Mass in Honour of Blessed Emperor Karl

For those regularly following the whereabouts of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Blessed Emperor Karl of Austria (1887-1922) and his wife, Empress Zita, it won't come as a surprise that many of their descendants regularly attend church services honouring their ancestors and also give lectures about them. This time it is Archduke Imre's turn to do so.

The oldest son of Archduke Carl-Christian of Austria and Princess Marie-Astrid of Luxembourg and his American-born wife Archduchess Kathleen will be in Cincinnati, Ohio on August 24. The couple will attend a mass honouring Blessed Emperor Karl at the Sacred Heart Church at 11am. Afterwards, Archduke Imre will give a lecture about his great-grandfather, the last ruler of the Austro-Hungarian empire, who was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2004.

Source: New Liturgical Movement

Luxarazzi 101: Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau

In 1855, Duke Adolph of Nassau had the idea to create a new order which would show the unity between the two branches of the House of Nassau. At the time, the Duke, himself the head of the Walram line of the House of Nassau, reigned the Duchy of Nassau, a part of the German Confederation. Meanwhile, the head of the younger Ottonian line, Willem III, reigned as King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Besides the official reasoning - to show the unity between the two branches of the same family - Duke Adolph, who many years later would become Grand Duke of Luxembourg himself, also had in mind to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Duchy of Nassau a year later. In addition, he also wished to create an order for the Duchy itself as neither a house order nor an order of merit existed at that time; this was especially problematic when he visited fellow heads of states and wanted to bestow them with the honour.

Duke Adolph of Nassau

He firstly approached Dutch and Luxembourgish dignitaries with the idea in early summer of 1857. In September of the same year, Duke Adolph put an unofficial plan forward, which he directly sent to King-Grand Duke Willem III as Duke Adolph thought that it only affected him as the head of the Ottonian branch of the family and not as the Dutch ruler. He proposed to create an exclusive, shared house order with one grade.

The original proposed name for the order was Nassauischer Hausorden Heinrichs des Reichen / Ordre de la Maison de Nassau de Henri le Riche for Count Henry II of Nassau, father of the founders of the two main branches of the House of Nassau. Dutch dignitaries, however, were against the name as it strongly reminded them of Prince Henry of the Netherlands, Willem III’s brother and governor of Luxembourg. Thus the Walram line suggested a new name - Nassauischer Hausorden vom Goldenen Löwen / Ordre du Lion d’Or de la Maison de Nassau - incorporating the old common symbol of the House, a golden lion.

Duke Adolph recommended that the order should be given to sovereigns as well as princes of sovereign houses, and only in special cases also to members of the military with at least the rank of lieutenant-general, state ministers (“wirkliche Staatsminister”), highest court dignitaries (“Hofchargen”) or highest advising officials (“wirkliche Geheimräte”).

The heads of both branches should be allowed to give out the order separately and independently. An advanced agreement would only be needed in special cases, for example when the order was to be given to subjects or attendants. Joint presentations could also take place. Duke Adolph also suggested the motto of the order – Je maintiendrai (“I will maintain”) – as well as the colours of the sash – orange and blue, the traditional colours of the House of Nassau.

Dutch courtiers supported the idea of a new order especially in relation to Luxembourg. At the time, Luxembourg only had one order, the Order of the Oak Crown, which was considered to be second rate. On 22 September 1857, King-Grand Duke Willem III agreed to the proposal but expressed the wish that the order should not be given to the wirkliche Geheimräte as they did not exist in the Netherlands and the rank was rather easy to obtain in Nassau. He also favoured the name which included the gold lion.

King-Grand Duke Willem III

Shortly afterwards, the King-Grand Duke asked his brother Prince Henry, who was the governor of Luxembourg, to get the opinion of Luxembourgish government as he intended to introduce the order in his capacity as Grand Duke of Luxembourg and not as King of the Netherlands. This also meant that the Grand Duchy had to pay for the costs. Despite some initial concerns about whether the order was actually necessary, the government agreed in the end.

The details of the order and its bylaws were worked out by E.A. von Dungern on behalf of Duke Adolph and F.H.W. von Scherff for King-Grand Duke Willem III. On 9 January 1858, the final proposal was sent to The Hague.

