On an island three hours from Athens, the former King of Greece’s second son, Prince Nikolaos, married his longtime girlfriend, Tatiana Blatnik. The nuptials took place at Ayios Nikolaos monastery on Spetses Island. Close friends and family – many of them royalty themselves – saw the happy couple tie the knot.
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Before the wedding, King Constantine and Queen Anne-Marie were seen at Ayios Nikolaos, checking in on last minute preparation.
Constantine told AP Television: “As you know, in all of these situations, even the last minute you are preparing.”
By sunset, the wedding guests began to arrive. Crowds and media gathered outside, though they were kept at distance by security.
As the guests arrived, they stopped to pose for the photographers before heading inside the white monastery.
Prince Nikolaos, age 40, came to his wedding by boat. Tatiana Blatnik meanwhile, came in a horse drawn carriage. Dressed in a simple gown of lace and Grecian style thrown in, the bride was given away by her father, Atilio Brillembourg.
What went on during the ceremony remains unknown, as this was a private wedding for a deposed royal family. Greek voters abolished the monarchy in the 1970s, and the family has been living in exile since the late 60s. Currently, most of them are based in London.
After the wedding, Prince Nikolaos and the now Princess Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark emerged from Ayios Nikolaos, arm in arm and very happy. They waved to the crowds as they got into a carriage that sent them to their reception.
Tatiana, age 29 and an events planner for fashion house Diane von Furstenberg, is known as Princess Nikolaos because she is not a princess in her own right; she earned it by being a prince’s wife.
Crowds and media on the Greek island of Spetses turned out in droves to get a glimpse of one of the biggest royal events of the year: the marriage of Greek Prince Nikolaos and Tatiana Blatnik.
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Though the wedding is Wednesday, the pre-wedding reception took place the night before at the Grace Poseidon Hotel. Royals from all over Europe gave the people a chance to see them as they arrived for the dinner.
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Although the monarchy was abolished in Greece in the 1970s, its exiled royal family are allowed to come back for major events such as this wedding. Prince Nikolaos is the second son of King Constantine and Queen Anne-Marie.
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Many of the royal coming to this wedding are their relatives. For example, the children of King Juan Carlos of Spain are o Spetses. That is because their mother, Queen Sofia, is Constantine’s sister.
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Also related to the Greek royal family are the Danish royals. Queen Anne-Marie is sister to Queen Margrethe II, and therefore is aunt to Crown Prince Frederik and Princes Joachim. Frederik’s wife, Crown Princess Mary, is representing him at the wedding, while Joachim and his wife Princess Marie are also there.
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Also in attendance are newlyweds Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden, along with the Netherlands’ Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima, and Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon.
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Though there is much media attention surrounding this wedding, Nikolaos and Tatiana hope the press would keep their distance Wednesday.
“The couple’s wish is to celebrate their wedding with close family and friends in as much a discreet and calm way as possible,” King Constantine’s office said in a statement.
Forbes Magazine released its fourth annual “World’s Richest Royals” list this week. Though the global economy remains shaky, there were a few royals who saw their fortunes go up. Some lost theirs while the majority maintained their wealth.
Just as before, Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej topped the list at $30 billion. His wealth comes the Crown Property Bureau and made up mainly of public investments and real estate. However, with the current political climate in Thailand, investors may be turned off and that could effect the King’s wealth in the future.
Seeing their wealth go up were Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al-Saud ($18 billion) and Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al Thani of Qatar ($2.4 billion). Both rulers managed to steer their countries away from the global economic downturn and got their money from rising oil and gas prices.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan of Abu Dhabi ($15 billion), Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum of Dubai ($4.5 billion), and Kuwait’s Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah ($350 million) all saw their forunes go downward. Most especially was Dubai’s Sheikh Mohammed who saw his emirate go over $100 million in debt. Even Abu Dhabi ran into real estate issues.
The remaining royals, such as Monaco’s Prince Albert II ($1 billion), Liechtenstein Prince Hans Adam ($3.5 billion) and Sultan Qaboos of Oman ($700 million) managed to keep their fortunes. However, the global economy is unpredictable and one would have to wait till next year to see how well their wealth survives.
