ROYAL NEWS: MARCH 2009

Last updated: April 4th, 2009.

March 2nd
Former King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia says in a letter on his website that he is showing progress in his fight against cancer, but that he needs to prolong his stay in Beijing, China for further treatment. He wrote: "Today I went to hospital to have it checked with modern equipment (PET Scan) and saw that this cancer has shrunk."

March 3rd
The Npower Renewables company has taken the decision that it will no longer continue developing an hydro scheme for Windsor Castle. An £1m hydro-electric plant at Romney Weir on the River Thames was due to supply about one-third of the electricity at Windsor Castle. The company said that over the past six months it "became apparent that there were still significant challenges in making this project a viable asset within Npower Renewables' rapidly expanding portfolio". The Environment Agency is now searching for a new partner. A spokeswoman for Buckingham Palace said that the reasons for the decision are understood. She said: "We would be interested in considering another partner if they were to suggest looking at the hydro-electric scheme in the future."

The Duchess of York attended the premiere of the film "The Young Victoria" in London. She was accompanied by her daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie of York. The Duchess is a co-producer of the film. Princess Beatrice plays a small role in the film as a lady-in-waiting to Queen Victoria. The young Victoria is being played by Emily Blunt, while Rupert Friend is her husband Prince Albert.

Crown Princess Masako of Japan has made her first solo public appearance outside the imperial palace in three years today. She visited an exhibition of devices invented by housewives in a department store in Tokyo.

A team of Japanese archaeologists from Waseda University have found a 3000 year-old tomb at Saqqara, Egypt, Mr Zahi Hawass of the antiquities department of Egypt said today. The team believes the tomb belongs to a granddaughter of Pharaoh Ramses II from the 19th dynasty, Isisnofret. Inside the tomb was a broken limestone sarcophagus bearing her name and the title "noble woman", as well as three mummies and fragments of funerary objects. Mr Hawass however thinks the tomb rather dates from the 18th than from the 19th dynasty, because of the style of construction. He said many women in old Egypt were called Isisnofret.

March 4th
Prince Carl Philip of Sweden and Emma Pernald have decided to take a break, after a relationship of ten years, Emma told the Swedish newspaper Expressen. Emma said: “We’ve decided to take a break. It was a mutual decision. I’m not going to comment as to why or on other details."

Prince Pieter-Christiaan van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven had to end his skiing vacation at Seefeld in Austria prematurely. During a skiing tour on Monday he fell and bruised a few ribs. He was taken to hospital in Innsbruck, from which he was released on Tuesday. He afterwards travelled back to the Netherlands. The prince had just started his vacation. As a member of the military police he had helped at the site of the airplane crash at Schiphol Amsterdam last week.

March 5th
Mr Zahi Hawass of the Egyptian Supreme Council for Antiquities said today that a team of Egyptian and European archaeologists has found two statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III at Luxor. The first statue is made of black granite. The second statue depicts the Pharaoh in the shape of a Sphinx.

March 6th
Six love letters from the Prince of Wales to Janet Jenkins were put up for sale on eBay yesterday. The Prince met Janet in 1975 when she was a receptionist at the British consulate in Montreal, Canada. In a letter from 1980 he tells of his frustrations with the press and fear of marrying the wrong girl. He wrote: "My new private secretary is horrified by the idea of ladies in hotels during foreign visits. I shall just have to get married as soon as possible and then all these people might relax a little! I still think my solution of marrying a girl from each Commonwealth country is the best one." The letters have a starting prince of £25,000. It is thought Janet sold the letters to US collector Alicia Carroll.

Hundred couples from all over Japan, who mark their golden wedding anniversary in 2009, might receive an invitation for a one-hour tea-ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on 10 April, on the occasion of the 50th wedding anniversary of Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan. The Imperial Household Agency is also planning to invite grand stewards and other close aids who served at the palace after the wedding for a 30-minute meeting with the Imperial Couple.

March 7th
Prince Aimone of Savoy, Duke of Apulia, and his wife Olga née Princess of Greece, had their first child at Paris, France today. The baby was called Umberto.

