Swedish Wedding

On Saturday 8th June, Princess Madeleine of Sweden and Mr Christopher O'Neill were married in the Royal Chapel at the Royal Palace of Stockholm.


The Princess Couple with the bridal attendants.

The wedding began at 16.00, and the service was conducted by Chaplain to The King and Bishop Emeritus Lars-Göran Lönnermark. Princess Madeleine's wedding dress was created by the Italian designer Valentino Garavani. The Princess's tiara is privately owned, and was decorated with sprigs of orange blossom.



Representing the British royal family: Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex and Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, leaving the Royal Chapel.



Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark.


The Greek Royal Family was represented by four children of Their Majesties King Constantine II and Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes.


Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece and his wife Marie-Chantal.



Prince Nikolaos of Greece and his wife Tatiana.



Princess Theodora and her brother Prince Philippos of Greece.



Princess Lilian laid to rest in Sweden

Sweden bid fair well to Princess Lilian who died in her 98th year at her Stockholm home on Sunday, 10th March, surrounded by the royal family with a state funeral. In 2010, the Royal Court announced she was suffering from Alzheimer's and that she would not be participating in Crown Princess Victoria's wedding in June that year. Her late husband Prince Bertil, an uncle of King Carl XVI Gustaf, died in 1997.

She was born Lillian May Davies in Swansea, Wales, on 30th August 1915, the daughter of William Davies and his wife, Gladys Mary Curran. She originally spelt her name with two “l”s, but changed to Lilian when she adopted a career variously described as fashion model, ballerina and singer. In September 1940 she married the Scottish actor Ivan Craig (1912 - 1995), whose career never flourished beyond bit parts such as 2nd policeman in Murder at the Windmill in 1949 and Lord Blackheath in four episodes of Ivanhoe in 1958. He served in Africa during the WWII.

In the early 40s Lilian Davies worked at a factory in London making wirelesses for the Royal Navy, and at a hospital for wounded soldiers. In 1943, she met Prince Bertil of Sweden at the Les Ambassadeurs nightclub in London, some say at a cocktail party to mark her 28th birthday, others at a nightclub called Nuthouse; yet another version placed their meeting on the London Underground. She divorced Ivan Craig in 1945 on amicable terms, her husband having also met someone new while abroad.

During World War II Prince Bertil was stationed at the Royal Swedish embassy as a naval attaché. He was the third son of the then Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf, later King Gustaf VI Adolf (1882 – 1973) and a great-grandson of Queen Victoria through his late mother, Princess Margaret of Connaught (1882 – 1920).

On 26th January 1947, Prince Bertil's eldest brother and heir presumptive Prince Gustaf Adolf (*22nd April 1906), died in a plane crash in Denmark, leaving behind a nine-month old son who was second in line to the throne and would one day inherit the throne as King Carl Gustaf (*30th April 1946).

Prince Bertil's two other brothers had already renounced their succession rights. Their father ascended the throne as King Gustaf VI Adolf in 1950 and Prince Bertil became heir presumptive and no 2 in the line to the throne. As long as his nephew, Crown Prince Carl Gustaf, was a child, Prince Bertil would have to serve as Regent of the Kingdom until his nephew coming to age.

A big responsibility was put on Prince Bertil’s shoulders and for the future of the Monarchy he followed his father’s advice and did not marry Lilian Craig. Prince Bertil and Lilian Craig had moved to Sweden in 1957, living in Villa Solbacken on Djurgården in Stockholm. She stayed in the shadows, but the couple lived together openly, if discreetly at their homes in southern France and Stockholm. They remained together until Prince Bertil’s death in January 1997.

When Prince Bertil's father died in 1973, his nephew Carl XVI Gustaf ascended the throne. King Carl Gustaf allowed Bertil and Lilian to marry, which they did on 7th December 1976, 33 years after their first meeting.

She was 61, he was 64.

Prince Bertil once said that one of his biggest regrets was that the couple had to sacrifice having children in order to protect the throne.

Hugely popular in Sweden for his romance with Lilian and known as "the prince of cars" for his love of fast vehicles, Bertil died in 1997 aged 84.

"In this life choice of hers, there must have been a lot of pain," he said, referring to how long Lilian had to wait until she was able to marry Bertil.

Princess Lilian was laid to rest next to her husband in the Haga Park royal cemetery on the outskirts of Stockholm.

