Henryane de Chaponay (1924-2019): Death of a Descendant of the French and Belgian Royal Houses

Madame Henryane de Chaponay

Henryane de Chaponay-Morance died at Paris on 9 October 2019 at the age of ninety-five. She was the only daughter of Marquis Antoine de Chaponay (1893-1956) and Princess Geneviève d'Orléans (1901-1983), the daughter of Prince Emmanuel, Duke of Vendôme (1872-1931; son of Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Alençon, and Duchess Sophie Charlotte in Bavaria) and Princess Henriette of Belgium (1870-1948; daughter of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders, and Princess Marie of Hohenzollern).

Antoine de Chaponay and Princess Geneviève d'Orléans were married at Neuilly-sur-Seine on 2 July 1923. The Chaponays had two children: a son, Pierre (1925-1943), and a daughter, Henryane. Henryane was the first of the Chaponay offspring; she was born at Cannes on 8 May 1924. Through her mother's father, Henryane de Chaponay was a great-great-great granddaughter of King Louis Philippe of the French and his wife Queen Marie Amélie (née Bourbon-Two Sicilies). Through her mother's mother, Henryane de Chaponay was a great-great granddaughter of King Léopold I of the Belgians and his wife Queen Louise-Marie (née Orléans; a daughter of King Louis Philippe of the French). 

Pierre and Henryane de Chaponay

During their early years, Henryane and her brother Pierre were raised in Morocco. In 1941, due to the increasing threat of the war in Europe, Henryane and her brother Pierre were sent to live with their aunt Princess Marie Louise d'Orléans (1896-1973; ex-wife of Prince Filippo of Bourbon-Two Sicilies) and her second husband Mr Walter Kingsland (1888-1961) in Reading, Pennsylvania. Pierre de Chaponay soon joined the Allied forces, and he died in the Gulf of Mexico on 2 October 1943 while serving as a member of the French Naval Reserve with the Allied Forces. 

Pope Francis with Henryane de Chaponay (2018)

Henryane de Chaponay never married. She became the founder of the Centre d’Étude du développement en Amérique latine (CEDAL). Henryane was a strong advocate of preserving the biodiversity of our planet; she was very in tune with the problems posed by climate change. In April 2018, Mme de Chaponay was received by His Holiness. The Holy Father delivered the following speech upon meeting Henryane:

Madame, dear friends, 

I am glad to welcome you this morning, to greet you and to pay homage to your effort in the service of peace, the defence of human rights, the protection of our earth and support for the growth of a more human and fraternal society. 

Madame, I appreciate your mission as the founder of the Centre d’Étude du développement en Amérique latine (CEDAL). Your tireless creativity has borne fruit through the “Dialogues en humanité”, whose meetings are intended to refocus politics on humanity, to construct a citizenship that cares for the “common home”. It is good to inspire an art of living together in simplicity, benevolence, fraternity, as well as to educate in the culture of respect and encounter, the only one capable of building a future that rises up to the ideal of man. 

With the encyclical Laudato si’, with various messages, convoking the next Synod of Bishops on Amazonia, my hope is that our human history may become a flowering of liberation, growth, salvation and love (cf. Encyclical Laudato si’, 79). As I express to you all my appreciation for your generosity and your dedication, I assure you of my prayer and I bless you from the heart.

A mass for the repose of the soul of Madame Henryane de Chaponay will be held on 28 October at the Église Saint-Merri in Paris. She donated her body to the Surgical School in Paris. In four months, her remains will be interred with those of her grandparents, the Duke and Duchess of Vendôme, at the Royal Chapel of Dreux. Sources: Audience with Mme. Henryane de Chaponay, 06.04.2018 Henryane de Chaponay, figure historique du CCFD-Terre Solidaire, nous a quitté

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Queen Mother Helen of Romania is Brought to Curtea de Argeş to be Reunited with King Michael

The remains of Queen Mother Helen of Romania (1896-1982; née Princess of Greece and Denmark) were repatriated from Switzerland to Romania on Friday, 18 October. After her death in 1982, Her Majesty was buried at the Bois-de-Vaux Cemetery in Lausanne. During his lifetime, her only child King Michael had expressed the wish that he and his mother be buried near one another; the king died in 2017, and was buried at the New Royal Mausoleum of Curtea de Argeş alongside his wife, Queen Anne. This weekend, this desire of His Majesty to be near his mother will be fulfilled.

Queen Mother Helen's coffin was transported from Switzerland to Otopeni Airport, Bucharest, aboard a plane from the fleet of the Romanian Air Force. The plane was met by three granddaughters of the Queen Mother: Crown Princess Margarita, Princess Sophie, and Princess Marie. Numerous religious and political figures were also present for the religious ceremony at the airport.

From there, Her Majesty the Queen Mother's remains were taken to Elisabeta Palace, and they were then brought to Curtea de Argeş. There an intimate family circle convened to remember the Queen Mother and to prepare for her reburial in the New Royal Mausoleum on Saturday. Those present were Crown Princess Margarita and her husband Prince Radu, Princess Sophie, Princess Marie, Prince Nicholas and his wife Princess Alina Maria.

