50 Years Since the Marriage of Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia & Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans and Braganza

The Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Yugoslavia during their Orthodox religious wedding.

Maria da Gloria and Alexander. Her father Pedro Gastão can be seen behind them.

The engagement announcement in the Daily Telegraph of 21 December 1971.

On 1 July 1972, Crown Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia and Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans and Bragança were married at Villamanrique de la Condesa, Spain. The couple's engagement had been announced on 20 December 1971 by a spokesman of the prince in London. Alexander and Maria da Gloria met at a party given by Maria's Tante Bebelle (the Countess of Paris) in Cascais; it was love at first sight.

Crown Prince Alexander approaches the altar with Princess Olga, wife of Prince Regent Paul.

The couple during their religious wedding.

The couple during their religious wedding.

The couple during their religious wedding.

Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Maria da Gloria of Yugoslavia during their religious union. Behind the princess one can see Prince Regent Paul of Yugoslavia.

Born in 1945, Crown Prince Alexander was the only child of King Peter II of Yugoslavia (1923-1970) and Queen Alexandra (1921-1993; née Princess of Greece). Educated in Switzerland, the United States, and the United Kingdom, Alexander was a lieutenant in the British army with the Queen's Royal Lancers, with whom he did a tour in Northern Ireland. The crown prince was a godson of Queen Elizabeth II. Born in 1946, Princess Maria da Gloria was the daughter of Prince Pedro Gastão of Orléans and Bragança (1913-2007) and Princess Esperanza (1914-2005; née Princess of Bourbon-Two Sicilies). Maria da Gloria had studied interior design in Paris, and was working as an interior decorator in Madrid.

Left to right: Prince Pedro Gastão; the Countess of Barcelona; the newlyweds; Infante Alfonso, Duke of Galliera; Princess Olga of Yugoslavia; Princess Esperanza; Princess Teresa; Prince Paul of Yugoslavia; King Umberto II of Italy.

Prince Juan Carlos; the Count of Paris; Princess Sofía with her children; the Countess of Barcelona; the newlyweds; Princess Anne; King Constantine II of the Hellenes with Queen Anne-Marie and their children; Infante Alfonso (between the Greek king and queen); Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia.

Princess Maria da Gloria and Prince Alexander with the bride's aunt, the Countess of Paris.

The Count of Paris with Infanta Pilar of Spain and her husband Luís Gomez-Acebo y de Estrada.

The guest list included the following royal relations: Prince Juan Carlos and Princess Sofía of Spain with their children; the Count and Countess of Barcelona; Infanta Pilar and Luís Gomez-Acebo y de Estrada; Infanta Margarita and Dr Carlos Zurita y Delgado; Infante Alfonso of Spain, Duke of Galliera; Princess Anne of the United Kingdom; King Constantine II and Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes with their children; the Count and Countess of Paris; Princess Chantal d'Orléans and François Xavier de Sambucy de Sorgue;  King Umberto II of Italy; Prince Paul and Princess Olga of Yugoslavia; Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia; Infanta Alicia, Dowager Duchess of Calabria; Infante Carlos and Princess Anne, Duke and Duchess of Calabria with their children; the Margrave of Baden; Princess Dolores of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and her husband Señor Carlos Chías; Prince Adam Czartorsky; Prince Pedro Gastão and Princess Esperanza of Orléans and Bragança; Princess Teresa of Orléans and Bragança; Infante Duarte Pio of Portugal, Prince of Beira, with his brothers Infante Miguel and Infante Henrique; Prince Tomislav and Princess Margarita of Yugoslavia; and Duke Carl and Duchess Diane of Württemberg. 

The 85th Birthday of the Duke de Sabran

The duke and duchess de Sabran.
Photo (c) Getty Images / Bertrand Rindoff Petroff.

 

Today, the 8th Duc de Sabran celebrates his eighty-fifth birthday!

 

Born on 30 April 1937 at Villecresnes, Charles Élzéar Marie Joseph Adrien de Sabran-Pontevès was the first child of Foulques, 7th Duc de Sabran (1908-1973) and Roselyne Manca-Amat de Vallambrosa (1910-1988). Roselyne, duchesse de Sabran, was a close friend of Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco. Élzéar had four younger siblings: Jean Henri (1939-2017; married Marie Isabelle Decazes de Glücksbierg), Géraud (1940-1941), Gersende (b.1942; married Prince Jacques, Duc d'Orléans), and Vicomte Géraud de Sabran (b.1943; married Stéphanette Fabre). Élzéar became the 8th duc de Sabran following the death of his father in 1973. Élzéar found his career in business and is the owner of the Château d'Ansouis.

Élzéar and Dewi Sukarno with her daughter Kartika, December 1977.
Photo (c) Reginald Davis of The Australian Women's Weekly.

