It has been announced that His Excellency the President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron will pay a State Visit to Sweden upon the invitation from His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf.
This will be the first French State Visit to Sweden since 2000 when President Jacques Chirac visited the country. It will be the third State Visit from France during the 50-year long reign of the Swedish King.
Other State Visits between the two countries:
1908 President Fallières visited Sweden and King Gustaf V
1908 King Gustaf V visited France and President Fallières
1964 King Gustaf VI Adolf visited France and President de Gaulle
1980 King Carl XVI Gustaf visited France and President Giscard d’Estaing
1984 President Mitterrand visited Sweden and King Carl XVI Gustaf
2000 President Jacques Chirac visited Sweden and King Carl XVI Gustaf
2014 King Carl XVI Gustaf visited France and President Hollande
Golden Jubilee of the Reign of His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf (1973 – 2023)
On 15th September this year (2023) His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf can look back on 50 years on the Swedish throne – and what a spectacular Silver throne it is! But for his reign to begin a sad occasion had to come to pass: the death of his predecessor as King of Sweden. That man was King Gustaf VI Adolf, the grandfather of the current King. Carl XVI Gustaf was 27 years old when his grandfather left this earthly life. It was now up to the young new King to shape the future of the Swedish monarchy. Because when King Gustaf VI Adolf took his last breath it was an uncertain time for the Swedish Royal Family.
The Swedish socialist government of the time did not look very favourably upon the monarchy as an institution, through the Prime Minister was said to have great respect for the old King personally. This respect was shared with the Swedish population in general. So even though the government would have preferred a new republic such a move would probably not have had sufficient support from the Swedish people at that time. So instead the government went out of its way to reduce the importance and impact of the monarchy and its traditions. It was for instance decided to abolish the glittering yearly event of the State Opening of Parliament. This had been a longstanding and was a fabulous display of pomp and ceremony with the King and Princes in their uniforms and orders, the Queen and Princesses in court dresses and blazing jewels (with tiaras), the Royal Household in their splendid court uniforms, members of the diplomatic corps in white tie or shiningly embroidered diplomatic uniforms with their wives in long gowns – some with magnificent jewels – and politicians in white tie, coats and top hats.
Another aspect of the traditions and workings of the monarchy that the Swedish government announced would cease was the honours system. The Royal Orders (those of the Seraphim, the Polar Star, the Sword and Vasa) could still be awarded to foreigners and to members of the Swedish Royal Family, but no longer should they be awarded to ordinary Swedish citizens. Fortunately the winds have changed and this specific rule has now recently been overturned and hopefully we should again see Swedish citizens being awarded for their valuable contribution to society soon. It will be very gratifying seeing the Swedes again wear the different Orders of their own country with pride at the various events where Orders should be worn.
These decisions had not yet come into effect though when King Gustaf VI Adolf passed away on after having spent four weeks hospitalised at Hälsingborg hospital to where he had been brought from his beloved summer retreat Sofiero Palace. So the new King still had a very grand swearing in ceremony (the last Swedish Coronation had taken place in 1873 – exactly 100 years previous). And so it also fell to His Majesty to open the first Parliament of his reign delivering the King’s speech (written by the government) in the old grand style.
On 1st January 1975, however, the new decisions made by the government finally came into effect. Consequently the King was left more or less as nothing more than a symbol for the country. It cannot have been easy for the young King in the beginning. He did not have decades of experience like his late grandfather. Nor had he had the time to build up the kind of respect enjoyed by his late grandfather as Head of State who could considered himself almost like a grandfather to his nation. Add to that the fact that he was single, though he of course had the help of his uncle Prince Bertil and his sisters. Things could easily have gone array. But the King embraced the challenge and felt the responsibility to preserve what was left of the monarchy but at the same time also to keep up with the times. His motto states it clearly: “For Sweden – with the Times”. Naturally there have been ups and downs, but the King can now celebrate his golden jubilee knowing that he has reigned longer than any other Swedish monarch and that the future of the Royal Family and the Monarchy seem secure in the person of the popular Crown Princess and her daughter Princess Estelle.
