King George II of the Hellenes

by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2016

King George II of Greece. source: Wikipedia

King George II of the Hellenes was the eldest son of King Constantine I and Princess Sophie of Prussia. He was born on July 19, 1890, at Tatoi Palace near Athens, Greece, and had five younger siblings:

At the time of his birth, George’s grandfather, King George I, was King of the Hellenes, and his father was Crown Prince. Through his mother, George was a grandson of Friedrich III, German Emperor and Victoria, Princess Royal, Queen Victoria’s eldest child.

Queen Sophia and King Constantine I with their five eldest children (l-r): Paul, Alexander, George, Helen, and Irene. c1911. source: Wikipedia

As a child, George and his family lived in a villa in Athens and enjoyed time at Tatoi Palace. The family also often traveled to England and spent part of their summers at Friedrichshof, George’s maternal grandmother’s home in Germany, as well as Corfu and Venice. His education was primarily military-based, attending the Hellenic Military Academy in Athens. At the age of 18, George continued his military training with the 1st Infantry Regiment of the Prussian Guard in Berlin, where he stayed for several years. He returned to Greece in October 1912 and fought with the 1st Greek Infantry during the Balkan Wars. All would change on March 18, 1913, when his grandfather was assassinated, and his father ascended to the Greek throne. George became Crown Prince and Duke of Sparta, the traditional title for the heir to the Greek throne, although rarely used within Greece.

In June 1917, George’s father was forced to relinquish the throne. While George was the Crown Prince and rightful heir, the government felt he was too ‘German’, having trained with the Prussian Guard, and because of his mother’s German roots. Instead, his younger brother Alexander was placed on the throne. George went into exile in Switzerland with his father and most of his family. King Alexander died on October 25, 1920, having contracted septicemia following a monkey bite, and soon after, King Constantine I was returned to the throne. George returned to Greece and served in the Greek forces during the Greco-Turkish War.

George and Elisabetha, 1921. source: Wikipedia

George married his second cousin Princess Elisabeta of Romania on February 27, 1921, in Bucharest, Romania. She was the daughter of King Ferdinand I of Romania and Princess Marie of Edinburgh, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. The couple became engaged in October 1920, after having known each other for many years. Coincidentally, at the formal engagement festivities, George’s sister Helen began her relationship with Elisabeta’s brother, Crown Prince Carol of Romania. The two became engaged the following month and married in Athens just two weeks after George and Elisabeta’s wedding. George and Elisabeta had no children, and would eventually divorce in 1935.

Following Greece’s loss in the Greco-Turkish War, an uprising of Greek military officers, known as the 11 September 1922 Revolution, took control of the government. The new military regime forced King Constantine I to abdicate, and George ascended to the throne on September 27, 1922, as King George II. Like his brother Alexander, George was a puppet king for the Revolutionary Committee and lived in constant fear.

On October 18, 1923, the Revolutionary government announced that elections would be held in mid-December to elect a National Assembly that would determine Greece’s future form of government. Just days later, a group of pro-royalist military officers attempted to stage a coup but were quickly defeated. Although not responsible for the coup, King George II was blamed for it, and there were public calls to abolish the monarchy.

Following the elections in December, George was asked to leave the country while the new government decided Greece’s fate. Under the guise of an official visit to his wife’s home country of Romania, George left Greece on December 19, 1923, with his wife and younger brother Paul. They lived for a few weeks in a wing of Cotroceni Palace, before taking a small villa in Bucharest. On March 25, 1924, Greece declared itself a Republic, and the monarchy was abolished. King George was stripped of his Greek citizenship, and all of his assets in the country were confiscated.

King George and Queen Elisabetha (on right) with the Romanian royal family, late 1920s, source: Wikipedia

George quickly grew disenchanted with his life at the Romanian court but found great comfort in the help and support of his mother-in-law Queen Marie who he wrote “was the only one to make life bearable” at the time. He soon began to travel, spending about half the year between visiting his mother in Florence and friends in London. In 1932, he moved permanently to London, taking a small suite of rooms at Brown’s Hotel in Mayfair. He was careful to avoid saying or doing anything that could be considered political, stating simply that he considered himself to be one of the Greek people, and should the country choose to bring him back to the throne, he would abide by their wishes.

George was close to the British royal family, and in 1934, attended the wedding of his cousin Princess Marina of Greece to Prince George, Duke of Kent. By this time, his marriage to Elisabetha had deteriorated, and she had undertaken several affairs. George, too, had begun an affair. In early 1935, he met Joyce Wallach, the wife of an aide to the Governor of India. Married with a young daughter, she soon divorced her husband, and the two enjoyed a very private relationship for the rest of George’s life. After returning to London, George was surprised to find out he was no longer married. Elisabetha had been granted a divorce in Bucharest, citing desertion as the grounds for divorce. In reality, she had already vowed not to return to Greece, and there was growing sentiment to restore the monarchy. The marriage was dissolved on July 6, 1935.

Embed from Getty Images 
George with his cousin Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent in 1946

Elisabeta was right. On November 3, 1935, a referendum resulted in an overwhelming majority supporting the restoration of the Greek monarchy. George and his brother Paul began making arrangements to return to Athens. After visits to France and Italy, they arrived in Greece on November 25, 1935. Although met with significant support, George found his country broken and needing reform. More changes in the government’s leadership led to the dissolution of the Hellenic Assembly and new elections to be held in January 1936. By April of that year, Ioannis Metaxas had become Prime Minister.

The further unrest led to a general strike planned for August 5, 1936. The day before the strike, Metaxas advised King George to dissolve the Assembly without calling for new elections, and to suspend parts of the constitution, basically allowing for a dictatorship. Facing increased political turmoil and the growing rise of communism, King George agreed and allowed for what became known as the 4th of August Regime under Prime Minister Metaxas. Once again, King George became a puppet king, but this time at least he had the support and respect of his Prime Minister.

Having little power and no formal role, King George began restoring the Royal Palace in Athens, which had been looted and left in disrepair. With no money provided, George undertook the project and the costs himself. Another project George undertook was to bring home the remains of his relatives buried elsewhere. In November 1936, George and his brother Paul traveled to Florence to retrieve the remains of their parents and grandmother Queen Olga. They were brought back to Greece and interred at the Royal Cemetery at Tatoi Palace. Four years later, he arranged for the remains of his aunt Grand Duchess Alexandra Georgievna of Russia to be returned to Greece, fulfilling a promise he had made to his grandmother many years before.

