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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

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

© Unofficial Royalty 2024

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 & his wife Queen Anne of Great Britain; Credit – Wikipedia

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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Prince Maurice of Battenberg; Credit – Wikipedia

October 27, 939 – Death of Æthelstan, King of the English in Gloucester, England; buried at Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire, England
Modern historians regard Æthelstan as the first King of England although he used the style King of the English (Rex Anglorum in Latin). He was the eldest son of Edward the Elder, King of the Anglo-Saxons and the only son of Ecgwynn, the first of Edward’s three wives. He was also a grandson of Alfred the Great. Æthelstan died in Gloucester on October 27, 939 at around the age of 45. Because he was never married, Æthelstan was succeeded by his half-brother Edmund I, King of the English.
Unofficial Royalty: Æthelstan, King of the English

October 27, 1327 – Death of Elizabeth de Brugh, Queen of Scots, second wife of Robert I, King of Scots (Robert the Bruce) at Cullen Castle in Banffshire, Scotland; buried at Dunfermline Abbey in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland
Born in Ireland around 1284, Elizabeth de Burgh was the second wife of Robert I (the Bruce), King of Scots and his only Queen Consort. Robert the Bruce and King Edward I were constantly battling for control of Scotland in the Wars of Scottish Independence. In 1306, Edward I took Elizabeth, Robert’s daughter Marjorie from his first marriage, his sisters Mary and Christina, and Isabella MacDuff, Countess of Buchan as hostages. He held them until 1314. After Elizabeth’s release, she and Robert had four children. After falling from her horse, Elizabeth died, aged about 43-years-old.
Unofficial Royalty: Elizabeth de Brugh, Queen of Scots

October 27, 1401 – Birth of Catherine of Valois, Queen of England, wife of King Henry V of England, at the Hôtel Saint-Pol, a royal palace in Paris, France
Catherine was the daughter of King Charles VI of France. Most notable of Catherine’s siblings is King Charles VII of France, the Dauphin helped by Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years War, and Isabella of Valois, the second wife and widow of King Richard II of England. In 1420, Catherine married King Henry V of England. The following year, Catherine gave birth to their only child, the future King Henry VI of England. In 1422, King Henry V died of dysentery, nine days before his 36th birthday, and his son King Henry VI at the age of nine months started his 40 years on the throne. Catherine was left a widow at the age of 21. With Catherine being a young widow with apparently no chance of remarriage, it should not seem unusual that she began an amorous relationship with Owen ap Maredudd ap Tudor, a Welsh soldier and courtier who served in her household. There is much debate as to whether Catherine and Owen married. No documentation of marriage exists and even if they did marry, their marriage would not have been legal due to the act regarding the remarriage of a queen dowager. Owen and Catherine had at least six children, Through their son Edmund Tudor descended King Henry VII of England and the Tudor Dynasty. Through their great-granddaughter Margaret Tudor descended the British royal family and many other European royal families.
Unofficial Royalty: Catherine of Valois, Queen of England

October 27, 1858 – Birth Prince Valdemar of Denmark, son of King Christian IX of Denmark, at Bernstorff Palace in Gentofte, Denmark
Valdemar was the youngest of the six children of King Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse-Kassel. He was the brother of King Frederik VIII of Denmark, Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, King George I of Greece, and Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia. In 1885, Valdemar married Princess Marie of Orléans. Valdemar and Marie had four sons and one daughter. Three of their sons made unequal marriages and relinquished their position within the Danish Royal Family upon marrying without official consent from the monarch. Valdemar had a lifelong naval career which frequently caused him to be away from home.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Valdemar of Denmark

October 27, 1868 – Death of Harriet Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland, Queen Victoria’s Mistress of the Robes 1837–1841, 1846–1852, 1853–1858, and 1859–1861, at Stafford House in London, England; buried in the Sutherland Mausoleum in Trentham, Stoke-on-Trent, England
Born The Honourable Harriet Elisabeth Georgiana Howard, daughter of George Howard, 6th Earl of Carlisle, Harriet did not have an affair with Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as depicted in the television series Victoria. The real Harriet was twelve years older than Ernst and her husband George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 2nd Duke of Sutherland did not die until 1861. Harriet and her husband had a successful, loving marriage and had eleven children.
Unofficial Royalty: Harriet Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland

October 27, 1888 – Death of Helena of Nassau, Princess of Waldeck and Pyrmont, first wife of Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, in Pyrmont, Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont, now in Hesse, Germany; buried at the Princely Crypt in Rhoden, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
In 1853, Helena married Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont.  The couple had six daughters and one son. Because of her efforts, the relatively poor House of Waldeck-Pyrmont was linked by the marriages of their children to the richer ruling dynasties of Würtemberg, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Georg Viktor and Helena are the ancestors of the Dutch royal family through their daughter Emma and the Swedish royal family through their daughter Helena. Their daughter Helena of Waldeck-Pyrmont married the youngest son of Queen Victoria, Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany.
Unofficial Royalty: Helena of Nassau, Princess of Waldeck and Pyrmont

