged with Saxe-Weimar. Source picture: Wikipedia

Last month King Philippe of Belgium and his wife, Queen Mathilde, received the new Royal Warrant Holders at the Royal Palace in Belgium. One of the older Royal Warrant Holders is biscuit manufacturer Jules Destrooper. Jules Destrooper Jules Destrooper is a Belgium Food Company founded in 1886 by Jules Destrooper. The headquarters are located in Lo (Lo-Reninge), West-Flanders. The company produces a wide range of biscuits and cakes but it is mainly know by his butterwaffles. Royal Warrant Besides chocolate and beer Belgium has thus great cookies :-) and these are eaten at the Royal Palace as well!

December 17th. 1554 marks the birth of Ernest of Bavaria. This event took place in Munich. Source picture: Wikipedia Ernest was the third son of Albert V, Duke of Bavaria and Anna of Austria. He received his education and training from the Jesuits. In 1565 he became a canon at Salzburg and soon afterward in Cologne, Treves and Würzburg. At the age of 19 Ernest was elected as bishop of the small see of Hildesheim. In the spring of 1574 Ernest was sent to Rome there he won the good-will of pope Gregory XIII.  In 1581 Ernest was elected the Bishop of Liège and in 1583 he became  Archbishop of Cologne. This was one of the seven Imperial Electors of the Holy Roman Empire.  From 1584 he was elected the Bishop of Münster. Ernest died in 1612 in Arnsberg Westphalia and he was buried in the Cologne Cathedral. He was succeeded by his nephew, Ferdinand of Bavaria . stained glass in the Cologne Cathedral - own picture

Napoléon Bonaparte stays a very fascinating man in the history: a general, who become emperor. There are a lot of pictures of him and many books are written about him. However I think, I've found a real treasure in the French literature. The book is called of course Napoléon and it is written by Jean Tulard, a French historian, specialized in the Premier Empire. I hope to read more about Napoléon Bonaparte and I hope to improve my French.

October 29th. 1507 marks the birth of Fernando Álvarez. This event took place in Piedrahita, the province of Ávilla in Spain. His parents were Garcia Álvarez de Toledo y Zúñiga and Beatriz Pimentel. Fernando's father died when he was three years old, during a campaign on the isle of Djerba in 1510. Already at the age of six Fernando accompanied his grandfather on a military mission to capture Navarre. Youth Fernando was educated in Roman Catholicism and humanism. He also learned to speak Latin, French, English and German. At the age of seventeen he joined the troops of Constable of Castile,this was the second person in power after the King. For his military role Fernando was appointed governor of Fuenterrabia. Love & Marriage In 1527 Fernando married his cousin Maria Enriquez de Toledo y Guzmán. Together they had 4 children. Fernando also had an illegitimate son before his marriage. Duty In 1541 Fernando was appointed as High Steward to the King of

Maria Francesca of Savoy was born on December 26th. 1914 in Rome, the capital of Italy. Family Her parents were King Victor Emanuel III of Italy and Elena of Montenegro. Maria Francesca was the youngest daughter, she had one brother, Umberto II of Italy, and three sisters: Yolanda, Mafalda and Giovanna (future Tsaritsa of Bulgaria). Marriage On January 23rd. 1939 Princess Maria Francesca married  Prince Luigi Carlo of Bourbon-Parma, a younger son of Robert I, Duke of Parma and a brother of Zita, Empress of Austria. They would have 4 children. Duty Princes Maria Francesca often went to ceremonies and events where she  showed a sense of charity and love for the country. In Rome there even is  a school named after her.  In 1943 she was internet in a concentration camp in Germany with her  husband and two of her children. In 1945 the American soldiers saved them and sent the family back to Italy. In 1946 a referendum took plac

On December 5th. 2014, Queen Fabiola of Belgium died at Stuyvenberg Castle in Laeken, near Brussels. She became 86 years old. Family Doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón was born on June 11th. 1928 at the Palacio Zurbano in Madrid. Her parents were Gonzalo de Mora Fernández Riera del Olmo, Marqués de Casa Rièra and his wife Blanca de Aragón y Carrillo de Albornoz Barroeta-Aldamar y Elio. Doña Fabiola was the 6 th. of the 7 children of this couple. Love & Marriage On December 15th. 1960 Doña Fabiola married King Baudouin of Belgium. The marriage ceremony took place at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula. The Queen Fabiola Mountains in Antartica are named in her honor. Unfortunately the Royal couple had no children, later Queen Fabiola told that she had 5 pregnancies which ended in a miscarriage. Queen Dowager On July 31st. 1993 King Baudouin died in Motril (Spain) and Queen Fabiola became Queen Dowager, although she stayed very active till a high age

Sir William Fenwick Williams was born on December 4th. 1800 as the second son of Thomas Williams. He spent his early years in Nova Scotia (Canada). Youth However there was a huge rumor that William  Fenwick Williams was the natural son of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn. He could be the half brother of Queen Victoria. William never denied this, but it is thought not to be true. Duty He went to the Royal Military academy in Woolwich, in 1825 he entered the Royal Artillery as second lieutenant. In 1841 his services were lent to Turkey where William was employed as captain in the arsenal in Constantinople. During the Crimean War he was forced to surrender, and he was taken captive at Rayazan. Before returning home William Fenwick Williams met Czar Alexander II of Russia. Between 1865 -1867 he became Governor of Nova Scotia and in Gibraltar between 1870 - 1876. Death Sir William Fenwick Williams died on July 26th. 1883 in a hotel at the Pall Mall

December 2nd. 1848 was an important date in the history of the House of Habsburg. On This Day  Franz Joseph became: Emperor of Austria. He entered the throne to make an end to the revolutions of 1848. Therefore he was helped by chancellor Prince Metternich. The name Franz Joseph was chosen to remind his great-grand uncle Emperor Joseph II, who ruled as a modernising reformer. With the help of Prince Schwarzenberg, the new Prime Minister, Emperor Franz Joseph granted a constitution in early 1849. Of course Franz Joseph became famous as the husband of Empress Elisabeth 'Sisi' of Austria, who he married in 1854. For more information about the House of Habsburg, check this link . For more information about the Travels of Sisi, check this link . Source pictures: Wikipedia