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Prince Alfred of Edinburgh; Credit – Wikipedia

October 15, 1527 – Birth of Maria Manuela of Portugal, Princess of Asturias, the first of the four wives of Felipe II, King of Spain, in Coimbra, Portugal
Maria Manuela was the daughter of João III, King of Portugal and Catherine of Austria. On November 15, 1543, two sixteen-year-olds, Maria Manuel and Felipe, Prince of Asturias (the title used by the heir apparent or heir presumptive to the throne of Spain), were married.  Sadly, Maria Manuela and Felipe had a short marriage. On July 8, 1545, Maria Manuela gave birth to a son and four days later, she died, aged seventeen, due to childbirth complications.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Manuela of Portugal, Princess of Asturias (Spain)

October 15, 1538 – Death of Germaine of Foix, Queen of Aragon, second wife of King Ferdinand II of Aragon in Llíria, Valencia, Kingdom of Aragon, now in Spain; buried at the Monastery of San Miguel de los Reyes in Valencia
In 1504, Ferdinand’s wife Isabella I, Queen of Castile and León died. Isabella’s crown was inherited by her daughter Juana and her husband Philip of Habsburg. Two years later, 54-year-old Ferdinand married 18-year-old Germaine. The marriage was accepted in Ferdinand’s Kingdom of Aragon but it was poorly received by the people of the Kingdom of Castile and León who saw Ferdinand’s marriage to Germaine as a betrayal of their late queen, his first wife Isabella I, Queen of Castile and León. In 1509, Germaine gave birth to a son Infante Juan of Aragon, Prince of Girona, who died shortly after his birth. Had he survived, the crown of Aragon would have been separated from the crown of Castile and León. There were no further children from the marriage. In 1516, Ferdinand died, and Ferdinand’s grandson the powerful Holy Roman Emperor Charles V who was also King Carlos I of Spain (among other titles) arranged two marriages for Germanine over the years. Germaine died on October 15, 1536, aged forty-eight, in Llíria, Valencia, probably from edema caused by obesity.
Unofficial Royalty: Germaine of Foix, Queen of Aragon

October 15, 1711 – Birth of Elisabeth Thérèse of Lorraine, Queen of Sardinia, third wife of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, at the Château de Lunéville, Duchy of Lorraine, now in France
In 1737, the twice-widowed 35-year-old Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia married 25-year-old Elisabeth Therese. Carlo Emanuele’s four surviving children from his second marriage to Polyxena of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg were Elisabeth Therese’s stepchildren. Elisabeth Therese and Carlo Emanuele III had three children but only the third child Benedetto survived childhood. Sadly, Elisabeth Therese died, aged 29, from puerperal fever (childbed fever), thirteen days after giving birth to Benedetto.
Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth Thérèse of Lorraine, Queen of Sardinia

October 15, 1795 – Birth of King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia at the Crown Prince’s Palace in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Friedrich Wilhelm became King of Prussia upon his father’s death in 1840. As his father had done himself, the new King changed many of his father’s policies – including reducing the censorship of the press and promising to provide a new constitution for the Prussian people. In 1849, the King was offered the title Emperor of the Germans but refused as he did not feel it was the right of the Frankfurt Parliament to offer it. Instead, he wanted to reestablish the Holy Roman Empire, where a College of Electors would hold the authority to name an Emperor. In 1871, his brother and successor, Wilhelm I, became the first German Emperor (Kaiser).
Unofficial Royalty: King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia

October 15, 1825 – Birth of Marie of Prussia, Queen of Bavaria, wife of King Maximilian II of Bavaria, born at the Berlin City Palace in the Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Full name: Marie Friederike Franziska Hedwig
In 1842, Marie married the future King Maximilian II of Bavaria. The couple had two sons, King Ludwig II and King Otto. Both of Marie’s sons were thought to have suffered from mental illness that severely hampered their abilities to rule Bavaria. After her husband died in 1864, Marie lived in relative seclusion, splitting her time between her country home in Elbigenalp and Hohenschwangau Castle in Füssen, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria. In 1883, her elder son, King Ludwig II, was deemed incompetent, and Marie’s brother-in-law, Prince Luitpold of Bavaria, was appointed Prince Regent. Days later, King Ludwig II and his doctor were found dead in a lake, and Marie’s younger son became King Otto I, also under the Regency of Prince Luitpold.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Prussia, Queen of Bavaria

October 15, 1874 – Birth of Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, son of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and grandson of Queen Victoria, at Buckingham Palace in London, England
Full name: Alfred Alexander William Ernest Albert
Alfred was the only son of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, second son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, the only surviving daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. As it was expected he would one day inherit the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Alfred was raised primarily in Germany. Separated from his family, he received a strict German education and later served as a Lieutenant in the Prussian 1st Foot Guards in Potsdam. But, unlike many of his relatives, he did not enjoy military life. In August 1893, his father succeeded to the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and young Alfred became the Hereditary Prince. It is generally accepted that Alfred shot himself while the rest of the family was gathered for his parents’ 25th-anniversary celebrations in January 1899. He initially survived the gunshot but died the following month.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Alfred of Edinburgh

October 15, 1893 – Birth of King Carol II of Romania at Peleş Castle in Sinaia, Romania
Carol II was a great-grandson of Queen Victoria through his mother Princess Marie of Edinburgh. In 1918, Carol made an unsanctioned marriage to Joanna “Zizi” Lambrino. The marriage was annulled seven months later but the couple continued to live together, and the following year, in January 1920, they had a son. In 1921, Carol married his second cousin, Princess Helen of Greece and they had one son, the future King Michael (Mihai) of Romania. Within a few years, Carol began an affair with Magda Lupescu, and in 1925 he renounced his rights to the throne. In 1927, Carol’s father King Ferdinand died, and six-year-old Michael became King of Romania. Carol and Helen divorced in 1928. In June 1930, Carol negotiated with the Prime Minister for his return to the throne. His earlier renunciation was voided, and he was restored as King of Romania, replacing his son Michael. His rocky reign lasted ten years until he was forced to abdicate in 1940, in favor of his son Michael. Carol and Magda moved to Brazil in 1944, where they married in 1947. They soon moved to Estoril, Portugal, where Carol would live in exile for the remainder of his life.
Unofficial Royalty: King Carol II of Romania

October 15, 1904 – Death of King Georg of Saxony at Pillnitz Castle in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in Saxony, Germany; buried in the Wettin Crypt at the Dresden Cathedral
As his elder brother King Albert of Saxony had no children, Georg was heir-presumptive to the Saxon throne from the time of Albert’s accession in 1873. Albert died in 1902, and Georg became King of Saxony at nearly 70 years old. Because of his age, many people felt he should step down and let the throne pass to his son, Friedrich August. His unpopularity increased during the textile workers’ strike in Crimmitschau in 1903-1904. Refusing to give in to the demands for higher wages and better working conditions, the King sent military forces into the city to force the end of the strike. His reign lasted only two years. After falling ill with influenza earlier in the year, King Georg died at the age of 72.
Unofficial Royalty: King Georg of Saxony

October 15, 1959 – Birth of Sarah, Duchess of York, former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, born Sarah Margaret Ferguson at 27 Welbeck Street, Marylebone in London, England
Sarah, Duchess of York, despite her financial problems and scandals, has remained supportive and respectful of her former family and the monarchy. Since the early years of her marriage, Sarah has been involved with numerous charities and organizations. Since 1990, she has been Patron of The Teenage Cancer Trust, and a few years later, founded Children in Crisis. Sarah, her ex-husband and their daughters established Key To Freedom in 2013. Other organizations she supports include Mental Disability Rights International and the Motor Neurone Disease Association. She has worked with the American Cancer Society and in 2014 was named ambassador for the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College in London.
Unofficial Royalty: Sarah, Duchess of York

October 15, 2005 – Birth of Crown Prince Christian of Denmark, son of King Frederik X of Denmark, at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen, Denmark
Full name: Christian Valdemar Henri John
Christian is the oldest child of King Frederik X of Denmark and his Australian-born wife née Mary Donaldson. He is first in the line of succession to the Danish throne and the Crown Prince of Denmark.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Christian of Denmark

October 15, 2012 – Death of former King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia in Beijing, China; ashes buried at the Silver Pagoda, Royal Palace, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Norodom Sihanouk reigned as King of Cambodia during two periods, 1941 – 1955 and 1993 – 2004. He also served as Prime Minister of Cambodia eight times between 1945 – 1962, Chief of State of Cambodia (1960 – 1970 and in 1993), and as President of the State Presidium of Democratic Kampuchea (1975 – 1976). Sihanouk became king during French colonial rule in 1941 upon the death of his maternal grandfather King Monivong. He secured Cambodian independence from France in 1953. He abdicated in 1955 and was succeeded by his father, Suramarit, so he could directly participate in politics. A new constitution came into effect in 1993, and Sihanouk was reinstated as the King of Cambodia. Citing his poor health, Sihanouk announced his second abdication in October 2004. From 2009 – 2011, Sihanouk spent most of his time in Beijing, China for the treatment of various medical issues. Sihanouk died of a heart attack in Beijing, sixteen days before his 90th birthday.
Unofficial Royalty: King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia

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Sophia of the Palatinate, Electress of Hanover; Credit – Wikipedia

