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Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart, daughter of the deposed King James II of England; Credit – Wikipedia
June 28, 1189 – Death of Matilda of England, Duchess of Saxony and Bavaria, daughter of King Henry II of England, wife of Heinrich the Lion, Duke of Saxony and Duke of Bavaria, in Brunswick, Duchy of Saxony, now in Lower Saxony, Germany; buried at the Cathedral of St. Blasius in Brunswick
Matilda married Heinrich the Lion, Duke of Saxony, Duke of Bavaria, one of the most powerful princes of his time and one of the most important allies of his cousin Friedrich I (Barbarossa), Holy Roman Emperor. Through their youngest child, Wilhelm of Winchester, Lord of Lüneburg, they are ancestors of the House of Hanover. Matilda died at Brunswick at the age of 33, about a week before the death of her father King Henry II of England. She was buried at the still incomplete Brunswick Cathedral where her husband Heinrich was buried upon his death in 1195.
Unofficial Royalty: Matilda of England, Duchess of Saxony and Bavaria
June 28, 1491 – Birth of King Henry VIII of England at Greenwich Palace in Greenwich, England
Henry VIII was the third child and the second son of King Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York, daughter of King Edward IV of England. Henry and his six siblings represented the merging of the Lancasters (their father) and the Yorks (their mother) who fought for power during the Wars of the Roses. After the death of his elder brother Arthur, Henry was the heir to the throne. He immediately became Duke of Cornwall and was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on February 18, 1503. King Henry VIII of England is known for his six wives, but he also makes the list for the top ten longest-reigning British monarchs coming in at number nine with a reign of 37 years, 281 days. He became king in 1509, two months short of his 18th birthday, and reigned until his death at the age of 55 in 1547
Unofficial Royalty: King Henry VIII of England
June 28, 1692 – Birth of Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart, daughter of the deposed King James II of England and his second wife Maria Beatrice of Modena, at the Château of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
Louisa Maria Teresa was born at the Chtâeau of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a residence King Louis XIV of France provided for his exiled first cousin James II and his family. She was the sister of James Francis Edward, The Young Pretender and the half-sister of Queen Mary II of England and Queen Anne of Great Britain. Louisa Maria Teresa died from smallpox at the age of 19.
Unofficial Royalty: Louisa Maria Teresa Stuart
June 28, 1716 – Death of George FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, an illegitimate son of King Charles II of England by Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, in Epsom, England
Wikipedia: George FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Northumberland (Unofficial Royalty article coming soon.)
June 28, 1757 – Death of Sophia Dorothea of Hanover, Queen of Prussia, daughter of King George I of Great Britain, wife of King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia, at Monbijou Palace in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany; buried at the Berlin Cathedral
Sophia Dorothea was eight years old when her disgraced mother was divorced and banished for the rest of her life. She was raised by her paternal grandmother Sophia, Electress of Hanover at Herrenhausen, the Hanover home. She married her first cousin Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Prussia, son of Friedrich, King I of Prussia. Sophia Dorothea and Friedrich Wilhelm had met as children as they shared a grandmother, Sophia, Electress of Hanover, and they had disliked each other ever since. Their interests were very different and Friedrich Wilhelm contemplated divorcing Sophia Dorothea the same year they were married, but nothing came of it. Sophia Dorothea became Queen of Prussia in 1713 when her husband acceded to the Prussian throne.
Unofficial Royalty: Sophia Dorothea of Hanover, Queen of Prussia
June 28, 1796 – Birth of Caroline Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, Queen of Denmark, second wife of King Christian VIII of Denmark, in Copenhagen, Denmark
Caroline Amalie was the only daughter of Friedrich Christian II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, and Princess Louise Auguste of Denmark. Caroline Amalie’s mother was the only daughter of King Christian VII of Denmark and Caroline Matilda of Wales, the sister of King George III of the United Kingdom. There is strong evidence that Louise Auguste’s father was her mother’s lover Johann Friedrich Struensee. In December 1814, Caroline Amalie married the future King Christian VIII of Denmark as his second wife but their marriage remained childless. In 1839, Caroline’s husband inherited the Danish throne but he died after a nine-year reign and was succeeded by King Frederik VII, his son from his first marriage. Caroline Amalie outlived her stepson King Frederik VII and in 1863, saw the resolution of the Danish succession crisis with the establishment of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg when King Christian IX, born Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, became the King of Denmark. Queen Caroline Amalie survived her husband by 33 years, dying on March 9, 1881, surrounded by the Danish royal family, at the age of 84.