In April 1941, following the German occupation of Greece, King George and the government went into exile. The Greek Royal Family was evacuated to Egypt, but soon needed to find another place to live. George and his brother Paul moved to London, while Paul’s wife and children went to South Africa for the remainder of the war. The British government was not willing to allow Prince Paul’s wife, born Princess Frederica of Hanover, into the country. Paul eventually settled in Cairo, Egypt, where his government-in-exile had settled in 1943.

Despite George’s promise that following liberation he would restore the 1911 Constitution and hold elections within six months, many in Greece did not trust him and fought against his return. With the establishment of a rival Communist-led government, it was decided that a referendum would be held to determine the fate of the Greek monarchy. King George was forced to appoint the Archbishop of Athens as Regent. The archbishop quickly appointed a new government that was very anti-monarchy. George, frustrated and tired, leased a house in London, expecting to live the rest of his life in exile with his mistress. However, the following year, on September 1, 1946, a referendum was finally held, and the majority supported the return of the King. Several weeks later, King George II returned to a country rife with political uncertainty and facing economic collapse.

Tomb of King George II at Tatoi. source: Wikipedia, photo by krischnig

George’s return would be short-lived. His health declining, King George II of the Hellenes was found unconscious in his office at the Royal Palace in Athens, Greece, on April 1, 1947. Several hours later, it was announced that he had died of arteriosclerosis. Following a state funeral at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens, he was buried at the Royal Cemetery at Tatoi.

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Olga Konstantinovna of Russia, Queen of the Hellenes

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Olga Konstantinovna of Russia, Queen of the Hellenes; source: Wikipedia

Queen Olga of the Hellenes was born Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna of Russia, on September 3, 1851, at Pavlovsk Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. She was the elder daughter of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich of Russia (a son of Nicholas I, Emperor of all Russia) and Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Altenburg.

Olga had five siblings:

Olga (far right) with her mother and four of her siblings, c.1861. source: Wikipedia

Olga grew up at her father’s estates in St. Petersburg and the Crimea, as well as in Poland where her father served as Viceroy. She was educated privately at home.

Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna, c.1866. source: Wikipedia

In 1863, Olga first met her future husband who had just been elected King George I of the Hellenes. He was born Prince Vilhelm of Denmark, son of King Christian IX of Denmark and Princess Luise of Hesse-Kassel. The two met again four years later, and she quickly fell in love. The couple married in the Grand Church of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia, on October 27, 1867. Just sixteen years old, Olga was now Queen of the Hellenes.

Over the next 20 years, Olga and George had eight children:

Being so young, Olga was unprepared for her new life as Queen, in a new country. She made efforts to earn the love and respect of the Greek people, wearing a dress of blue and white, the Greek national colors, for her arrival and quickly learning to speak Greek. Being used to the splendor of the Russian court, life in Greece was quite different and almost boring in comparison. However, Olga adjusted, was a very hands-on mother, and threw herself into charity work which she thoroughly enjoyed. From the moment she arrived in Greece, Olga took on several patronages previously held by the previous Queen Amalia. Particularly drawn to helping those in need, she worked tirelessly to improve conditions for the poor and orphaned. She also became the patron of several military hospitals and helped establish the Annunciation Hospital in Athens. Olga also built a Russian Hospital in Piraeus, which served Russian soldiers and other soldiers visiting Greece. During the Greco-Turkish War of 1897 and the Balkan Wars, Olga established hospitals to serve the wounded and was awarded the Royal Red Cross by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom in December 1897. She also retained her love for Russia and often entertained Russian sailors at the Royal Palace.

Despite her charity work, Olga occasionally courted controversy in Greece. Realizing that many wounded soldiers could not read the Bible due to the archaic Greek in which it was written, she arranged for a new version to be published in Modern Greek. This was not authorized by the Greek Holy Synod and caused a huge uproar, with calls for the excommunication of anyone involved in the project, including Olga. By the end of the year, all remaining copies had been confiscated and no longer allowed to be circulated.

Queen Olga and King George, December 1912. source: Wikipedia

Olga’s husband, King George, was assassinated in Thessaloniki, Greece on March 18, 1913. Olga arrived in the city the next day to accompany her husband’s body back to Athens. She retained a wing of the Royal Palace in Athens but spent much of her time in Russia. When World War I began, Queen Olga was in Russia, where she established a hospital at Pavlovsk Palace to treat wounded soldiers.

Olga remained in Russia after the fall of the Russian monarchy in 1917.  Following the October Revolution, the Bolsheviks invaded Pavlovsk Palace but she remained unharmed.  Initially, the Bolsheviks refused to let her leave Russia, and at the time, Greece was in no position to offer any help.  Her son King Constantine I had been deposed and sent into exile, and his son Alexander had been chosen to replace him.  Finally, with help from the Danish government, Olga was able to leave Russia, traveling to join her family in Switzerland in 1919.

In October 1920, her grandson King Alexander developed septicemia from a monkey bite. Gravely ill, he called for his mother but the government would not permit Queen Sophie to return. However, it was negotiated that Queen Olga could travel to Athens to be at her grandson’s bedside. Sadly, she arrived just hours after Alexander died on October 25, 1920. The next several weeks saw significant changes in the political landscape of Greece. Prime Minister Venizelos was defeated in a general election just days after Alexander’s death. The following month, the new Prime Minister asked Queen Olga to serve as Regent. A referendum was held, in which her son, King Constantine I, was restored to the Greek throne. Queen Olga served as Regent until his return to Greece on December 19, 1920.

Queen Olga with her son Prince Christopher and his first wife on their wedding day, January 1, 1920. source: Wikipedia

In September 1922, following another coup, King Constantine I abdicated in favor of his eldest son and rightful heir King George II. Constantine and his family, along with Queen Olga, left the country and went into exile in Italy. King George II would only serve for 18 months before the monarchy was deposed. Unlike the other members of the Greek royal family, Queen Olga was held in very high esteem by the Greek people and was the only member of her family to be given a pension by the new government.

Queen Olga, painted by de László, 1914. source: Wikipedia

Queen Olga spent her remaining years in the United Kingdom, shuttling between the homes of her son Christopher and her daughter Marie, and the royal residences of the British Royal Family. Olga remained very close to her sister-in-law Queen Alexandra and was particularly close to her nephew King George V. After several years of ill health, Queen Olga died on June 18, 1926.

As a sign of respect, the Greek government offered to provide a lavish funeral and burial in Greece. Her children, however, declined the offer. Following a funeral at the Orthodox Church in Rome, Queen Olga’s remains were placed in the crypt of the Russian church in Florence, beside her son King Constantine I. In 1936, after the Greek monarchy was restored, Queen Olga was re-interred in the Royal Cemetery at Tatoi Palace.

