This Day in History

[Susan]

January 11 in royal history:

January 11, 1923 - Death of Constantine I of Greece in exile at Palermo, Sicily; buried at the Royal Cemetery in the park of Tatoi Palace

[Susan]

January 12 in royal history:

January 12, 1321 – Death of Maria of Brabant, wife of Philip III of France at the monastery at Les Mureaux, near Meulan; buried at Cordeliers Convent, Paris

January 12, 1759 - Death of Anne, Princess Royal, daughter of George II and Prince William IV of Orange-Nassau, at The Hague, Netherlands; buried at Nieuwe Kerke at Delft, Netherlands
Anne was the eldest daughter and second child of George II and his wife Caroline of Ansbach. At age 24, Anne married Prince William IV of Orange-Nassau. The current Dutch royal family descends from Anne and William.

January 12, 1902 - Birth of King Saud Ibn Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia in Kuwait City, Al Rashid

January 12, 1912 - Death of Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife, husband of Princess Louise, Princess Royal (daughter of Edward VII), at Assuan, Egypt; buried at the Mar Lodge Chapel, Braemar, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
While sailing to Egypt, the Duke and his family were shipwrecked off the coast of Morocco. The family all survived but the Duke developed pleurisy, which may have been a result of the shipwreck, and died.

January 12, 1961 - Wedding of Princess Astrid of Norway and Johan Martin Ferner at Asker Church outside Oslo

January 12, 1974 – Death of Princess Patricia of Connaught, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Ribsden Holt, Windlesham, Surrey; buried at Frogmore, Windsor
Princess Patricia, known as Patsy in the family, was the daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Princess Louise Marguerite of Prussia. Upon her marriage to Sir Alexander Ramsay, she voluntarily relinquished the style of Royal Highness and the title of Princess of Great Britain and Ireland and assumed the style of Lady Patricia Ramsay.

[Susan]

January 13 in royal history:

January 13, 858 - Death of King Aethelwulf of Wessex at Stamridge, Wessex; first buried at Steyning Church, then the Old Minster, Winchester, remains now at Winchester Cathedral

January 13, 1669 - Birth of Henrietta Stuart, daughter of James II, at Whitehall Palace, London
Henrietta was the third daughter and seventh child of James, Duke of York (later James II) and his first wife Anne Hyde. She was named after her grandmother Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I. Henrietta died at age 10 months and was buried in the royal vault in Henry VII's Chapel at Westminster Abbey.

January 13, 1766 - Death of Frederik V of Denmark and Norway at Christiansborg Palace; buried at Roskilde Cathedral

January 13, 1797 – Death of Elizabeth Christine of Brunswick-Bevern at Stadtschloss, Berlin, Prussia, wife of Frederick II of Prussia; buried at the Berlin Protestant Cathedral

January 13, 1883 – Birth of Prince Arthur of Connaught, grandson of Queen Victoria, at Windsor Castle
Prince Arthur was the son of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Princess Louise Marguerite of Prussia. He married his first cousin once removed Princess Alexandra, Duchess of Fife.

January 13, 1932 - Death of Sophie of Prussia, wife of King Constantine I of Greece and granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany; buried at the Tatoi Royal Cemetery, Greece
Sophie was the daughter of Victoria, Princess Royal and Frederick III, German Emperor. She married King Constantine I of Greece and is the grandmother of former King Constantine II of Greece and his sister Queen Sofia, wife of King Juan Carlos of Spain.

[Susan]

January 14 in royal history:

January 14, 1131 – Birth of Valdemar I of Denmark

January 14, 1772 - Death of Princess Mary, daughter of George II, at Hanau, Germany; buried at the Reformed Church in Hanau
Mary was the fourth daughter and eighth child of George II and his wife Caroline of Ansbach. She married Hereditary Prince Friedrich of Hesse-Cassel at age 17. Her husband, while tall and handsome, was cruel and their marriage was unhappy.

