All About Royal Families

On 5 June 1962 Princess Astrid of Belgium was born on the day before her father's 28th birthday at the Château de Belvédère, near Laeken, and was named after her late paternal grandmother, Astrid of Sweden, the popular first wife of King Leopold III.  Godparents Her godparents were her uncle Fabrizio, Prince Ruffo di Calabria-Santapau, 7th Duke di Guardia Lombarda, and her aunt Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg. Love and Marriage Princess Astrid married Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este, subsequently head of the Archducal House of Austria-Este, on 22 September 1984 at Brussels. Lorenz is the eldest son of Robert, Archduke of Austria-Este (1915–1996), and his wife Princess Margherita of Savoy-Aosta (1930–2022). Her husband was also created Prince of Belgium by Royal Decree on 27 November 1995. Princess Astrid and Prince Lorenz have five children: Prince Amedeo, born on 21 February 1986  Princess Maria Laura, born on 26 August 1988  Prince Joachim...

There are not many books about the grand ducal family of Luxembourg. However  recently I found and bought a very beautiful book: un Amour Souverain. It is a mix written in English and in French. Source picture: book cover Context While studying in Geneva, Henri met the Cuban-born María Teresa Mestre y Batista, who was also a political science student.  They married in Luxembourg in a civil ceremony on 4 February 1981 and a religious ceremony on 14 February 1981 with the previous consent of the grand duke, dated 7 November 1980; and they remain married. The couple has five children: Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Prince Félix of Luxembourg, Prince Louis of Luxembourg, Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg, and Prince Sébastien of Luxembourg. For the first time, on the occasion of their emerald wedding, the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess agreed to confide in Stéphane Bern in complete privacy, to tell their love story, to unveil their personal album with unpublishe...

In 2021, there was a lovely exhibition of Napoleon Bonaparte in Liège, Belgium. On the exhibition, one corner of the royal descendants of the Bonaparte family immediately took my attention. That's why I wanted to make a  "royal" family post. part of the exhibition in Liège in 2021 What does King Philippe of Belgium, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg,  King Carl XIV Gustav of Sweden, King Harald of Norway and Queen Margrethe II of Demark in common? They are all descendants of  Empress Joséphine.  Belgium King Philippe of Belgium's parents are King Albert II of Belgium and Queen Paola. Through his father, King Philippe is a descendant of the Bonaparte family. The mother of King Albert II of Belgium was Princess Astrid of Sweden. Her father, Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland, was a grandson of Joséphine of Leuchtenberg, herself a daughter of Eugène de Beauharnais, a son of Empress Joséphine. Denmark Queen Margrethe II of Denmark was born as the daughter of King Frederick ...

One of the oldest Belgian noble families is without no doubt the  House of Ligne. The family was named from the village of Ligne, located between Ath and Tournai (nowadays the Hainaut province of Belgium).  Some Royal History At the time of the Crusades, the lords of Ligne belonged to the  entourage of the Count of Hainaut.  In the Battle of Bouvines, which took place in 1214, they were described as "great name and men of honour". Thierry de Ligne was mentioned than for the very first time.  In 1544 Jacob of Ligne was granted by Emperor Charles V as Count of Ligne.  On 20 March 1601 Lamoral I of Ligne received from Emperor Rudolf II the title prince of the Holy Roman Empire. This was granted for himself and for all his descendants both male and  female.  King Willem I of the Netherlands granted on 13 March 1816, Eugène of Ligne as prince for him and all his descendants.  In 1923, King Albert I of Belgium granted Ernest of Ligne the right to u...

"A crown is merely a hat that lets the rain in."  This was quoted by King Frederick the Great of Prussia. History  Since 1987,  the Belgian Fabienne Delvigne has specialized in the  design of Haute Couture Hats, jewellery and headgear. After  studying Marketing she launched her own company and she became one of the most influential hat designers of Europe.  In 2001, Fabienne Delvigne became Royal Warrant holder of the royal family of Belgium. Then Albert II and Paola were King and Queen of the Belgians.  At the inauguration of King Philippe on 21 July 2013, Fabienne Delvigne made for Queen Mathilde a wonderful symbolic hat.  King Philippe also granted Fabienne Delvigne a royal warrant.  The shop of Fabienne Delvigne is located at: 8 André Fauchille Street 1150 Brussels - Belgium.  Royal clients: * Queen Paola of Belgium;  * Queen Mathilde of the Belgians; * Princess Elisabeth of Belgium; * Queen Máxima of the Netherlands;  * Ma...

On 10 May 2020, Charles Jean Philippe Joseph Marie Guillaume, Prince of Luxembourg was born on 5.13 am. His parents are Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie (born de Lannoy). Prince Charles is the first son of the Hereditary Grand Ducal Couple and is second in Line of succession. His names The newborn Prince is named probably after his great-great grandmother Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg or he could be named after his great-uncle, Charles of Luxembourg . Charles also could named after Charles de Lannoy , 1st. Prince of Sulmona.He was in service for the Emperors Maximilian I and Charles V. His second name Jean, is named after Grand Duke Jean, the grandfather of Guillaume. Philippe is either the name of Stéphanie's father or named after King Philippe of the Belgians. Guillaume himself is the godfather of Prince Emmanuel of Belgium. Joseph could be probably the male name of Josephine, after Guillaume's gran...

The diplomatic skills of the Lannoy family 1 May 1456 marks the death of Hugo (also called Hue of Huges) van Lannoy. He was an important man at the court of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. Hugo was born in 1384 as the son of Gilbert I van Lannoy and Catherine of Molembais (in Dutch: Molenbeek) . His brothers were Guillebert of Lannoy and Baldwin of Lannoy. As a young knight he traveled to Jerusalem and he even joined an armed expedition against the Tartars, who occupied Muscovy. Muscovy was the former name of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. It was the predecessor State of the Tsaredom of Russia. When Hugo returned to Europe, he first served John the Fearless. He also fought at the Battle of Agincourt, where he was taken captive by the English. After his release, he became a diplomat for Philip the Good, who succeeded his father in 1419. For Philip the Good, Hugo of Lannoy helped to arrange the wedding between Jacqueline, Countess of Holland and Humphrey, Duke...

Princess Joséphine Charlotte of Belgium was born on October 11th. 1927 in the Royal Palace of Brussels. Queen Astrid of Belgium with her daughter Princess Joséphine Charlotte Princess Joséphine Charlotte of Belgium Grand Duchess of Luxembourg Source picture: Wikipedia Her parents were King Leopold III of Belgium and Queen Astrid (Princess of Sweden). She was the eldest sister of inter alia King Baudouin of Belgium and King Albert II of Belgium (who abdicated in 2013 in favour of his son  King Philippe). In 1953, she married Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg (then Prince Jean). The Royal Couple had five children. Now her eldest son, Henri, is  Grand Duke of Luxembourg. So, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg is the first cousin of King Philippe of Belgium. Princess Joséphine suffered Lung Cancer and died at home on January 10th. 2005.