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Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales; Credit – Wikipedia

November 6, 1479 – Birth of Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Queen of Aragon in Toledo, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain
Juana was the daughter of Ferdinand II, King of Aragon and Isabella I, Queen of Castile and León, and the elder sister of Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII of England. She married Philip of Austria, often called Philip of Habsburg or Philip the Handsome. He was the heir of Mary, Duchess of Burgundy in her own right, the ruler of a collection of states known as the Burgundian State, and Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor. Juana was declared insane and confined in the Royal Convent of Santa Clara in Tordesillas under the orders of her father, who ruled as regent until he died in 1516 when she inherited his kingdom as well. From 1516, when her son Charles I ruled as king, she was nominally co-monarch but remained confined until her death. Joanna’s death resulted in the personal union of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire, as her son Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, also became King of Castile and Aragon. Most historians now agree Juana was clinically depressed and not insane as commonly believed.
Unofficial Royalty: Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Queen of Aragon

November 6, 1550 – Birth of Karin Månsdotter, Queen of Sweden, wife of King Eric XIV of Sweden, in Stockholm, Sweden
Karin Månsdotter was one of several mistresses of Erik XIV, King of Sweden, and then briefly his Queen Consort. Erik first met Karin at an inn where she was a serving girl. Erik brought Karin into the palace where she worked as a chambermaid for Erik IV’s half-sister. Erik suffered from occasional bouts of mental illness and those closest to him noted that Karin had a calming effect on him. Erik and Karin had four children. The first two were born before the second official marriage in 1568 but were later legitimized. The last two died in early childhood. In 1567, Erik and Karin were married morganatically in a secret ceremony. In 1568, Karin was ennobled and a second official wedding was held in Storkyrkan (Great Church) in Stockholm, Sweden, followed the next day by Karin’s coronation as Queen of Sweden. Due to Erik’s behavior and his marriage to Karin, his younger half-brothers led a revolt against him that ended in his removal as King of Sweden in 1568. Erik was imprisoned as was Karin for a while. After Erik’s death, probably a murder from arsenic poisoning, Karin was granted an estate in Kangasala, Finland by Erik’s half-brother King Johan III  where she lived comfortably for the rest of her life.
Unofficial Royalty: Karin Månsdotter, Queen of Sweden

November 6, 1612 – Death of Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales at St. James’ Palace in London, England, son of King James I of England; buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
The heir to the thrones of England and Scotland, by the time he was 18 years old, Henry was physically mature, well-educated, an independent thinker, and ready to assume some government responsibility. He was on his way to making an excellent and popular king. Henry died of typhoid fever at age 18.  His brother Charles (later King Charles I) became heir to the throne.  Henry’s death was considered a national tragedy. In October 1612, Henry developed several symptoms including a fast pulse, a fever, a red face, a swollen stomach, gastrointestinal symptoms, and severe thirst. Later he developed delirium and violent convulsive movements. His doctors suspected poisoning but with modern medical knowledge, it is now suspected that Henry died from typhoid fever. Henry’s death caused immense grief across England and Scotland and in his family. King James I was too distraught to attend the funeral. Months later, in the middle of a meeting, he broke down, crying, “Henry is dead, Henry is dead.” His mother Queen Anne could not bear to have Henry’s death mentioned and people were advised not to give her condolences.  Henry’s brother, the future King Charles I, who was now the heir to the throne, felt the loss deeply and insisted until the end of his life that Henry had been poisoned. We can only wonder how different English history might have been if Henry Frederick had been King instead of his brother King Charles I.
Unofficial Royalty: Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales

November 6, 1650 – Death of Willem II, Prince of Orange from smallpox at The Hague, Dutch Republic, now in the Netherlands; buried in the Royal Vault of the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft, the Netherlands
In 1641, at the Chapel Royal of the Palace of Whitehall in London, England, 15-year-old Willem married nine-year-old Mary, Princess Royal, the daughter of King Charles I of England. Because of Mary’s young age, the marriage was not consummated for several years. In 1650, Mary was pregnant with her first child when her husband Willem II fell ill with smallpox. He died on November 6, 1650, at the age of 24. Eight days later, Mary gave birth to her only child Willem III, Prince of Orange who married his first cousin Mary, the eldest surviving child of the future King James II of England. Following the Glorious Revolution of 1688 in which James II was deposed, they jointly reigned as King William III and Queen Mary II. At later dates, King William III’s mother Mary, Princess Royal, and his wife Queen Mary II of England also died from smallpox.
Unofficial Royalty: Willem II, Prince of Orange

November 6, 1656 – Death of King João IV of Portugal at Ribeira Palace in Lisbon, Portugal; buried at the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora in Lisbon, Portugal
João IV was the first King of Portugal from the Portuguese House of Braganza. The Braganzas came to power after deposing the Spanish Habsburg Philippine dynasty, which had reigned in Portugal since 1580. In 1633, João married Luisa de Guzmán. They had seven children including two kings of Portugal and Catherine of Braganza, the wife of King Charles II of England. In 1646, João IV placed the crown of Portugal on the head of a statue of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception and proclaimed the Virgin Mary to be the queen, the patron saint, and the protector of Portugal. After this, no Portuguese monarch would ever wear the crown. Instead, the crown was always placed on a cushion next to the monarch. João IV, King of Portugal died on November 6, 1656, aged 52, at Ribeira Palace in Lisbon, Portugal.
Unofficial Royalty: King João IV of Portugal

November 6, 1661 – Birth of King Carlos II of Spain at the Royal Alcazar in Madrid, Spain
Carlos II was the last Spanish king from the House of Habsburg. He had physical and mental conditions probably caused by the continued inbreeding of the House of Habsburg. Carlos was a weak, sick child from birth. He did not learn to talk until he was four years old and could not walk until he was eight years old. Like many of the Habsburg family, Carlos had the Habsburg jaw (mandibular prognathism), a disfiguring genetic disorder in which the lower jaw outgrows the upper jaw. When Carlos died without children, the Spanish House of Habsburg became extinct. Carlos II was succeeded by his half-sister’s grandson Philippe of France, Duke of Anjou who reigned as Felipe V, King of Spain, the first monarch of the House of Bourbon which still reigns in the Kingdom of Spain today.
Unofficial Royalty: King Carlos II of Spain

November 6, 1754 – Birth of King Friedrich I of Württemberg at Treptow Palace in Treptow an der Rega, Pomerania, now Trzebiatów, Poland
Full name: Friedrich Wilhelm Karl
Friedrich first had a very unsuccessful marriage to Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. She was the daughter of Carl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, and Princess Augusta of Great Britain (sister of King George III of the United Kingdom). Her younger sister Caroline later married the future King George IV of the United Kingdom and also had a very unsuccessful marriage. Friedrich and Augusta had four children. In 1797, Friedrich married again to Charlotte, Princess Royal, the eldest daughter of King George III of the United Kingdom. They had one stillborn daughter born in 1798. Upon his father’s death in December 1797, Friedrich became Duke of Württemberg.  When the Holy Roman Empire was reorganized following France’s annexation of the west bank of the Rhine, Württemberg was raised to an Electorate and Friedrich became Elector in 1803.  In exchange for providing France with a large armed force, Napoleon allowed Friedrich to raise Württemberg to a kingdom in 1805.
Unofficial Royalty: King Friedrich I of Württemberg

November 6, 1796 – Birth of Leopold II, Prince of Lippe in Detmold, Principality of Lippe, now in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
When Leopold II was just five years old, his father Leopold I, Prince of Lippe died at the age of 34. Leopold II’s mother Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg very capably acted as Regent of the Principality of Lippe until 1820. In 1820, Leopold II married Princess Emilie of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. They had nine children including three reigning Princes of Lippe. Leopold, shy by nature, lived a restrained life. He had two passions: hunting and the theater. The Lippe Princely Court Theater (Hochfürstliches Lippisches Hoftheater) he established in Detmold was among the best in the German monarchies. The theater established by Leopold II is still in existence today. Now called the Landestheater Detmold, it is a theater for operas, operettas, musicals, ballets, and stage plays in Detmold, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Unofficial Royalty: Leopold II, Prince of Lippe

November 6, 1816 – Death of Carl II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz in Neustrelitz, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany; buried at the New Crypt of the Johanniterkirche in Mirow, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Carl was the brother of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the wife of King George III of the United Kingdom. Carl married two sisters Princess Friederike and Princess Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt. Friederike died in childbirth delivering her tenth child and Charlotte died in childbirth giving birth to her only child. After the death of his childless brother in 1794, Carl succeeded him as Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. In 1815, at the Congress of Vienna, the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was raised to a Grand Duchy. In the summer of 1816, while Carl was throughout the German monarchies and visiting to visit family, he developed an inflammation of the lungs. Despite appearing to recover, he fell ill again that autumn and died at the age of 75.
Unofficial Royalty: Carl II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

November 6, 1817 – Death of Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of The Prince of Wales (later King George IV), in childbirth after delivering a stillborn son, at Claremont House in Esher, Surrey, England; buried at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
Charlotte was the only child of George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV). She married Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saafeld, the future uncle of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and the future king of Belgium. Had Charlotte lived, she would have succeeded her father as Queen, but on November 6, 1817, a great tragedy struck the British Royal Family. After a labor of over 50 hours, Charlotte delivered a stillborn son. Several hours later, twenty-one-year-old Princess Charlotte, King George III’s only legitimate grandchild, died of postpartum hemorrhage. Charlotte was mourned by the British people in a manner similar to the mourning of Diana, Princess of Wales. Charlotte’s pregnancy and delivery were grossly mismanaged and the doctor in charge, Sir Richard Croft, later died by suicide.
Unofficial Royalty: Death of Princess Charlotte of Wales in childbirth and its impact on the succession to the British throne
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Charlotte of Wales