It was agreed that the princes of the House of both branches (sons and brothers of both heads) would be born knights of the order and that it should be awarded to sovereigns and princes of sovereign houses. On request of the King-Grand Duke the wirkliche Geheimräte were left out but instead archbishops and ambassadors added as possible recipients. Not very surprisingly, both heads of the branches can give out the order; either jointly or independently. The insignia has to be given back upon death.

On 29 January 1858, King-Grand Duke Willem III signed the charter, on 16 March Duke Adolph signed, too, after coming back from a visit to France as he did not want to do such an important thing while abroad. It was co-signed by the Luxembourgish minister of state, Mathias Simons, four days later and then sent to The Hague. The charter was published on 5 May in Luxembourg and six days later in Nassau.

The first person to receive the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau was Emperor Napoleon III of France, followed by the Tsar of Russia, the Emperor of Austria, the King of Prussia and Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, who acted as the regent of Prussia.

After having learned how the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau or Nassauischer Hausorden vom Goldenen Löwen or Ordre du Lion d’Or de la Maison de Nassau or Huisorde van de Gouden Leeuw van Nassau came into place, let's turn our eyes to what it actually looks like.

The Grand Duke, the Grand Duchess and the Hereditary Grand Duke sporting
the Order for an official portrait (Photo: Lola Velasco / Cour grand ducale)
as well as a close up of the badge, the plague and the sash

The insignia consists of a badge, a plague and a sash. They were created by C.M. Weishaupt und Söhne of Hanau in the Duchy of Nassau.

The badge consists of a golden white enamelled gold-bordered eight spiked Maltese cross with golden N’s between the arms of the cross. It includes a blue enamelled central disk that features a golden uncrowned lion surrounded by seven golden shingles. The backside, which is also in blue, has the golden inscription “JE / MAINTIEN / DRAI” spread over three rows. It is 72 millimetres big, its weight, however, depends.

The plague is an eight-pointed star with straight silver rays and the same central disk as the badge surrounded by a white enamelled, gold bordered ring with the inscription “JE MAINTIENDRAI” and two golden oak branches with three leaves and one acorn each held together by a golden ribbon. It is 75 to 77 millimetres big and its weight depends.

The sash, which is 103 to 105 millimetres, features the colours of the House of Nassau and thus is of orange-yellow colour with a 2 to 2.5 millimetre big blue stripe at the edge and an orange-yellow selvedge. The very first twelve sashes were made in Paris.

There is also a miniature version of the Order that can be worn as a lapel pin as demonstrated by Grand Duke Jean below.

Grand Duke Jean (Photo: Christian Aschman / Cour grand-ducale)

Only about ten years later, in 1866, the Duchy of Nassau was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia. In the following years, until 1891 - a year after he had become Grand Duke of Luxembourg - Duke Adolph did not give out the Order.

In 1873, King-Grand Duke Willem III unilaterally changed the bylaws of the Order introducing four new ranks: the Grand Cross, the Grand Officer, the Officer and the Knight. Nine years later he introduced the Commander, located between the ranks of a Grand Officer and an Officer. These changes were never confirmed by Duke Adolph who also refused to award them even after he came to power again. Thus, at this point in time, the shared order only existed on paper anymore.

With the death of King-Grand Duke Willem III in 1890, the Ottonian line of the House of Nassau died out in male line and for the Dutch Royal House the Order ipso facto ceased to exist. On the basis of the Nassau Family Pact the Walram line inherited the throne of Luxembourg while the late King’s daughter Wilhelmina succeeded to the Dutch throne.

Due to juridical confusions whether the order actually still existed, whether it was taken over by the Walram line or rather by the Ottonian line in the first place, Grand Duke Adolph and his Luxembourgish minister of state Paul Eyschen agreed to adopt new bylaws. In February 1892, the bylaws were basically changed back to the original ones from 1858 and thus abolishing the new ranks introduced by King-Grand Duke Willem III.

In 1891 Grand Duke Adolph named three new knights of the first (and only) class, among them King Leopold II of the Belgians.