October 14, 1066 – Death of King Harold II of England (Harold Godwinson) at the Battle of Hastings; buried at Waltham Abbey in Essex, England
Harold Godwinson was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon King of England. His father Godwin, Earl of Wessex was one of the most powerful earls in England. The Anglo-Saxons had a king’s council called the Witan and one of the Witan’s jobs was to elect the king. After the death of King Edward the Confessor on January 5, 1066, the Witan selected Harold Godwinson to succeed Edward as King Harold I. When William II, Duke of Normandy heard that Harold Godwinson had been crowned King of England, he began careful preparations for an invasion of England. The army of William II, Duke of Normandy army met the army of King Harold of England about six miles northwest of Hastings, England on October 14, 1066. Harold appears to have tried to surprise William but Norman scouts found his army and reported its arrival to William, who marched from Hastings to the battlefield to confront Harold. Early efforts of the Normans to break the English battle lines had little effect. In response, the Normans adopted the tactic of pretending to flee in panic and then turning on their pursuers. Harold’s death, probably near the end of the battle, led to the retreat and defeat of most of his army. Two of Harold’s brothers, Gyrth and Leofwine, were also killed at the Battle of Hastings.
Unofficial Royalty: Harold II Godwinson, King of England

October 14, 1217 – Death of Isabella, 3rd Countess of Gloucester, first wife of King John of England (married before John was king, marriage was annulled); buried at Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, England
John and Isabella were betrothed as children. Isabella’s father William FitzRobert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester was a first cousin of John’s father King Henry II as his father was the illegitimate son of King Henry I, Robert Fitzroy, 1st Earl of Gloucester and King Henry II’s mother Empress Matilda was the legitimate daughter of King Henry I. In 1183, when her father died without a male heir, Isabella became the Countess of Gloucester in her own right.  In 1189, John and Isabella of Gloucester were married. Isabella and John were ill-matched and the marriage had produced no children. Isabella had not been acknowledged as Queen when John became King of England in 1199  and the marriage was easily annulled using the grounds of consanguinity, a very close relationship.
Unofficial Royalty: Isabella, 3rd Countess of Gloucester

October 14, 1630 – Birth of Princess Sophia of the Palatinate, Electress of Hanover, at Wassenaer Court, The Hague, Dutch Republic now in the Netherlands
In 1701, the British succession was settled upon Sophia and her Protestant heirs by the Act of Settlement.  Her mother Elizabeth was the eldest daughter of King James I of England.  Sophia died six weeks before Queen Anne of England.  Had she survived Anne, Sophia would have been queen.  Instead, her son ascended the throne as King George I.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia of the Palatinate, Electress of Hanover

October 14, 1631 – Death of Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Queen of Denmark and Norway, wife of King Frederik II of Denmark, at the Palace of Nykøbing Slot on the island of Falster, Denmark; buried at Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark
In 1572, Sophie married King Frederik  II of Denmark and Norway and they had seven children. Sophie was the mother of Anne of Denmark, wife of King James I of England/VI of Scotland, and the great-grandmother of Sophia of Hanover and King James II of England, both of whom have dates on October 14. Sophie was interested in books, visited the Danish pioneering astronomer Tycho Brahe, collected folk songs, and encouraged historian Anders Sørensen Vedel to publish his Hundredvisebogen, a collection of a hundred Danish folk songs he had gathered that became the foundation of Danish literary tradition. As a widow, Sophie managed her estates on the Danish islands of Falster and Lolland so well that her son King Christian IV borrowed money from her on several occasions for his wars. She also engaged in trade and money-lending with Danish nobles. At the time of her death, she was the richest woman in Europe.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Queen of Denmark

October 14, 1633 – Birth of King James II of England at St. James’s Palace in London, England
James II succeeded his brother King Charles II of England who had no legitimate children. James II was now set on a course of restoring Catholicism to England. England might have tolerated King James II knowing that his heirs were the Protestant daughters of his first wife Anne Hyde, Mary and Anne. However, on June 10, 1688, Queen Mary Beatrice, who had no surviving children, gave birth to a Catholic son, James Francis Edward.  James II was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. His elder daughter Mary was declared Queen Mary II and she was to rule jointly with her husband and first cousin William, who would be King William III. At that time, William, the only child of King James II’s elder sister Mary, was third in the line of succession after his wife and first cousin Mary and her sister Anne. James fled to France where his first cousin King Louis XIV offered him a palace and a pension.
Unofficial Royalty: King James II of England

October 14, 1784 – Birth of King Ferdinand VII of Spain at El Escorial in Madrid, Spain
Full name: Fernando Maria Francisco de Paula Domingo Vicente Ferrer Antonio Jose Joaquin Pascual Diego Juan Nepomuceno Januario Francisco Javier Rafael Miguel Gabriel Calixto Cayetano Faus
Ferdinand’s father King Carlos IV of Spain was forced to abdicate in 1808 by Napoleon who then placed his brother Joseph on the Spanish throne. In 1813, the throne was restored to the House of Bourbon with Ferdinand VII as the King of Spain. In search of an heir, Ferdinand married four times, was widowed three times and finally had two daughters with his fourth wife. His elder daughter succeeded him as Queen Isabella II of Spain.
Unofficial Royalty: King Ferdinand VII of Spain

October 14, 1803 – Death of Ercole III d’Este, Duke of Modena and Reggio in Treviso, Austrian-Hungarian Empire, now in Italy; buried at the Church of San Vincenzo now in Modena, Italy
Ercole III d’Este was the last reigning duke from the House of Este that reigned in the Duchy of Modena and Reggio from 1452 – 1796. In 1741, Ercole married Maria Teresa Cybo-Malaspina, the reigning Duchess of Massa and Carrara, now in Italy. The marriage was made at the insistence of Ercole’s father who wanted the Duchy of Massa and Carrara because of its access to the sea. The marriage was not a happy one, the couple had one surviving daughter and eventually separated. Ercole III was considered an enlightened monarch who continued the reforms started by his father. He improved the infrastructure of his duchy, building bridges and roads. The arts and sciences flourished in the Duchy of Modena and Reggio during Ercole III’s reign. In 1796, Modena was occupied by a French army under Napoleon Bonaparte, who deposed Ercole III, Duke of Modena and Reggio. He was forced to flee to Venice where he died in 1803.
Unofficial Royalty: Ercole III d’Este, Duke of Modena and Reggio

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King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria; Credit – Wikipedia

October 13, 1162 – Birth of Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile, daughter of King Henry II of England, at Domfront Castle in the Duchy of Normandy, now in France
In 1177, Eleanor married King Alfonso VIII of Castile and they had twelve children. Eleanor was particularly interested in supporting religious institutions. In 1179, she had a shrine built at Toledo Cathedral in honor of St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury who had been murdered at Canterbury Cathedral by four of her father’s knights. In 1187, Eleanor and Alfonso founded the Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas, a monastery of Cistercian nuns located near the city of Burgos now in Spain. The monastery became the burial place of the Castilian royal family.
Unofficial Royalty: Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile

October 13, 1453 – Birth of Edward, Prince of Wales, son of King Henry VI of England, at the Palace of Westminster in London, England
Edward of Westminster was one of the seven Princes of Wales who never became King. He was killed in 1471, aged 18, at the Battle of Tewkesbury, the final decisive Yorkist victory in the Wars of the Roses.
Unofficial Royalty: Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales

October 13, 1499 – Birth of Claude of France, Duchess of Brittany, Queen of France, daughter of King Louis XII of France and first wife of King François I of France, at Romorantin-Lanthenay in France
Claude of France, Duchess of Brittany was the first wife of François I, King of France and the daughter of King Louis XII of France and second wife Anne, Duchess of Brittany in her own right. Louis XII had no sons and François, Count of Angoulême (the future King François I of France) became the heir presumptive to the French throne and remained the heir throughout Louis XII’s reign due to his lack of sons. In 1514, François and Claude were married and they had seven children. When Louis XII died in 1515, he was succeeded by his son-in-law François. Queen Claude, Duchess of Brittany, aged 24, died in 1524. It is suspected that Claude had tuberculosis and contracted syphilis from her husband and certainly seven pregnancies in eight years weakened her health.
Unofficial Royalty: Claude of France, Duchess of Brittany, Queen of France

October 13, 1613 – Birth of Luisa de Guzmán, Queen of Portugal, wife of King João IV of Portugal, in Sanlúcar, Spain
Full name: Luísa Maria Francisca
From a noble Spanish family, Luisa de Guzmán was the wife of João IV, the first King of Portugal from the Portuguese House of Braganza. She was also the mother of Catherine of Braganza, the wife of Charles II, King of England and King of Scots.
Unofficial Royalty: Luisa de Guzmán, Queen of Portugal

October 13, 1764 – Birth of Luise of Stolberg-Goldern, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen, wife of Karl Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen in Gedern, Principality of Stolberg-Gedern, now in Hesse, Germany
Luise was briefly Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen. In 1780, she married Karl Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. They had no children, and just two years later, Karl Wilhelm died. In 1787, she married Eugen of Württemberg and they had five children. Luise died in 1834, having survived both of her husbands and two of her children.
Unofficial Royalty: Luise of Stolberg-Goldern, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen

