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As Norway continues to mourn the 93 people who were killed in the dual attacks on Friday by a far right zealot, its royal family has been reaching out and grieving along with the rest of the country. Sunday saw the adult members attend church services in memory of those who died and were injured.
 Click here for more images Their Majesties King Harald V and Queen Sonja, along with their daughter Princess Martha Louise and her husband Ari Behn, went to Oslo Cathedral at 11am local time for the “mass of grief and hope” service. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and several other high ranking members of Norwegian politics also attended.
The Bishop of Oslo, Ole Christian Kvarme, officiated at service, and started by quoting the poet Nordahl Grieg: “We are so few in this country, every fallen are brother and friend”.
The Prime Minister spoke about unity during this difficult time, saying”If a man can see so much hatred, think so much love we can all see together.”
Also at 11am local time, at Norderhov Church in Ringerike, the Crown Princely couple attended a similar mass not far from Utøya, the island where nearly one hundred young people were massacred. Walking hand in hand with her husband Haakon, Mette-Marit looked visibly upset as she went to the church that included family members and survivors of the shooting.
Bishop Laila Aasen Dahl Tunsberg spoke of what she called the disastrous Friday:
“The future was attempted stolen from us. It was inconceivable many young people who lost their lives. Today we are gathered to silence and contemplation in prayer.”
 Click here for more images Just as they simultaneously attended memorial masses, the royals simultaneously visited nearby hospitals. The King and Queen went to Ullevål hospital while Haakon and Mette-Marit went to Ringerike Hospital. Both couples met with the wounded, their families and the hospital staff.
“I think I speak on behalf of all of Norway when I say that we will stand together behind you,” Crown Princess Mette-Marit told the victims.
“It is important to say to those who experienced it that everyone in Norway wants to be supportive. They were asked in an extreme situation,” said the Crown Prince.
After their visit, King Harald and Queen Sonja went to the site of the downtown Oslo bombings to see firsthand the destruction of the government buildings. The couple were briefed on the injuries from the blast and met with the police.
Also showing their support were Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel. They attended a memorial service at a Norwegian Seamen’s Church in Stockholm also on Sunday morning.
Sources: Kongehuset, Aftenposten, BT.no
 Click here for more images A day after the worst attacks in Norway since World War II, its royal family came out to comfort and mourn with the people.The once placid country is reeling after a bomb attack in downtown Oslo and a shooting of a youth political summer camp on the nearby island of Utøya. About 92 people were killed and the number is expected to rise. The suspect behind the dual attacks is said to be a far-right extremist.
Late last night, King Harald V made a televised speech saying, “Freedom is more powerful than fear” and encouraged Norwegians to stand together.
In the afternoon, the King, Queen Sonja and Crown Prince Haakon along with Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, went to a hotel in Sundvolden, where the survivors and their families of the shooting on Utøya island were staying. Those royals spoke to and comforted the people who witnessed the shooting. The island was where the worst of yesterday’s attacks happened, and those who were killed were teenagers and young adults.
 Click here for more images Later at 6pm local time, Their Majesties and Haakon went to Oslo Cathedral to light candles in memory of those who died. This time they were joined by Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Marius Borg Høiby, Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus. The Crown Princess was reportedly unable to hold back tears as she lit the candles and was comforted by Marius.
After that, the family – all dressed in black – went outside for a memorial where flowers and Norwegian flags were set up outside the Cathedral. Ingrid Alexandra and Sverre Magnus held hands as they observed the makeshift memorial. At one point, the Prince picked up a note that his parents read aloud to him.
It’s nice that the royal family show participation,” said James Strande who was in the Cathedral when the royal family arrived. “I think that means a lot to those who have lost someone. For us personally, this is one of the ways we can show our compassion.”
Tomorrow morning, the entire royal family – including Princess Martha Louise and husband Ari Behn – will attend a memorial service at Oslo Cathedral.
Sources: Aftenposten
On a day few Norwegians would ever forget, King Harald V took to the airwaves late in the night to address his people following the explosion in downtown Oslo and the shootings of youths on the island of Utøya, west of the capital.