Princes Guillaume, Louis, Felix, Sebastien and Jean showing off
their orders during the gala dinner of the wedding of Hereditary Grand
Duke Guillaume in September 2012 (Photos: Dutch Photo Press)

In 1904, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands decided that she wanted to reinvent the Order in the Netherlands. Despite bad feelings between both branches of the family – the Queen did not like the fact that Grand Duke Adolph had allowed his son to marry a Catholic bride – she, nevertheless, wished for his consent.

The elderly Grand Duke Adolph asked said son, Hereditary Grand Duke Wilhelm, to enter into negotiations with the Dutch. As to why the old Grand Duke did that, one should keep in mind that his own son had six daughters but no son.

After some time an agreement was reached that the new-ish Order would be based upon the bylaws of 1858, which meant that there wouldn't be any classes et cetera. The Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau subsequently became the highest dynastic order of the Dutch Royal House. The Dutch Queen became the new head of one branch of the Order but even though a woman was one of the Grand Masters of the Order, princesses were still not born members of the Order.

As the Huisorde van de Gouden Leeuw van Nassau is one of several house orders of the Dutch Royal House, it was awarded very rarely.

Queen Wilhelmina only did it on very few occassions, her daughter Queen Juliana never did and Queen Beatrix only gave it out three times, one of them being a shared awarding with Grand Duke Jean. In 1999, she named Max van der Stoel, Dutch politician, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands and first High Commissioner on National Minorities of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, as a knight. In 2006, she awarded the Order to Pieter Hendrik Kooijmans, State Secretary, Minister of Foreign Affairs and judge at the International Court of Justice.

In 1999, former South African president Nelson Mandela received the great honour of being awarded the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau by both its Grand Masters at the time, Grand Duke Jean and Queen Beatrix.

In general the Ordre du Lion d'Or de la Maison de Nassau is the highest order of merit in the Grand Duchy and thus very exclusive. Today the following criteria is given out by the Luxembourgish government:

“The Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau can be conferred on sovereigns and on princes of sovereign houses and, nowadays, also on heads of state, for meritorious service to the Grand Duke and country.”

Apart from the male members of the Grand Ducal Family, the then King of the Belgians,
the King of Norway, Prince Henrik of Denmark and the then Duke of Brabant can be
seen wearing the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau in the portrait of
the wedding of the Hereditary Grand Ducal Couple.
(Photo: Christian Aschman / Cour grand-ducale)

Grand Duke Wilhelm IV gave out the Order only three times; his oldest daughter Grand Duchess Marie-Adelaide did so nine times. After the First World War there were major but not very surprising changes, as the number of princes being awarded with the Order decreased while the number of republican heads of states increased. During her reign Grand Duchess Charlotte named 31 new knights, while between 1964 and 1988 Grand Duke Jean gave out the order 25 times.

This means that between 1858 and 1988 the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau was only given out 252 times. (Not included in the count are the Grand Masters and born knights of the Order.)

Born knights of the Order receive the insignia upon reaching majority. In 1984, Queen Beatrix and Grand Duke Jean agreed that born princesses of the House would receive the Order upon majority though they still are not born members of the Order like their male counterparts. It seems that Princess Alexandra was the first who benefitted from this change in the Order's bylaws.

Luxarazzi 101: Emerald Art Deco Tiara

While the exact provenance of many of the tiaras of the Grand Ducal collection are somewhat unclear, the history of today's bling is quite well documented (at least for Grand Ducal standards): We're in the year 1926 - Germany and the Soviet Union sign the Treaty of Berlin, Roald Amundsen flies over the North Pole, and Prince Felix of Luxembourg doesn't know what to get his wife for Christmas and thus sends a bunch of old jewels to French jeweller Chaumet so that they can create something new out of it.

Admittedly, I don't know whether the story went exactly that way, it, however, includes a few key facts about Luxembourg's Emerald Art Deco Tiara, one of the most famous pieces of the Grand Ducal Family's tiara collection.

Pieces given to Chaumet to create a new tiara (Photos: Maison Chaumet)

Made of a large central cabochon emerald and diamonds set in platinum, this tiara was created by Chaumet in the year 1926. Alongside a few old pieces of jewellery such as a pair of earrings, a necklace, a brooch and more, a large egg-shaped emerald and a rather large diamond were sent from Luxembourg to the Paris headquarters of the jeweller. Whether the pieces originally belonged to the Grand Ducal Family or the Bourbon-Parma's, the family of Grand Duchess Charlotte's husband, and might have been wedding gifts to Luxembourg's head of state, remains unclear.