Queen Olga’s grave in the Royal Cemetery at Tatoi Palace; Credit – Wikipedia

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King George I of the Hellenes

by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2016

King George I of the Hellenes – source: Wikipedia

King George I of the Hellenes was born Prince Christian Vilhelm Ferdinand Adolf Georg of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, on December 24, 1845, at the Yellow Palace in Copenhagen. Known as Vilhelm, he was the son of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (later King Christian IX) and Princess Luise of Hesse-Kassel. He had five siblings:

In 1852, Vilhelm’s father was designated as heir-presumptive to the childless King Frederik VII of Denmark. Vilhelm’s title changed to Prince of Denmark. The family split their time between the Yellow Palace and Bernstorff Palace, which had been available to them following his father’s appointment. After his initial education at home, Vilhelm joined the Royal Danish Navy, attending the Royal Danish Naval Academy alongside his elder brother, Frederik.

Prince Vilhelm with his family, 1862. front: Princess Dagmar, Prince Valdemar, Queen Louise, Princess Thyra, Princess Alexandra; back: Prince Frederik, King Christian IX, Prince Vilhelm. source: Wikipedia

In 1862, King Otto of Greece (born Prince Otto of Bavaria) was deposed. Still wanting a monarchy, but rejecting Otto’s proposed successor, Greece began searching for a new King. Initially, the focus fell on Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (the second son of Queen Victoria), who received overwhelming support from the Greek people. However, the London Conference of 1832 stipulated that no one from the ruling families of the Great Powers could accept the Greek throne. While several other European princes were suggested as possible sovereigns, the Greek people and the Great Powers soon chose Prince Vilhelm as their next King. On March 30, 1863, the 17-year-old Vilhelm was unanimously elected by the Greek National Assembly and took the name King George I of the Hellenes. A ceremonial enthronement was held in Copenhagen on June 6, 1863.

George made visits to Russia, England, and France, before arriving in Athens on October 30, 1863. From the beginning, George was determined to be very different than his predecessor. He quickly learned Greek and was often seen informally strolling through the streets of Athens. George had been accompanied to Greece by several advisors from Denmark. He soon sent them back to Denmark so it would not appear that he was influenced by his home country. George toured Denmarkthe following year and then demanded that the Assembly finally adopt a new constitution. Finally done, he took an oath on November 28, 1864, to defend the new constitution, establishing a constitutional monarchy in which the King deferred authority to the elected government. George quickly became very popular with the Greek people.

Olga and George – source: Wikipedia

In 1863, while visiting St. Petersburg before his arrival in Greece, King George first met his future wife Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna of Russia. She was the daughter of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich (a son of Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia) and Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Altenburg. Four years later, while visiting his sister Dagmar, the wife of the future Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia, George met Olga again. By this time, George was looking for a wife, and marriage to a Russian Grand Duchess would be advantageous both politically and as far as the religion of future generations. While George remained Lutheran after taking the throne, future Greek sovereigns would be raised in the Greek Orthodox faith. Olga was smitten with George, and the two quickly fell in love. They married in Grand Church of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia on October 27, 1867, and went on to have eight children:

King George and Queen Olga with six of their children, c1890. source: Wikipedia

George and his family spent much of their time at Tatoi, a 10,000-acre estate outside Athens which he had purchased in the 1870s. Along with the main palace, King George established a winery and a Danish-styled dairy farm. He established the Royal Cemetery on the grounds, following the death of his daughter, Princess Olga, in 1880. King George also acquired Mon Repos, a villa on the isle of Corfu, in 1864, which the royal family used as a summer residence. Mon Repos is probably best known today as the birthplace of George’s grandson, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who was born there in 1921.

King George’s early reign saw constant upheaval, with 21 different governments in 10 years. Attempts to return the isle of Crete to Greek control were unsuccessful, which caused great tension among the Greek people. Following the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 (in which Greece remained neutral despite the attempts of George’s sister, Tsarevna Maria Feodorovna of Russia, to get Greece to join with the Russians), Greece claimed Crete and the regions of Epirus and Thessaly which were all under the Ottoman rule. Eventually, in 1881, the Ottomans ceded Thessaly.

The political climate in Crete remained tense, with the predominantly Greek population revolting against Turkish rule in 1897. The Great Powers stepped in, ordering both Greek and Turkish forces to withdraw, with Crete being under international control. While the Turks agreed, the Greek Prime Minister refused and sent troops to take the island. When forces crossed the Macedonian border, war broke out. By the end of April, the war was over, with Greece losing swiftly and severely. Following the defeat, King George lost much of his popularity and support from the Greek people, even considering abdication. But the following year, in February 1898, an assassination attempt was made on the King and his daughter Maria, while riding in an open carriage. Fortunately, both were unharmed, and he received an upswell of support from his subjects.

In the First Balkan War of 1912, Greece joined forces with Montenegro, Serbia, and Bulgaria in fighting against Turkey. This time, the Greek forces were victorious, and on November 12, 1912, led by Crown Prince Constantine, they took the city of Thessaloniki in what was then Macedonia. Three days later, King George arrived and rode through the streets accompanied by his son and the Prime Minister.

Grave of King George I of Greece, photo by Kostisl, source: Wikipedia

With his Golden Jubilee approaching, King George planned to abdicate following the celebrations planned for October 1913. However, his life would end several months before he had the chance. On March 18, 1913, while walking in Thessaloniki, Greece, King George was killed when an assassin shot him at close range in the back. The King died instantly. His body was returned to Athens, where it lay in state for three days in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens. Draped in both the Greek and Danish flags, his coffin was then interred in Royal Cemetery at Tatoi.

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Princess Giovanna of Italy, Tsaritsa of Bulgaria

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Giovanna of Italy, Tsaritsa of Bulgaria; Credit –  Wikipedia

Giovanna of Italy was the wife of Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria. She was born Princess Giovanna Elisabetta Antonia Romana Maria of Italy on November 13, 1907, in Rome, Italy the daughter of King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy and Princess Elena of Montenegro.

Giovanna had four siblings:

Princess Giovanna, c.1909. source: Wikipedia

As was typical at the time, Giovanna was educated privately at home. In 1923, she and her sister Mafalda fell ill with typhoid fever and were both very ill. After being nursed back to health by two Franciscan nuns, Giovanna pledged her devotion to St. Francis of Assisi which would remain with her for the rest of her life.

