A Look Back at a Royal 2011

In this blogentry, we’re looking back at a Royal 2011. Obviously, I can’t mention everything. The information below is a summery of what happened last year. Monthly summaries, the link to the blogentry “A look back at a Royal 2010″and links to the blogentries “Looking Forward to a Royal 2011” & “- 2012” can be found via the links at the bottem of this entry.

In January, Crown Prince Billah and Crown Princess Sarah of Brunei had their second child and first daughter, Princess Muneerah. The Princess joined older brother Prince Abdul Muntaqim [TOPIC] Prince Ali Reza Pahlavi of Iran commited suicide on January 4. [TOPIC] On January 5, the 90th birthday of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg was celebrated. [TOPIC] Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark had their 3rd and 4th child and 2nd son and 2nd daughter, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, on 8 January. The little Prince and Princess joined older brother, Prince Christian, and older sister, Princess Isabella. [TOPIC] On January 17, King Harald of Norway celebrated his 20th anniversary as King of Norway. The Norwegian Royal Court released new official pictures. [TOPIC] The Court was generous in January 2011, it were not the only pictures released by the Royal Court. On January 21, Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway turned 7. In line with tradition, the Norwegian Royal Court released new pictures of the Princess.

In February the 30th wedding anniversary of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg took place. The Grand Ducal Court released new official pictures. [TOPIC] As the Norwegian Royal Court in January, the Grand Ducal Court of Luxembourg was generous with pictures as the 20th birthday of Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg took place on 16 February. The traditional photoshoot with the Dutch Royal family took place on 19 February. [TOPIC] More picture news, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Denmark released pictures of their then unnamed newborn twins. [TOPIC] Princess Margarita of Bourbon-Parma and Tjalling ten Cate and their second child and second daughter. Paola joined older sister Julia. Archduke Martin of Austria, and his wife, née Princess Katharina of Isenburg, had their 4th child and 3rd son, Archduke Luigi, on February 12. Luigi joined big brothers, Bartholomaus and Emmanuel, and big sister, Helene. To celebrate the 4th birthday of Princess Lalla Khadija of Morocco, the second child and only daughter of King Mohammed and Princess Lalla Salma. The Moroccan Royal Court released a new picture of the Princess, her parents, and her older brother, Crown Prince Moulay Hassan.

Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al-Khalifa of Bahrain announced that he got engaged to Princess Sahab bint Abdullah bin Aziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia on 7 March. The Sheikh is the 5th son of the King of Bahrain. The King of Saudi Arabia is the Princess’s father. More happy news from the Royal family of Saudi Arabia, Prince Khalid bin Bandar bin Sultan al-Saud of Saudi Arabia married Lucy Cuthbert on March 28. Prince Khalid is the son of Prince Bandar, the oldest son of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. Lucy is the middle daughter of Lady Victoria and John Cuthbert and the granddaughter of the 10th Duke of Northumberland. As such, she is the niece of the current Duke of Northumberland. [TOPIC] Prince Louis of Schonburg-Hartenstein announced his engagement to Countess Elizabeth Beaufort-Spontin. The Prince is the oldest son of Hereditary Prince Johannes, while the Countess’s father is Frédéric, Duke and Fürst of Beaufort-Spontin. Prince Antonius of Fürstenberg and Countess Matilde Borromeo announced their engagement on March 4. Countess Mathilde is a half sister of Beatrice Borromeo, who is dating Pierre Casiraghi, youngest son of the Princess of Hanover, Hereditary Princess Caroline of Monaco. Princess Margarita of Bourbon-Parma and Tjalling ten Cate released the first pictures of their daughter Paola. Princess Antoinette of Monaco died on 17 March. [TOPIC] Fürst Paul of Quadt zu Wykradt und Isny died March 16. The Fürst leaves behind his wife, née Princess Charlotte of Bavaria, 2 sons, 2 daughters and 8 grandchildren.

