More Royal Fashion Blogs

One of the busiest royal blog areas focuses on royal fashions. These bloggers have to stay on top of their game at all times, especially those who cover more than one royal lady. Royal Blog Central already lists dozens of these fashion-focused blogs. Click the "By Topic" tab and scroll down to "Fashion and Jewelry" or select a specific royal lady or royal house to see them. Here are a few that we are adding this week.

New My Royals Hollywood Fashion
Covering all of royal Europe with indexes both by royal lady and by fashion designer.

RepliKate
"This website was created as a space to easily find your favorite pieces and inexpensive style alternatives" to correspond with the Duchess of Cambridge's fashion choices. From the same group as What Would Kate Do and Meghan's Mirror.

UFO No More
"This site hopes to bring you the most correct, up-to-date glimpse into the closets of the European Royal Ladies...we also hope to bring you articles about events you may have forgotten about and identifications of old and forgotten pieces!"

What Kate's Kids Wore
"Our goal is to simply provide an ongoing compendium of pieces worn by Their Royal Highnesses [George and Charlotte of Cambridge], notable toys, gifts, or other items of note."

Blogs about Meghan!

Now that the engagement between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle has been announced, we can finally add the Meghan-focused blogs to Royal Blog Central. Welcome aboard, Meghan bloggers. We are very excited that Meghan is becoming part of the British Royal Family and we look forward to your coverage and commentary. Cheers!

Mad About Meghan
"The life and style of Meghan Markle"

Meghan Markle Review
"A blog about Meghan Markle, her life and charity work, and Prince Harry."

Meghan's Fashion
"A gallery of Meghan Markle's style."

Meghan's Mirror
"Founded in late 2016, it has quickly become the go-to source for all things Meghan Markle and her style."

Royal Fashion Blogger Controversy: In Defense of Heaven

Screenshot of Princess Marie's Closet

The Duchess of Cambridge's smart attire at the Remembrance ceremony at the Cenotaph this past weekend sparked a Twitter debate among royal bloggers, royal reporters and royal watchers. This time, they weren't discussing what Catherine was wearing. Instead they were arguing about whether they should be discussing her clothes on such a solemn occasion.

The controversy was apparently ignited when multifaceted blogger Heaven, who runs several royal fashion blogs (including Swedish Royal Fashion and Princess Marie's Closet), quickly tweeted an identification for Catherine's coat and then dashed off to church. As she later shared, she then received a very unkind (putting it mildly) direct message for having focused on fashion while the solemn ceremony honoring war heroes was still taking place.

There are dozens and dozens of royal fashion bloggers (and hundreds of general fashion bloggers) who work to identify what someone is wearing, regardless of when or where the high-profile person is wearing it. In the case of royal coverage, I have seen many Twitter conversations between royal reporters and royal photographers asking royal bloggers to provide information about an outfit. This is especially true when the respective royal household has not provided such information, as is frequently the case.

On this occasion, however, a rather routine Tweet became a lightning rod. Many accused Heaven of being insensitive to the occasion while some even questioned her own patriotism. Others stood up for her both as a blogger and as a fellow human being. A few even jokingly wondered what Kate will wear to her own funeral.

There are thousands, perhaps millions, of blog readers out there who want to know every detail of every royal outfit. Bloggers like Heaven have a wide range of resources and personal knowledge that fill these readers' demands. Other readers out there could care less to distinguish between a new chartreuse gown or an altered kelly green gown.

Is it always appropriate to talk about fashion when our royal ladies are trying to direct our attention to issues like mental health, child abuse, homelessness, etc.? Perhaps not, but is it harmful? Is it deserving of scorn? Certainly not. In this blogger's opinion, we should all focus on maintaining a civil and supportive community.

Screenshot of The Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor

When even the wildly popular Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor blog felt compelled today to remind readers of "The Windsors at Remembrance Ceremonies" post that this blog openly states that it is "frivolous," I think that the conversation has crossed the bounds. Fortunately, most of the readers responded with their usual light-hearted, conversational comments and no one seemed to be upset about discussing coats instead of casualties.

Royal fashion bloggers will blog about fashion. Whenever. Wherever. They are providing a desired service not only to their readers but also to those professional journalists who get paid to follow the royals around. If you don't like what they write, don't read them. If you don't like what they tweet, don't follow them. There are plenty of other royal blogs out there to spend your time with, but stop with the snarky, rude or nasty comments.

As my college class president once said, "It's mean to be mean." So, just be nice, okay?

Now, go enjoy some royal blogs....

Royal Tumblr Sites

Tumblr has become a popular microblogging social network. Not surprisingly, royal fans around the world have started many, many Tumblr sites about their favorite royals. Several of these are already included on Royal Blog Central. Here are a few that are being added to our catalog today:

Anything and Everything Royal
"A blog dedicated to following the daily lives of royals."

Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall
"It's all about our lovely, wonderful and adorable Duchess of Cornwall."

Mr. Harry Wales
All about Prince Harry. Recently announced that there will be no new posts, but plenty of background is still available.

Royalty Speaking
"A collection of thoughts, pictures, and ideas about the European royal realm."