November 6, 1836 – Death of former King Charles X of France at the palace of Count Michael Coronini von Cronberg in Gorizia, in present-day Italy; buried at the Church of Saint Mary of the Annunciation on Kostanjevica Hill in present-day Nova Gorica, Slovenia
King Charles X was the last King of France from the House of Bourbon. He was the third son of Louis, Dauphin of France, and the younger brother of the ill-fated King Louis XVI. When Napoleon was overthrown in 1814, the Bourbons were restored and Charles’ elder brother became King Louis XVIII. In 1824, King Louis XVIII died, and Charles succeeded to the French throne as King Charles X. He would be very unpopular with the French people, and would not remain on the throne for very long. His actions led to the July Revolution of 1830, which led to his abdication. Charles lived in exile for the rest of his life. He died from cholera at the age of 79.
Unofficial Royalty: King Charles X of France

November 6, 1894 – Birth of Elisabeth Franziska von Bischoff-Korthaus, known as Ellen Bischoff-Korthaus, the wife of Adolf II, the last reigning Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe, in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria
Ellen was an actress under the stage name Ellen Korth. Besides her stage work, she had roles in two silent films in 1918. In 1918, she married Prince Eberwyn of Bentheim and Steinfurt but the couple divorced in 1919. In 1920, Ellen married Adolf II, the last reigning Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe. Ellen and Adolf’s marriage was childless. After the end of the German Empire, Adolf was exiled from the Free State of Schaumburg-Lippe and he and Ellen lived mostly in the Brionian Islands, then Italy, now in Croatia. Ellen and Adolf died in an airplane crash in Zumpango, Mexico. Adolf and Ellen were killed along with eight other passengers from Germany, Austria, and Hungary, and four crew members. Their plane developed engine trouble and crashed between the volcanoes Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl as they were flying from Mexico City, Mexico to Guatemala City, Guatemala.
Unofficial Royalty: Ellen Bischoff-Korthaus, Princess of Schaumburg-Lippe

November 6, 1896 – Birth of Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse, Head of the Electoral House of Hesse-Kassel and Head of Grand Ducal House of Hesse and by Rhine, at Rumpenheim Castle in Offenbach, Germany
Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse became head of the Electoral House of Hesse (also known as Hesse-Kassel) in 1940. In 1968, upon the death of his childless distant cousin, Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine, Philipp inherited the headship of the former Grand Ducal House of Hesse and by Rhine. This reunited the last two remaining branches of the historic House of Hesse which had been divided in 1567.
Unofficial Royalty: Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse

November 6, 1929 – Death of Prince Maximilian of Baden, Margrave of Baden, pretender to the former throne of the Grand Duchy of Baden and the Head of the House of Zähringen from 1928 until his death, in Salem, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; buried in the Mimmenhausen Cemetery in Salem.
Full name: Maximilian Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm
Maximilian was heir to the throne of the Grand Duchy of Baden and served briefly as Chancellor of the German Empire. On August 9, 1928, the last reigning Grand Duke of Baden, Friedrich II, died, and Max became the pretender to the former throne and the Head of the House of Zähringen. At that time, he assumed the historic title of Margrave of Baden. Just over a year later, on November 6, 1929, he died of kidney failure following several strokes.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Maximilian of Baden, Margrave of Baden

November 6, 1935 – Wedding of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, son of King George V of the United Kingdom, and Lady Alice Montagu-Douglas-Scott at the Private Chapel, Buckingham Palace in London, England
Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott were married on November 6, 1935, at the Private Chapel in Buckingham Palace in London, England. The wedding was originally set to be held at Westminster Abbey but the wedding venue was changed after the death of the bride’s father less than three weeks before the wedding date. Because of the circumstances, it was deemed more appropriate to have the wedding at the Private Chapel at Buckingham Palace.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott

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Sophia Dorothea of Württemberg, Maria Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia; Credit – Wikipedia

November 5, 1605 – The Gunpowder Plot, conceived by Guy Fawkes and ten accomplices, to kill King James I of England and all members of Parliament is scheduled by planting gunpowder under Parliament.  The conspirators were tried, convicted, and beheaded.
Wikipedia: Gunpowder Plot
Wikipedia: Guy Fawkes

November 5, 1660 – Death of Lucy Hay, Countess of Carlisle, favorite of Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of King Charles I of England, at Little Salisbury House in London, England; buried in the Percy family vault at St. Mary the Virgin Churchyard in Petworth, West Sussex, England
Probably the inspiration for the character of Milady de Winter in The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, in 1626, Lucy was appointed Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of King Charles I, who had succeeded to the throne the previous year. Lucy soon became the queen’s favorite, was a popular figure at court, and started to engage in court intrigues. During the Second English Civil War between the Parliamentarians (Roundheads) and the Royalists (Cavaliers), Lucy sided with the Royalists. She maintained communication with Charles, Prince of Wales (the future King Charles II), and served as an intermediary between the scattered bands of royalists and Queen Henrietta Maria. In 1649, Lucy was arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London due to her actions. She was released on bail the following year but never regained her influence in royal circles. She died of a stroke at the age of 61, soon after the monarchy was restored.
Unofficial Royalty: Lucy Hay, Countess of Carlisle, favorite of Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of King Charles I of England

November 5, 1726 – Death of Lady Mary Tudor, an illegitimate daughter of King Charles II of England by Mary ‘Moll’ Davis, in Paris, France
Mary’s mother Mary “Moll” Davis was an actress and singer in the Duke’s Theatre Company in London. King Charles II, an avid theatergoer, first saw Moll Davis on stage and she soon became his mistress and was given a house on Suffolk Street in London where her daughter Mary was probably born. Lady Mary Tudor was married three times and two of her sons, the grandsons of King Charles II, were beheaded for high treason. Fifty-three-year-old Mary died in Paris, France, on November 5, 1726. Her burial site is unknown.
Unofficial Royalty: Lady Mary Tudor

November 5, 1755 – Birth of Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg- Strelitz, second wife of the future Grand Duke Carl II of Mecklenburg- Strelitz, in Darmstadt, Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Charlotte Wilhelmine Christiane Marie
In 1784, Charlotte married the future Grand Duke Carl II of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Carl had previously been married to her older sister Friederike who died after giving birth to her tenth child two years earlier. Charlotte and Carl had one son, however, twelve days after giving birth to her son, Charlotte died of complications from childbirth.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg- Strelitz

November 5, 1802 – Death of Leopold I, Prince of Lippe in Detmold, Principality of Lippe, now in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany; first buried at the Church of the Redeemer in Detmold, his remains were later moved to the Mausoleum at the Büchenberg in Detmold
As a child, Leopold’s lack of strength of character, lack of interest, lack of concentration, and a tendency to mental disorders became apparent. In 1782, Leopold’s father died and the fourteen-year-old succeeded him. In 1790, Leopold’s mental disorders interfered with his role as reigning prince and he was deemed legally incapacitated and placed under guardianship. In 1795, the guardianship was conditionally lifted after Leopold’s condition improved. Leopold married Princess Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg in 1796 and the couple had two sons. Because of Leopold’s tenuous mental condition, Pauline became his governmental adviser and colleague. Within the next few years, Leopold developed intestinal tuberculosis, and his mental disorders returned with memory loss. He died at the age of 34 and his five-year-old son Leopold II, Prince of Lippe succeeded him with his mother Pauline very capably acting as Regent of the Principality of Lippe.
Unofficial Royalty: Leopold I, Prince of Lippe

November 5, 1828 – Death of Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia, born Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg, second wife of Paul I, Emperor of All Russia, at Pavlovsk Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia; buried at Peter and Paul Cathedral, Saint Petersburg
In 1776, less than six months after the death of Paul’s first wife in childbirth along with their only child, 17-year-old Sophie Dorothea and 22-year-old Paul, the future Emperor of All Russia, were married. Paul and  Sophie Dorothea, who took the name Maria Feodorovna after marriage, had ten children including two Emperors of All Russia. Only one of their children did not survive childhood. In 1796, after a reign of 34 years, Paul’s mother Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia died. Paul was now Emperor of All Russia and Maria Feodorovna was Empress. Because of Paul’s autocratic and despotic rule, he was assassinated by a group of conspirators in 1801. After Paul’s death, Maria Feodorovna made her home at Pavlovsk Palace. She demanded recognition as the highest-ranking woman in Russia and took precedence over the wife of her son Alexander I. Although Maria Feodorovna was unable to make direct political decisions, she did have a great influence on her son Alexander as well as on her other children. She actively participated in the marriage arrangements of her younger children with members of European royal families. The current Dutch royal family are her descendants. Maria Feodorovna lived long enough to see the first three years of the reign of her third son Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia. She outlived five of her ten children, dying at the age of 69 after a short illness.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia Dorothea of Württemberg, Maria Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia

November 5, 1864 – Birth of Hilda of Nassau, Grand Duchess of Baden, wife of Friedrich II, Grand Duke of Baden, at Biebrich Palace in Wiesbaden, Duchy of Nassau, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Hilda Charlotte Wilhelmine
Hilda was the daughter of Adolphe, Duke of Nassau (later Grand Duke of Luxembourg) and Adelheid-Marie of Anhalt-Dessau. In 1885, she married Friedrich II, the future and the last Grand Duke of Baden. The couple had no children. As Grand Duchess of Baden, Hilda was a keen supporter of the arts. She often visited museums and exhibitions and helped to promote the arts throughout Baden. She also promoted education and several schools were named in her honor. Hilda’s husband was deposed and forced to abdicate when the German Empire ended in November 1918. Hilda and her husband then lived at their home on the island of Mainau in Lake Constance in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
Unofficial Royalty: Hilda of Nassau, Grand Duchess of Baden

