Last updated: June 11th, 2002.
May 1st
The Prince of Asturias as well as the parents of Iñaki Urdangarín visited Infanta Cristina of Spain and her new son Miguel in hospital. Iñaki's parents brought with them Juan and Pablo, the elder sons of Infanta Cristina.
The Princess of Wales's former masseur is auctioning off private letters, Christmas cards and notes she sent him. Stephen Twigg is putting them up for auction in the USA in June. Some of the letters are expected to go for at least £3,000 each. It is said he's selling not out of need for money but because he wants someone else to enjoy them. A Harrods gift voucher note sent to Twigg for his birthday is likely to fetch the most money. The message on the envelope reads: "Stephen, wishing you a very happy birthday and lots of love, from Diana."
May 2nd
In today's issue the Danish magazine Se og Hør has offered a $ 1200 (10.000 kroner) reward for a good photo of Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark's Australian girlfriend Mary Donaldson on Danish soil, with or without the crown prince. Other media criticized the action and a newspaper and a television company even offered a reward for a picture of the girlfriend of Se og Hør's editor in chief Peter Salskov. The magazine defended the reward offer and said: "It is a game that the royal palace plays with us and we play back. We have searched for her for a year and now we're trying this." Palace spokesman Søn Haslund-Christensen called it "a hunt" and said he was "shocked" by the offer and that the royal court could take judicial action to block the move. But the crown prince's cabinet secretary Per Thornit said: "This affair does not concern the court. Mary Donaldson is neither a member of the royal family nor fiancee to Prince Frederik, but is simply a private person. The royal palace, in any case, will not get involved."
Zara Phillips, daughter of the Princess Royal, is among the 50 most beautiful people in the world, according to People magazine. She appeared beside a string of Hollywood stars in the list topped by Nicole Kidman. The magazine says Zara "continues to update the face of the stuffy Windsor family". She is also praised for her gold tongue stud and her decision to live openly with her boyfriend, jockey Richard Johnson. They describe her as a "blonde, 5ft 5in knockout" who has inherited a "spellbinding complexion" from her mother.
Prince Laurent of Belgium was fined for seven traffic infractions on February 5th, from speeding to running a red light in a matter of minutes, adding to an already long list of royal traffic complaints, officials said today. The royal palace officially confirmed the latest incident today, which cost the prince a fine of 485 euro. A newspaper wrote that the police had to chase the prince through the busy thoroughfares before bringing him to a stop. The list of infractions also included illegally overtaking another car and driving without a seat belt. The same newspaper highlighted half a dozen other speeding incidents the prince has been responsible for over his driving career.
May 3rd
Infanta Cristina of Spain Duchess of Palma de Mallorca and little Miguel left the Clínica Teknon in Barcelona at 13:30 accompanied by Iñaki Urdangarín. Cristina said to be very happy with their third son. A date for the christening wasn't made known yet.
In court at The Hague the people involved in the accident Princess Máxima of the Netherlands had last October, appeared for an official examination on the accident. Both Princess Máxima and mr van der Bent (the other party involved) as well as the two bodyguards who were with the Princess, the Royal Marechaussees who were on guard and the traffic-police had to testify what they saw. Princess Máxima, who was accompanied by her husband the Prince of Orange, declared under oath she hadn't drunk before the accident she was involved in last October. She said that the test she underwent after the accident showed that she wasn't under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. Also the two policemen who did the test said she hadn't drunk. Princess Máxima further said she had looked out very well and that she immediately took her foot off the accelerator when her car touched the one of Mr van der Bent. She declared that she had no troubles anymore with the ankle she broke last year. Directly after the accident she was brought back to the Palace by one of her two bodyguards because this officer did not know if this was an attack. "I refused to go away with the bodyguard; I wanted to go to the victim, to ask him for his situation." Three hours later the police arrived at Huis ten Bosch Palace and the Princess had to do an alcohol test. Mr van der Bent declared that he could not work for months as he broke his leg and claimed damages from the Princess. He thinks that Princess Máxima had to give way to him because she was leaving 'an exit'. He himself had offended the rules by driving on a road which was for destination-traffic (the palace estate) only, with too much speed and not wearing his seatbelt. One of the boduguards was examinated before the Princess. He declared that Princess Máxima drove very carefully, almost at walking pace and was almost not moving before turning on the road. "It was drizzly weather and the situation was not very clear due to the rhododendrons which were on the corner then. Because of those plants you were forced to turn on the road to see if there was traffic coming" he said. And the bodyguard also had doubts if mr van der Bent drove with his lights on. Meanwhile the Government Information Service confirmed Princess Máxima got her Dutch driver's license without the compulsory driving test. She handed over two driver's licenses to the Municipality of The Hague, an Argentinian one and one from the state of New York. For tranferring those two licenses a test is required, but Máxima didn't have to take the test. The Government Information Service and the mayor of The Hague said not to know why she wasn't obliged to take the test.
