Aksel and the Royals

As my two greatest enthusiasms in life are classical music and royalty, it would be hard to find a video more meaningful to me than this one of Norway's star treble Aksel Rykkvin (possibly the leading boy soprano soloist in the world right now) performing Handel's "Lascia ch'io pianga" from Rinaldo for his King and Queen and their guests at their 80th birthday gala in Oslo earlier this week. I love watching the royals' reactions almost as much as the music. They--and we--are very lucky that he is still singing treble at 14.

Royal guests in Norway celebrating the 80th birthdays of King Harald V (21 Feb) and Queen Sonja (4 Jul). Seated in front are their five grandchildren, Emma, Leah, and Maud Behn, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Prince Sverre Magnus.

Second row, standing, L-R: Princess Astrid, Queen Maxima & King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince Albert II of Monaco, Queen Silvia & King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Sonja & King Harald, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Grand Duke Henri & Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, King Philippe & Queen Mathilde of the Belgians, President Sauli Niinistö of Finland, President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson of Iceland.

Third row: Lady Elizabeth Anson Shakerley, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Princess (former Queen) Beatrix of the Netherlands, Prince Daniel & Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Crown Princess Mette-Marit & Crown Prince Haakon, Princess Märtha Louise, Crown Prince Frederik & Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Countess Madeleine (Bernadotte) Kogevinas & Bernard Mach, Jenni Haukio (First Lady of Finland), Eliza Reid (First Lady of Iceland).

Fourth row: Princess Tatiana & Prince Nikolaos of Greece, Princess Mabel of the Netherlands, Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands, Princess Sofia & Prince Carl Philip of Sweden, Crown Princess Marie-Chantal & Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume & Hereditary Grand Duchess Stephanie of Luxembourg, Sophie Countess of Wessex (Great Britain), Desirée Kogevinas & Carlos Eugster.

Progressives for Monarchy

An unlikely source proposes Princess Martha Louise of Norway for Queen of the USA. From 2010.

Royalty of the World at Windsor

Front row (L-R): HIM the Emperor of Japan, HM the Queen of the Netherlands, HM the Queen of Denmark, HM the King of the Hellenes, HM the King of Romania, HM the Queen of the United Kingdom, HM the King of Bulgarians, HM the Sultan of Brunei, HM the King of Sweden, HM the King of Swaziland, HSH the Prince of Liechtenstein.

Middle row (L-R): HSH the Prince of Monaco, HRH the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, HM the King of Lesotho, HM the King of the Belgians, HM the King of Norway, HH the Emir of Qatar, HM the King of Jordan, HM the King of Bahrain, HM the Yong di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.

Back row (L-R): HH Prince Nasser Mohamed of Kuwait, HH the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, HRH the Crown Prince of Yugoslavia, HM the King of Tonga, HRH the Crown Prince of Thailand, HRH Princess Lalla Meryem of Morocco, HRH Prince Mohammed bin Nayaf of Saudi Arabia.


Apparently that April 22 Telegraph article was much ado about nothing, as the former King of the Hellenes attended the Queen's Diamond Jubilee lunch after all, with no earth-shattering consequences, whatever Greek republicans say, resulting in a wonderful unique photograph (perhaps the most comprehensive ever taken) of most of the world's reigning monarchs.  Other members of the British royal family including the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge joined the Queen in welcoming this illustrious international assembly of royalty to Windsor Castle.  The absence of Queen Sofia and any representative of the royal families of Cambodia, Bhutan, and Oman is to be regretted, though monarchists can rejoice to see not only King Constantine but also the former kings of Romania and Bulgaria and the crown prince of Yugoslavia included.  Discussion however has been dominated by the presence of the controversial Kings of Bahrain and Swaziland, though I doubt most British people really mind nearly as much as noisy troublemakers apparently think they should.  Once again I say the Queen can invite who she likes; it's not as if democratic republican governments never host controversial republican heads of state!