 Click here to learn about King Harald V “Today we have witnessed horrific acts both in Oslo and Utøya. Our thoughts go naturally to the survivors and the relatives. I would like to thank all those who have helped to rescue people out of this situation,” said the visibly upset King.
“In such a horrible situation it is important to stand together and support each other so that we can rise up again.”
The terrorist attacks are the worst for Norway since World War II. So far, seventeen are confirmed dead in the dual attacks, but officials say that number may rise.
32 year old Norwegian Anders Behring Breivik is in custody and it is believed he is behind both the bombing and the shooting at a summer camp on Utøya.
With the country shocked and in grief, it is for its royal family, particularly King Harald to lead Norwegians towards healing.
“Now it is important that we stand together and support each other. The fact that we do not let fear prevail. As we support each other we come through this terrible situation that we have experienced,” the monarch said in his speech.
Sources: VG, ABC Nyheter
 Click here to see more photos! The cousin of the King of Jordan got married Friday in a ceremony attended by Arab and European royals alike. Prince Rashid Al Hassan, the son of King Abdullah II’s uncle, 31 year old Prince El Hassan, married Zeina Shabban, age 23 and a former athlete. The couple got engaged about a year ago.
The ceremony took place at Basman Palace in the presence of the King, Queen Rania, Prince El Hassan and his wife, Princess Sarvath, plus the bride’s extended family.
Royals in attendance were King Hamad of Bahrain, Queen Sofia of Spain, Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel, and the Duke of Edinburgh.
The groom’s father was once heir to the Hashemite Kingdom for decades. But in 1999, on his deathbed, Prince Hassan’s brother, King Hussein, changed the succession and gave the throne to his son, Abdullah. If King Hussein had not made that historic change. Prince Rashid would be heir to the Jordanian throne now, and Princess Zeina, the next Queen.
Source: Ammon News
National Day is often meant to be a time to celebrate patriotism, but for Belgians, this year saw it be more somber since the day also marked 400 days without a government.
 Click here for more images Belgium’s monarch, King Albert II, has been demanding recently for the feuding politicians to do something to form a government in order to save the country from splitting into two. His speech on Wednesday night covered that issue.
“On this national day, I would have liked to enjoy with you the swearing in of a new government. Alas, we are not there yet, and I deplore this,” His Majesty lamented.
“Our current situation is a cause for concern among our partners and could damage our position in Europe, and even the momentum towards European integration which has already been undermined by populism and Euroscepticism.
“The actual crisis is showing the population’s ignorance of politics but doesn’t resolve the current problems. The risk is that we are going to have a kind of [populism] which would throw democracy into question,” said the 77-year old King.
King Albert’s efforts as a mediator between the warring political groups have made him popular with the people who want Belgium to remain.
“The King is right to give his point of view and I hope that he will be heard,” said one who was among a crowd waiting to greet him.
“I say thank you to the King as he is the cement for our country. We are proud to be Belgian, its our National Day and I hope the King will live for many more,” opined another.
Despite the dark cloud of politics hanging over Belgium, many people celebrated their country’s National Day along with their royal family.
The day saw the King and Queen Paola attended a Te Deum mass at St. Michael and Gudula Cathedral in Brussels before doing a walkabout with Belgians outside. That was followed by a military parade watched by the King and Queen, Crown Prince Philippe, Princess Mathilde and Queen Fabiola.
One royal noticeably absent from this year’s National Day festivities was Prince Laurent. Having been suspended until further notice for his behavior earlier this year from royal duties, Laurent and his wife and children instead celebrated Belgium’s big day at one of the country’s street parties the previous night.
Sources: Euronews, Telegraph.co.uk, De Standaard
For the second consecutive year, King Albert II will not bestow aristocratic titles to anyone because of the inability for Belgium’s political groups to form a government. The country has gone for over a year without it, and the King is more than frustrated.
