Consort Profile: Empress Carlota (Part II)

It was 1863, French forces had been fighting in Mexico which had only just come out of a period of internal conflict and the American Civil War had reached its bloodiest point. Maximilian was hesitant and his family strongly opposed the idea. It was still a dangerous country, divided, chaotic and poverty stricken, problems that seemed nearly impossible to solve, and the House of Hapsburg would be risking a lot getting involved. Charlotte, however, urged Maximilian to accept the offer. She was optimistic and had faith that this would be their chance to prove their own worth and talent as well as to put their own ideals into practice and make Mexico their showcase for benevolent, progressive monarchy. To Charlotte, it seemed like destiny and she also felt a humanitarian obligation to help the people of Mexico. Maximilian came to his wife's point of view, but still refused to accept the offer until Napoleon III promised him that he was genuinely wanted and that French troops and money would support him until Mexico could stand alone.

Not everyone reacted to the news well. Charlotte's French grandmother cried that, "They will be killed! They will be killed!" and Emperor Francis Joseph told his brother that he would have to renounce his rights of succession in Austria if he accepted, hoping this would dissuade him. Charlotte tried to dissuade her brother-in-law, but the stern monarch would not budge and eventually she persuaded Maximilian to agree to the terms. Along with the encouragement of Charlotte and French promises of support, Maximilian also received the results of a plebiscite held in Mexico in which the public voted in favor of restoring the monarchy with himself as Emperor. Little did he or Charlotte know that it was generally accepted that French troops had engineered the outcome to be in his favor. This, along with the opportunity to show the world what he could do finally prompted Maximilian to accept the offer and the Mexican delegation proudly hailed him as Emperor while a regency was set up to govern until he arrived. Also, unlike the Hapsburgs, the Belgian royal house largely met the news with great excitement and all of the optimism that Charlotte herself displayed. The new Empress changed her name to the Spanish version Carlota and she joined her husband in learning Spanish, studying Mexican history, custom and styles.

On April 14, 1864 the Imperial couple left Austria. They stopped at Rome to receive the blessing of Pope Pius IX and on orders from Queen Victoria the British garrison at Gibraltar saluted them as they entered the Atlantic. Carlota was excited with the possibilities that lay before them and envisioned a country full of adoring people who needed and wanted them, a romantic empire of scenic beauty, Latin charm and a chance to fulfill their destiny. When they landed in Veracruz on May 24, 1864 there was not much of a reception though and the journey across country was rough and uncomfortable aside from the warm welcome by the Indian population which saw them as potential liberators from their status at the bottom of Mexican society. It was not entirely what Carlota had expected, but there was still great promise. She was amazed at seeing such poverty contrasted with immense wealth and shocked by the ignorance of so much of the people, particularly noticeable to one as intelligent as her, which she blamed on a failure of the Church to properly educate and catechize as they should have.

Things were somewhat different when they arrived in Mexico City to a jubilant reception, welcomed not only by the conservatives who had supported the French intervention, but also by many who opposed it who saw in the gentlemanly Emperor and his lovely wife a chance at something better than the succession of petty dictators and warlords that had held power throughout Mexican history. In fact, so many occupants had come and gone so quickly that the National Palace was in horrible condition and Carlota could not sleep on her first night there because of the lice that infested the place. They decided to renovate the old Aztec summer palace at Chapultepec as their primary residence. Still, Carlota was charmed by many of the adoring people and their coronation in the national cathedral was a glamorous event the likes of which no one in Mexico had ever seen. Nonetheless, the rose colored glasses slowly fell from her eyes as even Carlota, who had been so enthusiastic about Mexico, was confronted with more and more disappointments.

She was shocked by the poor that lined the streets and she decided to give them jobs working in the palace and helping with projects to preserve national monuments and beautify the city. However, she wrote home bitterly that these people to whom she had tried to give an opportunity for something better often lasted in the palace for only a day, leaving in the night with as much stolen goods as they could take with them. Furthermore, they soon learned that not everyone in Mexico was overjoyed by their presence and the French warned them not to venture too far out unless they had an armed escort. The country had not been totally pacified and French forces were still fighting the considerable armies loyal to President Benito Juarez. The United States, though occupied in their war against the Confederacy, also opposed the monarchy and supported Juarez who had given them considerable concessions.

Nonetheless, Carlota was a woman of duty and she held grand balls at the palace to raise money for charitable causes and sponsored the building of schools, hospitals and poor houses. She toured the country on behalf of her husband, going to the wild Yucatan Peninsula and visiting the ruins of Uxmal. While Maximilian traveled about the country, Empress Carlota ruled in his absence as regent, even preparing official documents and running things when he was at home. Many Mexicans and French came to realize that she had a stronger personality than her husband and was much more formidable to deal with. If Mexico was not an ideal country, she was still determined to make it an ideal one but the policies Carlota and Maximilian enacted toward this end often worked against them. When he refused to restore the huge estates to their previous owners the conservatives became less enthusiastic about his rule and when he also refused to restore the favored position of the Church, the Pope recalled his nuncio in 1865. Carlota began to feel like a woman under siege, but those against her and Maximilian were to find her a formidable enemy. Their relationship with the French was also not always a cordial one. Carlota distrusted the French commander Bazaine and greatly preferred the commander of the Belgian legion in Mexico, Colonel Alfred Van der Smissen, whose troops acted as her personal guard.

