Alexandra of Sierra

Queen Alexandra of Mariana (born Alexandra Elisabeth Maria Castenskjold, 2 February 1925) was the consort of King Marten II of Mariana. Alexandra was the daughter of Princess Dagmar of Denmark and Jørgen Castenskjold, granddaughter of King Frederik VIII. She is the grandmother of Queen Helene.

Biography
Alexandra was the second child of Princess Dagmar and Jørgen, and their first daughter. She did most of her schooling in Copenhagen. She was introduced to Marten by a mutual acquaintance at an engagement in Denmark in 1946.

While the daughter of a princess, Alexandra was never styled as one and it raised eyebrows at the court when she was being courted by Marten. Alexandra married Marten in a lavish ceremony on 14 May 1948, though it would take nearly three years to produce an heir. Prince Anthony's birth in 1951 was of much relief, considering that King Johan II was 70 years old by then.

Alexandra suffered a miscarriage in 1952, but gave birth to a daughter, Marie in 1955. She and Marten would have a third child, Willem, in 1959.

In 1967 King Johan died and she and Marten were proclaimed King and Queen. The Queen was known for her love of Cassals dresses, and the designer made a variety of then for her in the 1950s and 1960s, including her coronation dress from 1967. Unlike Johan in the postwar years, Alexandra and her husband were very much public figures and were seen to be as fairly young, popular and closer to the people.

The queen undertook a number of charitable causes, working heavily with The Cancer Society, Public Libraries Brunant (a founding member in 1955) and community sports promotion, amongst others.

In 2011 her husband died at the age of 88, with her son succeeding her husband and becoming queen mother. Alexandra moved to live with her daughter, Princess Marie shortly after. She is presently the oldest member of the royal family, celebrating her 91st birthday in February 2016. In September 2016 she was briefly hospitalized for respiratory problems but released soon after, being declared fit.

Personal life
Alexandra and Marten had three children:


 * Anthony, born 2 March 1951
 * Alexander, born 1988
 * Helene, born 1990
 * Nicholas, born 2012
 * Marie, born 17 October 1955
 * Amalia, born 1978
 * Johan, born 2007
 * Charlotte, born 2011
 * Willem, born 5 April 1959
 * Karl, born 1990
 * Stephanie, born 1995
 * Brigitte, born 2005

Alexandra has seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.