According to Forbes, royal wealth “derives from inheritances or positions of power. All of the richest royals on this list are monarchs and serve as heads of often extended family fortunes. Many times wealth is controlled by royal families in trust for their nations or territories. For these reasons, none of the 15 royals on this list would qualify for our annual ranking of the world’s billionaires.”
To see the entire slideshow of the world’s wealthies royals, click here
Right after their beautiful wedding, Crown Princess Victoria and her new husband, Prince Daniel, joined their friends, family and Swedish government leaders for the reception. It was very formal but it included lots of laughs and happy cheers for the newlweds.
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As soon as everyone sat down, King Carl XVI Gustaf gave a short speech in English. He first welcomed everyone to the reception and thanked them for coming. He expressed joy for his daughter and – dare he say! – his new son-in-law. Victoria raised her eyebrows in mock surprise over that while there was endearing laughter from Daniel.
The King ended his speech with a “Skål!” – the Swedish word for cheers. All in attendance raised their wine glasses and had a sip.
Later on, King Carl Gustaf stood again to give another speech. This time he went into depth about the wedding, and even mentioned how June 19th is also his wedding anniversary to Queen Silvia. To commemorate his 34th marriage year, he gave the Queen a pink rose, which made her weep.
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Daniel’s father, Olle Westling, gave his speech for the couple – in English:
“Your marriage is not only a family affair — it is something that affects all the people of Sweden. The warmth and joy that stream towards you today from near and far are a wonderful acknowledgement of appreciation.
“Many people see the fact that you met and fell in love as something of a fairytale. The man of the people who won the Crown Princess. Yes, it is indeed a fairytale, but I do not think it is a coincidence that this has happened here in Sweden, where The King´s motto is “For Sweden — With the Times”.
“Daniel, you are our dear son, and your mother, your sister and I have always been extremely proud of you. You have always
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chosen to go your own way, and you have done so with honour, whether in terms of your career choices, your friends or your leisure activities. Of course you never became a professional hockey player, but we´re still proud of you!
“But once we had met you, dear Victoria, and experienced the warmth that you bring and the openness you show to everyone in our family — and not just our family; I remember one day in the lingonberry forest in Ockelbo, how you greeted everyone who crossed your path and showed such wonderful warmth. That´s when we understood why Daniel had fallen for you. It was quite clear that he had waited and made his choice with great care. He had once again gone his own way.
“The best way of dealing with the great and important work that lies ahead of you is by helping each another. Talking with each other, supporting each other and working as a team are what will serve you best in the long run. This is something that Ewa and I have plenty of experience of, and we will gladly give whatever advice we can. As your parents, Daniel, your mother and I know that in Victoria you will have a loving, warm and kind-hearted wife.
“It falls to me — and this is a great honor — to thank you for the hospitality that we have all shared this evening. Our hosts have invited us to this gala evening with personal warmth and generosity — an evening that is far from over, and which we will always remember. But for the food and drink that we have enjoyed so far, I would like to thank you most humbly and sincerely on behalf of myself and all my fellow guests!”
With that, Olle Westling led those at the reception with four hurrahs for the newly married couple.
The newly Prince Daniel gave his speech, which he memorized rather than writing down. Below is a YouTube video of the entire speech, in both English and Swedish:
Soon after Daniel’s speech, the wedding cake came out. It was very tall, taller than some of the guests, with yellow trimmings and the couple’s monogram. Victoria invited her page boys and flower girls to come up with her as she and her new husband cut the cake.
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After the dessert, it was time to dance! Everyone moved into a larger room where they could dance more freely. A band was in the room waiting for them.
As tradition holds, the bride and groom dance for their first dance as a married couple. Victoria curtseyed before Daniel before they began their waltz. After they danced, Victoria invited everyone to the dance floor, and they obliged!
It was already after midnight when the dancing began, and but it was clear all the royals were willing to party all night.
Tomorrow, the King will host a luncheon for the guests. Perhaps that same day Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel would leave for their honeymoon which is believed to last for three weeks in an undisclosed location.