Inspired by the Greek tiaras of the antiquity, Chaumet created a typical tiara of the Art Deco period that was fully underway during the 1920's. While from afar the tiara looks like a very solid piece, up close a variation of geometric motifs are clearly recognisable. The two most prominent features are the cabochon emerald and a large diamond set directly beneath it, though the latter one often gets lost in its overall design. While its height measures at 5.5 centimetres (2.2 inches), it has a diameter of 15.5 centimetres or 6.1 inches.

Grand Duchess Charlotte (with Prince Felix),
Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte and Grand Duchess Maria-Teresa

The newly created tiara arrived in Luxembourg on 22 December 1926 and was delivered to Prince Felix. As he was the initial recipient, it's not too far fetched to think that the tiara may have indeed found its way under the Christmas tree a few days later to the delight of the prince's wife, Grand Duchess Charlotte.

In the following years it became one of Charlotte's favourite tiaras; for official portraits she usually alternated it with the Empire Tiara while ditching the Grand Duchess Adelaide Tiara she had often worn during the early years of her reign. After Charlotte's abdication, the tiara found its way into the hands of Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte who wore it on a number of occasions during her husband's reign though she seems to have always preferred the Empire or her own tiaras.

By contrast Grand Duchess Maria-Teresa seems to have found a big liking in the tiara that is famously hard to wear due to its Super Woman-esque shape. Especially during the early years of Grand Duke Henri's reign, this tiara made many appearances of his wife's head, while we have seen a bit more variation as of late.

Luxarazzi 101: Liechtenstein's National Day

On August 15, the population of the world's sixth smallest country - Liechtenstein in case you hadn't guessed - will be on holiday to celebrate their Staatsfeiertag, which we will call national day due to the simple fact that there is no proper English translation for its original German term. It does not really matter anyway, as your regular Liechtensteiner would probably tell you that he will be joining the fun at the Fürstenfest, something along the lines of Princely Celebrations, as that's how the day is colloquially called.

Photo: Exclusiv

Nobody seems to know as to why exactly the Fürstenfest, Staatsfeiertag or National Day came into place. There had been celebrations of a similar scale before, for example when for the first time a sovereign prince visited the country in 1842, or for anniversaries of the country or its princes (though sometimes without those celebrated). It seems likely that World War II and the constant threat by National Socialism played an influencing factor in the decision to invent a national holiday.

Whatever the reason, the government of the Principality declared August 15 as Liechtenstein's national day on August 5, 1940 and it took place for the first time just ten days later. The day was chosen for two reasons. On the one hand, it was already a public holiday as the Catholic world is celebrating Virgin Mary's ascent to heaven (known as the Feast of the Assumption) that day (and Liechtenstein is a staunchly Catholic country), while on the other hand it was the day before the birthday of Prince Franz Josef II, who had come to power two years earlier.

Homage in 1990
(Photo: Historischer Verein)

Celebrated for the first time in 1940, some 50 years later a law was passed to make August 15 Liechtenstein's official national holiday after the death of Prince Franz Josef II in 1989. National day in 1990 was a very special one as it also included the ceremony of homage of Prince Hans-Adam II.

Throughout the decades, the National Day had many different forms of appearance which evolved through the years. These days, the official celebrations kick off with a procession of the Princely Family, dignitaries and a bunch of other people down from Schloss Vaduz to the castle meadow situated nearby.

During the ceremony on the castle's meadow which has been taking place since 1990, speeches are made by the sovereign prince (or his regent) and the president of the parliament. For a few years, a field mass was also celebrated but isn't anymore since 2011 due to quarrels between Archbishop Wolfgang Haas and the political scene over a couple of topics, including the seperation of state and church as well as gay marriage. The act of state ends with the singing of the national anthem which would probably sound familiar to you as it is set to the same tune as the British national anthem.

After the official celebrations are over, the Princely Family, as well as the five-member government, the 25 MPs, and the straggling masses head back to the rose gardens of Schloss Vaduz for drinks and chatter. It is the only time of the year that the public gets a chance to visit the castle's gardens. Up until a few years ago, there was also food but it seems that even one of the world's richest countries has to be pennywise these days.