It looks like the celebrations in connection with the Golden Jubilee of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden are going to be rather glittering affairs. At least the banquet which will be held at the Royal Palace where we can expect white-tie and tiaras. And even more Royal tiaras than were perhaps expected before the confirmations of attendance were known. Normally in Scandinavia it is only the (Nordic) Heads of State that attend these kind of jubilee celebrations outside of the family of the monarch that is celebrated. But as we saw from the confirmation from Denmark both the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess will also attend together with the Queen. And now it has also been confirmed that it is not only the King and Queen of Norway that will attend but also the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Norway. This means that we can hopefully expect two more tiaras than would have been the case had only the Heads of State (with consorts) attended.
Photo: Thron Ullberg / Kungl Hovstaterna
I do hope that they all will remain in good health and that there will be no cancellations at the very last minute. Both the King of Norway and the Crown Princess of Norway have had to cancel some engagements lately due to illness.
Celebrating the longest reign of any Swedish monarch His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustav is marking his 50 years on the throne with a series of special events. The most exciting one for Royal watchers who relish in the grander events is naturally the banquet held on 15th September. A concert at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre has also been announced to take place the day before, but it is unlikely that this will be a white-tie and tiara event.
As per today 30th August it has been reported that Her Majesty the Queen of Denmark, Their Royal Highnesses the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess of Denmark and Her Majesty the former Queen of the Hellenes have all confirmed their attendance.
This certainly indicate that it is not only the Scandinavian Heads of State who have been invited to the party. Instead it looks like also heirs are on the list of invited guests and even foreign Royalty. Whether that implies that invitations have gone out to the rest of the European Royal courts has yet to be seen as we wait for further confirmation of attendance. It has to be taken into consideration still that the former Queen of the Hellenes is a close family member of the Swedish King, Her Majesty being his first cousin, and maybe that is why she has received an invitation.
Photo: Thron Ullberg/Kungl Hovstaterna
Apart from his children it is also very likely that His Majesty’s four sisters will add to the glitter on this occasion and there will certainly be representatives from the Norwegian Royal Family present.
Knowing there were two State Visits taking place this week, I was looking forward to what I hoped to be two splendid regal events. One of the State Visits took place in Sweden with the President of Finland making his second State Visits to the country. The Swedish Royal Family almost never disappoints when it comes to State Banquets hosted for foreign Heads of State. So I knew that we would see some wonderful, and very possibly grand, jewels from their impressive collection worn.
I was more doubtful when it came to the other State Visit taking place in Spain. True, it was a meeting between two Royal Heads of State as the King of Spain received the Emir of Qatar. But that in itself is still no guarantee at the Spanish court for bringing out the glittering tiaras and putting on a spectacular show. When looking back on the previous State Visit to Spain from Qatar, which took place in 2011, the dress-code was white-tie, yes, but the ladies without tiaras and no orders worn (except the King’s neck-tie of the Order of the Golden Fleece). Having seen that this was the case then I should not have put my hopes that high for a tiara appearance this week’s State Visit either. But I thought to myself that things do change and lately the Spanish Queen had worn more tiaras to these special events. Or at least that is what I tried to convince myself was the case.
One of the facts that made me increase my expectations was that the Emir had been decorated with the Grand Cross of the Order of Isabel the Catholic. Maybe a odd choice, some might think, for a muslim to be decorated with an Order with such a name and the actions of the Queen the Order is named after. But it is the Order normally given by the King to Presidents and rulers without the style of Majesty.
And then the welcoming ceremony, which took place in the courtyard of the Royal Palace, also gave rise to my hopes. Because it was indeed a very impressive ceremony with splendidly uniformed troops, many of them mounted on shiny horses. Breast plates and helmets glistened in the bright sunshine as the Emir and his consort were escorted in the Royal car by mounted detachments to be welcomed by Their Majesties. The car drove up to the red carpet which had been laid down and where Their Majesties stood waiting. As soon as they got out they were warmly greeted by the King and the Queen. And then the welcoming ceremony followed the usual pattern with National Anthems being played, the inspection of the Guard of Honour and the presentation of the Spanish representatives from Parliament, Governmen and other civil and military authorities.