Once again, long live Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel – may they have many years of wedded bliss!
In Stockholm, at 3:30 in the afternoon Saturday, Sweden’s heir to the throne, Crown Princess Victoria married her longtime love, former gym owner Daniel Westling. The wedding saw the largest gathering of royals from all over the world since the 2004 marriage of Crown Prince Felipe of Spain to Letizia Ortiz. But that didn’t seem to matter to the bride and groom – during the ceremony, they had eyes only for each other.
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The guests began arriving at Storkyrkan at around 2:30pm local time. At first, royals who are not heirs in their respective countries came. But as the minutes passed, Swedish politicians, friends and family of Victoria and Daniel, and the crown princely and regent couples began to arrive. Everyone walked across the cathedral’s courtyard on a pale blue pathway, stopped a few times to pose for photographers before entering the building. A girl’s choir standing outside of the church sang songs during the procession of guests.
At 3:20pm, Princess Madeleine arrived with her mother Queen Silvia. A few minutes later, Prince Carl Philip came with the groom, Daniel Westling, by his side. Daniel looked composed as he walked to his own wedding, but one could guess he was a nervous and excited as any other groom. The small crowd near the church cheered and applauded, and even the choir girls strained their necks to get a glimpse of him. The man who would leave the church as a Prince simply smiled and waved.
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As soon as Daniel and Carl Philip went into Storkyrkan, a black car carrying King Carl XVI Gustaf and the bride, Crown Princess Victoria, came down the street. Guards opened the door for the Crown Princess to exit, and as she did, she revealed her wedding gown, designed by Par Engsheden and the cameo tiara her own mother wore to her wedding – on the same date 34 years ago. Victoria’s veil was also on loan from her mother. In her hands, Victoria carried a bouquet of numerous white flowers – rose, phalaenopsis orchid, peony, clematis, cosmos, wax flower, sweet pea, dicentra formosa, Mårbacka pelargonium, so many more!
The King walked his daughter down the aisle, but stopped before the altar. Before them were Victoria’s flower girls and page boys. The girls wore white dresses while the boys wore sailor suits. All were well-behaved.
At the stairs leading to the altar, Daniel Westling took Victoria from her father and the couple continued up the stairs, past their regal guests and up to the altar. Three bishops and the Archbishop Anders Wejryd from the Swedish Lutheran Church presided over the ceremony.
It was short but sweet ceremony, lasting only a half hour. Early on, Archbishop Wejryd asked the bride and groom if they would take each other as their spouses. Both Victoria and Daniel firmly said, “Ja!”
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When it came time to exchange the rings, the Archbishop gave them to the couple, whom together held each side of the two rings in both hands. Meaning, Victoria and Daniel held one ring in her left hand and his right, and vice versa for the other ring.
As they said their vows, the bride and groom got a bit emotional. Victoria blinked back tears and once the two put the wedding rings on each other, Daniel seemed to be crying. His bride – now wife – wiped the tears from his face.
Others wiped away tears, such Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Margarita of Romania.
The ceremony continued with prayers and the Archbishop blessing the marriage. He gave a speech as the Crown Princess and her Prince stood before him:
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“Your situation, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel (we can now use this title for the first time), is both shared and unique. You’ll be taking on tasks that you won’t be able to turn down — but that you can influence. One of you has had many years to prepare for and live this life — and one of you only a few. You won’t have complete control over your lives — but you will successfully make your way through life if you keep your focus on people other than yourselves, on wider contexts, on society, on family and on the future. “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
“So, you are now husband and wife. Privately, you have set up a ‘refuge’ that has now been confirmed as publicly as is possible. Through marriage, a bridge is forged between the most personal side of your lives and the public side. “Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” We who all over world are following your wedding are responsible for helping you with this. We have prayed for you, we will carry on praying for you and thinking of you, and will help you to stay together — in the same way as we have done at all other weddings we have been to, and will attend in the future!”
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Then the husband and wife turned to the orchestra, and listened to Swedish singers, Agnes Carlsson and Bjorn Skifs, sing a song in English, “When You Tell The World You’re Mine.” As they sung, Daniel seemed to get emotional again. Victoria could not stop smiling.