 Click here for more photos of Belgium's crisis In a rare statement earlier this month, His Majesty said that “given the gravity of the political situation, the King wishes that each of the country’s political leaders take a few days of reflection to measure the consequences of the political situation and seek avenues towards a solution”.
The statement came after another of King Albert’s appointed mediators, French speaking Elio Di Rupo asked to be dismissed from his position after a draft was rejected by the country’s largest political party, the separatist Flemish N-VA.
Party leader Bart De Wever and Di Rupo would never sit side-by-side in a government, said commentator Liesbeth Van Impe in the daily Het Nieuwsblad, forecasting an early election. “De Wever has given Di Rupo, with all due respect, the middle finger.”
Belgium’s troubles are due to decades of tension between the Dutch speaking Flemish people and the Francophone Walloons.
Since there has been no government since June 2010, the country is heading towards financial troubles, with national debt hovering at 100 percent of its GDP. There are fears of another European financial fallout.
Thursday is Belgium’s National Day. It would be interesting to see what King Albert II will say in his annual speech and how the day’s celebrations will go on.
Sources: AFP, LeSoir
A year since she supposedly was caught in bed with a former justice minister of her husband’s, Nothando Dube is pleading to be set free from house arrest and the emotional abuse that came with it. Dube, who was King Mswati III of Swaziland’s 12th wife, spoke to a South African newspaper about her troubles.
 Click here to see more of the original article “My side of the story was not heard. Ever since that scandal happened, we haven’t been talking with this man that I married. Things have been bad and now they are worse. I really, really want out and I can’t, he is just not letting me go. It’s like I am in prison; I am under 24-hour surveillance,” she told The Mail & Guardian.
“My friends and family have been banned from seeing me and I really feel like I don’t want to be here any more because I feel like I am in jail. This is not healthy and I can’t live like this forever and I see no point of sticking around.”
23 year old Dube married the King when she was 16 years old and had three children with him, the youngest almost 2 years old. She claims that she cares for her children and Mswati does not. “He doesn’t even know their grades or date of birth.”
While Dube is allowed to see her children, security is tight around them. Last month, she and her eldest child were allowed to leave Swaziland and go to a South African hospital because the child had burn injuries.
“I had so much security with me because they have this mentality that I would run away because my father was South African. Because of their carelessness the residence is not well taken care of and my daughter got burned. They are frustrating my three children and me. I am a human being, I deserve to be treated humanly and not to be enslaved,” Dube said.
A spokesman for the Swazi royal family denied to the Mail & Guardian that Dube was being mistreated.
“I don’t know that. If she has any problems, she must address them with the queen mother, who will then inform the king. She has a beautiful house where she lives with her three children, a maid that works for her and cars that take her anywhere she wants. I don’t know what you are talking about,” he said, and hung up the phone.
This isn’t the first time one of King Mswati’s numerous wives have found that being royal wasn’t all rosy. Six years ago, two of his queens feld the country.
Source: The Mail & Guardian
 Click here to read the Pure People article in French While her brother and new sister-in-law are on their honeymoon, Princess Stephanie of Monaco had to attend the Fight AIDS Monaco Summer Gala on Wednesday alone.
That didn’t seem to bother her at all. The Princess treated this year’s gala like any other, as she met with those who work to battle the disease in the tiny principality during the event, held at the Monte Carlo Sporting Club. She also met with the pop group Supertramp who were performing that night.
Before the group did their concert, Stephanie helped raffle off tickets for the guests to win prestigious prizes worth several thousand euros.
Besides raising money for Fight AIDS Monaco, which Princess Stephanie is president of, the annual gala also raises funds for the Life House, a home for HIV sufferers which located just outside of Monaco.
Sources: Svensk Damtidning, Pure People
Vienna came to a stand still on Saturday as it witnessed the funeral of the last Austro-Hungarian emperor’s heir, Otto Habsburg, who died at the age of 98 in Poecking, southern Germany, on July 4. Thousands of Austrians turned up to watch as the Habsburg family, Austrian leaders, European royals and heads of state attend the funeral that seemed to bring back the days of when Austria was a monarchy.