October 13, 1825 – Death of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria at Nymphenburg Palace, near Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria; buried at the Theatinerkirche in Munich
Maximilian succeeded his brother Karl as Duke of Zweibrücken in 1795 and became Elector of Bavaria, Duke of Berg, and Count Palatine of the Rhine in 1799. In 1806, his electorate was created a kingdom because of his loyal service to Napoleon.  Maximilian married twice. With his first wife Auguste of Hesse-Darmstadt, whom he married in 1785, he had five children. Auguste died in 1796, and the next year Maximilian married Caroline of Baden. They had seven children including two sets of twin daughters.
Unofficial Royalty: King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria

October 13, 1835 – Birth of Duchess Agnes of Württemberg, Princess Reuss of Gera, wife of Heinrich XIV, 4th Prince Reuss of Gera, at Schloss Carlsruhe in Carlsruhe, Silesia, Kingdom of Prussia, now Pokój, Poland
In 1858, Agnes married the future Heinrich XIV, 4th Prince Reuss of Gera, Agnes, as Princess of Reuss-Gera, founded numerous organizations and institutes that bore her name, such as the Agnes School, a training institute for female servants in Gera, the capital of the Principality of Reuss-Gera. She was also an author and used Angelica Hohenstein as her pen name.
Unofficial Royalty: Duchess Agnes of Württemberg, Princess Reuss of Gera

October 13, 1853 – Birth of Lillie Langtry, actress and mistress of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, born Emilie Charlotte Le Breton on the Island of Jersey, Channel Islands, a British Crown Dependency
Lillie Langtry was the mistress of the future King Edward VII (while he was Prince of Wales) from 1877-1880. A married socialite at the time, she later embarked on a career in the theatre, with the encouragement and support of the Prince. She also took several other lovers, including Prince Louis of Battenberg, the Prince of Wales’s future nephew-by-marriage, who possibly fathered her only child. Lillie remained in close contact with The Prince of Wales, and was a guest at his coronation, sitting alongside Sarah Bernhardt and Lady Randolph Churchill. She was also a guest at his funeral in 1910. Lillie, aged 75, died of pneumonia in Monaco in the early morning of February 12, 1929. Per her wishes, she was buried along with her parents at St. Saviour’s Church in Jersey.
Unofficial Royalty: Lillie Langtry, actress and mistress of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom

October 13, 1900 – Birth of Ghislaine Dommanget, Princess of Monaco, wife of Prince Louis II of Monaco, in Reims, France
Full name: Ghislaine Marie Francoise
Ghislaine was an actress, working at the famed Comédie-Française in Paris, before meeting Prince Louis II. She had been married twice before. Members of the royal family questioned her motives and viewed her as an opportunist and golddigger. Less than three years after the marriage, Prince Louis died. He was succeeded by his grandson Prince Rainier III.  In his will, Louis left half of his estate to Ghislaine. However, the will was contested by Rainier and his sister Antoinette and was overturned.  Ghislaine lived the rest of her life in Paris but developed a close relationship with Prince Rainier III’s wife Princess Grace.
Unofficial Royalty: Ghislaine Dommanget, Princess of Monaco

October 13, 1908 – Death of Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg, Duchess of Anhalt, wife of Friedrich I, Duke of Anhalt, in Berchtesgaden, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in Bavaria, Germany; buried in the Dessau Mausoleum Duchy of Anhalt, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany; in 1958, her remains were moved by the Communist East German government to an unmarked grave in the Ziebigk Cemetery in Dessau; in 2019, Antoinettes’s remains were moved a second time and reinterred in the Marienkirche in Dessau
In 1854, Antoinette married the future Friedrich I, Duke of Anhalt and they had six children. At the age of 70, four years after the death of her husband, Antoinette, The Dowager Duchess of Anhalt died.
Unofficial Royalty: Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg, Duchess of Anhalt

October 13, 1927 – Death of Heinrich XXIV, 6th and last reigning Prince Reuss of Greiz in Greiz, Thuringia, Germany; first buried in the Waldhaus Mausoleum in Greiz, in 1969  his remains were cremated and buried at the Neue Friedhof (New Cemetery) in Greiz; in 1997, his remains were moved to Stadtkirche St. Marien in Greiz, Thuringia, Germany
As a result of a childhood accident, Heinrich XXIV had physical and mental disabilities that prevented him from marrying and ruling the Principality of Reuss-Greiz. Two regents from the House of Reuss-Gera successively ruled the Principality of Reuss-Greiz.
Unofficial Royalty: Heinrich XXIV, 6th Prince Reuss of Greiz

October 13, 1928 – Death of Dagmar of Denmark, Maria Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia, at her home at Hvidøre, near Copenhagen, Denmark; first buried in the crypt of the Christian IX Chapel at Roskilde Cathedral, the traditional burial place of the Danish royal family in Roskilde, Denmark, in 2006, she was interred next to her husband Emperor Alexander III in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
Dagmar, known as Minnie in the family, was the daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark,  the sister of King Frederik VIII of Denmark, Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, and King George I of Greece. In 1864, Minnie became engaged to Tsarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich of Russia, the eldest son and heir of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. However, Nicholas died from meningitis in 1865, at the age of 21. Minnie married Nicholas’ brother, the new heir to the throne, the future Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia. The couple had six children, including Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia.
Unofficial Royalty: Dagmar of Denmark, Maria Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia

October 13, 2016 – Death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, Rama IX, at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand; his ashes were interred at the Royal Cemetery at Wat Ratchabophit, Thailand
In 1946, King Bhumibol became king at the age of 18. King Bhumibol’s brother King Ananda Mahidol was found shot dead in his bedroom in the Boromphiman Throne Hall at the Grand Palace in Bangkok, four days before he was scheduled to return to Switzerland to finish his doctoral degree in law at the University of Lausanne. The circumstances of King Ananda Mahidol’s death have never been fully explained. In 1950, Bhumibol married Sirikit Kitiyakara, the daughter of the Thai ambassador to France. The couple had three daughters and one son. King Bhumibol Adulyadej died at the age of 88, following several years of illness.  At the time of his death, he was the world’s longest-reigning current monarch, having reigned for 70 years and 126 days.
Unofficial Royalty: King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand

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Wilhelmine of Prussia, Queen of the Netherlands; Credit – Wikipedia

October 12, 1537 – Birth of King Edward VI of England at Hampton Court Palace in Richmond upon Thames, England
Twenty-six years into his reign, King Henry VIII of England was still without a male heir. He married his third wife Jane Seymour eleven days after Anne Boleyn’s execution, and Jane was pregnant before her first wedding anniversary, which would prove to be her only wedding anniversary. As was tradition, Jane went into confinement a month before the baby’s due date. At 2 AM, on October 12, 1537, the long-awaited male heir was born. Jane’s labor had been long, two days and three nights. Three days later, the baby was christened Edward after Edward the Confessor whose feast day is October 13. His half-sisters 21-year-old Mary and four-year-old Elizabeth attended the ceremony along with his mother who was carried on a litter. Henry’s joy soon turned into grief. On October 17, 1537, Jane’s condition deteriorated and she was given the last rites. She died on October 24, 1537, most likely from puerperal fever or childbed fever, a bacterial infection. Edward succeeded his father at age nine but died from tuberculosis six years later.
Unofficial Royalty: King Edward VI of England

October 12, 1576 – Death of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria in the Imperial City of Regensburg, now in the German state of Bavaria; buried in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, Kingdom of Bohemia, now in the Czech Republic
Maximilian married his first cousin Infanta Maria of Spain, the daughter of his uncle Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who was also King Carlos I of Spain and Isabella of Portugal. The couple had fifteen children including two Holy Roman Emperors and two Queen Consorts (France and Spain).  Upon the death of his father Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, who was also King of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia and Archduke of Austria, Maximilian succeeded as ruler of the Habsburg hereditary lands and was elected Holy Roman Emperor. During his reign, Maximilian had to deal with the ongoing Ottoman-Habsburg wars, conflicts with his Spanish Habsburg cousins, and the effects of the 1555 Peace of Augsburg. The Peace of Augsburg officially ended the religious struggle between Lutherans and Catholics, and made the legal division of Christianity permanent within the Holy Roman Empire, allowing the rulers of the constituent monarchies of the Holy Roman Empire to choose either Lutheranism or Roman Catholicism as the official religion of their state.
Unofficial Royalty: Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria

October 12, 1730 – Death of King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway; at Odense Palace in Denmark; buried at Roskilde Cathedral in Denmark
Frederik is known for the two bigamous marriages he made with his mistresses. Despite this, he was a fairly successful ruler. He selected his advisors carefully and held audiences in which ordinary people could speak to him and present letters with complaints or requests. Frederik was not very familiar with the Danish language, which he only used on state occasions. He usually spoke and wrote in German and French. Frederik IV was interested in Italian architecture and traveled to Italy several times and he had two palaces built in the Italian Baroque style. Frederiksberg Palace, located in Frederiksberg, close to Copenhagen, was built 1699 – 1735. Fredensborg Palace built 1720 – 1726, is located on Lake Esrum in Fredensborg on the island of Zealand in Denmark. Toward the end of his life, Frederik IV suffered from edema, then called dropsy. He died the day after his 59th birthday.
Unofficial Royalty: King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway

