October 2007 Newsletter: Male Consorts

[Avalon]

The ‘Consorts’ are usually associated with Females. The idea of Male Consorts is relatively more unusual.
Prince Henrik once mentioned that ‘in the eye of the public, the Prince consorts have no existence of their own, because we're only defined by our other half... The Queen's Husband’.
The Duke of Edinburgh once bitterly remarked that he is ‘the only father in the country unable to pass his name to his children’.

There are countries that didn’t have Male Consorts at all, whether because of Salic Laws (like in France), or simply because there were always male heirs.
While some Consorts, like Prince Albert, have managed to have their say in the History, others resigned to the fact that the public life of the Prince Consort cannot be separated from that of the Queen, so most of what he accomplished was tied to her accomplishments.

The position in which the Prince Consorts were and are placed by their marriages offers considerable difficulties. With the potential of more Prince Consorts in future (especially since many of Europe’s future heirs are females), we thought it would be interesting to have a look how Consorts of the Queen Regnants coped with their position in the past.

Some Male Consorts are missing because they were Monarchs of different countries in their own right, like Philip II of Spain, Consort of Queen Mary I of England. Some others are omitted simply because the size of the newsletter wouldn’t allow including every single Male Consort there had ever been.

Bearing in mind the recent 40th Wedding Anniversary of Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik, as well as upcoming 60th Wedding Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, our main focus is on these two remarkable Men, who’ve managed to handle their positions exceptionally well.


And finally, we wish you all a not too rainy and pleasant October!
Norwegianne, Zonk and Avalon

[Avalon]

Ysbel, our long standing Picture of the Month Polls Coordinator decided to have a little more spare time (and considerably less headache) and stepped down from her position of Coordinator. We all want to say a big Thank You to ysbel for her magnificent job, her patience and her great advices.

We would also like to welcome Empress as new Picture of the Month Coordinator and Lady Jennifer as Assistant Picture of the Month Coordinator. We are sure they will both do an excellent job.
Meanwhile, Mandy has returned to her old position of Picture of the Month Supervisor.

Don't forget about our new venture - if you are interested in writing an article about something royalty-connected, please contact ysbel, Mandy Ennyllorac, Elspeth or Avalon. We will be glad to discuss your ideas.
We already have very interesting articles and we hope to introduce you all to them fairly soon.

And lastly, remember that we are on constant lookout for new Moderators and Picture of the Month Committee Members.
If you are interested to become a Moderator, please send one of the Administrators (Warren, Mandy, norwegianne, Elspeth, Ennyllorac or Avalon) the information we ask in this thread.
If you want to become a Committee Member for any of the Picture of the Month Teams, contact one of the Picture of the Month Coordinators (Empress and Lady Jennifer), Picture of the Month Supervisor (Mandy) or the PoM Representative of the Committee you are interested to join.

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Birthdays:

September 1st - Crown Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands
September 3rd - Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia
September 5th - Pierre Rainier Stefano Casiraghi
September 6th - Prince Hisahito of Japan
September 7th - Prince Rudolf Ferdinand of Liechtenstein
September 8th - Duke Paul Marie of Oldenburg
September 11th - Princess Kiko of Japan
September 11th - Queen Paola of Belgium
September 11th - Prince Talal of Jordan
September 11th - Princess Iman of Iran
September 12th - Prince Mohammed of Jordan
September 13th - Princess Astrid of Liechtenstein
September 13th - Archduchesses Monika and Michaela of Austria
September 14th - Count Friedrich Richard Oscar Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth
September 15th - Prince Henry of Great Britain
September 15th - Crown Princess Letizia of Austrias
September 15th - Princess Jalilah of Jordan
September 17th - Odysseas Kimon, Prince of Greece and Denmark
September 17th - Duchess Rixa Marie-Alix of Oldenburg
September 17th - Crown Princess Pavlos Marie-Chantal of Greece and Denmark
September 22nd - Princess Märtha Louise of Norway
September 23rd - Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna of Russia
September 25th - Prince Johan Friso van Oranje-Nassau
September 26th - Princess Salma of Jordan
September 27th - Princess Iman of Jordan
September 29th - Baroness Christina Louise Silfverschiold
September 29th - Juan Urdangarín y Bórbon
September 30th - Princess Maria-Esmeralda of Belgium
September 30th - Ari Behn