 Click here for images of the funeral The ceremonies for Otto’s funeral started earlier this week, where his body was taken across central Europe. Along the way, wakes and requiems were held at the places where Otto’s body stopped. Saturday’s funeral took place at St. Stephen’s Cathedral with Vienna’s archbishop Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn conducting the mass.
Afterward, the coffin carrying Otto Habsburg was brought through the streets of the city center in a procession of the aforementioned walking behind it. Soldiers dressed in the old imperial attire, cathedrals rang their bells, drums sounded and banners from the old empire were carried during the procession to Otto’s final resting place at the Imperial Crypt.
His wife, Regina, who died last year, was also buried at the crypt alongside her husband.
When the master of ceremonies knocked on the family crypt, twice he was rejected. Meaning, when it was announced that the Habsburg heir was to be laid to rest, monks answered, “We do not know him!” They said the same thing again when Habsburg’s political achievements were announced. The doors finally opened on the third knock after Habsburg was described as a “Otto — a mortal and a sinner.”
 Click here for more photo Although buried in Vienna, Habsburg’s heart was cremated and is to be placed in the Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma in northwest Hungary in a private family ceremony Sunday, something the family has long done.
The last time such a funeral took place in Vienna was in 1989 when Zita, Otto’s mother and Austro-Hungary’s last empress, passed away.
For this funeral, an estimated 10,000 Austrians and tourists gathered to watch the procession. Such royals in attendance included the King and Queen of Sweden, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, Prince Hans Adam II and Princess Marie Aglae of Liechtenstein. Even former kings Michael I of Romania and Simeon II of Bulgaria were there.
The European heads of state at the funeral were Austrian President Heinz Fischer; Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili; the prime ministers of Croatia and Macedonia; and European Parliament president Jerzy Buzek.
 Click here to see more photos Despite being a deposed royal, Otto Habsburg played a major role in promoting peace in Europe. He was a member of the European Parliament for two decades, and was known for being fiercely against the Nazis and the communists. In 1989, before the fall of the Berlin Wall, he held a Pan Europe picnic near the Austrian border in Hungary.
According to the BBC, Otto’s son, Karl Habsburg, had this to say about his father’s work:
“It would always be wrong to only remember him in the context of the old monarchy or only remember him in the context of the European Union.
“I think he should be remembered in the whole arch that his life has been creating … over the whole changes that happened to Europe in his lifetime.”
Even though he was well respected in Europe and in Austria, many were confused about the pomp and pageantry surrounding Otto Habsburg’s funeral. Several politicians criticized it since Austria has been a republic for nearly a century.
Sources: AFP, Global Post, AP
July 14th marked the future Queen of Sweden’s 34th birthday, and for the first time since 2009, she was present to celebrate her special day. Last year, Crown Princess Victoria was on her honeymoon following her June wedding to the now Prince Daniel.
 Click here for more pics! The two made an appearance on the island of Öland, where the Swedish royals spend their summers, to meet and greet the locals who gathered to wish their next monarch a happy birthday.
It was quite rainy out, and Victoria and Daniel had to use umbrellas to pick up the flowers and chat with the people.
“The weather is terrible, but it is fantastic that so many are still here, it is heart-warming and touching,” said Victoria, according to The Local.
Later in the afternoon, the Swedish royal family and their subjects gathered for a concert, as is done yearly (save for 2010). As always, Queen Silvia and Crown Princess Victoria wore folk attire. But this year saw Victoria wear a scarf around her head to symbolize her status as a married woman.
Wrapping raincoats around their legs so they wouldn’t sit on the wet seats, the family watched a concert done by Swedish singers Carola, Jessica Andersson and Andreas Johnsson.
Victoria also gave scholarships, or the Victoria Award, to ice hockey twins Henrik and Daniel Sedin, as a way to congratulate them on their athletic success.
Since 1979 on her second birthday, the Victoria Award has become a staple in Sweden’s sports awards.
Source: The Local
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