November 5, 1881 – Birth of Nikolai Alexandrovich Kulikovsky, second husband of Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia, in Evstratovka, Voronezh Province, Russia
Nikolai, from a minor noble family, was a member of the Blue Cuirassier Guards where one of the commanders was Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich, the younger brother of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia. Michael’s sister, Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna, attended a military review of the Blue Cuirassier Guards. Olga was in an unsuccessful marriage with Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg. At the military review, Olga saw a tall, handsome man in the uniform of the Blue Cuirassier Guards – Nikolai – and their eyes met. Michael arranged for Nikolai and his sister Olga to meet. After years of turmoil with Olga begging for a divorce and then asking her brother Nicholas II for permission to marry Nikolai, the couple finally married in 1916. Olga and Nikolai had two sons. Olga, Nikolai, and their two sons managed to leave Russia after the Russian Revolution. After living in Denmark, the family moved to Ontario, Canada where Nikolai died in 1958.
Unofficial Royalty: Nikolai Alexandrovich Kulikovsky

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Mary, Princess Royal, Princess of Orange; Credit – Wikipedia

November 4, 1631 – Birth of Mary, Princess Royal, Princess of Orange, daughter of King Charles I of England, at St. James Palace in London, England
In 1642, Mary was created the first Princess Royal. Her mother Queen Henrietta Maria, daughter of King Henri IV of France wanted to imitate the way the eldest daughter of the King of France was styled Madame Royale. Holders retain the style for life, so a princess cannot receive the style during the lifetime of another Princess Royal. Mary married Willem II, Prince of Orange and was the mother of Willem III, Prince of Orange.  Willem III of Orange married his first cousin Mary, daughter of King James II of England. They jointly succeeded to the British throne as William III and Mary II after the overthrow of James II.
Unofficial Royalty: Mary, Princess Royal, Princess of Orange

November 4, 1731 – Birth of Maria Josepha of Saxony, Dauphine of France, second wife of Louis, Dauphin of France and the mother of three Kings of France, Louis XVI, Louis XVIII, and Charles X, at Dresden Castle in Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, later in the Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony
Full name: Maria Josepha Karolina Eleonore Franziska Xaveria
Maria Josepha was the daughter of Augustus III, Elector of Saxony, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania and Maria Josepha of Austria. In 1747, fifteen-year-old Maria Josepha married seventeen-year-old Louis, Dauphin of France, the son and heir apparent of his father Louis XV, King of France. They had eight children including three Kings of France. Maria Josepha’s husband Louis never succeeded to the throne, dying of tuberculosis in 1765, at the age of 36. Maria Josepha, who had cared for Louis during his last illness, also contracted tuberculosis. She died at the Palace of Versailles, on March 13, 1767, at the age of 35, and was buried with her husband.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Josepha of Saxony, Dauphine of France

November 4, 1872 – Birth of Prince Barbu Alexandru Știrbey, lover/confidant of Queen Marie of Romania, at the Știrbey Palace in Buftea, Romania
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Barbu Alexandru Știrbey, lover/confidant of Queen Marie of Romania (Unofficial Royalty article coming soon.)

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Emperor Meiji of Japan;  Credit – Wikipedia

November 3, 1456 – Death of Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond, father of King Henry VII of England, died of the plague in captivity at Carmarthen Castle in Wales; initially buried in the Grey Friars Church in Carmarthen, Wales; during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under the reign of his grandson King Henry VIII, Edmund Tudor remains were moved to St. David’s Cathedral in Pembrokeshire
Edmund Tudor was the father of Henry VII, the first Tudor monarch of England, and the ancestor of the British royal family and most other European royal families. He was the son of Owen ap Maredudd ap Tudor, better known as Owen Tudor, and Catherine of Valois, Dowager Queen of England, the widow of King Henry V of England. In 1455, Edmund married Lady Margaret Beaufort, a descendant of King Edward III of England through her father. The Wars of the Roses, the fight for the English throne between the House of Lancaster and the House of York, had just started and Edmund, a Lancastrian, was taken prisoner by the Yorkists less than a year later. He died of the plague in captivity at Carmarthen Castle in Wales on November 3, 1456, leaving a 13-year-old widow who was seven months pregnant with their child, the future King Henry VII.
Unofficial Royalty: Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond

November 3, 1777 – Birth of Princess Sophia of the United Kingdom, daughter of King George III of the United Kingdom, at Buckingham Palace in London, England
Full name: Sophia Matilda
Known for giving birth to an illegitimate son, Sophia was one of the three daughters of King George III who never married. Sophia’s childhood was very sheltered and she spent most of her time with her parents and sisters. The living conditions of King George’s daughters came to be known as “the Nunnery.”  Limited in exposure to eligible men, Sophia and several of her sisters became involved with courtiers and equerries. Major-General Thomas Garth, an equerry to King George III, was 56 years old, 33 years older than Sophia, and had a large purple birthmark that disfigured his face. Sophia and Garth were allegedly lovers during the winter of 1799 at Windsor Castle, resulting in a pregnancy. In the summer of 1800, Sophia went to the seaside town of Weymouth, a holiday destination for the royal family, pretending to be suffering from dropsy. Apparently, on August 5, 1800, Sophia gave birth to a son in Weymouth. The child was adopted by a local couple. Eventually, Major-General Garth adopted the boy, renamed him Thomas Garth (Tommy), had him educated at Harrow School, made him his heir, and helped him in an army career in the 15th The King’s Hussars, his old regiment.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Sophia of the United Kingdom

November 3, 1852 – Birth of Emperor Meiji of Japan at the Gosho, the palace compound, in Kyoto, Japan
Birth name: Mutsuhito
Meiji’s father Emperor Kōmei died suddenly in 1867 at the age of 36 and 14-year-old Meiji became Emperor. Since 1185, a shogun, a military dictator, had been the de facto ruler of Japan, although the shoguns were appointed by the Emperor. In 1868, the last shogun lost power, and in the name and with the support of the young emperor, a new, more Western-oriented upper class initiated the modernization of Japan known as the Meiji Restoration. Under Emperor Meiji’s reign, Japan started to become an industrial and naval power. The old feudal system was abolished and public state schools were introduced along with the Gregorian calendar. In 1890, the Emperor made the greatest contribution to the modernization of Japan with the enactment of a constitution.
Unofficial Royalty: Emperor Meiji of Japan

November 3, 1901 – Birth of Leopold III, King of the Belgians at the Palace of the Marquis d’Assche in Brussels, Belgium
Full name: Léopold Philippe Charles Albert Meinrad Hubertus Marie Miguel
Leopold III became king in 1934 after his father Albert I, King of the Belgians fell to his death while mountain climbing. In 1926, Leopold married Princess Astrid of Sweden and the couple had three children. Sadly, in August 1935, Astrid was killed in a car accident while the family was on vacation in Switzerland. In September 1941, Leopold married Lilian Baels. Following the marriage, Lilian was given the title Princess de Réthy and was not styled as Queen. It was also decided that any children would be Prince/Princess of Belgium but without any rights of succession.  Leopold and Lilian had three children. At the beginning of World War II, Leopold tried to maintain Belgian neutrality, but after the German invasion in May 1940, he surrendered his country, earning him much hostility, both in Belgium and around the world. Leopold and his family were held under house arrest before being liberated by the Americans in 1945. Leopold was banned for several years from returning to Belgium, where his brother Prince Charles had been declared regent. Leopold’s eventual return to Belgium in 1950 nearly caused a civil war, and under pressure from the government, he abdicated in favor of his son Prince Baudouin in July 1951.
Unofficial Royalty: Leopold III, King of the Belgians

November 3, 1923 – Wedding of King Gustaf Adolf VI of Sweden and Lady Louise Mountbatten at the Chapel Royal at St. James’s Palace in London, England
Gustaf Adolf was previously married to Princess Margaret of Connaught from 1905 until her death in 1920. In June 1923, Lady Louise’s great-aunt, Princess Helena (the third daughter of Queen Victoria), passed away in London. Among those attending the funeral was Gustaf Adolf. He and Louise were drawn to each other immediately, and despite her vow that she would never marry a king or a widower, fate had other plans. Their engagement was announced on July 1, 1923, by both the Swedish and British courts.
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of King Gustaf Adolf VI of Sweden and Lady Louise Mountbatten

November 3, 1961 – Birth of David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon, son of Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom, at Clarence House in London, England
Full name: David Albert Charles
From 1980-1982, David studied the craft of woodworking at Parnham College in Beaminster, Dorset, England. He has had a career as a furniture designer and maker and set up his own company LINLEY in 1985. David does not have an official role, but he does take part in Royal Family events, such as Trooping the Colors. In 2002, while his grandmother Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother was lying in state at Westminster Hall, David, along with his first cousins The Prince of Wales, The Duke of York, and The Earl of Wessex, stood guard around their grandmother’s coffin.
Unofficial Royalty: David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon

November 3, 1970 – Death of King Peter II of Yugoslavia in Denver, Colorado; originally buried at St. Sava Monastery Church in Libertyville, Illinois, reburied in 2013 at the Royal Family Mausoleum in Oplenac, Serbia
After the assassination of his father King Alexander I in 1934,  11-year-old Peter ascended the throne of Yugoslavia. In 1941, Yugoslavia was occupied by Nazi forces, and the government was forced to surrender. King Peter went into exile with the government. After settling in London, Peter married Princess Alexandra of Greece, the daughter of King Alexander I of Greece, and the couple had one son.  In 1944, a Communist government was established in Yugoslavia. The following year, the monarchy was officially abolished. After World War II, Peter and Alexandra left London, living in France and Switzerland before settling in the United States in 1949. The marriage suffered from the strain of Peter’s numerous affairs and the constant struggle to find sources of income. Eventually, they went their separate ways. Peter settled permanently in the United States while Alexandra took her son and moved to Venice with her mother. Suffering from cirrhosis of the liver, King Peter II died at the age of 47, following a failed liver transplant. Per his wishes, he was interred at the Saint Sava Monastery Church in Libertyville, Illinois. To date, he is the only European monarch to be buried in the United States. He was reburied in 2013 at the Royal Family Mausoleum in Oplenac, Serbia.
Unofficial Royalty: King Peter II of Yugoslavia

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Anne, Princess Royal, Princess of Orange; Credit – Wikipedia

November 2, 1083 – Death of Matilda of Flanders, Queen of England, wife of King William I (the Conqueror) of England, at Caen, Normandy, now in France; buried at Holy Trinity Abbey in Caen, Normandy
In 1051 or 1052, Matilda married William II, Duke of Normandy, the future King William I (the Conqueror) of England. Matilda was a direct descendant of the Anglo-Saxon king, Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, and this line of ancestry from Alfred the Great through the Counts of Flanders to Matilda was appealing to William. William and Matilda were devoted to each other and there is no evidence that William had illegitimate children. They had four sons and at least five daughters. After William became King of England in 1066, Matilda spent most of her time in the Duchy of Normandy where she took care of affairs of the duchy. In 1083, Matilda became ill. William rushed from England to Normandy to be at her bedside when she died at the age of about 52.
Unofficial Royalty: Matilda of Flanders, Queen of England

November 2, 1470 – Birth of King Edward V of England in sanctuary at Westminster Abbey in London, England
Immortalized as one of the “Princes in the Tower,” King Edward V of England, along with disputed monarchs Empress Matilda and Lady Jane Grey, and King Edward VIII who abdicated in 1936, is one of the four British monarchs since the Norman Conquest who were never crowned. During the Wars of the Roses, from October 1470 – April 1471, when the Lancastrian King Henry VI regained power, Edward’s father King Edward IV and his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later King Richard III) fled to Burgundy where they knew they would be welcomed by their sister Margaret, who was the wife of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. Edward’s mother Elizabeth Woodville and her children sought sanctuary at Westminster Abbey. Elizabeth’s first son, the future, but short-lived, King Edward V, was born there.
Unofficial Royalty: King Edward V of England

November 2, 1475 – Birth of Anne of York, Lady Howard, daughter of King Edward IV of England, at the Palace of Westminster in London, England
Anne of York was the fifth of the seven daughters and the seventh of the ten children of King Edward IV of England, the first King of England from the House of York, and Elizabeth Woodville. She was the sister of King Edward V (see above) and Richard, Duke of York, the Princes in the Tower, who were sent to the Tower of London and were never seen again. In 1495, Anne married Lord Thomas Howard, the future 3rd Duke of Norfolk, after Anne’s death. Thomas and Anne had four children but none survived childhood. Anne died after November 22 or 23, 1511, but before 1513, aged 36 – 38. She was originally buried at Thetford Priory in Thetford, Norfolk, England. During the Dissolution of the Monasteries, Anne’s husband, now Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, moved the remains of the Howard family members to the Church of St. Michael the Archangel in Framlingham, Suffolk, England. He ordered an ornate tomb for Anne with the figures of the twelve apostles around the four sides.
Unofficial Royalty: Anne of York, Lady Howard

November 2, 1549 – Birth of Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain, fourth wife of King Felipe II of Spain, in Cigales, Spain
Anna of Austria was the niece and the fourth of the four wives of Felipe II, King of Spain, King of Portugal. She was the eldest of the six daughters and the eldest of the fifteen children of first cousins Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria and Maria of Spain. In 1570, she married Felipe II. They had five children but only one survived childhood, Felipe II’s successor Felipe III, King of Spain. Anna died from influenza at the age of 30, in 1580, eight months after giving birth to her youngest child.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain 

November 2, 1709 – Birth of Anne, Princess Royal, eldest daughter of King George II of Great Britain, at Schloss Herrenhausen, in Hanover, Electorate of Hanover, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
In 1734, Anne married Willem IV, Prince of Orange and they had two surviving children. The Dutch Royal Family is descended from Anne. When Willem IV died at age 40 from a stroke in 1751, he was succeeded by his three-year-old son as Willem V with Anne serving as Regent. As Regent, Anne was given all the powers normally given a hereditary Stadtholder of the Netherlands, with the exception of the military duties of the office, which was entrusted to Ludwig Ernst of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Anne acted as Regent until her death from dropsy in 1759, at age 49.
Unofficial Royalty: Anne, Princess Royal, Princess of Orange

November 2, 1755 – Birth of Queen Marie Antoinette of France, wife of King Louis XVI of France; born Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria at Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria
Full name: Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna (better known by her French name Marie Antoinette)
Maria Antonia was the fifteenth of the sixteen children of Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria, and Queen of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia in her own right, and Francis Stephen, Duke of Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Holy Roman Emperor. After establishing peace with France, Empress Maria Theresa agreed to a marriage between Maria Antonia and Louis-Auguste, Dauphin of France (the future King Louis XVI). Maria Antonia took the French version of her name, becoming Marie Antoinette, Dauphine of France. The following month, she arrived in her new country and met her husband for the first time. Two days later, on May 16, 1770, 15-year-old Marie Antoinette and 16-year-old Louis-Auguste were married in a grand ceremony held in the chapel of the Palace of Versailles.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Antonia of Austria, Queen of France (Marie Antoinette)

November 2, 1767 – Birth of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, son of King George III of Great Britain, father of Queen Victoria, at Buckingham Palace in London, England
Full name: Edward Augustus
Edward was the fourth son and the fifth of the fifteen children of King George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Julie de Montgenêt de Saint-Laurent was his mistress from 1790 – 1818 and accompanied him wherever he went until he married. In November 1817, the death in childbirth of Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only legitimate grandchild of King George III, necessitated the marriages of the unmarried sons of George III to provide an heir to the throne. Edward’s mistress Julie is said to have read the news of Edward’s engagement in the newspaper while seated at the breakfast table and reacted with violent hysterics. Edward was genuinely attached to her and deeply upset at their forced separation. On May 29, 1818, 50-year-old Edward married 32-year-old Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld at Schloss Ehrenburg in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany. The future Queen Victoria, their only child was born at Kensington Palace on May 24, 1819. Eight months later, Edward died.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Edward, Duke of Kent

November 2, 1773 – Death of Anna Luise Sophie von der Schulenburg, Illegitimate daughter of King George I of Great Britain and his mistress Melusine von der Schulenburg,  in London, England; buried at Grosvenor Chapel in South Audley Street, London, England
King George I and Melusine von der Schulenburg had three daughters. Melusine’s daughters were never openly acknowledged as George I’s children. Instead, two of Melusine’s sisters and their husbands officially acknowledged them. On December 31, 1707, Anna Luise Sophie married Ernst August Philipp von dem Bussche zu Ippenburg but the marriage was unhappy and childless. In 1716, Anna Luise Sophie’s husband caught her in bed with another man and divorced her. On November 2, 1773, 81-year-old Anna Luise Sophie died at her home in London. She requested to be buried with her mother at Grosvenor Chapel in South Audley Street, London, England.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna Luise Sophie von der Schulenburg

November 2, 1810 – Death of Princess Amelia of the United Kingdom, daughter of King George III of the United Kingdom, at Augusta Lodge at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England; buried at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, England
Born 21 years after her eldest sibling, Princess Amelia was the sixth daughter and the youngest of the fifteen children of King George III of the United Kingdom and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Like three of her six sisters, Amelia never married. Limited in exposure to eligible men, Amelia and several sisters became involved with courtiers and equerries. Amelia became involved with Colonel The Honorable Charles Fitzroy, an equerry to King George III and a great-great-great-grandson of King Charles II of England and his mistress Barbara Villiers. Amelia had always been sickly and by 1810, she was fatally ill with pulmonary tuberculosis. In the autumn of 1810, in addition to tuberculosis, Amelia was suffering from erysipelas, an acute skin infection. Before the advent of antibiotics, erysipelas frequently resulted in death. Amelia’s case of erysipelas was particularly severe with the rash literally from her head to her toes. Amelia died at the age of 27 with her sister Mary at her bedside. Mary wrote to Fitzroy, “My dear Fitzroy, Our beloved Amelia is no more but her last words to me were, ‘Tell Charles I die blessing him.’” Amelia’s death is partly credited to the decline in her father’s health which resulted in his final insanity and the Regency Act of 1811.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Amelia of the United Kingdom