Throughout the whole day, a public festival is held at Vaduz. During the late afternoon and evening hours, the Princely Family also mingles with the citizens at said fair. On National Day all bus services in Liechtenstein are for free and there is no entrance fee to the country's museums.

Photo: Exclusiv

As soon as it gets dark, another highlight of the day fastly approaches. Before the Fürstenfest culminates in a stunning fireworks display, there is a torchlight parade as well as mountain top fires, a tradition that dates back a few decades. Already in 1939 on the day of the homage of Prince Franz Josef II, Liechtenstein's scouts had organised a torchlight procession to show the people's alliance with their new sovereign, the monarchy and the country itself. 

At the time, the country was in a precarious situation as the Anschluss of Austria had recently taken place and National Socialist forces in the Principality were advocating for something similar to happen with Liechtenstein. With the slogan "Liechtenstein for the Liechtensteiners!" they campaigned against Prince Franz Josef II. In March 1939, there was a coup attempt and only after a pact between the main parties to keep the date a secret, they were barred from participating in the elections that year.

A few months later on the eve of 16 August, the birthday of the new Prince Franz Josef II, a group of scouts with torchlights firmly in hand made their way from the Rhine river up to the mountain tops of the alpine Principality. Near the Gafadura alp, around 300 fires formed a crown with a diameter of about 50 metres. In addition, there was a procession of torchlights over the Fürstensteig, an alpine hiking trail.

During the year 1939, it wasn't an uncommon sight in Liechtenstein to see fire crowns consisting of sawdust burn on the mountain tops. The scouts regularly lit the symbol of the monarchy for everyone to see in order to fight the German National Movement in Liechtenstein (VDBL), a National Socialist party, and their youth organisation who, by contrast, lit large swastikas. After not being able to take part in the elections and the outbreak of World War II, the support for the party declined heavily and the country remained neutral during the war.

Photo: Ingrid Delacher / IKR

Both the procession and the "Crown of Tuass" above Triesen (albeit the latter changed location since 1939) still take place today though the scouts have been replaced by members of the mountain rescue. In addition, there are fires on most of the other mountain tops of the Principality.

The day is rounded off with a about thirty minutes fireworks display over Vaduz which ends with the words Für Gott, Fürst und Vaterland (For God, Prince and Fatherland), Liechtenstein's motto, being lit.

For more information about this year's Staatsfeiertag, have a look on its official homepage.

Luxarazzi 101: Wedding of Prince Hans-Adam and Princess Marie

Heute (that's German, Liechtenstein's official language, for today) the Prince Hans-Adam II and the Princess Marie are celebrating their 46th wedding anniversary, so in good new Luxarazzi 101 tradition, we will grab the chance to have a look at their nuptials and the events surrounding it.

Photo: Liechtensteiner Volksblatt

The engagement of then Hereditary Prince Hans-Adam and Countess Marie Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau was announced on 17 April 1966 after Liechtenstein's newspapers had speculated about an imminent engagement for quite a while. Some sources say that the couple already got privately engaged a year earlier.

The couple had first met in the summer of 1961 when the then twenty-one-year-old countess was visiting family members in the Principality and Princess Gina invited her to the castle. While Prince Hans-Adam II, just 16 at the time, claims that it was love at first sight for him, it took his chosen one a little longer. The engagement, however, did not come as a surprise as rumours were flying high in Liechtenstein after the couple had been spotted out and about a couple of times.

It was decided that the nuptials were to take place on 30 July 1967 in order to give the Hereditary Prince, just 21 at the time of his engagement, another year to advance with his studies. There were another few events held to celebrate the couple in advance to the wedding which was scheduled to take place on a Sunday. As it was the case with their oldest son's wedding, the population of the alpine Principality was also heavily involved in the celebrations.

Press reception and pre-wedding ball at Schloss Vaduz (Photos: Historischer Verein)

In rather small fashion, the couple welcomed the government at Schloss Vaduz on Wednesday to receive a few gifts, including a sapphire necklace for the future Hereditary Princess that could be converted into a tiara. (In case you have ever seen her with a sapphire necklace, make sure to send a picture in, please!) On Thursday there was the vernissage of an exhibition by local artists in Vaduz and a concert of chamber music in Balzers. A day later, on Friday, the couple met with the press at the Waldhotel Vaduz where they answered the questions of the international media.