Wedding Anniversaries

Sepember 4th - Donna Lavinia dei Principi Borromeo Arese Taverna & John Elkann 2004
September 7th - Prince Ali and Rym al-Brahimi: 8 September 2004
September 8th - Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg & Sibilla Weiller 1994
September 9th - Crown Prince Bilah of Brunei & Sarah Salleh - September 2004
September 10th - Archduchess Constanza of Habsburg & Prince Franz-Joseph Auersperg-Trautson 1994
September 10th - Tom Parker Bowles & Sara Buys 2005
September 11th - Archduke Sigismund of Austria-Tuscany & Lady Elyssa Edmonstone 1999
September 12th - Simoneta Gomez-Acebo & José Miguel Fernández Sastrón 1990
September 13th - Erbprinz Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg & Saskia Li Binder, 2003
September 15th - Prince Kyril of Bulgaria & Rosario Nadal, 15 September 1989
September 16th - Prince Hussain Aga Khan and Princess Khaliya: 16 September 2006
September 18th - King Constantine of Greece & Princess Anne Marie of Denmark 1964
September 18th - Beltrán Gómez-Acebo Borbón & Laura Ponte 2004
September 19th - Princess Anna of Bourbon-Two Sicilies & Count Rodolphe de Causans 2005
September 21st - Princess Margarita of Romania & Radu Duda 1996
September 22nd - Princess Astrid Of Belgium & Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este 1984
September 24th - Alvaro Fernandez de Araoz Gomez Acebo & Nathalie Picquot 2005
September 25th - Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy & Clotilde Courau 2003
September 25th - http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums/f31/duchess-elisabeth-bavaria-daniel-terberger-2004-a-3684.html
Sepember 27th - http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums...a-de-borbon-do
September 29th - Prince Louis of Luxembourg and Tessy Antony: September 29, 2006


State and Official Visits

Haakon in Trondheim - September 2007

Queen Rania in China - September 4-7, 2007
State Visit from Brazil: 12-13 September 2007
State Visit from Brazil, 13 & 14 September, 2007
Official Visit to New York, 17-21 September, 2007
Mette-Marit's visit to the Red Cross Center in Sandvika
WA & Maxima´s Official Visit to Slovenia; 2-4 Oct. 2007
Crown Princess Victoria's Official Visit to China - September 2005





Special Occasions

Ramadan 2007
Photoshoot at Skaugum - 3/9-2007
HM King Carl XVI Gustaf's Enthronement
Princess Grace of Monaco dies 25 years ago
Prince Louis and Tessy have second son: Noah
Queen Paola´s 70th birthday; September 11, 2007
Infanta Leonor starts school - Photocall on September 7th, 2007
Crown Princess Mary establishes The Mary Foundation: 11 September 2007
Presentation of Infanta Sofia to the Virgin of Atocha - September 19th, 2007

[Avalon]

Birthdays

October 1 - Birthday of Crown Prince Himani of Nepal
October 1 - Birthday of Prince Nicholaos of Greece
October 4 - Birthday of Prince Emmanuel of Belgium
October 5 - Birthday of Archduchess Walburga of Austria
October 5 - Birthday of Princess Noor of Jordan
October 7 - Birthday of Queen Saleha of Brunei
October 8 - Birthday of Laure Clementine Napoleon
October 9 - Birthday of Prince Edward, The Duke of Kent
October 11 - Birthday of Prince Faisal of Jordan
October 11 - Birthday of Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg
October 11 - Birthday of Princess Luisa Maria of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este
October 11 - Birthday of Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands
October 12 - Birthday of Prince Boris of Bulgaria
October 13 - Birthday of Jaime (Jacques) de Bourbon-Parma, Count of Bardi
October 13 - Birthday of Archduchess Gabriella of Austria
October 13 - Birthday of Margarita de Bourbon-Parma, Countess of Colorno
October 14 - Birthday of Empress Farah Pahlavi
October 15 - Birthday of HRH Prince Christian of Denmark
October 15 - Birthday of Sarah, Duchess of York
October 16 - Birthday of Princess Kritika of Nepal
October 17 - Birthday of Princess Marie Caroline of Liechtenstein
October 18 - Birthday of Princess Aimée of Orange-Nassau, van Vollenhoven
October 19 - Birthday of Prince Charles Napoleon and Princess Catherine Napoleon
October 19 - Birthday of Prince Laurent of Belgium
October 20 - Birthday of Empress Michiko of Japan
October 21 - Birthday of Shaikh Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa
October 23 - Birthday of Princess Mako of Japan
October 24 - Birthday of Prince Nikolaus Ferdinand Maria Josef Raphael of Liechtenstein
October 24 - Birthday of Princess Caroline Napoleon
October 25 - Birthday of Princess Yoko of Mikasa
October 25 - Birthday of King Michael of Romania
October 25 - Birthday of Princess Elisabeth of Belgium
October 26 - Birthday of Lucas van Lippe-Biesterfeld van Vollenhoven
October 26 - Birthday of Ashraf Pahlavi
October 26 - Birthday of late Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
October 27 - Birthday of Princess Shahnaz Pahlavi
October 27 - Birthday of Princess Anita of Orange-Nassau, van Vollenhoven
October 28 - Birthday of Hereditary Princess Sophie Elisabeth Marie Gabrielle of Liechenstein
October 28 - Birthday of Prince Omar of Jordan
October 29 - Birthday of Tessy de Nassau
October 29 - Birthday of Prince Konstantinos-Alexios
October 29 - Birthday of Prince Richard zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
October 31 - Birthday of Princess Nora of Liechtenstein
October 31 - Birthday of Princess Margaretha Mrs Ambler
October 31 - Birthday of Count Carl Johan Bernadotte of Wisborg
October 31 - Birthday of Crown prince Reza Pahlavi
October 31 - Birthday of HRH Infanta Leonor of Spain


