Last modified: 4 October 2020
1 September
Princess Eléonore of Belgium has started her secondary school at the Heilig Hartcollege in Wezembeek-Oppem. Her parents King Philippe and Queen Mathilde accompanied their youngest daughter. On Monday the eldest daughter Elisabeth, the Duchess of Brabant, started her education at the Royal Military Academy of Belgium. The two sons, Prince Gabriel and Prince Emmanuel attend the International School in Watersmael-Boitsfort.
King Constantine and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece announced the engagement of their younges son Prince Philippos with Nina Nastassja Flohr, daughter of Thomas and Katharina Flohr. They got engaged on the Greek island of Ithaca in the early summer.
2 September
King Vajiralongkorn of Thailand on 28 August has restored all royal and military ranks to the Royal Noble Consort Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi, as was published in a palace order today. She received the titles on 28 July 2019, and was stripped of them in October 2019, because of misbehaviour. She is now described as “guiltless” of any crimes.
Unknown people have vandalized the graves of King Pavlos and Queen Frederica of Greece in the gardens of the former palaces in Tatoi. The cross on the grave was broken into three parts. The Ministry of Culture was informed and the restoration of the monument is planned immediately.
3 September
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have signed up with Netflix. They will be paid to make a range of documentaries, docu-series, scripted series and children’s programs. In a statement the couple said: “Our focus will be on creating content that informs but also gives hope. As new parents, making inspirational family programming is also important to us.”
The Duchess of Cornwall has written an opinion piece about domestic violence for the British newspaper The Guardian.
4 September
Between 4 and 24 September the auction house Christie’s offers a selection of prints and other personal possessions of Antony Armstrong-Jones, the 1st Earl of Snowdon. See: Snowdon: A Life in Art and Objects.
Israeli archaeologists say they have found evidence of a palace from around the 8th or 7th century BC about 3 kilometres south of the old city of Jerusalem. Found are among others three ornate stone capitals and pieces from window frames. The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) suggests that the palace was occupied by kings of Judah or a wealthy noble family.
5 September
The confirmation of Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway and nine other young people took place at Asker Church in the late afternoon. After the ceremony the family celebrated in private in the evening at the Skaugum estate. Each confirmand was permitted to invite 16 guests. Present were King Harald V, Queen Sonja, Crown Prince Haakon, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Marius Borg Høiby, Juliane Snekkestad, Marit Tjessem, Princess Märtha Louise and Leah Isadora Behn, Per Høiby, Kristin Høiby, Julia Høiby, Espen Høiby, Bjørn Stensland and Marianne Gjellestad. Due to Covid-19 his foreign godparents couldn’t attend the ceremony. See: Confirmation of the Prince and Confirmation photographs at Skaugum Estate.
6 September
Prince Hisahito of Akishino celebrated his 14th birthday. He is a second-year student at Ochanomizu University Junior High School. Several pictures were published. They were taken during the summer vacation in August around the Akasaka Estate. His father, Crown Prince Fumihito, learned him photography techniques. Hisahito is also interested in observing dragonflies.
The auction house Gooding & Company sold a 1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sports car, that once belonged to King Leopold III of the Belgians, for £ 9,535,000. The king bought the fast sports car in 1938.
7 September
The wedding dress of Princess Beatrice of York will go on display at Windsor Castle from 24 September to 22 November 2020. The dress was designed by Sir Norman Hartnell for Beatrice’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth. The Queen loaned the dress to Beatrice for her wedding to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi on 17 July 2020. Also Beatrice’s wedding shoes and a replica of her bridal bouquet made from artificial flowers will go on display.
The ashes of Prince Waldemar zu Schaumburg-Lippe have been interred in Náchod, Czechia. Present were his fourth wife Princess Antonia and his stepson Mario Max. See pictures.
8 September
With a speech King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden opened the new parliamentary year. Because of Covid-19 only he and his wife Queen Silvia attended. Other family members, including Crown Princess Victoria, didn’t attend. See here.