October 12, 1798 – Birth of King Pedro IV of Portugal/Emperor Pedro I of Brazil at Queluz Palace in Lisbon, Portugal
Full name: Pedro de Alcântara Francisco António João Carlos Xavier de Paula Miguel Rafael Joaquim José Gonzaga Pascoal Cipriano Serafim
As Emperor Pedro I, he was the founder and first ruler of the Empire of Brazil. As King Pedro IV, he reigned briefly over Portugal. On April 7, 1831, after a political crisis that ended with the resignation of his ministers and in the middle of an economic crisis, Pedro abdicated the throne of Brazil in favor of his six-year-old son who reigned as Emperor Pedro II of Brazil. Pedro returned to Portugal where he died at the age of 35, from tuberculosis at his birthplace.
Unofficial Royalty: Pedro I, Emperor of Brazil/Pedro IV, King of Portugal

October 12, 1810 – The origin of Oktoberfest was the wedding of King Ludwig I of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in Bavaria, Germany
In 1809, Therese was included on a list of prospective brides for Napoleon I, Emperor of the French who was looking to marry into one of the old royal houses of Europe. However, the future King Ludwig I of Bavaria would become her husband.  The couple met in December 1809 when Ludwig visited Hildburghausen, and the couple became engaged on February 12, 1810. After prolonged negotiations, primarily due to Therese’s unwillingness to convert to Catholicism, she and her family traveled to Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria, for the marriage. Therese and Ludwig married on October 12, 1810, and celebrations were held for several days at the Theresienwiese in Munich, a large outdoor space named in her honor. The Bavarian royal family invited the citizens of Munich to attend the festivities. Theresienwiese is the site of Oktoberfest, held each year to commemorate the wedding.
Unofficial Royalty: King Ludwig I of Bavaria
Unofficial Royalty: Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen, Queen of Bavaria
Unofficial Royalty: Oktoberfest’s Royal Connection

October 12, 1837 – Death of Wilhelmine of Prussia, Queen of the Netherlands, wife of King Willem I of the Netherlands, at Noordeinde Palace in The Hague, the Netherlands; buried at Nieuwe Kerk in Delft, the Netherlands
In 1791, Wilhelmine married her first cousin Prince Willem of Orange-Nassau, later King Willem I of the Netherlands, and the couple had four children. Wilhelmine was not successful in her role as Queen. While she still contributed generously to charities, her subjects thought her cold and distant as she only came in contact with family and her court ladies. In the now modern-day Belgium areas, Wilhelmine was ridiculed for her old-fashioned German style of dress.  Wilhelmine’s health worsened in 1820 and by 1829, she rarely appeared in public. After a trip in the spring of 1837 to a grandson’s christening in Berlin, Wilhelmine was beyond exhaustion. She spent the summer at Het Loo Palace in Apeldoorn, Netherlands. On October 4, 1837, Wilhelmine and her husband traveled to Noordeinde Palace in The Hague. The trip greatly weakened Wilhelmine and her condition worsened. Queen Wilhelmine died eight days later, at the age of 63, with her family at her bedside.
Unofficial Royalty: Wilhelmine of Prussia, Queen of the Netherlands

October 12, 1876 – Birth of Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia at Tsarskoye Selo, near St. Petersburg, Russia
Kirill was the son of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich (son of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia) and Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. In 1905, he married his first cousin Victoria Melita of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Because Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia did not consent to the marriage, Kirill was stripped of his military appointments and his funding. The couple was banished from Russia and settled in France. By 1908, Kirill was third in line to the Imperial throne, following several deaths within the family. Nicholas II relented and allowed Kirill to return to Russia, restoring his military positions and his funding. (See below. Kirill died on his 62nd birthday.)
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia

October 12, 1894 – Birth of Elisabeth of Romania, Queen of Greece, wife of King George II of Greece, daughter of King Ferdinand I of Romania, at Peleş Castle in Sinaia, Romania
Full name: Elisabeta Charlotte Josephine Alexandra Victoria
Elisabeth was a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria through her mother Princess Marie of Edinburgh. In 1921, she married the future King George II of Greece. George and Elisabeth had no children, and would eventually divorce in 1935. After her divorce, Elisabeth petitioned to have her Romanian citizenship restored which she had relinquished upon her marriage. Through wise investments and the booming Romanian economy, Elisabeth became financially well-off. She devoted much of her time to charity, working with many organizations to help children and those who were ill. At her own expense, she established a hospital and children’s home in Bucharest, Romania.
Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth of Romania, Queen of Greece

October 12, 1938 – Death of Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia in Neuilly, France; first buried  in the Ducal Mausoleum at the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg, Germany, in 1995 his remains were moved to the Grand Ducal Mausoleum at the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, Russia
Following the abdication of Nicholas II in 1917, Kirill and his family left Russia. They settled first in Finland, before moving on to Munich, Germany, and then Zurich, Switzerland. They settled permanently in Saint-Briac, France, in the mid-1920s. In addition, they had inherited property in Coburg from Victoria Melita’s mother. Bolstered by a group of supporters, and the laws of the former Imperial Family (under which Kirill was the rightful heir to the throne), on August 31, 1924, Kirill declared himself Emperor of All the Russias. His son Vladimir Kirillovich and then Vladimir’s daughter Maria Vladimirovna both took on the claim.
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia

October 12, 2018 – Wedding of Princess Eugenie of York and Jack Brooksbank at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
Eugenie and Jack were introduced by mutual friends in Verbier, Switzerland. Eugenie was on holiday and Jack was working there at the time. After seven years together, Jack proposed to Eugenie while on holiday in Nicaragua at the end of 2017.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Princess Eugenie of York and Jack Brooksbank

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Louise-Marie of Orleans, Queen of the Belgians; Credit – Wikipedia

October 11, 1159 – Death of William of Blois, Count of Boulogne, son of King Stephen of England, in the County of Toulouse, now in France; buried at the Abbey of Montmorel in the Duchy of Normandy, now in France.
William was the youngest of the five children and the third but the second surviving of the three sons of Stephen I, King of England (born Stephen of Blois) and Matilda I, Countess of Boulogne in her own right. Circa 1148 – 1149, William married Isabel de Warenne, 4th Countess of Surrey in her own right but the couple had no children. William’s mother Matilda I, Countess of Boulogne in her own right died in 1152, and her eldest son succeeded her as Eustace IV, Count of Boulogne. When Eustace suddenly died in 1153, William became Count of Boulogne. In 1159 William accompanied King Henry II of England on an unsuccessful invasion of the County of Toulouse, now in France. William died October 11, 1159, aged circa twenty-two, from an illness on the return trip to England, while still in the County of Toulouse.
Unofficial Royalty: William of Blois, Count of Boulogne

October 11, 1671 – Birth of King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark
In 1695, Frederik married Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow. They had four sons and one daughter. Sadly, three sons died in infancy. Frederik had two bigamous marriages to his mistresses. The adultery and bigamy of Frederik IV and the effect it had upon Queen Louise deeply affected and disturbed their son Crown Prince Christian, the future Christian VI. Christian distanced himself from his father and he came to detest his father’s bigamous wives. After the death of Queen Louise in 1721, Frederik and Anna Sophie Reventlow were married in a second formal wedding conducted with great ceremony. Although the marriage was still scandalous, it was not declared morganatic and Anna Sophie was crowned Queen. Anna Sophie and Frederick IV had six children. Three were born before the legal marriage in 1721 but none survived. This was seen by many as divine punishment for their bigamy. The three children born after the 1721 marriage were styled as Prince/Princess of Denmark but none survived infancy.
Unofficial Royalty: King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway

October 11, 1721 – Death of Prince Anton Florian of Liechtenstein in Vienna, Austria; buried at the Liechtenstein Crypt in Vranov near Brno, Czech Republic
In 1679, Anton Florian married Countess Eleonore Barbara von Thun-Hohenstein and the couple had eleven children including Josef Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein. In 1712, Anton Florian’s nephew Hans-Adam I, Prince of Liechtenstein, died without a male heir. Anton Florian was the heir according to primogeniture. Still, he was not very popular with the family, and  Hans-Adam I had named his second cousin once removed Josef Wenzel as his heir. In 1718, after negotiations, Anton Florian became Prince of Liechtenstein and Josef Wenzel concentrated on his military career.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Anton Florian of Liechtenstein

October 11, 1739 – Birth of Prince Grigory Alexandrovich Potemkin, lover of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia, in the village of Chizhovo near Smolensk, Russia
Grigory and Catherine had known each other since 1762 but their sexual relationship began in the spring of 1774 when Grigory was 34 and Catherine was 44. Grigory and Catherine worked out a new relationship that preserved their affection toward each other and their political collaborations but allowed each of them to choose other sexual partners. That relationship lasted until Grigoryi died. He is considered Catherine’s great love. Trivia: The term “Potemkin Village” derives from Grigory Potemkin. It has come to mean, especially in a political context, any hollow or false construct, physical or figurative, meant to hide an undesirable or potentially damaging situation. The term comes from stories of a fake portable village built solely to impress Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia, by Grigory Potemkin, during her journey to Crimea in 1787.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Grigory Alexandrovich Potemkin, lover of Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia

October 11, 1753 – Birth of Hereditary Prince Frederik of Denmark, son of King Frederick V of Denmark and his second wife, Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark
After the death of his father King Frederik V, Frederik’s half-brother from his father’s first marriage King Christian VII succeeded to the throne.  Christian VII had many symptoms of mental illness. Frederik and his mother Juliana Maria were instrumental in a coup that would bring about the fall of Christian VII’s physician Johann Friedrich Struensee and discredit Christian’s wife Caroline Matilda of Wales who was having an affair with Struensee. They arranged for King Christian VII to sign an arrest warrant for Struensee after they had already arrested him. Struensee was executed and Caroline Matilda was exiled. After the fall of Struensee, Juliana Maria and her son Frederik took charge of the Council of State. Christian VII was only nominally king from 1772 onward.
Unofficial Royalty: Hereditary Prince Frederik of Denmark

