by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2014

Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania; Credit – Wikipedia

Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania

Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania is the eldest of the five daughters of King Mihai I of Romania and Princess Anne of Bourbon-Parma and has claimed the headship of the House of Romania since her father’s death on December 5, 2017. She was born on March 26, 1949, in Lausanne, Switzerland, where her father was living in exile. Her parents had met in London during the festivities of the wedding of Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh in 1947 and married the following year. The Duke of Edinburgh was one of Margareta’s godparents.

Margareta has four younger sisters:

• Princess Elena of Romania (born 1950), married  (1) Robin Medforth-Mills, had two children, divorced  (2) Alexander McAteer, no children
• Princess Irina of Romania, (born 1953), married  (1) John Kreuger, had two children, divorced  (2) John Wesley Walker, no children; In 2013, Irina was stripped of her title, styles and rights to the throne following involvement with illegal cockfighting and arrest. She was restored to her original royal style and title by her elder sister Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania, in August 2020.
• Princess Sophie of Romania (born 1957), married and divorced Alain Michel Biarneix, had one daughter
• Princess Marie of Romania (born 1964), married and divorced Kazimierz Wiesław Mystkowski

Following her primary and secondary education in Switzerland, Margareta had planned to attend the Ecole des Beaux-Artes in Paris. However, she was persuaded to first spend a year in Florence with her grandmother, Princess Helen of Greece and Denmark, during which she decided to pursue a more academic education. She attended and graduated from the University of Edinburgh, in Scotland. While a student at Edinburgh, she was romantically involved with the future British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Following university, she worked with several universities, specializing in public health policy and medical sociology. She then worked with the World Health Organization, the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, and the UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development.  In 1989, she returned to Switzerland to work with her father and causes relating to Romania. In 1990, she established The Princess Margareta of Romania Foundation to foster and support civil society in Romania.

photo: Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor

It was through the Foundation that Margareta met her future husband Radu Duda in 1994. He was the director of an art therapy program for orphans, a program that was supported by Margareta’s foundation. They were married on September 21, 1996, in Lausanne, Switzerland. The couple has no children and resides at the Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest, Romania.

During the time of the Romanian monarchy, succession to the throne was limited to males, and therefore, Margareta and her sisters were not eligible to succeed. However, in December 2007, King Mihai made changes to the house laws to ensure the succession of the current family. He established the Fundamental Rules of the Royal Family of Romania, in which he changed the line of succession to allow his daughters to succeed, and named Princess Margareta as Crown Princess and Custodian of the Romanian Crown, and his heir as Head of the House of Romania. He has also publicly requested that should the monarchy ever be restored, equal primogeniture be used.  Following her father’s death in December 2017, Margareta became Head of the House of Romania and is formally styled as Her Majesty Margareta, Custodian of the Romanian Crown.

Embed from Getty Images 
Margareta and her husband at the funeral of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg in 2019

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Romania Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• Kingdom of Romania Index
• Rulers of Romania
• Romanian Royal Dates
• Romanian Royal Burial Sites
• Profiles: Romanian Kings and Consorts

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

King Mihai I of Romania – photo source: Romanian Royal Family Website

King Mihai I of Romania (also known as Michael) was born on October 25, 1921, in a chalet on the grounds of Peleş Castle in Sinaia, Romania. He is the only child of King Carol II of Romania and his second wife, Princess Helen of Greece and Denmark. When he was just four years old, his father renounced his own right to the throne, and Mihai became the heir apparent to his grandfather King Ferdinand. Upon King Ferdinand’s death on July 20, 1927, Mihai took the throne as King of Romania. Because of his age (not yet 6 years old), a regency council was established, led by Mihai’s uncle, Prince Nicolas.

In June 1930, in a coup d’état engineered by Prime Minister Iuliu Maniu, Mihai’s father returned to Romania, declared his earlier renunciation invalid, and was proclaimed King by the Romanian Parliament on June 8th. Mihai was ‘demoted’ to Crown Prince. However, unhappy with King Carol II’s actions and policies, on September 6, 1940, another coup d’état took place, this time under Prime Minister Ion Antonescu, and Carol was forced to formally abdicate. Mihai was once again King of Romania.

King Mihai in 1947. photo: Wikipedia

In November 1947, while in London to attend the wedding of two of his cousins Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, King Mihai first met his future wife (and second cousin once removed), Princess Anne of Bourbon-Parma. She was the daughter of Prince René of Bourbon-Parma and Princess Margaret of Denmark. There was some matchmaking going on, with the King’s mother trying to get the couple together, as well as some help from Anne’s cousin, the future Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg. According to the King, he proposed a week later and the couple was engaged. Wanting to inform his government before making any official announcement, he returned to Romania.