November 2, 1929 – Death of Olga Valerianovna Karnovich, the morganatic, second wife of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, in Paris, France; buried at Colombes Gabriel Peri Cemetery in Colombes, France
Olga first married Major General Erich Augustinovich von Pistohlkors, an officer of the Imperial Guard and an aide to Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich. Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich often spent evenings with him and his wife Olga, and an affair began between Paul and Olga. Olga gave birth in 1897 to a son, known as Vladimir von Pistohlkors because his mother was still married to Pistohlkors. Eventually, Olga divorced her husband and Paul asked for permission to marry Olga from his nephew Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia but Nicholas II denied permission. Paul made a morganatic marriage to Olga on October 10, 1902. Paul was banished from Russia, dismissed from his military commissions, and all his property was seized. Ten years later, Nicholas II relented and decided to pardon his only surviving paternal uncle. Grand Duke Paul’s titles and properties were returned and Nicholas II recognized Paul’s marriage to Olga. Olga and Paul had one son and two daughters. During the Russian Revolution, their son Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Paley was one of the five Romanovs executed on July 18, 1918, with Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna. On January 28, 1919, her husband Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich along with three other Grand Dukes were executed by a firing squad in the courtyard of the Peter and Paul Fortress. In 1920, Olga settled in Paris, France where she died nine years later at the age of 64.
Unofficial Royalty: Olga Valerianovna Karnovich, Princess Paley

November 2, 1938 – Birth of Queen Sofia of Spain, wife of King Juan Carlos I of Spain, born Princess Sophia of Greece at Villa Psychiko in the suburbs of Athens, Greece
Full name: Sophia Margarita Victoria Frederika
Sofia is the daughter of King Paul of Greece and Princess Frederica of Hanover, both descendants of Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter Victoria, Princess Royal who married Friedrich III, German Emperor. On an August 1954 cruise aboard the Agamemnon, a 5,500-ton luxury liner owned by the Greek line Nomikes, funded by Sofia’s father and reportedly the idea of her mother, that Sofia first met her future husband Juan Carlos of Spain. Sofia and Juan Carlos met again in 1961 when Prince Edward, Duke of Kent married. A year later, Sofia and Juan Carlos were married. They had two daughters and one son, Felipe VI, the current King of Spain.
Unofficial Royalty: Queen Sofia of Spain

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Katarina Jagellonica of Poland, Queen of Sweden; Credit – Wikipedia

November 1, 1526 – Birth of Katarina Jagellonica, Queen of Sweden, wife of King Johan III of Sweden, in Krakow, Poland
Katarina was the daughter of Sigismund I, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. Due to in-fighting among the sons of the deceased King Gustav I Vasa of Sweden, Katarina was married to the future King Johan III of Sweden. In exchange for marrying Katarina, Johan received a substantial sum of money and land in Livonia (located in present-day Estonia and Latvia), which hindered the expansionist policy of his half-brother King Erik XIV.  In January 1569, the Riksdag (parliament) legally dethroned Erik. Johan and Katarina were crowned King and Queen of Sweden on July 10, 1569. As Queen Consort of Sweden, Katarina had much political influence and influenced her husband in many areas, such as his foreign policy and interest in Renaissance art. In the spring of 1583, Katarina became seriously ill with gout, and after much suffering, she died, aged 56.
Unofficial Royalty: Katarina Jagellonica, Queen of Sweden

November 1, 1661 – Birth of Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin, eldest son and heir of King Louis XIV of France, at the Château de Fontainebleau in France
Louis of France was the only child of King Louis XIV of France and Maria Theresa of Spain to survive childhood. As the heir apparent to the French throne, he was styled Dauphin of France and was called Le Grand Dauphin after the birth of his eldest son Louis, Le Petit Dauphin. Louis married his second cousin Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria and they had three sons. King Louis XIV outlived his son and his eldest grandson and was succeeded by his five-year-old great-grandson King Louis XV when he died in 1715. However, the second son of Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin, Philippe, Duke of Anjou, succeeded to the Spanish throne as King Felipe V via his Spanish grandmother after the Spanish Habsburgs died out, and the House of Bourbon still sits upon the Spanish throne.
Unofficial Royalty: Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin

November 1, 1700 – Death of King Carlos II of Spain at Royal Alcazar of Madrid  in Spain; buried at the Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in El Escorial, Spain
Carlos II was the last Spanish king from the House of Habsburg. He had physical and mental conditions probably caused by the continued inbreeding of the House of Habsburg. Carlos was a weak, sick child from birth. He did not learn to talk until he was four years old and could not walk until he was eight years old. Like many of the Habsburg family, Carlos had the Habsburg jaw (mandibular prognathism), a disfiguring genetic disorder in which the lower jaw outgrows the upper jaw. When Carlos died without children, the Spanish House of Habsburg became extinct. Carlos II was succeeded by his half-sister’s grandson Philippe of France, Duke of Anjou who reigned as Felipe V, King of Spain, the first monarch of the House of Bourbon which still reigns in the Kingdom of Spain today.
Unofficial Royalty: King Carlos II of Spain

November 1, 1773 – Birth of Maria Theresa of Austria-Este, Queen of Sardinia, wife of  Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia, at the Royal Palace of Milan in the Duchy of Milan, now in Italy
In 1789, Maria Theresa married the future Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia. They had six daughters and one son who died in early childhood from smallpox. Their five surviving daughters all married reigning monarchs. In 1802, Maria Theresa’s husband Vittorio Emanuele became King of Sardinia upon the abdication of his brother Carlo Emanuele. In March 1821, liberal revolutions were occurring throughout Italy. However, Vittorio Emanuele I was not willing to grant a liberal constitution so he abdicated the throne of Sardinia in favor of his brother Carlo Felice. Vittorio Emanuele died in 1824, aged 64. Maria Theresa survived her husband by eight years. She died unexpectedly, aged 58, on March 29, 1832.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Theresa of Austria-Este, Queen of Sardinia

November 1, 1778 – Birth of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden at Stockholm Palace in Stockholm, Sweden
King Gustav IV Adolf became king at the age of 13 when his father was assassinated and was deposed 17 years later in a coup. In 1797, Gustav IV Adolf married Frederica of Baden and the couple had five children. The occupation of Finland, a territory of Sweden, in 1808 – 1809 by Russian forces was the immediate cause of Gustav Adolf’s overthrow by officers of his army. Prince Karl, Gustav Adolf’s uncle, agreed to form a provisional government, and the Swedish parliament gave their approval for the coup. Prince Karl was proclaimed King Karl XIII of Sweden on June 6, 1809. In December 1809, Gustav Adolf and his family were sent into exile. Gustav Adolf and his family settled in Frederica’s home country, the Grand Duchy of Baden. However, the couple became incompatible and divorced in 1812. Gustav Adolf ultimately settled in a small hotel in St. Gallen, Switzerland where he lived in great loneliness. On February 7, 1837, Gustav Adolf suffered a stroke and died at the age of 58.
Unofficial Royalty: King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden

November 1, 1860 – Death of Charlotte of Prussia, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, wife of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia, at the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoye Selo, Russia; buried at the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
Charlotte was the eldest of the four daughters and the third of the nine children of King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia and Luise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Charlotte’s two elder brothers became Kings of Prussia and the younger of the two brothers was the first German Emperor. In 1817, Charlotte married Grand Nicholas Pavlovich, the future Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia. She converted to Russian Orthodoxy and took the name Alexandra Feodorovna. The couple had seven children.  Because Nicholas’ eldest brother Alexander I, Emperor of All Russia had no surviving children and the second brother Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich made a morganatic marriage, Nicholas succeeded his brother in 1825. Nicholas died in 1855, and his eldest son succeeded him as Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. Empress Alexandra Feodorovna survived her husband by five years, dying at the age of 62 on November 1, 1860, at the Alexander Palace. She was buried next to her husband at the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg.
Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte of Prussia, Alexandra Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia

November 1, 1864 – Birth of Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna of Russia, wife of Grand Duke Serge Alexandrovich of Russia, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Bessungen, Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Elisabeth Alexandra Luise Alice
Elisabeth (Ella) was the daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, and a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. In 1884, Ella married Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, son of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. After her marriage, Ella was known as Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna. Sergei and Ella did not have any children of their own. However, they later took in the children of Sergei’s brother Paul, Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna (the younger), and Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich. In 1905, Sergei was assassinated by a bomb. Four years after her husband’s assassination, Ella sold all her jewelry and with the proceeds opened the Convent of Saints Martha and Mary and became its abbess. Ella was one of the Romanovs killed by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution.
Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, Grand Duchess Elisabeth Feodorovna of Russia
Unofficial Royalty: July 18, 1918 – Execution of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna and Five Other Romanovs

November 1, 1881 – Birth of Admiral Perikles Ioannidis, second husband of Princess Maria of Greece and Denmark, in Corinth, Greece
From 1917 – 1920, the Greek royal family was in exile after Princess Maria’s brother King Constantine I was forced from the throne due to disagreements with Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos. In 1920, Maria returned to Greece when her brother King Constantine I was brought back to power. She traveled aboard a Greek destroyer commanded by Admiral Perikles Ioannidis. Maria was determined to marry a Greek and a romance developed.  Maria’s first husband Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia had been killed by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution. Perikles and Maria married in 1922 but they had no children. Their marriage did have its issues. Perikles had mistresses and often gave his mistresses jewelry stolen from his wife. Maria lost money playing backgammon and Perikles was forced to carefully monitor their expenses. Maria died of a heart attack in 1940. Perikles spent the remainder of his life devoted to philanthropy and public service. He was president of the Piraeus Yacht Club and a benefactor of the Historical and Ethnological Society of Greece. He bequeathed his collection of photographs and historical items to the Historical and Ethnological Society of Greece and the society’s collection is now housed at the National Historical Museum in Athens. Admiral Perikles Ioannidis survived his wife by twenty-five years, dying at the age of 83.
Unofficial Royalty: Admiral Perikles Ioannidis