October 11, 1850 – Death of Louise-Marie of Orleans, Queen of the Belgians, wife of King Leopold I of the Belgians, at Ostend, Belgium; buried at the Royal Crypt in the Church of Our Lady in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium
Louise-Marie was the eldest daughter and second child of Louis-Philippe I, King of the French and Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies. Among her ancestors are the Kings of France, Spain, Poland, Sicily and Naples, and Holy Roman Emperors. Marie Antoinette, Queen of France was her mother’s aunt. In 1831, Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, uncle of both Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert, became the first King of the Belgians. Leopold had to marry again to provide for the Belgian succession and his choice was Louise-Marie. The couple had four children. In August 1850, during a memorial service for Louise-Marie’s father, it was noticed that Louise-Marie had difficulty walking and needed support from her husband to prevent her from falling. A month later, suffering from tuberculosis and feeling increasingly weak, she moved to Ostend, Belgium on the sea. Surrounded by her mother, her husband, and her children, Louise-Marie died at the age of 38.
Unofficial Royalty: Louise-Marie of Orleans, Queen of the Belgians

October 11, 1861 – Death of Elizabeth Conyngham, Marchioness Conyngham, mistress of King George IV of the United Kingdom, at the family estate Bifrons in Patrixbourne, Kent, England; buried at St. Mary’s Church in Patrixbourne, Kent, England
Elizabeth Conyngham, Marchioness Conyngham was the last mistress of King George IV of the United Kingdom, from 1820 until the King died in 1830. George IV was so devoted to her that he bequeathed her his plate and jewels, although she refused them when he died. He also provided housing at Windsor Castle and at the Brighton Pavilion for Elizabeth and her family and ensured they traveled with him when he moved from one residence to another. She was given full use of the King’s horses and carriages, and most of the large dinners held at her London townhouse were prepared in the kitchens of St. James’s Palace. To George IV, nothing was ‘off limits’ for his beloved Elizabeth. However, it would all end when George IV died at Windsor Castle in 1839. By the following day, Elizabeth had packed her belongings and left Windsor for her brother’s home before traveling to Paris, reportedly expelled from the country by the new King William IV. Elizabeth remained in Paris until the death of William IV in 1837. She returned to the family’s Bifrons estate in the village of Patrixbourne, near Canterbury, where she lived the remainder of her life.
Unofficial Royalty: Elizabeth Conyngham, Marchioness Conyngham, mistress of King George IV of the United Kingdom

October 11, 1916 – Death of King Otto I of Bavaria at Schloss Fürstenried in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in Bavaria, Germany; buried at St. Michael’s Church in Munich
Like his brother King Ludwig II of Bavaria, Otto was also mentally ill. After Ludwig and his doctor were found dead in a lake, Otto became King of Bavaria. However, because of his incapacity, Otto probably never understood that he had become king. His uncle Prince Luitpold who had been Regent of Bavaria during Ludwig II’s reign remained Regent during Otto’s reign. Otto remained in isolation at Fürstenried Palace for the rest of his life. When Prince Luitpold died in 1912, he was succeeded by his son Ludwig as Regent. The following year, Ludwig had the Bavarian constitution amended to allow King Otto to be formally deposed. In 1913, Otto was formally deposed and replaced by his cousin who took the throne as King Ludwig III. Otto died three years later, aged 68, as the result of a bowel obstruction.
Unofficial Royalty: King Otto I of Bavaria

October 11, 1927 – Birth of Josephine-Charlotte of Belgium, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, wife of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, at the Royal Palace in Brussels, Belgium
Full name: Josephine-Charlotte Ingeborg Elisabeth Marie-José Marguerite Astrid
Joséphine-Charlotte was the eldest child and only daughter of Leopold III, King of the Belgians and Princess Astrid of Sweden. Her two younger brothers Baudouin and Albert II were both Kings of the Belgians. In 1953, Joséphine-Charlotte married Hereditary Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, the eldest child of Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg and Prince Felix of Bourbon-Parma. The couple had five children including Henri, the current Grand Duke of Luxembourg.  In 1964, Grand Duchess Charlotte abdicated, and Jean and Joséphine-Charlotte became the new Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
Unofficial Royalty: Josephine-Charlotte of Belgium, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg

October 11, 1954 – Birth of Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, Sultan of Oman, in Muscat,  then in the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman, now in the Sultanate of Oman
On January 11, 2020, the day after the death of Haitham’s first cousin Sultan Qaboos of Oman, Haitham was named Sultan of Oman after a sealed letter from Qaboos was opened identifying whom he wished to take his place. On the same day, Haitham was sworn in as the Sultan of Oman during an emergency session of the Council of Oman at the Al-Bustan Palace in Muscat, Oman.
Unofficial Royalty: Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, Sultan of Oman

October 11, 1963 – Birth of Prince Feisal bin Al Hussein of Jordan, son of King Hussein I of Jordan and his second wife Princess Muna Al Hussein (the former Antoinette Gardiner), in Amman, Jordan
Prince Feisal is the younger brother of King Abdullah II of Jordan. In addition to his military duties with the Jordanian Air Force, Feisal has been President of the Jordan Olympic Committee since 2003, Founder and Chairman of Generations for Peace since 2007, and a Member of the International Olympic Committee since 2010.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Feisal bin Al Hussein

October 11, 1969 – Birth of Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands, son of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, at Utrecht University Hospital in Utrecht, the Netherlands
Full name: Constantijn Christof Frederick Aschwin
Constantijn is the youngest of the three sons of the former Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. His eldest brother King Willem-Alexander is the current King of the Netherlands. Constantijn married Petra Laurentien Brinkhorst in 2001 and had two daughters and one son. He does not undertake many official duties for the Dutch monarchy. However, as a member of the Dutch Royal House, he and his wife are typically in attendance at major events, such as King’s Day and the annual Opening of Parliament.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands

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Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Queen of Denmark; Credit – Wikipedia

October 10, 1344 – Birth of Mary of Waltham, Duchess of Brittany, daughter of King Edward III of England at Bishop’s Waltham Palace in Bishop’s Waltham, Hampshire, England
Mary had thirteen siblings. Her brothers married into the English nobility and it was their descendants who later battled for the throne in the Wars of the Roses. Around  July 3, 1361,16-year-old Mary and 22-year-old John IV, Duke of Brittany were married at Woodstock Palace in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. Mary and John remained at the English court after their marriage. Arrangements were being made for them to leave England and reside in Brittany as the Duke and Duchess of Brittany. However, within weeks, Mary became quite ill, and she died sometime before September 13, 1361,
Unofficial Royalty: Mary of Waltham, Duchess of Brittany

October 10, 1741 – Birth of Carl II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz at Mirow Castle in Mirow, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Full name: Carl Ludwig Friedrich
Carl was the brother of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz who married King George III of the United Kingdom. In 1794, Carl became the Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz upon the death of his brother Adolf Friedrich IV. In 1815, the Congress of Vienna recognized Mecklenburg-Strelitz as a grand duchy. Carl II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz became the first Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Carl married Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt who died due to childbirth complications giving birth to her tenth child. Two years later, Carl married Friederike’s younger sister, Charlotte who also died due to childbirth complications shortly after giving birth to their only child.
Unofficial Royalty: Carl II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

October 10, 1796 – Death of Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Queen of Denmark, second wife of King Frederik V of Denmark, in Fredensborg Palace in Denmark; buried at Roskilde Cathedral in Denmark
In 1752, Juliana Maria married Frederik V six months after his first wife Louisa of Great Britain died. The couple had one son. After the death of Frederik V, he was succeeded by his son from his first marriage King Christian VII who had many symptoms of mental illness. Juliana Maria was instrumental in a coup that would bring about the fall of Christian VII’s physician Johann Friedrich Struensee and discredit Christian’s wife Caroline Matilda of Wales who was having an affair with Struensee. Juliana Maria arranged for King Christian VII to sign the arrest warrant of Struensee after she had already made the arrest in the name of the king. Struensee was executed and Caroline Matilda was exiled. After the fall of Struensee, Juliana Maria and her son, Christian VII’s half-brother Hereditary Prince Frederik, took charge of the Council of State. Christian VII was only nominally king from 1772 onward.
Unofficial Royalty: Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Queen of Denmark

October 10, 1811 – Death of Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden, the illegitimate son of King George II of Great Britain and his mistress Amalie von Wallmoden, in Hanover in the Electorate of Hanover, now in the German state of Lower Saxony; buried in the von Wallmoden family’s hereditary burial site below the tower of the Church of Heinde in Heinde now in the German state of Lower Saxony
Born on April 22, 1736, in Hanover in the Electorate of Hanover, now in the German state of Lower Saxony, Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden was the illegitimate son of King George II of Great Britain and Amalie von Wallmoden, Countess of Yarmouth, George II’s mistress from 1735 until he died in 1760.  Johann Ludwig was brought up at his father’s court and received a comprehensive education. During a grand tour of Italy, Johann Ludwig began to collect art and antiquities. Johann Ludwig joined the Hanoverian Army and rose to the rank of major general. Johann Ludwig married two times: to Charlotte Christiane Auguste Wilhelmine von Wangenheim with whom he had five children and to Baroness Luise Christiane von Lichtenstein with whom he had three children.
Unofficial Royalty: Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden

October 10, 1830 – Birth of Queen Isabella II of Spain at the Royal Palace in Madrid, Spain
Full name: María Isabel Luisa
Isabella’s father Ferdinand VII died in 1833, and she succeeded to the throne, not quite three years old. Isabella married her double first cousin Infante Francisco de Asís de Borbón, Duke of Cadiz. Her marriage was not happy and there were rumors that few, if any, of her children, were fathered by her husband. Isabella had nine children, but only five reached adulthood. Her only surviving son was King Alfonso XII of Spain, the great-great-grandfather of the current Spanish monarch King Felipe VI. Isabella’s authoritarianism, her religious fanaticism, her alliance with the military, and the chaos of her reign — sixty different governments — helped bring about the Revolution of 1868 that exiled her to Paris. The new government replaced Isabella with Amadeo I, the second son of King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy.  During Amadeo’s reign, there were many republican uprisings and he abdicated in 1873 and returned to Italy. The First Spanish Republic was declared, but it lasted a little less than two years.  Isabella officially abdicated in 1870 and after the First Spanish Republic collapsed, her son Alfonso XII became king.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Isabella II of Spain

October 10, 1837 – Death of Princess Wilhelmine Luise of Nassau-Weilburg, Princess Reuss of Greiz, wife of Heinrich XIII, 2nd Prince Reuss of Greiz, in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, now in the German state of Thuringia; buried at the Stadtkirche St. Marien in Greiz
The daughter of Karl Christian, Duke of Nassau-Weilburg and Princess Carolina of Orange-Nassau, twenty-year-old Wilhelmine Luise married thirty-eight-year-old Heinrich XIII, the heir to the throne of the Principality of Reuss-Greiz in 1786. Wilhelmine Luise and Heinrich XIII had four sons. When his father died in 1800, Heinrich XIII succeeded as Prince Reuss of Greiz. Heinrich XIII, 2nd Prince Reuss of Greiz died on January 29, 1817, aged 69. Wilhelmine Luise survived her husband by twenty years, dying on October 10, 1837, aged 72.
Unofficial Royalty: Wilhelmine Luise of Nassau-Weilburg, Princess Reuss of Greiz

October 10, 1846 – Birth of Georg, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe at Schloss Bückeburg, in Bückeburg, Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe, now in North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany
Full name: Stephan Albrecht Georg
In 1882, Georg married Princess Marie Anna of Saxe-Altenburg, who was eighteen years younger than him. The couple had nine children. Before he succeeded to the throne, Georg had a career in the Prussian Army. Upon the death of his father on May 8, 1893, Georg became the reigning Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe.
Unofficial Royalty: Georg, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe

October 10, 1903 – Birth of Prince Charles of Belgium, Prince Regent of Belgium, at the Palace of the Marquis d’Assche in Brussels, Belgium
Full name: Charles-Théodore Henri Antoine Meinrad
Charles was the younger brother of Leopold III, King of the Belgians. When Belgium was occupied by Germany during World War II, Leopold III surrendered and was held under house arrest at the Palace of Laeken. After the liberation of Belgium, the Belgian Parliament appointed Charles as Prince Regent. During his Regency, Charles worked to restore Belgium after the war, helping to establish financial aid and grants for the restoration of properties damaged or destroyed. Charles remained Prince Regent of Belgium until a 1950 referendum returned Leopold III to the throne.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Charles of Belgium Count of Flanders, Prince Regent of Belgium

October 10, 1914 – Death of King Carol I of Romania at Sinaia, Romania; buried at the Curtea de Arges Monastery in Romania
Born Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, he was elected by the Romanian government to become the new Ruling Prince in 1866 after Ruling Prince Alexander Ioan Cuza was forced to abdicate. He took on the more Romanian spelling of his name, Carol. In 1881, the Romanian parliament declared Romania a Kingdom, and he became King Carol I. He married  Princess Elisabeth of Wied and they had one daughter who died in childhood from scarlet fever. After a reign of 48 years, Carol I died at the age of 75 and was succeeded by his nephew, King Ferdinand I, the second son of his elder brother Leopold.
Unofficial Royalty: King Carol I of Romania

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Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland; Credit – Wikipedia

October 9, 1690 – Death of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton, an illegitimate son of King Charles II of England by Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland
In 1679, Henry married Isabella Bennet, daughter and heiress of Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington and Elisabeth of Nassau, a granddaughter of Maurits of Nassau, Prince of Orange, and a great-granddaughter of Willem I (the Silent), Prince of Orange. When her father died, Isabella became the 2nd Countess of Arlington in her own right. Henry and Isabella had one son Charles FitzRoy, who succeeded his parents as 2nd Duke of Grafton and 3rd Earl of Arlington. Henry was raised as a sailor and was well-suited to military life. He was appointed Colonel of the Grenadier Guards in 1681 and served as Vice-Admiral of England from 1682 to 1689. On October 9, 1690, in Cork, Ireland, 27-year-old Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton died from wounds received two weeks earlier at the Siege of Cork, during the Williamite War in Ireland when supporters of the former King James II attempted to retake the English throne from King William III and Queen Mary II.
Unofficial Royalty: Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton

October 9, 1709 – Death of Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, mistress of King Charles II of England, at Walpole House in Chiswick, England; at the Old Chiswick Cemetery at St. Nicholas Church in Chiswick, London, England
In 1659, Barbara married Roger Palmer, later 1st Earl of Castlemaine. At the end of 1659, Roger and his new wife left with other supporters of the exiled  King Charles II of England, joining him in the Netherlands. In 1660, Barbara became Charles’ mistress and continued as his mistress when Charles II returned to England later that year. Barbara gave birth to six children, some of them, possibly all, were the children of Charles II. Among Barbara’s descendants are Diana, Princess of Wales; Sarah, Duchess of York; the Mitford sisters; philosopher Bertrand Russell; and British Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden. In 1673, King Charles II cast Barbara aside and took Louise de Kérouaille as his newest favorite mistress. Barbara eventually reconciled with King Charles II and he enjoyed an evening in her company a week before he died in February 1685.
Unofficial Royalty: Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland

October 9, 1757 – Birth of King Charles X of France at the Palace of Versailles in France
Both King Louis XVIII and King Charles X were brothers of the beheaded King Louis XVI who reigned in France during the Bourbon Restoration. When Napoleon was overthrown in 1814, King Louis XVIII was formally made King of France. In 1824, King Louis XVIII died, and his brother Charles X succeeded to the French throne. Charles longed for a return to absolute rule. He often instructed his prime minister to change or remove laws that he felt were too liberal. Charles’ own actions led to the July Revolution of 1830, his abdication, and the Chamber of the Deputies proclaiming Louis Philippe, Duke of Orléans as Louis Philippe I, King of the French.
Unofficial Royalty: Charles X, King of France

October 9, 1934 – Assassination of King Alexander I of Yugoslavia in Marseilles, France; buried at the Memorial Church of St. George, Oplenac near Topola, Serbia
45-year-old Alexander I, King of Yugoslavia was assassinated in Marseilles, France, by Bulgarian assassin Vlado Chernozemski during a state visit to France. In the pre-World War II era, French Foreign Minister Louis Barthou was attempting to build alliances. King Alexander was making a state visit to France to sign a Franco-Yugoslav agreement. Barthou met King Alexander when he arrived in Marseilles, France on the Royal Yugoslav Navy destroyer Dubrovnik. The pair slowly traveled in a motorcade through the streets of Marseilles, lined with people eager to see the king. Vlado Chernozemski emerged from the crowd and jumped onto the running board of Alexander and Barthou’s car. He was carrying a bouquet of flowers, in which his pistol was concealed, and shouted “Vive le roi!” (“Long live the king!”) Chernozemski shot Alexander, hitting him once in the abdomen and once in the heart, killing the king within minutes.
Unofficial Royalty: Assassination of Alexander I, King of Yugoslavia
Unofficial Royalty: King Alexander I of Yugoslavia

October 9, 1935 – Birth of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent at 3 Belgrave Square in London, England
Full name: Edward George Nicholas Paul Patrick
Edward became Duke of Kent at age 7 when his father Prince George, Duke of Kent died in a plane crash during active military service in World War II. In 1961, Edward married Katharine Worsley and the couple had three children. As a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, he was an active member of the Royal Family and represented the Queen at events in the United Kingdom and around the world.  He is probably most recognized for his role as President of The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, serving from 1969 – 2021, a position to which he succeeded upon his mother’s death in 1968. In this role, he presented the champion’s trophies at Wimbledon each year.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Edward, Duke of Kent

October 9, 1937 – Death of Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, grandson of Queen Victoria, at Schloss Wolfsgarten in Langen, Germany; buried at Rosenhöhe Chapel in Darmstadt, Germany
Ernst Ludwig was the son of Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Alice and Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine. He made an unsuccessful marriage to his first cousin Princess Victoria Melita of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The couple had one daughter who died in childhood. They waited until after Queen Victoria died to divorce. In 1905, Ernst Ludwig married Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich and they had two sons. He lost his throne after World War I, however, he was allowed to remain in Hesse and retained several of the family’s properties. Tragically, just weeks after his death, a plane crash in Belgium took the lives of many of his remaining family – his widow, elder son, daughter-in-law, and two grandsons. The plane crash took place on November 16, 1937 – ironically, this was the anniversary of the deaths of both Ernst Ludwig’s sister May (in 1878) and his daughter Elisabeth (in 1903).
Unofficial Royalty: Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine

