ROYAL NEWS: MARCH 2008

Last updated: April 5th, 2008.

March 1st
Prince Harry of Wales returned home today. He landed at RAF Brize Norton Airport in Oxfordshire, Great Britain, late this morning. He was met by the Prince of Wales and Prince William of Wales. Prince Harry told the press: "I wouldn't say I am a hero. The bravery of the guys out there was humbling." He also said to be disappointed that publicity from foreign media has ended his tour. The Prince of Wales said to be pleased about his son's return and praised the efforts of all armed forces personnel. He told that he had found it quite difficult to keep his son's stay in Afghanistan a secret. He also said: "I feel particular frustration that he was removed unexpectedly early because - apart from anything else - he had been looking forward to coming back with the rest of his regiment." He also said to be incredibly proud of Harry. In an interview before leaving Afghanistan Prince Harry said that he enjoyed being in Afghanistan and away from the British media. He hopes to get another chance and said: "I don't want to sit around Windsor, because I generally don't like England that much and it's nice to be away from all the press and the papers." General Sir Richard Dannatt, chief of the army, however said that there is no immediate prospect of Prince Harry going anywhere else.

On Thursday evening the VTM broadcasted a programme with Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde of Belgium. The couple cooperated in the programme Levenslijn about secure transport for children. The prince visited a school and the princess a rehabilitation centre. Furthermore they gave an interview in which Princess Mathilde told that she still finds it hard to cope with the death of her sister Marie-Alix and her grandmother in a car accident in 1997.

March 2nd
Senior Taliban commander Mullah Abdul Karim claimed today that he knew that Prince Harry of Wales was in Afghanitan within weeks of his arrival. The Taliban however didn't manage to find their target. Mr Karim said: "He is our special enemy. Our first option was to capture him as a prisoner, and the second, to kill him."

March 3rd
During the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales Hasnat Khan in a written statement to the hearing said that Princess Diana ended their two-year-relationship shortly after her first two holidays with the al-Fayed family. Mr Khan said: “She was very down-to-earth and made everyone feel at ease, but she was always flirtatious with everyone.” He told: “We had a normal sexual relationship and I have no reason to believe that she was ever unfaithful to me.” He said that they had discussed marriage but that none of them ever proposed. He said that he didn't think she would ever have converted to the Muslim faith, although she read about it. Mr Khan said Princess Diana respected Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain, but disliked the Duke of Edinburgh, although she didn't fear him. He didn't think that she would have married Dodi al-Fayed that quickly after meeting him. He also said that she always had been very careful in taking the pill, so he didn't think she could have been pregnant. He believes her death was an accident.

The April issue of Tatler magazine, which is going on sale this week, has Princess Eugenie of York on the cover. Eugenie did a photoshoot for them on the occasion of her 18th birthday on 23 March. In Tatler magazine Princess Eugenie said to be very close to her sister Beatrice: "Like all sisters we have silly arguments about unimportant stuff, but we do love each other to death." She calls her parents "the best divorced couple I know. They just always went out of their way to make us feel loved and secure." About Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain 'Supergran' she says: "Truly one of the most amazing women ever. She is also very funny....All I can say is that she has this air of magic about her. And she is incredibly wise. What doesn't she know?!" Princess Eugenie is planning a small birthday celebration with her family at Windsor Castle over the Easter weekend followed by a night out clubbing with her friends.

March 5th
The Duchess of York has been hired by ITV as 'fat-fighting guru' for their new programme which provissionally is titled The Duchess in Hull. The Duchess will attempt to improve the eating habits of the Sargerson family from Hull.

March 6th
Princess Margarita of Romania and her husband Prince Radu opened the photograph exhibition 'Romanian Queen Marie in Istanbul' at the Dimitri Cantemir Romanian Culture Institute in Istanbul. The exhibition includes 39 photographs of the Queen who visited Istanbul in 1928, and will be open until March 14.