November 1, 1894 – Death of Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia at Livadia Palace in the Crimea, Russia; buried at the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
In 1866, Alexander III married Princess Dagmar of Denmark, daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark. They had six children including the ill-fated Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia. Alexander III became Emperor of All Russia in 1881 upon the assassination of his father Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. Because of his father’s assassination, Alexander III’s reign was reactionary. On the day of his assassination, Alexander II signed a proclamation creating a consulting group to advise the Emperor, which some considered a step toward constitutional monarchy. The new emperor, Alexander III, canceled the new policy before it was published. In 1894, Alexander became ill with nephritis, a kidney disorder. His condition rapidly deteriorated and he died on November 1, 1894, at the age of 49.
Unofficial Royalty: Alexander III, Emperor of All of Russia

November 1, 1906 – Death of Archduke Otto Franz of Austria, father of Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria, at a villa in Währing, a district of Vienna, Austria; buried in the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna, Austria
Otto Franz of Austria was the father of Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria, and the brother of the ill-fated Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria whose assassination in 1914 was one of the causes of World War I. Otto Franz married Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony and the couple had two sons. By 1900, it was clear that Otto Franz had contracted syphilis and he withdrew from public life. He was in agonizing pain for the last two years of his life and was forced to replace his nose with a rubber prosthetic due to the facial deformity caused by syphilis. On November 1, 1906, Archduke Otto Franz, aged forty-one, died.
Unofficial Royalty: Archduke Otto Franz of Austria

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Lovisa of Sweden, Queen of Denmark, Credit – Wikipedia

October 31, 1214 – Death of Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile, daughter of King Henry II of England and wife of King Alfonso VIII of Castile, at the Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas in Burgos, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain; buried at the Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas
In 1177, Eleanor married King Alfonso VIII of Castile. 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. King Alfonso VIII died from a fever on October 5, 1214. Eleanor was so distraught over his death that she was unable to attend his funeral. She then became ill and died at the age of 53, less than a month after the death of her husband.
Unofficial Royalty: Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile

October 31, 1732 – Death of Vittorio Amedeo II, former King of Sardinia at the Castle of Rivoli in Turin, Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy; buried at the Basilica of Superga in Turin
Vittorio Amedeo II reigned as King of Sardinia from 1720 – 1730 but he had also reigned as King of Sicily from 1713 – 1720, and was Duke of Savoy from the death of his father in 1675 until his abdication in 1730. He married Anne Marie d’Orléans, the daughter of King Louis XIV of France’s only sibling Philippe, Duke of Orléans and his first wife Henrietta of England. They had six children. In 1730, two years after the death of his wife, Vittorio Amedeo privately and morganatically married Anna Canalis di Cumiana who had been his mistress when she was a lady-in-waiting to Vittoria Amedeo’s mother. When Vittorio Amedeo announced his marriage to the court, he also abdicated and retired from the royal court. His son succeeded him as Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia. On February 5, 1732, Vittorio Amedeo suffered a stroke, and his health drastically deteriorated. He asked to move to the Castle of Moncalieri near Turin and was transported there on a litter guarded by a company of soldiers. He died there at the age of 66.
Unofficial Royalty: Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia

October 31, 1765 – Death of Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, son of King George II of Great Britain, at Upper Grosvenor Street in London, England; buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
Fans of Diana Gabaldon‘s novels of The Outlander series and the television series of the same name know that the Battle of Culloden in 1746 resulted in a decisive defeat of the Jacobite forces that wanted to restore the heirs of Roman Catholic Stuart King James II of England/ VII of Scotland to the throne. Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, was the British troops commander at the Battle of Culloden and is known by the nicknames “The Butcher of Culloden” and “Butcher Cumberland.” William Augustus never married and his final years were lived out under the reign of his nephew King George III. He grew quite fat and suffered a series of strokes before dying at the age of 44 at his London home in Upper Grosvenor Street.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland

October 31, 1785 – Death of Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel, husband of Princess Mary of Great Britain, daughter of King George II of Great Britain, at Castle Wessenstein (now known as Castle Wilhelmshöhe) in Kassel, Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel, now in Hesse, Germany; buried at the Roman Catholic Church of St. Elisabeth in Kassel
Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel was the husband of Princess Mary of Great Britain, daughter of King George II of Great Britain. He became famous during the American Revolution as a supplier of thousands of Hessian soldiers who fought on behalf of the British. Friedrich and his wife Mary are ancestors of the current British royal family through their fourth son Prince Friedrich. Through their third son Prince Karl, Friedrich and Mary are also the ancestors of six of the ten current European monarchies: Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. In 1785, Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel died suddenly from a stroke at the age of 65.
Unofficial Royalty: Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel

October 31, 1786 – Death of Princess Amelia of Great Britain, daughter of King George II of Great Britain, at Cavendish Square in London, England; buried at Westminster Abbey in London, England
Amelia never married. After the death of her mother Queen Caroline in 1737, Amelia became the constant companion to her father. She also acted as hostess for her unmarried brother Prince William, Duke of Cumberland. Amelia was the last surviving child of her parents and lived for the first twenty-six years of the reign of her nephew King George III. Because of her deafness, Amelia retired from court life. She lived in a home in Cavendish Square when in London and had a country estate, Gunnersbury Park, in the London Borough of Hounslow where she was famous for her parties and political intrigues. In October 1786, Amelia knew she was dying and she put her affairs in order and made arrangements to provide for her servants. She left nothing to her relatives in England, instead, she left her estate to her three Hesse-Kassel nephews, the children of her sister Princess Mary. Amelia died at the age of 75,  at her home in Cavendish Square, London.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Amelia of Great Britain

October 31, 1836 – Death of Heinrich XIX, 3rd Prince Reuss of Greiz in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, now in Thuringia, Germany; buried at the Stadtkirche St. Marien, now in Greiz, Thuringia, Germany
Upon the death of his father in 1817, Heinrich XIX succeeded as the 3rd Prince Reuss of Greiz. He married Princess Gasparine of Rohan-Rochefort and they had two daughters. When Heinrich XIX in 1836 at the age of 46, his brother Heinrich XX became the 4th  Prince of Reuss of Greiz because he had no sons.
Unofficial Royalty: Heinrich XIX, 3rd Prince Reuss of Greiz

October 31, 1838 – Birth of King Luís I of Portugal at the Palace of Necessidades in Lisbon, Portugal
Full name: Luís Filipe Maria Fernando Pedro de Alcântara António Miguel Rafael Gabriel Gonzaga Xavier Francisco de Assis João Augusto Júlio Valfando
Luis became King of Portugal in 1861 when his elder, childless brother King Pedro V died from typhoid fever. Two other brothers also died from typhoid. In 1862, Luís married Princess Maria Pia of Savoy and the couple had two sons. Luis’ reign saw many advances, both politically and culturally. He oversaw the construction of the port of Lisbon, the extension of the road network and railway throughout Portugal, and the advancement of the arts, founding the Philharmonic Union. Luis King Luís died suddenly at the age of 50.
Unofficial Royalty: King Luis I of Portugal

October 31, 1851 – Birth of Lovisa of Sweden, Queen of Denmark, wife of King Frederik VIII of Denmark, at Stockholm Palace in Stockholm, Sweden
Lovisa was the only surviving child of King Carl XV of Sweden and Princess Louise of the Netherlands. She has an interesting royal ancestry. Besides being descended from the Kings of Sweden, Lovisa is also a descendant of Empress Josephine of France via her first marriage, King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria, King Willem I of the Netherlands, King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia, and King George I of Great Britain. In 1869, she married the future King Frederik VIII of Denmark. They had eight children including King Christian X of Denmark, Prince Carl of Denmark later King Haakon VII of Norway, and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark whose children include Märtha Louise, Crown Princess of Norway, and Astrid, Queen of the Belgians.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Lovisa of Sweden, Queen of Denmark

October 31, 1916 – Birth of Prince Carl Johan of Sweden, Duke of Dalarna, later Count Carl Johan of Wisborg, at the Royal Palace of Stockholm
Full name: Carl Johan Arthur
The youngest surviving child of King Gustav VI Adolf of Sweden and Margaret of Connaught, Carl Johan was the last of Queen Victoria’s great-grandchildren at the time of his death in 2012. Carl Johan was the uncle of both King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.
Unofficial Royalty: Carl Johan of Sweden, Count of Wisborg

October 31, 1922 – Birth of King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia 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 treatment of colon cancer, diabetes, and hypertension. On October 15, 2012, Sihanouk died of a heart attack in Beijing, sixteen days before his 90th birthday.
Unofficial Royalty: King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia

October 31, 1934 – Birth of Princess Margaretha of Sweden at the Haga Palace in the Haga Park in Solna Municipality, Sweden
Full name: Margaretha Désirée Victoria
Margaretha is the elder sister of King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden. In 1964, Princess Margaretha and British businessman John Ambler were married at the Gärdslösa Church, on the island of Öland in Sweden. Upon marriage, Margaretha lost her royal style and was styled Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler. The couple settled in England and had three children. Margaretha and her husband separated in 1996 but never divorced. John Ambler suffered from poor health and spent the last ten years of his life in a nursing home in Oxfordshire, England, dying in 2008.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler

October 31, 1939 – Death of Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg at Althausen Castle in Althausen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; buried in the family crypt at the Church of St. Michael, Althausen Castle
Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg was heir presumptive to the throne of Württemberg for just a year before the monarchy was abolished in 1918. Three years later, upon the death of his distant cousin the former King Wilhelm II Württemberg, he became Head of the House of Württemberg and pretender to the former throne.
Unofficial Royalty: Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg

October 31, 1950 – Birth of Princess Nora of Liechtenstein, daughter of Prince Franz Josef II of Liechtenstein, in Zurich, Switzerland
Full name: Norberta Elisabeth Maria Assunta Josefine Georgine et omnes sancti
Nora is the sister of Hans-Adam II, the current Prince of Liechtenstein. In 1988, she married Don Vicente Sartorius y Cabeza de Vaca, the 4th Marquess of Mariño, a former Olympic bobsledder. He passed away in July 2002. The couple had one daughter.  Nora has been actively involved in both the Liechtenstein and International Olympic organizations. She served as President of the Liechtenstein Olympic Committee from 1982-1992 and has been President of Special Olympics Liechtenstein since 2002. She has also been a member of the International Olympic Committee since 1987.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Nora of Liechtenstein

October 31, 2005 – Birth of Infanta Leonor, Princess of Asturias, daughter and heir presumptive of King Felipe VI of Spain, at the Ruber International Clinic in Madrid, Spain
Full name: Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz
In 2014, King Juan Carlos, Infanta Leonor’s grandfather abdicated the throne in favor of his son, Leonor’s father Felipe.  At the same time, Leonor automatically became Princess of Asturias, a title given to the heir to the Spanish throne. Currently, Spain’s succession law is male-preference cognatic primogeniture. This means that Leonor, as the elder of King Felipe’s two daughters, is first in line to inherit the throne, and she is the heir presumptive. However, if her parents have a son, which seems unlikely now, he would be the heir apparent and Leonor would forfeit the title of Princess of Asturias and the other titles to her brother. There have been discussions of changing the succession law to absolute primogeniture, where the eldest child, regardless of gender, inherits the throne, but no legislation has been forthcoming. If Leonor ascends to the throne, she will be Spain’s first queen regnant since Isabella II, who reigned from 1833 to 1868.
Unofficial Royalty: Infanta Leonor, Princess of Asturias

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Olga Nikolaevna of Russia, Queen of Württemberg, Credit – Wikipedia

October 30, 1611 – Death of King Karl IX of Sweden at Nyköping Castle in Sweden; buried at Strängnäs Cathedral in Sweden
Karl became King of Sweden by supporting the Protestant cause during the increasingly tense religious discord between Protestants and Catholics. In 1604, the Swedish Riksdag declared that Karl’s Catholic nephew King Sigismund abdicated the Swedish throne and recognized Karl as the sovereign – Karl IX, King of Sweden. Sigismund had lost the Swedish throne but he reigned as King of Poland until he died in 1632. Karl reigned for only seven years, dying in 1611 at the age of 61. Karl IX has a most unusual grave monument – a rider on a horse wearing gold armor placed over Karl IX’s family crypt. The gold armor was made by twelve of Stockholm’s most prominent goldsmiths. There is a photo of Karl’s unusual grave monument in his article.
Unofficial Royalty: King Karl IX of Sweden

October 30, 1668 – Birth of Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen of Prussia, second wife of King Friedrich I of Prussia, at Schloss Iburg in Osnabrück, Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
Sophia Charlotte was the daughter of Ernst August, Elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Sophia of the Palatinate. Her mother was named heiress-presumptive to the British throne under the Act of Settlement 1701, and it would be Sophie Charlotte’s eldest brother who would become King George I of Great Britain in 1714. In 1684, she married the future King Friedrich I in Prussia. The marriage was not a happy one. Several years after giving birth to her two children, Sophie Charlotte retired to private life. She indulged in her love of the arts, philosophy, and theology. She surrounded herself with some of the leading minds of the day, including Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a prominent mathematician and philosopher.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen of Prussia

October 30, 1724 – Death of Marie of Lorraine, Princess of Monaco, wife of Prince Antonio I of Monaco, at the Prince’s Palace in Monaco; buried at St. Nicholas Cathedral in Monaco
In 1688, in the Chapel Royal at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France, 14-year-old Marie married 27-year-old Antonio, the future Prince of Monaco. Antonio and Marie had six daughters but only two survived to adulthood. The elder surviving daughter Louise-Hippolyte succeeded her father as the reigning Princess of Monaco. The marriage was not happy. In what seems to have become a Grimaldi tradition, Antonio had several illegitimate children from different affairs. Marie responded by finding lovers of her own. In 1701, Antonio became Prince of Monaco upon the death of his father Louis I, Prince of Monaco. Marie spent the last years of her life quietly, frequently returning to the French court. She died at the Prince’s Palace in Monaco on October 30, 1724, at the age of 50.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Lorraine, Princess of Monaco

October 30, 1804 – Birth of Karl II, Duke of Brunswick in Brunswick, in the Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
Full name: Karl Friedrich August Wilhelm
In 1815, the Duchy of Brunswick was established by the Congress of Vienna. That same year, Karl’s father died in battle, and Karl became the reigning Duke of Brunswick. He and his brother were placed under the guardianship of their father’s first cousin (and their uncle by marriage), The Prince Regent of Great Britain – the future King George IV of the United Kingdom and Hanover. The Prince Regent also reigned in Brunswick on Karl’s behalf. When Karl turned 18 in 1822, he claimed his majority, but the Prince Regent claimed that he would not reach his majority until turning 21. A compromise was reached, and Karl took control of the government on his 19th birthday in 1823. In 1830, the July Revolution broke out and Karl lost his throne. Karl made several attempts to regain the throne, but all were unsuccessful. He spent the next 40 years living in London and Paris.
Unofficial Royalty: Karl II, Duke of Brunswick

October 30, 1816 – Death of King Friedrich I of Württemberg in Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany; buried at the Palace Chapel in Ludwigsburg Palace in Stuttgart
King Friedrich I was the first King of Württemberg, reigning from 1805 to 1816. After a very unsuccessful marriage to Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Friedrich married Charlotte, Princess Royal, the eldest daughter of King George III of the United Kingdom. They had one stillborn daughter. Upon his father’s death in December 1797, Friedrich became Duke of Württemberg. At the end of 1805, in exchange for contributing forces to France’s armies, Emperor Napoleon recognized Württemberg as a kingdom, with Friedrich becoming King Friedrich I. In the fall of 1816, King Friedrich developed pneumonia and died at the age of 62.
Unofficial Royalty: King Friedrich I of Württemberg

October 30, 1892 – Death of Queen Olga of Württemberg, born Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia, wife of King Karl I of Württemberg, at Schloss Friedrichshafen in Friedrichshafen, Kingdom of Württemberg, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany; buried at the Old Castle in Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Olga was the daughter of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia and Princess Charlotte of Prussia. In 1846, she married the future King Karl I of Württemberg. They had no children but took in Olga’s niece, Grand Duchess Vera Konstantinovna, the daughter of Olga’s brother Konstantin, and later formally adopted Vera. From the time she arrived in Württemberg, Olga threw herself into charity work, focusing on the education of girls and helping wounded soldiers and handicapped people. Just a year after her husband’s death, Olga died at the age of 70.
Unofficial Royalty: Olga Nikolaevna of Russia, Queen of Württemberg

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Queen Marie of Romania; Credit – Wikipedia

October 29, 1816 – Birth of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, King Consort of Portugal, husband of Queen Maria II of Portugal, in Vienna, Austria
Full name: Ferdinand August Franz Anton
Ferdinand was the son of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág.  He was a first cousin of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her husband Prince Albert, as well as Leopold II, King of the Belgians and Empress Carlota of Mexico, born Princess Charlotte of Belgium. In 1836, Ferdinand married Queen Maria II of Portugal and they had eleven children. In keeping with tradition, Ferdinand was elevated to King Consort following the birth of their eldest son, the future King Pedro V. In 1853, Queen Maria II died after giving birth to their last child. Ferdinand served as Regent for his eldest son King Pedro V until he came of age. In 1869, Ferdinand married again to Elise Hensler, a Swiss-born American actress. The couple had no children.
Unofficial Royalty: Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, King Consort of Portugal

October 29, 1873 – Death of King Johann of Saxony at Pillnitz Castle in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in Saxony, Germany; buried in the Wettin Crypt at the Dresden Cathedral
In 1822, Johann married Princess Amalie Auguste of Bavaria. They had nine children including two kings of Saxony. Johann became King of Saxony upon the death of his childless brother King Friedrich August II in 1854. His reign saw much progress within Saxony, including extending the railroad network, introducing free trade – including a commercial treaty with France – and establishing the Judiciary Organization. Under King Johann’s oversight, Saxony became one of the most modern and progressive of the German states. Johann died at the age of 72.
Unofficial Royalty: King Johann of Saxony

October 29, 1875 – Birth of Marie of Edinburgh, Queen of Romania, granddaughter of Queen Victoria, at Eastwell Park in Kent, England
Full name: Marie Alexandra Victoria
Marie was the daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. She had always been very close with her cousin, the future King George V of the United Kingdom, and the two considered marriage. While Queen Victoria and both of their fathers were very supportive of the match, their mothers were not. Instead, in 1893, Marie married the Crown Prince of Romania. Born Prince Ferdinand of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, he was the heir-presumptive to his uncle, King Carol I of Romania. The couple officially had six children. The two youngest children are believed to have been fathered by Marie’s lover but were formally acknowledged by Ferdinand as his own.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Marie of Edinburgh, Queen of Romania

October 29, 1900 – Death of Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein, a grandson of Queen Victoria, in Pretoria, South African Republic, also known as the Transvaal Republic, now in South Africa, during the Boer War; buried in the Pretoria Cemetery, now in South Africa
Christian was the son of Princess Helena of the United Kingdom and Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. Christian joined the British Army in 1888, reaching the rank of Major. Christian was on active duty in the Boer War between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics. At the age of 33, Christian fell ill with malaria and died of enteric fever during the Boer War in South Africa. Although preparations were made to return his body to the United Kingdom, he was buried in a soldier’s grave in Pretoria, now in South Africa, at the wishes of his grandmother Queen Victoria.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein

October 29, 1934 – Birth of Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, husband of Princess Benedikte of Denmark, in Giessen, Germany
Full name: Richard Casimir Karl August Robert Konstantin
Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg was the husband of Princess Benedikte of Denmark. In 1919, Germany stopped recognizing the various titles of the nobility and royalty. However, in Germany today former hereditary titles are allowed only as part of the surname. Richard and Benedikte were married in 1968 and they had three children. Richard was active in several conservation programs including a project to reintroduce European bison on his 30,000-acre estate. He died at his home, Berleburg Castle, in Bad Berleburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on March 13, 2017, at the age of 82.
Unofficial Royalty: Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg

October 29, 1950 – Death of King Gustav V of Sweden at Drottningholm Palace in Drottningholm, Sweden; buried at Riddarholmen Church in Stockholm, Sweden
Gustav was the eldest of four sons of King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway and Sophia of Nassau. In 1881, he married Princess Viktoria of Baden and they had three sons. In 1907, Gustaf became King of Sweden upon his father’s death. Both World War I and World War II occurred during Gustaf’s 43-year reign. Sweden remained neutral during both wars. In 1948, King Gustav celebrated his 90th birthday, but his health was in decline. Already spending the spring months on the French Riviera, he began to have his son the Crown Prince, the future King Gustaf VI Adolf, represent him at official functions. He made his last official appearance at a Cabinet meeting held on October 27, 1950. Two days later, as a result of complications from influenza at the age of 92.
Unofficial Royalty: King Gustav V of Sweden

October 29, 2004 – Death of Princess Alice, Dowager Duchess of Gloucester at Kensington Palace in London, England; buried in the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore in Windsor, England
Alice was the widow of King George V’s son Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, aunt of Queen Elizabeth II, and mother of Prince Richard, the current Duke of Gloucester. She was born Lady Alice Christabel Montagu Douglas Scott, the daughter of John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch and 9th Duke of Queensberry and Lady Margaret Bridgeman. In 1935, Alice married Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and the couple had two sons. During the early reign of Henry’s niece Queen Elizabeth II, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester carried out royal engagements including some overseas tours. Princess Alice died peacefully in her sleep at Kensington Palace in London at the age of 102, the longest-lived member of the British Royal Family so far.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester

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Prince George of Denmark, Duke of Cumberland; Credit – Wikipedia

October 28, 1412 – Death of Margrethe I, Queen of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, aboard her ship docked in Flensburg harbor, then in the Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein; first buried at Sorø Abbey, a Benedictine abbey on the island of Zealand in Denmark; the year after she died, Peder Jensen Lodehat, Bishop of Roskilde ordered her remains to be transferred to Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark.
The founder of the Kalmar Union which united the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden under a single monarch from 1397 – 1523, Margrethe I, Queen of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden was called “the first great ruling queen in European history” by Norwegian-American author, historian, and college professor Knut Gjerset.
Unofficial Royalty: Margrethe I, Queen of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden

October 28, 1667 – Birth of Maria Anna of Neuburg, Queen of Spain, second wife of King Carlos II of Spain, at Schloss Benrath in Düsseldorf, Duchy of Berg, now in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia
In 1689, Maria Anna married King Carlos II of Spain, developmentally disabled, both physically and mentally, due to the long-time inbreeding of the House of Habsburg. Likely, the marriage was never consummated. Carlos II died in 1700. The Spanish House of Habsburg became extinct and the Spanish throne was inherited by Philippe of France, Duke of Anjou who reigned as Felipe V, King of Spain, the first monarch of the House of Bourbon which still reigns in the Kingdom of Spain today. Due to a political situation, Maria Anna lived in exile in France from 1708 – 1739. In 1739, elderly and in ill health, Maria Anna was allowed to return to Spain. This was probably due to the influence of her niece Elisabeth Farnese, the daughter of Maria Anna’s sister Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg and Francesco Farnese, Duke of Parma, who had become the second wife of King Felipe V of Spain in 1714. Maria Anna was given a home at the Palacio del Infantado in Guadalajara, Spain, where she died on July 16, 1740, at the age of 72.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Anna of Neuberg, Queen of Spain

October 28, 1708 – Death of Prince George of Denmark, Duke of Cumberland, husband of Queen Anne of Great Britain, at Kensington Palace in London, England; buried in Westminster Abbey in London, England
Prince George was the son of King Frederik III of Denmark. In 1683, George married Princess Anne of England (the future Queen Anne). George played no part in politics and had no real ambitions. His uncle by marriage, King Charles II, famously said of George, “I have tried him drunk, and I have tried him sober, and drunk or sober, there is nothing there.” Sadly, George and Anne had issues with providing an heir. Anne had 17 pregnancies with only five children being born alive but all five died in childhood. In the spring of 1706, George was seriously ill but seemed to recover. He spent much of the summer of 1708 at Windsor Castle with asthma that was so bad he was not expected to live. When Prince George died at the age of 55, Queen Anne deeply grieved for him. She was desperate to remain with George’s body but reluctantly left after persuasion from her childhood friend and favorite Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince George of Denmark, Duke of Cumberland 

October 28, 1740 – Death of Anna I, Empress of All Russia; buried at the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
Anna was the daughter of Ivan V, Tsar of All Russia and Praskovia Feodorovna Saltykova. Anna had a very short marriage when she and her groom Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Courland were both seventeen but Friedrich Wilhelm died two months later and Anna never married again. When 14-year-old Peter II, Emperor of All Russia, grandson of Peter I (the Great), died of smallpox, Anna was chosen to succeed Peter II from the four adult females and one two-year-old male who were candidates for the Russian throne. Anna reigned for ten years. Suffering from an ulcer on her kidney and repeated attacks of gout, 48-year-old Anna was not in good health. On October 16, 1740, Anna sat down to dine with her favorite Ernst Johann von Biron. Suddenly, she felt ill and became unconscious. Doctors deemed her condition to be serious. She died twelve days apparently from gout and a very painful kidney stone.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna I, Empress of All Russia

October 28, 1767 – Birth of Marie of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark, wife of King Frederick VI of Denmark, in Hanau, Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel, now in Hesse, Germany
Full name: Marie Sophie Frederikke
Marie was the daughter of Prince Carl of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Louise of Denmark and Norway. Her father was the second son of Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Mary of Great Britain, daughter of King George II of Great Britain. Her mother was the youngest child of King Frederik V of Denmark and Norway and his first wife Princess Louisa of Great Britain, daughter of King George II of Great Britain. In 1790, Marie married the future King Frederick VI of Denmark. Frederik and Marie had eight children but unfortunately, six of them, including two boys, died in infancy. Only two daughters survived and both daughters had childless marriages. For the rest of her life, Marie would lament her lack of sons and grandchildren. Injuries from her last childbirth prevented Marie from having any further marital relations and she was forced to accept her husband’s adultery.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark

October 28, 1914 – Death of Adelgunde of Bavaria, Duchess of Modena and Reggio, wife of Francesco V, Duke of Modena and Reggio, in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria; buried at the Imperial Crypt in Vienna, Austria
Adelgunde was the daughter of Ludwig I, King of Bavaria and Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. In 1842, she married the future Francesco V, Duke of Modena and Reggio. The couple had one daughter who died in infancy. In 1859, Adelgunde and Francesco V were forced to permanently flee the Duchy of Modena and Reggio during the Italian unification movement. In 1860, the Duchy of Modena and Reggio was annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia. Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861. Adelgunde and Francesco lived the rest of their lives in exile. Adelgunde survived her husband Francesco V, former Duke of Modena and Reggio by thirty-nine years, dying, at the age of 91.
Unofficial Royalty: Adelgunde of Bavaria, Duchess of Modena and Reggio

October 28, 1917 – Death of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, husband of Princess Helena of the United Kingdom, at Schomberg House, Pall Mall in London, England; initially interred in the Royal Crypt at St George’s Chapel, Windsor; in 1928, along with the remains of his wife and their son Harald, Christian was re-interred in the newly established Royal Burial Ground at Frogmore in Windsor, England
Christian and Helena first met on a visit to Coburg in the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Despite the fifteen-year age difference, they were drawn to each other. They were married in 1866 and made an agreement with Queen Victoria that they would live in the United Kingdom, in close proximity to The Queen. Christian and Helena had five children. In 1916, he and Helena celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary – the first in the British royal family since King George III and Queen Charlotte. Chrisitan died at the age of 86.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein

October 28, 1967 – Birth of Hereditary Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein, wife of Hereditary Prince Alois of Liechtenstein, born Duchess Sophie in Bavaria, in Munich, Germany
Full name: Sophie Elizabeth Marie Gabrielle
Sophie is the eldest of five daughters of Prince Max, Duke in Bavaria and Countess Elizabeth Douglas. In 1993, she married Hereditary Prince Alois of Liechtenstein, the heir to the throne of Liechtenstein. They have four children.  Sophie often accompanies her husband on foreign visits and attends many events in Liechtenstein. She serves as a patron for many organizations, often relating to children, education, and the arts, and has been the President of the Liechtenstein Red Cross since 2015. Sophie will likely become the Jacobite heir to the British throne after the deaths of her childless uncle and her father. See the article below for more information on the Jacobite Succession.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophie, Hereditary Princess of Liechtenstein
Unofficial Royalty: The Jacobite Succession – Pretenders to the British Throne

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