The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visiting the Kingdom of Norway

The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall were guests of honour at the banquet at Oslo's Royal Palace.

The Prince said it was "such a pleasure" to be in Norway again, as he began his tour of Scandinavia with his "darling wife"

The Prince's speech raised a laugh from the 74 people attending, as he told them: "I have the fondest memories of my first visit to Norway in August 1969 when my sister and I came with our parents in the old Royal Yacht Britannia.

"It was then that I discovered three memorable and endearing things about the Norwegians.

"First of all that virtually every house seemed to fly the Norwegian flag, secondly that our anthems are exactly the same, and thirdly that Norwegians tend to stay up all night during the summer."

He described the "incredibly close and multiple family ties" shared by the British and Norwegian royals through their shared ancestor Queen Victoria and his pride that they stand "shoulder to shoulder" within NATO.

The Prince, who had already privately expressed his condolences to King Harald over the death of five Norwegian Air Force officers in a crash in Sweden last week, publicly extended his "most heartfelt condolences" to the families of those who lost their lives.


King Harald told the guests, who included Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and AUF leader Eskil Pedersen, who survived the Utoya massacre, that the two nations are "united by history and the North Sea".

He paid tribute to Queen Elizabth's reign, adding: "She has served the British people with unfailing devotion, dignity and distinction."

King Harald told The Prince and The Duchess: "We are more than friends. We are family."


20th March 2012
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall praised the bravery of survivors of the Utoya massacre when they arrived in Oslo for the first day of their tour of Scandinavia in Oslo.

The Royal Couple visited the Norwegian capital's Nobel Peace Centre on the first day of their tour of Scandinavia as part of The Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

They were introduced to members of Labour youth league the AUF who were on the island of Utoya for a summer camp on 22nd July last year when right-wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik launched an attack, shooting dozens of people.

The 33-year-old has confessed to the attacks on Utoya, and a bombing near government offices in Oslo, that left 77 people dead, but denies criminal responsibility

Mari West, 26, an AUF member and international co-ordinator for the Norwegian Labour party, told her: "We've talked to each other and also to professionals."

The Duchess asked: "Have you written a diary about what happened? I always think it's a good thing to do, while it's still fresh. Because as time goes on, you forget things."

Asmund Aukrust, 27, vice president of the AUF, replied: "I think we were recommended to do it. I didn't, and now I regret it."

The Duchess discussed when it was that those on the island realised what was happening and asked if the survivors still suffered nightmares, which some admitted they did.

Stian Valla Taraldsvik, 19, a political adviser for the AUF, added that the massacre was "a great challenge" to the organisation and said: "Some had nightmares and some have blind spots."

AUF leader Eskil Pedersen, 28, told The Prince in his discussion with the royal: "People have been through quite dreadful things.

"A lot of people were on the island up to the point where the gunman was taken into custody. Others swam or were taken on the boats.

"I think it's safe to say that these people have gone through the most dramatic thing in Norway since the Second World War. But at the same time, it is important to say that we don't want it to dominate our thoughts every day."

The Royal Couple also took part in discussions on youth engagement and enjoyed a performance by Norwegian musician Mikhael Paskalev, who trained at Liverpool's Paul McCartney Institute for Performing Arts, at the Nobel Peace Centre



21st March 2012
The Norwegian city of Bergen was the second stop on The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall's tour of Scandinavia today.

Known for its rain, the city did not disappoint and The Duchess of Cornwall and Queen Sonja of Norway braved the conditions at an outdoor nursery in Norway's second largest city.

The pair met school children who have their lessons in a forest environment in all weathers. It was a particularly foggy and wet day, and The Duchess said to one child in an anorak: "I wish I had my wet weather gear on."

The Prince and King Harald of Norway went on board the M/V Brennholm to see the work the Institute for Marine Research is doing to encourage sustainable fishing.

His Royal Highness's own International Sustainability Unit recently launched a report on sustainable fisheries and The Prince has for many years been concerned about global fish stocks.

The Prince and The Duchess then accompanied The King and Queen for a cultural performance at the Hakonshallen, a medieval hall first visited by The Prince with Queen Elizabeth in 1969. He had specifically asked to go back to the hall because of his earlier trip there.

They listened to musical performances on the recorder and harpsichord, songs performed by a choir and watched an African-inspired dance.

