Last updated: August 5th, 2009.
July 1st
Princess Christina of the Netherlands has become a grandmother for the first time. Her eldest son Bernardo Guillermo and his wife Eva Prinz-Valdes had a daughter, Isabel Christina, already on 13 April, the family announced today. They civilly married in March 2009, and will marry in church in September. 31-year-old Eva Prinz-Valdes is a senior editor at Harry N. Abrams in New York. The couple met in 2005.
Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxemburg finished his studies in political science at the university of Angers, France. He started his studies in 2002 in England, then studied in Switzerland, and since 2007 in France.
Last weekend Archduchess Walburga of Austria was chosen as the new president of the political party Europäische Frauenunion (European Women's Union).
July 2nd
King Abdullah II of Jordan has named his eldest son Prince Hussein as Crown Prince as of today.
Archduke Otto of Austria has been released from hospital after a two-week stay and is back home at Pöcking am Starnberger See, Germany. A spokeswoman said he is on the way of recovery. He was injured on his head after a fall at his house.
July 3rd
The Norwegian royal court today released new pictures of the crown princely family with their new family addition, the four-month-old labradoodle Milly Kakao. The photos were taken at Bygdø Kongsgård at Oslo on 27 June.
July 5th
Prince Floris and Princess Aimée van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven had their second daughter today at 2.50pm at the VU Hospital in Amsterdam. Eliane Sophia Carolina weighed 4050 gramms. The couple is very happy with the birth of their healthy daughter. The couple already had a daughter, Magali, who was born in 2007. Eliane is the tenth grandchild of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands and Pieter van Vollenhoven.
July 6th
Former King Simeon of Bulgaria has announced today that he will resign as leader of the National Movement for Stability and Prosperity. He is taking the responsibility for it that his political party lost in the recent elections in Bulgaria.
July 7th
The body of Prince Pedro Luiz de Orléans e Bragança was identified one week ago. The prince died on 1 June in an Air France airplane crash above the Atlantic Ocean. He was buried yesterday afternoon at the Cemitério de Vassouras at Rio de Janeiro, next to his grandfather Prince Pedro Henrique de Orléans e Bragança. A private mass, led by the abbot emeritus of the Mosteiro de São Bento, D. José Palmeira Mendes assisted by Padre Jorjão, was attended by family and friends.
July 8th
This morning Prince Floris van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven registered the birth of his daughter Eliane Sophia Carolina at Amsterdam. Prince Floris said that the name Eliane means "sun", and that his newborn daughter is the sun in their house. The grandparents have already seen their new granddaughter, apart from Pieter van Vollenhoven who is on vacation. The RVD today also released two pictures of the prince and his two daughters Magali and Eliane.
July 10th
Buckingham Palace launched their own Twitter account, @BritishMonarchy, after several weeks of testing. The account has been set up as a news service and will provide details of royal engagements and information about the activities of the members of the British royal family. Neither Queen Elizabeth II nor other members of her family will Twitter personally.
The Duke and Duchess of Vendôme (France), who married early May, announced that they are expecting their first child.
July 12th
Michaelle Jean, Governor General of Canada, announced today that Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and the Duke of Edinburgh are planning to visit Canada officially in 2010 for the 25th time since 1953. The last visit was in 2005. Details and dates haven't been announced yet.
July 14th
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden celebrated her 32nd birthday today. She appeared outside Solliden Palace at the Island of Öland together with her fiancé Daniel Westling, and by her parents King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden. Wearing a lilac summer dress she received cheers and gifts from the many well wishers. Daniel Westling said he is doing well after his kidney transplant. Later on several artists peformed at the Borgholm sports ground.
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan have completed a 13-day visit to Canada. This morning a reception was held at the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre. They were cheered by many people, mainly Japanese Canadians. Their visit marked the 80th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Canada. Their visit took them to Ottawa, Toronto and Victoria.
July 15th
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan have arrived at Hawaii, USA yesterday for a three-day visit. After arrival they visited Kapiolani Park. Today they visited the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl Crater, where they laid a wreath in honor of the people who are interred there. Afterwards they attended a state luncheon and a Waikiki banquet celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship Foundation.
Queen Rania of Jordan was appointed as Honorary Global Chair of the United Nations Girls' Education Initiative. She was appointed as a recognition of her efforts to promote access, quality and innovation in education all over the world. In her new function she will continue to advocate on behalf of girls who are denied an education. Queen Rania said to be very honoured to be appointed.
July 18th
Umberto, son of Prince Aimone of Savoy, Duke of Apulia, and Princess Olga of Greece, was christened today at Giuggianello, Lecce, Italy today. His godparents were Princess Maria Gabriella of Savoy (represented by Princess Bianca of Savoy) and Carlo Radicati di Primeglio. The ceremony was led by the parish priest of Giuggianello and Prince Alexander of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.
Prince Gabriel de Orléans e Bragança married Luciana Guaspari at the Igreja da Imperial Irmandade de Nossa Senhora da Glória do Outeiro in Rio de Janeiro.
July 20th
The yearly photo session of the Prince of Orange and Princess Maxima of the Netherlands with their daughters Amalia, Alexia and Ariane took place at the beach of Wassenaar this morning.
Asylum has been granted in Great Britain to a married Saudi Arabian Princess who has an illegitimate child with a British man she had met while visiting London. She gave birth secretly in Great Britain. The Princess told the judge she would face the death penalty when returning to Saudi Arabia. She remains anonymous.