March 8th
Prime Minister John Key of New Zealand has announced that the country is to restore the titles of knights and dames to its honours system. The titles, which are linked to the British honours system, were dropped in 2000. Mr Key said that restoring the titles would recognise service given to New Zealand. According to him Queen Elizabeth of Great Britain II approves the move. He says the changes will be finalised in time for the Queen's Birthday Honours list in June.

March 9th
Seven Thai policemen arrested webmaster Chiranut Prempreecha of the online newspaper Prachatai on Friday, because a reader of the website posted a comment insulting the monarchy. The comment wasn't deleted for several days. She was charged with violating the Computer Crime Act, and afterwards released on bail. The arrest came just hours after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva had promised to revise the strict laws on critisizing the Thai royal family.

Prince Amedeo of Savoy has titled his newborn grandson Umberto Prince di Piemonte.

March 10th
Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark had surgery at the Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen today. He had torn his splint-bone while sleighing with his children Christian and Isabella during a recent skiing vacation in Switzerland. He will leave hospital tomorrow. Plaster bandage will remain around his leg for the next six weeks.

March 12th
Crown Princess Victoria celebrated her name day together with her fiance Daniel Westling. Both he and Queen Silvia of Sweden proudly watched while Crown Princess Victoria received name day wishes and gifts outside the royal palace in Stockholm. The army's drum corps provided the music. It was Daniel Westling's first official engagement after the engagement. In the evening a grand banquet was being held at the royal palace.

March 13th
For the first time since the death of his mother Diana Princess of Wales, Prince William of Wales spoke of the "emptiness" he has felt on Mother's Day since she died. He spoke at a reception for the Child Bereavement Charity, of which he has just become a patron. Princess Diana attended the charity's launch 15 years ago. Prince William said: "Today I am incredibly proud to be able to continue her support for your fantastic charity, by becoming your royal patron. What my mother recognised then - and what I understand now - is that losing a close family member is one of the hardest experiences that anyone can ever endure. Never being able to say the word 'mummy' again in your life sounds like a small thing. However, for many, including me, it's now really just a word - hollow and evoking only memories. I can therefore wholeheartedly relate to the Mother's Day campaign as I too have felt - and still feel - the emptiness on such a day."

King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand spent two days at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok for a routine check-up. He was able to leave hospital today. He left in a motorised wheelchair and was greeted outside by a large crowd. The results of the check-up wasn't released.

The Prague Municipal Court will likely continue the prosecution of Prince Hamid bin Abdal Sani of Qatar. The Prince was earlier convicted by a Czech court to 2,5 years in prison for sex with underaged and juvenile girls in 2005. At the end of February the Czech verdict was declared not valid by the prosecutor's office of Qatar. The case was held in Czechia despite of the fact that the Minister of Justice of Czechia had decided to hand over the prosecution to Qatar. The lower court and the municipal court thought the minister's decision was illegal, but the Supreme Court said a minister was allowed to take such a decision. Now the Qatar court has halted the prosecution, the prosecution can be continued in Czechia.

March 14th
The Imperial Household Agency yesterday revealed the programme for the 15-day visit of Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan to Canada and Hawaii starting on 3 July. The couple will arrive in Ottawa on July 3. Official events will start on July 6. Toronto will be visited on July 8, Victoria, British Columbia, on July 10, and Vancouver on July 12. They will fly to Hawaii on July 14. The trip won't included a visit to Pearl Harbor. The Grand Master of ceremonies said: "The visit to Hawaii is not designed for the respose of the souls of the war dead."

Prince Nayef bin Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia has said in remarks in the Okaz newspaper that the condition of his brother, Crown Prince Sultan of Saudi Arabia, is "excellent and very reassuring" after a successfull operation in New York last month. He said: "The crown prince is in the best condition and he is in good health, all that remains to be done is the completion of simple procedures for him to leave the hospital soon."

On Friday a 33-year-old man from Malaysia has been fined by a Malaysian court for insulting the Sultan of Perak on the Internet. The man pleaded guilty to charged brought under the Multimedia and Communications Act. Five other people pleaded not guilty and face trial.

March 16th
Major General Håkan Pettersson, Chief of Military Staff, has been appointed as "wedding planner" for the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Daniel Westling. His role includes being the chair of the planning and too, together with the different departments of the Royal Court, design the wedding that the Crown Princess and Daniel Westling wish to have.