Prince Claus of the Netherlands arrived back home at Palace Huis ten Bosch around noon accompanied by his wife Queen Beatrix. He had been in hospital since March 11.
May 4th
The Earl of Ulster, son of the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, will marry Dr Claire Booth on June 22nd at the Chapel Royal at St. James' Palace followed by a reception afterwards in the State apartments there. The couple became engaged last October.
May 7th
The Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima of the Netherlands have broken off their visit to the Dutch Antilles and Aruba that started two days ago. In the hotel at Curacao where they were staying the Prince said that he and his wife were deeply shocked by the assassination of Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn yesterday and spoke out his sympathy for the people Fortuyn left behind. On their way back to the Netherlands they'll only make a short stop at Aruba to speak with parliament and government. They promissed to come back later. Queen Beatrix meanwhile cancelled the yearly dinner for foreign ambassadors that was supposed to take place this evening, because of the tragedy. Also the visit of Princess Margriet and her husband Pieter van Vollenhoven to the Candadian Tulip Festival in Ottawa was adapted because of the situation.
Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain arrived in Sunderland on the second leg of her Golden Jubilee tour Accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh she traveeld to the North East on the Royal Train. They officially opened Sunderland's Winter Gardens and the Queen met winners of a Jubilee Day portrait competition and viewed their paintings of her before going on a walkabout in Sunderland's Mowbray Park. She also took a trip on the Tyne and Wear Metro to formally open the extension from Gateshead to Sunderland. She also performed the official opening of the futuristic Millennium Bridge at Gateshead before unveiling a statue of Cardinal Basil Hume, a native of Newcastle, near the city's Central Station. While on her way to unveil the statue a male streaker has run in front of the Queen 's Rolls-Royce. The young man bared his all to the royal visitor and the Duke of Edinburgh. Onlookers said the Queen and Duke would have seen the streaker's back view as he appeared to pose for photographers in the crowd. The naked man was led away by police. Later, the Queen and Duke attended a gala evening at Newcastle City Hall.
May 11th
Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway suffered severe sunburn during an an outdoor interview with German television on Wednesday at the Skaugum estate. The first and second degree burns are said to be the result of the combination of strong spring sun on the Norwegian snow and reflection from powerful camera lights. Crown Princess Mette-Marit also suffered snowblindness on both eyes - slight damage to the corneas of her eyes. Crown Prince Haakon's injuries were described by the doctors as less severe. The 65-minute interview was to be a prelude to Haakon and Mette-Marit's five-day tour of Germany.
King Mswati III of Swaziland has urged all his subjects to take an HIV-test. In Swaziland many people are HIV-positive.
May 12th
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway has been forced to pull out of her tour of Germany it was announced this morning. She will spend the rest of this week resting. She said she was "very, very sorry" that she could not go through with the eagerly-awaited tour. She is unable to continue as doctors are worried it could hamper her recovery. Speaking before the princess had officially pulled out of the tour, television interviewer Sandra Maischberger, who was also sunburnt, told Bild om Sonntag newspaper she was "very unhappy that she might have kept the beautiful Norwegian princess from traveling to Germany". Crown Prince Haakon arrived in München on Sunday evening alone and his extreme sunburn could be clearly seen. During the five-day visit he will also visit Düsseldorf, Bonn, Cologne and Hamburg.
May 14th
Early this morning Princess Annette van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven gave birth to a daughter at the Onze Lieve Vrouwe Gasthuis in Amsterdam. The baby weighs 3750 grammes and will receive the names Isabella Lily Juliana. She will have the surname Van Vollenhoven and will not be a member of the royal house of the Netherlands. The baby's father, Prince Bernhard, said he and his wife were very happy with their daughter and that both mother and daughter are doing fine.