Mad Monarchist Fan Mail

Believe it or not, I get lots of fan mail. I don't think I've ever posted my email address but it's not too hard to guess. Some of these are comments that I did not approve but were too good to erase, most however were email messages, with their addresses clearly shown and often enough even signed as well. Enjoy the heartfelt compliments of my biggest fans:

“Monarchy…uh huh…do you realize how out of date you are?”

“This is the most evil blog I have ever seen in my life. You are just evil. You are defending evil tyrants with blood on their hands.”

“F*** you! You f****** psycho!” (I corrected the spelling of psycho for this one)

“I have read quite a bit of your blog now and I have no doubt that you are yet another papist enemy of the British monarchy. You support absolutism and autocracy just like the antichrist in Rome. The British monarchy means liberty and democracy. The Queen hates you!”

“Whoever is behind this blog is obviously a bloodthirsty Buddhist who wants the return of the Dalai Lama clique. China saved people from brutality of Buddhism and you want to enslave them in misery. Buddhists like you should die.”

“Dear Mad Monarchist, you are a perfect illustration of the very worst of the Orthodox heretics. Can we say Caesaropapism? The Catholic Church opposes divine right of kings, we have freedom but by all means, you and your kind go ahead licking the boots of your dead murdering emperors.”

“You are Satan!” (short and to the point I guess)

“I have just read The Mad Monarchist blog for the first time. You will be pleased to learn that it did not disappoint. It is mad with a capital M.”

“Just so you know, you are a racist a****** and I hope you die.”

“Monarchy has to move with the times to survive. You are stupid if you think you are doing monarchy any favors by being an anti-gay bigot. Or is this a joke? Seriously, morals and values have changed and if you were a real monarchist you would want the monarchy to change with the times. Most of them have anyway so, sux 2 b u!”

“To the so-called Mad Monarchist: You are a Nazi son of a ***** and you should be stripped of your citizenship and deported to some monarchy-hell like England. You would fit in perfect with the a******* there.”

“What’s with the Muslim a**-kissing? I hope the Muslims kill the people like you first. Traitor.” (This one, I can’t help but add, came from one of those geniuses who signed his comments “anonymous” but used his name for his email address).

Another long and rambling message accused me of being a fraud (I guess because of the avatar) and seemed to think I was actually trying to convince people that I am a White Russian general who died in 1921. Yes, I’d have to get up pretty early in the morning to fool that sharp cookie. My favorite however, is an old one I have long since lost which accused me of putting on an elaborate ruse to hide the “truth” that I am actually a secret agent of the communist government in Vietnam working behind the scenes to destroy monarchist movements around the world. Gosh I feel important. I’m so loved!

Update on Thailand

Following a military offensive in Bangkok the Thai government has declared the recent crisis over with soldiers now engaged in 'mopping up' operations following the crackdown on the red shirt protestors. After giving final warnings to disperse and allowing those who wished to evacuate units of the Royal Thai Army stormed the red shirt barricades and put an end to the disturbers of the peace though radical elements retaliated with some bomb attacks and setting fires. Once the military had restored order the captured red shirt ring-leaders were taken into custody yet opposition leaders warned that they had not given up their struggle. Former PM, billionaire and convicted criminal Thaksin Shinawatra (who bankrolled much of the protest) said he continued to support the red shirt movement -so the efforts to change the balance of power are not over yet and more trouble can be expected in the future. Nonetheless, thankfully, for the moment at least, peace has been restored and the Kingdom of Thailand is safe for now.

Consort Profile: Empress Carlota (Part I)

The woman who would become the last Empress of Mexico was altogether a tragic figure. She was a woman of great dreams and high ideals, of intense courage and devotion. Superficially she seemed to have quite an enviable position; she was a beautiful princess, married to a romantic, tall archduke, living in palaces and attending grand parties. Yet, beneath it all, she was a woman who suffered intensely from deception, betrayal, restlessness, loneliness and finally a grief so intense that she suffered a total emotional breakdown. She was born Marie Charlotte Amelie Augustine Victoire Clementine Leopoldine of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha on June 7, 1840 to King Leopold I of the Belgians and his second wife, the French princess Louise Marie d'Orleans at Laeken Palace in Brussels, Belgium. She was named after Princess Charlotte of Great Britain, the beloved first wife of King Leopold, who had died in 1817 and was a first cousin to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Great Britain.

Princess Charlotte suffered the loss of her mother when she was 10 and partly as a result, she had to grow up in a hurry. She grew into a well read, very intelligent, energetic and committed young woman. She enjoyed social functions but was also very serious, especially about her royal duties, which she never neglected. She was also interested in philosophy as well as mathematics and could read Plutarch when she was 13. It was in the summer of 1856 that she first met the Austrian Archduke Maximilian von Hapsburg. The slim, blonde prince was a hopeless romantic, charming, humorous and friendly. He was probably not as intelligent as Charlotte, but he had varied interests. He was a naturalist who studied birds and butterflies and seemed to have an inherent appreciation for beauty in the world. With her slender figure, soulful dark-brown eyes and long black hair, the 16-year-old Charlotte was certainly a beauty he could appreciate. They fell deeply in love and Maximilian soon asked King Leopold for the hand of his daughter. The Belgian monarch would have preferred Charlotte to marry King Pedro V of Portugal, but the only brother to the Hapsburg Emperor was a prestigious match and he allowed Charlotte to marry Maximilian if she wished.

