Posts

Showing posts with the label united States of America

State visits from U.S.A Presidents to the United Kingdom

Image
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania of the United States will pay a state visit to the United Kingdom from September 17th. till September 19th. 2025 ✨ I wondered how and when the previous state visits of American Presidents to the United Kingdom took place. So, I made a short overview from the most interesting visits.  Early encounters The first official visit of a sitting U.S.A President to the United Kingdom was by Woodrow Wilson in December 1918, just after the end of World War I. Though not a formal state visit hosted by the monarch, Wilson’s trip marked an important moment: the United States had emerged as a global power, and Britain welcomed its wartime ally with enthusiasm. Post-War diplomacy The first true State Visit of an American President to Britain took place in 1959, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower was hosted by Queen Elizabeth II. This visit came at a time when both nations were working closely in NATO and in the Cold War context. The pomp of Buc...

A commoner who became Queen of Norway

Image
Sonja Haraldsen was born on 4 July 1937 at Red Cross Clinic in Oslo, the daughter of clothing merchant Karl August Haraldsen (1889–1959) and Dagny Ulrichsen (1898–1994). She had three siblings, Haakon Haraldsen (1921–2016), Gry Henriksen (1924–1971)  and Karl Herman Haraldsen (1929–1936, who died in a boating accident). Childhood   She grew up at Tuengen Allé 1B in the district of Vinderen in Oslo and completed her lower secondary schooling in 1954. She received a diploma in dressmaking and tailoring at the Oslo Vocational School, and a diploma from École Professionnelle des Jeunes Filles (a finishing school) in Lausanne, Switzerland. There, she studied accounting, fashion design, and social science. She returned to Norway for further studies and received an undergraduate degree (French, English and Art History) from the University of Oslo. Love and Marriage In June 1959 she first met Crown Prince Harald (the future King Harald V) at a party ...