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King Zog I of Albania; Credit – Wikipedia

October 8, 1515 – Birth of Lady Margaret Erskine, mistress of James V, King of Scots
James V, King of Scots had several mistresses but Lady Margaret Erskine was his favorite and the mother of the most important of his nine illegitimate children. Margaret’s father John Erskine, 5th Lord Erskine was appointed guardian of the ten-year-old James V, King of Scots and Constable of Stirling Castle, and so Margaret and James had been acquainted from an early age. Within a few years of her marriage to Sir Robert Douglas of Lochleven, Margaret became the mistress of James V. Margaret and James V’s son James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, born circa 1531, had become Protestant like most of Margaret’s family. Despite their religious differences, James Stewart became the chief advisor to his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots and in September 1561, Mary created her half-brother Earl of Moray.
Unofficial Royalty: Lady Margaret Erskine, mistress of James V, King of Scots

October 8, 1895 – Birth of Ahmed Zogu, King Zog I of Albania, at Burgajet Castle in Burrel,  the Ottoman Empire, now in Albania
After Albania achieved independence, Ahmed Muhtar Zogu held numerous positions within the government, including Minister of the Interior, Chief of the Albanian Military, Prime Minister, and President. In 1927, several Albanian politicians suggested that Albania should become a monarchy again. A commission was quickly established and on August 30, 1928, the Constitutional Assembly overwhelmingly approved the vote. The Kingdom of Albania was established, and President Zogu was offered the throne. The following day, September 1, 1928, Ahmet Zogu took the oath, becoming King Zog I of the Albanians, the country’s first and only reigning King. In 1938, King Zog married Geraldine Apponyi de Nagy-Appony. On April 7, 1939, just two days after Queen Geraldine gave birth to the couple’s only child, Italian forces invaded Albania. Despite attempts to hold them off, the Albanian military was unsuccessful and the royal family was forced into exile. After several years of ill health, King Zog passed away on April 9, 1961, at 66.
Unofficial Royalty: King Zog I of Albania

October 8, 1972 – Death of The Honorable Sir Alexander Ramsay, son of John William Maule Ramsay, 13th Earl of Dalhousie and husband of Princess Patricia of Connaught, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at his home Ribsden Holt in Windlesham, Surrey, England; buried in the Royal Burial Ground at Frogmore, Windsor, England
Ramsay had a long career in the Royal Navy. While serving as naval aide-de-camp to Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught in his early years as Governor-General of Canada, Ramsay became acquainted with his youngest child Princess Patricia of Connaught. The couple became engaged at the fishing lodge of J. K. L. Ross, a Canadian businessman, sportsman, thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder, and philanthropist, on St. Anns Bay in Nova Scotia, Canada. The wedding was held at Westminster Abbey on February 27, 1919. This was the first major royal event after World War I and the first royal wedding at Westminster Abbey since the 1382 wedding of King Richard II and Anne of Bohemia. The couple had one son.
Unofficial Royalty: The Honorable Sir Alexander Ramsay

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Maria Caterina Brignole, Princess of Monaco; Credit – Wikipedia

October 7, 1471 – Birth of King Frederik I of Denmark and Norway at Haderslevhus in Haderslev, Denmark
Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway was the youngest of the four sons and the youngest of the five children of Christian I, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Frederik’s nephew Christian II, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden had been deposed in Sweden in 1521 and replaced by Gustav Vasa, the first monarch of the Swedish House of Vasa. By 1523, the Danes also had enough of Christian II and a rebellion started. Christian II was forced to abdicate by the Danish nobles and Frederik, his paternal uncle, was offered the crown. Frederik was the last Roman Catholic Danish monarch. All subsequent Danish monarchs have been Lutheran. Although Frederik remained Catholic, he was somewhat tolerant of the new Protestant Lutheran religion. He ordered Lutherans and Roman Catholics to share the same churches and encouraged the first publication of the Bible in the Danish language. Frederik’s attitude toward religion postponed the all-out warfare between Protestants and Roman Catholics that occurred during the reign of his son King Christian III that ultimately turned Denmark into a Protestant nation.
Unofficial Royalty: King Frederik I of Denmark and Norway

October 7, 1515 – Birth of Lady Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox, daughter of Margaret Tudor and mother of Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, at Harbottle Castle in Harbottle, Northumberland, England
Lady Margaret Douglas was the only child of Margaret Tudor, Dowager Queen of Scots and the second of her third husbands, Scottish noble Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus. She was third in the line of succession to the English throne at the time of her birth. Her elder son was Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley who married his first cousin Mary, Queen of Scots, the daughter and successor of Lady Margaret’s half-brother James V, King of Scots. Darnley and Mary’s son James VI, King of Scots succeeded as King James I of England upon the death of Queen Elizabeth I of England. Margaret and her family suffered the dangerous misfortune of being a threat to the English throne. All British monarchs from King James I onward, and many European royals are the descendants of Lady Margaret Douglas.
Unofficial Royalty: Lady Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox

October 7, 1672 – Birth of Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen at Friedenstein Palace in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany
Ernst Ludwig succeeded his father, Bernhard I, as Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. Unlike his own father who had divided his territories among his sons, Bernhard stipulated in his will that the duchy should remain united. However, he also wanted his sons to rule jointly, which none of them wanted to do. Ernst Ludwig, as the eldest son, felt that the throne should go solely to him and his heirs, which caused a rift between him and his brothers. Eventually, he reached an agreement with them which gave him sole reign. His two remaining brothers later ruled after his death, in the guardianship of Ernst Ludwig’s sons.
Unofficial Royalty: Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

October 7, 1737 – Birth of Maria Caterina Brignole, Princess of Monaco, wife of Prince Honoré III of Monaco, at the Palazzo Rosso in the Republic of Genoa, now in Italy
In 1757, Maria Caterina married Honoré III, Prince of Monaco, who was eager to marry to provide Monaco with an heir and to obtain Maria Caterina’s large dowry. The couple had two sons including Honoré IV, Prince of Monaco. Maria Caterina and Honoré III lived mostly in Paris where Maria Caterina spent a lot of time with Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince of Condé, a great-grandson of Louis XIV, King of France and his mistress Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart, Marquise de Montespan. Louis Joseph used his influence to obtain a legal separation for Maria Caterina from Honoré and the right to manage her own finances. Honoré finally realized his relationship with Maria Caterina was over and eventually accepted Maria Caterina’s relationship with Louis Joseph. There was never a divorce or annulment. Honoré continued with his mistresses and he allowed Maria Caterina to see her two sons.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Caterina Brignole, Princess of Monaco

October 7, 1748 – Birth of King Carl XIII of Sweden at the Wrangel Palace on Riddarholmen islet in Gamla Stan, the old town of Stockholm, Sweden
Carl was not destined to be king, but at the age of 60, he became King of Sweden and reigned for nine years. He would be the last Swedish monarch of the House of Holstein-Gottorp. On March 16, 1792, Carl’s elder brother King Gustav III was shot by Jacob Johan Anckarström during a masked ball at the Royal Opera House in Stockholm. Thirteen days later, King Gustav III died of his wounds at the age of 46. His 13-year-old son succeeded him as King Gustav IV Adolf. Due to some questionable, and then some failed military decisions, Gustav IV Adolf was imprisoned in 1809. Carl agreed to form a provisional government and the Swedish parliament, the Riksdag, approved the coup. Gustav Adolf abdicated, thinking if he did so, his son would become king. However, the Riksdag proclaimed that all members of Gustav Adolf’s family had forfeited their rights to the throne. After accepting a new liberal constitution, Prince Carl was proclaimed King Carl XIII of Sweden. King Gustav IV Adolf and his family were sent into exile.
Unofficial Royalty: King Carl XIII of Sweden

October 7, 1870 – Birth of Prince Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine, son of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and Grand Duke Ludwig IV of Hesse and by Rhine and grandson of Queen Victoria, at Neues Palais in Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Friedrich Wilhelm August Viktor Leopold Ludwig
Prince Friedrich, known as Frittie in the family, was the son of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and Grand Duke Ludwig IV of Hesse and by Rhine. Following a cut to his ear in February 1873, it was discovered that Frittie suffered from hemophilia when the wound took days to stop bleeding. In May 1873, Frittie and his brother Ernst Ludwig were playing in their mother’s bedroom at the Neues Palais. Ernst went into another room to look through the window, angled to the window in Alice’s bedroom. While Alice was out of the room to get Ernst, Frittie climbed up to the window in the bedroom to see Ernst. The chair he climbed on tipped over and Frittie fell from the window to the ground below. Due to his hemophilia, Prince Friedrich died from a brain hemorrhage.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine
Unofficial Royalty: Hemophilia in Queen Victoria’s Descendants

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Élisabeth of France, Queen of Spain and Portugal; Credit – Wikipedia