Death Anniversaries

October 3, 1990 - Death Anniversary of Stefano Casiraghi

October 6, 2003 - Death of Prince Claus of the Netherlands
October 26, 2001 - Death Anniversary of Queen Soraya Esfandiary


Wedding Anniversaries

October 4 - Wedding Anniversary of Infanta Cristina and Inaki Urdangarin
October 8 - Wedding Anniversary of David, Viscount Linley and Serena Stanhope
October 12 - Wedding Anniversary of Infanta Margarita and Don Carlos Zurita
October 18 - Wedding Anniversary of Archduke Paul Georg von Habsburg & Erika von Oldenburg
October 22 - Wedding Anniversary of Prince Floris and Aimee Soehngen
October 26 - Wedding Anniversary of Kalina of Bulgaria and Kitin Munoz
October 31 - Wedding Anniversary of Charles Bourbon two Siciles and Camilla Crociani


State Visits

State Visit to Germany
Queen Silvia in Estonia
State Visit from Germany
Princess Astrid's visit to USA
Queen Sofía visits El Salvador
WA and Maxima´s Official Visit to Bhutan
Danish Crown Prince Couple Official Visit to Romania
Princess Astrid: Official Visit to Tanzania for “Roll back Malaria"

Other Events of Note

Princess Mathilde is pregnant
Joachim and Marie Cavellier engaged

Baptism of Princess Ariane: October 20th 2007

Opening Of Parliament – October 2,2007
Opening of Parliament (Stortinget) 2/10-07
The King's Gala Dinner for Stortinget - 2007

Enthronement Ceremony Anniversary of Grand-Duke Henri

[Avalon]

source - kongehuset.dk, credit - Steen Evald

It can be hard for a husband to have to walk behind his wife, but Prince Henrik of Denmark have seemingly managed to get used to the idea. However, there have been cases of him feeling discriminated because he is male in a role that is traditionally female, eg. the role of consort to the monarch. In January 2002 Queen Margrethe couldn't attend the New Year's Cour because of broken ribs. The logical deduction, Henrik argued, would be as would have been done if the same had happened to King Frederik IX - his wife would have stepped in to host it instead, with help from the heir. In this situation, however, the impression given by the media was that the heir stepped up to host it, with help from the spouse. It has already been argued ad nauseaum in the Danish press whether or not this was correct, but the main point for Prince Henrik was that he felt delegated to a third place in his own family, which resulted in an interview with Bodil Cath published in newspaper BT on February 3, 2002. His family joined him at the Chateau in France, where they held a press conference/photoshoot .

But, let's get back to the beginning. Prince Henrik of Denmark was born Henri de Laborde de Monpezat on June 11, 1934, in his grandmother's house in Talence, France. Henri would have 8 brothers and sisters, although not all of them reached adult age. The first five years of his life was in Vietnam, where his father ran a business started by his grandfather.

In 1939 The Monpezat family returned to France. What was to be a short visit, was transformed into a very long one by the outbreak of WWII. They lost the income from the business in Vietnam, and had to live off their farm in France. Henri and his brothers and sisters were taught privately at home during this period, and this is when he started to play the piano. He began his schooling away from home, at a boarding school in Bordeaux, at the age of 13. He also continued with his piano lessons and would later perform as a pianist for the family with his father-in-law as the conductor.

Henri returned to Hanoi with his father in 1950 and became a student at the French lysée there. He passed his exams in 1952 and returned to France to start university in Paris at Sorbonne and the school of Oriental languages. He also spent a year as an exchange student at the university in Hong Kong. After the year in Hong Kong he spent some time in Saigon. There he worked briefly as a holiday temp for a radio DJ.

When he was 24 years old, Henri visited a shaman in the orient. The shaman proclaimed that he would get married at the age of 33, far away from his own country. He would disappear from the world, without dying. He would become a different person, famous and rich, and live surrounded by water.

In 1959, Henri joined the military and did his military service in Algier, during the war of Independence there. He was hired by the French foreign ministry in 1962, and worked in the Asiatic division for a while before joining the French embassy in London as an attaché in 1963.

In 1996 Prince Henrik published his autobiography in French, Destin Oblige, which was translated into Danish. In that biography he mentions his first meeting with his wife, back in 1965. He was attending a dinner party hosted by some friends. He had been informed that the Danish heir to the throne would be present, and therefore anticipated that the evening would be fairly dull. Henri therefore vowed that he would try to leave as soon as he could, to avoid the boredom. At dinner he was seated next to the "dull" heiress, and discovered that she wasn't dull at all. Quite the opposite.