Their romance deepened on Maximilian's second visit to Belgium. Maximilian talked to her about politics, Lord Byron, his own beliefs and goals, his planned for home of Miramar in Triest, Italy and about his many travels. Both were idealistic and very progressive for their time and Maximilian once remarked that he was a liberal, but Charlotte was a radical. She became more fascinated by him and totally adored and idolized him. There were though, rather tiring negotiations concerning Charlotte's dowry that went on and on until the handsome couple were finally married on July 27, 1857. The beaming Charlotte, at 17-years-old, was now an Austrian Archduchess and traveled first to Vienna and then to Italy where Maximilian took up the post of Viceroy of Lombardy and Venice. Their reception in Milan was not extremely cordial, but Charlotte was very impressed with Venice and did what she could to win the approval of the Italians. She wore local dress and wrote letters home about how much she loved the area. They were housed in the villa Miramar other than for a period in 1859 when an Italian rebellion forced them out for a time, and while Maximilian carried out his royal duties Charlotte busied herself with reading, writing, swimming, sailing and painting. However, both of them were enthusiastic and idealistic young people and felt somewhat restless and disappointed that they were not being used to their full potential.

In time, their opportunity for greatness did come and it came from Mexico, via the French Empire of Napoleon III. In many ways, what became popularly known as the "Mexican Adventure" was settled by two women: Princess Charlotte and Empress Eugenie of France. For some time Mexican traditionalists had been in France lobbying for intervention in Mexico following the takeover by the regime of President Benito Juarez who had expelled all conservative opposition, attacked the Church and seized control of all large estates. Empress Eugenie was particularly touched by the plight of the Church and she worked on her husband to help resolve the situation. Napoleon III thought it would also be good for French prestige and commerce to have a friendly government in Mexico City and so he backed the Mexican conservatives who went to Miramar to offer the Crown of Mexico to Archduke Maximilian.

Religious Cooperation

On the occasion of Vesakh on the 17th, the holiday honoring key moments in the life of the Buddha, the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue issued a statement stressing areas of common agreement between the Christian and Buddhist communities. The feast will be celebrated in upcoming days, on different days in different predominately Buddhist countries. The statement pointed to areas in which Christians and Buddhists share common values such as environmental conservation, the protection and dignity of all human life in all states of development and the importance of the family unit as the building block of human society. In these days of increasing atheism and secularism (and religious hatred on the part of some) it is good to see and highlight the areas in which major religious groups stand together on natural, traditional morals and values. Buddhist monks offering prayers for aborted babies in Vietnam
The full text of the Message for the Feast of Vesakh from the Holy See website
"Christians and Buddhists Respect Human Life As the Basis of Respect for All Beings"

Video: Princely Visit to Pope Pius XII

A little cross-over post from my 'other' blog Mad for Monaco -a visit of Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace of Monaco to Pope Pius XII who bestowed on the Prince the Papal Order of the Golden Spur. Enjoy the vid-the grand display of papal-monarchial ceremony would not be around for many more years.

Mexican Monarchism

A great many monarchists around the world are, thankfully, aware of the tragic history of monarchy in Mexico embodied in the two gallant emperors; Augustin and Maximilian. However, not too many are aware of what happened to the cause of the Mexican monarchy in between the reigns of these two men or what happened to the monarchist cause after the atrocious execution of Emperor Maximilian. In Mexico, since the time of Spanish colonial rule, there had been quite a glittering local aristocracy. Many of these naturally supported the monarchy, and during his short reign Emperor Agustin created new titles of nobility, but support was not universal with many looking out for their own survival in the tumult that came with the fall of the first empire. When Emperor Agustin was executed the natural focus shifted to his son and heir the Prince Imperial Agustin Jeronimo.

He led a very diverse and interesting life, not always the sort one would expect of the heir to an imperial throne. While in exile he fought alongside Simon Bolivar in the War of Colombian Independence. After returning to Mexico he defended the republic during the war with the United States, leading the Celaya Battalion and calling upon the memory of his late father as the ‘Father of Independence’. He later served the Mexican republic in the civil sphere as an attaché to the Mexican legation in London. Showing his deep devotion to the Catholic Church that the Iturbide dynasty was known for he also served a tour a duty with the Papal army in Italy. He was not involved in the French intervention or the creation of the Second Mexican Empire of Maximilian but he did approve of the Hapsburg adoption of two of his nephews to serve as the heirs of the childless Maximilian. He died in New York, unmarried and with no heirs in 1866 and was buried in Philadelphia as was his mother Empress Ana Maria.

In the intervening years chaos prevailed in Mexico with the occasional president coming to power who was more favorably inclined toward the monarchist position though never actually willing to surrender power themselves in favor of a monarchist option. General Anastasio Bustamante had been a personal friend of Emperor Agustin I and he served as President of Mexico three times. He never took any steps to reestablish the monarchy but did take some tentative steps to restoring the image of the first Emperor as “Father of Independence”. When he died his ashes were buried alongside the martyred monarch. However, during the years between the two empires the one man who dominated Mexican politics more than any other was the shifty, vain and ambitious General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. Throughout his dramatic and colorful life he seemed to have been on every side of every issue at one point or another, supporting and betraying every faction.

Santa Anna had originally led the coup that brought down Emperor Agustin in the first place but later on, just as he at times posed as a liberal populist, he also took on more monarchial styles. He restored the Imperial Order of Our Lady of Guadalupe, even at one point taking to styling himself as “His Serene Highness”. An open admirer of Napoleon (who gloried in being referred to as the “Napoleon of the West”) some thought he harbored ambitions of making himself Emperor. That never happened but it was Santa Anna who first sent the staunch conservative Jose Maria Gutierrez d’Estrada to canvas the courts of Europe in search of a suitable Mexican monarch -a campaign the ardent reactionary continued even after Santa Anna had fallen from power yet again. This man would ultimately be a key player in the Mexican expatriate community in Europe that would bring Maximilian to Mexico.

