George, Nicholas, and Wilhelm: Three Royal Cousins

George, Nicholas, and Wilhelm

So, about a year ago I had the opportunity to read a great non-fiction book about King George V of England (1865 to 1936), Tsar Nicholas II of Russia (1868 to 1918), and Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany (1859 to 1941). This biopic about the three royal cousins and their lives was really interesting. They were the rulers of their countries around the time of WWI. Their blood was linked in an interesting way: King Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse were George and Nicholas's maternal grandparents, Queen Victoria and Albert were Wilhelm's maternal grandparents and George's paternal grandparents. With this as the case George is first cousins with Wilhelm and Nicholas, but Nicholas and Wilhelm were not first cousins. Their lives were very interesting. I highly recommend reading the book - George, Nicholas, and Wilhelm: Three Royal Cousins and the Road to World War I by Miranda Carter.

Current Event: The Death of Kim Jong-il

In the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), Supreme Leader Kim Jong-il died on December 17, 2011. His reign started in 1994 with the death of his father, Kim Il-sung. Communist North Korea has long been known as the hermit kingdom. It's personality regime has been brainwashing the citizenry for decades. Millions of North Koreans have died due to sicknesses from famines and poverty. The question now is...what will become of North Korea in the absence of Kim Jong-il? His son, Kim Jong-un, is only 27 or 28. He has been indoctrinated with the strict philosophies of the regime his entire life. Will he be the one to finally open the country to modern civilization and be a player in the international field? We will have to wait and see!

More information about North Korea can be found at the CIA World Fact Book website.