King Albert II Reacts to Meeting Between King Philippe and Princess Delphine

Today, HM King Albert II issued a communiqué on the topic of the meeting between two of his children, HM The King of the Belgians and HRH Princess Delphine of Belgium. Last Friday, brother and sister met at Laeken Castle and connected over the course of a three-hour lunch. More meetings are planned in the future, which will likely include the Queen and James O’Hare, as well as the children of both couples.

Message from His Majesty King Albert II: I fully endorse the press release by the King and Princess Delphine and agree with the rationale behind this message. My wife and I are delighted with the initiative of the King, the start of better times for all of us and in particular for Delphine.

Albert 

The news of the meeting between Philippe and Delphine was made public yesterday. Later on Thursday, when reached for comment, Prince Laurent told Belgian royal reporter Wim Dehandschutter that “Delphine can count on me.”

Eurohistory, Issue CXXVI – Summer 2020, Volume 23.2

 

 

Greetings subscribers and EUROHISTORY readers,

We are delighted to announce that Issue CXXVI – Summer 2020, Volume 23.2 is going to the printer!

Inside the magazine, subscribers will find a varied number of expertly researched articles. These include the following:

1. Who Is In the Photograph: The Battenberg Family, (c. 1895) – by Ilana D. Miller

2. The Viking's Bride – Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden, by Coryne Hall

3. Agnes – The First American Princess, by Shelby Morrison

4. "Don't think of coming back... Empress Eugénie and the Demise of the Second Empire," by Arturo E. Beéche, Publisher

5. The Tenuta Reale – A Grand Villa in Tuscany for Two Remarkable Infantas of Spain, by Ricardo Mateos Saínz de Medrano

6. Book Reviews

7. Royal News

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King Philippe of the Belgians Meets His Sister Princess Delphine

His Majesty the King and his sister Princess Delphine

📷 Koninklijk Paleis / Palais Royal

Some heartening news from the Royal Court in Brussels: King Philippe and his half-sister Princess Delphine met one another for the first time over a three-hour lunch last Friday at Laeken Castle.

Joint communication of the King and Princess Delphine: On Friday, 9 October, we met each other for the first time at the Castle of Laeken. It was a warm encounter. This long and rich discussion gave us the opportunity to learn to know each other. We talked about our respective lives and areas of shared interest. This bond will further develop within the family setting. Philippe & Delphine

OTD: Sixty Years Since the Death of Prince François d'Orleans During Military Service in Algeria

Press coverage of the death of Prince François d'Orléans.

On Tuesday, 11 October 1960, Prince François d'Orléans was killed in action at the Kabilye Mountains by members of the Algerian National Front. The prince, twenty-five and a second lieutenant in the Chasseurs Alpins, had returned from a leave in France just three weeks earlier. Upon learning of his death, the Count and Countess of Paris immediately flew to Algiers to claim the body of their son. Prince Henri, Count of Paris, received a telegram from Charles de Gaulle, President of France, which read: "The sacrifice of the young Prince François, who died gloriously for France, is another example of the services that his family has rendered to this country and which are the fabric of our history. May God have him in his keeping now. My wife and I ask you and the Countess of Paris to accept our respectful and sorrowful sympathy." 

Embed from Getty Images

The funeral of Prince François d'Orléans took place at Dreux on 17 October 1960. This event was attended by all of the family of François: his parents, his siblings, and his siblings-in-law. The prince was posthumously granted the title Duc d'Orléans and received the Légion d'honneur.

The 80th Birthday of Princess Elisabeth of Hesse, Countess von Oppersdorff

Princess Elisabeth of Hesse, Countess von Oppersdorff, at the funeral of her brother Landgrave Moritz of Hesse in 2013.
Photograph (c) Eurohistory.

 

Princess Elisabeth of Hesse, Countess von Oppersdorff, marks her eightieth birthday today.

Embed from Getty Images

On 8 October 1940, Princess Elisabeth Margarethe Elena Johanna Maria Jolanda Polyxene of Hesse was born at Rome as the fourth and final child (as well as the only daughter) of Landgrave Philipp of Hesse (1896-1980) and his wife Mafalda (1902-1944; born Princess of Savoy), who married in 1925. Elisabeth's paternal grandparents were Landgrave Friedrich Karl of Hesse (1868-1940) and his wife Princess Margarethe of Prussia (1872-1954). Elisabeth's maternal grandparents were King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy (1869-1947) and Princess Elena of Montenegro (1873-1952).

A young Count Friedrich Carl von Oppersdorff.

In February 1962, Elisabeth of Hesse married Count Friedrich Carl von Oppersdorff (1925-1985), the fourth son of Count Wilhelm von Oppersdorff (1896-1989) and Princess Marie Luise von Isenburg (1897-1970). Elisabeth and Friedrich Carl had two sons: Count Friedrich (b.1 December 1962), and Count Alexander (b.3 August 1965).

