How / Why did you get interested in royalty?

[principessa]

My key to the royal world were the narrations of my grandfather, when he was a soldier in World War 2. He told them so interesting that my interest in history was awaked. Then I want to know everything about the history and I learn that there are kings and queens and so on. And then I want to know everything about them, and now, I am a royal watcher!

 

[auroraDaniel]

i was never interested much in royalty, even in my own country. but about 4 years ago, i was bored and surfed the net for hours when i saw a picture of charlotte walking up the stairs, holding a skateboard. and i went, wow she's royal? and playing skateboards? and gorgeous? so, i started reading everything i could about her, and her brothers and family until now. boy, i love that girl.

 

[RubyPrincess168]

I think it started when I was born on Queen Victoria's birthday, and compounded by watching Princess Diana and Sarah Ferguson's weddings on tv growing up.

 

[RoyallyRich]

I became interested in Royalty in 1992 during the crisis of the British Royal Marriages.I became fascinated with Sarah,the Duchess of York.I did not know that the British Royal Family was for real and I was suprised that the Queen had another daughter-in-law that was a redhead.I thought that Royalty was just part of fairytales and make beleive.I had a classmate named Suzy who lent me her mother's copy of Robert Lacey's Majesty and I just devoured that book for a whole day.After that I became addicted.I borrowed every book on the British Royal Family and the Russian Imperial Family.I watched all the Royalty specials on TV and the small screen movies like,Andrew and Fergie;Behind the Palace Doors,Charles and Diana Unhappily ever after,and Diana Her True Story.As years passed I went to the other European Royal Families and read everything about them.Basically my interest in them had to do with their great wealth,their power,their glamour,the lavish Palaces and Castles.

 

[WordsUponTheWind]

- Since I was a young boy I love the style (long robes, shiny clothes, and jewels) of the princesses.
- then there was the pop-music time and steering my interest to stephanie´s songs. It was refereshed in 1991 by a sad event. Also her look, it was sometimes different of the mainstream, sometimes alien-like - a strong woman, but these days its her soft smile (and of course her work she is doing like FAM apart from the default princely tasks)
- related to a the scuba and sailing hobby - Prince Alberts I Exploration with Princesse Alice I/II, the support and connections of the Monaco Princely Family for Cousteau, the Oceanic Museum in MC ...
- and at least everyone loves and dreams of fairy tails, someone watching kitchy movies others reading about their faivourite royals and their festivities (a foreign and alien-like world compared to our simple life )
women dreaming of a her strong prince, men dreaming of a princesse ... so its me too ...

 

[LadyGabrielle]

lady anne

I think my interest began when I was very young because my grandmother would always tell me stories about our family. Although the information wasnt much, I would be in awe and have beautiful cinderella like dreams. As I grew older I watched the weddings of Diana and Sarah and kept up with all the news about Queen Elizabeth and the house of England. I have loved it ever since.

 

[JulieS]

I became interested in royalty when I have read a book about Empress Zita of Austria (the book is in French : "Zita impératrice courage").

 

[Russophile]

Oh geez. With this obsession? Let's see, I've SEEN it for a long time. But it really got hold when things were all interconnected and related. Like I read a bio. on Coco Chanel, well she took Grand Duke Dmitry as a lover, so that lead to checking out the Romanovs, every little bit of it, then they, of course were related to the Windsors, and I had to check that out, thoroughly. And then I came back to Russia and found out that there was a Duchy of Courland and she had a daughter that was Metternich's lover, and another that was The Duchess of Dino, oh hell, who was her father-in-law? What's his name in France. Well, from France I went to Napoleon, and Napoleon III and Eugenie, and back in time to Aquataine. Yeah. It's a mess. I ought to be committed. . . . .

 

[ChantalC]

I first got intrested in Sarah, Duchess of York and Prince Andrew when they got engaged in March 1986. I saw a picture of their enagement in the newspaper. Then I watched their wedding on July 23rd. 1986. I was 11 years old at that time. Then a short while later, I found out there are more British royal family like Princess Diana and others. Then a few years later, I found out there are more royalty from Europe, I fell in love with European and World royalty espeically, Monaco royal family who I am totally crazy about. I love Princesses Grace, Caroline and Stephanie of Monaco. They are my all-time favourite royals. Ever since 1988, I bought Royalty and Majesty magazines. Royalty magazine is my all-time favourite and I still buy the magazine. And, I am still intrested in royalty to this day, ever since 1986.

I met Sarah, Duchess of York twice, in 1987 and 1991. The first time I saw Sarah when she was with Prince Andrew in July 1987 in Cobourg, Ontario. It's a small town in Ontario, one hour away from Toronto and the second time I saw her was at the horse show in Toronto in November 1991. And, I also met the late Princess Diana, Prince Charles and their two sons, Princes William and Harry outside the church in Toronto in October 1991. I even shook all of their hands. I will never forget that day! Sorry to post a long message.

