Britain's Prince William and his
bride Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (C), pose for an
official photograph, with their families, on the day of
their wedding, in the throne room at Buckingham Palace,
April 29, 2011.
(Front row L-R) Grace van
Cutsem, Eliza Lopes, Prince Philip, Britain's Queen
Elizabeth, Margarita Armstrong-Jones, Louise Windsor,
William Lowther-Pinkerton. (Back Row L-R) Tom Pettifer,
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Prince Harry,
Michael Middleton, Carole Middleton, James Middleton, Pippa
Middleton.
The current British
royal family, while refered to as the House of Windsor,
is actually the latest part of a line of royal monarchs
going back over a thousand years. The House of Windsor
came into being in 1917, when the name was adopted as the
British Royal Family's official name by a proclamation of
King George V, replacing the historic name of
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. It remains the family name of the
current Royal Family. The Saxe-Coburg-Gotha name was of
German origin, and in 1917, the British Empire was locked
in a Great War with Germany, and the decision was made to
adopt a more English-sounding name. Taking their new
family name after the official name of one of their
primary residences (Windsor Castle), the House of Windsor
was born.
With the royal wedding of
Prince William and Kate Middleton, much speculation has
arisen over the potential new heirs to the throne that
this royal couple could produce. On December 3, 2012, it
was announced that William and Kate were expecting their
first child. Duchess Kate's early pregnancy was marked
with acute morning sickness known as hyperemesis
gravidarum, which forced her hospitalization. Kate and
William welcomed their newborn son into the world, and
into the world's most famous family, on July 22, 2013.
The Royal Baby is not yet named, as is the tradition in
the Royal Family, the name will likely not be announced
for a week or so. William and Kate's son will be third in
line to the throne after his grandfather, Prince Charles,
and his father, William.
William
and Kate with their newborn royal
son
The monarchs of the House
of Windsor are listed below:
(NOTE:
the dates inside the parentheses show the years of the
monarch's reign as King or Queen. The lower-case "r"
stands for reign)
George V
(r. 1910-1936)
Edward VIII (r.
Jan-Dec 1936)--Oldest son of King George V and the
brother of George VI. Edward abdicated the throne in
order to marry an American divorcee, Mrs. Wallis
Simpson.
George VI
(r.1936-1952)--Younger son of King George V and the
brother of King Edward VIII. George assumed the throne
upon the abdication of Edward.
Elizabeth II
(r. 1952-Present)-Daughter of King George VI.
Elizabeth assumed the throne upon her father's death.
Her eldest son, Charles, is next in line to the
throne, followed by his oldest son, William. In 2012,
Queen Elizabeth celebrated her 60th year on the throne
of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth nations.
The Diamond Jubilee celebrations began in earnest in
May and June of 2012.
Queen
Elizabeth II Celebrates 60 Years on the British
Throne.
The
Royal Family in order of precedence:
Queen Elizabeth II-daughter of the late
King George V
Prince Philip, The Duke of
Edinburgh--husband of Queen Elizabeth
Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, first son
of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip and heir to the
throne
Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall--wife
of Prince Charles
Prince
William--son of Prince Charles and the late
Lady Diana, second in line to the throne. William
married his fiance, Kate
Middleton, who is the latest, (and perhaps the
most popular), member of the royal family.