On Friday night, the bridal soirée for members of the bridal couple's families, royal and noble relatives as well as politicians and diplomats was held at Schloss Vaduz. If media reports are to be believed, they partied until dawn. Countess Marie wore a white and yellow beaded gown by Balmain and a small bandeau tiara.

Photos: Historischer Verein / Getty Images

The day of the wedding of Prince Hans-Adam II and Princess Marie started with the bridal procession from Schloss to the government building in cars and from government building to the St. Florin church by foot. While then Hereditary Prince Hans-Adam was accompanied by his mother, then Countess Marie was led to the altar by her father, Count Ferdinand Kinsky. 

The couple had chosen to have bridal children from all of the eleven municipalities of the Principality though their most prominent one, the Kranzelkind, was Prince Wenzel, Hans-Adam's youngest brother.

Photos: Bunte / Historischer Verein

Princess Marie wore an empire-style gown by Parisian couturier Jacques Heim made of white silk and with a broad pearl beading along the edges of the train, sleeves and where the dress parted in the middle. She anchored her veil with the Habsburg Fringe Tiara, brought into the family by the groom's grandmother, Archduchess Elisabeth. In doing so, she was the first bride in the family to chose this tiara as her wedding tiara, an example later to be followed by her sister-in-law Princess Isabelle.

The Prince and the Princess were married by the bishop of Chur, Johannes Vonderach, with lots of other clergy also present. The witnesses to their marriage were the groom's brothers, Prince Philipp and Prince Nikolaus, as well as Count Ferdinand Kinsky, Count Hans Kinsky, Count Christian of Salen-Reifferscheidt-Raitz and Alexander Frick, deputy of the parliament. For the church service, music by Josef Gabriel Rheinberger, Alessandro Scarlatti and Johann Friedrich Fasch was chosen.

The guest list of the wedding events read like the who is who of German speaking nobility including the Houses of Habsburg-Lorraine, Bavaria, Hanover, Württemberg, Hesse, Baden and many more. In addition there were Queen Annemarie of the Hellenes, Princess Irene of Greece and Queen Sofia of Spain, at the time still princess of Spain.

Video: Critical Past

After the church service was over, the guest processed to the town hall of Vaduz from where the guests of the Princely Family departed via car to the castle for a reception including a seven course meal cooked by Felix Real. Meanwhile, the guests of the government went to a nearby hotel where another reception took place and was also attended the newly weds for a while.

Like it is a tradition in the Principality, a parade and public festival took place in the afternoon and evening hours of the day. To round off the celebrations, there was a fireworks display. Afterwards, the couple embarked on their honeymoon. While it was revealed that their first stop would be Paris, the other destinations were kept secret.

Two Princesses, A Future Princess and A Polo Match

Photo: Polo Consult

Just like they did last year, Princess Marie-Astrid and Princess Maria-Anunciata, who, I think, might be wearing a dress by Carolina Herrera, were guests at the Pro Alvear Polo Cup earlier this month. The charity event, which takes place every year at the polo club in Saint Tropez, raises money for the Fundación Pro Alvear, that supports the educational, social and economic development of the Pampas region in Argentina. Also among the guests was Prince Félix's future wife Claire Lademacher.

More pictures are available at Polo Consult and Camino Real International Polo. 

Source: Fundación Pro Alvear, Polo Consult

Margarita Klien, Princess of Liechtenstein (1950-2013)

Photo: Volksblatt

Margarita Klien, Princess of Liechtenstein died on 25 July. The princess, who was born on 1 May 1950 in Vienna, was the oldest child of Prince Georg of Liechtenstein and his wife née Duchess Marie-Christine of Württemberg and thus cousin of the Prince Hans-Adam II. She is survived by her husband, Johannes Peter Klien, and their children Elena and Michael, daughter-in-law Paula and granddaughter Joséphine.

Princess Margarita will be laid to rest in Wolfurt in the Austrian state of Vorarlberg on next Friday with a requiem held in Liechtenstein afterwards. Her death is announced by both the Princely Family as well as through a death notice by her own family in tomorrow's edition of the Liechtensteiner Volksblatt.