 

[Sven-Fredrik]

My big interest, has been and always will be, is politics. At first I thought that our monarchy didn't ment something in this world but when I realized it actually did, I was hooked. It is a superior form of gouverment where the head of state by tradition (many times as old as the country itself) inherits his job, he or she is educated and prepered his entire life, and to have a neutral factor in the questionable world of politics is a resource and lays in great benefit for the country. First i just reflected about the political and influential part of monarchy and later on I started to read about them and their ancestery.

 

[angiep]

Wow, Chantal is like my 'story' almost to a T!! I became interested in the Royal family mainly when Sarah married Andrew in 1986....I was 12 yrs. old. I always liked Diana, but the Sarah/Andrew hype really started my interest in reading about them. I remember I had a stack of books/magazines beside my bed and I would literally go through my stack every day and look at the pictures and articles. Then being a huge old movie buff, I was interested in the Grimaldis because of the beautiful Grace Kelly. I started getting Majesty and Royalty Monthly around 1988 (same as Chantal and that kept me updated on the goings-on in the Royal Family more. I admit, years ago I skipped over the 'old' Royals (like history) but eventually I started reading each and every article and now I pretty much feel like I know the Royal family more than I know my own!! The history fascinates me also now. It's been a lifelong obsession since I was 12 yrs. old--there could be worse things in life, right??

 

[ChantalC]

Wow, I am almost the same like you, Angiep because I am also intrested in "old" royals like Empress Catherine of Russia, Sissi, King Ludwig of Bavaria and some others and I am also a huge movie buff like you. I have always loved celebrities since I was 10 or 11 years old. I enjoyed reading about the old and current celebrities. Especially right now, I am reading so much about Britney Spears who have a bipolar disorder and is currently in the hospital. I hope she will get better once she gets of the hospital but I have a feeling she might not change at all.

I keep a stack of magazines/books about royals too and I agree with you, it's a lifelong obsession. I beleive you are right that there could be worse in life. It's amazing that we have simliar intrerests in royalty and celebrities since we were 11 or 12 years old. And, I was aslo intrested in Grimaldis because of Grace Kelly and thought she was a beautiful woman and so regal and kind person.

 

[tan_berry]

Alexandre Dumas

By reading the Alexandre Dumas saga when I was a teen.

 

[BryanCornett]

cause i'm directly related to King Canute The Great and His Grandpa is King Harald Bluetooth.

 

[ladyfizzle101]

fourth grade...i couldnt find a book to do my winter break book report on and i found this book on the street and it happened to be about princess diana and ive been hooked ever since....my life hobby is royalty lol

 

[sandsla]

Well, I'm usually more interested in Royalty from a historic perspective. I like reading about history and biographies of people in history so that just kind of lends itself towards Royalty sometimes. But I became interested in this site when I was looking for a Spanish Crest and trying to find some information on I think King Alfonso XIII's family. And then I became interested in Monaco, I guess because of Grace originally, as an American it's a family I'm more familiar with and seems a special little place.

 

[jspate]

I first got into royalty when Prince Andrew and Fergie got married in 1986. I then got into Diana and was buying magazines every week about her. I am now into the British, Spanish and Swedish royals.

 

[ashelen]

I got interested when my aunt told me the story of my grandmother and grandfather, he was noble and she was the governest, so in those days he could not married a commoner, so they decided to get married anyway, he lost his title and money and scaped from denmark, to argentina, passing from england first.

 

[chaz]

If you read history how can you not be?

 

[politikgirl]

I've always been interested in historical royalty, but what got me interested in modern royals was reading about Crown Princess Mary of Denmark in a newspaper.

 

[Saragli]

I was always a history buff so thats where my initial interest in royalty started. But it wasn't until Lady Diana died that I become really interested. I was so confused when she died and why so many people were sad. I had no idea princess's were real, I even thought for a second she was a princesss of america. lol. but then as i watched the funeral, i started to research and then found out about grace kelly and the romanovs and all the other royals of the world. and now here i am scouring the boards late into the night soaking in all the splendor.

 

[Patra]

As a young girl, I woke up at 3am in the USA to watch Diana wed Charles live in London. I think I was hooked from then on....

 

[RoyalistRiley]

When I was little I was very impressed at the idea that there was a woman ( Queen Elizabeth II) who lived in London in a fancy building ruling more than 1 country and got to wear crowns and tiaras and came to Australia once in a while. As I got older, I became more impressed in what that rich old lady actually did and why she lived in her fancy building etc etc. I slowly found more out about the history and pagentry of the British Monarchy and was suprised to find out that were more monarchies when I stayed up late to watch Crown Princess Mary of Denmark get married and saw hundreds of other wearing tiaras and royal uniforms.

And that's how I ended up here....

 

[hilal]

I was 9-10 years old... I saw a pic from Queen Noor. She wore beautiful white evening gown, diamond tiara, blond hairstyle. I tought she came from the Brothers Grimm Tales, but she was veritable Queen.

 

[Keystone]

What drives your interest in monarchy?

