King Alexander James Chassigne V

King Alexander James Chassigne V is the 33rd King of Sabrateur. He was born on 7th March, 1960, to King John Nicholas Chassigne III and his wife, Aurelle Foxtone, in Osias, Sabrateur. He was the first son, and he has one brother, Kenneth Edmund Chassigne (b. 1965). He acceded to the throne aged 36, on 22nd April, 1996, after the death of his father. His coronation was held on 27th April, in Kashmir, Sabrateur. In 2001, he was awarded the Ranulph Peace Medal for his work in amnesty and widespread philanthropy.

Childhood and Young Adulthood

Chassigne was raised by his parents at the Royal Palace in Kashmir, and from an early age it was clear he had great capacity for music. After his 7th birthday, he began to recieve tuition in his chosen instrument, the piano. He progressed well, and by the age of 12 he was making regular recitals for politicians, ambassadors and other guests to the Palace. He made a great impression on his younger brother, Kenneth, who he shared a very close relationship with, however Kenneth showed none of his brother's flair in music, eventually turning his skills to chess.

In 1978, Alexander James began study at the Osias Academy, the most prestigious university in Sabratuer, reading Music and Fine Art. Here he met Richard Starkey, an ambitious Law student, who later introduced his to his sister, Nina. Richard and friends elected to set the Prince up with Nina, and their intuition was perfect, the couple married in 1991 and to this day have had 2 children; Stephen (b.1994) and Andrea (b. 2002).

Reign

Coronation

Chassigne was crowned King Alexander James V on 27th April, 1996. The ceremony was conducted by the Head of Lords, Viceroy Hugo Levy, with speeches from the then Prime Minister, Peter Sumner, Richard Starkey, and the King's brother, Kenneth Chassigne. The Kashmir Philharmonic Orchestra opened the proceedings, augmented by the Kashmir Vocal Choir for the grand finalé. The day, as on past coronation days, was declared a Public Holiday in Sabrateur.

Work

Alexander James is renowned for his generous nature. In 1997, he granted three generous sums of S15,000 to three major charities in Sabrateur: The Ranulph VI Children's Hospital, Sabrateur International Amnesty, and the J Franklin Cancer Research Foundation. He was also actively involved with SIA, helping many wrongly or harshly imprisoned captives abroad, particularly Sabratese nationals. One high-profile case which Chassigne was involved with was the capture (and eventual release) of Bernard Hook, a naturalist exloring the jungles of THA FORST where he was captured and held as a spy. for these reasons, he was awarded the 2001 Ranulph Peace Medal.

Another act of selflessness came when Chassigne elected to leave the Royal Palace, the Royal residence of over 370 years, in 2000 and donated it to the Sabratese Heritage Guild, who converted it into the National Chassigne Museum. He and his family moved to a more modest (but still lavish) town house in suburban Kashmir.

Trivia

• The King owns one of the four original Mason Issacke Grand Pianos, made in 1972, said to be worth in excess of S200,000.

• Chassigne is the first monarch of Sabrateur to have been awarded a citizen's prize (the Ranulph Peace Medal).

• He professed his favourite holiday destination to be the forests of Daveanoyl Chloride.