An Austrian team has researched the remains of what they say is Princess Arsinöe. Arsinöe was the younger sister of Pharaoh Cleopatra of Egypt. She was put to death in 41BC on the orders of Cleopatra and Mark Antony, as she was regarded a rival. Her grave at Ephesus, Turkey, was opened for the first time in 1926. Hilke Thuer of the Austrian Academy of Sciences is sure that the remains are Arsinöe's. Research revealed that the remains indicate that Arsinöe's mother had an "African" skeleton. Mrs Thuer said: "It is unique in the life of an archaeologist to find the tomb and the skeleton of a member of Ptolemaic dynasty. That Arsinöe had an African mother is a real sensation which leads to a new insight on Cleopatra's family and the relationship of the sisters Cleopatra and Arsinöe." The discovery means that also Cleopatra herself might have been of mixed race, although Cleopatra and Arsinöe had different mothers. The documentary "Cleopatra: Portrait of a Killer" will be broadcasted on BBC One at 9pm on 23 March 2009. The documentary will also deal with the discovery.

March 17th
Princess Medeferiashwork Abebe, wife of the late Crown Prince Asfawossen of Ethiopia, died on Sunday aged 84. The funeral ceremony took place today at the Trinity Cathedral in Addis Abeba today. Present were members of the family, dignitaries and members of the Rastafarian community. She will be buried next to her mother Wosenyelesh Mengesha. She is survived by her children.

The remains of president Mohammad Daud Khan of Afghanistan, a member of the royal family, and his brother Mohammad Naeem Khan have been reburied today after a state ceremony at the palace in Kabul. His remains were found back last year. They had been missing since he was killed in a 1978 coup. The ceremony was attended by members of the Khan family. The remains of the two men were flown afterwards to a hill southwest of Kabul where they were buried with the remains of 15 other relatives that were killed in the coup. They were already reburied on Monday.

March 18th
Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands has opened the Keukenhof in Lisse today by baptising a new tulip called Spring Garden. The 60th annual international flower show will be opened from 19 March to 21 May. This year the show commemorates the 400th anniversary of the founding of New Amsterdam (now New York) by Henry Hudson on behalf of the Dutch East India Company. Among others a reproduction of the Statue of Liberty made with 53th flowers is exhibited.

Former King Simeon of Bulgaria launched his official website today.

Website

March 19th
Prince Jean of Luxemburg married his longtime girlfriend Diane de Guerre in the Statenzaal of the townhall in Roermond, The Netherlands. Family and friends attended the wedding, among others Prince Guillaume of Luxemburg, youngest brother of the groom. Diane de Guerre was born in 1962 as daughter of Claude de Guerre and Countess Eugénie Wolff-Metternich.

Article with picture

The civil wedding of Prince Jean of France and Philomena de Tornos y Steinhart took place today at the townhall of the VIIth arrondissement at Paris. The religious wedding will take place at the cathedral of Senlis on 2 May. The wedding was attended by the count of Paris and his wife, the duchess of Montpensier, the duke and duchess of Angoulême, Princess Marie of Liechtenstein and other members of the French royal family. A short reception took place after the wedding at the inner garden of the townhall.

March 20th
Queen Margrethe II has created the costumes and sets for a film based on the fairytale "The Wild Swans" by Hans Christian Andersen, she revealed on a press conference today. It was her fascination with Andersen that got her involved in the project, she said. It is the first time she worked on a film, but she has designed costumes and decors for ballets in the past. The film is due out in autumn.

The Italian royal family released the first picture of Umberto, son of Prince Aimone and Princess Olga of Savoy, who was born on 7 March.

Picture Umberto

Dutch authorities will return the head of Badu Bonsu II, leader of the Ashanti tribe, to Ghana. He is to be buried in his homeland. The king was executed by Dutch colonists in the 1830s. The Leids Museum, which stored the head in a jar of formaldehyde, said to hope he will now have a dignified burial. In 2008 Ghana filed a request for the return of the head.

March 21st
Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark started their official visit to the USA a bit later than planned. When they were boarding their fligth at Copenhagen airport, a man was heard saying: "I can't believe that with so many security guards around, they haven't found the bomb that I have in my suitcase." The princely couple was immediately evacuated, and the passengers had to leave the plane. The man was arrested. After an extensive search, in which nothing was found, the plane with the princely couple on board could leave with a few hours delay.

