The Wittelsbachs ruled over Bavaria and the Rhineland Palatinate for nearly 750 years, this fact made their dynasty one of Europe's longes-ruling families. Theirs is a history of not only sublime exaltation, but also deep and sorrowful loss. They were patrons of the arts and letters, incredible builders, scientists, politicians, visionaries, and maddening personalities. This first volume covers the history of the family from its beginning in the XI century to the life of Crown Prince Rupprecht, who died in 1955. In fact, the book is dedicated to him, "the best king Bavaria never had."Authored by Arturo E. Beéche and Coryne Hall, The Royal House of Bavaria, Volume I includes over 330 images documenting the Wittelsbach dynasty from its beginning in the XI century to today. The book is currently printing and we expect to bring it to you promptly.The Royal House of Bavaria, Volume I will go on sale on June 1, 2019!The books sections include: Introduction (by Greg King)Prologue: The Bavarian Succession Crisis 1777Chapter I: Electors and Counts PalatineChapter II: King Maximilian I JosephChapter III: King Ludwig IChapter IV: King Maximilian IIChapter V: King Ludwig IIChapter VI: King Otto and Prince Regent LuitpoldChapter VII: King Ludwig IIIChapter VIII: Crown Prince RupprechtEpilogue: The Jacobite SuccessionThe book also includes nine family trees displayed across 16 pages!The cost is $48.95 plus shipping ($8.00 USA – $35.00 international)We accept the following forms of payment:
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Last year Prince Dushan of Yugoslavia married civilly Miss Valerie De Muzio in New York City.
The couple, who reside in NYC, are marrying religiously on May 25, 2019 @ 200pm. The Orthodox ceremony is taking place at the Church of St George in Oplenac, Topola, Serbia. This religious compound is of special meaning to the Karageorgevich dynasty, as it also serves as their last resting place. Prince Alexander (1924-2016), Prince Dushan's father, was buried in the grounds of Oplenac in 2016.
A formal dinner reception, to be held at the White Palace, Beli Dvor, Belgrade, will follow in the evening.
Much appreciation to Princess Barbara and Prince Dushan for the invitation, information, and photos.
Since 1931, when the couple who most royal watchers will always think of when they hear of the Count and Countess of Paris, the descendants of this couple, Prince Henri of Orléans and Princess Isabelle of Orléans and Braganza, have entered into notable matches with members of royal and noble families - with some exceptions. In this post, we shall highlight the marital alliances of the Count and Countess of Paris, as well as of their family, as supplemented by the medium of film.
We will begin with Henri and Isabelle. Prince Henri of Orléans, Count of Paris (1908-1999) was married at Palermo on 8 April 1931 to Princess Isabelle of Orléans and Braganza (1911-2003). The Count and Countess of Paris became the parents of eleven children: Isabelle (b.1932), Henri (1933-2019), Hélène (b.1934), François (1935-1960), Anne (b.1938), Diane (b.1940), twins Michel and Jacques (b.1941), Claude (b.1943), Chantal (b.1946), and Thibaut (1948-1983). Henri and Isabelle eventually lived apart, but they never divorced.
In January 1957, Princess Hélène of Orléans wed Count Count Evrard de Limburg Stirum (1927-2001). Hélène and Evrard had four children: Countess Catherine (b.1957; married from 1988-1994 to Ortis-Armando Galrão Exposito), Count Thierry (b.1959; married since 1990 to Katia della Faille de Leverghem), Count Louis Léopold (b.1962; married since 1996 to Belén López y Montero), and Count Bruno (b.1966; married since 1995 to Countess Christine de Lannoy).
In July 1957, Prince Henri of Orléans, Count of Clermont (eventual Count of Paris), married Duchess Marie-Thérèse of Württemberg (b.1934). The couple had five children: Princess Marie (b.1959), Prince François (1961-2017; eventual Count of Clermont), Princess Blanche (b.1962), Prince Jean (b.1962; eventual Duke of Vendôme and current Count of Paris), and Prince Eudes (b.1968; eventual Duke of Angoulême; married since 1999 to Marie-Liesse de Rohan-Chabot). Henri and Marie-Thérèse legally separated in 1977 and were granted a civil divorce in 1984. Upon the divorce, Marie-Thérèse was granted the personal title "Duchess of Montpensier" by her father-in-law.