Wedding of Giovanna and Boris, 1930. source: Wikipedia

In 1927, Giovanna met her future husband, Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria, and the two quickly fell in love. They married on October 25, 1930, in Assisi, Italy. After the civil ceremony, a Catholic ceremony took place at the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi in Assisi, Italy, followed by a large reception at Villa Fidelia in nearby Spello. Later, an Orthodox ceremony was held in Sofia, Bulgaria, and Giovanna was also crowned Tsaritsa of Bulgaria. Upon her marriage, she took the Bulgarian version of her name, Ioanna. The couple had two children:

In her role as Tsaritsa, Ioanna became well-loved by the Bulgarian people, in part because of her charitable work, including the establishment of a children’s hospital in Sofia. During World War II, she also helped to arrange travel visas, enabling many Jews to escape the country. In August 1943, her husband died, and their young son Simeon became Tsar, under a Regency Council led by Boris’s brother Prince Kyril of Bulgaria.

Tsaritsa Ioanna, c.1932. source: Wikipedia

Following the Soviet invasion of Bulgaria in September 1944, Ioanna and her family were placed under house arrest at Vrana Palace. Two years later, the Soviet regime held a referendum which resulted in the abolition of the monarchy, and on September 16, 1946, the family was forced to flee the country. They went first to Egypt, where Ioanna’s father was living in exile, and then in 1951, settled in Madrid. After her son’s marriage in 1962, she moved to Estoril, Portugal, where she remained for the rest of her life. In 1993, following the fall of the communist regime, Ioanna made a memorable visit to Bulgaria, on the 50th anniversary of her husband’s death.

 

Tsaritsa Ioanna died in Estoril, Portugal on February 26, 2000. In accordance with her wishes to be buried in Italy, she was buried at the Chapel of the Friars at the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi in Assisi, Italy.

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Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria – source: Wikipedia

Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria was the son of Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria and Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma. He was born Prince Boris Klemens Robert Maria Pius Ludwig Stanislaus Xaver on January 30, 1894, in Sofia, Bulgaria, and created Prince of Tarnovo at birth. Boris had three younger siblings:

In keeping with the agreement made at the time of his parents’ marriage, Boris was christened in the Roman Catholic church. However, his father soon decided that he should be raised in the Orthodox church. Not only would this appeal to the people of Bulgaria, but it would also help to be recognized as Sovereign – something which, until then, had been held back by the Great Powers. Despite his mother’s protests, Boris was christened in the Eastern Orthodox Church on February 2, 1896, with Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia serving as his godparent.

Boris as a child; source: Wikipedia/Bulgarian Archives State Agency

Boris was educated at the Palace Secondary School, created by his father in 1908 specifically for Boris and his brother Kyril. He later graduated from the Military Academy in Sofia, Bulgaria, and served as Captain and Company Commander of the 6th Regiment. During the Balkan Wars, Boris fought on the front lines.

When World War I began, Bulgaria remained neutral until the fall of 1915, when they joined the war, and aligned with the Central Powers. Boris strongly disagreed with his father’s decision to join the Central Powers, and at one point, was placed under arrest by his father for several days because of his dissent. However, he served with the Bulgarian forces as a liaison officer with the General Staff on the Macedonian front. He was later promoted to Colonel and served as liaison officer to Army Group Mackensen and the Bulgarian Third Army for operations against Romania.

Despite their efforts, Bulgaria suffered great losses in the war. Taking responsibility, Tsar Ferdinand abdicated on October 3, 1918, and Boris ascended as Tsar Boris III. Trying to restore his country, after devastating losses, Boris’s reign began as an uphill battle. Under the terms of the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine in 1919, Bulgaria ceded several territories, was required to reduce its army to 20,000 soldiers, and pay reparations of £100 million. A new political regime led by Aleksandar Stamboliyski of the Agrarian Union to control and was very hostile to Boris and the monarchy. After the Treaty of Neuilly, Stamboliyski’s government took complete control of the country, establishing a dictatorial regime. The people of Bulgaria, particularly the military officers, placed their faith and hope in Boris.

In 1923, a military coup overthrew Stamboliyski’s government. Boris was opposed to the idea of seizing power and threatened to abdicate. However, he soon agreed to the situation, provided that it would bring peace to Bulgaria. Two years later, Boris was the target of several assassination attempts but fortunately was not harmed. Tensions still ran high within Bulgaria, with supporters of the Agrarian Union, and the Communist Party, very vocal in their opposition to the monarchy.

In January 1930, Boris became engaged to Princess Giovanna of Italy, daughter of King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy and Princess Elena of Montenegro. The two had met several years earlier, and after attending the marriage of Giovanna’s brother, the future King Umberto II, to Princess Marie José of Belgium, Boris asked for Giovanna’s hand.

As was often an issue with royal marriages, religion once again became an obstacle. Boris was Orthodox and Giovanna was Roman Catholic. The Bulgarian Constitution required that any heir to the throne be a member of the Orthodox Church, however, the Pope refused to sanction the marriage without an agreement that all children from the marriage would be raised Catholic. Finally, an agreement was reached and the couple married on October 25, 1930, in Assisi, Italy. Following a civil ceremony, they were wed in a Roman Catholic ceremony at the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. After returning to Bulgaria, an Orthodox ceremony was held in Sofia on November 9, 1930.

Boris and Giovanna had two children. Despite the agreement Boris made with the Vatican, both children were baptized in the Orthodox church.

In May 1934, another coup took place, in which Zveno (a military and political group) abolished the political parties and established a dictatorship under their own Prime Minister. However, Boris was able to stage a counter-coup the following year and assumed complete control of the government. He brought back a form of parliamentary rule, but no political parties were restored. This became known as the “King’s Government” and for the next five years, Bulgaria experienced significant growth and prosperity.

With the outbreak of World War II, Boris fought to retain Bulgaria’s neutrality. Hitler, trying to gain Bulgaria’s help, arranged for an agreement between Bulgaria and Romania which returned some of the territory lost to Romania in the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine after World War I. Finally, in March 1941, following the threat of a German invasion, and with the promise of regaining territory formerly ceded to Greece, Boris signed the Tripartite Pact, aligning Bulgaria with the Axis powers. Following the surrender of the Yugoslavian and Greek governments, Bulgarian forces occupied their former territories, captured by the German forces. In 1941, Tsar Boris also signed into law the Law for Protection of the Nation, which imposed restrictions on Jewish Bulgarians. The Jewish community and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church opposed this law. Despite signing the law, Boris helped to prevent the forced deportation of the Bulgarian Jews on several occasions and attempted to find ways to get them safely out of the country. Sadly, he was unable to help those in Bulgarian-occupied territories in Greece and Yugoslavia.

