• Prince Harry’s godfather Gerald Ward dies on golf course (via Telegraph)
• Queen Elizabeth to mark Blue Peter birthday (via BBC)
• Spain’s Queen Sofia not afraid to kiss the donkeys (via Royal Blog)
• Unseen footage of Queen Elizabeth found (via BBC)
• Letters of Diana and Wallis up for auction (via Royal Blog)
• Father of Princess Mathilde of Belgium passes away (via Royal Blog)
• Queen Elizabeth asks Parliament for millions of extra funding (via Telegraph)
• Prince Charles set to visit haunted castle (via Press and Journal)
• Denmark Princess Marie opens her heart on babies and married life (via Hello Magazine)
• Sweden’s Queen Silvia opens World Forum Against Drugs and Council of Europe´s children´s conference (via Royal Court of Sweden)

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• Prince Harry gets motorbike license (via Telegraph)
• Prince William and Prince Harry want Diana car crash disposed of ‘privately and discreetly’ (via Hello)
• Prince Charles: Schools should have farms (via PA)
• Queen Elizabeth to visit Slovenia and Slovakia (via PA)
• Denmark’s Princess Mary to have an airplane named after her (via M&C)
• Woolly mammoth fossils found at Queen Elizabeth’s Balmoral estate (via Telegraph)
• Hu Jintao welcomes Spain’s Infanta Elena to Beijing (via Royal Blog)

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Birthdays:

1 – Crown Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands
3 – Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia
5 – Pierre Rainier Stefano Casiraghi
6 – Prince Hisahito of Japan
7 – Prince Rudolf Ferdinand of Liechtenstein
8 – Duke Paul Marie of Oldenburg
11 – Princess Kiko of Japan
11 – Queen Paola of Belgium
11 – Prince Talal of Jordan
11 – Princess Iman of Iran
12 – Prince Mohammed of Jordan

13 – Princess Astrid of Liechtenstein
13 – Archduchesses Monika and Michaela of Austria
14 – Count Friedrich Richard Oscar Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth
15 – Prince Henry of Great Britain
15 – Crown Princess Letizia of Austrias
15 – Princess Jalilah of Jordan
17 – Odysseas Kimon, Prince of Greece and Denmark
17 – Duchess Rixa Marie-Alix of Oldenburg
17 – Crown Princess Pavlos Marie-Chantal of Greece and Denmark
22 – Princess Märtha Louise of Norway
23 – Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna of Russia
25 – Prince Johan Friso van Oranje-Nassau
26 – Princess Salma of Jordan
27 – Princess Iman of Jordan
29 – Baroness Christina Louise Silfverschiold
29 – Juan Urdangarín y Bórbon
30 – Princess Maria-Esmeralda of Belgium
30 – Ari Behn

Wedding Anniversaries

4 – Donna Lavinia dei Principi Borromeo Arese Taverna & John Elkann (2004)
7 – Prince Ali and Rym al-Brahimi: 8 September (2004)
8 – Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg & Sibilla Weiller (1994)
9 – Crown Prince Bilah of Brunei & Sarah Salleh – September (2004)
10 – Archduchess Constanza of Habsburg & Prince Franz-Joseph Auersperg-Trautson (1994)
11 – Archduke Sigismund of Austria-Tuscany & Lady Elyssa Edmonstone (1999)
12 – Simoneta Gomez-Acebo & José Miguel Fernández Sastrón (1990)
13 – Erbprinz Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg & Saskia Li Binder (2003)
15 – Prince Kyril of Bulgaria & Rosario Nadal, 15 September (1989)
16 – Prince Hussain Aga Khan and Princess Khaliya: 16 September (2006)
18 – King Constantine of Greece & Princess Anne Marie of Denmark (1964)
18 – Beltrán Gómez-Acebo Borbón & Laura Ponte (2004)
19 – Princess Anna of Bourbon-Two Sicilies & Count Rodolphe de Causans (2005)
21 – Princess Margarita of Romania & Radu Duda (1996)
22 – Princess Astrid Of Belgium & Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este (1984)
24 – Alvaro Fernandez de Araoz Gomez Acebo & Nathalie Picquot (2005)
25 – Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy & Clotilde Courau (2003)
29 – Prince Louis of Luxembourg and Tessy Antony (2006)