Henri and Margrethe would have several meetings in the time that followed - outings with mutual friends, outings on their own, in the restaurants and nightclubs of London. Eventually they discovered that the attraction between them had matured into love. Henri mentions that it was easy for him to think about a Frenchman in London being in love with a Danish girl. He found it much more difficult to imagine what made the heir to the Danish throne fall in love with him. Henri agonized over making the right choice in terms of marriage. He wondered if the heir to the throne could truly follow her own heart in terms of picking who she wanted to marry, and would he be accepted by the Danes? He did not want to be the cause of Margrethe's abdication.
He eventually proposed at a St. John's Eve celebration in Denmark , and the answer was positive. The official engagement came in October 1966 and they were married in June 1967. Henri Laborde de Monpezat became Prins Henrik af Danmark - Prince Henrik of Denmark.

Henrik chose to give his wedding speech in Danish. He has later acknowledged that this was one of his worst ideas, as it aired on television, and he wasn't very familiar with the pronounciation of the language at the time. Learning to speak Danish was a process that took many year, and was made more difficult by the fact that he spoke French at home with his wife and later with his children. He spoke French with them, to give them the ability to be bilingual - with the consequence that his own Danish sufferend.

After the wedding, Henrik began his work as the consort of the future Queen of Denmark. One of the task was to become a pilot in the Danish Air Force - although he was not permitted to fly solo until after the conception and birth of his first child in order to ensure that the first child would be born.

In May 1968 the heir to the throne, Prince Frederik was born. A year later, Prince Joachim followed and the family was complete. As his wife was fairly busy, even more so after her father died, it became Prince Henrik who would oversee the majority of his sons' upbringing. Being of a different generation than today's parents, he may have seemed strict to us, but Prince Joachim mentioned that spending time with his father was a fascinating experience, while Crown Prince Frederik jokingly mentioned in his speech to his parents at their Silver Wedding anniversary that there is an old saying about punishing those we love - and the princes had never doubted the love from their father. Prince Henrik himself mentions that he believes in a firm and guiding, but loving hand, from parents to ensure that the children are guided onto the right path in life.

In 1974 Henrik and Margrethe purchased a rundown castle close to Henrik's parents' winery. Since then they have spent summers there, and Henrik produces wine that is sold all over the world.

They also work together in more intellectual endeavours - in 1981 they translated a book by Simone de Beauvoir from French to Danish together.

In 1984, the Danish government acknowledged the part played by Prince Henrik - and gave him his own allowance, separate from his wife's.

Prince Henrik enjoys inventing new recipes together with the royal chefs- and have published several cookbooks. He has also published quite a bit of poetry.

He is also fond of hunting for meat to the recipes. Other hobbies include sailing, tennis, and slalom.

Among his protectorates are:
• Alliance Française
• Amatørsymfonikerne
• Blindes støttefond
• Bloddononerne i Danmark
• Dansk Epilepsiforening
• Dansk Fransk Handelsunion
• Dansk Kennel Klub
• Dansk Korforening
• Dansk militært Idrætsforbund
• Dansk Røde Kors
• Lion's Clubs International
• Nicolai Malko International Competition for Young Conductors
• Phuket Marine Biological Center
• Prix Littéraire des Ambassadeurs
• Scandinavian Festival of Music
• Société Huguenote
• Souvenir Francais
• Souvenir Normand - Dansk Normannisk Selskab

Prince Henrik mentions that "in the eye of the public, the Prince consorts have no existence of their own, because we're only defined by our other half... The Queen's Husband." With the potential of more prince consorts in the future - it will be interesting to see how or if one can learn from the past situations that arise when the gender roles are switched.

[Avalon]

copyright - Crown Copyright, credit - Mark Lawrence, 2 Digital

Today, Prince Philip is regarded as the often controversial, yet inseparable part of the Royal Family. He is almost a perfect consort (or at least, as perfect as male consort can be), always making sure to walk a few steps behind the Queen and never overshadowing his wife. A proud man as he is, Philip had to agree that the surname of his children should be Windsor, rather then Mountbatten. He is the Queen’s castle and rock, her ‘Viking’. And it was the same way ever since they have met – on a good, sunny day in 1939, when the 13 years old future Queen of the United Kingdom laid her eyes on her tall and handsome cousin, 18 years old Prince Philip. They met to be separated by the World War 2, only to reunite after the victory and never part again.

Prince Philip was born on June 10, 1921 in Corfu, Greece. Through his father, Prince Andrew, he was a descendant of the Royal Houses of Greece, Denmark and Imperial Family of Russia. Through his mother, Princess Alice, he was a direct descendant of Queen Victoria, as well as descendant of the Swedish Royal House and Princely Houses of Battenberg, Hesse and Rhine.

The time of his birth corresponded with the politically unstable times in Corfu, and when Philip was about 1 years old, the Revolution started. King George V ordered the Royal Navy to evacuate the Family.
Philip’s family lived in Paris for the following few years but later he was sent to England, to continue his education. There, aged 18, he met his 2nd cousin, 13 years old Princess Elizabeth. Eight years later, on November 20, 1947, they were married.
Before the marriage, Philip was required to convert from Greek Orthodoxy to Anglicanism and renounce Greek and Danish Royal titles. He took the name Mountbatten, and the day before the wedding, King George titled Philip The Duke of Edinburgh. Many of Philip’s relatives were not invited because of their ties with Nazis (like all 3 of his sisters, who were married to German Princes).