Their Royal Highnesses met familiar faces when they went on a walkabout in the Bryggen area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Prince was given the chance to show off his skills with an axe when he visited a workshop on the Bryggen. Watched by The Duchess, he stood astride a log - to be used as part of a beam to support the wooden buildings - and wielded an axe to split it.

Their Royal Highnesses stopped to speak to locals as they made their way around the historic area.

The Prince then made his way to HMS Liverpool, while The Duchess and The Queen of Norway visited Troldhaugen, a wooden villa overlooking a fjord which was used as a summer house by composer Edvard Grieg. They were given a private piano recital of his work and had afternoon tea at the villa, which is now a museum.

Here is a video of The Prince's speech given during a visit to HMS Liverpool, in which he thanked the crew ahead of the ship's decommissioning.

The Swedish Crown Princess Couple is expecting a child

Their Royal Highnesses The Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel are happy to announce that The Crown Princess is expecting their first child.

The birth is expected to take place in March of 2012. No changes in the schedule of The Crown Princess´s public engagements are planned during the autumn of 2011.

Swedish tabloids immediately jumped into a frenzy over the the news.


"It is with great joy that I have been informed of the news that the Crown Princess and Prince Daniel are expecting a baby. You have a fantastic experience to look forward to and I want to send my warmest congratulations to you both," wrote Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt in a statement.


Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel married on 19th June 2010. Their wedding attracted 500,000 spectators to the streets of Stockholm (according to the TV station RTL: "Selon les premières estimations officieuses, quelque 500.000 curieux seraient descendus dans les rues de Stockholm pour assister aux noces de la future reine de Suède.")

Support for Swedish monarchy increases

A new opinion poll, published in the Swedish newspaper Expressen, showed increased support for the Swedish Monarchy.

The internet news site The Local reported, the recent publication of a controversial biography on Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf does not appear to have affected the level of support the monarchy receives among Swedes.

A Demoskop poll published in the Expressen daily on Tuesday showed that 69 percent of respondents said that Sweden should continue to be a monarchy. The survey questioned 1,381 Swedes from November 13th to 17th.

The result is an increase from the 63 percent support polled in the spring ahead of Crown Princess Victoria's wedding to Prince Daniel on June 19th. The previous measurement was conducted on April 21st with 615 interviews.

On both occasions, respondents were asked, "Do you think that Sweden should continue to be a monarchy with a king or queen as head of state or should we become a republic with a president as head of state?"


The unofficial, tell-all biography "Carl XVI Gustaf - the reluctant monarch" ("Carl XVI Gustaf - Den motvillige monarken") went on sale on November 4th, providing details of supposed "wild parties" and "affairs with young women".

Despite worries that the book would damage the royal family and confidence in the monarchy, it appears the opposite is the case, Expressen reported on Tuesday.

"There is no doubt that support for the royal family strengthened after the wedding. However, no wedding in the world could have saved the King and his popularity if it were not for him. The Swedish people's new record support says it in clear language: The King, you did it," Johan T Lindwall, the newspaper's court reporter concluded.

Jubilant Swedes

Nothing attracts more people than a royal wedding.

The official wedding photo.

H.M. the King's speech to the married couple, June 19, 2010

Your Majesties,
Your Imperial Highness,
Your Royal Highnesses,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Her Majesty the Queen and I wish to greet you all with a most heartily welcome to the Royal Palace and to this wedding gala dinner. It is wonderful to see you all here! On behalf of my family — and especially on behalf of my oldest daughter and my son-in-law — I wish to thank you for coming and for participating in our joy! You will always be a part of this unforgettable and memorable day!

Your Royal Highnesses Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel!

Dear newly-weds!

The Queen and I would like to wish you — The Crown Princess of Sweden and Prince Daniel — all the best for the life ahead together!

It is a major step in life to enter into marriage. Not only for the bride and groom, but also for their parents. The promise you have given to each other today on mutual support and loyalty ties the two of you further together. It is, however, an unavoidable consequence of your decision that the ties to your parents thus will be changed. From now on, your first loyalty will be to one another.

We as parents take joy in the affection by which you look at each other. But — as so many parents before us have experienced — the joy of seeing one's children standing on their own to build their families, is also spiced with a touch of grief. I wish that you also one day will be able to experience such happiness that we feel today.

Dear Victoria!
You are the successor to the throne of Sweden. It is a mission that comes with duties and responsibilities. And it is with pride and gratitude I have seen you grow into this role.

One day you will — because so it is stated in our constitution — succeed me as the head of state of Sweden. My mind is put at ease when I see the wisdom and determination by which you prepare yourself for this task.