After the song, there was an official blessing of the marriage, and Victoria and Daniel left the altar. Her parents and siblings, plus his parents followed them as well as the page boys and flower girls. The other royals got up and followed the procession.
For a short while, no one was seen. That was because Prince Daniel was putting on a star onto his tuxedo. Earlier that day, he became a Knight of the Order of the Seraphim, and now that he was officially a member of the Swedish Royal Family, he could wear the star.
Finally, the doors to Storkyrkan opened and Victoria and Daniel emerged. The choir girls began to sing again, and as they did, the newlyweds shared a kiss.
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After a few songs, an open top carriage came around and the couple got in. Queen Silvia blew kisses at the couple as the carriage trotted off towards the heart of Stockholm.
At first there were scant crowds. But as the carriage went through the streets, the crowds got bigger and louder. There had been reports prior to the wedding that less than half of Swedes support the monarchy. But by the looks of the crowds this day, that didn’t seem to be the case.
After going through the city, the carriage stopped at a pier with an elaborate boat waiting to take Victoria and Daniel to the palace. As they were escorted across the bay – Stockholm is called the Venice of the North – their families and guests were arriving at the palace, waiting for the couple to come.
It took about 10 minutes for the new husband and wife to make ashore, but when they did, their families, guests and the crowds
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were waiting for them. They walked up to the stairs where a large landing allowed them to wave at the crowds. But there were more crowds on the other side of the palace – the one that doesn’t face the water. After disappearing inside the palace for several minutes, Victoria and Daniel emerged again on the balcony, which this time had a choir and orchestra singing songs for them. At this point, the couple gave what everyone was waiting for – a loving kiss!
King Carl XVI Gustaf gave a short speech at the balcony and ended it by encouraging the people to cheer for his daughter and new son-in-law. Then Crown Princess Victoria gave a short speech, thanking the people for giving her her Prince!
With that, everyone went inside for the festivities.
Long live Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel!
Below is a YouTube video of the wedding’s highlights:
It was a night of celebration as Sweden and royals from all over the world marked Saturday’s wedding between Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling. Just like her parents had 34 years ago, Victoria and her fiancè were a given a special concert at the Royal Concert Hall in Stockholm. Pop acts and classical artists played through the night as if it were a final hurrah before tomorrow’s big event.
First arriving at the Hall was the House of Bernadotte. When she got out of the car, Crown Princess Victoria wowed the crowd waiting for her. Beaming and radiating of joy, the Crown Princess waved as the people gave her and Daniel a four-fold cheer.
They walked up the red carpet behind her parents, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia. Bringing up the rear were her two younger siblings, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine.
After the Swedish royal family came the friends and relatives of the royal couple, and the Swedish government leaders. Then came the royals from all over Europe, plus Japan and Jordan. The royal guest list even included those who are from deposed monarchies, such as Romania and Serbia.
All in all, 1,600 guests.
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Once inside, everyone dined amongst each other before the big concert. Those who haven’t seen each other in a while were able to say hello, such as Denmark’s Crown Princess Mary and Spain’s Crown Princess Letizia.
King Carl XVI Gustaf gave a small speech during the dinner, thanking the Prime Minister for allowing the wedding to take place – after all, the wedding of an heir to the throne needs government approval.
“We can all see how happy and engaged the engaged couple looks,” the King went on to say. “They really… You can feel the joy and youth and optimism in their eyes. We can all feel the warmth and happiness also in this hall and during this day.”
At about a quarter to nine local time, all those in attendance were in the Hall. Everyone stood and sang when the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra played the Swedish national anthem. Even Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II, who’s mother was a Swedish Princess, sang along.
Right after that, the orchestra began to play “Party Song” and right in the middle of the stage, lights went on, illuminating two
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figures holding hands. Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling had made their appearance. They received a standing ovation as they made their way to two seats in the front row especially made for them. With that, the concert began.
