Celebrating the Life of Queen Sofia of Spain

Queen Sofia of Spain

The recent scandals and intrigues that hounded the Spanish Royal Family, one that even questioned its existence has made Queen Sofia, perhaps, Spain’s Mater Dolorosa. A Telegraph article called her the lonely royal consort. The reasons are plentiful. From the many issues to her husband’s infidelity, it is most admirable to see Queen Sofia still maintain that dignified façade, something that could have crumbled had her fate struck some mortals of lesser emotional stamina. On her 75th birthday, we celebrate Queen Sofia’s selfless life, one that has been dedicated for the service of her family and her kingdom.

The eldest child of King Paul of Greece and Princess Frederica of Hanover, Princess Sofia was born in Psychiko, Athens, Greece on 2 November 1938. She is the sister of the deposed King Constantine II. Another sister is Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark.

While she was a young girl, the princess spent some time in Egypt, where she studied early education at El Nasr Girl’s College (EGC). During World War II, the princess, together with her family, lived in exile in South Africa, returning home in 1946. She attended Schloss Salem boarding school in Southern Germany before returning to Athens where she studied childcare, music and archeology.

Sofia also attended Fitzwilliam College in Cambridge. Together with her brother, she represented Greece during the 1960 Summer Olympics as reserve member of the Gold Medal-winning sailing team.
Marriage and Family

While on a cruise in the Greek islands, Princess Sofia met Infante Juan Carlos of Spain. They once again met at the wedding of her cousin, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, at York Minster in 1961. They were eventually married on May 14, 1962, at the Catholic Cathedral of Saint Dennis in Athens. Jean Desse designed her gown. Her attendants included her sister Princess Irene, the groom’s sister Infanta Pilar of Spain, Sofia’s future sister-in-law Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark, Princess Irene of the Netherlands, Princess Alexandra of Kent, Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess Anne of Orleans, Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark, and Princess Tatiana Radziwill.

The couple’s marriage produced three children: Infanta Elena, Duchess of Lugo (born December 20, 1963); Infanta Cristina, Duchess of Palma de Mallorca (born June 13, 1965); and Felipe, Prince of Asturias (born January 30, 1968), the heir to the throne.

Abolition of the Greek Monarchy

Then-Princess Sofía was on holiday in Greece when the 1967 the Greek military staged their coup against the king. While King Constantine did not abdicate, the Greek Military Junta eventually deposed him in 1974 and King Constantine II was stripped of his title, citizenship and property in Greece. Until 1998, Queen Sofia had only visited Greece once, during the funeral of her mother Queen Frederica. Seventeen years later, she returned to Greece together with King Juan Carlos on an official state visit.

Queen of Spain

To make her more appealing to Catholic Spain, Sofia decided to convert from Greek Orthodoxy to Roman Catholicism. She also relinquished her claim to the Greek throne and her name from Latinized from Sophia to the Spanish variant, Sofía.

In 1969, Francisco Franco bestowed upon Prince Juan Carlos, the title Prince of Spain. While he never used the Prince of Asturias, a title reserved for the heir presumptive, Juan Carlos was already known at that time to succeed Francisco Franco with the restoration of the Spanish monarch. Juan Carlos eventually became king in 1975.

Aside from being her husband’s frequent companion in numerous state and official visits, Queen Sofia also embarks on solo solo engagements. She best known as the executive president of her namesake foundation, which, in 1993 sent relief funds to Bosnia and Herzegovina. She also sits as honorary president of the Royal Board on Education and Care of Handicapped Persons of Spain and the Spanish Foundation for Aid for Drug Addicts.

Queen Sofia’s interest lies in fighting drug addiction. She has actually gone to various places to attend meetings and conferences about eliminating drug addiction.

While the Queen remains highly respected, she does not lack any detractors. She has earned the rebuked of LGBT about her conservative stance on same-sex marriage. In one interview, she questioned why LGBTs should hold Gay Pride demonstrations after the Spanish Cortes legalized gay marriage. "I can understand, accept and respect that there are people of other sexual tendencies, but why should they be proud to be gay?” she said. "Should they ride on a parade float and come out in protests? If all of us who are not gay were to parade in the streets, we’d halt the traffic in every city,” the Queen continued.

