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September 25, 1506 – Death of Philip of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, King of Castile and León, husband of Queen Juana I of Castile, at Burgos, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain; buried at the Capilla Real in Granada, Kingdom of Castile, now in Spain
Philip was the son of Maximilian I, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola, and Holy Roman Emperor, and the first of his three wives, Mary, Duchess of Burgundy, the ruler of the Burgundian State in her own right. He was the heir and the eventual ruler of both his father’s and mother’s dominions.  In 1496, Philip married the future Juana I, Queen of Castile and León and Queen of Aragon. Philip and Juana had six children, all were kings or queen consorts.  Philip died on September 25, 1506, aged 28, apparently of typhoid fever, although an assassination by poisoning was rumored at the time.
Unofficial Royalty: Philip of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, King of Castile and León

September 25, 1697 – Birth of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, in Saalfeld, Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld, now in Thuringia, Germany
Christian Ernst, Franz Josias’s elder half-brother had made a morganatic marriage which meant that any children from the marriage would not be entitled to titles and privileges or be in the line of succession. As the elder son, Christian Ernst was his father’s heir but because of his unequal marriage, Franz Josias claimed the sole inheritance of the duchy. However, his father decided that both his sons should reign jointly, and upon his death in 1729, his will forced the joint reign.  From 1735, with the support of the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, Franz Josias effectively ruled in his own right. In 1745, Christian Ernst died and his half-brother Franz Josias became the sole Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. After the death of his brother, Franz Josias introduced primogeniture in the duchy so there would be no question about the succession.
Unofficial Royalty: Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

September 25, 1744 – Birth of King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia at the Stadtschloss in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Friedrich Wilhelm became King of Prussia in 1786, upon the death of his uncle, King Friedrich II, better known as Frederick the Great. By that time, he had little respect for his uncle and ignored the late King’s wishes relating to his burial. He moved the Prussian court – for many years based in Potsdam – back to Berlin, and overturned many of his uncle’s policies. Through his patronage of the arts and work toward improving trade and transportation, he became quite popular with the Prussian people. However, that popularity soon faded, when he began to impose consumption taxes on items such as sugar, flour, and beer. He also depleted the country’s treasury, from overspending during military ventures and his personal projects, such as the construction of the Marble Palace. When he came to the throne, the treasury had over 50 million dollars. But by the time his reign ended, just 11 years later, the country was in debt of 48 million.
Unofficial Royalty: King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia

September 25, 1792 – Death of Adam Gottlob Moltke, favorite of King Frederik V of Denmark, in Haslev, Sjælland, Denmark; buried at Karise Church in Karise, Denmark
Through the influence of his uncle, twelve-year-old Adam was employed as a page for Crown Prince Christian of Denmark in 1722. When Christian came to the throne in 1730 as Christian VI, King of Denmark, Adam was appointed chamberlain to Christian VI’s 7-year-old son Crown Prince Frederik (later Frederik V). The close relationship between Adam and Frederik was established and lasted until Frederik’s death. In 1746, when King Frederik V became King of Denmark, Adam was appointed Court Marshal of Denmark and was made a Privy Councilor. In addition, Adam was given the Bregentved estate in Haslev on the Danish island of Zealand and it is still owned by Adam’s descendants. In 1750, Frederik V created Adam a Count. Although Frederik V took part in the government by attending council meetings, he suffered from alcoholism, and therefore, most of his reign was dominated by his very able ministers led by Adam Gottlob Moltke.
Unofficial Royalty: Adam Gottlob Moltke, favorite of King Frederik V of Denmark

September 25, 1826 – Death of Frederica of Baden, Queen of Sweden, former wife of King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden, at Lausanne, Switzerland; buried at Schlosskirche St. Michael in Pforzheim, Grand Duchy of Baden, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
In 1797, Frederica married King Gustav IV Adolph of Sweden and the couple had five children.
After a 17-year-reign, Frederica’s husband was deposed in 1809, and the couple and their family went to Frederica’s homeland, the Grand Duchy of Baden. However, the couple became incompatible and divorced in 1812. In the divorce settlement, Gustav Adolf renounced all his assets in favor of his mother and his children. He also renounced the custody and guardianship of his children. Two years later, Frederica placed her children under the guardianship of her brother-in-law, Alexander I, Emperor of Russia. Frederica acquired several residences and spent much time at her brother’s court in Karlsruhe, but she also traveled around Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, using the name Countess Itterburg after a ruin in Hesse she had acquired. During her final years, Frederica was often ill and she died from heart disease at the age of only 45.
Unofficial Royalty: Frederica of Baden, Queen of Sweden

September 25, 1968 – Birth of Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau, son of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, at the University Medical Center in Utrecht, The Netherlands
Full name: Johan Friso Bernhard Christiaan David
Prince Friso was the second of the three sons of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and a younger brother of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands. In 2004, Friso married Mabel Wisse Smit. Because of some controversy regarding Mabel’s past, Friso did not request formal consent from the Dutch parliament for the marriage. In doing so, Prince Friso relinquished his rights to the Dutch throne and his title of Prince of the Netherlands. However, he retained his personal title of Prince of Orange-Nassau and was granted the hereditary title Count of Orange-Nassau, with the surname Orange-Nassau van Amsberg. The couple had two daughters. On February 17, 2012, while on the royal family’s annual skiing holiday in Lech, Austria, Prince Friso was buried under an avalanche and was in a coma. He passed away on August 12, 2013, after being in a coma for 18 months.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau

September 25, 1983 – Death of former King Leopold III of the Belgians at Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, Belgium; buried in the Royal Vault at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken in Brussels, Belgium
At the beginning of World War II, Leopold tried to maintain Belgian neutrality, but after the German invasion in May 1940, he surrendered his country, earning him much hostility, both in Belgium and around the world. Leopold and his family found themselves under house arrest at the Royal Palace of Laeken. He attempted to assert his position as King of the Belgians, but the Germans were having no part in that, and his own Belgian government, by now settled in London, had declared his actions unconstitutional. In 1944, Leopold and his family were moved to Germany and then Austria, before being liberated by the Americans. However, Leopold was banned for some years from returning to Belgium, where his brother Prince Charles had been declared regent. Leopold’s eventual return to Belgium in 1950 nearly caused a civil war, and under pressure from the government, he abdicated in favor of his son Prince Baudouin in July 1951. Leopold died at the age of 83, a few hours after undergoing emergency heart surgery. He was buried in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, alongside his first wife, Queen Astrid who died in a car accident, and later his second wife, Princess Lilian, who died in 2002.
Unofficial Royalty: King Leopold III of Belgium

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