In August 1943, Boris was once again summoned to a meeting with Hitler, who wanted Boris to deport Bulgarian Jews, and to declare war on Russia – both of which Boris strongly refused to do. Following the meeting, during which Hitler was reportedly furious, Boris returned home. Just weeks later, on August 28, 1943, Tsar Boris III died in Sofia. The circumstances of his death remain mysterious, with many believing that Boris had been poisoned because of his refusal to concede to the demands of the Nazis.

The grave of Tsar Boris III, Rila Monastery. source: Wikipedia, photo by Relativefrequency

Following a state funeral at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia, Bulgaria, Tsar Boris III’s body and heart were buried at the Rila Monastery in Rila, Bulgaria. The following year, the new communist government very quietly had his remains exhumed and reburied at the Vrana Palace. Later, his casket was moved again, to a secret location that remains unknown. Following the fall of the communist government, an excavation at Vrana Palace found only Boris’s heart which had been buried separately. In 1993, Boris’s widow, Tsarina Ioanna, returned to Bulgaria for the 50th anniversary of Boris’s death, and his heart was reinterred at the Rila Monastery.

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Princess Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz, Tsaritsa of Bulgaria

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz, Tsaritsa of Bulgaria source: Wikipedia

Princess Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz (Eleonore Caroline Gasparine Louise) was the second wife of Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria (born Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Koháry). She was born on August 22, 1860, in Trebschen, a village in the Province of Brandenburg, now part of Poland, to Prince Heinrich IV Reuss of Köstritz and Princess Luise Caroline Reuss of Greiz.

Eleonore had three siblings:

  • Prince Heinrich XXIV Reuss of Köstritz (1855 – 1910), married his cousin Princess Elisabeth Reuss of Köstritz, had five children
  • Helene Reuss of Köstritz (1864 – 1876)
  • ElisabethReuss of Köstritz  (1865 – 1937)

From an early age, Eleonore was involved in helping others. In 1905, she traveled to the Far East to work as a nurse during the Russo-Japanese War. Two years later, following a bit of match-making by Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia, Eleonore became engaged to Ferdinand of Bulgaria in December 1907.  Ferdinand’s first wife, Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma, died on January 31, 1899, after the birth of the youngest of their four children.

source: Wikipedia

Following extensive negotiations, due primarily to their different religions, Eleonore and Ferdinand were married in a Catholic ceremony at St. Augustine’s Church in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Bavaria, on February 28, 1908. The following day, a Protestant ceremony was held at Schloss Osterstein in Gera, Principality of Reuss-Gera, now in the German state of Thuringia. At the time, Ferdinand was the reigning Prince (Knyaz) and Eleonore became Princess of Bulgaria. Later that year, Eleonore would become the first Tsaritsa of Bulgaria after Ferdinand declared the country a kingdom.

Eleonore and Ferdinand did not have any children however, Eleonore was instrumental in raising her four stepchildren:

With very little attention or affection from her husband, Eleonore focused on the welfare of the Bulgarian people. She quickly became involved with the Bulgarian Red Cross, and later set up the Queen Eleonore Fund in 1910 to raise funds to build institutes for children who were blind and deaf. She also founded an orphanage for Jewish children, which still exists today as The Queen Eleonore Orphanage.

Eleonore also took a great interest in the medieval Boyana Church, on the outskirts of Sofia, Bulgaria. The small church dating as far back as the 10th century was too small to accommodate the needs of the village and it was planned to tear it down and build a new church. However, Eleonore dreaded the loss of such a historic building, and purchased a plot of land for a new church, allowing the original building to remain and be restored.

Eleonore as a nurse with the Red Cross during the Balkan Wars. source: Wikipedia

During the Balkan Wars and World War I, Eleonore worked tirelessly as a nurse on the front lines. Sadly, after a serious illness, the Tsaritsa died on September 12, 1917, at Euxinograd Palace. near Varna, Bulgaria. Per her wishes, she was buried in a very modest grave next to the medieval Boyana Church she had helped save.

Grave of Tsaritsa Eleonore. source: Wikipedia, photo by Elena Chochkova

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Bulgaria Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma, Princess of Bulgaria

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma, Princess of Bulgaria; Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma was the first wife of the future Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria. She was born Princess Maria Luisa Pia Teresa Anna Ferdinanda Francesca Antonietta Margherita Giuseppina Caroline Bianca Lucia Apollonia of Bourbon-Parma on January 17, 1870 in Rome, Italy. Maria Luisa was the eldest child of Robert I, Duke of Parma and his first wife, Princess Maria Pia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, and had eleven younger siblings. Six of her eleven siblings were mentally disabled.

  • Ferdinando (born and died 1871) died in infancy
  • Luisa Maria (1872 – 1943), unmarried, mentally disabled
  • Enrico, Duke of Parma (1873 – 1939), unmarried, mentally disabled, Titular Duke of Parma 1907-1939, his brother Elias took up the role as regent and head of the family
  • Maria Immacolata (1874 – 1914), unmarried, mentally disabled
  • Giuseppe, Duke of Parma (1875 – 1950), unmarried, mentally disabled, Titular Duke of Parma 1939-1950, his brother Elias continued the role as regent and head of the family
  • Maria Teresa (1876 – 1959), unmarried, mentally disabled
  • Maria Pia (1877 – 1915), unmarried, mentally disabled
  • Beatrice (1879 – 1946), married Pietro Lucchesi-Palli, had issue
  • Elias, Duke of Parma (1880- 1959), married Archduchess Maria Anna of Austria, had issue; Head of the Ducal Family of Parma (1950–1959)
  • Maria Anastasia (born and died 1881), died in infancy
  • Stillborn child (September 22, 1882), Maria Pia died in childbirth

Two years after her mother died in childbirth in 1882, Maria Luisa’s father married Infanta Maria Antonia of Portugal and had another twelve children, Maria Luisa’s half-siblings:

  • Maria della Neve Adelaide (1885 – 1959), a Benedictine nun at the Monastery of Solesmes, France
  • Sixtus (1886 – 1934), married Hedwige de La Rochefoucauld, had issue
  • Xavier, Duke of Parma (1889 – 1977), married Madeleine de Bourbon-Busset, had issue, the Carlist claimants to the Spanish throne descend through this line
  • Zita (1892 – 1989) – married Emperor Karl of Austria, had issue
  • Francesca (1890 – 1978), a Benedictine nun at the Monastery of Solesmes, France
  • Felix (1893 – 1970), married Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg, had issue
  • René (1894 – 1962), married Princess Margrethe of Denmark, had issue including Anne who married King Michael I of Romania
  • Maria Antonia (1895 – 1937), a Benedictine nun at the Monastery of Solesmes, France
  • Isabella (1898 – 1984), nun
  • Luigi (1899 – 1967), married Princess Maria Francesca of Savoy, had issue
  • Henrietta Anna (1903 – 1987), unmarried, was deaf
  • Gaetano (1905 – 1958), married and divorced Princess Margarete of Thurn and Taxis, had issue

Princess Maria Luisa was raised primarily in Switzerland, in the care of English governesses. Artistically gifted, she became fluent in five languages and enjoyed painting and music.