It was clearly a joyous occasion for everyone in the Hall. Ballet was performed, the opera classic “Nessun Dorma” was sung – even pop and jazz acts played. The host of the event also poked playful fun at the royals in attendance. At one point, the group Jazz Divas of Scandinavia were about the perform and the host gave a nod to the Scandinavian Crown Princesses – Victoria, Mette-Marit and Mary. The women had a good laugh about it.
But the biggest act to perform that night was probably the 80s Swedish pop duo, Roxette, said to be one of Victoria’s favorite bands. As the band played “The Look,” everyone in the hall clapped along and a few – such as Norway’s Princess Martha Louise – moved their heads to the song. Once done, there was a standing ovation for Roxette.
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The concert came to a close when all the singers returned to the stage and together sang Elvis Presley’s classic, “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” As they did with the Roxette song, many of the royals sang along.
Overall, it was an emotional event for everyone. Queen Silvia was seen wiping away some tears and it looked as if King Carl Gustaf was getting teary-eyed. Even Princess Madeleine looked red in the eyes – as did Queen Margrethe and Dutch Queen Beatrix.
With that, the pre-wedding events were over. Tomorrow comes the wedding of the year as Crown Princess Victoria marries her love – and a former gym owner from a small village in central Sweden becomes Prince Daniel.
Below is the guest list for the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling. The list I have here shows all the royals and the heads of state from Finland and Iceland.
Belgium
Their Majesties H.M. King Albert II and H.M. Queen Paola
Their Royal Highnesses H.R.H. Crown Prince Philippe and H.R.H. Crown Princess Mathilde
Their Royal Highnesses H.R.H. Princess Astrid and H.R.H. Prince Lorenz
H.R.H. Prince Laurent and H.R.H. Princess Marie Claire
Bulgaria
Their Majesties H.M. King Simeon and H.M. Queen Margarita
H.R.H. Prince Kyril
H.R.H. Princess Rosario
Denmark
H.M. Queen Margrethe II and H.R.H. Prince Henrik
H.R.H. Crown Prince Frederik and H.R.H. Crown Princess Mary
H.R.H. Prince Christian, Page Boy
Captain of H.M. The Queen’s Naval Household Lars Rosendahl Christothersen, Commander of Dannebrog
Finland
H.E. Republic of Finland’s President Mrs Tarja Halonen and Doctor Pentti Arajärvi, LL D
Greece
H.M. King Constantine and H.M. Queen Anne-Marie
H.R.H. Princess Alexia, Mrs Morales and Mr Carlos Morales Quintana
H.R.H. Prince Nikolaos and Ms Tatiana Blatnik
H.R.H. Prince Philipos
Iceland
H.E. Iceland’s President Dr Ólafur Ragnar Grimsson and Mrs Dorrit Moussaieff
Japan
H.I.H. Crown Prince Naruhito
Jordan
H.M. King Abdullah II Bin Al Hussein and H.M. Queen Rania al Abdullah
H.R.H. Prince Ali bin Al Hussein and H.R.H. Princess Rym Ali
H.R.H. Prince El Hassan bin Talal and H.R.H. Princess Sarvath El Hassan
H.R.H. Prince Rashid bin El Hassan
H.R.H. Princess Noor bint Asem
H.R.H. Princess Eman
Former Yugoslavia
H.R.H. Crown Prince Alexander and H.R.H. Crown Princess Katherine
Liechtenstein
S.D. Erbprinz Alois von und zu Liechtenstein and Prinzessin Sophie I.K.H. von und zu Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
H.R.H. The Grand Duke of Luxembourg and H.R.H. The Grand Duchess of Luxembourg
S.A.R. Le Grand-Duc Héréditaire Guillaume de Luxembourg
H.R.H. Prince Félix of Luxembourg
Monaco
S.A.S. Le Prince Albert II
Ms. Charlene Wittstock
The Netherlands
H.M. the Queen of the Netherlands
H.R.H. the Prince of Orange, and H.R.H. Princess Máxima of the Netherlands
H.R.H. Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, Bridesmaid
H.R.H. Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau and H.R.H. Princess Mabel of Orange-Nassau
H.R.H. Prince Constantijn and H.R.H. Princess Laurentien
Norway
H.M. King Harald V and H.M. Queen Sonja
H.R.H. Crown Prince Haakon and H.R.H. Crown Princess Mette-Marit
H.R.H. Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Bridesmaid
Princess Märtha Louise and Mr Ari Behn
Captain Frank Bondø, the Royal Ship Norge
Romania
H.R.H. Crown Princess Margarita, and H.R.H. Prince Radu of Romania
Spain
H.M. Queen Sofia
H.R.H. the Prince of Asturias, Spain, and H.R.H. the Princess of Asturias
H.R.H. the Infanta Doña Elena de Borbon