On December 30, 1947, he was summoned to Bucharest to find his palace surrounded by troops loyal to the Communist regime. With threats of bloodshed, and according to the King’s own account, a gun to his head, he was forced to sign a document of abdication. Four days later, he was forced to leave the country. In March 1948, he publicly announced that his abdication was invalid, as it had been forced upon him, and that he remained the rightful King of Romania.

Meanwhile, plans were still underway for Mihai’s wedding to Anne. The couple had reunited in Switzerland and were facing one of the biggest obstacles in their upcoming life together – religion. Anne was Roman Catholic while Mihai was Orthodox. A dispensation was sought from the Pope, who insisted that Mihai promise any children would be raised Catholic. The King would not, and could not, make this promise as it would violate the Romanian constitution, and the Pope refused to sanction the marriage. But the couple, with the support of most of their families, vowed to marry anyway. Years later, in 1966, they had a second wedding in a Roman Catholic church in Monaco.

photo source: Romanian Royal Family Website

On June 10, 1948, Mihai and Anne were married in an Orthodox ceremony held in the throne room of the Royal Palace in Athens. Attendants included Mihai’s cousin Sophia (later Queen Sofia of Spain) and his uncle, King Paul of the Hellenes. Noticeably missing were the bride’s parents. Because of the religious differences, Anne’s uncle Prince Xavier of Bourbon-Parma had issued a statement refusing to condone a wedding that went against the wishes of the Pope. He also forbade her parents from attending. However, her maternal side of the family did attend and her mother’s brother Prince Erik, Count of Rosenborg gave her away. Upon the marriage, and despite Michael having lost his throne, Anne took the title of Her Majesty The Queen of Romania. The couple first lived at his mother’s home, Villa Sparta, in San Domenico, Italy before moving to Switzerland in 1949. Two years later they moved to England where they remained until returning to Switzerland in 1956.

Mihai and Anne had five daughters:

• Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania (born 1949), married Radu Duda, no children
• Princess Elena of Romania (born 1950), married  (1) Robin Medforth-Mills, had two children, divorced  (2) Alexander McAteer, no children
• Princess Irina of Romania, (born 1953), married  (1) John Kreuger, had two children, divorced  (2) John Wesley Walker, no children; In 2013, Irina was stripped of her title, styles and rights to the throne following involvement with illegal cockfighting and arrest. She was restored to her original royal style and title by her elder sister Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania, in August 2020.
• Princess Sophie of Romania (born 1957), married and divorced Alain Michel Biarneix, had one daughter
• Princess Marie of Romania (born 1964), married and divorced Kazimierz Wiesław Mystkowski

King Mihai worked as a commercial pilot and worked for an aircraft equipment company. It would be 43 years before he set foot on Romanian soil again. In December 1990, the King was given permission for a 24-hour visit. However, this ended up being cut short and he was forced to leave early. He visited Romania in again 1992 but the mass outpouring of crowds and supporters concerned the current government and he was banned again for several years. Finally, in 1997, the Romanian government restored Mihai’s citizenship and in the following years, several properties were returned to the royal family. The King and Queen lived primarily at the Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest, and their country home, Săvârșin Castle, in Transylvania. They also had a home in Switzerland.

King Mihai and Queen Anne waiving from the Elisabeta Palace, 2001. photo: The Guardian/AP

In the years after returning to Romania, King Mihai was active in the promotion of Romania around the world but did not make any overtures toward the restoration of the monarchy. However, he made changes to the House Laws to ensure the succession of the current royal family. In 2007, he established the Fundamental Rules of the Royal Family of Romania, changing the line of succession to allow his daughters to succeed. Until then, women had been excluded. He named his eldest daughter Crown Princess and Custodian of the Romanian Crown, and his heir as Head of the Royal House of Romania.

King Mihai and Queen Anne at his 90th birthday celebrations, with Queen Sofia of Spain.
photo source: Russian Imperial House

On March 2, 2016, it was announced that King Mihai had been diagnosed with chronic leukemia and metastatic epidermoid carcinoma and that he was withdrawing from public life.  Crown Princess Margareta took on his public duties. King Mihai’s wife Anne died on August 1, 2016, in a hospital in Morges, Switzerland, at the age of 92.

King Mihai died at his residence in Switzerland on December 5, 2017, at the age of 96.  After lying-in-state at Peleș Castle and then at the Royal Palace of Bucharest, his funeral service was held at Bucharest’s Romanian Orthodox Patriarchal Cathedral.  King Mihai is buried at the new Archdiocesan and Royal Cathedral at Curtea de Argeș.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Romania Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• Kingdom of Romania Index
• Rulers of Romania
• Romanian Royal Dates
• Romanian Royal Burial Sites
• Profiles: Romanian Kings and Consorts

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

King Carol I of Romania; Credit – Wikipedia

King Carol I of Romania was born on April 20, 1839, at Sigmaringen Castle in Sigmaringen, Principality of Hohenzollern, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. At the time, he was Prince Karl Eitel Friedrich Zephyrinus Ludwig of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, second son of Karl Anton, The Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Princess Josephine of Baden.