October 27, 1914 – Death of Prince Maurice of Battenberg, grandson of Queen Victoria, killed in action during World War I at Zonnebeke, Ypres, Belgium; buried at the Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery in Ypres, Belgium
Maurice was the youngest of the four children of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom and Prince Henry of Battenberg. On October 27, 1914, Maurice was leading an attack on the German frontline at Zonnebeke near Ypres in the Belgian province of West Flanders when he was mortally wounded by shrapnel. The platoon sergeant tried to offer help to the wounded prince, but Maurice, aged 23, died before his men could bring him to a safer place. Upon hearing the news, King George V, Maurice’s first cousin, and his wife Queen Mary drove to Kensington Palace to console Princess Beatrice. Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, offered to bring Maurice’s body back to England, but Princess Beatrice replied, “No, let him lie with his comrades.” Maurice was buried in the Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery in Ypres, Belgium.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Maurice of Battenberg

October 27, 1963 – Death of Berthold, Margrave of Baden, Head of the House of Zähringen and Pretender to the former Grand Ducal throne of Baden from 1929 until his death, in Spaichingen, Germany; buried in the Mimmenhausen Cemetery in Salem, Germany
Unofficial Royalty: Berthold, Margrave of Baden

October 27, 2016 – Death of Prince Mikasa of Japan, son of Emperor Taishō and brother of Emperor Shōwa, at St. Luke’s International Hospital in Tokyo, Japan; buried at the Toshimagaoka Imperial Cemetery in Tokyo
In 1941, Prince Mikasa married Yuriko Takagi, daughter of Japanese noble Viscount Masanari, who was known as Princess Mikasa after her marriage. The couple had three sons and two daughters. All three sons predeceased their parents. Prince Mikasa died of heart failure on October 27, 2016, at the age of 100, a little more than a month before his 101st birthday. At the time of his death, he was the world’s oldest royal, the longest-lived member of the Japanese Imperial Family, and the last of the five Japanese princes in the line of succession. (Today, there are only three princes in the line of succession. See The Japanese Succession Crisis) Prince Mikasa lived during the reigns of three emperors: his father Emperor Taishō, his brother Emperor Hirohito, and his nephew Emperor Akihito.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Mikasa of Japan

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Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge, Duchess of Teck; Credit – Wikipedia

October 26, 899 – Death of Alfred the Great, King of the Anglo-Saxons; initially buried at the Old Minster in Winchester, England, in 903, Alfred’s remains were moved to the New Minster, in 1110, his remains were moved to Hyde Abbey in Winchester which was destroyed in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries during the reign of King Henry VIII
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex and later styled himself King of the Anglo-Saxons. Alfred and Cnut, King of England, Denmark, Norway, and parts of Sweden are the only British monarchs to be given the epithet “the Great”. Alfred spent several years fighting Viking invasions. In 878, he won a decisive victory in the Battle of Edington and made an agreement with the Vikings, creating what was known as the Danelaw in the north of England. During Alfred’s reign major administrative and military reforms were introduced, creating lasting change in England. Alfred had long suffered from a mysterious illness with periodic painful attacks. Alfred’s contemporary biographer, the Welsh monk Asser, gave a detailed description of his symptoms and modern doctors suspect that he had either Crohn’s disease or hemorrhoidal disease. However, Alfred’s grandson King Eadred also suffered from ill health all his life. He had symptoms similar to the symptoms Alfred had. A genetic disease such as porphyria, which King George III may have had, is also a possibility.  Alfred died at around the age of 50 from unknown causes.
Unofficial Royalty: Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, King of the Anglo-Saxons

October 26, 1580 – Death of Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain, fourth wife of King Felipe II Spain, in Badajoz, Spain; buried at the Monastery of San Lorenzo El Real in El Escorial, Spain
Anna was the daughter of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria and Maria of Spain. In 1570, she married her uncle King Felipe II of Spain, becoming his fourth wife. They had five children including Felipe III, King of Spain who succeeded his father. Anna died from influenza at the age of 30, on October 26, 1580, eight months after giving birth to her youngest child.
Unofficial Royalty: Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain

October 26, 1717 – Death of Catherine Sedley Colyear, Countess of Dorchester, Countess of Portmore, mistress of King James II of England, in Bath, England; initially buried in Bath, in 1729 her remains were reinterred in the new Portmore vault at St. James’ Church in Weybridge, Surrey, England
Catherine was appointed a maid of honor to Maria Beatrice of Modena, Duchess of York, the second wife of James, Duke of York, the future King James II of England. She caught the eye of James and became his mistress. Catherine and James had three children. In 1685, when James became king, Catherine was created Countess of Dorchester and Baroness of Darlington in her own right for life. After James was deposed and fled to France in 1688, Catherine remained in England. She married Sir David Colyear and they had two sons. In 1714, at the coronation of King George I, Catherine met Charles II’s mistress Louise de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth, and William III’s mistress Elizabeth Hamilton, Countess of Orkney, and exclaimed “God! Who would have thought that we three whores should meet here.” When Catherine died, aged 59, her life peerage became extinct.
Unofficial Royalty: Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester, mistress of King James II of England

October 26, 1802 – Birth of King Miguel I of Portugal at the Queluz National Palace in Lisbon, Portugal
Full name: Miguel Maria do Patrocínio João Carlos Francisco de Assis Xavier de Paula Pedro de Alcântara António Rafael Gabriel Joaquim José Gonzaga Evaristo
Miguel was the son of King João VI of Portugal who reigned until he died in 1826. At that time, João VI’s elder son succeeded to the throne as King Pedro IV. Pedro was king for only two months, abdicating in favor of his daughter Queen Maria II of Portugal. Maria Antonia’s father Miguel served as regent for his niece Maria II. As regent, Miguel claimed the Portuguese throne in his own right. This led to a difficult political situation, during which many people were killed, imprisoned, persecuted, or sent into exile, finally culminating in the Portuguese Liberal Wars. Ultimately, Miguel was deposed in 1834 and lived the last thirty-two years of his life in exile.
Unofficial Royalty: King Miguel I of Portugal

October 26, 1862 – Death of Marie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg, wife of Georg, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, at the Elisabethenburg Palace in Meiningen, Duchy of Meiningen, now in Thuringia, Germany; buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Altenburg cemetery, in the Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg, now in Thuringia, Germany, in 1974, all the remains were removed from the mausoleum and reburied elsewhere in the cemetery
Marie Luise was the wife of Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg. The couple had three children. While Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg, Marie Luise did much charity work. Through her Marie Foundation, she founded a woman’s association, several schools, and the Lutheran missionary society in Altenburg. Marie Luise died at the age of 59.
Unofficial Royalty: Marie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg

October 26, 1897 – Death of Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge, Duchess of Teck, in London, England; buried in the Royal Vault at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in Windsor, England
The daughter of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, Mary Adelaide was a male-line grandchild of King George III of the United Kingdom, a first cousin of Queen Victoria, and the mother of Mary of Teck, wife of King George V. Through her daughter Queen Mary, Mary Adelaide is the great-grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II and an ancestor of the members of the House of Windsor. Mary Adelaide married Prince Francis of Teck and the couple had three sons and one daughter. She devoted her life to charity, serving as the first royal patron of Barnardo’s, a charity still in existence, founded by Thomas Barnardo in 1866 to care for vulnerable children and young people. Barnardo’s has a long history of royal patrons and presidents including Queen Alexandra, Queen Mary (Mary Adelaide’s daughter), Queen Elizabeth II, Diana, Princess of Wales, and Queen Camilla. Mary Adelaide died at the age of 63 from heart failure, two hours after an emergency operation.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge, Duchess of Teck

October 26, 1944 – Death of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom, last surviving child of Queen Victoria, at Bantridge Park in Balcombe, Sussex, England; buried at St. Mildred’s Church in Whippingham, Isle of Wight, England
The youngest of the nine children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, by the time she was three years old, Beatrice was an aunt twice over.  Only four and a half when her father died, Beatrice had lost one of her principal role models. Because of her mother’s prolonged grief and mourning, Beatrice’s life would forever be shaped by her father’s death. She became a great solace to her mother, and as the years progressed Queen Victoria hoped that Beatrice would always be her constant companion. Beatrice finally got her mother’s permission to marry Prince Henry of Battenberg after promising Henry would renounce his military career, nationality, and home and agree to live with Beatrice and the Queen. Beatrice and Henry had three sons and one daughter. Through their daughter, they are ancestors of the Spanish royal family. Beatrice was a hemophilia carrier. Her son Leopold was a hemophiliac and her daughter Victoria Eugenie was a carrier. Beatrice’s youngest Maurice was killed in action during World War II. Beatrice, rather infamously, edited her mother’s journals, deleting two-thirds of the original content. As she aged, Beatrice became very infirm with arthritis and needed to use a wheelchair. She died at the age of 87, the last surviving child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Her funeral was held at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. Queen Elizabeth, the wife of King George VI, Beatrice’s great-nephew, led Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, Beatrice’s daughter, to the open vault in the choir where they both curtsied. Behind them in the choir stalls stood a young woman dressed in black, 18-year-old Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth II.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom

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