Princess Elisabeth lives in Neu-Isenburg, Germany.

Many happy returns of the day to Princess Elisabeth!

An Albanian Royal Baby: Leka and Elia of Albania Expecting First Child

TRH Crown Prince Leka and Crown Princess Elia of the Albanians were recently photographed while going for a stroll in Tirana. Crown Princess Elia appears to be pregnant; however, the Albanian Royal Court has not confirmed whether the princess is with child.

Crown Prince Leka of the Albanians and Crown Princess Elia (née Zaharia) married on 8 October 2016.

Source: https://pamfleti.net/princ-leka-pritet-te-behet-baba-per-here-te-pare-elia-zaharia-fotografohet-shtatzene/

OTD: The Marriage of Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia and Princess Henriette von Schönaich-Carolath

 

The civil wedding of Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia and Princess Henriette von Schönaich-Carolath.

Karl Franz Josef and Henriette.

On 6 August 1940 at his residence at Doorn, German Emperor Wilhelm II officially announced the engagement of his grandson Prince Karl Franz Joseph to his stepdaughter, Princess Henriette of Schönaich-Carolath. Ever since his remarriage, the Kaiser had generally stayed out of his stepchildren's affairs, with the exception of Henriette, Kaiserin Hermine’s youngest child, who was born on 25 November 1918 at Berlin. Wilhelm possessed a genuine affection for Henriette. She came to be known as “the general.” Of all Hermine’s children, only Henriette had come to live at Haus Doorn, where she “performed the role of resident grandchild, passing the sugar when coffee was served” at the Kaiser’s table.

The marriage certificate of Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia and Princess Henriette of Schönaich-Carolath.
Document courtesy of Jan Dirk van der Niet.

On 1 October 1940, Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia and Princess Henriette of Schönaich-Carolath were civilly married at Huis Doorn, The Netherlands. The ceremony was performed by the Mayor of Doorn. The family photograph taken on this occasion shows that the couple were joined by the groom's grandfather, German Emperor Wilhelm II, and the bride's mother, German Empress Hermine. The groom's grandfather Wilhelm had married the bride's mother Hermine in 1922.

The religious wedding of Prince Karl Franz Josef and Princess Henriette on 5 October 1940.
Photograph courtesy of Jan Dirk van der Niet. 

 

The religious ceremony followed on 5 October 1940 in Berlin. Empress Hermine and Princess Marie-Auguste, the mothers of the bride and groom, respectively, both appeared in the official wedding photographs with the young couple. The groom’s grandfather and the bride’s stepfather died shortly after their wedding: Wilhelm II passed away at Haus Doorn on 4 June 1941. 

 

Princess Henriette, Prince Karl Franz Josef, and their son Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia.

German Empress Hermine with her grandson Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia.

Prince Karl Franz Joseph and Princess Henriette had three children: Franz Wilhelm, Friedrich Christian, and Franz Friedrich (b.17 October 1944). Princes Franz Wilhelm and Friedrich Christian were twins, both being born at Schloß Saabor on 3 September 1943. Sadly, only Franz Wilhelm survived, as Friedrich Christian died several weeks after birth on 26 September 1943. The union of their parents did not last; Karl Franz Joseph and Henriette’s marriage was dissolved by divorce on 5 September 1946.

 

Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia.

Prince Karl Franz Josef, Princess Eva Maria, and Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia.

Prince Karl Franz Joseph went on to marry twice more. The prince contracted a morganatic marriage with his second wife, Luise Dora Hartmann (1909—1961), on 9 November 1946 in Hamburg. This marriage ended in divorce in 1959. Karl Franz Joseph remarried in Lima, Peru, on 20 July 1959 to Doña Eva Maria Herrera y Valdeavellano (1922—1987), with whom he had two daughters, Princesses Alexandra (b.1960) and Désirée (b.1961). Prince Karl Franz Joseph, a grandson of the last German Kaiser and a descendant of Queen Victoria, died in Arica, Chile, on 23 January 1975. He was fifty-eight. The prince was eventually buried at Furstenfriedhof Maria-Zell, Hechingen, on 1 June 1981. 

 

Empress Hermine, Emperor Wilhelm II, and Princess Henriette.

Princess Henriette.

Sometime after her divorce, Princess Henriette of Schönaich-Carolath had another son, Udo (b.1956), although she never remarried. The princess died in Neuendettelsau, West Germany, on 16 March 1972. Henriette was fifty-three years-old; she was buried at Haseldorf bei Pinneberg, Holstein. 

Henriette and Karl Franz Josef with his mother and his grandfather.