In December 1977, Élzéar de Sabran-Pontevès alluded to his upcoming engagement to Naoko Nemoto (b.1940; aka Ratna Sari Dewi Sukarno), one of the wives and subsequent widows of Sukarno, the first President of Indonesia. The French duke and the widow of the Indonesian leader had been seeing one another since 1975. Élzéar was forty years-old and described as being "very good looking and rather shy" as well as having "the figure of an athlete and a young man's exuberance." It was stated that the couple would officially announce their betrothal early in 1978. Élzéar, by then Duc de Sabran, commented: "It has been impossible for Dewi and me to get any time together. We simply never get away from people. That is why we are leaving Paris and taking a holiday visiting Japan and the places Dewi knows and loves. It will be nice for me to see these places. Dewi knows my world well - and apparently likes it. Now I must know hers. It will be a quiet visit. I am fascinated by the Orient, and I want to see as much as I can on this holiday. I am not a member of the jet set. I do not travel a lot. When I travel, I would rather see a lot of the country and learn something of its culture." The duke shared that he and Madame Sukarno shared a passion for historical preservation, particularly of the Château d'Ansouis. "I take care of the outside, and Dewi has been in charge of the restoration of the first and second floors. We love d'Ansouis. It is part of my life and something to return to. There is nothing new, nothing brash at d'Ansouis. Nothing we have not lived with for generations." For reasons unknown, the Duc de Sabran and Madame Dewi Sukarno never married. 

The duke and duchess de Sabran, 2001.
Photo (c) Getty Images / Bertrand Rindoff Petroff.

In 1997, the Duc de Sabran married Dubravka "Douchka" Cizmek (b.1946) at Versailles. The couple were religiously married at the Château d'Ansouis in 1999. Élzéar and Dubravka, Duke and Duchess de Sabran, welcomed the arrival of their only child, a daughter Delphine, in 2001.

 

 

Our best wishes to the Duke on his birthday!

100 Years Since the Birth of Princess Fawzia of Egypt, Eventual Queen of Iran

Queen Fawzia of Iran, Princess of Egypt.

Queen Fawzia of Iran in 1942, photographed by Cecil Beaton.

The Queen of Iran.

A century ago today, Princess Fawzia of Egypt was born. She was the daughter, sister, and aunt of successive kings of Egypt. Fawzia was also the first wife of the last Shah of Iran.

Left to right: Princess Faiza, Princess Faika, Princess Fawzia, and Prince Farouk.

A young princess. 

On 5 November 1921, Princess Fawzia bint Fuad of Egypt was born at the Ras el-Tin Palace in Alexandria. The princess was the eldest daughter of Sultan Fuad I of Egypt and Sudan (later King Fuad I of Egypt) and his second wife Nazli Sabri. Princess Fawzia had four full siblings: King Farouk I of Egypt (1920-1965), Princess Faiza (1923-1994), Princess Faika (1926-1983), and Princess Fathia (1930-1976). From her father's first marriage to Princess Shivakiar Ibrahim, Princess Fawzia had two older half-siblings: Prince Ismail (1896-1897) and Princess Fawkia (1897-1974). Princess Fawzia and her younger sisters were raised in the sheltered environment of the Egyptian royal court. In mid-1938, the engagement of Princess Fawzia to Crown Prince Mohammad Reza Shah of Iran was finalised.

Princess Fawzia of Egypt and Crown Prince Mohamed Reza of Iran.

Abdin Palace, Cairo.

A commemorative medallion issued to celebrate the union of the Iranian heir and the Egyptian princess.

On 15 March 1939, Crown Prince Mohammad Reza Shah of Iran and Princess Fawzia of Egypt were married at the Abeen Palace in Cairo. The wedding was the first time that the pair had met one another. Their marriage was a politically-motivated match; love was not a factor. The union of the couple was the culmination of a wish to cement ties between a Sunni Muslim dynasty (Egypt) and a Shi'i Muslim dynasty (Iran) in the region. After their marriage in the Egyptian capital, the couple traveled to Iran, accompanied by the bride's mother Queen Nazli and her sisters. 

The newlyweds.

Left to right: Princess Shams of Iran, Princess Ashraf of Iran, the Duke of Aosta, Queen Nazli of Egypt with her daughter Princess Fawzia, the Countess of Athlone.

Front row, left to right: Princess Ashraf of Iran, Queen Tadj ol-Molouk of Iran, Princess Fawzia, and Princess Shams.

In Tehran, further celebrations surrounding the wedding of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess were held. A second marriage ceremony for Mohammed Reza and Fawzia took place at the Marble Palace. The festivities were attended by some foreign royalties, including the Earl and Countess of Athlone as well as the Duke of Aosta. Mohammed Reza spoke Persian and French while Fawzia spoke Turkish and French. Therefore, husband and wife conversed in French.