French Treats

French claimant Henri Comte de Paris

via Wikimedia Commons

Not every throne has made it into the current century. In fact, the French throne may be the most dismantled, revived, and dismantled again. The execution of the Bourbon king in 1792 led to alternating periods of republics and monarchies with several royal houses including the Bonapartes (1804-1814), the Bourbons again (1814-1815), the Bonapartes again (part of 1815), the Bourbons yet again (1815-1830), the Orleans branch of the Bourbon family (1830-1848), and then the Bonapartes one more time (1852-1870). This has spawned four different sets of claimants to the throne, but with nearly 150 years since France had a crowned head, it's unlikely that any of these descendants will ever sit on the throne. 

However, that doesn't make French royal history and French royal families less interesting to royal watchers. So, here are a few blogs to enjoy on this subject.

Confrerie Royale (French)
"Lettre aux membres et sympathisants de la Confrerie Royale."

Le Blog du Le Comte de Paris (French)
"C'est ce que je ressens pour la France et les Francais."

La couronne (French)
"Le blog de soutien a la famille royale de France"

Tiaras and Trianon
The dual focus here is on Marie Antoinette and tiaras.

Focus on the Swedish Royals

Photo: Jonas Ekströmer, The Royal Court, Sweden

 Photo: Jonas Ekströmer, The Royal Court, Sweden

The royal family of Sweden is one of the most active and visible around the world. In some monarchies, we don't get to see much of the whole family. In Sweden, however, the whole family is very active and publicly accessible, even the little babes. Plus, in recent years, there always seems to be another baby on the way! It's no wonder then that there are numerous blogs dedicated to this beautiful, happy and growing family.

Bernadotte Windsor
"A blog dedicated to the Swedish and British Royal Families. You'll occasionally find posts about other Royals though."

Kungahuset
"A blog about the royal family of Sweden!"

The Princess Family
"A blog dedicated to the Princess Family of Sweden - Madeleine, Christopher, Leonore, Nicolas and Baby Sunshine!"

Swedish Monarchy
"I've been a royalwatcher ever since I can remember. This blog is dedicated to the Swedish Royal Family."

Swedish Princesses (Polish)
"W styczniu 2014 roku założyła swojego pierwszego bloga o szwedzkiej księżniczce, który rok późnej przekształciła w Swedish Princesses Blog."

Swedish Royal Fashion
"I am an avid fan of the Swedish Royals and love the scavenger hunt of identifying Royal Clothing."

Swedish Royal House Mafia
"Welcome to Swedish Royal House Mafia! Created in February 2013, we were the first tumblr blog dedicated entirely to the much loved Swedish Royal Family."

Royal History on Facebook

In these heydays of social media, you can find actual royals on nearly every channel from Facebook, to Twitter, to Instagram, to YouTube, etc. (Here's a list of some of them.) Fans of royalty have been no less prolific in creating social media accounts to celebrate current royals as well as historic ones. Here is a sampling of some of the historic fan pages and groups on Facebook:

Albert I Koning der Belgen
Historic photos, videos and information are offered in both Dutch and French about this previous Belgian king on this Facebook page.

History of Royal Women
With more than 100,000 followers, this Facebook page is a companion to the blog of the same name that traces royal ladies across all generations and all nations.

Mary Queen of Scots
A closed Facebook group offering a discussion of the life and times of the enigmatic Scottish queen.

Queen Elisabeth of the Belgians
A Facebook "public figure" page that is regularly updated with photos, videos and information about the early 20th century consort and her family.

Queen Victoria's Granddaughters
Launched as part of the release of the book Four Graces: Queen Victoria's Hessian Granddaughters, this Facebook public group shares photos and information about the grandchildren of Queen Victoria and their descendants.

Vintage Royalty
Launched at the end of 2016, this growing Facebook page offers a treasure trove of historic royal photos from throughout Europe.

All About Mary

Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark in

Vágur, Faroe Islands, 21 June 2005

By Erik Christensen, Porkeri Website, via Wikimedia Commons

Crown Princess Mary of Denmark is undoubtedly a royal watcher's favorite Aussie. She has been on our radar since shortly after the Sydney Olympics in 2000, where the Tasmanian-born beauty met her future husband. Her move to Europe raised our antennae even higher until no one was at all surprise when the Danish palace announced that Crown Prince Frederik was engaged to marry Miss Mary Donaldson. Since then, Mary has won the hearts of the Danes and the world. Whether you admire her for her charity work and can't get enough of her fashion choices, there is a Mary blog or site out there for you. You'll still find something to enjoy on these:

Frederik et Mary de Danemark [French]
"Site traitant de l'actualite du couple heritier au trone du Danemark."

Ksiezna Mary [Polish]
"The best source of information about the future queen."

Mary from the Start
"A look at Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, from the time she was Mary Donaldson until today."

Style of Mary
"The latest news, fashion inspiration and my passion for the Danish Crown Princess's work."

Unofficial Crown Princess Mary Message Board
A lively conversation about Mary and her work.