Criticisms and Personal Setbacks

Reports have also surfaced that even her marriage is in under fire and that she and the king have been living apart for many years already. Author Pilar Eyre noted that the reserved but elegant grandmother has few real friends in Spain. Inside the Zarzuela Palace, there is an existing rift between between the King's "team" and the Queen's ladies in waiting.

Queen Sofia, a sister of Greece’s exiled King Constantine and cousin of Prince Philip, is in aspect opposite to King Juan Carlos. She is a vegetarian who disdains bullfighting and rarely speaks in public because of her heavily-accented Spanish. The king meanwhile is known for his straight talking personality and his passion for fast cars, sailing and skiing.

“It was a marriage of convenience,” says Eyre. “They have been living separate lives for a long time.

Nevertheless, no personal trial, not even a marriage on the rocks or lousy detractors could prevent the Queen from carrying on her duty for her family, for her people and for her country. After all she is still the Queen of Spain.

Happy Birthday, Your Majesty!


The Royal Blogger

Christian George Acevedo is a book worm, mentor, and scholar of wide-ranging interests. He has authored hundreds of articles for various websites, and his expertise ranges from online marketing and finance to history, entertainment and many more. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Tumblr. Contact Christian at powerwordsonlinewriting@gmail.com.

Remembering Queen Adelaide

Queen Adelaide

A famous city in Australia was named after her. She was Queen Victoria's favorite aunt, too, and all Britons adored her when she was alive. Yet, Queen Adelaide is seldom mentioned today. The pious queen, however, never wanted attention for herself. In fact, her sisters in law, the scandal-ridden Queen Caroline and the overbearing Duchess of Kent, attracted more attention than she does during her lifetime.

In 1836, the city of Adelaide in Australia was named in her honor. She was King William IV's consort, but beyond that, not that much is known of this good queen. Not even the Australians living in her namesake city know who she is. One tourist guide laments that “the pace of modern life has meant the monarch is anonymous to South Australians.”

Birth and younger years

The future queen was born on August 13, 1872 at Meiningen, Thuringia, Germany. She was baptized Adelaide Amelia Louise Theresa Caroline.

Her father George I was Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, a petty state that only spanned 423 square miles. Her mother was Princess Louise Eleonore of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. In all of Germany, Meiningen had the distinction of the being the most liberal state, where press freedom is guaranteed and even allowed to criticize its ruler.

She was 11 when her father died. Since her brother was too young to rule, here grandmother had to act as regent.

Queen Adelaide was well educated and at a young age, she already knew the rigors of royal and diplomatic life.

Marriage

In 1817, Princess Charlotte, only daughter of King George IV (then Prince Regent) died in child birth and there would be no chances of him fathering a child again. He was estranged from his wife, Caroline, although he had fathered illegitimate children. The rest of his brothers do not have legitimate offspring, while his sisters were either unmarried or childless. The Royal House of Hanover was on the verge of extinction. In view of an impending succession crisis, Parliament urged the Prince Regent’s unmarried brothers to look for suitable wives.

Read: Events that led to Queen Victoria's birth and reign.

The Prince Regent’s younger brother, the Duke of Clarence had 10 illegitimate children by actress Dorothea Jordan. Obviously, there were not allowed to inherit the throne. First, the children were born out of wedlock. Second, if he decided to marry Miss Jordan, his brother the Prince Regent would definitely refuse to grant permission.

A handsome cash settlement only proved to make the bride-hunting more interesting, as Parliament was willing to increase the debt-ridden princes’ royal allowance if they ever find the right match.

On July 11, 1818, William Henry, Duke of Clarence, 53, was married to Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, who was barely sixteen, on a double wedding ceremony. His brother, Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent, married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, widow of Prince Emich Charles of Leinengen-Dachsburg-Hardenburg.  

While no romantic feeling culminated the union, the marriage of the Duke and Duchess of Clarence remained peaceful and amicable. They decided to settle in Hanover, where their meager income could buy more than what they could in England. The marriage also brought positive impact on William’s attitude; he drank less, swore less and became more careful with his words.

