All About Royal Families

Recently, the Allaboutroyalfamilies blog visited The Hague and we had there a lovely city trip very close to The Hofvijver. The Hofvijver - translated court pond - is an amazing beautiful lake in the middle of The Hague in the Netherlands. Hofvijver own picture taken in 2022 The term pond is actually a misnomer, as the Hofvijver has its origin in a natural dune lake fed by the Haagse Beek (Hague Creek, originally Dunecreek) and the, nowadays muted, Bosbeek (Forestcreek) from the Haagse Bos (Hague Forest). The Haagse Beek still feeds the Hofvijver and so the pond is directly connected to the dunes in Kijkduin. In this dune lake there was an island (not the current island in the Hofvijver) on which Willem II built his palace in 1248. Other sources say he built his palace alongside the pond and created a moat around it. The city of The Hague celebrated its 700 years of existence in 1948, suggesting that the city itself bases its origin on the building of the palace by Willem II in 1248.

On 28 August 1913, Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands opened the  Peace Palace in The Hague. own picture taken in 2022 Queen Wilhelmina: Wikipedia The idea of the Palace started from a discussion in 1900 between the Russian diplomat Friedrich Martens and American diplomat White over providing a home for the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). White contacted Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie had reservations, and at first was only interested in donating money for the establishment of a library of international law.  own picture taken in 2022 White, however, was able to convince Carnegie, and in 1903 Carnegie agreed to donate the US$1.5 million ($50,000,000, adjusted for inflation) needed to house the court as well as to endow it with a library of international law. White described his idea to Carnegie: "A temple of peace where the doors are open, in contrast to the Janus-temple, in times of peace and closed in cases of war [...] as a worthy testimony of the people that, after many long

On 8 May 1946, Winston Churchill flew to The Netherlands. In Amsterdam he was received by Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands. Together they  marked the first anniversary of VE-Day.  The Dutch Royal family also received Winston Churchill on Soestdijk Palace where he was invited to a dinner. Princess Beatrix (later Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands) knew the former British Prime Minister very well from his famous speeches. Apperently, her mother, Queen Juliana (then Princess) once caught her performing a Churchill radio speech, while using a curtain cord as micro.  Winston Churchill - book Cover On 9 May 1946, Winston Churchill spoke to the Dutch parliament in  The Hague on 12.30. On 10 May 1946 he was in Leiden University for the presentation of his degree. Churchill received an honorary doctorate of law. Source picture: Wikipedia On Saturday 11 May 1946, Churchill received in Amsterdam a Gold Medal. He also took a cruise on the city's canal.  On May 13th. Chuchill visited Rotterdam

On 2 February 2002 a real royal wedding took place at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. How did they meet each other? Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, eldest son and heir of Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus, met Argentine-born Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti at the Seville Fair in April 1999. Two weeks later, they met again in New York, where Máxima was working as a banker for Kleinwort Benson. She did not meet his parents, Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus, for some time. The proposal As speed skating is one of the most popular sports, Willem-Alexander proposed to Máxima on the ice on skates. A week earlier, Willem-Alexander already told his mother and Prime Minister Kok that he would propose to Máxima soon. Keeping it secret? The intention was that the intended marriage remained a secret, so as not to get in the way of Willem-Alexander's brother Constantijn and Laurentien Brinkhorst, who would marry in May. Ultimately, it was too difficult to keep secret, so on 30 March 200

In a world full of fashion, the House of Gucci made the difference.  Who were they? And what is/was their connection with the royals? History Gucci was founded in 1921 by Guccio Gucci in Florence, Tuscany on  7, Via della Vigna Nuova in Florence, Azienda Individuale Guccio Gucci where he sold imported leather luggage.  He also opened a small workshop to have his own leather goods made by local craftsmen. Eventually, a larger workshop had to be acquired to house Gucci's 60 artisans. In 1935 the invasion of Ethiopia by Mussolini led the League of Nations to impose a trade embargo on Italy. Leather became scarce, pushing Guccio Gucci to introduce other fabrics in the composition of the products, such as raffia, wicker, wood, linen and, jute. The rombi motif, a Gucci signature, was created. The Gucci's developed a new tanning technique to produce "cuoio grasso", which became a Gucci trademark. In 1937, Gucci launched its handbags. Guccio's wife and children all worke