At least I think the Emir and his wife were presented to military authorities. Because if one looks closely on the video one can see that once the Emir is guided along the line-up by His Majesty himself one can spot an empty space at one point. And no uniformed personnel can be seen in the line-up. When I spotted this I immediately went back to an earlier point in the video when the whole line-up can be seen at a distance from above (a drone camera probably) and I saw that the space that was empty during the presentation was occupied at that earlier point by a uniformed person. I was later able to identify him as Admiral General Teodoro Esteban López Calderón, Chief of the Defence Staff, the highest professional military authority on the Kingdom after the King. So why he had left his place in the line-up just when the King made the presentations to the Emir is still a mystery to me. Maybe somebody out there would know the answer to that? If so, I would love to hear from you.
So, as I said, with this grand welcoming ceremony I had expected something equally grandiose in the evening. Sadly, the dress-code was the same as the one used for the previous Qatari visit; white-tie yes, but without tiaras and sashes of the Orders. It cannot be denied that the Queen looked very elegant in her evening gown. And she did wear a small pale blue and white bow with the bade of the Order of Charles III suspended from it. But I have to say that I was rather disappointed in that no tiara was worn. It can be argued that since the Emir’s consort did not wear a tiara it would have looked bad if the Queen had worn one. But I personally do not agree with that. When the late Emir of Qatar visited the United Kingdom for instance tiaras were still worn by the British Royal Family.
It was therefore a comfort of sorts to witness the glitter at the Swedish State Banquet taking place on the same day. And it was not just one tiara, but at least three as the banquet was attended by both the Crown Princess and Princess Sofia as well as the Queen. There might have been more, as the ladies at the Royal court also wear tiaras when attending these banquets, but sadly I have not been able to spot any of them in the footage I have had access to from the event. Should you have any additional information, please give me a shout 🙂
You can check out more about the Swedish splendour on my blog, here. Eventually I will also create a page on the Qatari State Visit to Spain, but that will wait until I have recovered sufficiently enough from the disappointment to “revisit” it and the tiara-less event.
As I followed the two State Visit realising that only Sweden would bring out wonderful treasures from their collection little did I know that another Royal tiara event had in fact taken place earlier at that very same day!
Many of the rulers of Malaysia and Brunei really know how to celebrate their birthdays. Like the monarch of the United Kingdom a birthday honours list is made by these rulers to mark their birthdays also. But contrary to the British monarch the Malaysian / Brunei rulers put on considerable pomp and circumstance when these birthday honours are awarded.
Now, I discovered a few days after the State Visits happening in Europe on that day, that 17th May is in fact the birthday of the current Raja of Perlis, His Royal Highness Sirajuddin ibni Almarhum Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail. He succeeded his father as the 7th Raja of Perlis in 2000.
Part of the Royal birthday celebrations was an investiture ceremony at the Raja’s Palace Istana Arau. 325 worthy recipients of different awards had been included in the birthday honours’ list. Since the Covid pandemic is not fully overcome some necessary precautions had been taken and masks were worn. It did not take away the grandeur of the ceremony though.
Daulat Tuanku. Selamat Menyambut Hari Keputeraan ke-79 Duli Yang Maha Mulia Sultan Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Ibni Almarhum Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail, Raja Negeri Perlis pada 17 Mei 2022 bersamaan 15 Syawal 1443H. pic.twitter.com/bl5uTjXN8u
— Kementerian Pendidikan Tinggi (@MOHEOfficial) May 17, 2022
The Raja wore the Collar and Breast Star of the Order of the Royal Family of Malaysia as a former King of Malaysia, the Sash and Breast Star of the Royal Family Order of Perlist (which he founded in 2001) and the Breast Star of the Order of the Gallant Prince Syed Sirajuddin Jamalullail.