I know that I share this confidence with a large number of the Swedish people. You could, perhaps, with a reference to our ancestor Karl XIV Johan, say "The love of the people is my reward."

Our relation is, however, deeper than that between a monarch and his successor. I am your father. You are my beloved daughter.

No one should believe anything else than that my highest wish has always been — and is — to see you happy. It has therefore always been self-evident to your mother the Queen and me, that you — as any person in our country — should have the freedom to choose your life´s companion as your heart desires. I have today seeked to make this point clear by accompanying you to your future husband, and thereby confirming the decision to approve of your marriage according to our constitution.

Dear Daniel!
On behalf of the Queen and myself I would like to welcome you most warmly into our family. We would also like to congratulate our daughter on her choice of husband. And we — your parents-in-law — congratulate you on your choice of wife.

We have got to know you as a very ambitious and skillful entrepreneur. I have often been impressed by the purposefulness and the go-ahead spirit which you have shown. And we have with approval noticed the energy and determination by which you have been preparing yourself for your mission as Prince Consort. That is: to give your wife, the Crown Princess, support and confidence.

We are also delighted to have made the acquaintance with your parents Eva and Olle Westling as well as your large and lovely family.

Dear Victoria and Daniel!
The Queen and I, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine would like to congratulate you and wish you all the best. On your walk through life together, you can always count on our support and affection. And we pray that God Almighty always will be merciful to you.

Finally, I would like to propose a toast to — and that we all raise a cheer for — the Crown Princess and Prince Daniel, our beloved and beautiful bridal couple.

Four cheers for them!

And to please the republicans' desire to point out to scandals, here is the one and only casualty of the royal wedding:

Swedish wedding - a great boost for the economy

While republicans seem to believe that „the money question“ could be the trigger to raise antipathy against a country’s Monarchy, they never actually calculate as a good accountant would: "debit and credit". Take Sweden as an example.
This Saturday Crown Princess Victoria (32) will get married to Daniel Westling (36), who will be invested with the title Prince Daniel, Duke of Västergötland.

If you follow the official figures, the Swedish taxpayer has to contribute €2 mill. (AUS$ 2.85 mill.) to the royal wedding. The Swedish republicans claim, this figure were closer to €10 mill. (AUS$ 14.2 mill.). No matter who is right, the positive aspects of the royal occasion outnumbers the public cost multiple times.

The Swedish foreign ministry expects 2,300 journalists, among them 700 from all over the world, to report on the royal wedding. The capital’s hotel industry and commerce expect an additional turnaround of several billion Kronor (Kronor 1.000 = AUS$ 147). Even bed & breakfast accommodations are sometimes rented out for €500 to 600 (AUS$ 710 – 850). The Swedish tourism promotion is very satisfied with the inflow of foreign visitors. Around 200,000 spectators are expected to line the streets of Stockholm, and the souvenir sales could top €250 mill. (AUS$ 350 mill.).

Swedish shops all over the world benefit from the attention that is drawn to the Scandinavian Kingdom. In Berlin all IKEA shops will broadcast live the royal wedding on big screens. And a slice of princess torte will be offered to the customers who will turn up that Saturday morning. Children dressed as a prince or a princess will receive a free meal also. The supermarket chain ICA offers the whole range of specially produced items, from chocolate to coffee and napkins. The German chocolate manufacturer Halloren (Halle) is also producing "Wedding Chocolates". A beer brewery in Saxony provides a special beer for a reception at the Royal Swedish Embassy in Berlin. "Schwedenquell" has a label with Swedish King Gustav II Adolf, who – according to legend had enjoyed the Krostitz beer in 1631.
Sweden can expect an economic boost, which will swipe in additional tax revenue into the Kingdom’s treasury that will exceed by far even the highest republican estimates.

For a whole day Sweden will attract the world’s attention. TV stations know of the people’s desire to watch royal events. Well, nearly all, because Australia’s SBS has refused to broadcast the Swedish wedding. Germany TV stations will not miss the opportunity to get a high rating. When Crown Prince Felipe of Spain married in 2004 ARD/ZDF attracted 52 %. The Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon married in 2001 ARD/ZDF rated even higher: Nearly 60%.

SBS has in the past shown such events either whole or in part, such as the wedding of Crown Prince Felipe of Spain and of course Princess Mary of Denmark in May 2004, which kept one million spectators glued to the TV screen until 3 am.