Source: Liechtensteiner Volksblatt, 29/07/2013

Luxarazzi 101: Chapel of Schloss Vaduz

In the southern wing of Schloss Vaduz, the official residence of the Princely Family of Liechtenstein, the castle chapel of Saint Anne, or Anna in German, is located. The chapel has both a religious as well as a - and that's a little more surprising - worldly, or in other words political, function. But let's talk about its history and interior first.

Adrian Hasler, Liechtenstein's prime minister, is sworn in by
Hereditary Prince Alois in front of the altar at the chapel of Schloss Vaduz
(Photos: IKR)

The origins of the castle chapel lie in the High Middles Ages when Schloss Vaduz was presumably built by the family of the counts of Werdenberg-Sargans. It is generally assumed that the part of the building was erected before the first known mention of the castle in 1322. In 1416, the barons of Brandis took full possession of the castle above Vaduz and it was the Brandis family who gave it a remodelling and chose to dedicate it to Saint Anne, believed to be the mother of the Virgin Mary and thus grandmother of Jesus Christ.

The remodelling had become necessary, after the Swabian War of 1499 had destroyed large parts of the castle. Archeological finds made in 1995, suggest that the chapel was once used as a storage room for grain as different kinds where found in the deepest layer of the floor.

In 1511, the Saint Anne congregation was founded and exists to this day. Looking at the way the chapel looks these days, it becomes clear it underwent a few remodellings and renovations since the Middle Ages, for example in 1905 and most recently in 1995.

Considering the collecting passion of the prince of Liechtenstein over the centuries, it is not very surprising that the chapel is full of distinguished treasures of art. The late Gothic high altar's polyptych shows a group of Vesper, the inner panels depict St Barbara and St Katharina and the side panels the ten thousand martyrs of Mount Ararat. The predella shows a painting of the 11,000 virgins of Cologne supposedly martyred by Attila the Hun in 383. Three statues are placed on the tabernacle of the canopy, namely Anna selbdritt, Saint Sebastian and Martin of Tours.

Swearing in of the government in 1965
by Prince Franz Joseph II

The castle chapel is the private chapel of the Princely Family and regularly used by them for mass. Once a year, on the Wednesday of the rogation week - the week of Feast of the Ascension, in case you are not too much into Catholic holidays - the parish of Vaduz makes a pilgrimage to the chapel. Old church books tell that masses where held at the castle's chapel for regular folks every once in a while.

The entrance of the chapel of St Anne is through the courtyard, while the gallery is accessed through the castle itself.

In one of the most surprising things you'll probably ever hear about happening in a Catholic church, the chapel is also used to swear in the government of Liechtenstein. At first the sovereign prince or his regent swear in the prime minister and afterwards the head of government then swears in his ministers. Parts of the procedure can be seen in this video (starting at about 6:05).

Luxarazzi 101: Empire Tiara

Empire Tiara? Luxembourg? Fair enough, your likely confusion is all too understandable... Even though once upon a time Luxembourg had been bigger, it certainly was never considered to be an empire; and neither was the Duchy of Nassau which was once reigned by the Grand Ducal Family for that matter. The whopper of the Grand Ducal collection is, however, still known by exactly this name, the (Luxembourg) Empire Tiara.

The name though is most likely a case of something getting lost in translation. In French this piece is usually known as grand diadème and in German as Reiches Diadem, the translation of the latter one seems to be the source of the confusion. Diadem is simply another word for tiara, but while the German noun Reich means empire in English, reich as an adjective (the -es simply is an inflection) would translate to rich. So, it's rather a "rich tiara" than an "empire tiara" but as the name certainly fits its proportions, there is no harm in using it.

While the history and provenance of one of the biggest tiaras of all the reigning - and non-reigning, really - European families isn't lost in translation, there still is not much known about it. The Empire Tiara had its first prominent outing as the wedding tiara of Grand Duchess Charlotte - later to be repeated by her younger sister, Princess Hilda - when Charlotte tied the knot with Prince Felix of Bourbon-Parma in 1919 though it certainly is much older than that.

