Happy New year 2012!

To ALL our Friends, Subscribers, Clients, Readers and Family...May the New Year bring us all  joy, peace and myriad blessings!

The Duke of Edinburgh Back at Home

After a nasty scare, The Queen's husband is back at home!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/8978739/The-Duke-of-Edinburgh-leaves-hospital.html

The Duke of Edinburgh has Emergency Heart Surgery

A scary moment for House Windsor...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-philip/8976636/Prince-Philip-has-heart-surgery-for-blocked-coronary-artery.html

Prince Leopold of Bavaria and his role with BMW

Enjoy the article...describing an art piece, because that's what BMWs are, with a royal connection!


http://autos.yahoo.com/blogs/motoramic/motoramic-drives-2013-bmw-3-series-193407143.html

The Duke of Palma de Mallorca Finds Himself in a Mess

MADRID — King Juan Carlos’s son-in-law will stop taking part in official ceremonies because of business dealings that are under investigation, Spain’s Royal Palace said Monday as it sought to dissipate a whiff of scandal.

The decision regarding Inaki Urdangarin, husband of the monarch’s daughter Princess Cristina, was a mutual one made by Urdangarin and the Royal Palace, its chief of staff Rafael Spottorno said in a rare meeting with Spanish media.

Urdangarin, 43, is reportedly suspected of siphoning away funds from public contracts awarded from 2004 to 2006 to a non-profit foundation he then headed.

The allegation looks terrible for the royal family at a time of acute hardship and economic crisis in Spain, where unemployment stands at 21.5 percent.

Urdangarin has not been charged with a crime. He issued a statement Saturday saying he regrets the “damage” the case is doing to the royal family but admitted no wrongdoing.

More reading:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/spains-royal-palace-distances-itself-from-kings-son-in-law-over-questioned-business-dealings/2011/12/12/gIQAxAoIpO_story.html#weighIn

The Spanish media are all over this news and the damage to the image of the monarchy!

On Sale at Eurohistory – DEAREST MISSY

The Letters of Marie Alexandrovna, Grand Duchess of Russia, Duchess of Edinburgh and her daughter, Princess Marie of Edinburgh, Crown Princess of Romania (1879-1900); hardback, 472 pp., 40 photos , RRB, October 2011.

Marie Alexandrovna’s life and character has been imprinted by her upbringing at the Russian imperial court, as the daughter of Tsar Alexander II, in a grandiose and yet level-headed milieu that in a great measure personified her father’s way of life and vision of the world. Her personality was thus a distinctive mix of dominant behaviour and imperial outlook, tempered by an astute, realistic perception of the world.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/9197567175/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&qid=1319642292&sr=8-1&condition=new 

Prince Harry Lands in California

He will be engaged in helicopter training for the next two months...

http://gma.yahoo.com/video/news-26797925/prince-harry-hits-america-26863877.html

Ay Cayetana, por Dios...

The bride was an eccentric 85-year-old billionaire with more titles than Queen Elizabeth II. The groom was a mere civil servant young enough to be her son.
Despite the objections of her six children and plenty of public controversy, Spain’s colourful Duchess of Alba wed Alfonso Diez, 60, at her 15th century palace in Seville yesterday.


The famously flamboyant Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart wore a delicate pale pink gown designed by Victorio y Lucchino for her third marriage, which took place in front of 38 guests.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2045627/Duchess-Alba-marries-toyboy-Alfonso-Diez-lavish-wedding-ceremony.html#ixzz1aCjMxub7

Forgotten Hero of the King's Speech...

On a warm summer day, two men in tennis whites walked onto Wimbledon’s No 2 Court, wooden rackets under their arms. A small, dark-haired woman with a fox fur around her neck smiled encouragingly from the stands, trying to hide her anxiety.

For the younger of the two men was her husband Albert, the Duke of York, and she knew how desperately nervous he was and how badly he might take defeat.

To her anguish, she watched Albert (or Bertie, as he was better known) and his doubles partner lose game after game to their opponents, a pair of veteran Wimbledon champions. The final score was a resounding 1-6, 3-6, 2-6 defeat.
And yet despite losing, the fact that Bertie had taken part in such a public spectacle was a victory in itself for the still-awkward 30-year-old, whom some royal courtiers had once dismissed as mentally defective because of his stammer.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2046282/Forgotten-hero-Kings-speech-The-cheeky-Glaswegian-cured-George-VIs-crippling-shyness.html#ixzz1aCicr0Ps

Queen doña Sofía of Spain visits Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — European royalty arrived in impoverished Haiti on Friday as Spain's Queen Sofia came to check on aid efforts that seek to help the Caribbean nation rebuild after last year's earthquake.

The queen plans to spend her two-day visit touring reconstruction projects that the Spanish government and her own foundation hope will improve housing, education, sanitation and health in Haiti, one of the world's poorest countries.

When the queen arrived on a Spanish government jet, she stepped on to the tarmac where Haitian President Michel Martelly and first lady Sophia Martelly greeted her. Martelly and the queen chatted amicably before and after the National Palace band performed national anthems from both countries. Several dozen Haitian school girls waving Spain's gold-and-red flag greeted the queen, including one who gave her a bouquet.

Continue reading:

http://news.yahoo.com/spains-queen-sofia-visiting-aid-projects-haiti-204623498.html