The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-10-23
MUST NOT WE'D
OUTSIDE ROYALTY
UnWritten Law Among Kings
Is of Comparatively
Recent Date.

London. oct. 22.-The recent tenn
pest in a teapot over the love affairs
Of the Duke of the ADruzzi and Miss
Katherine Elkins brings into promi-
hence the unWritten law of royalty
that princes OF the blood royal may
not wed outside the purple
Processes sometimes wed below
them, notably the cases of the
Princess Louise. who married the
Marquis Of Lorne. now Duke of Ar
gyll, and the princess royal. who is
Duchess Of Fife.
This barrier between royalty and
the peerage did not exist in Tudor
days. Henry VIII married Jane Sey.
mOur, Anne BOleyn and Catherine
Parr. Queen Elizabeth nearly married
the Earl OF Essex, the Earl of Leices-
ter and several other mobiles. To this
day peer is always described as a
cousin 10 the sovereign, and few
Of them in the old days lacked a
strain Of blood royal Who were the
Medici but bankers. Yet their daugh-
tiers assembled the throne of France.
The royal caste, as at present main
tanned. is historically an imI ortation
from Germany.
The system teens with anomalies
and tragedy. Take Sweden. The king
Of Sweden is great-grandsOn of
Marshal Bernadotte, a soldier Of for
tune under Napoleon. He is the last
Of NapOleOn's kinglets TO retain
throne. Now. the eldest brother of
King Gustav is Prince Oscar Berna-
dOtte. who married a court lady. Ebba
Munck. OF great piety and the highest
character. This lady, with all her
many benevolent works. is not cOnsid-
cred good enough TO share her hus-
bands rank. nor may their children
succeed 10 the throne.
Here is another case. Until re-
Gently the Prince OF Montenegro had
not assumed even the comparatively
modest title of royal highness. >"
Years ago he married a daughter OF
one OF his senators, a lady obviously
beyond the dimmest horizon of royal
rank. Yet the family has since con-
tracted brilliant alliances, one daugh-
ter being the lovely Queen Elena of
Italy. Still, il is suggested that King
Victor, who thus welded the grand
daughter of a MOntenegrin senator
viii be embarrassed if his cousin, the
Duke Of the Abruzzi, should take to
wife the far Weather and equally
BORN. Miss Elkins
Princess Vera OF Montenegro is
now % years old and unmarried. It
would be reckOned quite suitable for
her To be welded 10 a British prince,
whose status she would share as
matter OF course. But the daughter
OF a British marqus-we forbid the
banns,
How many of such cases there are
Napoleon III married a Spanish
countess. whose mother was an un-
titled Scottish lady beautiful. doubt
less. but quite beyond the ring. Yet
the Empress Eugene is today. even
in her retirement, accepted every
where as royal. Her name was be-
slowed upon the queen OF Spain. and
her son. had he lived, would have al
WAYS been the prince imperial. and
eligible for any bride.
II NapoleOn's countess was accept
ed. why decline TO accept ladies' OF
far more ancient British nobility?
The problem is growing the more
serious because the children OF King
George include no fewer than FIVE
princes. In habit and thought the
royal house becomes more English
and less German with every genera
ton. Are these five princes 10 be
compelled when the time comes, 10
look abroad for wives whom they
viii have scarcely seen. and who will
come 10 this country as complete
strangers
II Is not improbable that il viii not
be long before this absurd custom viii
Join others which have gone TO obliv-
ion.