H.R.H. the Infanta Doña Cristina and H.E. Don Iñaki Urdangarin
United Kingdom
H.R.H. The Earl of Wessex and H.R.H. The Countess of Wessex
Commander Nick Cooke-Priest, Commander of HMS Kent
Germany
H.R.H. Princess Benedikte and H.H. Prince Richard zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
S.D. Prinz Gustav zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Ms Carina Axelsson
I.D. Prinzessin Alexandra and Jefferson-Fredrich Graf von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth
I.D. Prinzessin Nathalie and Mr Alexander Johannsmann
S.K.H. Prinz Manuel von Bayern and I.K.H. Prinzessin Anna von Bayern
S.H. Erbprinz Hubertus von Sachsen- Coburgund Goth and I.H. Prinzessin Kelly von Sachsen- Coburgund Gotha
To read the entire guest list, which includes the members of Parliament, political leaders and all of Victoria and Daniel’s relatives, check out the Swedish Royal Court website.
Reminder: the wedding will take place at 3:30pm local time. If you want to watch the event, click here
Earlier on Thursday, Europe’s royal women and children were seen arriving at Storkyrkan Cathedral, the site of the wedding of the year on Saturday. The Crown Princesses of Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands were with their children, the future monarchs of their respective countries, to rehearse for the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling.
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Victoria will have many of her godchildren as bridesmaids and page boys in her wedding, and that includes the royal godchildren – Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, Norway’s Princess Ingrid-Alexandra and Danish Prince Christian.
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The practice took only twenty minutes, but Lars-Goran Lonner Mark, the minister who might conduct the ceremony, told Expressen yesterday that all the kids taking part in the wedding will have the chance to train together in the church before the Saturday wedding.
“It went very well,” said Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit on the exercise.
Then in the evening, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia held a private party for friends of the House of Bernadotte at Drottningholm Palace. Those friends also included the Norwegian royal family, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark and Willem-Alexander and Maxima, Crown Prince and Princess of the Netherlands.
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When the Norwegian royals left their yacht, the Norge, for the party, Crown Princess Mette-Marit was stopped by her daughter, Ingrid Alexandra. The little Princess kissed her mother’s hand, and in turn Mette-Marit gave Ingrid Alexandra a hug.
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Upon descending the ramp to get off the yacht, the Crown Princess had difficulty walking off in her high heels. But she managed.
Also attending the private party was Princess Margarita and Prince Radu of Romania. Supposedly, Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg was there, but there is photographic evidence.
Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark is also believed to have not been at the party because he is stilling flying in from South Africa where he watched his country play at the World Cup.
Just a reminder that SVT.se will be broadcasting the wedding live on Saturday, so be sure to log on and watch the most romantic event of the year!
The leaders of six Gulf nations gathered in Riyadh for the 12th annual Gulf Cooperation Council. Royals from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates came to Dirriyah Palace to discuss among Iran, Iraq, Yemen and the Mideast peace process.
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All those in attendance agreed to back the U.S.-backed Mideast peace process, which broke down last year. They also called for a revival of the peace talks and for Israel to stop settlements in Palestinian territories.
In addition, the Gulf leaders sided with Kuwait in an alleged Iranian spy group discovered in that country. The secretary-general of the GCC, Abdulrahman al-Attiyah, said “The security of the Gulf region is a red line. The security of the Gulf cannot be divided.”
“But our Kuwaiti friends want to handle it themselves for the moment,” he added.
