Bugle Tumble

Today in 1431: Sigismund receives the Iron Crown

Remember Henry VII, the cosmopolitan compromise candidate for Holy Roman Emperor in 1312? He founded the House of Luxembourg, which would provide emperors for more than 100 years.

Sigismund, Henry’s great-grandson, was born in 1368 to the reigning Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV. He was bethrothed to the future Queen of Hungary and Poland, and he spent his childhood in Hungary. As a teenager, he lived with his older brother Wenceslaus in Poland.

In this twenties, he was embroiled in civil wars and court intrigues in Poland and Hungary, becoming King of Hungary but also finding himself kidnapped by Balkan nobles from time to time.

He led (and lost) a Crusade, was recognized as the successor to his brother (who was then deposed), fought with Venice and Naples, and led the interesting life of a claimant to a dozen thrones in the 15th Century.

Sigismund probably stole the election to King of the Romans from his brother Wenceslaus, in 1410. He once famously said to a cardinal of the Catholic Church who gave him constructive criticism: “I am King of the Romans and above grammar.”

Sigismund held little real power in most of his sovereign territories. The electors who made him King, of this territory or that, usually did so to weaken the monarchy. Nevertheless, he become the Holy Roman Emperor.

Traditionally, the German Kings who became Emperors would stop along the way to their coronations in Rome, to be crowned with the Iron Crow and named King of Italy. Sigismund got the Iron Crown first, and then negotiated with the Pope to be named Holy Roman Emperor six months later.

Sigismund had two wives and one daughter. No sons, so his line of the House of Luxembourg ended with him.

(As usual, I depended on the Wikipedia in the writing of this article.)

Also today: Happy Birthday Absentee Voting

…absentee voting for civilians, that is. Vermont passed a law on this day in 1896 establishing absentee voting, leading the way as that state so often does. Yay voting! Yay democracy!

Today in 1905: Grand Duke Adolphe dies

Grand Duke Adolphe died on 17 November 1905. He was the first independent Grand Duke of the modern era, and the last Duke of Nassau.

Here’s the thing: I’m really busy today. The Grand Duke’s story is fascinating and so enmeshed in Luxembourg’s recent history. So I’m going to devote the proper attention to it tomorrow, and do a full blog post. I’ve got pictures and everything — I just need to do it right.

Actually, now that I look at my calendar, I’ll have to say Friday at the latest. Thanks for your patience.

Today in 1921: Fernand Khnopff dies at 63

We’ve seen this Belgian Symbolist artist’s work at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and the Royal Museum of Brussels. He lived in Bruges and Brussels, but exhibited all over Europe during his lifetime.

Khnopff believed in the genius of the individual artist and was treated as one in England and Northern Europe. He influenced the now-famous Gustav Klimt.

Think of Symbolism as the philosophically and artistically sophisticated ancestor of today’s goths. They used dark, mystical symbols to evoke something beyond ordinary ideas and sentiments. Khnopff was particularly fascinated with a dualist view of women: intimate yet unattainable; cruel yet angelic. Typically, Symbolists weren’t easy to live with.

Khnopff’s contributions to the first exhibition of the Vienna Secession nourished a movement that resulted in extraordinary works of architecture that we’ve seen all over Europe.

Today in 1964: Jean becomes Grand Duke of Luxembourg

On 12 November 1964, Grand-Duchess Charlotte abdicated (at 68 years old) and her son, Jean Benoît Guillaume Robert Antoine Louis Marie Adolphe Marc d’Aviano, became Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

On this date in 1964, he was 43 years old and he’d been married to Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium for eleven years. They’d already had five children.

He abdicated on 7 October 2000, at 79 years old, in favor of his son, Henri, the current Grand Duke.

Happy Birthday, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume

Guillaume Jean Joseph Marie de Nassau was born 11 Nov 1981, at the Grande Duchesse Charlotte Maternity Hospital, not far from the BBB&B.

He is the eldest child of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa. His godparents are his aunt, Archduchess Marie-Astrid of Austria, and his uncle, Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg.

The succession law for the throne of Luxembourg is not always straightforward, but in this case, Grand Duke Henri’s eldest child is legitimate, male, and not prone to scandal. He’s active in the Luxembourgish business community, among his other interests. Good job, Your Royal Highness!

Just call them “Their Royal Highnesses”

The current reigning Grand Duke, Henri, has five children: Guillaume, Félix, Louis, Alexandra, and Sébastien. Guillaume is Le Grand-Duc héritie, the next in line for the monarchy.

Why, then, are all five addressed as “His (or Her) Royal Highness”?

To be honest, I don’t completely understand why. Apparently, there’s a difference between “style of address” and “noble title” and each kind of status can be inherited, granted, and sometimes, married into.

But I do know one thing about Luxembourg’s first family: When Grand Duchess Charlotte married Prince Félix, on this day in 1919, Félix brought a little gift for his in-laws. From that day forward, Charlotte’s siblings would be called “Her (or His) Royal Highness” (HRH) rather than the much less impressive “His Grand Ducal Highness” — their previous status.

And ever since, all the children of the reigning Grand Duke or Duchess have been called Royal Highness, regardless of whether they are destined to rule. Charlotte married a younger son of the House of Bourbon-Parma, you see, and the Bourbon-Parmasean are called HRH.