His wife, the Raja Perempuan (Queen Consort), wore the Collar and Breast Star of the Order of the Gallant Prince Syed Sirajuddin Jamalullail and the Sash and Breast Star of the Order of the Crown of the Realm. The latter is a federal order which she received during her time as Raja Permaisuri Agong (Queen Consort) of Malaysia. At former events Her Royal Highness has been seen wearing a grand diamond tiara. But this year, like for the event in 2019, she wore a smaller tiara, also of diamonds. Whether this is a new piece, or one that has been in the family for some time but has only been given some outings now recently, I do not know. It could be that this smaller tiara is easier to wear, especially taking into consideration the Raja Perempuan’s age.
Also attending the ceremony were the Raja’s son and heir, Raja Muda (Crown Prince) Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail, and his daughter-in-law. He wore the Collar and Breast Star of the Order of the Crown of Perlis, the Sash and Breast Star of the Order of the Gallant Prince Syed Sirajuddin Jamalullail and the Neck-tie of the Most Gallant Order of Military Service. Royal Family Order of Perlis, which is a Malaysian Federal decoration. His wife wore the Collar, Sash and Breast Star of the Order of the Crown of Perlis. She also wore a beautiful diamond tiara in her hair
DAULAT TUANKU
[ FOTO] Istiadat Penganugerahan Darjah Kebesaran & Pingat Negeri Perlis Sempena Sambutan Ulang Tahun Keputeraan Ke-79 Raja Perlis, Duli Yang Maha Mulia Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin ibni Almarhum Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail yang telah berlangsung di Istana Arau, Perlis pic.twitter.com/Ws7CyWVPXT
— Jabatan Penerangan Negeri Perlis (@JapenPerlis) May 17, 2022
Ever since it was announced that a Spanish State Visit to Sweden would take place in November excitement had been building up for this event. On November 23rd the King and Queen of Spain flew up to Stockholm. The State Visit did not officially begin until today (November 24th), but the King and Queen made the most of the evening previous to this to attend a reception at the Spanish Embassy for the Spanish community in Sweden.
Today the King and Queen of Sweden have received the Spanish King and Queen at the Royal Mews, as per the tradition created for State Visits, before riding in State Procession to the Royal Palace for the rest of the official welcoming ceremony.
More on the visit by going to this page here, which will be updated as new information emerge.
As was announced already before King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia left for Stockholm the King have awarded Spanish honours to the Swedish Crown Princess, Prince Daniel, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia. And it is expected that Queen Letizia will be awarded the Order of the Seraphim by King Carl XVI Gustaf during the exchange of official gifts:
Inför det spanska statsbesöket till Sverige har kung Felipe utnämnt kronprinsessan Victoria till storkors av Isabella den katolskas orden. Även Fredrik Wersäll, Andreas Norlén och Ann Linde får samma orden. pic.twitter.com/a4DoX2RLy7
It was not only King Carl XVI Gustaf, his family and the Presidential couple who wore colourful order insignia at the State Banquet which took place on the first evening of the State Visit. Both politicians and aides / courtiers were awarded honours in recognition of their meticulous planning and execution of the program which made the visit a success.
To see an initial list of those who received orders and those who wore them, press here.
Up to now most of the content on this site has been grand Royal events from the past, like State Visits during the reign of HM King Haakon VII of Norway and HM King Christian X of Denmark for instance. But when the German State Visit to Sweden took place earlier this month it was such a joy to again see some proper glitter and splendour that it deserved to be mentioned on this site.
Some Covid restrictions are still in place, though. Thus it was not possible to invite as many guests as is usually the case for the State Banquet that took place on the first evening. But we were at least able to see that the Queen and the Crown Princess brought out some of their best jewels for the occasion. And they looked spectacular. Some more details about the State Banquet and the engagements on the first day here.
It is so nice to see some glitter and elegance – and colours! – again after such a long time. Both Her Majesty the Queen of Sweden and Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess looked wonderful and His Majesty and the two Princes looked very elegant in their white-tie and the Sash and Star of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. A page will be created to cover this State Visit, but before that is up and published here is a nice video from the State Banquet at the Royal Palace hosted by Their Majesties in honour of their German guests:
Some information about the State Visit made by King Haakon VII of Norway to Sweden has just been posted now. If you are interested in reading more about it please tick the button below.
REGAL EVENTS 