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The latest thank you - the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge for Princess Charlotte's fourth birthday.

Prince Joachim of Prussia's religious wedding

Prince Joachim of Prussia and Countess Angelina of Solms-Laubach will be married in a religious ceremony on June 29 at Pollenca, Majorca.

The church wedding was originally scheduled for Berlin, but the venue was changed a few months ago, as I learned in confidence from several sources.

I also knew that the civil marriage had already taken place and Joachim and Angelina were the parents of a daughter, Georgina Prinzessin von Preussen, who was born last September.

Prince Joachim, an officer in the reserves of the German Federal Armed Services, studied economics and business administration at the ESCP Europe in London, Paris and Berlin.  He is the Manager of Accenture's Berlin office. He  is the youngest of three children of the late Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Prussia and his second wife, Ehrengard von Reden.   He has two older siblings, Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, a lawyer, who is married with two children, and Princess Viktoria Luise, who is married to the Hereditary Prince of Leiningen. 

Prince Joachim is a first cousin of Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia, the head of the former ruling house.


Countess Angelina Sylvia Annelise Margot von Solms-Laubach is the second of four children of Count Friedrich and his wife, Baroness Sylvia von Podewils.    She studied architecture at the University of Arts in Berlin.  She currently works as an architect and interior designer.



https://www.gala.de/royals/allgemein/joachim-von-preussen---graefin-angelina-heiraten-auf-mallorca-22089422.html

Royal Ascot Day 4

Queen Elizabeth II was joined today by the Lady Helen Taylor and her husband, art dealer Tim Taylor.  Lady Helen is the daughter of the queen's first cousin, the Duke of Kent.

Lady Alexandra Etherington and her husband, Mark, were in the third carriage.  Lady Alexandra is the daughter of the 3rd Duke of Fife and the sister of the present Duke. She is a great-granddaughter of King Edward VII.

Victoria - Edward - Louise  - Maud - James - Alexandra.

 She is a godmother to Lady Louise Mountbatten Windsor.

I didn't see a single photo of Lady Alexandra in the carriage.


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Princess Cecilie weds American interior designer

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June 21, 1949


Princess Cecilie of Prussia, a granddaughter of the late Kaiser Wilhelm II, was married today at Burg Hohenzollern in Hechingen, to Clyde Harris, an Amarillo, Texas,-based interior designer, reports the Associated Press

The couple met at Schloss Wolfsgarten in Langen.  Harris, then an Army officer, was based in the area.

The civil ceremony took place in the castle's Tower room, and was performed by Hechingen's Mayor Paul Binderief.

This was followed by a Lutheran ceremony in the castle's chapel. The ceremony was performed by a refugee pastor from Silesia, the Rev. Reinhard Macholds.
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A best man is not customary in German royal weddings, but Cecilie's brother, Prince Friedrich did the honors for his new brother-in-law. 

In an concession to another American custom, Princess Cecilie was given away by her father, Crown Prince Wilhelm, in the presence of members of her family, including her mother, Crown Princess Cecilie, her sister-in-law, Grand Duchess Kira, the wife of Prince Louis Ferdinand,  Prince Hubertus and his wife, Princess Magdalene,  Prince Friedrich, who came from England with his wife, Lady Brigid Guinness,  Princess Wilhelm of Prussia, the widow of Cecilie's eldest brother, Wilhelm, who had been killed in the second world war, and Prince and Princess Ludwig of Hesse and By Rhine, the owners of Schloss Wolfsgarten, where Cecilie met Harris.

A "peaked tiara glittered on the bride's head," holding a veil that her sister-in-law, Brigid, had brought from London.  Her wedding gown was made from white chiffon and made in Germany.  Cecilie chose to have a "short unroyal train."

A number of Americans were also present for the wedding including Lawrence Hagy, the mayor of Amarillo,  Texas, and Colonel and Mrs. Calhoun Ancram of Charleston, South Carolina.  Mrs. Ancrum is the former Princess Xenia Andreevna of Russia, daughter of  Prince Andrew Alexandrovich of Russia, eldest son of Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich and Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna, younger sister of the late Emperor Nicholas II.


The Hohenzollern Black Eagle flag was flown over the castle in honor of the princess' wedding.

Following the two ceremonies a reception was held in castle, where the guests "dined on goose liver, filet of sole, English roast beef, French fried potatoes, mushrooms, cauliflower salad, a fancy brick ice cream called Count Pucklereis, cheeses and coffee.


The bride and groom, both of whom are 31 years old, were serenaded by local villagers as they drove away to a "secret refuge somewhere in Germany."   The honeymoon is expected to last for ten days before Harris flies back to Texas to return to work and find a new apartment.   After completing the paperwork to emigrate to the United States, the new Mrs. Harris is expected to sail "three or four weeks later."

