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| The newlyweds. |
Today, Archduke Carl Christian and Archduchess Marie Astrid of Austria celebrate forty years of marriage!
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| Princess Marie-Astrid and Archduke Carl Christian. |
The engagement of Archduke Carl Christian of Austria and Princess Marie Astrid of Luxembourg was announced on 9 November 1981 by the Grand Ducal Court. Born on 26 August 1954 at Beloeil, Archduke Carl Christian of Austria was the third child and second son of Archduke Carl Ludwig of Austria (1918-2007) and his wife Archduchess Yolande (b.1923; née Princess de Ligne). The archduke studied political science and worked as a banker in Brussels. Born on 17 February 1954 at Schloß Betzdorf, Princess Marie Astrid of Luxembourg was the first child of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg (1921-2019) and his wife Grand Duchess Joséphine Charlotte (1927-2005; née Princess of Belgium). The princess had trained as a nurse. Carl Christian and Marie Astrid were second cousins; their shared great-grandparents were Duke Roberto I of Parma and his second wife Infanta Maria Antonia of Portugal.
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| A view of the wedding in Notre Dame. |
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| Left to right: Princess Margaretha of Luxembourg, Hereditary Grand Duchess Maria Teresa and Hereditary Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, Queen Fabiola and King Baudouin of Belgium, and Grand Duchess Joséphine Charlotte of Luxembourg. |
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| Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg, Empress Zita of Austria, and Princess Philippine de Ligne. |
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| Left to right: Prince Guillaume, Prince Jean, Princess Margaretha, Hereditary Grand Duchess Maria Teresa and Hereditary Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg. |
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| Princess Benedikte of Denmark and her husband Fürst Richard zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. |
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| Infanta Elena of Spain and Prince Andrew of the United Kingdom. |
On 6 February 1982, Archduke Carl Christian of Austria and Princess Marie-Astrid of Luxembourg were religiously married at Cathédrale Notre-Dame in Luxembourg City. The couple were joined in holy matrimony by Apostolic Nuncio Eugenio Cardinale, Bishop Jean Hengen of Luxembourg, and Bishop Bruno Wechner of Feldkirch. Among the guests were the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Prince Andrew of Great Britain, Fürst Franz Joseph and Fürstin Georgina of Liechtenstein, Prince Louis and Princess Alix Napoléon, Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus of the Netherlands, Crown Prince Harald and Crown Princess Sonja of Norway, Queen Sofía of Spain, and Prince Bertil and Princess Lilian of Sweden.
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Archduke Carl Christian and Archduchess Marie Astrid with their children, 1998.
Photo (c) Seeger-Presse. |
Archduke Carl Christian and Archduchess Marie Astrid have five children: Archduchess Marie Christine (b.1983; married Count Rodolphe de Limburg-Stirum), Archduke Imre (b.1985; married Kathleen Walker), Archduke Christophe (b.1988; married Adelaide Drapé-Frisch), Archduke Alexander (b.1990), and Archduchess Gabriella (b.1994; married Prince Henri of Bourbon-Parma). Carl Christian and Marie Astrid have twelve grandchildren.
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The archducal couple at the wedding of their son Christoph in 2012.
Photo (c) Getty Images / AFP. |
Our congratulations to Archduke Carl Christian and Archduchess Marie Astrid on their Ruby Anniversary!
