The Royal Correspondent

Recently, His Serene Highness Prince Gustav of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, nephew of Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, received his diploma in, of all things, Woodcarving.

According to the German newspaper, Der Westen, the lovable yet goofy prince decided to try his hand at woodcarving  and as a result earned a diploma in the craft (in record time). Apparently, the 40-something year old German prince has an unusal talent for carving spoons made of Cherry wood…

Cool.

To read two articles about Prince Gustav’s amazing talent please click here and here.

Photo courtesy of Siegener Zeitung

To say that the year 2011 was a difficult one for the Imperial family as well as for people of Japan is an understatement and so far 2012 began with a rocky start.

A 7.0 earthquake shook Tokyo, Japan on Sunday as His Imperial Majesty Emperor Akihito led his country’s New Year celebrations by urging people to work together in rebuilding the nation from March’s quake-tsunami disaster.

The earthquake struck at 2:28pm near Torishima, a northwestern Pacific Island about 560 kilometres south of Tokyo. There were no immediate reports of damage or injury and no tsunami warning was issued.

To read more about the Imperial family’s new year celebrations please click here.  To watch a video of the New Year’s reception at the Imperial palace please click here.

Sources: AFP and the Japan Times

Photo courtesy of: Daylife/Reuters

Broadcaster Alan Titchmarsh reviews all the British royal family activities in 2011 including that small wedding that occurred on April 29 at Westminster Abbey as well as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s historic visit to the Republic of Ireland and much more. Click the links below to watch:

• Part One 
• Part Two 
• Part Three 
• Part Four

On December 31, 2011, His Majesty King Harald V of Norway delivered his annual New Year’s speech from the royal palace in Oslo.

On January 1, 2012, members of the British royal family attended New Year’s Day church service held at the St. Mary Magdalene at Sandringham.  To view photos please click here.  To watch another video please click here.

Meanwhile, His Royal Highness Prince Harry of Wales along with his cousins Their Royal Highness Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice and her longtime boyfriend, Dave Clark, rang in the new year in Klosters, Switzerland.  To view photos please click here.

On December 31, 2011, His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco delivered his New Year speech from the Palais Princier de Monaco.  The Sovereign Prince spoke about tolerance, the world economic crisis, and Princess Charlene.  Here is what he had to say:

This past year has certainly been exceptional for Princess Charlene and myself. On the occasion of our marriage, we witnessed the strong union between the community and our family of Monaco.

Tonight I am here to express, on behalf of us both, our hope that each of you, I remember this shared joy.

While around us, several countries are or are marked by a financial crisis, severe economic and social, the dynamism of the Principality allows us to resist.In this delicate situation, particularly wise management of public finances is necessary to integrate the constraints on us, while preserving our social model and our growth prospects. That is why we must make balanced choices, reasonable and fair.

Do not lose sight of that in situations of economic crisis that the urgency of solidarity is strongest to protect against stress. The holiday season is a special time of reunion for families and between generations.

These periods also sensitizes us to the values of tolerance, respect for others and cultural diversity. It is my wish that Monaco remains a model of “living together” based on a common set of values.

Tonight, my thoughts especially go to our community experienced the death, illness or loneliness. I also want to provide my warm encouragement to our young people who embody the future. We believe in their imagination, their ideals, their will, their capacity for hard work and generosity.

Women and men who work, invest or choose to live among us, I hope that their contribution to our country brings them, in turn, an authentic personal development.

To one and all, in the Principality or who are away but remaining near in heart, I say again with confidence: “Happy New Year!”

To watch videos please click the links below:

• VIDEO  
• VIDEO 2

Photo courtesy of Monaco Matin

On January 1, 2012, the members of the Danish royal family attended Nytårskur and Nytårstaffel (New Year’s Court and New Year’s banquet) at Christian VIIs Palace at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen.

Also in attendance were Denmark’s prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt as well as various new members of government.  Noticeably absent this year was Her Royal Highness Princess Marie who is about to give birth sometime this month.

The menu for this evening’s gala dinner included Potato soup with parsley, Pheasant à la Bourguignonne, Celery and Leek puree, Marcel cake with Seville oranges, and Rosenborg wine.

To watch a video as well as to view photos please click the links below:

• VIDEO  
• Gallery One 
• Gallery Two 
• Gallery Three 
• Gallery Four 
• Gallery Five 
• Gallery Six

Photo courtesy of Billed Bladet

On Saturday, December 31, 2011, a Spanish court in Palma de Majorca postponed the appearance of His Majesty King Juan Carlos I of Spain’s son-in-law, Inaki Urdangarin, on accusations of corruption following legal representations. Mr. Urdangarin will now have to appear on February 25, 2012, instead of February 6.

Apparently, Judge Jose Aragon, who is in charge of the case, had received a number of requests from lawyers, including Urdangarin’s own, to put off the hearing to give them time to study the file.

The judge is investigating corruption in a non-profit organisation, Instituto Noos, formerly run by Urdangarin who is married to the His Majesty’s youngest daughter, Her Royal Highness Infanta Cristina.  Mr. Urdangarin’s lawyer, Mario Pascual Vives, said his client was “absolutely innocent”.

In a court document it notes that “… state prosecutors are investigating suspected forgery, perversion of the course of justice, fraud and embezzlement of public funds to the tune of several million euros…” according to AFP.

On December 12, the royal family suspended Mr. Urdangarin from official engagements and the palace’s highest official, Rafael Spottorno, gave an unprecedented rebuke, telling Spanish media his behaviour “does not seem exemplary”.

Source Associated Press and AFP

On December 31, 2011, Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark delivered her annual New Year speech live from Christian IX’s Palace at Amalienborg in Copenhagen.

The theme of the speech focused on the world economic crisis and social differences stating, “… we must support each other and not give up.  As a society we can not dig ourselves into the concerns, but focus on problem and do something about it.” 

Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II also urged young people not to let themselves break the during these bad times. “Maybe one should move to another city or another province, where opportunities for work or education is better there” she said.  The queen also made it clear that certain people are not equally strong and equally good to fight through these difficult times. Someone “…so to speak loses its grip on life … these people are in my thoughts this evening…” she said.

The queen also discussed her memorable visit to the Helmand Province in Afghanistan where she spent time with the Danish soldiers stationed in the region.  She praised their efforts in Afghanistan as well as the Danish missionary pilots in the civil war in Libya thanking them for their “…outstanding…” effort.

The New Year speech ended with the year’s most important events for the royal family. The joy of the Danish royal twins birth last January 2011 and the upcoming birth of Her Royal Highness Princess Marie’s second child.

To watch a video of Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II’s speech please click here.

Source: TV2