Blogs with a Past, A Royal Past

If your royal interests lean more toward the historical queens and princesses, you are not alone. Fortunately, there are numerous blogs and web sites that focus on the royal ladies of the past. Here are just a few.

History of Royal Women
A multifaceted site by an international set of contributors, covering royal ladies of the past with some of today's royal news.

Maria's Royal Collection

A collection of historic photos of royal ladies.

Mary, Princess Royal, Lady Lascelles, Lady Harewood
A Tumblr site documenting the life of the only daughter of Britain's King George V and Queen Mary.

Princess Luise of Tuscany, Crown Princess of Tuscany
"This site featuring postcards and information is about ex-Crown Princess Louise of Saxony (Princess Luise of Tuscany), also known as Countess Montignoso and Madame Toselli. She would have been Queen of Saxony however her path in life was destined for scandal and exile."

Blogs by Historical Authors

Guess who loves history as much as certified historians? The writers of historical fiction! They put a lot of research and effort into making sure that they get the details in and around their stories accurately, even if the tales themselves are more or less fictive. Several authors of historical fiction have blogs devoted to the times and people they are researching for their writing projects. Here are a few of the ones who tend to include royal topics plus some writers of nonfiction who also share their research online.

Baroque Explorations
By Sandra Gulland. A blog about her research into 17th and 18th century life.

Edward II
By Kathryn Warner. "Why almost everything you think you know about Edward II is wrong; welcome to the site which examines the events, issues and personalities of Edward II's reign, 1307-1327."

History Refreshed
By Susan Higginbotham. "A Historical Novelist's New Perspectives on Old Times."

A Nevill Feast
By Karen Clark. "The Nevills were a hugely powerful and important family in the middle decades of the 15th century. They saw the Wars of the Roses from both sides (Yorkist and Lancastrian), but mainly from their own."

Susan Higginbotham
By Susan Higginbotham. Featuring research on Edward II, the Woodvilles, the Wars of the Roses, medieval and Tudor England.

Blogs with Broad Royal Perspectives

For those of you who enjoy reading about all of the European royals, here is a selection of sites for you to visit.

Radical Royalist
"These are troubled times, but I guess monarchists have something to say and something to offer as a possible solution for many problems that shake the world."

Royal Magazin
A wide-range of all royal topics

Royal Splendor
"Everything you need to know about the world of royalty."

The Royal Watcher
"Thoughts about royals"

Princess Diana Blogs

In celebration of Diana Princess of Wales' birthday of this month and the 20th anniversary of her death next month, I thought it would be nice to spotlight some of the blogs and sites that focus primarily on the late Princess.

Deb and Diana Blog
Reviews of books about Diana by the author of a fiction novel about Diana.

The Lovely Diana
"Blog dedicated to Diana Princess of Wales, where I also thirst over her youngest son Prince Harry!"


Princess Diana Blog: All Things Diana
"We have been collectors of Royal Memorabila and Diana commemoratives since 1979!  We have the best selection of Princess Diana news and articles on our blog and we offer expert advice from time to time on collecting those rare Diana collectibles!"

Princess Diana Book Boutique
We offer books and collectibles "all of which is the inspiration for this one-of-a-kind Princess Diana boutique.  You will not find anything else on the internet like us!"

Princess Diana Fan
"Je suis une grande fan de la princesse Diana et sur les enfants de celle-ci ."

Princess Diana Forever
Documentation of Diana's life, words, associates, and royal duties.

Remember Diana
A Tumblr about Diana 

Added This Week: Some Catherine, Some History & a Polish Blog about Mary

HRH Duchess of Cambridge
"HRH's work, patronages and more."

Ksiezna Mary [Polish]
"The best source of information about the future queen."

Royal Favourites
"A collection of Internet materials about the intimate lives of royals, aristocrats and commoners."

Added This Week: Land of Analie

The Land of Analie
"I am an unabashed royal watcher and London lover. I am very much in love with the tradition and history both offer, as well as the new twists the modern age has lent that tradition. (The pomp and glitter doesn’t hurt, either.)"

Royal Foibles
"An anecdotal look at ruling class misdeeds through history"

The [Danish] Royal House (YouTube)

The British Monarchy (YouTube)

Added This Week: Queens of England

Queens of England
"Royalty, queens, princesses and consorts. All things royal -- past, present and future."

The Royal Digest


"Exploring Royalty Around the World"

Added This Week: Tiara Mania

Tiara Mania
"Tiara Mania is a blog about tiaras (obviously)! I started it in 2011, after several years of collecting information just for myself. Since then I have covered over 300 tiaras in encyclopedia style posts."

2 Jan 2017 Norwegian Social Media Update

Today, I have updated the Official Royal Sites page to include all of the official social media accounts of the Norwegian Royal Family. The Palace now offers information via Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. There is also an official Twitter account for the Crown Prince Couple and Crown Princess Mette-Marit runs her own Twitter account. In fact, the Palace was not even aware when she launched it. When the media began to ask about it, they were unable to confirm it because they did not know!

Check out the list of Official Royal Sites. Be sure to let me know of any that you think need to be added!