April 11 brought the first day of school for Princess Ariane of the Netherlands, the youngest daughter of the Prince and Princess of Orange was joined by her parents and her older sisters, Princesses Amalia and Alexia. It also brought us the Christening of the Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine of Denmark, the 3rd and 4th child of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Denmark [and with that their names and new pictures] [TOPIC], the birth of the sixth child and second daughter of Prince Pedro and Princess Sofia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke and Duchess of Noto. Princess Blanca joined older brothers Jaime, Juan, Pablo and Pedro, and older sister, Sofia. April also brought the birth of Count Léopold of Limburg-Stirum, first child of Archduchess Marie-Christine of Austria and Count Rodolphe of Limburg-Stirum, and the long awaited wedding of Prince William of Wales, since the day of his wedding also The Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus, and Catherine Middleton. [SUB-FORUM]

In May, the Moroccan Royal Court released a new picture of King Mohammed and Princess Lalla Salma with their children, Crown Prince Moulay Hassan and Princess Lalla Khadija, to celebrate the 8th birthday of the Crown Prince. The Princess of Orange, Princess Máxima of the Netherlands, celebrated her 40th birthday with a big birthday concert with guests including representatives of many Royal families. The Dutch Royal Court also released new pictures of the Princess. [TOPIC] King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan announced his engagement to Jetsun Pema on 20 May. [TOPIC] To finish May, there is also babynews. The Duke and Duchess of Apulia, Prince Aimone and Princess Olga of Savoy-Aosta, Princess of Greece, had their second child and second son. The Duke of the Abruzzi, Prince Amedeo, joined older brother Prince Umberto, Prince of Piedmonte. [TOPIC]

The religious wedding of Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and
Alexander Johannsmann took place on June 18. The couple married civilly on May 27, 2010, and their first child, a son named Konstantin, was born on July 24, 2010.[TOPIC] Prince Antonius of Fürstenberg and Countess Matilde Borromeo got married on 11 June. June also brought the First Communion of both Don Miguel Urdangarín, third son of the Duke and Duchess of Palma de Marjorca and Princess Louise of Belgium, oldest child and only daughter of Prince Laurent and Princess Claire of Belgium. The Norwegian Royal Court released 3 new pictures of Crown Princess Mette-Marit. Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah of Jordan, oldest son of King Abdullah and Queen Rania of Jordan celebrated his 17th birthday. The Jordanian Royal Court released 2 new pictures of the Crown Prince to celebrate his birthday. June also saw the Grand Ducal family of Luxembourg posing before the media and the British Royal Court released an official picture to mark the official visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to Canada. Princess Hedwige of Liechtenstein and her husband Count Olivier of Quelen had twin girls, named Béatrice and Raphaëlle, on June 10. They join older sister, Maïwenn. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi and his second wife, née Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rachid Al Maktoum of Dubai, had their third child and second son together. Sheikh Hamdan was born on June 21 and joined full siblings Sheikha Fatima and Sheikh Mohammed, and half-brother Sheikh Zayed. The 14th Duke of Croÿ, Prince Carl, died on June 14.

Fürst Alexander and Fürstin Nadja Anna of Schaumburg-Lippe had their second child and second daughter together on 10 July. Princess Philomena joined older sister Princess Felipa and older half-brother, Hereditary Prince Ernst-August. Prince Albert II of Monaco married Charlene Wittstock at the beginning of July. [SUB-FORUM] Prince Rashid bin El Hassan of Jordan married Zeina Shaban on 22 July [TOPIC], while the wedding of Zara Phillips, daughter of the Princess Royal, and Mikael Tindall took place on 30 July. [TOPIC] Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad al Khalifa of Bahrain, 5th son of the King of Bahrain, married Princess Sahab bint Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud of Saudi Arabia. [TOPIC] Prince Siaosi Tuku’aho of Tonga, eldest son of Crown Prince Tupouto’a Lavaka and Princess Nanasipau’u Tuku’aho and second in line to the throne, announced that he’ll be courting his first cousin the Hon Sinaitakala Fakafanua, only daughter of Princess ‘Ofeina Fakafanua and the late Fakafanua. The Faitohi ceremony took place at the end July. This means an official engagement isn’t far off. Archduke Otto of Austria, Former head of the Imperial of Austria and Royal family of Hungary, died on 4 July. [TOPIC] Another member of the Imperial family of Austria died in July. Archduchess Marie Valerie of Austria, née Countess von Waldburg-Zeil-Hohenems, great-granddaughter of Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth “Sisi” of Austria, King and Queen of Hungary, née Duchess in Bavaria, died on 8 July. A photoshoot with the Queen and the Crown Princely family of the Netherlands took place on 4 July. [TOPIC] July 5 brought the celebration of the 30 year anniversary of Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza, Prince of Brazil, as the head of the Vassouras branch of the Imperial House of Brazil.