The young couple decided to enjoy the relatively free time they still had, fully aware of the future that was ahead of them. Philip returned to the Navy and was stationed in Malta, where Princess Elizabeth joined him.
The period between 1948 and 1951 is usually described as the happiest time for the couple: they enjoyed relative privacy in the island of Malta and welcomed two of their children, Charles and Anne.

In January 1952 The Duke and Princess Elizabeth set off for a tour of the Commonwealth. When they were in Kenya, King George died and Princess Elizabeth ascended the Throne as Queen Elizabeth II. Philip himself broke the news to the new Queen. They returned to England immediately. After her accession to the Throne, the Queen announced that the Duke was to have precedence next to the Queen on all occasions and meeting, which means the Duke is the first Gentleman of the land, preceding over his son, The Prince of Wales. Slightly more problematic proved to be the question of the Royal Family name. An order-in-council, issued in 1960, states that the surname of the male-line descendants of the Duke and the Queen, who wish to be HRH or Prince(ess) of the United Kingdom, was to be Windsor. This lead to the bitter remark from the Duke of Edinburgh that he is ‘the only father in the country unable to pass his name to his children’. In practice, however, the Duke’s children have all used Mountbatten-Windsor as their surname.

Another controversial issue was Prince Philip’s title: The Queen wanted to make him Prince of the Commonwealth, and Churchill reluctantly agreed to ask Commonwealth leaders to give their consent to the title, however the Duke requested the Queen to abandon attempts to ‘boost’ his title. Although there have long been talks the Queen would grant the Duke the title “Prince Consort” – title, created by Queen Victoria for Prince Albert and never used by any other spouse of a Monarch, but this never happened as well.

Although the Duke was unable to pursue his Naval Career after his wife became Queen, he nevertheless, always had close ties with the Military: in 1952, the Duke was given the rank and titles of Admiral of the Fleet, Field Marshal, Marshal of the Royal Air Force and Captain-General of the Royal Marines.

The Duke of Edinburgh has supported the Queen for almost 60 years, attended state visits abroad, and received foreign dignitaries together.
He is patron or president of some 800 organisations, with special interests in scientific and technological research and development, the encouragement of sport, the welfare of young people, and conservation and the environment.
Industry is a particular interest, and there is hardly an aspect of the UK's industrial life with which Prince Philip is not familiar.
He has visited research stations and laboratories, coalmines and factories, engineering works and industrial plants - all with the aim of understanding, and contributing to the improvement of, British industrial life.
As Patron of The Work Foundation, he has sponsored six conferences on the human problems of industrial communities within the Commonwealth.
The environment is another key interest. Since visiting Antarctica and the South Atlantic in 1956-57, Prince Philip has devoted himself to raising public awareness of the relationship of humanity with the environment.
He was the first President of World Wildlife Fund - UK (WWF) from its formation in 1961 to 1982, and International President of WWF (later the World Wide Fund for Nature) from 1981 to 1996. He is now President Emeritus of WWF.
He is perhaps most famous for his work with The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, which is aimed ‘to give young people a sense of responsibility to themselves and their communities’: the scheme now operates in 100 countries around the World.

For much of his life, Prince Philip has loved adventurous sporting pursuits, participating in polo, flying and sailing.
Now in his ninth decade, he still competes in carriage-driving, a sport which he has been instrumental in helping to shape, and for which he drew up the early rule book.
He has built up collections of contemporary art, including works by Australian and Scottish artists, and wildlife paintings. The Duke also enjoys painting in oils.

One of Prince Philip's more unusual collections is his series of contemporary cartoons, some featuring Royal occasions. They are hung in Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Sandringham and Balmoral.
In this interest, the Duke is following a tradition pursued by the Royal Family since the eighteenth century. Both George III and George IV collected caricatures, now in the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

His Royal Highness is also an enthusiastic lover of wildlife. He became interested in bird-watching during two round-the-Commonwealth voyages in HMY Britannia in 1956-1957 and 1959. During the trips he was captivated by the sea birds of the South Pacific and South Atlantic.

The Duke is also well-known for his rather specific humour: speaking to a driving instructor in Scotland, the Duke asked: ‘How do you keep the natives off the booze long enough to get them through the test?’
When visiting China in 1986, he told a group of British students, ‘If you stay here much longer, you’ll all be slitty-eyed’.
He asked a British student in Papua New Guinea: ‘You managed not to get eaten then?’
To a Briton in Budapest, Hungary, he said ‘You can’t have been here that long – you haven’t got a pot belly’ (Hungarian food is indeed delicious though).
In 1966 he remarked that ‘British women can’t cook’.
In 1987, he wrote in his book If I Were An Animal that ‘in the event that I’m reincarnated, I would like to return as a deadly virus, in order to contribute something to solve overpopulation’.

