King Michael (Mihai), last King of Romania in 2007, reigned 1927 – 1930 & 1940 – 1947, died in 2017; Credit – Wikipedia
Because of political unrest in what was then called the Romanian United Principalities, the Ruling Prince, 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, Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was elected by the Romanian government to become the new Ruling Prince. 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. In 1881, the Romanian parliament declared Romania a kingdom, and Prince Carol became King Carol I. Romania remained a monarchy until 1947 when King Mihai I was forced to sign a document of abdication by the Communist regime. A year later, he publicly announced that his abdication was invalid, as it had been forced upon him, and that he remained the rightful King of Romania.
It would be 43 years before Mihai set foot on Romanian soil again. In December 1990, Mihai 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.
Below is an indexed listing with links to biographical articles about the Romanian Royal Family at Unofficial Royalty. If it says “Notable Issue” before a name, that means not all of the children for the parent of that person are listed. Also listed below are links to Romanian Miscellaneous Articles, and various Romanian Content Areas.
House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1881 – 1947)
Family of King Carol I of Romania
- King Carol I of Romania (born Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, reigned 1881 – 1914)
- Elisabeth of Wied, Queen of Romania (wife of Carol I, no surviving issue)
Family of King Ferdinand I of Romania
- King Ferdinand I of Romania (nephew of Carol I, born Prince Ferdinand of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, reigned 1914 – 1927)
- Marie of Edinburgh, Queen of Romania (wife of Ferdinand I)
- King Carol II of Romania (see below)
- Notable Issue: Princess Elisabeta of Romania, Queen of the Hellenes
- Notable Issue: Princess Maria of Romania, Queen of Yugoslavia
- Notable Issue: Princess Ileana of Romania, Archduchess of Austria-Tuscany
Family of King Carol II of Romania
- King Carol II of Romania (reigned 1930 – 1940, abdicated)
- Zizi Lambrino (mistress and morganatic 1st wife of Carol II, had one son, marriage annulled)
- Helen of Greece, Queen of Romania (2nd wife of Carol II, divorced)
- King Mihai (Michael) I (see below)
- Magda Lupescu (mistress and 3rd wife of Carol II, no children)
Family of King Mihai I of Romania
- King Mihai I of Romania (first reign 1927 – 1930, second reign 1940 – 1947, monarchy abolished)
- Anne of Bourbon-Parma, Queen of Romania (wife of the former King Mihai)
- Notable Issue: Crown Princess Margareta of Romania (see below)
Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania
- Princess Margareta of Romania, Custodian of the Crown of Romania
- Prince Radu of Romania (Radu Duda, husband of Margareta, no children)
Pretenders to the Throne
- LAST REIGNING: King Mihai I of Romania
- Current: Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania
- Current Heir: Princess Elena of Romania (born 1950)
Romanian Miscellaneous Articles
- Monastery of Curtea de Argeș in Curtea de Argeș, Romania
- Queen Marie of Romania and the Maryhill Museum