From June to October 2021 the renovated Golden Carriage of the Dutch royal family will be on display at the Amsterdam Museum. The carriage was a present of the people of Amsterdam to Queen Wilhelmina upon her inthronisation in 1898.
9 September
King Philippe of the Belgians tested negative for Covid-19. He underwent the test after an audience with a politician on Friday. The politician became ill after the weekend.
Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella of Monaco have returned to school. See the picture.
On Monday evening Prince Ernst August of Hannover Sr has been arrested at his hunting lodge in Grünau, Austria, after he had verbally threatened an employee and her husband. He also smashed a window with a traffic sign. Since the prince recently has been reported to several crimes, the Wels public prosecutor has issued an arrest order after a judicial approval, the police said. He was transferred to the prison of Wels. On Wednesday afternoon he appeared before the judge in the Wels regional court and was released under some conditions.
11 September
The final session of the court case between Delphine Boël and her father King Albert II of Belgium was held at court in Brussels today. The court will give its judgment before 29 October. Delphine has requested to be able to use the surname of her father Saxe-Cobourg and the titles Her Royal Highness and Princess of Belgium. Albert acknowledged in January 2020 after a DNA-test that Delphine is his daughter.
In her 54th birthday statement Crown Princess Kiko of Japan spoke about the marriage of her eldest daughter Princess Mako and her fiancé Kei Komuro, that has been postponed now for nearly two years. She let know: “In regards to my eldest daughter’s marriage, we should communicate extensively, and it is important that I accept my daughter’s feelings as a parent and think about the matter together.” Since the start of the corona crisis the Crown Princess has taken part in 39 online events. See a birthday video and photos.
12 September
Fürst Alexander zu Schaumburg-Lippe married Mahkameh Navabi at Bückeburg Palace. It is his third marriage. See here.
Prince Henri of Bourbon Parma and Archduchess Gabriella of Austria married at Tratzberg Castle, Austria. The couple already has a daughter, Victoria. See here.
13 September
Princess Charlène of Monaco and her Team Serenity won the water bike challenge “The Crossing: Calvi-Monaco”, organised by her foundation. It took them 22 hours and 33 minutes to reach Monaco over sea. The other team, Notorious, was led by her brother Gareth Wittstock, and finished 14 minutes later. The event aims to raise public awareness about the various programs run by the Princess Charlene Foundation, which is dedicated to preventing drowning around the world. The participants were greeted at the Yacht Club in Monaco by Reigning Prince Albert II, Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella. See here.
15 September
King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands were present at the opening of the parliamentary year. Because of Covid-19 the event was held in the Great Church in The Hague with less guests. Only at the Noordeinde Palace there were some onlookers. The royals however travelled to the church by car and were only shortly visible. See photos.
Some pictures of Princess Elisabeth, the Duchess of Brabant, during her military training were released by the Belgian royal palace.
17 September
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands visited the south-east of the Province of Friesland. See pictures.
The Princess of Asturias has tested negative for Covid-19. She had herself tested after a class mate turned out to be infected. Leonor started her school year on Wednesday, her sister Infanta Sofia on Friday. Leonor remains in quarantine at home.
18 September
Prince Joachim of Denmark has started his job as military attaché at the Danish embassy in Paris, France.
Count Josef Hubert von Neipperg, head of the family, died at Schwaigern, Germany, aged 102. The private burial was to take place on 19 September. He is survived by his second wife, his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was the eldest member of the Gotha as far as I know.
19 September
Prince Charles of Luxembourg was christened at the Abbaye Saint-Maurice-et-Saint-Maur in Clervaux, Luxembourg. His godparents were Prince Louis of Luxembourg and Countess Gaëlle de Lannoy. Only members of the families of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie attended. For a video see here.
20 September
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians, with their three younger children Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel and Princess Eléonore cycled through Brussels on car-free Sunday, accompanied by Prince Léopold of Nassau. They visited the House of European History on the occasion of the Heritage Days. See here.
21 September
The Danish royal court published a new official portrait of Queen Margrethe II.