It was shortly after VE day in 1945, when Clyde Harris first met Cecilie, noting that  "the sun gleaming in her golden-brown hair, her blue eyes, and the low music of her laughter.

Schloss Wolfsgarten, the home of Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine and his British-born wife, Princess Margaret, was filled with royal refugees, including members of the Prussian royal family, who had fled their homes in the eastern part of Germany.  Harris, a member of the US military's Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives program,  had originally come to Germany to help find and rescue German works of art.  He rescued Holbein Madonna and hart works,  which belonged to Philipp, the Prince of Hesse, which had been hidden in the Veste Coburg, and brought back to Wolfsgarten.

The Prince of Hesse, a noted Nazi, was married to Princess Mafalda of Italy, daughter of King Vittorio Emanuele, who died in a concentration camp in 1944.

Clyde Harris was invited to Wolfsgarten to catalog Prince Ludwig's art collection.

http://royalmusingsblogspotcom.blogspot.com/2011/07/von-hesse-family-sells-holbein-madonna.html

https://www.monumentsmenfoundation.org/the-heroes/the-monuments-men/harris-lt.-clyde-k.

King Constantine II NOT IN HOSPITAL

UPDATED WITH OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM GREEK ROYAL HOUSE

"His Majesty King Constantine is in good health and is not in the hospital as the tabloids have published, if so, he would have made an official statement from his office."

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In the past few years, the 79-year-old Constantine has suffered at least on stroke and more recently, he has experience motor issues and has been using a wheel chair.

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Constantine II is the second but only son of the late King Paul and Queen Frederika (nee Princess Friederike of Hanover.) He succeeded his father on March 6, 1964.   In September 1964, he married Princess Anne Marie of Denmark, the youngest of three daughters of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid.

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The couple have five children: Princess Alexia, Crown Prince Pavlos, Prince Nikolaos, Princess Theodora and Prince Philippos.

A right wing coup d'état on April 21, 1967 led to further instability.  The king did not support the coup, led by  Colonel George Papadopoulos, and he called for the restoration of the democracy.

Constantine tried to lead a counter coup against the junta, but he had little support from outside Greece, including the United States.  This counter coup failed.  Constantine and his family left the country on December 14, 1967, first settling in Rome and then moving to England where they lived for more than 30 years.

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He told the Toronto Star: " I consider myself King of the Hellenes and sole expression of legality in my country until the Greek people freely decide otherwise. I fully expected that the (military) regime would depose me eventually. They are frightened of the Crown because it is a unifying force among the people."

A new constitution in 1968 stripped the king of most of his powers, and a regency was proclaimed.  In 1974, Papadapoulos declared Constantine to be a "collaborator with foreign forces and with murderers."

This was followed by a rigged plebiscite in June 1973 that led to Greece abolishing the monarchy.

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In 2010, the King and Queen, having sold their home in Hampstead, moved back to Greece.  They live in Porto Cheli.

Constantine is a godfather of the Duke of Cambridge.   He is a double descendant of Queen Victoria, through both parents.  Queen Anne Marie is also a descendant of Queen Victoria through her mother,  Princess Ingrid of Sweden.

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Day 6 - Hatfield House

The morning of June 6, I headed for King's Cross to catch a train to Hatfield House, which is less than 30 minutes away.  The train station is literally across the street from the entrance to Hatfield House, 21 miles from London.

This Jacobean manor has been in the Cecil family for more than 400 years.  Numerous movies and TV shows have been filmed at Hatfield, including The Favourite.  A selection of the costumes were on display. 

Hatfield House is the seat of the Marquess and Marchioness of Salisbury.

After returning to London, I walked a part of the Regent's Canal from King's Cross to Camden.  I also spent some time in  St. James's Park and then walked over to the Horse Guards Parade to watch Beating the Retreat with the Duchess of Cambridge taking the salute.

The guide pointed outside to the spot where Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives and is tossed out of the carriage and falls into a mud puddle.

Having lunch at the cafe ... what a sweet dog

Sunshine

Chelsea Pensioner at King's Cross

Walking Regent's Canal from King's Cross to Camden

A young woman wearing a knee brace wore this so she could get a seat on the subway

St. James's Park

Cenotaph

Getting ready for the Beating the Retreat with the the Duchess of Cambridge taking the salute

https://royalmusingsblogspotcom.blogspot.com/2019/06/back-home-beating-retreat.html

http://www.hatfield-house.co.uk/


https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-and-river-network/regents-canal