As for Iraq, the GCC members called for all neighboring countries and the international community to help the troubled nation to get back on its feet.
The GCC was hosted by Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. Crown Prince Sultan and Prince Naif were present. The monarchs of Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait were there, while the UAE was represented by its Vice President, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum of Dubai. Oman was the other country at the summit, but its deputy prime minister was there instead of its Sultan.
After weeks of building up the big event, Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II officially celebrated her 70th year Friday, and she did it with the love of her people, her family and other royals from across Europe.
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Unfortunately, a lot of royals were unable to make to the festivities because of the volcanic ash shutting down airports in northern Europe. But that didn’t stop everyone from having a good time.
Friday began with 27 cannon rumblings from a nearby naval base. Within hours, the royal family of Denmark stepped out onto the balcony of Amalienborg Palace to greet the thousands of well-wishers who waved their country’s flag and cheered for their Queen. Along with the family, the crowd also sang “Happy Birthday” to the monarch affectionately known as Daisy.
During this time, police had to block a small group of anti-monarchists from protesting at the Palace. They were kept back at over 300 feet.
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Meanwhile, Margrethe and her husband, Prince Henrik, then rode a carriage through the streets of Copenhagen as they traveled to a reception at City Hall. There, European royals had a birthday lunch which seemed to be a prologue to the gala dinner in the evening.
Not all of Europe’s royalty were there for the celebrations. With air flights canceled due to ash from an Icelandic volcano, some were not able to come to Copenhagen at all. Britain’s Prince Philip, the Crown Princely couple of Belgium, and the King and Queen of Spain were those not in attendance. Others, such as Dutch Queen Beatrix, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Crown Princess Maxima made it in via train just for Friday and had missed out on the performance gala Thursday night.
But luckily, they did not miss out on the dinner at Fredensborg Palace. Dressed to the nines, the royals gathered once again for the final part of Queen Margrethe’s birthday festivities. This time, her husband and eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik delivered moving speeches.
The Prince Consort went first. After welcoming the guests, he said in Danish, “Dear Daisy, 70 years is a milestone. The years that have elapsed, has filled you with a life experience that is influenced by your life’s work and your duty to follow it. But they also have filled you with joy and happiness – even if no people are living a perfect life. For aspects of life are manifold. But if you have lived as you can safely say that you have lived a rich life.
AP PHOTO/POLFOTO, Jens Dige
“You have contributed to your own life and greatly to mine, Frederik, Joachim, our grandchildren and our entire extended family. Yes, you have contributed more than that. You have too many lived a life that has inspired loving care, life energy, cheerfulness and artistic talent.
“Although you may begin to feel the age pass you from these sources of inspiration properties that blooms and evolves as never before.
“Your pleasant and amiable mind, combined with your life’s work, gives you an intuition and a compassion that touches people in your vicinity. For all those who live around you, every day enriched with joy and feeling of joy, happiness and admiration.”
With that, Prince Henrik gave a toast calling the Queen the light of his life.
REUTERS/Jens Norgaard Larsen/Scanpix Denmark
Next came Crown Prince Frederik, whom many thought Margrethe was going to abdicate the throne on this day for. Whether he was disappointed or relieved did not show on the Prince. Instead, he gave a sweet speech to his mother, and got a kiss from wife Crown Princess Mary as a result!
Even Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen spoke to the head of state in words the Queen described as “kind and beautiful.”
Finally, the birthday girl got her chance to speak. She gave a short and simple speech in which she thanked each of the speakers and gave them a few personal words. As for the rest of the guests, she said:
“What is 70 years? Many before you reach this far, but when the day comes, they are suddenly gone so quickly. Day has gone to day, year to year, many were the challenges, joys far more and far larger. Gratitude for everything that was me and part of everything I have experienced the greatest.”
With that, a toast was made and the night’s dinner began.
The past two days have seen one of the great gathering of royals of 2010. The next time this many royals would be at one place in such a glamorous environment with gowns, tuxedos and tiaras will be Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria’s wedding on June 19th – that is almost two months away!
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