March 7th
Coroner Lord Justice Scott Baker ruled today that Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and the Duke of Edinburgh don't have to give evidence at the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales. A spokeswoman said that Mohammed al-Fayed is very disappointed about this decision. Scotland Yard has said that former royal butler Paul Burrell will not face a perjury probe until after the inquest. Mr Burrell last week refused to return from the USA to be questioned at the inquest a second time. He can't be forced to appear.

March 9th
The British army is investigating a soldier who offered photographs of Prince Harry of Wales during Christmas in Afghanistan to the Sun newspaper. The newspaper was bound by the agreement between the Ministry of Defence and the media concerning Prince Harry's stay in Afghanistan and it is understood they informed the army. They only published the photos after Prince Harry was back in Great Britain.

Queen Sirikit of Thailand was admitted to the Chulalongkorn Hospital in Bangkok this morning. She had fever and a bad cough, and was diagnosed with a cold and bronchitis. She will undergo tests at hospital and remain under observation for a few days.

The House of Roman Emperor Augustus has opened to the public today at the Roman Forum in Rome, Italy. The house was found about 50 years ago and has since been restored. The Rome authorities have spent nearly 2m euros preserving the four Augustus rooms - thought to comprise a dining-room, bedroom, an expansive reception hall at ground-level and a small study on the first floor. The rooms show wonderful frescoes in vivid shades of blue, red and ochre. Because of the delicacy of the frescoes no more than five visitors at a time will be able to enter the rooms.

March 10th
The New Idea magazine has apologised for breaching a worldwide media embargo by publishing the fact that Prince Harry of Wales was serving in the army in Afghanistan. A spokesperson said: "We did not knowingly breach any embargo and were not party to any agreement for a media blackout on the story. However, and more importantly, we do acknowledge that our actions in publishing the story can be reasonably viewed as insensitive and irresponsible."

During the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales police statements of paparazzi photographers were read to the inquiry. They refused to appear in person or via video link. Serge Benhamou said that he thought that driver Henri Paul was not his usual self and must have been drinking. He also admitted to have taken photos of the car after the crash. He said he took pictures without thinking and afterwards fell quite bad about it. In the statements the photographers admit not to have assisted by helping the people in the car. They also acknowledged to have been more persistent and aggressive than usual in the pursuit.

March 11th
During the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales police statements of paparazzi photographers were read to the inquiry. Paparazzo Romuald Rat told that the driver of the car in which the princess was seated had taken too many risks. He said: "I did not understand why the Mercedes suddenly drove so quickly, since everything had gone so well during the day and a normal chauffeur knows that is not the way that you shake someone off." He said that driver Henri Paul had been mocking the photographers outside the Ritz Hotel.

Prince Hans Adam II of Liechtenstein has withdrawn all art that is loaned to German museums and exhibitions. With the decision he protests against the political attacks on Liechtenstein after it was revealed German intelligence had paid millions to a former employee of the princely bank of Liechtenstein to obtain stolen information about German bank clients. Because of the decision an exhibition at the Neue Pinakothek Museum in München which was to go on display on 25 May has to be cancelled.

A Frenchman of Palestinian origine was sentenced to three months in jail by a Jordanian court. The man insulted King Abdullah of Jordan and the country of Jordan during a row at a five-star hotel in Amman.

Pro-monarchists in Nepal have launched an election manifesto today to save the monarchy from abolition by holding a referendum. They pro-monarchists think that a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarchy is the only reliable alternative for Nepal. Elections will be held on April 10.

March 12th
Princess Annette van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven gave birth to a healthy son at 8.30am at the Onze Lieve Vrouwe Gasthuis in Amsterdam. Benjamin Pieter Floris van Vollenhoven weighed 3250 gramms. The parents let know: "We are very happy and very grateful with the birth of our third child and the brother of Isabella and Samuel." Benjamin is the eight grandchild of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands and Pieter van Vollenhoven.