At the 60th Anti-Tuberculosis National Convention at Tokyo, Emperor Akihito on Wednesday revealed that he suffered himself from tuberculosis in 1953, and recovered only in 1957 after having taken medicines.

Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy and his dancing partner Natalia Titova won the final of the Italian version of Strictly Come Dancing. They got 75% of the votes by telephone. In his speech the prince said: "The victory is above all for the Italians who discovered me." He had entered the contest "with the aim of letting Italians get to know me".

March 22nd
In an interview to the Austrian newspaper Kurier 87-year-old Lisa Lanett, a granddaughter of Archduke Otto of Austria (1865-1906), has told that she had an affair with US president John F. Kennedy after 1942. On 29 September 1945 their son Tony (Antonio) was born. Lisa said didn't want to marry John F. Kennedy, although he asked her. She had already been divorced once; in total she married six times. Her son Tony was adopted by Lisa's mother Charlotte and her second husband Richard Böhler. Lisa Lanett told her son Tony Bohler about his father about 30 years ago. Tony says he hasn't been busy with his father a lot, but he would be interested to know for sure if John F. Kennedy is his father. Therefore a DNA-test would be needed, and it is unlikely the Kennedy family would agree with that. Tony lives in California, is divorced and has two sons.

March 23rd
The wedding of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Daniel Westling will take place at the Storkyrkan in Stockholm on 19 June 2010. The date 19 June has traditionally been a day to get married in the Swedish royal family. Crown Princess Victoria's parents married on 19 June 1976. Also King Oscar I (1823) and King Karl XV (1850) married on 19 June. King Oscar II and his bride arrived in Sweden on 19 June 1857 after their wedding in Germany.

March 24th
Crown Princess Mary of Denmark has given an interview to the Australian Women's Weekly magazine. She said to find her family very important. When she looks at her children, she she sees their "unlimited freedom and joy of life. I'd like to have that experience again. That boundless freedom of childhood is so wonderful." She said that she would have loved to have more time with her mother, who died after an heart operation in 1997. Her own children only know her from photos and stories. Crown Princess Mary says there is nothing she can do about it, but tries "to believe she is with us." About raising her children she said: "Naturally, I do things my own way but I'm certainly influenced by my mother's way of doing things. She is a part of me. My mother would do anything for her children. And that's how I am too. I'd do anything for them. That's what real love is. Unconditional love." Mary said she wants her children to be "happy and positive individuals, with self-esteem and self-confidence." She said: "We hope they will have the strength to make the right choices in life."

The Imperial Household Agency said today that Empress Michiko of Japan has hurt her left knee when she fell while playing tennis at the Imperial Palace early February. After a detailed examination on Monday it turned out she had injred the posterior cruciate ligament. The injury doesn't hinder her mobility, but it will take about six months to recover fully. The injury doesn't require surgery. Official duties and activities will be decided depending on the Empress's condition. She will not undertake an engagement at Tochigi on Thursday, because it is a long-distance trip.

March 25th
The Duchess of Cornwall has cancelled her engagements for the coming two days. She has acute bronchitis, and cancelled on medical advice. A spokeswoman from Clarence House said: "The Duchess has asked that the cancelled engagements are rearranged for another date." Decisions about further engagements will be taken on a day-by-day basis.

In a meeting with the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Mr Raj Nath Singh, yesterday former King Gyanendra of Nepal, according to sources, has said that he is not in favour of reinstating the Nepalese monarchy in any form. Gyanendra however also defended the monarchy: "The Institution of Monarchy in Nepal was completely different than in the manner it is and was being portrayed in each and every Nepali household currently. The Institution was not completely wrong though it ruled for long period of time."

March 26th
The Danish royal court released new official photos of the royal family. They were made in January at a new year's reception at the Knight's Hall of Christian VII's Palace in Copenhagen. For the first time also Princess Marie appears on the official photos.

