This Day in History

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

November 30, 1705 – Death of Catherine of Braganza, wife of Charles II, at Bemposta Palace, Lisbon, Portugal; buried at Belém Monastery, Lisbon

November 30, 1965 - Birth of Prince Akishino of Japan, younger son of Emperor Akihito

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 1, 1081 – Birth of Louis VI of France

December 1, 1135 - Death of Henry I at St. Denis-le-Fermont, France; buried at Reading Abbey, Berkshire

December 1, 1241 - Death of Isabella, daughter of King John, at Foggia, Naples; buried at the Cathedral of Andria, Sicily

December 1, 1483 – Death of Charlotte of Savoy, second wife of Louis XI of France, in Amboise, France; buried at the Notre-Dame de Cléry Basilica in Cléry-Sant-André in the Arrondissement of Orléans

December 1, 1640 - Portugal regains its independence from Spain; John IV of Portugal becomes King

December 1, 1825 – Death of Tsar Alexander I of Russia at Taganrog, Russia; buried at the Peter and Paul Cathedral, St. Petersburg

December 1, 1844 - Birth of Alexandra of Denmark, wife of Edward VII at the Yellow Palace, Copenhagen

December 1, 1919 - Lady Astor becomes the first female member of Parliament

December 1, 2001 - Birth of Princess Aiko, daughter of Crown Prince Naruhito of Japan

December 1, 2004 – Death of Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, father of Queen Beatrix, husband of Queen Juliana, at the University of Utrecht Medical Center, buried at Nieuwe Kerk, Delft

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 2, 1804 - Napoleon is crowned Emperor of the French

December 2, 1849 - Death of Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, wife of William IV, at Bentley Priory, Stanmore, Middlesex; buried at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle

December 2, 1915 - Birth of Prince Mikasa of Japan
Prince Mikasa is a brother of Emperor Hirohito and the uncle of Emperor Akihito, the current emperor.

December 2, 1988 - Birth of Edward, Baron Downpatrick, son of the Earl of St. Andrews and grandson of the Duke of Kent

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 3, 1368 – Birth of Charles VI of France

December 3, 1764 – Birth of Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, first wife of Frederick I of Württemberg

December 3, 1838 – Birth of Louise of Prussia, wife of Grand Duke Friedrich I of Baden

December 3, 1839 – Death of Frederik VI of Denmark at Amalienborg Palace, Copenhagen; buried at Roskilde Cathedral

December 3, 1935 - Death of Princess Victoria, daughter of King Edward VII, at Coppins, Iver, Buckinghamshire; buried at Frogmore, Windsor
Victoria served as a companion for her mother, Queen Alexandra, and never married. Her first cousin Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia described her as little more than "a glorified maid." Victoria was extremely close to her brother George V who deeply mourned her death and survived her by only a month.

December 3, 1939 - Death of Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, daughter of Queen Victoria, at Kensington Palace; cremated and ashes buried at Frogmore, Windsor
Louise was the only child of Queen Victoria to marry a non-royal. She married John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne later 9th Duke of Argyll. The German royals severely disapproved of the marriage. When Lorne was told by the queen about this, he said, "Ma'am, my ancestors were kings when the Hohenzollerns were parvenus." Louise was the only child of Victoria's to be childless. She was a talented sculptor and the statue of Queen Victoria outside her birthplace Kensington Palace was done by Louise.

December 3, 2005 – Birth of Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway, son of Crown Prince Haakon

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 4, 1214 – Death of William I “the Lion” of Scotland at Stirling, Scotland; buried at Arbroath Abbey, Arbroath, Scotland

December 4, 1711 – Birth of Bárbara of Portugal, wife of Ferdinand VI of Spain

December 4, 1878 – Birth of Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovitch, son of Tsar Alexander III of Russia

December 4, 1999 - Wedding of Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium and Mathilde d'Udekem d' Acoz

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 5, 1560 - Death of Francis II of France, first husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, at Orléans, France; buried at the Basilica of St. Denis

December 5, 1671 - Death of Catherine, daughter of James II, at St. James Palace; buried at Westminster Abbey
Little Catherine was the fourth daughter of James and his first wife Anne Hyde. Their two surviving daughters grew up to be Queen Mary II and Queen Anne. Catherine died at the age of 10 months and was buried in Westminster Abbey without ceremony. Her mother had died when Catherine was only seven weeks old.

December 5, 1695 – Wedding of Frederik IV of Denmark and Louise of Mecklenburg-Guströw

December 5, 1916 – Death of Augusta of Cambridge, wife of Friedrich Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Augusta was a granddaughter of George III, first cousin of Queen Victoria, and aunt of Queen Mary.

December 5, 1927 - Birth of King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand
King since 1946, King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the world’s longest reigning monarch.

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 6, 1421 - Birth of Henry VI at Windsor Castle

December 6, 1792 – Birth of William II of the Netherlands

December 6, 1820 – Birth of Alexandrine of Baden, wife of Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

December 6, 1925 - Birth of Princess Teru of Japan, daughter of Emperor Hirohito

December 6, 2000 - Birth of Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein, son of Hereditary Prince Alois

December 6, 2000 - Birth of Pablo Urdangarín, son of Infanta Cristina of Spain

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 7, 1545 – Birth of Henry, Lord Darnley, son of Matthew Stuart, 4th Earl of Lennox and Margaret Douglas, daughter of Margaret Tudor, at Temple Newsham, Yorkshire, England

December 7, 1803 – Birth of Maria Josepha of Saxony, third wife of Ferdinand VII of Spain

December 7, 2003 - Birth of Princess Amalia, daughter of Crown Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 8, 1542 - Birth of Mary, Queen of Scots at Linlithgow Palace

December 8, 1521 – Death of Christina of Saxony, wife of Hans of Denmark, Norway and Sweden; buried first in Gråbrødre Church, then in Saint Canute's Cathedral in Odense

December 8, 1625 – Death of Christina of Holstein-Gottorp, second wife of Charles IX of Sweden; buried at Strängnäs Cathedral, Strängnäs, Sweden

December 8, 1818 - Death of Karl, Grand Duke of Baden

December 8, 1907 - Death of Oscar II of Sweden at Stockholm Palace; buried at Riddarholmskyrkan, Stockholm

December 8, 1956 – Death of Princess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at 10 Fitzmaurice Place, Berkeley Square, London; buried at Frogmore, Windsor
Princess Marie Louise was the daughter of Princess Helena and Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. She married Prince Aribert of Anhalt but the marriage was unhappy. Aribert’s father used his prerogative as reigning Duke of Anhalt to annul the marriage. After the annulment, Marie Louise returned to Great Britain where she was involved in a number of charities. She wrote a book called “My Memories of Six Reigns.

[Susan]

Today in royal history:

December 9, 1165 – Death of Malcolm IV of Scotland at Jedburgh Castle; buried at Dunfermline Abbey, Fife, Scotland

December 9, 1706 – Death of Pedro II of Portugal; buried at the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora, Lisbon

December 9, 1751 – Birth of Maria Louisa of Parma, wife Charles IV of Spain

December 9, 1806 - Death of Franz, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
Franz was the grandfather of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

December 9, 1810 – Birth of Auguste de Beauharnais, 2nd Duke of Leuchtenberg, first husband of Maria II of Portugal

December 9, 1963 - Birth of Masako Owada, wife of Crown Prince Naruhito of Japan

December 9, 1992 - Separation of the Prince and Princess of Wales announced by British Prime Minister John Major