Unofficial Royalty: Caroline Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, Queen of Denmark
June 28, 1799 – Birth of Amalie of Württemberg, Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg, wife of Joseph, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, in Wallisfurth, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Wolany, Poland
Full name: Amalie Therese Luise Wilhelmine Philippine
Following her marriage to Joseph, the future Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, Amalie became involved with charitable causes in her new home. She founded the Industrial School for orphaned children in Hildburghausen and founded a Woman’s Association the following year. After her father-in-law became Duke of Saxe-Altenburg in 1826, the family moved to Schloss Altenburg, and she continued with her philanthropic work, establishing several schools and institutions in Altenburg.
Unofficial Royalty: Amalie of Württemberg, Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg
June 28, 1800 – Death of Heinrich XI, 1st Prince Reuss of Greiz in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, now in Thuringia, Germany; buried at the Stadtkirche St. Marien in Greiz, now in the German state of Thuringia
Heinrich XI was only eight months old when his father died on November 17, 1722. His four-year-old brother Heinrich IX succeeded their father as Count Reuss of Obergreiz but he reigned only four months, dying on March 17, 1723. Heinrich XI became Count Reuss of Obergreiz the day before his first birthday. Heinrich XI was a reigning Count and then a reigning Prince from 1723 until he died in 1800, a total of 77 years.
Unofficial Royalty: Death of Heinrich XI, 1st Prince Reuss of Greiz
June 28, 1899 – Death of Grand Duke George Alexandrovich of Russia, son of Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia, brother of Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia, from tuberculosis, in Abbas Touman, a spa town, now Abastumani in the country of Georgia, then in Russia; buried at the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
Because of the severity of George’s tuberculosis, his doctors suggested that he should be sent to live in the dry mountain climate of Abbas Touman, a spa town, now Abastumani in the country of Georgia, then in Russia. On June 28, 1899, 28-year-old George had gone out alone to ride his motorcycle and when he did not return, his staff sent out a search party. George had been found lying on the side of the road, struggling to breathe, with blood oozing from his mouth, by a peasant woman who supported him in her arms until he died. The peasant woman later traveled to St. Petersburg to tell George’s mother Empress Maria Feodorovna about George’s last moments. On the site of George’s death, a memorial made of Carrara marble was built.
Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duke George Alexandrovich of Russia
June 28, 1914 – Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg in Sarajevo, by Serb nationalist, Gavrilo Prinzip, an event leading to World War I; both are buried at Artstetten Castle, Austria
Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria sent Franz Ferdinand to Sarajevo, Bosnia to observe military maneuvers and his wife Sophie accompanied him out of fear for his safety. After the military maneuvers, the couple was to open a state museum in Sarajevo. The Black Hand, a secret military society formed by members of the Serbian Army, conspired to assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand on his visit to Sarajevo. Seven conspirators were in the crowds lining the streets of Sarajevo, each ready to assassinate the Archduke should there be an opportunity. One attempt, a bomb thrown at the archduke’s car, failed. Later, after a reception at the Town Hall, 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip saw his chance and fired two shots at the couple as they rode in their car. The first shot hit Sophie in the abdomen and the second shot hit Franz Ferdinand in the neck. Sophie died soon after being shot and Franz Ferdinand died about 10 minutes later.
Unofficial Royalty: Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
June 28, 1994 – Birth of Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan, son of King Abdullah II of Jordan, in Amman, Jordan
When King Hussein of Jordan died in 1999, his son Abdullah became King and respected his father’s wishes, appointing his half-brother Hamzah as Crown Prince of Jordan. However, in 2004, Abdullah stripped Hamzah of the Crown Prince title. As he did not name a replacement, this made the young Prince Hussein his father’s heir-apparent under the existing succession laws. On July 2, 2009, the King issued a decree formally granting Prince Hussein the title of Crown Prince. Crown Prince Hussein married Rajwa Al Saif on June 1, 2023 at Zahran Palace in Amman, Jordan. On April 10, 2024, the Royal Hashemite Court announced that Crown Prince Hussein and Princess Rajwa are expecting their first baby in the summer of 2024.
Unofficial Royalty: Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan
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