During the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales the police statement of eyewitness Clifford Goorovadoo was read. He said that the photographers at the scene wouldn't let the arriving police officers through. He said the photographers didn't offer any help to the victims.

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden celebrated her name day today. She was cheered by people at the courtyard of the palace in Stockholm who gave her flowers and other presents.

Crown Princess Mary of Denmark has completed her basic training with the Danish Home Guard. The training included learning how to use a weapon, sleeping outdoors and assisting the police in search and rescue operations, as well as knowledge about first aid. Now the crown princess will be allowed to serve with the guard.

March 13th
The Norwegian royal court announced that Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and her husband Ari Behn expect their third child mid October 2008. They already have two daughters: Maud Angelica born in 2003 and Leah Isadora born in 2005. The Princess is doing fine and a normal pregnancy is expected. The baby will be the fifth grandchild of King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway.

During the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales movie producer Barbara Broccoli, a friend of Dodi al-Fayed, by written statement told Dodi al-Fayed had arranged to visit the set of the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies at Pinewood Studios in Middlesex, Great Britain, on 1 September 1997. He told her on 30 August 1997 via telephone that he had to tell her something very important on 1 September.

Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy has announced his candidacy in the elections on 13 and 14 April for the list Values and Future. He will try to get one of the six seats in the Chamber of Deputies for Italians living outside Italy but in Europe. In a press conference the prince said: "I vote on the centre-right [of Silvio Berlusconi], and if I am elected I will be close to their representatives, whether they lose or win." He was critizised because the monarchy should be beyond parties, but the prince told: "We cannot keep saying how good it was before 1946. We have to look to the future without forgetting the past."

March 14th
Prince Albert II of Monaco celebrated his 50th birthday today. The square in front of the royal palace was packed with about 5000 people. The Prince was accompanied by his sister Princess Stéphanie. In a speech to the wellwishers the prince said to appreciate their support very much and urged his people to work alongside him to secure the future of Monaco. Mayor Georges Marsan wished the prince a happy birthday in name of all people of Monaco. There were rumours that the prince today would announce his engagement to his girlfriend Charlene Wittstock, but that didn't happen. Point de Vue last week reported that the Prince will marry his girlfriend in September.

Prince Bernhard van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven registered the birth of his son Benjamin Pieter Floris van Vollenhoven at the Stadsdeelkantoor Amsterdam Oud-Zuid this morning. In the afternoon the first pictures of father and son were released. They were taken at the hospital by Frank van Beek.

Photos

March 15th
Princess Aiko of Japan has finished kindergarten today. Her parents Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako of Japan attended the graduation ceremony at Gakushuin Kindergarten. The princess will enter Gakushuin Primary School in April.

Dom Eudes de Orléans e Bragança married Patricia Annechino Landau at Rio de Janeiro today. The wedding was attended by about 900 guests, among them many royals.

March 16th
An unnamed British royal who has been the target of an alleged sex and drugs blackmail plot has been interviewed by Scotland Yard for 45 minutes. He told Scotland Yard detectives that the royal family had given him "immense support". About the affection of the affair on his family he said: “I can’t really adequately describe the effect it’s had mentally on myself and my family. Excruciating pain and unbelievable amounts of anguish. It’s been unbelievably stressful on people who I work with, on my friends, my family.” He said his standing in public life has been hugely damaged as his name was widely named on the Internet. Ian Strachan and Sean McGuigan face trial in April. They deny the charges. Prosecutors want the trial to be conducted behind closed doors.

March 17th
During the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales Michael Faux, former bodyguard of former royal butler Paul Burrell, said that Mr Burrell told him that he had removed an engagement ring from the body of the princess in the mortuary in Paris after her death. It is claimed Mr Burrell planned to hurl the ring, some other jewelry and papers belonging to the princess from the cruise liner Saga Rose out to sea in January 2003. Mr Faux also said to have seen Mr Burrell burning documents some with Buckingham Palace letterheads late in 2002.