Crown Prince Mohammed Reza and Crown Princess Fawzia with their daughter Princess Shahnaz.

The Shah and Queen of Iran with their daughter in Tehran. Photographed by Cecil Beaton in the mid-1940s.

Queen Fawzia of Iran and her daughter Princess Shahnaz.

On 27 October 1940 at Tehran, Princess Shahnaz Pahlavi of Iran was born as the only child of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Iran. In 1941, Fawzia's father-in-law was deposed, and her husband became the Shah of Iran. With this, Fawzia became the Queen of Iran. However, as is the case with some arranged marriages, the union was not a happy one. Fawzia greatly missed her homeland and suffered from depression as a result of her isolation at the Iranian court. Queen Tadj ol-Molouk did not treat her daughter-in-law very kindly, and Fawzia was not welcomed by her sisters-in-law either. It came as no surprise that Queen Fawzia moved back to Cairo in 1945, where she obtained an Egyptian divorce from the Shah. The termination of the union became final when an Iranian divorce was granted to the Shah and Queen in 1948. After this, Fawzia reverted to her title as Princess of Egypt.

Ismail Chirine and Princess Fawzia, 1949.

Ismail Chirine and Princess Fawzia with their daughter Nadia and their son Hussein.

On 28 March 1949, Princess Fawzia of Egypt married Colonel Ismail Hussein Chirine (1919-1997). The couple had two children: Nadia Chirine (1950-2009; married firstly Yusuf Shabaan; married secondly Mustafa Rashid) and Hussein Chirine (1955-2016). Theirs was a happy coupling. Fawzia remained in Egypt after the overthrow of the monarchy in 1952.

Princess Shahnaz Pahlavi and her mother Princess Fawzia of Egypt in the 1970s.

Princess Fawzia with her only son, Hussein Chirine.

Aged ninety-one, Princess Fawzia of Egypt died at Alexandria, Egypt, on 2 July 2013. She was ninety-one years-old. The princess was buried in Cairo next to her second husband.

55 Years Since the Passing of the Last Queen of Portugal

A Hohenzollern gathering at Burg Hohenzollern in 1961. Front row: Grand Duchess Kira Kirillovna of Russia, Fürstin Margarete of Hohenzollern, Countess Augusta Victoria Douglas, and Princess Xenia of Prussia.

On 29 August 1966, Countess Augusta Victoria Douglas (née Princess of Hohenzollern; former Queen of Portugal) died at Eigeltingen, Baden-Württemberg. She was seventy-six years-old.

Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and her only daughter Princess Augusta Victoria of Hohenzollern, 1890.

Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies holding her twin sons Prince Friedrich and Prince Franz Joseph of Hohenzollern while her husband Hereditary Prince Wilhelm of Hohenzollern holds their daughter Princess Augusta Victoria, 1901.

Born on 19 August 1890 at Potsdam, Princess Auguste Viktoria Wilhelmine Antonie Mathilde Ludovika Josephine Maria Elisabeth of Hohenzollern was the first child and only daughter of Fürst Wilhelm of Hohenzollern (1864-1927) and his first wife Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1867-1909). Often known as Augusta Victoria, the princess had two younger brothers, who were twins: Fürst Friedrich of Hohenzollern (1891-1965; married Princess Margarete of Saxony) and Prince Franz Joseph of Hohenzollern (1891-1964; married Princess Maria Alix of Saxony). 

King Manuel II of Portugal and Princess Augusta Victoria of Hohenzollern on their wedding day, 1913.

Queen Augusta Victoria of Portugal and Queen Amélie of Portugal attend the funeral mass for King Manuel II in London, 1932.

Photo (c) Smith Archive / Alamy Stock Photo.

On 9 September 1913, Princess Augusta Victoria of Hohenzollern married King Manuel II of Portugal (1889-1932) at Schloss Sigmaringen, the bride's childhood home. The couple were second cousins; both being descendants of Queen Maria II of Portugal. Augusta Victoria and Manuel had a happy marriage. However, the king and queen did not have children. Aged forty-two, King Manuel II of Portugal died on 2 July 1932 at Fulwell, Middlesex, England.

Queen Victoria Augusta of Portugal and her second husband Count Robert Douglas, 1939. Photo (c) AP / Shutterstock.

On 23 April 1939, Queen Dowager Augusta Victoria of Portugal married Count Robert Douglas (1880-1955), the son of Count Ludvig Douglas and Countess Anna Louise Ehrensvärd. Robert was married from 1906 until their 1938 divorce to Sophia de Fine Blaauw (1886-1971). The couple were third cousins twice removed; both being descendants of Grand Duke Karl Friedrich of Baden. Aged seventy-five, Count Robert Douglas died on 26 August 1955 at Langenstein.