All About Royal Families

31 October 1934 marks the birth of Princess Margaretha of Sweden. This took place at Haga Palace, Solna, Sweden. Family She was the eldest child of Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten and his wife Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Her paternal grandparents were  Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden and his late wife Princess Margaret of Connaught. Her maternal grandparents were Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe- Coburg and Gotha and his wife Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein.  Princess Margaretha had other siblings: Princess Birgitta of Sweden (born 19 January 1937); Princess Désirée, Baroness Silfverschiöld (born 2 June 1938); Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson (born 3 August 1943); and Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden (born 30 April 1946). She is a member of the house of Bernadotte. Love and Marriage In the 1950s Margaretha had a relationship with Robin Douglas-Home, a Scottish aristocrat and the nephew of the future Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Alec Dougla

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, born on 9 December 1991

On 28 March 2007, Annie Leibovitz took four pictures of Queen Elizabeth II in Buckingham Palace in London. The pictures marked the Queen's official State Visit to the United States of America.  In 2016, for the occassion of the Queen's 90th. B-Day, Annie Leibovitz made another series of pictures from the Queen, inter alia with her daughter the Princess Royal and her youngest grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  More about Annie Leibovitz Annie Leibovitz was born on 2 October 1949 in Waterbury, Connecticut in the USA. Her parents were Samuel Leibovitz and Marilyn Edith Heit.  Education Annie Leibovitz attended the San Francisco Art Institute, where she studied for painting with the intention to became an art teacher. It was at school that she had her first photography workshop and she changed her major to photography.  Famous clients * Queen Elizabeth II on the occasion of her State Visit to the USA and in 2016 for her 90th B-Day on this link .  * John Lennon and Yoko Ono in

Abdullah was born on 30 January 1962 at Palestine Hospital in Amman, to King Hussein and Hussein's British-born second wife, Princess Muna Al-Hussein (born Antoinette Avril Gardiner). He is the namesake of his paternal great-grandfather, Abdullah I, who founded modern Jordan. King Hussein and his wife Queen Muna Family Abdullah's dynasty, the Hashemites, ruled Mecca for over 700 years—from the 10th century until the House of Saud conquered Mecca in 1925—and have ruled Jordan since 1921. The Hashemites are the oldest ruling dynasty in the Muslim world.  According to family tradition, Abdullah is the 41st-generation agnatic descendant of Muhammad's daughter Fatimah and her husband, Ali, the fourth Rashidun caliph. As Hussein's eldest son, Abdullah became heir apparent to the Jordanian throne under the 1952 constitution.Political instability caused King Hussein to appoint an adult heir in his place, choosing Abdullah's uncle Prince Hassan in 1965. Abdullah has four bro

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

Giorgio Armani is an Italian fashion designer born on 11 July 1934. He formed his  company Armani in 1975. By 2001, Armani was the most successful Italian fashion designer.  Source picture: Book Cover Giorgio Armani was born in the northern Italian town of Piacenza, where he was raised with his older brother Sergio and his younger sister Rosanna by their mother Maria Raimondi and father Ugo Armani. During the secondary school at the liceo Scientifico Leonardo Da Vinci in Milan,  Armani aspired to a career in medicine, particularly after reading A.J Cronin's  The Citadel. He enrolled in the Department of Medicine at the University of Milan. But he left after three years and in 1953 he joined the army. Due to his medical  background, he was assigned to the Military Hospital in Verona.  Finally he opted luckily for another career path. After the army, Armani found a job as a window dresser at La Rinascente, a department store in Milan in 1957. He went on to become a seller for the  me

On 11 November 1940 the commemoration of the 2600th B-day of the Japanese Empire took place in Tokyo. Around 50.000 Japanese people from in and outside Japan participated in the celebration before the imperial palace. For the VIP guests there was a lavish banquet in the presence of the imperial family. Joseph Grew, the ambassador of the United States of America in Japan had conveyed his congratulations. The Emperor of Japan accepted these wishes with gratitude. The festivities ended on 15 November 1940. More than one year later, on 7 December 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.  Source pictures: Wikipedia

Recently (in april 2020) the Hotel Metropole in Brussels, capital of Belgium, was mentioned in the newspapers as bankrupt due to a lack of money and the Covid-19 crisis. This is a sad thing for the Belgian Tourism and the Hotels in Brussels. Hotel Metropole at the Brouckière square in Brussels was the only working hotel, founded in the 19th. century. Hotel Metropole Café in Brussels History In 1890, two brothers decided to open Café Metropole, to sell their own beer. It became a real success and later the family after café Wielemans-Ceupens bought the bank near the café to create a big hotel. They asked architect Alban Chambon to build a beautiful place. It was the first hotel in Brussels with electric lights and central heating systems. In 1911, the hotel hosted the famous Solvay conference with inter alia Einstein, Marie & Pierre Curie as guests. In 1957, a big reception (before Expo '58) took place at the Hotel Metropole in Brussels. In Hotel Met

This time the Allaboutroyalfamilies series of royals and World War II, stays in Scandinavia. The new post will talk about Princess Märtha of Sweden. Her family Märtha Sofia Lovisa Dagmar Thyra of Sweden was born on 28 March 1901 as the second child of Prince Carl of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark. Her father was the younger brother of King Gustaf V of Sweden. Her mother was the younger sister of King Christian X of Denmark and of King Haakon VII of Norway. What's all in the family? There were even more family ties! Märtha had an elder sister who became Princess Margaretha of Denmark and a younger sister who became Queen Astrid of Belgium. Love and Marriage? Princess Märtha of Sweden became engaged to Olav of Norway, who was her first cousin. The engagement took place during the Olympic Summer Games of Amsterdam (The Netherlands) in 1928. This news was well received in both the countries. It was an excellent match in te

On 23 April 2002 an important meeting took place at the Oval Office of the White House. Then, the US president, George W. Bush, met King Mohammed VI of Morocco. Later the president told to the media: "I've informed  His Majesty that our government will work to enact a free trade agreement with Morocco. Trade is an important part of a good foreign policy. It's an important part of making sure Americans can find jobs." Mohammed VI (born on 21 August 1963), is a member of the Alaouite dynasty. He became King of Morocco on 23 July 1999, upon the death of his father King Hassan II. Source picture: Wikipedia

On 30 April 1909, Juliana of The Netherlands was born at Noordeinde Palace in The Hague as the daughter of Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands and Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Prince Consort of The Netherlands. Love and Marriage On 7 Janurary 1937 Princess Juliana of The Netherlands married Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld, a German aristocrat. The wedding caused lots of troubles in the country because Bernhard was a German therefore he was granted Dutch citizinship on 24 November 1936. The date 7 January 1937 was chosen very well. On the same day, Princess Juliana's grandparents, King Willem III and Queen Emma had married 80 years earlier. Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard would have 4 children together. World War II In 1940 at the start of World War II, Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands, her daughter Princess Juliana and her son-in-law, exiled their country. They went to London, the capital of the United Kingdom. Later Princess Juli