Monaco: Title Conundrum

The title of the ruler of Monaco today is Prince of Monaco, and the conundrum starts there. The prince also styles himself Duc du Valentinois, just one of many French titles the family lays claim to. There lies the second conundrum. The Prince and other family members are addressed as His (or Her) Serene Highness, and that’s a third conundrum. 

Andrea Casiraghi of Monaco

Monster in the Making

King Henry VIII is often perceived as a monster. The heads of various wives were just a fraction of an epidemic of the people losing their heads during his reign. But to understand why he acted the way he did, you must know where he came from. A new book sheds light on the young Henry. 

Jonathan Rhys-Meyers

The Wedding Document of Princess Theophanu of Byzantium

When Emperor Otto I went looking for a wife for his son, he wanted it to be a political statement. As the first Emperor from German stock, he was looking for acknowledgement by the other half of the Roman Empire. A princess of the house of Byzantium it had to be and nothing less. Once the goal was achieved, the newcomers went out of their way to show how much they appreciated the gesture. 

Empress Theophanu

What a Riot! William and Kate

The movie William & Kate has universally been panned as the worst movie ever. This is faint praise for one of the most miserable productions ever to come out of a studio anywhere in the world. The movie will set standards for decades in bad taste, bad acting, bad screen writing, and generally having no idea of what it is all about. You just have to see it!