In August, The Prince of Prussia, Prince Georg Friedrich, married Princess Sophie of Isenburg. [TOPIC] More weddingnews, the civil wedding of Prince Christian Georg of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Princess Alice of Hohenlohe-Bartenstein took place on August 26. The religious wedding was scheduled to take place on August 27, but due to the illness of the mother of the bride, the wedding has been rescheduled for 2012. The Swedish Royal Court announced that the Crown Princess Couple, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel, are expecting their first child, the future King or Queen of Sweden, following his or her mother and grandfather. [TOPIC] More Royal babynews, the Danish Royal Court announced that Prince Joachim and Princess Marie are expecting their second child together. The new Prince or Princess will join older brother Prince Henrik and older half-brothers Princes Nikolai and Felix. [TOPIC] As seen on pictures, the Emir of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and his second wife née Princess Haya bint Al Hussein of Jordan, are expecting their second child together. The couple is already parents to Sheikha Al Jalila. [TOPIC] In addition to them, the Duke and Duchess of Vendôme, Prince Jean and Princess Philomena of Orléans, announced that they are expecting their second child in January 2012. The couple already have a son, Prince Gaston, and last, but not least, the Duke and Duchess of Anjou, Prince Charles-Philippe and Princess Diana of Orléans, Duchess of Cadaval, announced that they are expecting their first child in February 2012. The Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Perak had their second child and first daughter on August 3. The Princess joined older son Prince Muzaffar. August brought the first day of school of Prince Sverre Magnus of norway, son of Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit, and new pictures were released of the Prince. [TOPIC] Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Matte-Marit of Norway celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary on August 25. The Norwegian Royal Court celebrated this by releasing new pictures of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess and their family. There was also a church event, an event related to the Humanitarian fund of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess following the service and after that, there was a private dinner at the palace. [TOPIC]

In September Princess Lalla Aicha of Morocco [TOPIC] and Archduke Felix of Austria died. [TOPIC] Princess Anita of Orange-Nassau, van Vollenhoven, underwent surgery for a spontaneous leak of cerebrospinal fluid in her back at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Prince David Bagration-Mukhransky of Georgia and his wife, née Princess Anna Bagration-Gruzinsky of Georgia, had their first child together, Prince Giorgi Bagration Bagrationi of Georgia, who joined 2 older halfsisters, Irina and Miriam, daughters of the Princess and her first husband, Grigoriy Malania. Prince Antonius of Fürstenberg and his wife, née Countess Matilde Borromeo, had their first child, Prince Karl Egon, on 22 September.

In October the British Royal Court announced that Peter and Autumn Phillips, son and daughter-in-law of the Princess Royal, are expecting their second child. They are already parents to a daughter named Savannah. King Jigme Khesar Namgyel
Wangchuck of Bhutan married Jetsun Pema on October 13. [TOPIC] Prince Moulay Ismael and Lalla Anissa of Morocco, née Anissa Lehmkuhl, had their second child and first daughter on October 9. The Princess joined older brother Prince Moulay Abdullah. Countess Maria Antonia von Waldburg zu Wolfegg und Waldsee, née Princess of Hohenzollern, died on 11 October. Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia died on 21 October [TOPIC], Archduke Stephan (István) of Austria died on 24 October and Fürstin Franziska of Hohenlohe-Bartenstein, née Princess of Oettingen-Oettingen and Oettingen-Spielberg, died on 30 October.

The Crown Prince of Fujairah, Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad al-Sharqi, and his wife, née Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum of Dubai, had their second child and first daughter, Sheikha Aisha, on 2 November. Aisha joined older brother Hamad. Prince Hashim bin Hussein and Princess Fahdah Hashim of Jordan had their third daughter on November 5. Princess Fatimah Al-Alia joined older sisters Haalah and Rayet al-Noor. [TOPIC] The Duke and Duchess of Parma, Prince Carlos and Princess Annemarie of Bourbon-Parma, announced that they are expecting their first child together late May 2012. If it’s a boy he will be the future head of the Ducal and Royal family of Bourbon-Parma. The Duke has a legally unrecognized son with Brigitte Klynstra. The Danish Royal Court released the first picture of the Crown Princely family since the christening of Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, and the Dowager Duchess of Hohenberg, née Princess Elisabeth of Luxemburg, of Nassau and of Bourbon-Parma, and Crown Prince Leka of Albania, aka King Leka of the Albanians died in November. [TOPIC] Princess Cristina Maria of Orléans-Braganza, Princess of Brazil, announced the engagement of her daughter, Princess Paola Sapieha Rozanski, and Prince Constantin Swiatopolk-Czetwertynski. Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg celebrated his 30th birthday on 11 November. The Grand Ducal Court released new pictures.

