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| Princess Michael of Kent in 1999 |
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| Wedding of Baron Günther von Reibnitz and Countess Marianne Szapáry de Szapár, Muraszombat et Széchy-Sziget |
Baroness Marie Christine Anna Agnes Hedwig Ida von Reibnitz was born on 15 January 1945, at Karlsbad, Germany (now Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic). Marie Christine was the daughter of Baron Günther von Reibnitz (1894 – 1983) and his second wife Countess Maria Anna (Marianne) Szapáry de Szapár, Muraszombat et Széchy-Sziget (1911-1998). Günther and Maria Anna had married in 1941, and had their only son Baron Friedrich von Reibnitz (b.1942), who was followed by their only daughter. In 1946, Marie Christine’s parents divorced; she was barely one year-old.
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| Marie Christine's maternal grandpa: Count Friedrich Szapáry de Szapár, Muraszombat et Széchy-Sziget |
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| Marie Christine's maternal grandma Princess Hedwig zu Windisch-Grätz with mother Marianne as a baby |
Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz’s paternal grandparents were Baron Hans Egon von Reibnitz (1856 - 1918) and Baroness Ida von Eickstedt (1867 - 1937). Her maternal grandparents were Count Friedrich Szapáry de Szapár, Muraszombat et Széchy-Sziget (1869 – 1935) and Princess Hedwig zu Windisch-Grätz (1878 – 1918). Marie Christine's mother Marianne was a fifth cousin of Queen Geraldine of Albania (1915 - 2002; née Countess Apponyi de Nagy-Appony; consort of King Zog of Albania). Countess Marianne and Queen Mother Geraldine of the Albanians were both descendants of Count Georg Christian von Waldstein (1743 - 1791) and Countess Elisabeth Ulfeldt (1747 - 1791). Princess Michael of Kent was thus a sixth cousin of the late King Leka I of the Albanians (1939 - 2011). In 2016, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent attended the wedding of Crown Prince Leka (II) and his wife Elia Zaharia in Tirana.
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| Countess Marianne Szapáry de Szapár, Muraszombat et Széchy-Sziget |
Following her parents’ divorce, Marie Christine and her brother Fred were raised by their mother. Marianne decided to move the family to Australia, which is where her young children grew up. Marianne remarried in 1952 to Polish aristocrat Tadeusz Rogala-Koczorowski (1911 - 1989). From this union, Marie Christine gained a younger half-brother: Macio Rogala-Koczorowski (b.1953). Marie Christine was a pupil at the Kincoppal School, located in the Rose Bay suburb of Sydney. The baroness then went on to spend some time on her father's farm in Africa. After this, Marie Christine traveled to Europe and stayed with her maternal family in Austria. In Europe, she studied the History of Art; this compelled the baroness to move to London to study and found her own interior design company.
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| Marie Christine's first husband Thomas Troubridge |
Whilst in London, Marie Christine met her first husband, Thomas Troubridge (1939 – 2015), a British banker and a descendant of the Troubridge baronets. Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz and Thomas Troubridge were married on 14 September 1971 at Chelsea Old Church, London. Alas, the couple separated in 1973, and their union ended in a civil divorce in 1977. A Roman Catholic annulment was granted in May 1978.
On 30 June 1978 in Vienna, Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz married Prince Michael of Kent (b.1942), youngest child of Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark. The couple have two children: Lord Frederick Windsor (b.1979) and Lady Gabriella Kingston (b.1981; née Windsor).
Today, Princess Michael of Kent celebrates her seventy-fifth birthday.
We wish HRH many happy returns!
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