Prince Harry--second son of Prince Charles
and the late Lady Diana, third in line to the
throne
Andrew, The Duke of York--second son of Queen
Elizabeth and Prince Philip, fourth in line to the
throne
Edward, The Earl of Wessex--third son of Queen
Elizabeth and Prince Philip, seventh in line to the
throne
Sophie,The Countess of Wessex--wife of
Prince Edward
Anne, The Princess Royal--only daughter of
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, tenth in line to the
throne
Richard, The Duke of Gloucester--grandson of
George V and a first cousin to The Queen, 19th in line to
the throne
Birgitte, The Duchess of
Gloucester--wife of Richard, Duke of Gloucester
Edward, The Duke of Kent--grandson of King
George V and cousin to both The Queen and The Duke of
Edinburgh, 27th in line to the throne
Katherine, The Duchess of Kent--wife
of Edward, Duke of Kent
Princess Alexandra--second child and only
daughter of the late Duke and Duchess of Kent (her
brothers are the present Duke of Kent and Prince Michael
of Kent), 38th in line to the throne
Prince Michael of Kent--a cousin to both The
Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh, and his older brother
and sister are The Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra,
Prince Michael's father, Prince George, was the fourth
son of George V and his mother, Princess Marina, was the
daughter of Prince Nicholas of Greece. Prince Michael is
not in the line of succession to the throne
Queen Ellizabeth and Prince
Philip
The
Royal Family in order of succession:
Sovereign (Currently Queen
Elizabeth II)
1. The Prince of Wales
2. Prince William of Wales
3. Prince William's son
4. Prince Henry of Wales
5. The Duke of York
6. Princess Beatrice of York
7. Princess Eugenie of York
8. The Earl of Wessex
9. Viscount Severn
10. The Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor
11. The Princess Royal
12. Mr. Peter Phillips
13. Miss Zara Phillips
14. Viscount Linley
15. The Hon. Charles Armstrong-Jones
16. The Hon. Margarita Armstrong-Jones
17. The Lady Sarah Chatto
18. Master Samuel Chatto
19. Master Arthur Chatto
20. The Duke of Gloucester
21. Earl of Ulster
22. Lord Culloden
23. The Lady Cosima Windsor
24. The Lady Davina Lewis
25. Miss Senna Lewis
26. The Lady Rose Gilman
27. Miss Lyla Gilman
28. The Duke of Kent
29. The Lady Amelia Windsor
30. The Lady Helen Taylor
31. Master Columbus Taylor
32. Master Cassius Taylor
33. Miss Eloise Taylor
34. Miss Estella Taylor
35. The Hon. Albert Windsor
36. The Hon. Leopold Windsor
37. The Lord Frederick Windsor
38. The Lady Gabriella Windsor
39. Princess Alexandra, the Hon. Lady
Ogilvy
Royal
Family News:
According to the BBC,
Prince Philip was hospitalized December 23, 2011 for
chest pains. Doctors performed heart surgery on Prince
Philip to insert a coronary stent due to a blocked
coronary artery. Prince Philip was released from the
hospital after Christmas.
Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee, celebrating her 60
years on the British throne, kicked off in 2012 with a
flotiilla of over 1,000 ships and vessels in a waterborne
pageant on the River Thames on June 3, 2012.
Another major London event in 2012, was the hosting of
the 30th Olympic Games in the British capital. On July,
27, 2012, Queen Elizabeth, Prince Phillip, Prince
William, Kate Middleton, Prince Harry, Prince Charles,
among others, welcomed the Olympic athletes and helped
open the Games. One of the true surprises in the Danny
Boyle directed Opening Ceremonies was a video clip of
Queen Elizabeth being escorted to the Olympic Opening
Ceremony by non other than the fictional (but British)
character of James Bond, played superbly by Bond actor
Daniel Craig. In the video skit, Bond enters Buckingham
Palace, negotiates his way around the the Queen's famous
Corgis, and is announced into the Queen's presence. She
addresses the actor as "Mr. Bond," and they make their
way via helicopter to the Olympic stadium, where, on
video, it appears as if Bond and the Queen parachute into
the stadium.
In August, 2012, Prince Harry once again ended up in
the public eye in an embarrassing situation. While in Las
Vegas, Nevada with some friends, Prince Harry engaged in
some naked behavior that somehow made its way to the
internet. Two pictures released online show Prince Harry
quite naked, along with an equally naked woman with whom
he is hugging. The Queen reportedly was not amused...
--------------------
Some interesting facts related to Queen Elizabeth's
Diamond Jubilee (source: Official
Royal Website)
--Elizabeth II is the second-longest reigning
British monarch. Queen Vicoria reigned for 63 years.
--Britain has had 12 Prime Ministers during Queen
Elizabeth's reign, from Sir Winston Churchill to the
current Prime Minister, David Cameron.
--The Queen is a well-known lover and cultivator of
the dog breed Corgi. Elizabeth has had more than 30
corgis during her reign, starting with Susan who she
acquired for her 18th birthday in 1944. Most of these
Corgis are direct descendants of Susan. Elizabeth
currently (2012) has three corgis – Monty, Willow
and Holly.
Royal Wedding of Kate
Middleton and Prince William
Historyguy.com Search
Engine
Trending on Historyguy.com
Now:
Join the
FREE Historyguy Update list. Receive regular updates
delivered right to your inbox.