Also Viscountess Linley gave birth to a daughter this morning at the Portland Hospital in London. The baby, who hasn't got a name yet, was born by caesarian section. She is the first granddaughter and the fourth grandchild of the recently deceased Princess Margaret of Great Britain. Royal aides said Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain was 'thrilled' about the birth. Last night the Earl of Snowdon, the baby's grandfather, said: "It's wonderful news. I am on my way over to the hospital to see them now." Mother and baby are doing well.
Another baby was born in Brunei Darussalam where the Sultan got his first grandson. Princess Hajah Rashidah Sa’adatul Bolkiah, the wife of Pengiran Anak Dato Laila Utama Haji Abdul Rahim, gave birth to a baby boy at 16:00. A 17-gun salute was fired from the grounds of the Istana Nurul Iman following the safe delivery.
The murderer of Pim Fortuyn is also said to have thought about an attack at Minister of Agriculture Laurens Jan Brinkhorst and probably also his daughter Laurentien, because of the clearing of 270.000 animals during the foot-and-mouth crisis. The attack probably would have taken place during the wedding of his daughter Laurentien with Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands, but was most likely cancelled because of the high security. This week also Queen Beatrix received a letter in which she was threatened with death. The police takes this threat seriously. Today the Queen received extra security on her visit to Haaksbergen.
The Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima of the Netherlands will continue their visit to the Dutch Antilles and Aruba half August.
Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and the Duke of Edinburgh arrived in Northern Ireland amid tight security, as part of her Golden Jubilee tour. At Hillsborough she was greeted by Northern Ireland's First Minister David Trimble and Northern Ireland Secretary Dr John Reid. They carried out engagements in four counties - Tyrone, Fermanagh, Antrim and Down and included a garden party at Hillsborough Castle, where the Queen stayed. In a brief ceremony in the Throne Room at Hillsborough, the Queen and Philip joined more than 30 representatives from the two new Northern Ireland cities for a champagne reception. Lisburn and Newry were awarded city status as part of a competition to mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee. Earlier, Philip presented Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award certificates to some 100 young achievers, with their parents and other guests, in the garden of the castle. A special service at St Anne's Cathedral in Belfast, with leaders of the four main churches in Ireland among the congregation, marked the royal Golden Jubilee. Further the Queen addressed the Assembly members in the Great Hall at Stormont Parliament Buildings in Belfast, urging them to work together for future generations. She spoke of the "historic opportunity" they had to build for the future. Sinn Fein members of the Assembly stayed away, but said they had no objection to the Queen speaking to those who wished to attend. The Queen told the politicians that those who held elected office in any society carried a heavy responsibility. She added: "Here in the Assembly you have an historic opportunity to bring the administration of Northern Ireland closer to the people whom you serve. The same is true in Scotland and Wales, but here there is one added dimension. This Assembly, together with the other new institutions governing relations with the rest of the United Kingdom and with Ireland, can meet the aspirations both of those who are proud to be British and those who feel a strong sense of Irish identity." In the County Tyrone the Queen unexpectedly visited the site of the Omagh bombing where 29 people were killed in a Real IRA bombing in 1998. She and the Duke of Edinburgh spent several minutes listening to a description of the horror, looking up at buildings on both sides of Market Street. One side of the street has been rebuilt, while construction work continues on the other.
Prince Rainier III of Monaco was hospitalized today for tests after suffering from fatigue and bronchitis, the palace press service said in a statement. He was admitted to the Cardiothoracic Center of Monaco for a checkup that is part of his routine health care. No further details were given.
Prince Laurent of Belgium has met several parents of children who died in traffic accidents. He promised to one of the parents to drive his car less fast in the future. The meeting was organised by the Minister of Traffic of Belgium after the prince made the headlines because of severe traffic offenses.
May 15th
The publication three weeks ago of the wishes of Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and her coming groom Ari Behn for wedding presents caused noticeable controversy. The extravagant list was topped by a desire for a Flora Danica dinner service for 12, which carries a price tag of nearly $ 71.700. They now have changed their minds and have dropped their wish list in favor of a call for donations to the HRH Princess Märtha Louise's Fund, that was founded on August 15, 1972, and that takes interest in aid to handicapped children in Norway.
