All About Royal Families

On 4 July 1799, Oscar was born in Paris, then a part of the French Republic. Napoleon Bonaparte himself chose the name Oscar after one of the heroes  in the Poems of Ossian by James Macpherson. (Via Johan Bengtsson @ Twitter) Family Oscars parents were King Charles XIV of Sweden and Désirée Clary. His paternal grandparents were Henri Bernadotte and Jeanne de Saint-Jean. Désirée Clary was the daughter of a wealthy silk merchant and her sister July Clary married Joseph Bonaparte. July Clary became queen of Naples and Sicily. It was Joseph Bonaparte, the brother of Napoleon, who was the godfather of Oscar of Sweden. (Via Johan Bengtsson @ Twitter)  King Oscar I of Sweden was a member of the House of Bernadotte. Childhood On 21 August 1810, Oscars father Charles XIV was elected at the Riksdag of the Estates as King Charles XIII had no heirs. On that day, Oscar was created Prince of Sweden with the style your Royal Highness. He also received the title Duke of Södermanland. Prince Alexander

Chess sometimes is called a royal game. However which royals play(ed) chess? Discover it in this blogpost!  Austria Archduchess Anna of Austria and her husband Albert V, Duke of Bavaria liked to play chess (portrait made in 1522). In 1873, the Vienna Chess tournament took place at the Prater from May 1st.  Through this tournament Austria-Hungary presented itself as a world leader  and the equal of France and England. Emperor Franz Joseph, Baron Albert Salomon von Rothschild and Baron Ignaz von Kolisch contributed large sums to the prize fund.  Belgium In Belgium, King Baudouin used to play chess just for fun.  Bohemia King Ottokar II of Bohemia also known as the Iron and Golden King liked to play chess.  Czech Republic Oldrich Duras was a famous chess player from the Czech Republic. He played against Dr. Jur. Wladimir Count Lazanski (1857-1925).  This man was the  husband of Mechtilidis Wallburg-Zeil-Trachburg. As you can see on the name, she was family of the wife of Archduke Theodor

Buckingham Palace is without no doubt one of the most iconic buildings of London and the symbol of the British monarchy.  This book is not about the palace itself or the events that happened there but it's, what me interested the most: its gardens.  Normally it's hidden from sight as it is The Queen's private Londen garden. However the garden also fulfils many roles. Every summer it welcomes thousands of guests for the famous Garden Parties.  Buckinham Palace - A Royal Garden is a wonderful book from the Royal Collection  Trust and written by Claire Masset.  The book The book features wonderful pictures and fatastic ideas to implement at your garden or balcony at home.  The chapters are devided in the seasons of the year: spring, summer, autumn and  of course winter with lots of fantastic hints. It also tells about the history of Buckingham Palace: A Royal Garden, when  King George III and Queen Charlotte turned parts of the garden to pasture.  And it reveals which garden f

On 22 June 1868, queen Victoria hosted the first ever Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.  Of course, she mentioned this special event in her diary:  "The afternoon splendid & not too hot." "Quantities of people on the lawn who I had to recognise as I went along." Despite her anxiety the day was a resounding success. It was recorded in  The Illustrated London News.  Two particularly lavish Garden Parties were held to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden and Diamond Jubilees in 1887 and 1897. Source pictures: Wikipedia