Prince Philip is a remarkable man: his critics and admirers are united at least in that question. He may have a specific sense of humour, but on the other hand he is every inch a Prince. He would be one, even if he had no blue blood in his veins: it’s just the way he behaves, smiles and presents himself. He has been criticized, and criticized harshly, especially when it comes to his relationships with his daughters-in-law (particularly the late Princess of Wales and Duchess of York) and his numerous gaffes. But one thing can not be denied: Prince Philip has always been there for the Queen. Can anyone imagine two of them without each other?

In 2002, on the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth, the Duke was commended by the Speaker of the House of Commons for his role in supporting the Queen during her reign.

[Avalon]

Prince George of Denmark (Britain)

Prince George was born on April 2, 1653 as Prince Jørgen of Denmark and Norway. His father was Frederick III of Denmark and Norway, who introduced absolute Monarchy to those countries. Being from Protestant country, Jørgen was a suitable husband for Princess Anne; at that time, it was not likely that Anne would ever become Queen. On the day of his marriage, on July 28, 1683, Jørgen’s name was changed to more British-sounding George. He was created a British subject, a Knight of the Garter and Duke of Cumberland.

George and Anne were happy together and their marriage could have been called successful, but none of the children from the Queen’s 18 pregnancies survived adulthood. This low birth rate and poor infant survival, as well as the rumours circulating at the time, suggest that Prince George suffered from syphilis.

After Anne's older sister Mary moved to the Netherlands after her marriage to William III of Orange, Protestant opposition to James was increasingly focused on Anne and George instead of Mary. The social and political grouping centered on Prince George and Princess Anne was known as the "Cockpit Circle" after the Cockpit, their London residence. In 1688 the decision of William, Mary, George and Anne to stand against the embattled King James II was instrumental in whittling away the king's legitimacy and paved the way for the Glorious Revolution, which was led by William and supported by George.

Although George had good relationships with Mary, relationships with William were cooler: William apparently refused to attend James II's coronation in 1685 because George, as a senior member of a European royal family, would outrank him as elected stadholder of a republic; this mistrust was overcome during the revolution but dogged relations between George and William during the latter's reign. Some degree of reconciliation was achieved on Queen Mary's sudden and unexpected death from smallpox in 1694; but George did not play a senior role in government until his wife Anne succeeded William in 1702.

George was an able administrator and military strategist, and as Lord High Admiral, officially headed the Royal Navy in support of the military activities of Anne's favourite, the Captain-General Lord John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough.

On George's death in 1708, Anne was disconsolate, and although she refused initially to put the Navy into commission she was unable to bring herself to sign papers in George's stead,

Charles II, Anne's uncle, famously said of Prince George, on the occasion of his marriage to Anne, "I have tried him drunk, and I have tried him sober; and there is nothing in him". He was not seen as one of the most colourful political characters of his day, but he was a skilled strategist and an able administrator, and a loyal and supportive husband to Queen Anne. By all accounts their marriage was a devoted and loving one in spite of their earlier personal tragedies,

Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (United Kingdom)

Prince Albert was born on August 26, 1819 to Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. Albert’s aunt, Victoria, was married to Edward, Duke of Kent, the fourth son of King George III and was the mother of the future Queen Victoria. Thus Albert and Victoria were first cousins.
As a child, Albert was close to his younger brother: both suffered from their parents’ turbulent marriage and eventual separation. The boys were close to their mother, but she was exiled from court, barred from seeing her children again and died soon after.

Albert received good education and was a gifted young man: he attended the University of Bonn, where he studied natural science, political economy, philosophy, music, painting and excelled in gymnastics.

The idea of marriage between Albert and Victoria was cherished by their uncle, Kling Leopold of Belgium and the Duchess of Kent, athough King William IV, who disapproved of the Duchess of Kent and all her relatives, was strongly opposed to such prospect. When she met Albert at the Kensington Palace, she wrote to King Leopold and said that Albert was "extremely handsome" and thanked him for the "prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me in the person of dear Albert. He possesses every quality that could be desired to render me perfectly happy."

After Victoria came to the throne on 20 June 1837, her letters show interest in Albert's being educated for the part he would have to play. When Victoria and Albert met next time, mutual inclination and affection brought about the result so desired by their uncle. On October 15, 1839 their engagement was announced and they were married on February 10, 1840. Albert was granted the style of Royal Highness.
Together Albert and Victoria had 9 children and all but Princess Louise married into European Royal Families.

Prince Albert, a man of cultured and liberal ideas, proved well qualified to take the lead in many reforms that the country needed. He had a special interest in applying science and art to the manufacturing industry. The Great Exhibition of 1851 originated in a suggestion he made at a meeting of the Society of Arts and owed the greater part of its success to his intelligent and unwearied efforts. However, he had to fight for every stage of the project: both the House of Lords and House of Commons were united in opposition. Although he received numerous abusive letters and threats, he didn't drop the project. The Queen opened the exhibition on 1 May 1851, and it proved a colossal success. The surplus of 186,000 pounds sterling it raised went to purchase land in South Kensington and establish a number of educational and cultural institutions, including what would later be named the Victoria and Albert Museum. This area of London is sometimes referred to as "Albertopolis".