In 1892, Maria Luise’s father began to arrange a marriage for Maria Luisa to the reigning Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria. Extensive negotiations were needed to make the match possible. One of the biggest obstacles was religion. Maria Luisa’s family was staunchly Catholic and insisted that any children would be raised in the Catholic Church. Ferdinand was also Catholic and had been permitted to remain so when elected Prince of Bulgaria. However, the Bulgarian constitution required that any future Prince be a member of the Orthodox Church. This would mean that Ferdinand’s heir could not be raised Catholic. Capitalizing on the exceptions that had been given to both Ferdinand and his predecessor Alexander of Battenberg, Prime Minister Stefan Stambolov quickly had the constitution amended to provide another exception for Ferdinand’s heir.

Maria Luisa and Ferdinand, 1893. source: Wikipedia

With this final issue resolved, the engagement was announced in August 1892. Being a truly arranged marriage, it would be on their engagement day that Maria Luisa and Ferdinand met for the first time. They married on April 20, 1893, at Villa Pianore, the Duke of Parma’s residence in Lucca, Italy. They had four children:

Maria Luisa with her sons, Boris and Kiril, 1896. source: Wikipedia

Less than two years after the birth of their first son, Boris, Ferdinand decided he would have his son baptized in the Orthodox church, despite the agreements made before his marriage. This was part of his efforts to be recognized as sovereign of Bulgaria by the new Emperor of Russia, Nicholas II. Maria Luisa, supported by both her family and her mother-in-law, argued strongly against the conversion but Ferdinand insisted. Prince Boris was received into the Orthodox Church, with Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia as his godparent. Maria Luisa left the country in protest, not returning until the late spring of 1896. The rest of their children were raised Catholic.

Maria Luisa, Princess of Bulgaria – source: Wikipedia

Maria Luisa’s marriage, which had been strictly for political and dynastic reasons, was not a happy one. Having given birth to three children, and expecting a fourth within five years had taken a toll on her already frail health. She developed pneumonia while pregnant with her youngest child, and died on January 31, 1899, just a day after giving birth. She was just 29 years old. Princess Maria Luisa was buried in the Cathedral of Saint Louis of France, in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Tomb of Marie Luisa; Credit – By Бирдас – Собствена творба, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22874195

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.

Bulgaria Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria – source: Wikipedia

Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria was born on February 26, 1861, at the Palais Coburg in Vienna, Austria. At birth, he was Prince Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Koháry, a member of the Catholic Koháry branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He was the son of Prince August of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Koháry and Princess Clémentine of Orléans, daughter of King Louis Philippe I of the French.

Ferdinand had four older siblings:

Ferdinand with his mother, c1866. source: Wikipedia

The Koháry branch began with Ferdinand’s grandfather who married Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya, who was Catholic. She was the daughter and heiress of one of the largest landowners in Hungary. Upon her father’s death in 1826, the couple inherited his estates and fortune, at which point her husband and the rest of the family converted to Roman Catholicism and added Koháry to the family name.

Prince Ferdinand grew up in Vienna, where his father was a General in the Austrian military. He attended and graduated from the Theresianum Academy and became a Colonel in the Second Regiment of the Austrian Hussars, where he would remain until 1887. From a young age, he developed an interest in ornithology, entomology, and botany – subjects that fascinated him his entire life. During his schooling, Ferdinand and his brother Ludwig August embarked on a scientific expedition on the Amazon River, after which Ferdinand published a study, ‘Description of Birds by Prince Ferdinand Saxe-Coburg and Gotha’ in 1884.

Ferdinand – source: Wikipedia

In 1886, after the abdication of Alexander of Battenberg as reigning Knyaz (Prince) of Bulgaria, a search began for a new prince. Many European princes refused, fearing the same fate as Alexander Battenberg. However, Prince Ferdinand’s mother put forth his name. Following a vote by the National Assembly, Ferdinand was elected Knyaz of Bulgaria on July 7, 1887, although he remained unrecognized by the Great Powers.

Ferdinand and Maria Luisa, 1893. source: Wikipedia

Knowing that establishing a royal house and ensuring the succession would be crucial, Ferdinand married Princess Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Parma on April 20, 1893. She was the daughter of Robert I, Duke of Parma and Princess Maria Pia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Ferdinand’s mother arranged the marriage before the couple had met each other. Despite Ferdinand’s complete disinterest in his wife, the couple had four children:

The early years of Ferdinand’s reign brought Bulgaria to the forefront of the Balkan countries, primarily due to the efforts of Prime Minister Stefan Stambolov. However, Russia had severed diplomatic relations, and Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia was strongly opposed to recognizing Ferdinand as Prince. After Alexander’s death, his son Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia, who was much more moderate, proposed a reconciliation providing that Ferdinand’s heir was raised in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Despite the feelings of Ferdinand’s Catholic family, he realized that formal recognition from Russia would be necessary before any European country would recognize him. On February 2, 1896, Ferdinand had his son Boris baptized in the Bulgarian Orthodox Church with Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia as a godparent. Soon after, Ferdinand was recognized as Prince of Bulgaria by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Ferdinand quickly began to bring Bulgaria to the level of other European monarchies.

Prince Ferdinand, c1897. source: Wikipedia

The Bulgarian army became one of the most powerful in the Balkan region and Ferdinand established universities, an arts academy, a seminary, and technical schools around the country. He founded the Institute of Natural Sciences with a museum, zoo, and botanical gardens. The nation’s railway and road network was developed, and new post offices and telegraph stations opened throughout Bulgaria.

Ferdinand and his second wife, Eleonore, on their wedding day. source: Wikipedia

Having given birth to three children, and expecting a fourth within five years had taken a toll on Maria Louise’s already frail health. She developed pneumonia while pregnant with her youngest child, and died on January 31, 1899, just a day after giving birth. Nine years later, on February 28, 1908, Ferdinand married Princess Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz. She stepped in as a mother to his children, although the couple did not have children.