Prince Charles of Luxembourg and his parents planted a birth tree in the Pescatore Park in Luxembourg-City.
23 September
Princess Beatrice, Mrs Mapelli Mozzi, visited the small exhibition of her wedding dress at Windsor Castle. The exhibition will open for the public on 24 September and can be visited until 22 November 2020.
Count Claus-Casimir of Orange-Nassau, son of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands, will continue his secondary education at Gordonstoun School in Scotland.
24 September
Prince Albert II and Princess Charlène of Monaco attended the Monte-Carlo Gala for Planetary Health, organised by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation.
25 September
Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank are very pleased to announce that they are expecting a baby in early 2021. . The Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York, Mr and Mrs George Brooksbank, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh are delighted with the news.
King Harald V of Norway has been admitted to the Rikshospitalet in Oslo with breathing difficulties. He tested negative for Covid-19. Crown Prince Haakon will take over his duties temporarily.
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgian attended the Blue Berets parade in the courtyard of the Royal Military Academy in Brussels. Their eldest daughter Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant, successfully ended the first month of her military training, and received a blue beret from her proud father.
The Royal Household today published its annual financial statement, the Sovereign Grant Report, for the financial year 2019-20. Also the Prince of Wales published his annual review 2019-20.
26 September
An interesting interview of CNN with Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia about his legal battle for more than 10,000 family artifacts seized or lost after World War II.
The Head of the Imperial House of Brazil, Prince Dom Luiz de Orleans e Bragança granted the additional style of “Imperial Highness” to his brother Prince Dom Antônio upon his 70th birthday. Thus far he was only “Royal Highness”. His wife Princess Dona Christine will be allowed to use the same style. Princess Christine also received the Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of the Rose.
28 September
King Harald V of Norway was discharged from hospital. He will remain on sick leave until 4 October.
The Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah of Malaysia is undergoing treatment for food poisoning and a sports injury at the Royal Ward, National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur. He was admitted to hospital on 21 September. In a statement by the royal household it says: “Intervention treatment done on His Majesty’s knee joints and ankles went successfully on Sept 24. His Majesty’s condition is now stable and not worrisome. Following the intervention treatment, His Majesty was advised to undergo follow-up treatment under the strict observation of specialists. Al-Sultan Abdullah is scheduled to return to Istana Negara soon after completing this follow-up treatment.”
The Japanese government is considering holding the ceremonies to celebrate Crown Prince Fumihito’s upgrade to the first position in the line of succession to the Chrysanthemum Throne possibly in mid-November, an official has said. The ceremony was original scheduled for April 2020, but was postponed because of Covid-19.
29 September
With great sadness and sorrow, the Amiri Diwan mourns the passing of His Highness, the late Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, on 29 September in the USA, aged 91. He is said to have died in the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, where he was treated since mid-July following an operation in Kuwait. From 1963 to 2003 he was the second foreign minister of the country, became prime minister in 2003, and finally emir in 2006. Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, aged 83, has been named the new Emir of Kuwait in an extraordinary meeting of the Kuwaiti government.
Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim of Johor (Malaysia) has been appointed by his father Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar of Johor to lead all youth activities in the state. It is believed that, certainly in these uncertain times of Covid-19, the young people in the country are in need of a leader who can give them hope and looks at the issues they face.
30 September
Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah took the oath before the National Assembly to become the 16th Emir of the state of Kuwait. He read article 60 of the constitution saying: “I swear by Almighty Allah to respect the Constitution and the laws of the State, to defend the liberties, interests and properties of the people and to safeguard the independence and territorial integrity of the country.”
The funeral prayers for the late Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah were held in the Bilal bin Rabah Mosque in Kuwait. The funeral was restricted to his relatives, in line with health safety measures due to Covid-19. The plane carrying the remains of the late Emir arrived earlier on the day from the USA.
The urn of Ari Behn, who died on 25 December 2019, was intered at the Vår Frelsers Gravlund in Oslo, Norway, on what would have been his 48th birthday. Only the closest relatives were present, including his ex-wife Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and his daughters Maud, Leah and Emma Behn.