It was the marriage of convenience between the monarchist expatriates in Europe (for the most part) and the conservative clerical party in Mexico (led finally by President Miguel Miramon) that came together in support of the French intervention to create the Second Mexican Empire. As most know, unable to have children of his own, Emperor Maximilian adopted two grandsons of Emperor Agustin as his heirs; Prince Agustin de Iturbide y Green and Prince Salvador de Iturbide y de Marzan. Agustin was named heir to the throne, usually titled Prince of Iturbide, and had the monarchy survived, upon the death of Maximilian he would have become Emperor Agustin II. That not being the case his natural family took to him to England and later he spent most of his youth in the United States. After his graduation from Georgetown he renounced his titles and claim to the Mexican throne, returned to Mexico and pledged his allegiance to the republic, serving for a time as an officer in the Mexican army.

This was during the dictatorship of General Porfirio Diaz, one of the most famous enemies of Imperial Mexico. Obviously, Mexican monarchists had not fared well since the fall of the empire, some fled to south Texas, some to Europe and others kept low and silent. However, there was a slow return to boldness and although the regime of General Diaz has often been termed as one favoring the elites to gain legitimacy, in most cases these were not the true aristocrats of Mexico but more like a post-revolutionary nouveaux riche. The old aristocratic families and lingering monarchists got in touch with Prince Agustin and prevailed upon him to come out publicly in opposition to the Diaz dictatorship in 1890. This action (not unexpectedly as he was an army officer at the time) led to his being arrested, brought before a court martial and being put in prison for 14 months for sedition.

After his release he went into exile again in the United States where, for a time, he suffered a nervous breakdown due to a paranoid fear of being assassinated (rather like his adopted mother Empress Carlota). Yet, he recovered, worked as a translator while living in a monastery and eventually teaching at Georgetown. He died in 1925 and was buried in Philadelphia. His cousin, Prince Salvador, then inherited the imperial claim to the throne of Mexico. Empress Carlota had sent him to safety in Paris after his adoption and he lived there until moving to Hungary in 1867. After the death of his adopted parents Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria granted him a pension though despite repeated requests he never increased the amount. He married into the Hungarian nobility and later moved to Venice where he became close friends to the Carlist heir to the Spanish throne. He died while visiting Corsica of an appendicitis.

In Mexico itself the monarchist cause was virtually wiped out but a loyal few have always kept the light burning. They cannot be totally dismissed given the amount of attention the republican government paid to them. When the Imperial Austrian government paid for the construction of a special chapel, dedicated in 1901, on the spot where Emperor Maximilian and his two top generals were shot the republican government quickly erected a massive monument to Benito Jaurez, the man who ordered the executions, directly in front of it (one wonders if they would have allowed the chapel to be built at all if that had not been planned all along). Well into the 20th Century Mexican monarchists would make an annual pilgrimage to the Church of La Profesa to hear mass for the repose of the soul of Emperor Maximilian and each time there would be agents from the Ministry of the Interior present to keep an eye on them.

However, the monarchist community, especially as the years drew closer to the present, suffered from the complete absence of the heirs to their throne with no connection to those who had inherited the imperial title. The only monarchy with a history in Mexico to cause a stir was that of the Kingdom of Spain and when King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia visited Mexico for the first time in 1978 monarchists and aristocratic families fought over who would be given precedence at formal events and receptions. Some have even attempted to gain titles of nobility from Spain but have been stopped by the law. However, for all those welcoming the Spanish monarchs, there were more who held protests each time they came to the country. In the same way many cried colonialism when Spain began to invest in Mexico only to cry betrayal when Spain stopped investing in Latin America to become a member of the European Union.

Monarchists loyal to the empires still exist in Mexico but they are not well organized, few and far between. Soap operas, novels, plays and so on abound about the second empire period in particular but the “politically correct” view and that taught in the schools is still one of hostility to the monarchist position. Websites appear from time to time devoted to the subject, but most soon vanish or stop being updated. The distant heirs of Maximilian have shown no interest in visiting Mexico or speaking about their imperial heritage. Maximilian remains despised by the majority though Carlota is sometimes treated with more sympathy. It also often seems that the only people to celebrate the Emperor Iturbide are the “white nationalist” fringe who sometimes hold marches waving neo-Nazi banners and carrying portraits of the first Mexican Emperor. However, though being hampered by being few in number and fairly scattered, the monarchist community remains, keeping alive the glorious vision of a grand and prosperous empire for Mexico that Agustin and Maximilian tried to bring to fruition.

MM Video: Queen Elizabeth II

Shameless Plug

Two Spanish Pilgrims

Last Thursday TRH Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia of the Asturias participated in a time-honored Spanish tradition; walking the Camino de Santiago in Galicia to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. This was once one of the most famous places of pilgrimage in the world, and still is for Roman Catholics though of course it is not like it was in the era of the height of Christendom. Of course with these two pilgrims the media followed them every step of the way. Upon arriving at the cathedral they met people in the crowd before going inside to embrace the statue of St James, took some time to reflect before his relics and then heard mass.

This is the sort of thing that I love to see, especially in this day and age when secularism is so rampant. Royal-religious occasions do remain; I think of Queen Elizabeth II on Maundy Thursday, the Prince of Monaco on St Devote day and the like but it seems that such events are few and far between these days, especially in the Christian -or formerly Christian- world. The Emperor of Japan still participates in certain Shinto rites and the Kings of Thailand and Cambodia preside at important Buddhist ceremonies but even in that part of the world, with the fall of monarchies, many of these religious customs have gone extinct. The communist rulers of China and Vietnam may now go through the steps of copying what the emperors once did, going to the Altar of Heaven to make offerings on behalf of the nation -but it is nothing more than play-acting and everyone sees it as such.