Since its establishment as a principality, Bulgaria was under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire. However, on October 5, 1908, Ferdinand proclaimed independence, elevating Bulgaria to a kingdom and becoming Tsar Ferdinand I. Much of the next ten years was consumed by war. The First Balkan War in 1912 saw significant land gains, but these were nearly all negated by losses during the Second Balkan War the following year, and soon, World War I began. In the beginning, Bulgaria remained neutral while being courted by both sides due to the country’s location and strong military. Having entered the war in the fall of 1915, siding with the Central Powers, initial successes were soon overshadowed by significant losses and defeats. On October 3, 1918, taking full responsibility for the loss of the war, Tsar Ferdinand abdicated in favor of his son Boris. Ferdinand settled in Coburg, where he devoted his time to his favorite pastimes – art, gardening, travel, and history.

In 1943, his son Tsar Boris III died after visiting Hitler in Germany and was succeeded by his son Simeon who was just six years old. In 1945, Ferdinand’s other son Kyril was executed, and in 1946, the young Simeon was deposed, and the Bulgarian monarchy was abolished. Heartbroken at the loss of his family and his kingdom, Ferdinand died in Coburg on September 10, 1948. Unable to be buried in Bulgaria at the time, his remains were temporarily placed in the crypt of St. Augustine’s Church in Coburg, besides those of his parents. On May 29, 2024, the remains of Ferdinand I were transported from Coburg to Sofia, Bulgaria where they were interred in the Palace Crypt at Vrana Palace on the outskirts of Sofia.

Reburial of Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria in the Palace Crypt at Vrana Palace; Credit – Photo: King Boris and Queen Giovanna Royal Heritage Fund

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Bulgaria Resources at Unofficial Royalty

February 1916: Royalty and World War I

by Susan Flantzer

2nd Lieutenant John Alexander Thynne, Viscount Weymouth

Viscount-Weymouth

John Thynne, Viscount Weymouth; Photo Credit – www.winchestercollegeatwar.com

John Alexander Thynne, born November 25, 1895, was the eldest son of Thomas Thynne, 5th Marquess of Bath and Violet Mordaunt. Violet was the daughter of Harriet Moncreiffe and questionable daughter of her husband, Sir Charles Mordaunt, 10th Baronet.  Lord and Lady Mordaunt were involved in the Mordaunt Scandal which involved Prince Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) and rocked British society in the 1890s.

Sir Charles Mordaunt was a wealthy and powerful Conservative Member of Parliament. He and his wife were members of the Marlborough Set, a group of people who surrounded the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) and named after his London home near Buckingham Palace. While Sir Charles was off fishing or hunting or attending sessions of Parliament, Harriet entertained numerous lovers, including the Prince of Wales and several of his aristocratic friends.

On February 28, 1869, Harriet gave birth to a premature daughter, Violet Caroline, the mother of John Thynne, Viscount Weymouth. The timing of the birth was significant as Sir Charles had been away on a fishing trip when the child would have been conceived. When baby Violet had a serious eye infection, Harriet hysterically thought it was from a venereal disease and confessed to her husband that she did not know who the father was, and that the Prince of Wales could have been one of several possibilities. Sir Charles sued for divorce and letters his wife had exchanged with the Prince of Wales were used in the divorce proceedings. Sir Charles threatened to name the Prince of Wales as a co-respondent in his divorce suit. Although this did not happen, the Prince was called to testify, further adding to the scandal. It was shown that the Prince of Wales had visited the Mordaunts’ house while Sir Charles was away. Although nothing further was proven and the Prince denied he had committed adultery, the suggestion of impropriety was damaging . The divorce destroyed Harriet who was declared insane and spent the rest of her life in an asylum, dying in 1906.

Harriet, Lady Mordaunt, grandmother of John Thynne, Viscount Weymouth in the 1860s; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

In 1895, John Alexander Thynne’s father became the 5th Marquess of Bath after his father died. John was then styled with the courtesy style, Viscount Weymouth and became the heir to the Marquess of Bath title. John had two older sisters, one younger brother and one younger sister.

0890_Longleat_1

Longleat House; Photo Credit – Susan Flantzer

The family home, Longleat House, was built by Sir John Thynne, the steward to Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, brother of King Henry VIII’s third wife Jane Seymour and uncle to King Edward VI. Longleat House took 37 years to design and build. It has been the home of the Thynne family ever since and was the first British stately home opened to the public.

John Thynne, Viscount Weymouth was educated at Sevenoaks School in Sevenoaks, Kent, England which was founded in 1432. He then attended Winchester College in Winchester, Hampshire, England from 1909-1912. On August 15, 1914, shortly after the start of World War I, John was admitted to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He passed out of Sandhurst, and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys) in December of 1915. On the prospect of being ordered to the front, John had written to his father, the 5th Marquess of Bath, “I am very glad I am high on the list because the sooner it comes the better. Don’t think that I funk going out, but, I know perfectly well I will be in the fright of my life but also very glad.” By October 20, 1915, John was serving in France.

Scots-Greys-1916 Trenches

Soldiers of the Royal Scots Greys, photographed in the trenches at the Hairpin on 19 January 1916 © IWM (Q 29052)

In February of 1916, John was in the trenches at the Hairpin, part of a large series of trenches near Hullach in France near the Belgian border. He expected to be home on leave soon. However on February 13, 1916, 20 year-old John and ten other Scots Greys were killed when German mines were detonated under a deep, narrow trench they were using to approach the German position.

An aerial reconnaissance photograph of the opposing trenches and no-man’s land between Loos and Hulluch in Artois, France, taken at 7.15 pm, 22 July 1917. German trenches are at the right and bottom, British trenches are at the top left. The vertical line to the left of centre indicates the course of a pre-war road. Photo Credit – Wikipedia

John Thynne, Viscount Weymouth was buried at the Vermelles British Cemetery, a British war cemetery in the village of Vermelles, in Pas-de-Calais, France. The cemetery was designed by British architect Sir Herbert Baker and contains memorials to 2,134 casualties. John’s younger brother Henry succeeded their father as the 6th Marquess of Bath in 1946.

Vermelles British Cemetery; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

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Timeline: February 1, 1916 – February 29, 1916

February 5-April 15 – Trebizond Campaign in Trabzon, Ottoman Empire (now in Turkey) begins
February 12 – Battle of Salaita Hill in Salaita, near Mount Kilimanjaro (now in Kenya)
February 21 – Battle of Verdun in Verdun-sur-Meuse, France begins and lasts until December 20, 1916
February 26 – Action of Agagia in Agagiya, Egypt
February 28 – Cameroon an African colony of Germany, surrenders

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A Note About German Titles

Many German royals and nobles died in World War I. The German Empire consisted of 27 constituent states, most of them ruled by royal families. Scroll down to German Empire here to see what constituent states made up the German Empire.  The constituent states retained their own governments, but had limited sovereignty. Some had their own armies, but the military forces of the smaller ones were put under Prussian control. In wartime, armies of all the constituent states would be controlled by the Prussian Army and the combined forces were known as the Imperial German Army.  German titles may be used in Royals Who Died In Action below. Refer to Unofficial Royalty: Glossary of German Noble and Royal Titles.