January 14, 1872 - Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia goes on a buffalo hunting expedition with Gen. Phil Sheridan and Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, son of Tsar Alexander II, took a three month tour of the United States from November, 1871 - February, 1872. The buffalo hunting expedition took place on the Grand Duke’s 22nd birthday.

January 14, 1892 - Death of Prince Albert Victor (Eddy), eldest son of Edward VII, at Sandringham House, Norfolk; buried in the Albert Memorial Chapel at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle

January 14, 1919 – Abdication of Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde of Luxembourg
Marie-Adélaïde abdicated because of her pro-German feelings during World War I. She entered a convent and became a nun. Her sister Charlotte succeeded her.

January 14, 1972 - Death of Frederik IX of Denmark at Amalienborg Palace, Copenhagen; buried at Roskilde Cathedral; Frederik's daughter Margrethe becomes Queen and today she celebrates 40 years on the throne

January 14, 1994 - Duchess of Kent converts to Catholicism, the first Catholic member of the Royal Family in over 300 years.

[Susan]

January 15 in royal history:

January 15, 1432 – Birth of Afonso V of Portugal at Sintra National Palace, Sintra, Kingdom of Portugal

January 15, 1478 - Wedding of Richard, Duke of York, son of Edward IV, and Lady Anne Mowbray at St. Stephen's Chapel, Palace of Westminster
Richard was one of the "Little Princes in the Tower." Anne Mowbray was the only daughter and heiress of John Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk. Richard was 5 when he married and Anne was 6. Anne predeceased Richard, dying in 1481, 2 years before Richard disappeared.

January 15, 1535 - Henry VIII assumes the title of Supreme Head of the Church of England

January 15, 1559 - Coronation of Elizabeth I
Elizabeth was crowned by Owen Oglethorpe, Bishop of Carlisle. The position of Archbishop of Canterbury was vacant at that time and the Archbishop of York refused to take the service.

January 15, 1781 – Death of Mariana Victoria of Spain, wife of Joseph I of Portugal at Barraca Real of Ajuda, Portugal; buried at the Church of São Francisco de Paula, Lisbon

January 15, 1882 - Birth of Princess Margaret of Connaught, daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Bagshot Park, Surrey
Margaret married Crown Prince Gustav Adolf of Sweden. While pregnant with her sixth child, Margaret died of an ear infection which had spread to her throat. Her husband married Lady Louise Mountbatten (sister of Louis, Earl Mountbatten of Burma and the aunt of Prince Philip), and succeeded to the throne as King Gustav VI Adolf. Gustav and Louise's marriage was childless but Margaret's descendants sit upon the thrones of Denmark and Sweden. Queen Margrethe of Denmark is her granddaughter and King Carl Gustaf of Sweden is her grandson.

January 15, 1945 - Birth of Baroness Marie-Christine von Reibnitz, wife of Prince Michael of Kent, at Karlsbad, now Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic

January 15, 1968 - Birth of Inaki Urdangarin y Liebaert in Zumarraga, Basque Country, Spain, husband of Infanta Cristina of Spain

[Susan]

January 16 in royal history:

January 16, 1245 - Birth of Edmund Crouchback, Earl of Lancaster and Leicester, son of Henry III, at London, England

January 16, 1942 - Death of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, son of Queen Victoria, at Bagshot Park, Surrey; buried at Frogmore, Windsor
Arthur died at age 91. Two of his great grandchildren are current monarchs: Queen Margrethe of Denmark and King Carl Gustaf of Sweden.