KK, hello all.

I’m not much of a Royal Forums poster, but I did discover and join this site way back when I reorganized the Wiki article on the Monarchy of Spain. Now, I had a question to ask then but never posted it. And now, perhaps, I may explore this question in more detail with you the community!

Essentially, my question is what drives your interest in ‘monarchy’ in general? If you sit down and think about it intellectually I mean. We, collectively, do have an interest in monarchy, which has brought us to these great networking forums. But what is it in particular that motivates you to be more active in seeking out others that share this interest?

If I was able to devise a poll, I suppose the questions would be:


Option 1: Primarily political in nature: I am a die hard monarchist and believe in the political theory of monarchy in general, whether absolute or constitutional.

Option 2: Primarily social in nature: I primarily enjoy the social aspects of royalty, from gowns to crowns to titles and tiaras. They are ‘my’ celebrities.


Now then, why do you believe that you hold these convictions? As an American, I have to admit I am at a loss as to why I am interested in other countries monarchies. In no way would I ever contemplate a monarchy for America. That notion makes me sick to my stomach. But I do admit that when I look to Spain or the Netherlands, or Denmark or many other nations, I do like the idea.. .for them… of having a monarch and royal family. And I don’t know why. Intellectually, it doesn’t make much sense to me. I am a middle of the road politically, I do believe in individual civil liberties, freedom of speech, all which is enshrined in the US Bill of Rights. And more too. But, for some unexplained reason, I like some of the ceremony of I see in the Spanish constitutional arrangement, or sometimes even the English one.

My question is, are there others who also share these concerns?

 

[EleanorOfAquitaine]

Hello@keystone

I am new here, and since three days in this forum.
I found it, when i searching for infos about Eleanor of Aquitaine in google.
So i had registered, because i want to discuss with other people who admire Eleanor(she was Queen of france and England and had lived from 1122-1204)

I am not very interested in the royals of today, my interest are the royals of the middle-ages. And so i registered, because here is a category with "royal history"

So the options you call(1 and 2) dont apply for me.

For me i must made an option 3:

I am very fascinated from the middle Age royals(especially eleanor)
I think the monarchy of today is not so much interesting like the monarchy of middle ages.
In the middle ages there were so much interesing personaltiys in the royal familys.
I really admire Eleanor of Aqutaine which was a very strong-mindet und tough woman.

I am not a fan of the royals of our days, but i love watching royal weddings on TV, because thats so romantic.
I live in Germany, and we had a morchy until 1918. And i think its a pitty that we didnt have it today, because monarchy brings a lot of tourists in the land.

 

[nascarlucy]

I love watching the royal weddings and enjoy seeing what the royals wear.

For me option 2 is probably the main reason why I'm interested in this forum. Unless they are British royalty, you don't hear too much about the other royal households in the United States. What is interesting to me is how many individuals out there are of royal blood (thousands of people throughout the world).

 

[Lighthouse]

It's an escape for me, like reading a good book.

 

[nascarlucy]

I love looking at the beautiful gowns that they wear. Only on a handful of occasions have I ever worn an gown. My mother sewed the gown I wore and I wore this gown about 4 times. I was envious of those who wore a gown once and could afford to get a new one for each occasion.

To me, the world of royalty is much different than the average person. I'm looking at it on the outside. It's interesting because they always seem to be going here, going there, going to this party, going to a fashion show or something is going on with them all the time.

 

[Osipi]

Ahh... why am I here? Great question!

I remember growing up in the 50s and 60s and my mother remarking "the Queen does this... and the Queen wears that.. and the Queen would NEVER.." You get the idea. Prince Charles was just a bit older than I was and of course he'd be the Prince Charming who'd give me that happy ever after in the fairy tale dreams I had. I hated history in school but like Eleanor of Aquitaine... I was drawn to the Middle Ages and Camelot and King Arthur and the legends of the Holy Grail.. the romanticism.

As a young wife with children I watched the fairy tale wedding of Charles and Diana and thought she was just perfect... the princess of happy ever after. The Wars of the Wales was going on as I was going through my divorce so of course I totally sided with Diana... how COULD he.. being American the "rags" at the checkout lines gave me all the latest news from across the pond. Since that time, my children got older and had their own lives and I had more time to do what I love best. READ!
I'm an armchair archaeologist and that of course will lead you into reading history. If I had to really choose a period, again its the middle ages.. the Merovingians, the Crusades, the Knight Templars and Cathars and all.

How'd I get to the TRF? Oddly it was hats. Someone I was talking to got on the subject of hats and mentioned fascinators. When you think hats.. you think Ascot so I googled Ascot and linked here. My hubby at the time was working 24-36 hour shifts at a time and I think most of those hours were spent here reading everything... I devoured anything and everything royal. That was 2 years ago and this is still my most checked website. I've learned a lot from the wealth of information everyone here has and finally a couple months ago I actually started posting.

There should be an option in the poll for people like me that are here for um... everything.