"The royals are simply too beloved by the people, says Peter Althin, chairman of the Republican Association, which wants to abolish the monarchy. “There is not enough pressure in Sweden yet for the actual dismantling of the monarchy.”

If you can't beat them, join them! Let's celebrate with the newly-wed royal couple!

No Royal SBS

Recent experiences with Australia’s unique Special Broadcasting System – SBS – could raise doubts about their duty to serve ethnic communities in this country. Although SBS provides an extraordinary access to news programmes from all over the world and has services in 64 languages, the service has changed in recent years. Not only has SBS introduced numerous commercial advertisements which interrupt programmes, no, it has an obsession with sports and is obviously increasingly chasing ratings to attract sponsors.

And as the RadicalRoyalist has pointed out previously, there seems to be a bias against royal(ist) news items.

The latest incident that fuels this impression is the forthcoming royal wedding in Sweden. On 19th June Crown Princess Victoria and her fiancé Daniel Westling will get married in the ancient Storkyrkan or Great Church in Stockholm. On day two, the Swedish Parliament and Government will host the revelry and on day three, the actual ceremony will take place. In conjunction with the wedding, Mr. Westling will be invested with the title Prince Daniel, Duke of Västergötland. The wedding will be held on Saturday, June 19, the same date that Sweden’s reigning King, Carl XVI Gustaf, married Queen Silvia in 1976.

SBS has in the past shown such events either whole or in part, such as the wedding of Crown Prince Felipe of Spain and of course Princess Mary of Denmark in May 2004.

Whilst one realises that the Swedish community in Australia is small, this event will be a most significant and joyful occasion for all Swedes and their friends around the world.

Everyone who contacts SBS to find out, how the TV station will satisfy this big European event receives this meagre reply:

There is likely to be highlights in the World News but we do not have any plans to show full coverage of it.
Regards,
PR (from: comments@sbs.com.au)

One can only suspect, that besides an anti-royalist approach the big money generating event in South Africa (aka Football World Cup) occupies all available free spots on SBS’s programme schedule.

What about those millions of people who do not care for football or any other ball game?

These happy royal occasions are rare and also spectacular but the RadicalRoyalist and his Swedish friends will now probably end up watching it streamed live on Swedish TV or one of the four German networks taking coverage or one of the other French, Belgian or other networks.

The wonders of the internet is that in some ways are making terrestrial TV less relevant especially given the extremely limited range of Australian television.

The Queen of Australia has been on the throne for 56 years.

Kevin Rudd is a republican – Where’s the surprise?
On the day when the Australian Prime Minister was to have an audience with Queen Elizabeth, Queen of Australia, the media down under could not help themselves reprinting the bits of a BBC interview, in which Rudd answered questions concerning a (!) republic. “I am sure we will get to it in due season," he said in response to persistent questioning in a BBC interview. Asked whether he would be disappointed if he ended his term in office without Australia becoming a republic, Mr Rudd said his party had long been committed to that outcome.
"That remains unchanged," he said. "What I also said prior to the last election is that for us this is not a top-order priority." The Age

Republicanism was included in the ALP’s platform at the 1991 national conference, the chairman observing that the motion had been carried without enthusiasm. Nobody expected Labor to revise their platform after the republican’s defeat at the 1999 referendum, however, not everything that is written into a platform has to become political reality. The Swedish Social Democrats wrote the demand for the abolition of the Monarchy into their platform in the 1920s, instead, every Swedish Prime Minister ever since had good working relations with the highly respected Swedish Kings. There was neither the “popular demand” for a republic, nor the need to abolish the Crown.

The same applies to Australia. With the latest opinion polls showing only 45 p.c. of the Australians want “a” republic, the Kevin Rudd senses that another push for “a” republic in Australia is doomed to fail.

Party policy and policy for the interests of the country and the people are not necessarily the same. Therefore the non-partisan institution of the Monarchy is invaluable. Good to know, that Her Majesty’s Australian Prime Minister does not rush to give into pressure from lobbyists and partisan advocates of “a” republic.

More appalling than Kevin Rudd’s answers were the BBC’s questions, which The Age called “persistent”. Was the reporter trying to create a scoop? Everybody knows the Australian Prime Minister’s position in the republic discussion. Surely the interviewer would have read all his statements in preparing for the interview. Why this stubborn insistence on this question?