Grand Duchess Charlotte and Princess Hilda at their weddings

The lack of information available has made room for many speculations; the two most common stories told involve either Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mikhailovna of Russia, the first wife of Grand Duke Adolph, or Grand Duchess Hilda of Baden, Adolph's daughter. The first theory claims that the tiara was part of the massive dowry of Grand Duchess Elizabeth and is fueled by the bling's sheer size and carat power, which make it is easy to believe that the piece has a Romanov provenance. The other theory tells us that the tiara was left to Grand Duchess Charlotte by her aunt Grand Duchess Hilda when she died childless as she did indeed leave some of her jewels to her Luxembourgish nieces. 

As interesting as they are, both theories can be dismissed for simple timeline reasons. The Empire Tiara entered the Nassau family sometime between 1813 and 1829 and as Adolph was born in 1817 and didn't firstly marry until 1844, there isn't much to them. 

Why the timeframe of 16 years, you might rightfully ask? The Nassau family used to have inventories of their jewellery every once in a while. (You know you have a seriously big jewel vault when you need to have jewel inventories, I guess...) They had one in 1813 and this tiara wasn't mentioned, whereas in 1829 (and 1859) it was, so unless they simply overlooked it in the vaults - which admittedly would be kind of hard when it comes to this wall of diamonds - it's a save bet that it came into the family during the years inbetween.

The Empire Tiara's exact provenance, however, still remains a secret and the details are a little shaky. In 1829, Frankfurt-based jeweller Jakob Tillmann Speltz worked on the tiara though the records do not indicate whether he designed and realised the piece or whether he just made adjustments by adding another few carats. As Speltz worked for many important people during that time, it certainly is a possibility that he was the tiara's creator.

The style and craftsmanship of the tiara has certain Parisian elements and are typical for its time - the end of the French empire and restoration period - though it seems that many German jewellers picked up the ideas of their French counterparts and created tiaras in similar style. If the tiara indeed is of French provenance, it's most likely that Duke Wilhelm of Nassau, father of Grand Duke Adolph, bought the piece from a French noble family who had run into financial difficulties after the end of Napoléon I's reign and had it reworked in 1829 by Speltz to gift it to his second wife, Princess Pauline of Württemberg, who he married that same year.

Grand Duchess Charlotte, Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte and Grand Duchess Maria-Teresa

Venturing further into unconfirmed speculation, it is often said that the Empire Tiara used to be a convertible piece, breaking up into other tiaras, rings and brooches, though it seems that if was fixed into its current setting instructed by Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte, who had many of the family's as well as her own jewels reworked. The tiara is 10.5 centimetre (4.1 inches) high and has a diameter of 19 centimetre (7.5 inches).

These days, Luxembourg's Empire Tiara is the only piece in the Grand Ducal collection that is solely reserved for the use of the Grand Duchess. In fact, this has been the case for the past 100 years or so; the only known exception being aforementioned Princess Hilda who wore it at her wedding to Adolph, 10th Prince of Schwarzenberg in 1930.

Even the Grand Duchesses reserve this tiara for very special events and don't get it out of the vaults for just anyone. Apart from her wedding day and many state occasions, Grand Duchess Charlotte also wore the tiara on the day she abdicated in favour of her oldest son, Grand Duke Jean, and then handed it over to her daughter-in-law, Joséphine-Charlotte, who continued the policy of only wearing it for the most important events before turning it over to today's wearer when her husband abdicated.

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa also followed the precedence set by her mother- and grandmother-in-law by only wearing it four times since her husband ascended to the throne in 2000. She chose the Empire Tiara to adorn her head on a state visits to Belgium and Netherlands, both closely associated with the Grand Ducal Family as well as Luxembourg through political, economical and familiar ties, for the wedding of the only European heiress apparent at the time, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, and for an official portrait.

Grand Duke to Dissolve Parliament

After a short time of consideration and another few meetings with Luxembourg's political leaders, Grand Duke Henri announced on Friday that he has decided that he will dissolve the Chamber of Deputies on 7 October, so that new elections can take place on 20 October. The Grand Duke will sign the necessary documents in the days to come.

With his decision, Grand Duke Henri is following the recommendations of a parliamentary constitutional committee and not the State Council which preferred an immediate dismissal of parliament due to the current rift between government and parliament expressing that a delayed dismissal wouldn't reflect the spirit of the constitution.

Source: Wort