If anyone would like to leave a comment on some important religious occasion which modern day royals participate in, whether reigning or non-reigning royals, I (and I'm sure all readers) would be glad to hear about them.

Violence Rises in Bangkok

The liberal media outlet (PM)MSNBC reports on the recent upsurge of violence in Bangkok. Readers will note that the red-shirts are cast in the light of heroic victims, the champions of the poor, rising up against the "royalist elite" who dominate the current government.

Monarchy and Native Americans

There is a long and varied history shared by the kingdoms of Europe and the American Indians. Any time a more advanced civilization comes in contact with a more primitive one there are bound to be problems, intentional or accidental. All too often Europeans tended to exaggerate the lack of knowledge of the Indians, generalizing them in some cases as savage beyond saving while others, even those taking a more benevolent if condescending attitude confused a lack of knowledge of things Europeans considered invaluable to a lack of knowing what was best for themselves. In reality, American Indians learned quickly how things worked with the European powers and acted in what was their own obvious self-interest in deciding when to negotiate, when to fight, who to ally with and who to oppose.

When Christopher Columbus was first sent across the Atlantic Queen Isabella was clear that the natives he encountered were, “to be treated as free men, for such they are”. The Spanish certainly did not always treat the Indians well but it is often forgotten how many became advocates for the Indians, particularly the missionaries who obviously were going to have a harder time converting the Indians to Christianity when they were being brutalized by other people claiming to be Christians. It is also noteworthy that when monarchy returned to Mexico in the person of Emperor Maximilian it was the Indian population that was often the most welcoming and it was an Indian who was regarded as his most loyal and upright general. Keep in mind that during this period the president who was opposing Maximilian was himself a full-blooded Zapotec Indian.

In the north of America there were numerous conflicts between the Indians and Europeans but a crucial conflict was the French and Indian War -the name the British colonists gave to the conflict because of the makeup of their enemies. In the end the British were successful and those Indians that sided with the French were generally vilified. However, the fact that most Indians sided with the French was a logical ‘foreign policy’ decision to make. One reason the French faced such long odds in that was is because they had such a smaller population than the British. While the British sent over settlers, establishing colonies, growing and expanding, the French sent mostly trappers, traders and Jesuits. It was natural common sense for most of the Indians to side with the French, who mostly preached to them and traded with them, in opposition to the British whose colonists were expanding, pushing them out and claiming more and more of their land.

In the same way, not many years later, most of the Indians sided with the British Crown against the rebel colonists of the soon-to-be United States. Again, this was a very rational thing for the Indians to do as King George III of Great Britain had already recognized the rights of ownership the Indians had to the lands they occupied while the colonies had already claimed the same land for themselves extending all the way to the Louisiana Territory. It was also during the American War for Independence that the U.S. forces gained their first unsavory reputation for destroying Indian settlements. This left such an impression that the first name the Indians gave to the President of the United States translated to “the burner of villages”. Also in the War of 1812 the Indians supported the British against the U.S. and in fact were instrumental in preventing the American conquest of Canada.

For many, many years later, when the United States was engaged in the conflicts known under the blanket term of the “Indian Wars” after 1865 it was still the monarchy of Canada that was seen as the preferred safe haven for those Indians under attack by the US. Some did flee to Mexico, but the (republican) government there was often as bad or worse to deal with than the US and so you would see huge numbers of refugee Indians enduring immense hardship to escape north to the relative safety and security of the Dominion of Canada. For anyone interested in reading more about this subject you can review past profiles of Tomas Mejia, Chief Joseph Brant and Simon Girty. More examples will be looked at in future posts.

Favorite Royal Images: Royals Going "Native"

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth meeting leaders of the Stoney Indian tribe who are displaying a portrait of Queen Victoria given to the tribe long ago.

HRH the Prince of Wales

Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, with the Chiefs of the Six Nations

Lord Tweedsmuir, Governor-General of Canada

HM King Edward VIII

HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco

Prince Albert and Princess Caroline of Monaco

HSH Princess Stephanie of Monaco

Happy Birthday Dom Duarte!

The Radical Royalist of Australia reports on the 65th birthday of the heir to the Portuguese throne Dom Duarte III, Duke of Braganza. The Mad Monarchist joins all loyal Portuguese and his supporters around the world in wishing His Highness a very happy birthday!

Royal News Roundup

Starting in the Far East, Her (Adorable) Imperial Highness Princess Aiko has had some more problems recently. Readers will remember some time back she was pulled out of school because of bullying problems, well, someone has done worse than that it seems. On Wednesday a 26-yr-old man was arrested for making an on-line threat against the Princess’ life. He reportedly threatened to ‘smash her head with a hammer’. I hope the guilty party will be punished to the full extent of the law. No doubt Japanese authorities are on even higher alert on this subject given the media frenzy over a number of horrific mass murders in schools in Communist China where killers have rampaged with hammers, knives and other such objects (no private gun ownership in China -doesn’t stop the killing people!) which I am sure was on the mind of everyone in Japan.