Prince Albert involved himself in promoting many similar, smaller public, educational institutions. Chiefly at meetings in connection with these he found occasion to make the speeches collected and published in 1857. One of his memorable speeches was the inaugural address he delivered as president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science when it met at Aberdeen in 1859.

The education of his family and the management of his domestic affairs furnished the prince with another very important sphere of action, in which he employed himself with conscientious devotion. The estates of the Duchy of Cornwall, the hereditary property of his son, the Prince of Wales, improved greatly under his father's management.

As the prince became better known, public mistrust began to give way. In 1847 he was elected chancellor of the University of Cambridge. In June 1857 the formal title of Prince Consort was conferred upon him by letters patent, in order to settle certain difficulties as to precedence that had arisen at foreign courts.
Though Prince Albert is rightly credited with introducing the principle that the British Royal Family should remain above politics, in 1861, when the Trent Affair threatened war between the United States and Britain, it was largely due to Albert’s timely interference and influence that softened British diplomatic response and helped avoiding a war

During the autumn of 1861 he was busy with the arrangements for the projected international exhibition, and returning from a meeting in connection with that project that he was seized with his last illness. Although at first it was thought to be inluenza, it proved to be an attack of typhoid fever, and, congestion of the lungs supervening, he died on 14 December.

The Queen's grief was overwhelming, and the sympathy of the whole nation erased the tepid feelings the public had for him during his lifetime. Queen Victoria wore black, mourning for him for the rest of her long life.

The magnificent mausoleum at Frogmore is the last resting place of Prince Albert. Many public monuments were erected all over the country, the most notable being the Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial in London.

Today, Queen Elizabeth II, King Carl XVI Gustaf, Queen Margrethe, King Juan Carlos, King Peter II, Former King Constantine and numerous other Royals are his direct descendants. Thus, many consider Prince Albert to be the 'Grandfather of Europe'.

Although the position in which the prince was placed by his marriage offered considerable difficulties, the tactful way in which he filled it was inadequately appreciated, at least during his lifetime. The public life of the Prince Consort cannot be separated from that of the Queen, so most of what he accomplished was tied to her accomplishments.
Nevertheless, it is above arguments that Prince Albert was one of the greatest, if not greatest, Consorts the United Kingdom ever had.

[Avalon]

Prince Hendrikof Mecklenburg-Schwerin (the Netherlands)

Choosing a husband for Queen Wilhelmina was not an easy task, but Duke Heinrich Wladimir Albrecht Ernst of Mecklenburg-Schwerin seemed to be a perfect candidate. They were were introduced and an engagement followed quickly afterwards.
Heinrich’s name was dutchified to Hendrik and he received the title Prince of The Netherlands. He didn’t, however, receive the title Prince of Orange and an allowance, as promised by the Government.

Though the marriage started well, the first cracks appeared fairly soon. Since the Dutch court had no experience with Prince Consorts, nobody knew what to do with Hendrik. He hoped to be some sort of political advisor to his wife, but the Queen made it clear that he wasn’t to interfere.

The lack of money and the idleness made Hendrik look for entertainment elsewhere: he made debts, had various lovers. It was even suspected that his sexual diseases were the cause of Queen Wilhelmina's several miscarriages. But in 1909 the heir, Juliana, was born.

As Hendrik was not allowed to be involved in politics, in the beginning of his marriage Hendrik was mostly active at Palace Het Loo, involved in forestry and hunting. Later he became a chairman of the Red Cross and received honorary ranks in the army, but he was not satisfied by these functions: Once Hendrik remarked ‘Ich bin nur das Gepack’ - ‘I am only the luggage’.

He kept making more debts and seeing more women and the Queen had to pay those debts. After a while she had enough of it and had her confident, Francois Van’t Sant taking care of the blackmail, debts amd Hendrik's behavior.

During the last years of his life Hendrik’s health quickly declined. He became rheumatic and in 1929 had his first heart attack. On July 3, 1934 the second stroke caused Hendrik’s death. His funeral was all in white, as he saw the death as rebirth into a new life.

Prince Bernhard zu Lippe-Biesterfeld (the Netherlands)

After 7 years search for a husband for Crown Princess Juliana, the HSH Prince Bernhard zu Lippe-Biesterfeld seemed answer to their prayers. Bernhard introduced himself to Juliana in Austria in January 1936 and they got engaged half a year later.

The Prince, born on June 29, 1911, was the son of Prince Bernhard Sr. and the divorced baroness Armgard von Sierstopff-Cramm. As his uncle didn't approve the marriage of his father to a divorcee, at the time of his birth Bernhard was only a Count, but in 1916 he and his brother were elevated to Princes of Lippe-Biesterfield.