Special Occasions

13 – 25th Anniversary of the death of Princess Grace of Monaco
15 – Enthronement Ceremony Anniversary of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden

Source: The Royal Forums

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* Slice of Charles and Diana wedding cake sells for £1,000 (via Telegraph)

* Queen Elizabeth’s guards dismissed after drug test (via M&C)

* Sweden’s Princess Victoria gives award to Finnish President (via Royal Blog)

* Queen Elizabeth falls 35 places on Forbes list of most powerful women (via Telegraph)

* Norway’s Crown Couple funds AIDS charity in Nicaragua (via Aftenposten)

* Bahrain’s Crown Prince interviewed by CNN Marketplace Middle East (via TradeArabia)

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Prince Harry and some of his mates board a ferry for Robben Island

Prince Harry’s tour of Africa is almost over. The British prince has been spending time with members of his Blues and Royals regiment. While in Africa, they have helped with various projects at a community school in Lesotho. This project is supported by Sentebale, Prince Harry’s charity dedicated to helping AIDS orphans in Lesotho.

The visit has not been all work for the group, of course. Some of them, including Harry, also found time to try the world’s highest bungee jump, 700 feet from the ground.

The group is scheduled to go back home to Britain later this week. One of their last stops is at the prison cell where Nelson Mandela spent 18 years of his life. The seven foot by eight foot room “sent a shiver” down Harry’s spine. Harry, who has yet to meet Mr. Mandela, has read his autobiography and is an admirer of the former president of South Africa. The visit to Robben Island, a former leper colony, included a talk by a former political prisoner there.

Nelson Mandela recently celebrated his 90th birthday with a concert at Hyde Park, which was attended by Kate Middleton.

story via Telegraph; image used with permission from Newscom

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Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary, with Iceland’s President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson and his wife Dorrit Moussaieff, on a visit in May 2008

Another princess which I missed on my first list of Vanity Fair’s Best-Dressed Women was Princess Mary of Denmark. Princess Mary is one of my favorite royals. In the list, she is Number 16, though I think she should be higher.

Here are a couple more of her recent fashion statements:

top image used with permission from Newscom

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In the complete list, Princess Letizia of Spain is Number 2 among the best-dressed women of the world. She really does deserve to be in this list. Princes Letizia is always impeccably dressed, no matter what the occasion is.

Thanks, Frank, for the heads-up!

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Crown Princess Mathilde of Belgium (shown on the right), with her tailored dresses and suits.

Prince Heinrich von Und Zu Furstenberg of Germany, whose personal style is labeled timeless.

Count Manfredi Della Gherardesca, whose favorite clothing purchase of 2008 was a batik-inspired J. Crew jacket.

Rafael Medina, The Duke of Feria, along with his brother Don Luis Medina of Spain.

Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, who favors business attire.

UPDATE:  Also on the list of Best-Dressed Men and Women were Crown Princess Letizia of Spain, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Princess Alexandra of Greece, Monaco’s Charlotte Casiraghi, Princess Olga of Greece, Princess Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis, Britain’s Prince William and Prince Harry, and Viscount David Linley.

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Kate Middleton (center) with two unidentified guests at the wedding of Lady Rose Windsor and George Gilman.

The Vanity Fair article cites the following tidbits about Kate’s fashion faves:

Signature look: Tailored jackets, boots, and Philip Treacy hats. Frequented boutiques: Ralph Lauren and Topshop. Sunglasses: Chanel. Notable 2008 ensemble: Black suit and Philip Treacy hat worn to the Order of the Garter service.

Here’s the outfit that earned the “notable” distinction:

Prince Harry and Kate Middleton at the service conferring the Most Noble Order of the Garter on Prince William at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.

images used with permission from Newscom.

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King Juan Carlos skippered the royal yacht Bribon for the event, one of the most popular among the elite international yachting community. His granddaughters, Princess Leonor and Princess Sofia, were in the thick of the action, as were their parents Crown Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia.

The week was not all play and holiday from King Juan Carlos. He also met with several dignitaries in Mallorca. Among those he hosted were Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev and Spain’s own Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero.

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