In Europe, HM King Juan Carlos of Spain was taken to hospital this week for surgery to remove a benign lesion on his lung. The King of Spain is 72 and was once known as a heavy smoker (loved them Cuban cigars) but has not been seen lighting up in recent years. The King was released on Tuesday, everything having gone fine and with nothing but compliments for the state health system. That same day the Sultan of Brunei brought his son Prince Abdul Mateen to the famous British military academy at Sandhurst for training. The prince is fifth in line to the throne of the absolute monarchy of Brunei and the Sultan himself once attended Sandhurst as have many other royals from many nations around the world. HH Pope Benedict XVI wrapped up a visit to Portugal, focused around the shrine at Fatima where three shepherd children saw a vision of the Virgin Mary during World War I. The Pope presented a Golden Rose to the shrine, spoke about the centrality of the Virgin, the importance of the Rosary and the need for a staunch defense of traditional family values. Record crowds attended the papal events. Also this week, as has been mentioned below, HM Queen Elizabeth II accepted the resignation of Gordon Brown and appointed Conservative Party leader David Cameron Prime Minister. It has been reported that Cameron is a natural descendant of King William IV.

In America HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden was a big hit in Seattle, Washington for “Sweden Week” where she filled in for her sister Princess Madeleine. The Crown Princess was a big hit, impressing everyone with her intelligence, knowledge and good humor. Among other events she toured Swedish Medical Center’s cancer ward for children where staff members gave her a t-shirt emblazoned with the slogan “I Love Swedish Babies” -which is perfectly true the Princess told them. Later she also toured a Swedish School and attended the “Arctic Summer” fashion show at the Nordic Heritage Museum which featured clothing from designers across Scandinavia. In another interview the Crown Princess confessed that she and her husband-to-be are impatient to get married but also nervous about all that has to be done concerning the wedding. She said they are very anxious to tie the knot and start a family of her own and that she is totally committed to serving Sweden.

Happy St Dymphna Day

Today the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St Dymphna, patroness of those suffering from nervous and mental illnesses. She is also a member of the select club of "royal saints" being an Irish princess. She was martyred at Gheel, near Antwerp, Belgium.

British Political Machine Lumbers On

As most know I'm sure HM Queen Elizabeth II has appointed a new Prime Minister, David Cameron of the Conservative Party, who will rule through a coalition with the Liberal Democrats after the vaguely reptilian Gordon Brown failed to cobble together an agreement that would let him cling to power. My initial response was one of expectations fulfilled. Most expected the Conservatives to win, as I did, and given how liberal overall the electorate is I also did not expect a landslide majority. The fact that a coalition was worked out between the Tories and the LibDems, supposedly at opposite ends of the political spectrum, also reinforces my opinion that the few differences between the major parties in the UK are simply over the degree to which they wish to pursue the same policies. The fact is, if either the LibDems or the Tories had any real convictions about what they are supposed to stand for they would be completely unable to ever form a coalition government.

So, no surprises there. I was a bit taken aback by the casual certainty given to the term length of this government. Did I miss something? Is it not the Queen who is supposed to say when governments come and go? I realize it is a purely ceremonial thing these days but still -that ceremony and symbolism is supposed to mean something -right? I will admit, British politics makes me more weary than it probably should since I grew up with such an outdated, idyllic image of Great Britain in my mind. But, regardless of that it does infuriate me that in one of the most powerful, successful and respected nations in world history there seems to be pitiful lack of true pride and patriotism. Of course, this does not include the readers of this blog as it is the serious monarchists who are the noble exception to this trend.

To quote one of my favorite British patriotic songs, "Red, white and blue; what does it mean to you?" Not what it used to for the majority or at the very least the ruling elite these days. Am I the only one who died a little inside when the competitors for the PM job (especially Nicky and Gordie) spoke about how Britain desperately needed the EU to survive? My God man! Bite your tongues! Is this the nation that conquered India? The nation that spanned Africa from the Cape to Cairo? The proud island that stood firm against the Nazi war machine and which ruled the seven seas for centuries on end? Let that proud, patriotic spirit soar again! It was never a bad or destructive thing. Certainly from time to time Britain was in the wrong, but it was in the right probably more often than not. I have often joked that these days the only ardent British patriots seem to be in Northern Ireland rather than Britain. I hope that is not the case, and I know there are diehards holding out in these troubled times but despite the joy I have at seeing Brown evicted from No.10 this was no great victory. It cannot be too soon that the whole crop of spineless, lefty, 'one Europe - one world' political slime are wiped out and the United Kingdom returned to the spirit, the faith and the true constitutional monarchy that made them the greatest maritime empire in history. God Save the Queen!

Monarchist Profile: Ba Cut

The man known as Ba Cut (because of a short third finger) was born Le Quang Vinh in 1923 in the far south of Vietnam, what was then the French colony of Cochinchina. An unlikely defender of monarchy, he was orphaned at an early age, was adopted by a peasant family and fostered a lifelong hatred of landowners when these people were evicted by the local landlord. Illiterate and uneducated as a youth, he displayed a short and fiery temper for which he was to be known throughout his life. In 1939 the religious leader and prophet Huynh Phu So founded the Hoa Hao Buddhist sect which soon attracted a large following in the far south of Vietnam. He accomplished this through his powers of healing and prophecy. It is noteworthy that Huynh Phu So also seemed to be a monarchist, predicting the outbreak of World War II and preaching that this would lead to the restoration of the “true king” which referred to Prince Cuong De, a descendent of the first Nguyen dynasty emperor who was living in exile in Japan for preaching opposition to the French.