March 18th
The High Court today rejected a bid of Mohamed al-Fayed to make Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and the Duke of Edinburgh give evidence at the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales. Mohamed al-Fayed reappeared before the coroner of the inquest today to explain why he lied to the jury about having won a negligence case involving his company Fulham Holdings. He only won an appeal 10 days after his claim. Mohamed al-Fayed stated it was a mix-up.

After almost six months and 252 witnesses the hearings during the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales have come to an end. Now it is up to the jury to deliver its verdict.

A constitutional court in Karlsruhe, Germany, rejected a complaint of Princess Caroline of Monaco concerning the publication of a report and photographs in the German magazine 7Tage about the leasing of the Kenian home of her and her husband. The court ruled that prohibiting the publication of such photos was a restriction of freedom of the press. Those rights do also cover reports about the "normalcy of everyday life," provided they were useful to forming an opinion about matters of general interest. the court also rejected a complaint about a publication about the illness of the late Prince Rainier III of Monaco. The court however affirmed a ban on photos showing Princess Caroline skiing in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The photos were published by the magazine Frau im Spiegel.

March 19th
In the new TV-season ITV1 will show a two-part documentary series following the Duke of Edinburgh. ITV said today in a statement: "Cameras have followed the duke over the past year, producing a fascinating chronicle of the solo portfolio that HRH has carved out for himself."

A Moroccan man jailed to three years for pretending to be Prince Moulay Rachid of Morocco on Facebook has been given a royal pardon. He was released from jail in Casablanca yesterday evening. Fouad Mourtada's brother told the press that his brother is in good health and delighted to be free again.

Archaelogists plan to resume excavations this summer near Yekaterinburg in the southern Urals where the remains of a boy and a young woman were exhumed last July, assumed to be Tsarevich Alexej and Grand Duchess Maria. Sergei Pogorelov said: "There are plans to resume the excavations...to find items belonging to the Romanov family. This will make it clear whether the remains belong to the tsar's children." They haven't found sponsors for the research yet.

March 20th
Today it was revealed that the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales so far costed almost £ 3 million. Since July 2007 £ 1,3 million has been spent on lawyers and legal services, and almost £ 1 million on IT and video. The costs for March are not included yet.

March 21st
The Duke of Castro, one of the members of the Bourbon-Two Sicilies family claiming family leadership, died at France yesterday. He was 81 years old. His wife died in 2005. The Duke is survived by his two daughters Beatrice and Anne, his son Charles and six grandchildren.

March 22nd
A photo secretly taken of Emperor Meiji of Japan by a student on 16 May 1911 at a graduation ceremony at the Imperial Japanese Army accounting school in Shinjuku Ward in Tokyo has been made public for the first time. There are very few known photographs of the camera-shy emperor. The photos were taken by Noboru Ando who reportedly secretly asked a professional photographer to take a pictures from the second floor of the school building. His son Tsuneo Ando now donated copies of the photograph to several places like the Togo Shrine in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo.

It was announced today that Egyptian and European archaeologists discovered a giant statue of Queen Tiy, wife of the 18th dynast Pharaoh Amenhotep III, around the site of the massive Colossi of Memnon twin statues. The statue is 3,62 metres high. The archaeologists also found two sphinx representing Queen Tiy and Pharaoh Amenhotep III and 10 statues in black granite of the goddess Sekhmet. Culture minister Faruq Hosni expects that the statues will be shown in public next year. He says that they will be joined by two 15-metres-high statues excavated in recent years in an open air museum behind the Colossi of Memnon.

March 23rd
Queen Sirikit of Thailand was released from hospital after two weeks of treatment for bronchitis and a cold. In a statement the palace said she still suffers mild coughing but is doing well. Doctors have advised her to refrain from public activities until she has made a full revocery.

