All About Royal Families

Monogram of Queen Fabiola - Source picture: Wikipedia On this rainy day the funeral of Queen Fabiola of Belium takes place. screenshot Queen Fabiola - July 2013 Now, the Belgian Royal Family is (in cars) on their way to the Cathedral fo St. Michael and St. Gudula. The last tour of Queen Fabiola... own picture with the statue of queen Fabiola's husband  King Baudouin of Belgium They are arrived. The Royal Family is entering the cathedral. Around 10 AM the funeral service started. After two hours, the service is finished. The Royal Family will now, go to the Church of Our Lady in Laeken. There the coffin will be interred in the Royal Crypt, next to her husband, King Baudouin. To make things more clear - Belgium has now 2 queens left. Married with the reigning King: Queen Mathilde of the Belgians Married with the non reigning King: Queen Paola of Belgium  Inside the cathedral - taken in 2012 Who attended the funeral service ? A l

December 12th. 1298 marks the birth of Albert II of Austria. He was born at Habsburg Castle (located in Switzerland). Albert II of Austria - Source picture: Wikipedia His parents were Albert I of Germany and Elisabeth of Tyrol. On February 15th. 1324 Albert II of Austria married Countess Johanna of Pfirt. They had 6 children. Albert II died on August 16th. 1358 in Vienna. He gave the order to start the construction of the Gothic Choir in the St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna. This was known as the Albertinian Choir. St. Stephens Cathedral- own picture Where does the name 'The Lame' came from ? It has been speculated that Albert II, Duke of Austria, had temporary paralysis caused by polyarthritis.

On December 11th 1445, a boy was born at Urach. He received the name: Eberhard of Württemberg. Later he was known as Eberhard the Bearded. Eberhard of Württemberg - Source picture: Wikipedia He was the son of count Ludwig I and his wife Mechtild of the Palatinate. In 1468 Eberhard travelled to Jerusalem, there he became a knight of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. Later he chose the palm as his symbol. On April 12th. of July 4th 1474 (the exact date isn't known) he married Barbara, who whas the daughter of Ludovico III Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua. Eberhard and Barbara had one daughter together, who was called: Barbara. Unfortunately she lived very shortly. In 1477 Eberhard founded the University of Tübingen. In 1482 he achieved the re-unification of the two parts of Württemberg with the  Treaty of Münsingen. Later he moved the capital to Stuttgart. Eberhard was praised for his commitment to his subjects, although he was a fanatical persecutor of Jews. I

December 16th. 1790 marks the birth of a very notable boy called: Leopold Georg Christian Friedrich of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Leopold I of Belgium own picture taken in the Royal Palace of Brussels His parents had been Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Augusta Reuss-Ebersdorf. On May 2nd. 1816  Leopold married Charlotte, Princess of Wales.  This marriage was very happy and loving untill fate stuck.  On November 5th. 1817, Charlotte gave birth to a stillborn son. She died the day after. July 21 st. 1831 also was an important day for Leopold. Then he laid off the oath as first King of Belgium. On August 9th 1832 Leopold married Princess Louise of Orléans (daughter of the French King Louis Philippe I). They had 4 children. As King, Leopold was involved with major projects in Belgium. In 1835 for example there was the opening of the railway between Brussels and Mechelen. Due to his European connections and his diplomatic skills,