However, their marriage failed to what it aimed for: provide heir to the throne. In 1818, Her daughter Charlotte died a few hours after birth. In 1819, she miscarried on the seventh month of her pregnancy. In 1820, she gave birth to Elizabeth, who died four months later. In 1822, she delivered stillborn twins. 

Eventually, the couple decided to acknowledge William’s niece, Victoria, as their heir presumptive.

Queen

In 1827, William’s elder brother, the Duke of York died. He was followed by George IV in 1830. The Duke of Clarence succeeded as William IV and Adelaide was his queen.

On Sept. 8, 1831, their coronation took place. Adelaide wrote in her diary: "I fear for the future." The King despised the whole ceremony, mocking at its entirety. Queen Adelaide, meanwhile, earned the praise and adulation of everyone around for her "dignity, repose and characteristic grace."

Adelaide never harbored any enmity against William’s illegitimate children, who carried the name FitzWilliam. As a mark of her unconditional generosity, the Queen decided to look after the children as if they were her own. She even insisted that their mother’s portrait be hung in the family home. A huge part of the Queen’s income was dedicated to charity. Her generosity also extended to Princess Victoria of Kent.

King William's reign, though, was to be short lived, however. He died in 1837 and was replaced by his niece Victoria, who would remain on the throne until 1901.

A virtuous Lady

While the aristocracy considered King William a swag, the general public, however, admired him and his queen for restoring the dignity in the scandal-ridden Royal Family, as well as, for their simple, unpretentious lives.

A lady whose morals were beyond question, her court denied the entry of women of questionable virtue. In fact, Charles Greville, clerk of the Privy Coundil, noted: "The Queen is a prude and refuses to have the ladies come décolletées to her parties. George the 4th, who liked ample expanses of that kind, would not let them be covered."

Queen Adelaide was also passionate about the rights of children. She supported the abolition of slavery in England, while she tried to persuade the King to reform parliament and modernize it by extending the vote to those who had previously been not been eligible.

Queen dowager

With the passing of King William, Queen Adelaide moved into Witley Court in Worcestershire, from 1842 until 1846. She also stayed at Gopsall Hall (now part of the crown estate) in Leicestershire, where she was deeply attached to the locals. On time, when she was about to meet the people in Measham, the public were told to meet her by horse and carriage. One man was so desperate to meet Queen Adelaide that he rode in a bathtub pulled by a mule. The Queen greeted him nevertheless.

Her last public appearance was during the laying the foundation stone of the church of St. John the Evangelist, Great Stanmore. When she died, the east window was dedicated to her memory.

She passed away on December 2, 1849 at Bentley Priory in Middlesex. She was interred at St. George's Chapel, Windsor.

She wanted her funeral to be simple. Long before her death, in 1841, she wrote: "I die in all humility" because "we are alike before the throne of God, and I request therefore that my mortal remains be conveyed to the grave without pomp or state…to have as private and quiet a funeral as possible. I particularly desire not to be laid out in state…I die in peace and wish to be carried to the fount in peace, and free from the vanities and pomp of this world."

Princess Alexandra: the British Royal Family’s unsung heroine

Princess Alexandra of Kent

The recent illness that struck Princess Alexandra of Kent left her with no choice but to cancel all her engagements until the end of May. For someone who’s been dedicating her life for the service of others and for the support of the Crown, it must be pretty sad point in her life. Just recently, the Princess was reportedly struck with polymyalgia rheumatic (PMR), an inflammation of the muscles that leads to stiffness and agonizing pain.

Unlike other attention-seeking members of the royal family, Princess Alexandra has been happy to performing her duties without ever wanting to seek publicity. Peace and quiet is Princess Alexandra’s preferred lifestyle, and an existence as little punctuated by the click of cameras as possible is what enables her to make her jovial, easy-going contribution to the public life.