In December Fürst Heinrich of Orsini and Rosenberg died. Princess Alexandra of Kent, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy, celebrated her 75th birthday on 25 December. Princess Tatjana of Liechtenstein and Philipp von Lattorff had their 7th child and 2nd son, Maximilian on 17 december. The couple are also parents to Lukas, Elisabeth, Marie Therese, Camilla, Anna and Sophia. [TOPIC] Sheikh Sultan bin Hamdan al-Nahyan of Abu Dhabi had his first son, Sheikh Zayed, on 23 December. The Danish Royal Court released their new and improved website in December. Just in time for the festivities related to Queen Margrethe’s 40 years on the throne anniversary and the birth of the second child together of Prince Joachim and Princess Marie in January 2012. 2 sons of Archduke Carl Christian of Austria and his wife née Princess Marie-Astrid of Luxembourg, officially celebrated their respective engagements on 22 December. Archduke Imre got engaged to Kathleen Walker and Archduke Christoph got engaged to Adélaïde Drapé-Frisch. News about the engagement of Archduke Christoph first emerged when he changed his Facebook status to engaged earlier this year. However nothing had been confirmed until 22 December. The Belgian Royal Court released new pictures of the Duke and Duchess of Brabant and their children, Princess Elisabeth, Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel and Princess Eléonore. The Spanish Royal family released their annual Christmas cards and the Danish Royal Christmas cards also found their way to the media. The Crown Princely family of Denmark send out a new picture of their 4 children. The Queen and Prince-Consort of Denmark used a picture of them visiting Greenland, Princess Benedikte of Denmark and of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, send a family picture of the religious wedding of her daughter Princess Nathalie, the Greek King and Queen had a picture taken of them and their grandchildren, the Spanish Royal couple send out a neutral picture, the Prince and Princess of Asturias send out a picture of them with their daughters Infanta Leonor and Infanta Sofía, the Duchess of Lugo send a picture of her children, Froilán and Victoria, and the Duchess and Duke of Palma de Majorca used a picture from Miguel’s communion. It shows the Duchess and Duke with their 4 children, Juan, Pablo, Miguel and Irene. The King and Queen of the Belgians send out a card with a picture of them surrounded by round pictures of their grandchildren and Prince Laurent and Princess Claire of Belgium send out their Christmas card with a new picture of them with their children, Princess Louise, Prince Nicolas and Prince Aymeric. Princess Haya of Jordan, wife of the Emir of Dubai, send out New Year wishes with 2 new pictures. The Princess has much to celebrate in the New Year, as she is expecting her second child. There were 3 newcomers this year at the estate of the Queen of England during Christmas. Both the Duchess of Cambridge and Mike Tindall  celebrated their first Christmas with their husband/wife and the in-laws at the Sandringham estate. Savannah Phillips, the first great-grandchild of the Queen, also celebrated her first Christmas at the Sandringham estate, as she was born just after Christmas last year. She’ll be joined by a younger brother of sister next year. The Norwegian, Danish and British Royal families attended church for a Christmas service. We also saw pictures of the Queen of Spain, her eldest daughter with children, and her son with wife and daughters watching Cirque Du Soleil’s ‘Zarkana’ at Madrid Arena, and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark taking her 4 children to a playground in Aarhus.

Let us know what your favorite Royal moment of 2011 was by responding to this entry.

More information can be found in the Royal Milestone sub-forum:

– Royal Engagements 2011
– Royal Marriages 2011
– Royal Pregnancy Announcements 2011
– Royal Births 2011
– Royal Deaths 2011

“From the Royal Genealogy threads” blog entries:
2011: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09&10 11 12

Related blog entries:
A Look Back at a Royal 2010
Looking Forward to a Royal 2011
Looking Forward to a Royal 2012

Filed under The Royal Forums
Tagged Royal Genealogy.