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Showing posts from September, 2021

1911 - 1919: Succession troubles in Monaco?

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Recently I read various articles that a nephew of Prince Albert of Monaco claimed to be the real heir of the throne of Monaco. I wanted to know more about the "new" claimant and about the succession of the little, beautiful principality as well. More about the article on this link . History In 1612, Honoré II (1597-1662) was the first Lord of Monaco, who was granted the title Prince. He was the son of Hercule, Lord of Monaco (1562-1604) and Maria Landi. At the age of 6, Honoré's father was murdered. His uncle, Frederico Landi, the 4th. Prince of Val di Taro, became regent. However the Spanish influence over Monaco stayed until 1633. The first branch for the throne of Monaco were descendants of Princess Charlotte of Monaco . Princess Charlotte of Monaco was the daughter of Marie Juliette Louvet, a cabaret singer and Prince Louis II of Monaco. But as Louis II had no  legitimate children, the principality would have a succession crisis. The heir could be the nephew of Princ

The Roman Series: Who was emperor Trajan?

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On 18 September 53, Marcus Ulpius Trajanus was born in the Roman province of Hispania Baetica (in what is now Andalusia in modern Spain) near Seville.  Trajan was the son of Marcia, a Roman noblewoman and sister-in-law of the second Flavian Emperor Titus.  His father was Marcus Ulpius Trajanus the elder. He served under Vespasian in the First Jewish Roman War.  The army In 76-77, Trajan's father was governor of Syria, where Trajan himself remained as Tribunus legionis. After his father's replacement, Trajan moved to the Rhine department of the army. However his time in the army remained obscure. Love and Marriage Trajan married Pompeia Plotina. This was a happy marriage but the couple didn't have any children together.  Rise to power When Nerva became Roman Emperor, he was so unpopular with the army, he felt he had to gain the support of the military in order to avoid being ousted.  He accomplished this in the summer of 97 by naming Trajan as his adoptive  son and successor

Who is who: the family d'Udekem d'Acoz

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When Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium (then Duke of Brabant) married to  Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, the nobel family of Mathilde became immediately famous.  History The history of the d'Udekem family went back to the Late Middle Ages. The earliest records were dated in 1472 with the ancestor of the family: Gooris van Udekem (who bought then a residence).  Around 1716, the family d'Udekem was granted a noble title, but in 1795, after the French revolution, the nobility lost their status.  When King William I of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands reigned  over The Netherlands and Belgium as well, he granted the d'Udekem family their rightful titles.  Jacques François Joseph d'Udekem (1758-1829) was lord of Acoz, Villers, Potteries and Lasprelle, he lived in Louvain in "House den Arent", was granted in 1816 as a Knight of the Province of Hainaut with the title baron. The d'Udekem family held the title of baron but in 2000, after the wedding of Mathi