March 24th
Empress Michiko of Japan is suffering from gastroesophageal regurgitation, a stomach problem, the Imperial Household Agency announced today. They said the disease often causes heartburn and is thought to be triggered by stress or other factors such as the tightening of the body by a kimono sash. The empress is taking medicines. She has had pains in her chest and back and coughing for a few years, but the diagnose was only made after an endoscopic examination in January. The Agency says they might advice her to reduce her official duties.

March 25th
A 45-year-old man has been jailed for four months for insulting Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. He was also found guilty of threatening and insulting the police and members of the Salvation Army. The court didn't find him guilty of threatening the Queen.

The first elections ever were held in Bhutan on Monday. The elections ended more than 100 years of absolute monarchy and make the country a democracy. Voters could vote on two political parties. King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck remains head of state and will keep much influence, but the National Assembly with 47 seats will be able to remove him with 2/3 majority. The elections were an initiative of the royal family. The Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party, led by royal family member Jigme Kinley, won the elections. They took 44 of the 47 seats in the new parliament. The People's Democratic Party won 3 seats. The new parliament is thought to be sworn in within the next two months.

Duchess Sophie von Hohenberg, who is trying to get back Konopiste Castle, saw her case rejected by the High Court in Czechia today. Her lawyer has made known that they are going to appeal, and if that fails the case could be taken to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France.

March 26th
Several private letters written by King Juan Carlos to the Prince of Asturias in 1984 and 1985 when the prince was studying in Canada have been published in a new book called El Príncipe y el Rey by José García Abad. The letters contain fatherly advice. The King among others wrote: "You need to appear animated even when you are tired; kind even when you don't feel like it; attentive even when you are not interested; helpful even when it takes an effort." A spokesperson for the royal family today said to be very surprised.

March 27th
An Nepalese investigation committee has accused the royal family of Nepal of misusing funds belonging to the National Trust for Nature Conservation. The committee - the report was written by Maoist former rebels now in the government - says the royals spent large amounts of the trust's money on travels abroad, lavish parties and health check-ups abroad for several years. The report also says that the royals are still using computers and cars belonging to the trust.

March 29th
The yearly Rose Ball was held at Monaco. This year's theme was La Movida. Guest of honour was film director Pedro Almodóvar. Present were Prince Albert II of Monaco, his girlfriend Charlene Wittstock, Princess Caroline of Monaco and her children Charlotte and Pierre Casiraghi, Prince Ernst August von Hannover, baroness Elizabeth-Ann de Massy, as well as her children Jean-Leonard and Mélanie.

Belgian newspapers reported on Wednesday that Count Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz, the father of Princess Mathilde of Belgium, was hospitalised and is in a coma. Later on Wednesday the royal palace in Brussels confirmed that the count is in the Erasmus Hospital in Anderlecht and that he is undergoing tests. Today Count Henri d'Udekem d'Acoz confirmed to several newspapers that his brother is in a deep coma and that they don't know exactly what is wrong. The whole royal family has been visiting the hospital.

Telma Ortiz Rocasolano, sister of the Princess of Asturias, gave birth to a daughter yesterday at a hospital in Madrid, Spain. The father of the baby is Enrique Martin Llop.

March 31st
Lord Coroner Lord Justice Scott Baker has started his summing up in front of the jury of the inquest into the death of Diana Princess of Wales. He said that jurors found that the Princess and Dodi al-Fayed died accidentally. They said that many of the conspiracy theories suggested by Mohamed al-Fayed are without foundation and that there is 'not a shred of evidence' that the Duke of Edinburgh ordered the princess's death, nor that MI6 was involved. The jury now has been given five options for a verdict: unlawful killing (grossly negligent driving of following vehicles), unlawful killing (grossly negligent driving of the Mercedes), unlawful killing (grossly negligent driving of following vehicles and Mercedes), accidental death or open verdicht. The jury is likely to be sent out to consider its verdict later this week.


Royal News: February 2008. Last updated: March 1st, 2008.