July 21st
The Belgian newspaper La Dernière Heure last week again received a death threat, in which someone said he wanted to kill Queen Fabiola with a crossbow on National Day. Despite of the threat she appeared with the rest of the Belgian royal family at the celebrations today. At the end of the military parade she took an apple from her handbag to provocate the person who threated her, a reference to William Tell. Because of the threats security was tightened this day than in previous years.
The Malaysian prince Tengku Temenggong Tengku Mohammad Fakhry is suing his wife Manohara Odelia Pinot for claiming her husband tortured her during their one-year marriage. He filed a defamation suit in the High Court of Malaysia, and seeks $30m in damages from her and her mother. Earlier he also petitioned for a divorce.
July 23rd
The Netherlands has returned the remains of the 19th century Ashanti King Badu Bonsu II to Ghana. Today the declaration of transfer was signed by the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Maxime Verhagen and Ahante-tribal chief Etsin Kofi II in The Hague. The transfer took place in presence of a delegation of Ahanta-tribal chiefs, among them a great-great-grandson of Badu Bonsu II. The tribal chiefs performed a short ceremony. Badu Bonsu II was handed over by his own people to the Dutch rulers after he had killed two Dutch envoys in 1838. The king was sentenced to death and hanged. His head was removed, put in formaldehyde, and taken to the Netherlands, where it was part of the academic collection of the Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum. The tribal chiefs will return to Ghana with the head on Friday.
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia today flew to Morocco to pay a visit to Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz. The Crown Prince left Saudi Arabia for medical treatment in November 2008. He hasn't returned home since. The King wishes "to visit and inquire after the health of Crown Prince Sultan", it was reported from Saudi Arabia. Afterwards he will take a short vacation.
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar of Nepal said that the Nepalese government will restore the house at Tribhuvan Sadan, in which King Birendra and his family were killed for eight years. King Gyanendra, Birendra's brother, after the massacre ordered the demolition of the house. Only one small brick wall remains now.
July 25th
A 24-year-old Dutchman, better known as the Vegan Streaker, was arrested last Monday on suspicion of planning to attack Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, because she wears fur. Action might have been taken on the basis of a tip by his former girlfriend. The animal rights activist was released today as the public prosecution department didn't find evidence that he really planned an attack.
Prince Christian zu Schaumburg-Lippe married Lena Giese at Glücksburg Castle shortly after noon. The civil wedding already took place on Friday. Among the guests were Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Fürst Alexander zu Schaumburg-Lippe, as well as members of the families Schaumburg-Lippe and Schleswig-Holstein. The groom is a grandson of Princess Feodora of Denmark.
July 26th
In the late afternoon the son of Prince Joachim and Princess Marie of Denmark was christened at the church of Møgeltønder. He received the names Henrik Carl Joachim Alain. His godparents are Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Benjamin Grandet, Charles Cavallier (half-brothers of Princess Marie), Britt Davidsen Siesbye and Christian Scherfig. Among the guests were apart from the closest family, among others also Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Prince Gustav zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg with his girlfriend Carina Axelsson, Princess Alexandra zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Count Jefferson-Friedrich von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth with their children, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Prince Nikolaos of Greece and his girlfriend Tatiana Blatnik, Count Ingolf and Countess Sussie af Rosenborg, Countess Marina af Rosenborg, Count Carl Johan and Countess Gunnila Bernadotte af Wisborg, Michael Iuel and his wife Désirée née Princess zu Schaumburg-Lippe,
July 28th
Saudi Arabian media say Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud is doing well. Second deputy prime minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud has told the Cabinet that the Crown Prince is convalescing at his residence in Agadir, Morocco.
July 29th
The Association of the Romanov Family has decided it is not the right time to appropriate money for the reburial of the remains of Tsarevich Alexej and Grand Duchess Maria of Russia right now in this time of crisis, a spokesman for the family said today.
July 30th
The attorney of the Dutch government will send letters to several Dutch media and to the Associated Press because they breached the privacy of the Prince of Orange and Princess Maxima of the Netherlands and their three daughters during their vacation. Several media published pictures of the family during their skiing holiday at Villa La Angostura in Argentina. That is not allowed according to the Dutch mediacode.
King Mohammed VI of Morocco celebrated his 10th anniversary on the throne today with parades and fireworks. Yesterday he therefore pardoned 24.865 prisoners and commuted 32 death sentences.
Ayesha Gayatri Devi, Maharani of Jaipur (India) died at Jaipur yesterday. She was 90 years old. The funeral took place today at the cremation grounds of the royal family in Jaipur. The Maharani had been admitted to hospital with stomach and respiratory problems about ten days ago. She was born in 1919 as a member of the royal family of Cooch Behar and in 1939 she became the third wife of the Maharajah of Jaipur, Sawai Man Singh. She was considered one of the most beautiful women in the world, and supported education for women. she became a member of parliament in 1962 and was reelected twice.
July 31st
The German publishing house Klambt has to pay 400.000 Euro in damaged to Princess Madeleine, the court of appeal in Hamburg decided today. The judge ruled the Princess had been the subject of a campaign of "reckless" gossip. Magazines of the publishing house had published articles with a wide range of false information and claims about Madeleine's life and living habits. The judge ruled the articles, published between 2000 and 2004, were "unequivocally untrue", and said that the damages awarded was an attempt to create a "major inhibiting effect" on the other gossip press. A lower court had previously rewarded the Princess 300.000 Euro. The Swedish royal family will donate the money to charity.
Royal News: June 2009. Last updated: July 2nd, 2009.