Catharina-Amalia Beatrix Carmen Victoria was born on 7 December 2003 in the HMC Bronovo at The Hague in The Netherlands. 101 salute shots were fired at four places in the Kingdom of The Netherlands: Den Helder, The Hague, Willemstad (Curacao) and Oranjestad (Aruba).  Family Her parents are King Willem Alexander of The Netherlands and Queen Máxima. Her paternal grandparents are Former Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands and Prince Claus.  Her maternal grandparents are Jorge Zorreguieta and  María del Carmen Cerruti Carricart. Princess Catharina-Amalia is a member of the House of Orange-Nassau. Baptism She was baptised in the Great Church of The Hague. Her godparents are: - Prince Constantijn (The Netherlands); - Crown Princess Victoria (Sweden); - Herman Tjeenk Willink (then the Council of State of the Netherlands); - Samantha Deane ( a friend of her mother); - Martín Zorreguieta (her maternal uncle); - Marc ter Haar (a friend of her father). At her baptism, her maternal grandparents atten

On 23 November 1890, King Willem (William) III of The Netherlands died  in Apeldoorn. Birth William was born on 19 February 1817 in the Palace of the Nation in Brussels, which was then a part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.  Family His parents were the future King William II of the Netherlands and Anna  Pavlovna of Russia. He had three brothers (one died young) and one sister.  King William II (the father) and his family.  Early life At the age of 10, in 1827, he was made an honorary colonel in the Royal Netherlands Army. In the 1830's he served as lieutenant in the Grenadiers Regiment.  Reign At the beginning, King William III ruled over the Netherlands and Luxembourg as well.  In 1856, the "Luxembourg Coup" took place. William instituted a new constitution for Luxembourg which he ruled personally separate from the crown.  In 1867, France offered to buy Luxembourg, which led to the Luxembourg Crisis. However the Second Treaty of London re-established Luxembourg

History is the study of past events  You love it or you hate it: history. This made me think: which royals know/knew their history very well? Austria Empress Elisabeth of Austria (Sisi) had a special interest in history, philosophy and literature.  Belgium King Albert I of Belgium liked royal history very much. His wife  Queen Elisabeth of Belgium (a niece of Sisi)  was a keen historian too. For her, the opening of the tomb of Tutankhamun was postponed. Her name- sake Crown Princess Elisabeth of Belgium is now (2021) studying History & Politics in Oxford University (United Kingdom). France Queen Marie-Antoinette of France liked to read history. She saw the  first launch of a Montgofière, a hot air balloon. Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland (1805-1810) decorated his palaces with topics from the national history and he even wrote history books, just as his son Napoleon III. Napoleon III studied sciences, history and economics.  Lucien Bonaparte had a keen interest in historical antiq

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

The  House of Mecklenburg The House of Mecklenburg is a North German dynasty of Slavic origin which ruled until 1918 in the Mecklenburg region. This was one of the longest-ruling families of Europe.  History The family was established by Pribislav, a Slavic prince who converted to Christianity and accepted the suzerainty of Saxon Duke Henri the Lion. The main branch of the house was elevated in 1347 to ducal rank. In the family there were several branches: - Duchy of Mecklenburg; - Lordship of Rostock; - Principality of Schwerin; - County of Schwerin; - Principality of Ratzenburg; - Lordship of Stargard; - Principality of Wenden. Titles and claims to the thrones Sweden The Dukes of Mecklenburg pursued from the 14th. century a claim to  the Swedish throne. The Duke of Mecklenburg was a descendant and the heir of two women whom legends tied to Scandinavian royal houses: * Christina, who was the wife of Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg; * Marianna, who was the wife of duke Barnim I of