Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler (Margaretha Désirée Victoria; born 31 October 1934), is a Swedish princess, the eldest sister of
King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden Carl XVI Gustaf (Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus; born 30 April 1946) is King of Sweden. He ascended the throne on the death of his grandfather, Gustaf VI Adolf, on 15 September 1973. He is the youngest child and only son of Prince Gustaf Adolf, Du ...
and also a first cousin of
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark Margrethe II (; Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid, born 16 April 1940) is Queen of Denmark. Having reigned as Denmark's monarch for over 50 years, she is Europe's longest-serving current head of state and the world's only incumbent femal ...
.


Early life

Margaretha was born on 31 October 1934 at
Haga Palace Haga Palace ( sv, Haga slott), formerly known as the Queen's Pavilion ( sv, Drottningens paviljong), is located in the Haga Park, Solna Municipality in Metropolitan Stockholm, Sweden. The palace, built between 18021805, was modelled after balle ...
in Haga Park,
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, as the first child of
Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten (Gustaf Adolf Oscar Fredrik Arthur Edmund; 22 April 1906 – 26 January 1947) was a Swedish prince, who for most of his life was second in the line of succession to the Swedish throne. He was the eldest ...
, and his wife
Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Sibylla Calma Marie Alice Bathildis Feodora; 18 January 1908 – 28 November 1972) was a member of the Swedish royal family and the mother of the current king of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf. Born into the Ho ...
; paternal granddaughter of Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden and his late wife
Princess Margaret of Connaught Princess Margaret of Connaught (Margaret Victoria Charlotte Augusta Norah; 15 January 1882 – 1 May 1920) was Crown Princess of Sweden as the first wife of the future King Gustaf VI Adolf. She was the elder daughter of Prince Arthur, Duke o ...
; maternal granddaughter of Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and his wife
Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (german: Viktoria Adelheid Helene Luise Marie Friederike; 31 December 1885 – 3 October 1970) was Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as the consort of Duke Charles Edward fr ...
; she was born during the reign of her paternal great-grandfather King Gustav V of Sweden. In January 1947, her father died in an airplane crash. Although the eldest child, as a female, she was never in line to the throne according to the Swedish constitution current at the time. She was educated privately at the Haga Palace and then at the Stockholm dressmaking school, Märthaskolan (Martha School).


Courtship and marriage

In the 1950s Margaretha had a relationship with
Robin Douglas-Home Cecil Robin Douglas-Home (8 May 1932 – 15 October 1968) was a British aristocrat, jazz pianist and author. Life Robin Douglas-Home was the eldest son of the Honourable Henry Douglas-Home from his first marriage to Lady Margaret Spencer. His u ...
, a Scottish
aristocrat The aristocracy is historically associated with "hereditary" or "ruling" social class. In many states, the aristocracy included the upper class of people (aristocrats) with hereditary rank and titles. In some, such as ancient Greece, ancient Ro ...
and the nephew of the future
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern pr ...
Alec Douglas-Home Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel (; 2 July 1903 – 9 October 1995), styled as Lord Dunglass between 1918 and 1951 and being The 14th Earl of Home from 1951 till 1963, was a British Conservative politician who se ...
. He came to visit her in Sweden, but they never married. There was speculation in the press that this was due to Sibylla forbidding the match, but Margaretha's nanny and confidante Ingrid Björnberg states categorically in her memoirs that the breakup between the two was caused by Margaretha's reluctance to enter into an engagement with Douglas-Home. She met her future husband, the businessman
John Ambler John Kenneth Ambler (6 June 1924 – 31 May 2008) was a British businessman married to Princess Margaretha of Sweden. Life and work Ambler was born in Sussex. His parents were Captain Charles Ambler (1896–1954) and Louise Gwendolen Cul ...
, ten years her elder, at a dinner party in the United Kingdom in 1963 and their engagement was announced on 28 February 1964. They were married on 30 June 1964, in
Gärdslösa Church Gärdslösa Church ( sv, Gärdslösa kyrka) is a Lutheran church on the Swedish island Öland, in the Baltic Sea. It belongs to the Diocese of Växjö. History and architecture In the church porch of Gärdslösa Church stands a Christian runesto ...
, on the island of
Öland Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...
. The Princess wore a wedding gown from the Stockholm couture school, Märthaskolan, where she had previously been a student, and a traditional wedding crown from Öland. The couple for a time let
Winslow Hall Winslow Hall is a country house, now in the centre of the small town of Winslow, Buckinghamshire, England. Built in 1700, it was sited in the centre of the town, with a public front facing the highway and a garden front that still commanded i ...
in
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...
. They settled at
Chippinghurst Manor Chippinghurst Manor is a Grade II listed country house in Oxfordshire, England. The name of "Chippinghurst" manor means "the hill of Cibba" and appeared as "Cibbaherste" in the 1086 ''Domesday Book''. The Saxon settlement there was part of t ...
in
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
. As a result of her unequal marriage, she lost her style of ''Royal Highness'' and the King gave her the courtesy title of ''Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler''. Under the Swedish constitution of that time, she, as a woman, and her descendants were not eligible to inherit the throne. Thus they still are not. Ambler and her husband separated in 1994, but never divorced. He died on 31 May 2008. Margaretha and John Ambler's marriage produced three children: Sybilla (b. 1965), Edward (b. 1966), and James (b. 1969). Her daughter married Baron Henning von Dincklage and has two children, of whom Madeleine Charlotte Margaretha von Dincklage is the goddaughter of
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland (Victoria Ingrid Alice Désirée; born 14 July 1977) is the heir apparent to the Monarchy of Sweden, Swedish throne, as the eldest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf. If she ascends to t ...
and was a bridesmaid at her wedding.