24 British peers were also killed in World War I and they will be included in the list of those who died in action. In addition, more than 100 sons of peers also lost their lives, and those that can be verified will also be included.

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February 1916 – Royals/Nobles/Peers/Sons of Peers Who Died In Action

The list is in chronological order and does contain some who would be considered noble instead of royal. The links in the last bullet for each person is that person’s genealogical information from Leo’s Genealogics Website. or to The Peerage website.  If a person has a Wikipedia page, their name will be linked to that page.

2nd Lieutenant John Alexander Thynne, Viscount Weymouth

Henrietta Maria of France, Queen of England

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Henrietta Maria of France, Queen of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Henrietta Maria of France was born at the Louvre Palace in Paris, France on November 26, 1609. She was the youngest of the six children of King Henri IV of France and his second wife Marie de’ Medici.  When Henrietta Maria was six months old, her father was assassinated while driving in his carriage through the streets of Paris. Her nine-year-old eldest brother then became King Louis XIII.

Henrietta Maria in 1611; Credit – Wikipedia

Henrietta Maria had five siblings:

Henri IV and his family; Credit – Wikipedia

When Henrietta Maria was 14 years old, negotiations were started for her marriage to Charles, Prince of Wales, the heir of King James I of England. By the time the proxy marriage took place on May 1, 1625, on the steps of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, the groom had acceded to the throne as King Charles I. Henrietta and Charles were then married in person at Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, England on June 13, 1625. Charles’ coronation was held on February 2, 1626, at Westminster Abbey, but the Roman Catholic Henrietta Maria was not crowned because she refused to participate in a Church of England ceremony. She had proposed that a French Catholic bishop crown her but that was unacceptable to Charles and the English court.

Henrietta Maria as Princess of France; Credit – Wikipedia

Charles and Henrietta Maria had nine children:

Charles and Henrietta Maria’s five eldest children in 1637: Left to right: Mary, James, Charles, Elizabeth, and Anne; Credit – Wikipedia

Although we refer to her as Henrietta Maria, she was known as Queen Mary to her contemporaries in England. Initially, Charles and Henrietta Maria’s relationship was strained. However, their relationship improved after the assassination of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, who had been the favorite of Charles’ father King James I, and was a great influence on Charles. Henrietta Maria’s Roman Catholicism did not make her a popular queen. At court, she disrupted Anglican services by walking through with a pack of dogs. To the English people, her Catholic beliefs made her different and dangerous at a time when Catholic plots and subversion were feared. She did not speak English before she married and always had difficulties speaking and writing English.

Henrietta Maria was a strong patron of the arts and both she and her husband were knowledgeable art collectors. She enjoyed taking part in masques and dramatic entertainments. Henrietta Maria was interested in sculpture, garden design, and architecture and employed designer and architect Inigo Jones, garden designer André Mollet, and sculptor François Dieussart. The Queen’s House in Greenwich, London, England, started for Charles’ mother Anne of Denmark, was completed for Henrietta Maria under the supervision of Inigo Jones.

King Charles I had the same issues with Parliament as his father had, clashing with its members over financial, political, and religious issues. Henrietta Maria gave her support to her husband in his clashes with Parliament and in his plans to raise money. Ultimately, these clashes with Parliament led to the English Civil War and to Charles’ downfall. Henrietta accompanied her husband when he left London in 1642 and established a royal court in Oxford. However, in 1644, while seven months pregnant with her last child, Henrietta Maria was forced to leave Oxford because it was becoming less secure. She made her way to Exeter where she gave birth to her youngest child Henrietta. Henrietta Maria never saw Charles again. Leaving her newborn daughter in Exeter in the care of Lady Dalkeith (born Anne Villiers, the daughter of Sir Edward Villiers), Henrietta Maria escaped to France where she settled in Paris with the support of the French government.

Gaston de France, Duke of Orléans presents his sister widowed Henrietta Maria to Anne of Austria, regent of France for King Louis XIV. The young Louis XIV in peach stands in front of his mother and next to his brother Philippe. Henrietta Maria stands between Gaston and his daughter, the Grand Mademoiselle; Credit – Wikipedia

King Charles I was executed in 1649 and the monarchy was abolished. Henrietta Maria spent the years of the Commonwealth of England with her surviving children at the court of her nephew King Louis XIV. She formed a Royalist court in exile at Château de St-Germain-en-Laye.  Henrietta Maria attempted to convert her sons James and Henry to Catholicism. These attempts angered the Royalists in exile and her eldest son Charles. However, her youngest child Henrietta (nicknamed Minette) was brought up Catholic and married her first cousin, Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, the younger brother of King Louis XIV of France.

Henrietta Maria in mourning in the 1650s; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1660, when the English monarchy was restored and King Charles II took the throne, Henrietta Maria returned to England, where she was known as the Queen Mother, and lived at Somerset House in London. She received a grant from Parliament of £30,000 for the loss of her dower lands and the same amount as a pension from her son King Charles II. In 1661, Henrietta Maria returned to France to attend the marriage of her daughter Henrietta. When she returned to England in 1662, Henrietta Maria found life there disagreeable and the climate damaging to her health, so she returned to France where she lived for a while in Paris at the Hôtel de la Bazinière, the present Hôtel de Chimay.  She later lived at the Château de Colombes nearby Paris. It was there that Henrietta Maria died on September 10, 1669, at the age of 59 from an overdose of opiates taken for pain on the advice of King Louis XIV’s doctor.

Château de Colombes (now destroyed); Credit – Wikipedia

Henrietta Maria was buried beside her father, King Henri IV of France, at the Basilica of Saint-Denis near Paris. Her heart was buried at the Visitation Convent Chapel at Chaillot, France, which she had founded in 1651. Her remains and the other royal remains at the Basilica of St. Denis were desecrated on October 16, 1793, when a mob pillaged the Bourbon crypt and threw the remains into mass graves. The convent building where her heart had been buried was destroyed during the French Revolution. In 1817, the mass graves were opened, the remains were collected and reburied in the crypt of the Basilica of Saint-Denis. Plaques next to the gated entrance of the burial site list the remains of those buried there.

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Gated entrance to the reburial site of the French royals at the Basilica of Saint-Denis; Credit – Susan Flantzer

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House of Stuart Resources at Unofficial Royalty