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Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Carisbrooke; Credit – Wikipedia
February 23, 1447 – Death of Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, son of King Henry IV of England, at Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, England; buried at the Abbey Church of St. Albans in Hertfordshire, England
Humphrey received an excellent education and it is thought he was educated at Balliol College, Oxford. He had a great love of learning, was a collector of books and manuscripts and commissioned translations of classical works from Greek into Latin. When Humphrey died, he donated his collection of 281 manuscripts to the University of Oxford. The university built Duke Humfrey’s Library as a second story to the Divinity School to house his collection in 1450-80. Duke Humfrey’s Library still exists and it is the oldest reading room in the Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford. During the early reign of his nephew King Henry VI, Humphrey had become the heir presumptive to the throne after the death of his older brother John, Duke of Bedford and it was feared that if Henry VI left England, Humphrey could exercise his claim to be regent. Humphrey was hostile to the French while the English powers that be wanted peace. Humphrey was arrested and it appeared there would be a trial that would result in Humphrey’s disgrace or even a worse fate. However, there was no trial as five days later, Humphrey died. There is some suspicion that some kind of foul play was involved, but most likely Humphrey had a stroke because he was in a coma for three days before he died.
Unofficial Royalty: Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
February 23, 1648 – Birth of Arabella Churchill, mistress of King James II of England, probably born at Ash, the family home of Arabella’s mother in Musbury, Devonshire, England
Arabella was the sister of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough who gained fame as a military leader and courtier during the reign of Queen Anne. His wife Sarah was Queen Anne’s Mistress of the Robes and confidante. Fifteen-year-old Arabella was sent to court to be a Maid of Honor to the Duchess of York. The Duchess of York, born Anne Hyde, was the wife of King Charles II’s brother James, Duke of York, the future King James II. Arabella captured James’ eye and became his mistress. Arabella and James had four children who were given the surname FitzJames, “son of James”. From their children, Arabella and James are the ancestors of the Earls Spencer and Diana, Princess of Wales as well as of the Dukes of Berwick, the later Dukes of Alba and Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba.
Unofficial Royalty: Arabella Churchill, mistress of King James II of England
February 23, 1716 – Death of Countess Marianne von Thun-Hohenstein, the second of the four wives of Josef Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein
On February 3, 1716, seventeen-year-old Marianne married the widowed Prince Josef Johann Adam. The marriage did not even last a month. Three weeks after the marriage, on February 23, 1716, Marianne died in Vienna and was buried in the Old Crypt at the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Vranov, Moravia, now in the Czech Republic.
Unofficial Royalty: The Four Wives of Josef Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein
February 23, 1769 – Birth of Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg, Princess of Lippe, Regent of Lippe, wife of Leopold I, Prince of Lippe, in Ballenstedt, Principality of Anhalt-Bernburg, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
Full name: Pauline Christine Wilhelmine
Pauline’s husband Leopold I, Prince of Lippe had mental disorders and he was deemed incapacitated for some time. Because of Leopold’s tenuous mental condition, Pauline became his governmental adviser and colleague, staying mostly in the background and avoiding anything that could be interpreted as exceeding her duties. Pauline was not only Princess Consort of Lippe, she ably served as Regent of the Principality of Lippe for eighteen years during the minority of her son Leopold II, Prince of Lippe who succeeded his father when he was five years old. The social work that she started in Detmold, then in the Principality of Lippe, now in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, continues today with the charity she founded, the Princess Pauline Foundation. Pauline is considered one of the most important rulers of Lippe.
Unofficial Royalty: Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg, Princess of Lippe, Regent of Lippe
February 23, 1779 – Birth of Prince Octavius of Great Britain, son of King George III of the United Kingdom, at the Queen’s House, now Buckingham Palace, in London, England
Smallpox was a leading cause of death in the 18th century. By having their children inoculated against smallpox, King George III and Queen Charlotte were trying to protect them and starting down the long road that would eventually lead to the eradication of this terrible disease. Before Edward Jenner developed the smallpox vaccine that contained the cowpox virus, variolation, first seen in China in the fifteenth century, was another way to protect against smallpox. Live smallpox virus in the liquid taken from a smallpox blister in a mild case of the disease was put into a cut of a healthy person who developed a very mild case of smallpox. About 3% of those inoculated developed a severe case of smallpox and died but that was preferable to catching smallpox with its mortality rate of 20–40% and scarred survivors. Sadly, four-year-old Octavius was one of those who died after inoculation.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Octavius of Great Britain
Unofficial Royalty: Smallpox knew no class boundaries
February 23, 1800 – Birth of Adelheid of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym, first wife of Grand Duke August I of Oldenburg, at Schaumburg Castle in the Principality of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym, now in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
In 1817, Adelheid married the then-Duke August of Oldenburg. The couple had two daughters including Amalia who married Prince Otto of Bavaria, later King of Greece. Adelheid died suddenly at the age of 20. Five years after her death, her husband married her youngest sister Ida.