Carol had five siblings:

• Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern  (1835–1905), married Infanta Antónia of Portugal, daughter of Queen Maria II of Portugal, had three children including King Ferdinand of Romania
• Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen  (1837–1859), married King Pedro V of Portugal, no children
• Anton of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1841–1866), died in battle at age 24
• Friedrich of  Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1843–1904), married Louise of Thurn and Taxis, no children
• Marie of  Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1845–1912), married Philippe of Belgium, Count of Flanders, had five children including Albert I, King of the Belgians

When Karl was 11 years old, his father abdicated as the sovereign Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, and the principality was annexed by Prussia. Karl embarked on a military career, becoming an officer in the Prussian forces. Due to political unrest in what was then called the Romanian United Principalities, the former Ruling Prince (Domnitor), Alexander Ioan Cuza, was forced to abdicate in February 1866. Due largely to the familial relationship with the French Emperor Napoleon III and the Prussian monarchs, Karl was elected by the Romanian government to become the new Ruling Prince on April 20, 1866 – his 27th birthday.

Karl arrived in Romania on May 10, 1866, and declared his allegiance to his new country, taking on the more Romanian spelling of his name, Carol. Soon after the country established its first Constitution, and formally changed the name to Romania – beginning the steps toward eventual independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Carol and Elisabeth of Wied, circa 1870s; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1861, while he was still Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Carol met Princess Elisabeth of Wied.  After meeting again in 1869 when Carol was touring Europe searching for a bride, the couple was married in Neuwied, Principality of Wied, now in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany on November 15, 1869. They had one daughter Maria born on September 8, 1870. Maria died of scarlet fever on April 9, 1874, and Elisabeth never fully recovered from the loss of her only child.

Carol with his wife and their only child in1873; Credit – Wikipedia

In the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, Romania declared independence from the Ottoman Empire and joined forces with Russia. The following year, Romania was formally established as an independent nation under the Treaty of Berlin. Three years later, on March 15, 1881, the Romanian parliament declared Romania a Kingdom, and Karl became King Carol I. His coronation was held on May 10, 1881, the 15th anniversary of his arrival in Romania. He was crowned with the Steel Crown, made from the steel of a cannon captured from the Ottomans during the Russo-Turkish War.

Following a reign of more than 48 years, King Carol I died on October 10, 1914, in Sinaia, Romania. He is buried in the royal crypt at the Monastery of Curtea de Argeș in Curtea de Argeș, Romania. King Carol I was succeeded by his nephew King Ferdinand I, the second son of his elder brother Leopold.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Romania Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• Kingdom of Romania Index
• Rulers of Romania
• Romanian Royal Dates
• Romanian Royal Burial Sites
• Profiles: Romanian Kings and Consorts

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2014

Princess Ileana of Romania was born on January 5, 1909, in Bucharest, Romania, the youngest daughter of King Ferdinand I of Romania and Princess Marie of Edinburgh.

Ileana had five siblings:

• King Carol II of Romania (1893-1953), married (1) Ioana “Zizi” Lambrino, had issue; (2) Princess Helen of Greece and Denmark, had issue; (3) Elena “Magda” Lupescu, no issue
• Princess Elisabeta, Queen of the Hellenes (1894-1956), married King George II of Greece, no issue
• Princess Maria, Queen of Yugoslavia (1900-1961), married King Alexander I of Yugoslavia, had issue
• Prince Nicholas (1903-1978), married  (1) Ioana Doletti, no issue  (2) Thereza Lisboa Figueira de Mello, no issue
• Prince Mircea (1913-1916), died from typhoid fever at age 3

In her youth and prior to her marriage, Ileana was involved in much charity work, following in the footsteps of her mother, Queen Marie. She founded the Romanian Girl Guides in 1928, and would later be involved with the Austria Girl Guides, serving as the organization’s president. She also organized the Girl Reserves of the Red Cross and the first school of Social Work in Romania.