In July 1960, Princess Diane of Orléans wed Duke Carl of Württemberg (b.1936). The couple have six children: Duke Friedrich (1961-2018; married from 1993 until his death to Princess Marie of Wied), Duchess Mathilde (b.1962; married since 1988 to Count [eventual Fürst] Erich von Waldburg zu Zeil und Trauchburg), Duke Eberhard (b.1963; married since 2011 to Lucia Desiree Copf), Duke Philipp (b.1964; married since 1991 to Duchess Marie Caroline in Bavaria), Duke Michael (b.1965; married since 2006 to Julia Storz), and Duchess Fleur (b.1977; married since 2003 to Count Moritz of Goëß).
In May 1965, Princess Anne of Orléans wed Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Siclies, Infante of Spain (1938-2015). The couple had five children: Princess Cristina (b.1966; married since 1994 to Pedro Lopez-Quesada y Fernandez-Urrutia), Princess Maria (b.1967; married since 1996 to Archduke Simeon of Austria), Prince Pedro (b.1968; married since 2001 to doña Sofia Landaluce y Melgarejo), Princess Inès (b.1971; married since 2001 to Nobile Michele Carrelli Palombi dei Marchesi di Raiano), and Princess Victoria (b.1976; married since 2003 to Markos Nomikos).
For footage of their wedding, please visit this link:
https://www.britishpathe.com/video/VLVA5QSEU64ZOT2H7ZRAJI1O1ZGJ8-FRANCE-PRINCESS-ANNE-DE-FRANCE-DAUGHTER-OF-THE-COUNT-OF-PARIS
In August 1969, Prince Jacques of Orléans, Duke of Orléans, married Gersende de Sabran-Pontevès (b.1942). The couple have three children: Princess Diane (b.1970; married from 2004 until being widowed in 2014 to Viscount Alexis de Noailles), Prince Charles-Louis (b.1972; current Duke of Chartres; married since 1997 to Illéana Manos), and Prince Foulques (b.1974; current Duke of Aumale and Count of Eu).
In May 2009, Prince Jean of Orléans, Duke of Vendôme (now Count of Paris), was joined in a religious ceremony to doña Philomena de Tornos y Steinhart (b.1977). The couple had contracted a civil marriage at Paris in March 2009. The couple have five children: Prince Gaston (b.2009), Princess Antoinette (b.2012), Princess Louise-Marguerite (b.2014), Prince Joseph (b.2016), and Princess Jacinthe (b.2018).
In September 2009, Prince Henri of Orléans, Count of Paris, entered into a religious marriage with his civil wife, Princess Micäela of Orléans, Countess of Paris (b.1938). Henri and Micäela had been civilly married in 1984, shortly after the Henri's divorce from his first wife Marie-Thérèse. Henri and Marie-Thérèse were granted a religious annulment of their marriage in November 2008. This paved the way for Henri and Micäela to have their union recognised by the Roman Catholic church.
In June 2008, Prince Charles-Philippe d'Orléans (b.1973), eldest son of Prince Michel, Count d'Evreux, and his first wife Béatrice Pasquier de Franclieu, married Diana Alvares Pereira de Melo, Duchess of Cadaval (b.1978). The couple are the parents of one daughter, Princess Isabelle (b.2012).
Lord Frederick Michael George David Louis Windsor was born on 6 April 1979 at St Mary's Hospital in London. Lord Frederick is the eldest child and only son of Prince Michael of Kent and Princess Michael (née Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz). The son of an Anglican father and a Roman Catholic mother, Frederick was raised in the Anglican faith; he has thus retained his place in the line of succession to the British throne.
Two years after his birth, Frederick welcomed the arrival of his younger sister and only sibling: Lady Gabriella Marina Alexandra Ophelia Windsor was born on 23 April 1981.