International Royalty to Gather for Jubilee

As Queen Elizabeth II prepares to host many of Europe and the world's leading royalty (as she did ten years ago as shown in the above picture) at Windsor to celebrate her Diamond Jubilee this Friday, Harry Mount reflects on "the world's most exclusive club." It's not a bad article, but I don't understand why even pro-monarchy commentators feel the need to include back-handed compliments like this: "Looked at objectively, monarchy is a ludicrous anachronism." No, no, no, a thousand times no! I do not concede this! While there's nothing necessarily wrong with "anachronism," there are plenty of rational and contemporary justifications for constitutional monarchy.  It is not all about glittering royal events, though this promises to be a splendid one, with guests including the Emperor of Japan.

King and Queen of Norway in Minnesota

As a former Charlotte Symphony colleague from Duluth, Minnesota has reminded me, Their Majesties King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway recently visited Iowa and Minnesota, a state known for its Scandinavian immigrant heritage. Minnesota Public Radio has great photos, which show Minnesotans greeting the royal couple enthusiastically. The King and Queen concluded their American trip with a visit to New York City.

Nine Kings 1910

I should have compiled this page in time for the centennial of the death of King Edward VII in May 2010, but didn't think of it until tonight. Here is a tribute to one of my favourite photographs of royalty: the nine kings who assembled in London for Edward VII's funeral in 1910. I wish that someone with the power to bring it about had had my idea of re-creating the photo a hundred years later with those kings' present-day heirs.

"Scandal-Ridden" Monarchies?

Canadian publication Maclean's irreverently profiles Europe's surviving monarchies. Writer Patricia Treble exaggerates the importance of various "scandals" and (as RadicalRoyalist points out) ignores the rather more serious problems plaguing republics such as Germany's, but concludes that monarchies are "good fun" and acknowledges that republics are no cheaper. Serious monarchists, however, are likely to regret that "good fun" is the extent to which modern monarchies are all too often appreciated, and may be forgiven for wondering if the marital decisions of younger royalty might indeed have something to do with it.

Obama snubs King Harald

I defended President Obama when neocon Americanists attacked him for bowing to the Emperor of Japan. But that doesn't make this a pro-Obama blog. Norwegians are apparently miffed that he has declined an invitation to lunch from King Harald V (which Nobel laureates have traditionally accepted) as well as other opportunities to cultivate goodwill in Norway. This is inexcusable. While Obama has expressed his admiration for Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, he did not bow to her as he did to the monarchs of Saudi Arabia and Japan, leaving one to wonder if it is only non-Western monarchies towards whom Obama feels inclined to demonstrate humility. Obama's insensitivity to Norwegians suggests that American arrogance and unilateralism did not disappear when George W. Bush left the White House, as Europeans are learning.

Carl XV, King and Artist

I'm currently in Vail, Colorado, where the Dallas Symphony is in residence at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival. I hadn't expected to find much of a monarchical nature, though it was not far from Vail that Alfonso de Bourbon (1936-1989), father of the current "Legitimist" pretender to the French throne, was killed twenty years ago in a skiing accident in Beaver Creek. On a happier note, however, I was delighted to discover yesterday when wandering into a charming art gallery, "The Englishman," that one of their paintings, "A Mountain Landscape," had been painted in 1868 by King Carl XV of Sweden & Norway (1826-1872)! I didn't really have $58,000 to spare, but the clerk kindly printed out a copy for me. I hadn't known of Carl XV's artistic abilities, but apparently they were considerable.

The Big Question

Prompted by rumors of an imminent abdication in the Netherlands, The Independent ponders the future of European monarchy.

New Genealogical Tables

I have long been interested not only in the monarchist cause and royal history but also in the minutiae of European royal genealogy. Recently, as a follow-up to a comment of mine on a thread at my monarchist forum on the engagement of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden about relationships between reigning European monarchs eventually growing more distant as unequal marriages continue to be the norm, I prepared this table of relationships between current European sovereigns. Liking the way the table looked and inspired to attempt a bigger challenge, I then prepared this similar table for 1914. I am grateful to forum member Peter for his help in revising and refining the tables; our discussion is here in the thread on which I originally posted them.