November 9: Today in Royal History

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King Edward VII of the United Kingdom; Credit – Wikipedia

November 9, 1384 – Birth of Isabella of Valois, Queen of England, second wife of King Richard II of England, at Hotel du Louvre in Paris, France
Isabella was the daughter of King Charles VI of France and the elder sister of Catherine of Valois who married King Henry V of England. Soon after the death of his first wife Anne of Bohemia, the childless King Richard II of England began a search for a new wife. He turned to France seeking an alliance, and after negotiations, a marriage was arranged between Isabella and Richard who was 22 years older than his bride. Isabella lived apart from Richard at Windsor Castle. Richard visited her frequently and a strong affection developed between the partners of this unconsummated marriage. In 1399, Richard II was forced to abdicate in favor of his cousin who became King Henry IV. He was imprisoned at Pontefract Castle in Yorkshire where he died on or around February 14, 1400. The exact cause of his death, thought to have been starvation, is unknown. Eventually, Isabella returned to France and married her cousin Charles, Duke of Orléans. She died at the age of 19, a few hours after giving birth to her only child.
Unofficial Royalty: Isabella of Valois, Queen of England

November 9, 1620 – Death of Louise de Coligny, Princess of Orange, fourth wife of Willem I, Prince of Orange (the Silent) at the Château de Fontainebleau in Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne, France; buried with her husband in the Old Crypt of the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft, the Netherlands
Louise’s father Gaspard II de Coligny was a French nobleman and admiral but is best remembered as a leader of the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants). Both Louise’s father and her first husband Charles de Teligny were killed during the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in 1572 when thousands of French Huguenots were murdered. In 1583, Louise became the fourth wife of Willem I, Prince of Orange.  Willem and Louise had one son Frederik Hendrik, Prince of Orange whose son Willem II, Prince of Orange was the father of Willem III, Prince of Orange who was later King William III of England. On July 10, 1584, a little more than six months after the birth of her son, Louise was widowed for the second time when Willem I, Prince of Orange was assassinated. Louise then raised her son and Willem’s six daughters from his third marriage to Charlotte de Bourbon-Monpensier. She remained an advocate of Protestantism all her life. Louise lived in Delft, the Netherlands until one year before her death when she went to the court of Marie de’ Medici, Queen Dowager of France, at the Château de Fontainebleau in France, where she died, aged 65.
Unofficial Royalty: Louise de Coligny, Princess of Orange

November 9, 1841 – Birth of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom at Buckingham Palace in London, England
Full name: Albert Edward
In 1863, Bertie, as he was called in the family, married Princess Alexandra of Denmark (Alix) and the couple had six children. Bertie had several mistresses but apparently, Alix knew about many of them and accepted them. After waiting 59 years, Bertie became king upon the death of his mother Queen Victoria on January 22, 1901. Bertie and Alix had begun the idea of the royal family’s public appearances as we now know them during Queen Victoria’s withdrawal after her husband’s death, and they continued this during Bertie’s reign. Bertie had royal palaces repaired and reintroduced traditional ceremonies, such as the State Opening of Parliament, that Queen Victoria had ceased to participate in. Bertie was known as “the Uncle of Europe” because he was related to many other royals.
Unofficial Royalty: King Edward VII of the United Kingdom

November 9, 1907 – Birth of Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, pretender to the Prussian throne from 1951 until he died in 1994, at the Marble Palace in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia, now in the German state of Brandenburg
Louis Ferdinand was the son of Crown Prince Wilhelm, the last Crown Prince of the German Empire and Prussia, and the grandson of Wilhelm II, the last German Emperor and King of Prussia. He married Grand Duchess Kira Kirillovna of Russia. They were second cousins, once removed, through their mutual descent from Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia

November 9, 1953 – Death of Abdulaziz (Ibn Saud), first King of Saudi Arabia, at Ta’if, Saudi Arabia; buried at Al Od Cemetery in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Abdulaziz was an Arab tribal leader who founded the Kingdom of  Saudi Arabia. He was King of Saudi Arabia from 1932 until he died in 1953. He had ruled parts of the kingdom since 1902, having previously been Emir, Sultan, and King of Nejd, and King of Hejaz. Abdulaziz had a polygamous household comprising several wives at a time and numerous concubines. It is thought he had a total of 22-24 wives. He was the father of almost a hundred children, including 45 sons of whom 36 survived to adulthood. The six Kings of Saudi Arabia who followed King Abdulaziz were all his sons including Salman, the current King of Saudi Arabia. At the age of 78, Abdulaziz died in his sleep from a heart attack with his son Prince Faisal, a future King of Saudi Arabia, at his bedside.
Unofficial Royalty: King Abdulaziz (Ibn Saud) of Saudi Arabia

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