Lord Frederick "Freddie" Windsor attended Eton College, and Magdalen College, Oxford. After the conclusion of his studies, Frederick worked as a fashion model for a campaign by Burberry. He is now a banker and Vice President at JP Morgan.
On 14 February 2009, Valentine's Day, the engagement of Lord Frederick to actress Sophie Winkleman was announced. The couple were married at Hampton Court on 12 September 2009. Frederick and Sophie are the parents of two children: Maud (b.2013) and Isabella (b.2016).
The engagement between Prince Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, and Princess Claude d'Orléans was announced in September 1963. Prince Amedeo of Savoy (b.1943) was the only child of Prince Aimone, Duke of Aosta, and Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark. Princess Claude (b.1943) was the ninth child and fifth daughter of Prince Henri, Count of Paris, and Princess Isabelle of Orléans-Braganza.
The Duke and Duchess of Aosta are the parents of three children, one son and two daughters. Princess Bianca of Savoy-Aosta was born in 1966, Prince Aimone of Savoy-Aosta arrived in 1967, and Princess Mafalda of Savoy-Aosta was born in 1969.
The union of Amedeo and Claude deteriorated, and their marriage became unsustainable. The couple separated on 20 July 1976, they then obtained a civil divorce on 26 April 1982, and, finally, an annulment from the Holy See was granted on 8 January 1987. Both Prince Amedeo and Princess Claude have since remarried.
Embed from Getty ImagesClotilde Marie Pascale Courau yesterday celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of her birth. Clotilde was born on 3 April 1969 as the daughter of Jean-Claude Courau (b.1942) and Catherine du Pontavice des Renardières (b.1948), daughter of Count Pierre Francoise Marie Antoine du Pontavice des Renardières (b.1926) and Marie Lélia Gabriel (b.1926).
In 1985, at the age of sixteen, Clotilde dropped out of school and decided to become an actress. In the years since the, she has appeared in over fifty films. Clotilde Courau was recognised in 2007 by the French Ministry of Culture when she became a Dame of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
Clotilde Courau's engagement to Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice, was announced on 10 July 2003. On 25 September 2003, the couple were married vat the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri in Rome. The bride wore a gown designed by the fashion house Valentino. Emanuele Filiberto (b.1972) is the only child of Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, and his wife Marina Doria; Emanuele Filiberto is also the only male-line grandson of King Umberto II of Italy (1904-1983) and Queen Marie-José (1906-2001; née Belgium).
Emanuele Filiberto and Clotilde of Savoy have two children. Vittoria Chiara Cristina Adelaide Maria of Savoy, the eldest daughter, was born on 28 December 2003 at Geneva. Vittoria was followed three years later by Luisa Giovanna Bianca Agata Gavina Maria who was born on 16 August 2006, also at Geneva.
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On 1 April 2019, Prince Aimone of Savoy-Aosta gave an interview to Corriere della Sera, an Italian daily newspaper published in Milan.
Following is a brief excerpt...
Aimone di Savoia: "My life as a Savoy, as a relative of the Tsars in Putin's Russia"
During a private visit to Turin, the first capital of Italy, we catch up with the prince who is the husband of Princess Olga of Greece. Prince Aimone states: "The Italian monarchy? It will not come back. But history must always be read with a sense of perspective."
At the end of the visit, Aimone's daughter Isabella "collapsed." In the rooms of Royal Palace in Turin, the third child of Aimone of Savoy-Aosta, aged six, asks her father for help. And she finds it in the arms of Aimone. "I wanted to take them to Turin, the first capital of Italy under the Savoys: Umberto, who is ten years-old, asked me to draw a family tree of the Savoys, and I promised him that we will do so in the summer, when we are in Apulia," he explains to Corriere.
Aimone, who is fifty-one and the son of Amedeo of Savoy-Aosta, is the most bashful of the Savoys. "I was small and Dad forced me to study our family tree, many times." Married to Olga of Greece, Aimone recalls, "we met at the wedding of the Infanta Elena, daughter of King Juan Carlos, and when King Felipe VI, my cousin, comes to Moscow, we try to see each other."