Material from the Princess of Wales's wedding dress and hand-written Christmas cards from her are to be auctioned in Norfolk. It will include six pieces of hand-made lace and silk on a blue backdrop with a sketch of the late Princess in the dress. Four hand-signed and framed Christmas cards sent by the Prince of Wales and the Princess to a close friend are also being auctioned on May 25. It's thought apart from Diana's original wedding gown, which is on display at Althorp, no other examples of the material exist. Other items that will be auctioned include one of the original chairs used at Prince Charles' open-air investiture at Caernarvon Castle in 1969 along with the official programme.
May 16th
The Government Information Service said Princess Annette van Oranje-Nassau, van Vollenhoven has to stay in hospital a bit longer because her daughter Isabella was born by caesarian section on Tuesday morning. The princess is doing well, but needs to rest a bit to recover from the operation. Also the first pictures were released today.
Yesterday the Italian Senate again voted in favour of the return of the of the former royal family of Italy.
May 17th
With a big hat and lots of make up on her face to hide her sunburns Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway appeared on the balcony of the Royal Palace in Oslo today on Norway's national feastday. She only attended the beginning and the end of the three-hour event. 107 schools took part in the parade in front of the palace. Earlier on the day the crown princely couple had welcomed children at the Skaugum estate in Asker near Oslo. Crown Princess Mette-Marit wore a bunad from Rogaland.
Princess Máxima of the Netherlands celebrated her 31st birthday together with the Prince of Orange, family and friends in New York.
The Queen Mother has left her entire estate - mainly works of art and other contents of her houses - to her daughter Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. Some bequests will be made to members of the Queen Mother's staff - although these will be subject to Inheritance Tax. Under an agreement with John Major's Conservative Government in 1993, the Queen will not have to pay the tax.
May 20th
Prince Rainier III of Monaco was released from hospital. He was taken there a few days ago because he was exhausted after a bronchitis attack. In hospital also a general health check was carried out.
May 21st
Queen Sonja of Norway arrived in Trondheim today to supervise the preparations for the wedding of her daughter Märtha Louise with Ari Behn on Friday. The Royal yacht 'Norge' will arrive tomorrow carrying silver & tableware for the wedding-dinner from the Royal Palace. (all from the Royal Palace). Meanwhile a strike at the hotel where many of the guests were supposed to stay and where the wedding cake was kept has happily come to an end just in time for the wedding.
May 22nd
Scottish Nationalists have urged Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain to change her title north of the border from Elizabeth II to "Elizabeth I, Queen of Scots" in order to correct a 'bad mistake' made by her advisers 50 years ago. The Elizabethan era predated the Act of Union and Scotland therefore never had a Queen Elizabeth I.
May 23rd
The Queen's Jubilee tour reached Scotland. In windy and rainy Glasgow thousands of people turned out to welcome Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. Over the next seven days the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will travel 1000 miles across Scotland. The day began with a special thanksgiving service at Glasgow Cathedral, where they were joined by about 1,000 dignitaries, religious figures and politicians. But the highlight of the opening day was a walkabout in the city's George Square where about 2,000 people greeted the Royal couple. The Queen watched a parade of bands from representatives of the Armed Services and a rare fly-past over the centre of Glasgow.
May 24th
Princess Märtha Louise of Norway married Ari Behn in the Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim.
May 25th
Yesterday evening around 10:30pm two-year-old Count Richard von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth was admitted to hospital in Copenhagen after an asthma fit. He was staying with his grandmother Princess Benedikte of Denmark at Amalienborg in Copenhagen while his parents were in Norway for the wedding of Princess Märtha Louise. Some photographers followed the ambulance to the hospital because there was some confusion about who the patient was, and after hearing it was a boy they thought it might be Prince Nikolai. A photographer from B.T. was arrested. 1 1/2 hour after the arrival little Richard was sent home again.
May 27th
Pieces of Princess Diana of Wales's wedding dress have failed to meet their reserve price at an auction in Norfolk. The collage of six pieces of handmade lace and silk from the dress was accompanied by a sketch of the princess. The item also included a letter from designer Elizabeth Emanuel. It only received a bid of £4,600, with the reserve price set at £12,000. Four Christmas cards signed by Prince Charles and Princess Diana were sold for nearly £3,000, while one of the chairs used at Prince Charles' investiture at Caernarvon in 1969 went for £220.