Unofficial Royalty: Adelheid of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym, Duchess of Oldenburg
February 23, 1803 – Birth of Alexandrine of Prussia, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, daughter of King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia and wife of Grand Duke Paul Friedrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Full name: Friederike Wilhelmine Alexandrine Marie Helene
In 1822, Alexandrine married the future Grand Duke Paul Friedrich of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and although the marriage was not a happy one, they had three children. Her husband became Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1837, died five years later, and was succeeded by the couple’s son Friedrich Franz II. At the time of her death in 1892, Alexandrine had been widowed for fifty years, lived through the reign of her son, and saw her grandson succeed to the Grand Ducal throne of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Unofficial Royalty: Alexandrine of Prussia, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
February 23, 1883 – Birth of Adolf II, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe in Stadthagen, Principality of Schaumberg-Lippe, now in North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany
Upon his father’s death in 1911, Adolf became the reigning Prince of Schaumberg-Lippe. After the defeat of the German Empire in World War I, Adolf II was forced to abdicate on November 15, 1918, and the Principality of Schaumberg-Lippe became the Free State of Schaumburg-Lippe. Adolf was exiled from the Free State of Schaumburg-Lippe and lived in the Brionian Islands, then Italy, now in Croatia. In 1920, Adolf married actress Elisabeth Franziska (Ellen) von Bischoff-Korthaus. The marriage was childless. On March 26, 1936, Adolf and his wife were killed in an airplane crash in Zumpango, Mexico, along with eight other passengers and four crew members.
Unofficial Royalty: Adolf II, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe
February 23, 1918 – Death of Adolf Friedrich VI, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz at Neustrelitz, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany; buried on Love Island, a small island off Castle Island in Mirow, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, now in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
Adolf Friedrich developed a strong love for the United Kingdom, likely influenced by his grandmother, who was born Princess Augusta of Cambridge, a granddaughter of King George III of the United Kingdom. He took every opportunity to visit the United Kingdom and often represented his father and grandfather at official functions, such as the funerals of Queen Victoria and King Edward VII, and the coronations of King Edward VII and King George V. Adolf Friedrich left his home on the evening of February 23, 1918, to take his dog for a walk. The following morning, his body was found in a nearby canal with a gunshot wound to his head. He left behind a suicide note which suggested that a woman was attempting to smear his name. However, his close friend, Princess Daisy of Pless suggested that he had developed severe depression over the war and the loss of his beloved grandmother.
Unofficial Royalty: Adolf Friedrich VI, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
February 23, 1960 – Death of Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Carisbrooke, grandson of Queen Victoria, at Kensington Palace in London, England; cremated and ashes buried at St. Mildred’s Church, Whippingham, Isle of Wight, England
Alexander was the son of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom and Prince Henry of Battenberg. When World War I started in August of 1914, Alexander’s regiment was under deployment orders, as was the 60th Rifles, the regiment of his brothers Leopold and Maurice. A little more than two months after the war started, Maurice was killed in action. During World War I, his surname was changed to Mountbatten and he was created 1st Marquess of Carisbrooke. In 1917, he married Lady Irene Denison, daughter of the 3rd Earl of Londesbrough and they had one daughter. After World War I, Alexander began a business career and started work as a clerk in the offices of the bank Lazard Brothers. Alexander also worked for the Metropolitan Housing Corporation which controlled many housing estates for artisans, and Alexander eventually took full charge of the social work connected with the estates. Later he became a director of Lever Brothers and several other companies. Alexander died from a cerebral hemorrhage at Kensington Palace in London, England on February 23, 1960, at the age of 73.
Unofficial Royalty: Alexander Mountbatten, Marquess of Carisbrooke
February 23, 1960 – Birth of Emperor Naruhito of Japan at the Imperial Household Agency Hospital at the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan
Naruhito, the current Emperor of Japan, is the elder of the two sons and the eldest of the three children of former Emperor Akihito and Michiko Shōda. In 1993, he married Masako Owada and the couple had one daughter. On May 1, 2019, Naruhito ascended to the Chrysanthemum Throne as Emperor of Japan upon the abdication of his father Emperor Akihito. There is male-line, male-only succession in Japan which means that Emperor Naruhito’s daughter cannot inherit the throne nor can any of her potential sons inherit the throne. There has been discussion about changing the succession but no action has been taken. Currently, there are only three people in the line of succession: Crown Prince Akishino (born in 1965, brother of Emperor Naruhito), Prince Hisahito, (born in 2005, son of Crown Prince Akishino), and Prince Hitachi (born in 1935, uncle of Emperor Naruhito). Probably, there will not be another person in the line of succession until Prince Hisahito marries and has a son.
Unofficial Royalty: Emperor Naruhito of Japan
Unofficial Royalty: Japanese Succession Crisis
February 23, 1969 – Death of King Saud of Saudi Arabia in exile at Athens, Greece; buried at the Alaoud Cemetery in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
In 1953, upon the death of his father Abdulaziz ibn Abdul Rahman Al-Saud, also known as Ibn Saud, the founder and the first king of Saudi Arabia, Saud became the second King of Saudi Arabia. Saud had a long-standing power struggle with his half-brother Faisal who deposed Saud in 1964. Saud was forced into exile but lived quite comfortably with a retinue of forty people. He first settled in Geneva, Switzerland, then lived in palaces in Paris, France, and on the French Riviera. Saud then settled in Egypt in a magnificent palace in Heliopolis, and then in Greece at a large estate in Athens. On February 23, 1969, former King Saud died in Athens at the age of 67 after suffering a heart attack in his sleep.
Unofficial Royalty: King Saud of Saudi Arabia
February 23, 2012 – Birth of Princess Estelle of Sweden, daughter of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, at the Karolinska University Hospital in Solna, Sweden
Full name: Estelle Silvia Ewa Mary
Princess Estelle is second in the line of succession to the Swedish throne as the eldest child of Crown Princess Victoria who is the eldest child and the heir of King Carl XVI Gustaf.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Estelle of Sweden
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