January 16, 1979 - Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi flees Iran

[Susan]

January 17 in royal history:

January 17, 1598 – Death of Fyodor I of Russia in Moscow

January 17, 1732 - Birth of Stanislaw II August Poniatowski, last king of Poland, in Wołczyn, present day Belarus

January 17, 1746- Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, defeats British forces at the Battle of Falkirk in Scotland

January 17, 1870 – Birth of Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma, first wife Ferdinand of Bulgaria, in Rome

January 17, 1879 - Wedding of William III of the Netherlands and Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont in Arolsen, Hesse, Germany

January 17, 1893 - Queen Liliuokalani of Hawaii is forced to abdicate by a group of businessmen and sugar planters

January 17, 1991 - Death of Olav V of Norway at the Royal Lodge, Kongsseteren; buried at Akershus Fortress, Oslo

[Susan]

January 18 in royal history:

January 18, 1367 – Death of Pedro I of Portugal in Estremoz, Kingdom of Portugal

January 18, 1486 - Wedding of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV, at Westminster Abbey

January 18, 1701 - Frederick III, Elector of Brandenburg, becomes King of Prussia

January 18, 1795 – Birth of Anna Pavlovna of Russia, wife of William II of the Netherlands, in Saint Petersburg, Russia

January 18, 1890 – Death of Amadeo I of Spain in Turin, Italy; buried at the Basilica of Superga in Turin

January 18, 1908 – Birth of Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, wife of Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden and mother of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, in Gotha, Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Princess Sibylla was a great granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

January 18, 1919 - Death of Prince John, son of George V, at Wood Farm, Wolferton, Norfolk; buried at Sandringham Church, Norfolk

January 18, 1974 - Birth of Claire Louise Coombs, wife of Prince Laurent of Belgium, in Bath, England

[Susan]

January 19 in royal history:

January 19, 1526 – Death of Isabella of Austria, wife of Christian II of Denmark, in Ghent in present-day Belgium; buried first at St Peter Church in Ghent, then in Saint Canute's Cathedral in Odense, Denmark
Isabella was the daughter of Queen Juana of Castile and the granddaughter of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. It is said that Crown Prince Frederik's daughter is named after her.

January 19, 1544 – Birth of Francis II of France at the Château de Fontainebleau
Francis was the first husband of Mary, Queen of Scots.

January 19, 1757 – Birth of Augusta Reuss-Ebersdorf, wife of Franz Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, in Saalburg-Ebersdorf
Augusta was the grandmother of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

January 19, 1793 - Louis XVI of France is sentenced to death

January 19, 1927 - Death of Charlotte of Belgium, wife of Emperor Maximilian of Mexico, at the Castle of Bouchout, Meise, Belgium; buried at the Royal Crypt in the Church of Our Lady in Laeken, Belgium
Charlotte was a first cousin of both Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Her father was their Uncle Leopold who became King of the Belgians. She married Emperor Maximilian of Mexico, the Habsburg Archduke, who was executed.

January 19, 1943 - Birth of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, daughter of Queen Juliana, in Ottawa, Canada

[Susan]

January 20 in royal history:

January 20, 1382 - Wedding of Richard II and Anne of Bohemia at St. Stephen's Chapel, Palace of Westminster

January 20, 1554 – Birth of King Sebastian of Portugal at the Palace of Ribeira, Lisbon, Kingdom of Portugal

January 20, 1649 - Charles I brought to trial in Westminster Hall

January 20, 1666 – Death of Anne of Austria, wife of Louis XIII of France, at the convent of Val-de-Grâce, Paris; buried at Saint Denis Basilica

January 20, 1716 - Birth of Carlos III of Spain at the Royal Palace of Madrid, Spain

January 20, 1731 - Death of Prince Antonio I of Monaco, buried at Saint Nicholas Cathedral, Monaco

January 20, 1819 - Death of Carlos IV of Spain, in exile, at the Palazzo Barberini in Rome, Italy

January 20, 1848 – Death of Christian VIII of Denmark at Amalienborg Palace, Copenhagen

January 20, 1896 - Death of Prince Henry of Battenberg, husband of Princess Beatrice, at sea from malaria caught in Africa during the Ashanti War; buried at St. Mildred’s Church, Whippingham, Isle of Wight

January 20, 1936 - Death of George V at Sandringham House, Norfolk, England; buried at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle

January 20, 1965 - Birth of Sophie Rhys Jones, wife of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, at Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford

January 20, 1973 - Birth of Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, wife of Prince Philippe (heir to the Belgian throne), Duke of Brabant, in Uccle, Belgium