May 28th
Marie-José de la Ruelle has lost her lawsuit against Princess Maria Gabriella of Italy at court in Bordeaux. Ms de la Ruelle claims to be the daughter of the princess and of King Juan Carlos of Spain.
May 30th
A medieval crown not seen in Britain since it left the country in 1468 has returned to the Tower of London for a Golden Jubilee exhibition. It belonged to Margaret of York who was sister of Edward IV and the aunt of the Princes in the Tower. She took it abroad when she married Charles the Bold Duke of Burgundy. The crown is studded with pearls and gems and left England in 1468 and never returned. The crown bears Margaret's name in coloured enamel and is on loan from Aachen Cathedral in Germany. Other ancient pieces of royal regalia have been reunited at the Tower for the exhibition. These include the travelling cases used to transport the Crown Jewels and the menu from Richard III's coronation banquet in 1483. Other items include Mary II's Coronation Ring of 1689 and the long dagger thought to have been used by Colonel Thomas Blood in 1671 in the only attempt to steal the Crown Jewels.
Prince Takamado, a cousin of Emperor Akihito of Japan and seventh in line to the throne, and his wife Princess Hisako arrived in South Korea to attend World Cup matches in a highly symbolic move seen as a sign of rapprochement between Japan and South Korea, which is a former colony of Japan. After arrival at the airport they paid homage at the National Cemetery for unknown soldiers in Seoul. South Korea initially invited the emperor himself, but Japan had said the time was not ripe for him to visit as many Koreans still harbour bitter memories of Japan's 1910-1945 occupation of the Korean peninsula. Apart from attending the championship's opening ceremony, the prince, also honorary president of the Japan Football Association, will meet president Kim Dae-jung on Friday and meanwhile do some bird-watching, official said. During their six-day visit, the royal couple also plans to watch the Denmark-Uruguay and Paraguay-South Africa matches over the weekend.
Yesterday it was announced that Prince Laurent and Princess Astrid of Belgium can keep their government donation for the rest of their lives. Princess Astrid yearly receives 293.000 Euro, Prince Laurent 282.000 Euro. New princes(ses) will not get a donation anymore, except for the King and the heir to the throne. However today Prime Minister Verhofstadt said that nothing has been decided yet, and that the parliament still has to talk about it. The government only agreed that the 'purple-green' parties will take a collective statement. The government took action against a bill that wanted to abolish the donation.
The man who threw a paintbomb at the window of the Golden Carriage during the carriage tour of the Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima of the Netherlands has been fined 250 Euro. Demanded was 1000 Euro and two weeks in prison.
Princess Bajrakitiyabha, daughter of Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn of Thailand, found a trainee job at Baker & McKenzie, one of the biggest lawyer's practises in Washington. The princess was educated at the Law Faculty at Cornell, New York.
May 31st
The Royal Court of Saudi-Arabia announced yesterday evening that 43-year-old Prince Al-Mutaz bin Saud bin Abdulaziz died on Thursday night in the USA following a heart attack. The funeral prayer will be held tomorrow after a prayer in Imam Turky bin Abdullah Mosque in Al-Riyadh. Prince Al-Mutaz is one of the youngest halfbrothers of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia.
For the first time since her marriage in February Princess Máxima of the Netherlands spent some time in Argentina. She was there for a whole week and among others visited a photo exhibition of her half-sister Dolores. After engagements in Indonesia also the Prince of Orange arrived in Argentina.
According to the Swedish tabloids Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden has a new boyfriend, 28-year-old Daniel Westling, 28. She met him at a Stockholm gym he co-owns and where he works as a personal trainer for selected customers. "I know Daniel. He is very nice. I don't want to say anything else. You have to draw the line somewhere. I don't want to comment on my private life," Victoria said.
942 pieces of juwellery and personal belongings from the legacy of Soraya Esfandiary Bakhtiary, second wife of the late Shah Reza Pahlavi of Iran, fetched more than 3,9 million Euro at auction in Paris, much more than was expected.
Royal News: April 2002. Last updated: May 21st, 2002.