Around 1943 Ba Cut joined the private militia of the Hoa Hao, originally formed to combat the private army of another new religious sect; the Cao Dai (a sort of combination of all the major world religions mixed into one). Within a year Ba Cut was a commander and, according to his enemies at least, gained a reputation for ruthlessness and deranged behavior. In 1945 the Hoa Hao clashed with the communist-dominated Vietminh (which posed as a nationalist group at that stage) as most of the Hoa Hao were supportive or at least neutral toward the Japanese while the communists opposed them. However, after the end of World War II there was a recognition that things had changed and the two sides agreed to a cease-fire to concentrate on fighting the returning French.

However, when Ba Cut was defeated by a rival within the Hoa Hao the French offered him their support and he came on side. There was no true change of heart on his part though and the money and arms he received went to fighting the rival Cao Dai sect rather than the VietMinh communists. Nonetheless, the same alliance was made and broken a number of times. He finally turned irrevocably against the French, pulled his forces out of the area he was defending (with the VietMinh filling the vacuum) but there was little the French could do as they were soon defeated in the epic battle of Dien Bien Phu which broke the back of French resistance and spelled the end of French power in Indochina.

In the peace deal signed by the French at Geneva Vietnam was partitioned with the communists keeping the north and the south remaining under the control of the State of Vietnam, under the nominal rule of the former Emperor Bao Dai but effectively governed by his prime minister Ngo Dinh Diem. The Emperor had refused to accept the Geneva agreement but Ba Cut blamed Diem for the fact that it was done and he became an intractable foe of Ngo Dinh Diem. Also opposed to Diem (but loyal to the Emperor Bao Dai) was the commander of the National Army of Vietnam General Nguyen Van Hinh who plotted a coup against him. Diem got rid of Hinh by advising the Emperor to call him to France but before he left he made Ba Cut a colonel in the regular army, knowing him to be an enemy of Diem.

As Diem tried to get rid of the private armies in South Vietnam Ba Cut openly fought the government troops loyal to him and at time his own Hoa Hao brethren who had been ‘bought’ by the prime minister. In 1955 his life was even saved by the French after he was severely wounded in a battle with the Cao Dai forces of General Trinh Minh The. This was because, in early 1955, it was clear to everyone that Diem was the favored leader by the United States (France had supported the former Emperor Bao Dai) and the French were not thrilled with being supplanted by the Americans in Indochina. It was even claimed later that retreating French forces had given top of the line weapons and war materials to the army of Ba Cut.

In the spring of 1955 the factions of the Hoa Hao, Cao Dai and the Binh Xuyen syndicate opposed to Diem joined forces in an effort to remove him from power and Ba Cut was named military commander of the coalition. Foreign advisors urged Diem to negotiate but he was an old-style man and was determined to crush all opposition. The Binh Xuyen fell first and then he moved against Ba Cut and the Hoa Hao. His forces were defeated and he fled to Cambodia, finally becoming the only hold-out. Ba Cut announced that while he opposed Diem he was loyal to the Emperor Bao Dai (hence his profile here) and Diem (who would soon depose the Emperor and become the first President of South Vietnam with US assistance) responded by getting rid of all the commanders of the regiments loyal to the Emperor and replacing them with his own hand-picked lieutenants.

With only 3,000 men still with him Ba Cut evaded and harassed 20,000 government troops sent to deal with him. A bounty of 1 million piasters was even put on his head. When Diem held a referendum (staged by his OSS advisor) to provide a legal basis for deposing Bao Dai and becoming president Ba Cut denounced him as an American lackey and prevented anyone from voting in the areas under his control. Nonetheless, the actual votes did not matter and Diem still claimed to have won 90% of the electorate (with even his American advisors warning him that he should have set the number lower to be more believable). The end finally came on April 13, 1956 when Ba Cut was captured by a government army patrol. After a short but dramatic show-trial he was sent to the guillotine on July 13 in Can Tho. In yet another change of loyalties typical of the time those diehard loyalists of Ba Cut who did not go along with the Diem regime ended up opposing the new government by joining the Viet Cong.

Mexico, Illegal Immigration and Monarchy

Considering where I live a lot of people have asked my opinion on the recent Arizona illegal immigration controversy. First of all, I love Mexico and have visited the country many times. My most recent visit was last year to attend a bull fight (my usual reason) but I have not been back this year, both for personal reasons and because of the increased violence on the border. I have had to deal with illegal immigrants all my life, and though I’ve had some hair-raising experiences I have never had a problem with them. All that come to my door for help I give food, water, sometimes new shoes to but I don’t let them use the phone or give them a ride anywhere (which would be illegal). Generally I only report those that seem suspicious.

However, the problems associated with illegal immigration and smuggling (human and narcotic) are a plague. Numerous friends, relatives and neighbors have had their homes broken into and robbed, including my grandparents, my sister and even my Dad’s foreman had both homes he stays in during the week broken into and robbed and he is from Mexico -which does not make him anymore tolerant of having things he worked hard for taken from him. Huge brush fires that destroyed hundreds of acres of property have been started because of illegal aliens building fires in the brush, a great deal of money is lost rebuilding fences when smugglers run through them trying to evade the authorities, they leave gates open letting cattle wander out causing accidents on the road and considerable loss in time and money spent rounding them up again. Although thankfully not very common there have also been assaults, rapes and murders, mostly at isolated homes by illegal aliens. Hospitals are in debt along the border for treating aliens who have been snake bit, hit by cars, run over by trains and so on.