Bernhard spent his younger years at the estate Reckenwalde where he received private lessons. Later he would study in Berlin, Munich and Lausanne. After his studies he worked for Berlin-NW7, the company espionage branch of German pharmaceutical IG Farben. The Prince also became a member of the SA, the NSDAP and the Reiter-SS, although, as he later claimed, those memberships didn’t mean he had Nazi sympathies

In January 1937 Bernhard married Princess Juliana. He lost his German nationality and became HRH Prince Bernhard of The Netherlands, Prince van Lippe-Biesterfield. From this marriage 4 daughters - Beatrix, Irene, Margriet and Christina would be born.

When the World War II started, the Royal Family fled to London where Queen Wilhelmina led the Dutch government in exile. Prince Bernhard made it clear where his sympathies were and never had doubts about the final outcome of the war. He became Commander of the Dutch forces.
On May 5, 1945 he was present when the German troops surrendered in Wageningen.

The Dutch court gave the Prince more freedom and allowance than Prince Hendrik ever hoped to have. After the war Bernhard was very active in the military, always promoting the Trans-Atlantic relations, and undertaking various Economical missions. He was one of the co-founders of the World Nature Fund and he also started the Bilderberg conferences.

His marital life was more difficult: Juliana fall under the influence of the faith healer Greet Hofmans, hopeing she would cure her youngest daughter Christina from her near-blindness. Hofmans was said to control Queen Juliana and encouraged her pacifism. This caused a crisis at court and Bernhard and Juliana started to live in separate wings of Soestdijk palace. After the international press started writing about the story, the government installed a committee of ‘four wise men’ who had to solve the situation. The outcome was that Hofmans and her supporters had to leave the court. During those years, and later, Bernhard had looked elsewhere for female attention and he later acknowledged to have two illegitimate daughters, Alicia de Bielefeld and Alexia Lejeune.

In the 1976 another scandal arose, when it became clear that the Prince took bribes. The prime minister installed another committee of 'three wise men', who pointed at the end of their report that the Prince did take bribes. He was not charged, as Queen Juliana threatened to abdicate. To do justice and to limit the damage to the monarchy at the same time the Prince was requested not to wear military uniforms anymore and to drop several patronages.

After the abdication of his wife Juliana, the Prince stayed active in the fields of his interest (WWII veterans could always count on his attention and help) and despite his health problems, he still travelled a lot.
In March 2004 Queen Juliana died. He didn't live much longer and died in December of the same year. The Prince was buried in Delft.

Prince Claus von Amsberg (the Netherlands)

source -Government Information Service, copyright - RVD

On May 6, 1965 the ‘Daily Mail’ published paparazzi pictures of Crown Princess Beatrix walking hand in hand with an unknown man. He was quickly identified as Claus von Amsberg, a German diplomat. After the revelation, the couple was forced to take a decision and they announced their engagement. This caused a lot of upheaval in The Netherlands as Klaus was a German, had been a member of the Hitlerjugend and served in the Wehrmacht. The government requested a historian to look into the past of Claus and only after it was discovered that Klaus served in Italy, never took part in any fighting and not even a trace of anti-Semitism was found, did the Parliament decide to give permission for a wedding. The couple married on March 10, 1966, under the protests of WWII victims and anarchists.
The marriage would be a happy one and three sons were born within three years. The family lived in Drakensteyn Castle where they tried to protect their private life from the prying eyes of the public.

During his childhood Claus, his parents and his six sisters lived in Africa. He never forgot this continent and he started to work as an advisor to the minister of development aid. He briefly became the chairman of the National Committee of Development Strategy but the position was considered too political and he had to resign.

In 1980 his wife Beatrix succeeded Queen Juliana and the family moved to The Hague. With these changes the pressure on his family became much bigger: Prince had more ceremonial duties and seemed to suffer from the lack of ‘real’ work. In 1982 the Prince was committed to the hospital for 'complaints of depressive nature’. It would take him several years to overcome his depression.

In 1984 the government decided to use the competences of the Prince and he was installed as inspector-general of development aid. He also got a function in the Board of the Dutch Bank and became chairman of the export platform of the Ministry of Traffic. However in 1991 the depressions returned and the Prince also started to suffer from Parkinson’s disease.

In 1996 the Prince received the ‘Prince Claus Fund’ from the nation as a gift for his 70th birthday. The speeches he gave during this annual award were legendary and Prince Claus became the most popular member of the Royal Family. In this period his public image changed too: before he was usually considered a man in the shadow, sad and vulnerable. But now the public saw another side, his humor, his battle against gossip magazines, his openess agout himseld in the interviews. He opnly declared his love for his wife and once in a speech he took of his tie and threw it on the floor, as a funny protest against protocol.

During the last years of his life he suffered from several illnesses. In 1998 an operation for prostate cancer was successful but he got an infection when he was radiated in 2000. In 2001 a kidney was removed and he started to have troubles with the other kidney. The Prince was able to attend the wedding of his son Willem-Alexander to Maxima Zorreguieta and he saw his first grandchild, Countess Eloise.
On October 6, 2002 the Prince died from an ammonia and the consequences of Parkinson disease. He was buried 9 days later in Delft.