Princess Ileana (right) with Queen Marie and Prince Nicholas, 1926; Photo: Wikipedia

In 1926, Princess Ileana and her brother Prince Nicholas accompanied their mother Queen Marie on a trip to the United States. They arrived in New York and visited several cities across the country, on their way to Washington State, where Queen Marie was to officiate at the dedication of the Maryhill Museum. The Romanian royals were wildly celebrated at every stop they made along the way.  (You can read more about Queen Marie and the Maryhill Museum HERE)

Princess Ileana and Archduke Anton on their wedding day, 1931.  Photo: Wikipedia

Her elder brother, King Carol II, introduced Ileana to Archduke Anton of Austria, Prince of Tuscany, and encouraged the couple to marry. However, his motives were sinister. He was jealous of the popularity that Ileana held with the Romanian people and his goal was to remove her from the country. The couple married on July 26, 1931, in Sinaia, Romania.  Watch a British Pathe film from their wedding HERE.  Soon after, Carol II banished the couple from the country, claiming that the Romanian people would never tolerate a Habsburg living on Romanian soil. They settled at Castle Sonnenburg, just outside of Vienna, Austria. It was here at Castle Sonneburg where Ileana established a hospital for wounded Romanian soldiers during the beginning of World War II.

The couple had six children:

• Archduke Stefan of Austria, Prince of Tuscany (1932–1998),  married Jerrine Soper, had issue, became a naturalized American citizen
• Archduchess Maria Ileana of Austria, Princess of Tuscany (1933–1959), married Count Jaroslav Kottulinsky, had issue
• Archduchess Alexandra of Austria, Princess of Tuscany (born 1935), married  (1) Eugen Eberhard, Duke of Würtenberg, no issue, divorced  (2) Baron Victor von Baillou, no issue
• Archduke Dominic of Austria, Prince of Tuscany (born 1937), married  (1) Engel von Voss, no issue, divorced  (2) Emmanuella Mlynarski, had issue
• Archduchess Maria Magdalena of Austria, Princess of Tuscany (born 1939), married Baron Hans Ulrich von Holzhausen, had issue
• Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria, Princess of Tuscany (1942 – 2019), married Dr. Friedrich Sandhofer, had issue

In 1938, Ileana’s mother, Queen Marie, passed away, and in 1940, her elder brother, King Carol II, abdicated in favor of his son King Michael. Ileana and her family were now permitted to return to Romania, and in 1944, she and their children returned, taking up residence at Bran Castle which she had inherited from her mother. She was soon joined by her husband, however, he was placed under house arrest by the Red Army. The Princess established a hospital in the village, naming it the Hospital of the Queen’s Heart, in memory of her mother whose heart was interred at Bran Castle in a small chapel Ileana had erected for this purpose. A few years later, when King Michael abdicated, the family was exiled from Romania, and all of their properties and assets were seized by the new communist government. They fled to Vienna,  Austria before moving on to Switzerland and Argentina.

photo: Wikipedia

In 1950, Ileana came to the United States for some medical treatment, and also with a plan to establish a home here for her family. Having lost most of her exquisite jewelry when they fled Romania, Ileana still had one amazing piece of jewelry – a stunning sapphire and diamond tiara which was first created as a gift from Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia to his wife, the former Princess Charlotte of Prussia, in 1825. Eventually finding its way down to Ileana as a wedding gift in 1931, Queen Marie had borrowed it to wear to London in 1935, for the Silver Jubilee of King George V. Due to the unrest on the continent, Marie decided to leave the tiara in her bank in London. Ileana was later able to retrieve the tiara and it moved around the world with her. Having pawned it several times through the years to meet financial obligations, Ileana now decided to sell the tiara in order to support her family. With the tiara wrapped in her nightgown, Ileana arrived in the United States and caused quite a stir amongst the customs agents! Once it was established what it was, and who she was, the tiara was packed off and sent to Boston which was Ileana’s destination. Once she arrived there, it took a few days and much hassle before she was able to retrieve the tiara and make arrangements for it to be sold in New York. Although sold for far less than its true value, it provided the Princess with enough money to pay off her debts in Argentina, bring the rest of the family to the United States, purchase a house in Massachusetts, and allow for proper schooling for the children.

Once settled in Massachusetts, Ileana spent the next several years touring the country, lecturing against communism, working tirelessly with the Romanian Orthodox Church, and writing the first of several books. Ileana and Archduke Anton divorced in May 1954, and Ileana remarried a month later, to Dr. Stefan Issarescu. This marriage would also end in divorce.

Princess Ileana, Mother Alexandra.  Photo: Associated Press

In 1961, Illeana entered a French monastery, eventually becoming a nun, and taking on the name Mother Alexandra. Returning to the United States, she founded a monastery in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, and served as abbess.  She retired from her position as abbess in 1981 but remained at the monastery for the remainder of her life.

Princess Ileana, Mother Alexandra, died on January 21, 1991, at the age of 82, after suffering a fall and two major heart attacks at the Orthodox Monastery of the Transfiguration, the monastery she established in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania.  She is buried in the Cemetery of the Orthodox Monastery of the Transfiguration.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.