Given all of that, and the number of Mexicans who die of the heat, dehydration and starvation trying to cross the border I can certainly understand the frustration of people in Arizona. I do not understand the outrage over increased efforts to enforce laws already on the books nor do I understand the claims of racism. I’m as white as a sheet and every time I come back from the border I have to go through a checkpoint like everyone else and am questioned about my citizenship. I’ve been stopped on the highway numerous times because (I was told) my vehicle matched the description of a vehicle reported to be carrying drugs or illegal aliens or to have been stolen or such thing. If illegal aliens from Mexico are a problem I fail to see anything evil with looking for Mexicans. Any time any crime is committed the first thing the authorities do is put out a description of the suspect; their race, their hair color, what clothes they are wearing and so on.

However, it is also true that nothing short of the most draconian measures possible are going to solve this problem on the part of the United States. The only place this problem can be truly solved is in Mexico and by allowing illegal immigration to continue unchecked the US is only enabling the problem. The primary underlying reason for illegal immigration is that Mexico is a failed state -which is not a racist statement but a simple fact. These border enforcement measures are often called racist because the same measures are not employed along the Canadian border. Well, the important difference is that Canada is not a failed state, Canadians are not flooding across the US border by the millions, drug wars are not being waged in Manitoba or Ontario and whole provinces in Canada are not under the control of criminal cartels.

The monarchy may not play a significant role in Canadian society and government today but the fact that Canada has always been a constitutional monarchy has meant that Canada has had a stable government where law and order and shared loyalty to the Crown allowed a stable and prosperous country to be built up. Mexico, on the other hand, has only ever had two monarchs and they shot both of them. The country throughout most of its history has been ruled by warlords and dictators, most coming to power via a coup rather than the democratic process they claim to champion. The history of Mexico has been one of almost continuous civil wars and revolutions. From 1924 to 2000 Mexico was essentially a one party socialist dictatorship under the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) founded by a violently anti-clerical Marxist. Had either of the Mexican empires been maintained things would certainly be very different in Mexico today and given the state of the country as it is that difference would almost have to be for the better.

It could be argued, I suppose, that the United States should be held to blame for the problems of Mexico and somehow obliged to take in all Mexicans who wish to flee their country because of American support for the downfall of the two empires. However, statistics show that the vast majority of Mexican immigrants vote for the most leftist candidates after coming to the US (which is of course why the Democrats are the most opposed to border security) and support essentially the same policies in the US that made the country they left the failure that it is. This has also caused me to scratch my head in wonder at the Catholic leadership in America championing the cause of the illegal immigrants considering that (although nominally predominately Catholic) these people are coming from what was, until very recently, one of the most stridently anti-clerical regimes in the world and once here support overwhelmingly the political party that is most opposed to core Catholic values.

The situation is complicated, it is frustrating on a number of levels and I have nothing but sympathy for the decent Mexican people who are trying to make the best of their situation. I have zero sympathy for those who come to the USA illegally and then demand the same benefits and treatment of those who came the proper and legal way or who criticize and condemn America while enjoying the safety and prosperity that country provides them. I can only shake my head at those who wave Mexican flags in the US and shout about their Mexican “pride”. Real pride and patriotism would be staying in Mexico and working to make it a better country rather than abandoning it en masse. The best thing the US could do is stop illegal immigration as much as possible and let Mexico go its own way until the people finally get the message that the socialist-revolutionary model is a failure and try something different. I would suggest going in the exact opposite direction and looking to the example of their Emperors, possibly the only selfless leaders Mexico has ever had.

Greece: They're Still Available

With the current crisis in Greece, yet another shining example of republican failure, many people, knowing my monarchist sympathies, have asked me how things would be different if the Greek monarchy was still around. This is all speculative of course but that's never stopped me. Of course, I would like to say that everything would be coming up roses if only Constantine II were still head of state but that would be a tad dishonest. Contrary to popular opinion the King of the Hellenes was never the autocratic sort of guy and it is possible, even if he were still on the throne, the democratic process could still have produced a parliament and a succession of PM's who would have put Greece in the same sorry state it is in now. However, the fact remains that Greece is a republic and it has failed miserably and my usual comment on the subject of what would be different with the King on the throne is that the monarchy certainly could not have done any worse.

I am no expert on Greek politics nor are economics my strong point. So, keep in mind my views on this subject are not strident. From where I sit it seems to me that the best thing for Greece to do would be to abandon the euro and restore the drachma. A lower value of currency would mean that investors would get more 'bang for their buck' in Greece and attract investment. This would have to go hand-in-hand with some big changes for the Greek economy. Obviously the socialist set-up of high taxes and entitlements would have to be done away with -it plainly does not work. The Greek government needs to stop the rampant spending and attract more businesses -and thus more jobs- to Greece. The King could give some practical help in this area by bringing a sense of security and stability but the country must also crack down on corruption and lower taxes. I know, that's a dirty word in modern Europe, but a simple look at the micro-monarchies of Liechtenstein and Monaco show how much investment and prosperity come to a country with very low taxes.

Now, if the Greek King were to be restored with some real political powers I think he could certainly be a big help in getting these things done -for starters by sacking incompetent and corrupt officials. However, he would certainly become unpopular just as the current government is by cutting entitlements and stopping the government hand-outs. This is what socialism does to a country. Others have pointed out that this has not happened in other socialist European countries but it seems to me that it must eventually. One can only keep up the juggling act for so long and when pay-outs overtake income something will have to give and across Europe those on government welfare have been steadly increasing in number while the overall population is in decline -all recipes for disaster. Whatever happens I hope everything works out for Greece, it is painful to see the "cradle of civilization" in the state it is in. I would just encourage the Greeks to look at what socialist republicanism has brought them and keep in mind that your King and Queen are still available -ready, willing and able to serve.