Official Danish pictures (Fotogalleri)

Princess Luise of Prussia died at Bückeburg Castle, Germany, on 23 March. She was born at House Glienicke at Berlin on 23 August 1917. She was the only daughter of Prince Friedrich Sigismund of Prussia and Princess Marie Luise zu Schaumburg-Lippe. She was named after her maternal grandmother, Princess Louise of Denmark. She was married from 1942 to 1949 to Hans Reinhold (1917-2002), with whom she had one son. Since the late 1950s Princess Luise lived at Bückeburg Castle. She was the last member of the Hohenzollern family alive who was born during the reign of Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany. Princess Luise will be buried at the family cemetery at Schlosspark Glienicke in Berlin.

March 27th
The British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has opened talks with Buckingham Palace about the abolishing the 1701 law that prevents members of the British royal family marrying Roman Catholics. If they do, they are removed from the line of succession. He also is said to be in favour of changing the succession laws. Currently male members of the royal family take precedent over female members. Today members of parliament were to vote on reforming laws proposed by member of parliament Evan Harris to allow Roman Catholic succession to the throne. The Prime Minister will not support his legislation, but will wait until after negotiations before introducing his own legislation in 2010. The government has already said that changes would be a complex undertaking.

Crown Princess Margarita of Romania celebrated her 60th birthday with a huge celebration. Yesterday more than hundred guests wre received at the Cec Palace in Bucharest. Today a trip was made to the Royal Domain of Sinaia, where Pelesh Castle and Pelishor Castle were visited. Tonight a gala performance was being held at the National Opera in Bucharest. Apart from many members of the Romanian royal family, attending were among others Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia, Archduke Lorenz of Austria, Prince of Belgium, and members of the Austrian imperial family.

Pictures of 26 March

Pictures of 27 March

March 29th
King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz al-Saud of Saudi Arabia has issued a royal order two days ago, appointing his younger brother Prince Naif bin Abdul-Aziz aas second deputy prime minister with immediate effect. Prince Naif said to be very proud of the confidence given to him by the King. The Prince yesterday evening was sworn-in at King Abdullah's palace in Riyadh.

Prince Talal bin Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia, a younger brother of King Abdullah, has questioned the appointment of Prince Naif biN Abdul-Aziz as second deputy Prime Minister or Saudi Arabia. Prince Talal says that King Abdullah should clarify what is meant with the nomination. He said that the nomination gives the impression that Prince Naif will become Crown Prince if something happens with Crown Prince Sultan, who has serious health problems. He thinks the appointment of Prince Naif as Crown Prince should be decided by the Allegiance Council.

March 30th
Grand Duchess Maria of Russia has sent a request to the Prosecutor General's Office in Russia to exonerate members of the Russian imperial family, Romanov chancellery director Alexander Zakatov said today. The request concerns among others Grand Duke Michael, Grand Duchess Elena and the Grand Dukes Sergej, Ioann, Konstantin and Igor.

In an interview to the Singapore-based New Paper, former Crown Prince Paras Shah of Nepal, for the first time has spoken openly about the 2001 royal massacre in which nine family members were killed. He said that Crown Prince Dipendra, who killed his family members and afterwards himself, had three reasons to kill his own father and other family members. Dipendra was angry at a failed arms deal. Secondly he was very unhappy about his family rejecting his choice of bride, and thirdly he was unhappy about the decision of his father to end absolute monarchy in Nepal. Paras Shah said not to believe that the Crown Prince was drunk and shot his family in an impulse, as he didn't smell of alcohol. According to him Dipendra already talked about "bring down the ivory tower" of the monarchy a year before the massacre.

Burglary charges against six monarchists who tried to take over the Iolani Palace at Hawaii on August 15, 2008, have been dismissed, because of lack of evidence. James Akahi, leader of a Native Hawaiian sovereignty group, still faces burglary charges.

March 31st
According to German scientists the Egyptian Queen Neferteti might not have been as beautiful as thought. The famous bust suggests that the sculptor at that time might have smoothed creases around her mouth and made her nose more beautiful. The bust of Neferteti, which was found at Tell el-Amarna in Egypt in 1912, is housed in the Altes Museum in Berlin. Alexander Huppertz, of the Imaging Science Institute in Berlin said today that the bust was probably commissioned by Neferteti's husband, Pharaoh Akhenaten, to represent her according to his own personal perception.


Royal News: February 2009. Last updated: March 7th, 2009.