October 6, 1644 – Death of Élisabeth of France, Queen of Spain and Portugal, daughter of King Henri IV of France, first wife of King Felipe IV of Spain, at the Royal Alcázar in Madrid, Spain; buried at the Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in El Escorial, Spain
In 1615, Elisabeth married the future King Felipe IV of Spain. Elisabeth and Felipe had eight children but only their youngest child, Maria Theresa of Austria, Infanta of Spain who married King Louis XIV of France, survived childhood. Besides having so many children die young, Elisabeth had three miscarriages. Her husband probably transmitted to her a venereal disease he contracted from one of his mistresses. This would explain the miscarriages and the many dead infants. Weakened by her multiple pregnancies and miscarriages, Elisabeth died at the age of forty-one, after miscarrying a son.
Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth of France, Queen of Spain and Portugal

October 6, 1773 – Birth of Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, at the Palais-Royal in Paris, France
At the onset of the French Revolution, Louis Philippe fled the country to avoid likely execution, which would be the fate of his father, and other members of the French royal family. In 1814, Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of the French was overthrown, and the Bourbons returned to the French throne. Louis Philippe returned to France and was welcomed into the French court during the reign of his cousins King Louis XVIII and King Charles X. In August 1830, King Charles X abdicated, naming his grandson, Henri, Duke of Bordeaux, as his successor. However, the Chamber of Deputies instead proclaimed Louis Philippe as the new monarch of France. An economic crisis of 1847, led to the French Revolution of 1848. Louis Philippe abdicated in favor of his grandson, Philippe, Count of Paris. Afraid that he may be imprisoned and executed, he quickly left Paris, and using a disguise, made his way to England. Two days later, the Second Republic was declared, ending the monarchy in France once again. In England, Louis Philippe and his wife took up residence at Claremont, a country house in Surrey, England, where they would live for the rest of their lives.
Unofficial Royalty: Louis-Philippe I, King of the French

October 6, 1779 – Birth of Francesco IV, Duke of Modena and Reggio at the Royal Palace of Milan in Milan, Duchy of Milan, now in Italy
Full name: Francesco Giuseppe Carlo Ambrogio Stanislao
Francesco was the son of Maria Beatrice d’Este, the heiress of Modena and Reggio and Archduke Ferdinand Karl of Austria, son of Francis Stephen, Duke of Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Holy Roman Emperor and Maria Theresa, in her own right Archduchess of Austria, and Queen of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia. Francesco’s paternal grandfather Ercole III d’Este, Duke of Modena and Reggio had been deposed by Napoleon Bonaparte. Francesco regained the Duchy of Modena and Reggio as Francesco IV in 1814, after the fall of Napoleon. In 1812, 1812, 33-year-old Francesco married his 20-year-old niece Maria Beatrice of Savoy and they had four children. While Francesco’s grandfather Ercole III reigned the Duchy of Modena and Reggio as an enlightened monarch, Francesco’s reign was more autocratic.
Unofficial Royalty: Francesco IV, Duke of Modena and Reggio

October 6, 1808 – Birth of King Frederik VII of Denmark at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark
Full name: Frederik Carl Christian
When Frederik was not even a year old, his mother Charlotte Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was accused of adultery, divorced, and banished from the Danish court. Frederik never saw her again. In 1828, Frederik married Vilhelmine Marie of Denmark, the younger of the two daughters of the reigning King of Denmark, Frederik VI. The marriage was childless and unhappy, mostly due to Frederik’s affairs and drinking. The couple separated in 1834 and divorced in 1837. Frederik married again in 1841 to Caroline Mariane of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Once again, the marriage was childless and unhappy. In 1844, Caroline Mariane went to visit her parents and refused to return to Denmark. The couple divorced in 1846. In 1848, Frederik succeeded to the throne upon the death of his father. Two years later, he married his third wife Louise Rasmussen, a ballerina and stage actress. Frederik began a relationship with Louise during the 1840s. As this was a morganatic marriage, Louise was not Queen of Denmark. Instead, she was given the title Countess Danner. Frederik and Louise did not have any children.
Unofficial Royalty: King Frederik VII of Denmark

October 6, 1819 – Death of Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia at the Palazzo Colonna in Rome, Papal States, now in Italy; buried at the Church of Sant’Andrea al Quirinale in Rome
Carlo Emanuele IV abdicated the throne of Sardinia, was the Jacobite pretender to the thrones of England and Scotland, although he never claimed the title, and ended his life as a novice in the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). Carlo Emanuele IV married Marie Clotilde of France, the sister of King Louis XVI of France, but they had no children. Carlo Emanuele IV succeeded to the throne of Sardinia upon the death of his father Vittorio Amedeo III in 1796. In 1798, the French occupied Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, and forced Carlo Emanuele to give up all his territories on the Italian mainland. He withdrew to the island of Sardinia in 1799. When Marie Clotilde died from typhoid fever in 1802, Carlo Emanuele was so upset by her death that he decided to abdicate. He left the throne of Sardinia to his brother who reigned as Vittorio Emanuele I. Carlo Emanuele settled in Rome and the nearby town of Frascati, both now in Italy. In 1815, he took simple vows in the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). He was never ordained as a priest but lived as a novice until his death at the age of 68.
Unofficial Royalty: Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy
Unofficial Royalty: The Jacobite Succession – Pretenders to the British Throne

October 6, 1828 – Death of Charlotte, Princess Royal, Queen of Württemberg, daughter of King George III of the United Kingdom and wife of King Frederick I of Württemberg, at Ludwigsburg Palace in Ludwigsburg, Kingdom of Württemberg, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany; buried in the Royal Crypt in the Castle Chapel at Ludwigsburg Palace in Ludwigsburg
The living conditions of King George III’s six daughters came to be known as “the Nunnery.” None of the daughters were allowed to marry at the age when most princesses would marry. Charlotte was one of the three who eventually did marry. At the age of 31, Charlotte married 49-year-old Friedrich, Hereditary Prince of Württemberg, the future King of Württemberg, a widower with three children. After Charlotte delivered a stillborn daughter, the marriage remained childless. Her husband Friedrich died of pneumonia in 1816. In 1827, Charlotte returned to England for the first time since her wedding in 1797, for the treatment of pulmonary edema, called dropsy at that time. Soon after her return to Württemberg, Charlotte fell ill. On October 5, 1828, Charlotte asked that her stepson King Wilhelm I of Württemberg, and his family come to her bedside. The next day, Charlotte died peacefully in the arms of her stepson surrounded by his family, her friends, and her faithful servants.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte, Princess Royal, Queen of Württemberg

October 6, 1891 – Death of King Karl I of Württemberg in Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany; in the crypt beneath the Schlosskirche at the Old Castle (Altes Schloss) in Stuttgart
In 1846, Karl married Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia, the daughter of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia. The marriage appeared to be happy but possibly it was never consummated. By most accounts, Karl was homosexual and enjoyed very close relationships with several men through the years. Karl and Olga adopted Olga’s niece, Grand Duchess Vera Konstantinovna. Karl became King of  Württemberg upon his father’s death in 1864. He was far more liberal than his father, and this was reflected in his actions. He restored the freedom of the press and universal suffrage. Although he sided with Austria during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, he soon entered into a treaty with Prussia, and would later fight alongside them in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.
Unofficial Royalty: King Karl I of Württemberg

October 16, 1969 – Death of Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark, Margravine of Baden, sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in Büdingen in Hesse, Germany; buried in the Baden family cemetery in Salem, Germany
Raised primarily in Greece, Theodora and her family had to leave Greece several times due to the political unrest and repeated overthrow of the monarchy. They spent several years living in Switzerland and later settled outside of Paris. In 1931, Theodora married Berthold, Margrave of Baden, the son of Maximilian, Margrave of Baden and Princess Marie Luise of Hanover. The couple was second cousins through their mutual descent from King Christian IX of Denmark and they had three children. In her later years, Princess Theodora spent time with her children and grandchildren and occasionally visited England to see her brother Philip and his family. She died at the age of 63, just five weeks before the death of her mother, born Princess Alice of Battenberg.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark, Margravine of Baden

October 6, 2002 – Death of Prince Claus of the Netherlands, born Klaus-Georg von Amsberg, husband of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, at the AMC University Hospital in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; buried at the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft, the Netherlands
On New Year’s Eve in 1962, Claus met Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, the heir to the Dutch throne, at a party. The couple met again at the wedding eve party of Princess Tatjana of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse, in 1964. Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg acted as a go-between for the couple and did much to strengthen their relationship. Claus and Beatrix were married on March 10, 1966, at the Westerkerk in Amsterdam, the Netherlands . The couple had three sons. Claus suffered from various health issues. He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991. Claus underwent successful surgery for prostate cancer in 1998, but the radiation for the cancer caused urinary tract problems. In 2001, a kidney was removed and he had problems with the other kidney. Respiratory infections kept him in the hospital during the spring of 2002, shortly after the wedding of his eldest son Willem-Alexander. Two months before his death, he had a coronary angioplasty. Claus died at the age of 76  from Parkinson’s disease and pneumonia.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Claus of the Netherlands

October 6, 2012 – Death of Albert, Margrave of Meissen, disputed Head of the House of Saxony and pretender to the former throne of the Kingdom of Saxony, in Munich, Germany; buried at the Old Catholic Cemetery in Dresden, Saxony, Germany
Full name: Albert Joseph Maria Franz-Xaver, Prince of Saxony
Albert, Margrave of Meissen was briefly one of the disputed Heads of the House of Saxony and pretender to the former throne of the Kingdom of Saxony.
Unofficial Royalty: Albert, Margrave of Meissen

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