Later life

In June 1960, Margaretha, with her first cousin
Princess Margrethe of Denmark Princess Margaret of Denmark (Margrethe Françoise Louise Marie Helene; 17 September 1895 – 18 September 1992) was a Danish princess by birth and a princess of Bourbon-Parma as the wife of Prince René of Bourbon-Parma. She was the youngest g ...
and her second cousin once removed
Princess Astrid of Norway Princess Astrid, Mrs. Ferner (Astrid Maud Ingeborg; born 12 February 1932) is the second daughter of King Olav V and his wife, Princess Märtha of Sweden. She is the older sister of King Harald V of Norway and younger sister of the late Pri ...
, toured the United States on the occasion of the first
transatlantic flight A transatlantic flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe, Africa, South Asia, or the Middle East to North America, Central America, or South America, or ''vice versa''. Such flights have been made by fixed-wing air ...
by
Scandinavian Airlines Scandinavian Airlines, more commonly known and styled as SAS, is the flag carrier of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. ''SAS'' is an abbreviation of the company's full name, Scandinavian Airlines System or legally Scandinavian Airlines System Denmark ...
. During their visit, the three Scandinavian princesses toured
Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...
and
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
and also visited
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
in Los Angeles where they met
Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
,
Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in popular culture, pop culture ...
, and
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
. Ambler lives near
Chipping Norton Chipping Norton is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Banbury and north-west of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the civil parish population as ...
, Oxfordshire, in the UK. Apart from taking part in family events and milestones, she does not have any official role or obligations either on behalf of Sweden or the royal family.


Titles, styles and honours

* 31 October 1934 – 30 June 1964: '' Her Royal Highness'' Princess Margaretha of Sweden * 30 June 1964 – present: Princess Margaretha, Mrs. Ambler


National honours

* : Member of the
Royal Order of the Seraphim The Royal Order of the Seraphim ( sv, Kungliga Serafimerorden; ''Seraphim'' being a category of angels) is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the P ...
(LoK av KMO)


Foreign honours

* : Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, 1st Class * : Recipient of the Wedding Medal of Princess Beatrix, Princess of Orange and Claus Van Amsberg


Ancestry


See also

*
Swedish Royal Family The Swedish royal family ( sv, Svenska kungafamiljen) since 1818 has consisted of members of the Swedish Royal House of Bernadotte, closely related to the King of Sweden. Today those who are recognized by the government are entitled to royal ti ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ambler, Margaretha 1934 births Living people Margaretha 1934 House of Bernadotte People from Solna Municipality Disinherited European royalty Swedish people of German descent