Happy happy birthday to the following royals, nobles and friends of royals!

June 8 - Andrea Albert Pierre Casiraghi (1984)

June 8 - Countess Eloise van Oranje-Nassau, Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg (2002)

June 9 - Princess Ragnhild of Norway, Mrs. Lorentzen (1930)

June 9 - Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark (1983)

June 10 - Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (1921)

June 10 - Prince Hubertus of Hohenzollern (1966)

June 10 - Prince Hashim of Jordan (1981)

June 10 - Princess Madeleine of Sweden (1982)

June 11 - Queen Fabiola of Belgium (1928)

June 11 - Prince Henrik, the Prince Consort of Denmark (1934)

June 11 - Prince Alois of Liechtenstein (1968)

June 12 - Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg (1968)

June 13 - Infanta Cristina de Borbon (1965)

June 13 - Duke Kirill Friedrich-August of Oldenburg (2002)

via Royal Forums

Looky these adorable heels recently worn by Spain’s Princess Letizia. Today’s fashion feature is a look at one red and one black pair, both high and both royally cute.

Princess Letizia wore this red velvety pair to the inauguration of PhotoEspana 2009 art festival at the Madrid Botanical Garden on June 3, 2009. It evokes a gladiator feel without going overboard. The Crown Princess, who is petite, always wears towering platform heels like this (having a very tall husband in Crown Prince Felipe pretty much necessitates it). At the art exhibit, she partnered these shoes with a flower print dress and a purple clutch.

Click through for the other pair of shoes, the outfits and the bags.

Read More - Royal Fashion Friday: Princess Letizia’s Platform Heels and Bags

Queen Sonja of Norway attended the preview of the pavilion of Norway and Denmark at the 53rd Biennale Internazional Art Exhibition in Venice, Italy, on June 4, 2009. The exhibit will be officially inaugurated on June 6 by Italy’s President, Giorgio Napolitano.

Queen Sonja spoke during the opening ceremony. She then toured the art installations with Norway’s Minister of Culture Trond Giske, and the exhibit’s curators, Danish artist Michael Elmgreen (below, left) and Norwegian artist Inger Dragset (below, right).

Image: Zuma Press

Dutch Crown Princess Maxima, wearing a gold-toned suit, attended a conference on microfinance at the Fulcotheatre in Ijsselstein, the Netherlands on June 4, 2009.

The meeting was with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment. Princess Maxima has a degree in Economics from the Catholic University of Argentina. She has worked in the banking and finance industries in her home country, and in the U.S. and Europe. She has continued this involvement in economic issues as a working royal.

Image: Zuma Press

 Prince Harry capped his first visit to New York City this weekend with a polo match.

]Last Saturday, May 30, 2009, Prince Harry played in a charity match at the Veuve Cliquot Manhattan Polo Classic on Governor’s Island. The game benefited his African charity Sentebale.

Prince Harry spent about 36 hours in the U.S. in his first official trip to the country. His first visit was when he was younger, and Princess Diana took him and his brother Prince William on vacation.

More photos after the cut:

Read More - Photos of Prince Harry’s Polo Match in New York

Happy happy birthday to the following royals, nobles and friends of royals!

1 - Prince Christian of Hannover (1985)

2 - Princess Désirée of Sweden, Baroness Silferschöld (1938)

2 – Former ing Constantine of Greece (1940)

3 - Prince Felix of Luxembourg (1984)

3 - Prince Tirso of Bulgaria (2002)

3 - Countess Leonore of Orange-Nassau 2006)

4 - Shaikh Khalifa of Brunei (1977)

5 - Princess Astrid of Belgium (1962)

5 - Doña Irene Urdangarin y de Borbon (2005)

6 - King Albert II of Belgium (1934)

7 - Prince Joachim of Denmark (1969)

via Royal Forums

You have probably noticed the new look that Merry Royals is sporting. We’re still working on getting some bugs out of the system, so please bear with us on these minor glitches. Meanwhile, I hope you like the new template so far!

The new look is being rolled out across the b5media Entertainment and Music blogs, so be sure to visit them too!

It was a busy day for Prince Harry during his visit to New York City today, May 29, 2009. The short trip, all of 36 hours, was the first official one for the prince.

Here are some more photos, including his tree-planting at the British Garden at Hanover Square. Prince Harry planted a magnolia tree as part of ‘Million Trees NYC’. He also led the renaming of ‘The British Garden at Hanover Square’.

Read More - More Photos of Prince Harry in New York City

Prince Harry was in New York City today, May 29, 2009, his first trip to the Big Apple. Though the prince has been to the U.S. once before (with his mother Princess Diana and his brother, Prince William), this is his first official visit.

Prince Harry paid his respects to the victims of 9/11, met with some of their family members and laid a wreath at Ground Zero. He also stopped by the NYC Fire Department’s Ladder 10/Engine 10 firehouse and viewed the construction of the 9/11 memorial.

Afterwards, Prince Harry planted a magnolia tree at the British Memorial Garden at Lower Manhattan’s Hanover Square. The President of the British Memorial Garden Trust, Camilla Hellman, and City Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe, were on hand during the tree planting ceremony.

Also part of the prince’s visit today was a private reception at India House, a visit to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Manhattan and a meeting with members of the veterans group Wounded Warriors.

More photos below:

Read More - Prince Harry Visits New York City

Here’s another post for today’s Royal Fashion feature. We’re looking at the red outfit that Spain’s Crown Princess Letizia wore in Bogota on May 27, 2009. Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia were on their second day of a three-day tour of Colombia, leaving Bogota City Hall, when this photo was taken.

Our focus today is on the red tailored jacket over the softer layered skirt, plus the adorable silver bag. How well do you think this outfit worked? Any guesses on the designers?

The royal couple were holding hands in this photo (very sweet!), and so it looks like Prince Felipe is helping his wife carry her tiny bag:

Image: Zuma Press