A royal birth

Princess Alexandra was born on Christmas Day, 1936. She is the only daughter of Prince George, Duke of Kent, fourth son and fifth child of King George V and Queen Mary, and of Princess Marina, youngest daughter of Prince Nicholas of Greece (a son of King George I of Greece) and Grand Duchess Helen Vladimirovna (a granddaughter of Czar Alexander II of Russia). She was barely six when her father died of plane crash in Scotland. At a very young age, Princess Alexander was thrusted upon the role of becoming her mother’s companion as the dowager duchess performed public duties. Later on, she pursued her own interests, supported charities, represented her cousin Queen Elizabeth and supported her in any means that she could. One friend notes that “Alexandra has always put duty first, second and third.”

Fairy-tale wedding

In 1963, she married the Hon. Angus Ogilvy, second son of the 12^th Earl of Airlie, at Westminster Abbey. The marriage was a stunning event and the bride arrived in a Rolls-Royce, rather than the usual state coach. Her dress was designed by John Cavanagh, which was of white tulle over which was magnolia lace. Her 21-foot train extended from her headdress and she was crowned with her mother’s diamond fringe tiara. Four small bridesmaids and a chief bridesmaid, twelve-year old Princess Anne, plus two kilted pages completed her wedding entourage.

The marriage was a very happy one, blessed by the birth of a son, James, in 1964, and a daughter, Marina, in 1966. It survived the shattering effect of the Lonrho Affair, where Mr. Ogilvy’s reputation was threatened, and which forced him to resign almost 50 city directorships all at the same time.

Selfless Life

Princess Alexandra and her family established their residence at Thatched House Lodge, a fine well-shielded cottage in Richmond Park. The Princess also maintains an office at St. James’s Palace. In fact, Her Royal Highness has one of the smallest permanent staffs of all the working members of the Royal Family, who have their work cut out making all the necessary arrangements from start to finish for the hundreds or more engagements she undertakes every year. To pay for the cost of her public duties, Her Royal Highness receives 225,000 pounds a year.

Mr. Ogilvy has been her constant companion in many events, ranging from visits to theaters, concert halls, dinners, public engagements, charitable events and State occasions.

The death of Mr. Ogilvy in 2004 was a blow to Princess Alexandra, but she decided to continue her full schedule of official duties. Since then, she lived alone at Thatched House Lodge.

Princess Alexandra’s first, and longest established, public position was as Patron of the British Red Cross Society. It fitted her well with her training as a nurse in child welfare although, she confessed: “I was always terrified of dropping a baby on its head.” But her “try-anything-at-once” attitude has since become celebrated. Aside from being the “first” English princess to have attended an ordinary school (She was 11 when she attended Heathfield School near Ascot), the Princess also tried a royal ride on a London transport bus. Meanwhile, a trip to British Hong Kong enabled her to ride a Chinese sampan, giving her also a distant few of China. There, she got her try of Chinese cuisine, too, and she fell in love with it. In fact, she has been a regular patron of Chinese restaurants in and around Richmond.

Princess Alexandra undertakes an average of 120 engagements every year, making her one of the most active members of the Royal Family. Well past retirement age, the Princess has refused to cut back in her engagements.

In 1959, Princess Alexandra embarked on an extensive tour of Australia, where she represented the Queen during Queensland Centenary Celebrations.

She also stood on behalf of Her Majesty during the independence celebration of Nigeria in 1960, where she opened the first Parliament on October 3.

Princess Alexandra has been founding Chancellor of Lancaster University a position she held from 1964 until 2005

She is also President of Alexandra Rose Day, which was founded in honor of her great-grandmother, Alexandra of Denmark.

A day in her life

The official website of the British Royal Family gives a detailed overview on how Princess Alexandra spends her day.

She starts every morning by reading newspapers and then reading and answering letters. She may decide to hold meetings with her staff “to discuss issues relating to her program of future engagements and related administrative matters.” She also spends time to study briefs in preparation for forthcoming engagements.

Afternoons are spent visiting organizations of which Her Royal Highness is Patron or with which she is closely affiliated. These visits usually take her to various youth projects, hospitals, care homes, museums and agricultural shows.

In the evening, Princess Alexandra attends engagements, theatrical performance, an exhibition or a gala, as well as Receptions held at Buckingham Palace.