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Princess of Baden, A Great-Niece of Duke of Edinburgh, Marries German Financier

According to the recent edition of the German magazine BUNTE, Princess Aglaë of Baden has recently married Wolf von Trotha at Amorbach.

Princess Aglaë of Baden Photo Source: Garten Design

Princess Aglaë Margarete Tatiana Mary of Baden was born at Heidelberg on 3 March 1981. She is the second daughter, and third and youngest child, of Prince Ludwig of Baden (b.1937) and Princess Marianne von Auersperg-Breunner (b.1943). Aglaë's older siblings are Princess Sophie (b.1975) and Prince Berthold of Baden (b.1976). Princess Aglaë is a granddaughter of Margrave Berthold of Baden (1906-1963) and Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark (1906-1969); Aglaë is thus a great-niece of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Princess Aglaë works as a furniture designer.

Wolf von Trotha Photo Source: Crunchbase

Wolf-Georg Heinrich von Trotha was born in 1974 as the son of Thilo Wolf-Heinrich von Trotha (b.1940) and Baroness Sophie Spies von Büllesheim (b.1940). Wolf von Trotha works as Head of Capital Market/Sales of Norddeutsche Landesbank Luxembourg S.A. He has served as a Venture Partner at Motu Ventures Management GmbH. Wolf previously worked as a consultant at Roland Berger. Congratulations to the happy couple!

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The Art Of Princess Chantal d'Orléans: An Upcoming Exhibit In China

Like so many in her family, Princess Chantal d'Orléans (b.1946), the sixth daughter and tenth child of the late Count (1909-1999) and Countess of Paris (1911-2003), is a distinguished artist. She has recently released the details of an upcoming exhibition of her works in China.

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A strong creative gene undeniably runs through the French royal family, especially the descendants of Henri and Isabelle, Count and Countess of Paris. Of the eleven children of Monseigneur and Madame, five have proven themselves to be talented artists, through various mediums: Prince Henri, Count of Paris (1933-2019), was a keen painter; Princess Anne, Dowager Duchess of Calabria (b.1938), is also an avid painter; Princess Diane, Duchess of Württemberg (b.1940), has taken to both painting, clothing design, and sculpting to express her inclinations; Princess Claude, former Duchess of Aosta (b.1943), has a deep love of photography; and, finally, Princess Chantal, Baroness François Xavier de Sambucy de Sorgue, has for some time pursued her love of watercolours.

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Princess Chantal graduated as a book binder from the Estienne School and the school of the rue Beethoven in Paris. She then went on to work with Tiffany and Co. in New York City on the reproduction of a dinner set from King Louis-Philippe of the French, Chantal's ancestor. More recently, the princess has studied at the art studios of Guy de Malherbe and Chantal Zeller. Princess Chantal d'Orléans is an Honorary Member of the Academy of Fine Arts of Moscow.

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The following press release was put out on the website of Princess Chantal concerning her upcoming exhibit in Chengdu, China:

On the occasion of the 2019 European Culture Season, H.R.H. Chantal d'Orléans is invited by the city of Chengdu, China, to present her works in the famous Chengyan Gallery from 16 to 30 November. 

She makes this second trip to the Middle Kingdom, so very rich in culture and so dynamic in the modern world, with great interest, curiosity and joy as she comes to share and exchange with the people of Chengdu and all other people wishing to partake in this exhibit. 

This is a moment that promises to be rich in emotions, with an exhibition of the latest works of the princess made with a knife in her Parisian and Provencal workshops.

 Source: EXPOSITION À CHENGDU

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A Glittering Gala In The Grand Duchy Of Luxembourg

Yesterday the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg hosted their cousins the King and Queen of the Belgians for a gala dinner at the grand ducal palace in Luxembourg City. The dinner was also attended by the Hereditary Grand Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg. All photographs are copyright of the Grand Ducal Court/Sophie Margue.

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Princess Alexandra Of Greece Seen On The Nude Art Scene In NYC

Yesterday in New York City, Princess Alexandra of Greece, the eldest daughter of Prince Michael of Greece and Marina Karella, attended the 2019 New York Academy of Art’s “Take Home A Nude Art Party and Auction.”

The event was held at Sotheby’s. Princess Alexandra and her husband Nicolas Mirzayantz are frequent patrons of the New York art scene.

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The Death of Duke Ludwig of Württemberg (1930-2019)

Duke Ludwig of Württemberg

It has been announced that Duke Ludwig of Württemberg, the elder brother of Duke Carl (Head of House), passed away on 6 October 2019. Ludwig was eighty-eight years-old. His death occurred at Weingarten.

Duchess Rosa and Duke Philipp of Württemberg 

Duke Ludwig of Württemberg was born on 23 October 1930 at Stuttgart as the second child and first son of Duke Philipp of Württemberg 1893-1975) and his second wife Archduchess Rosa of Austria-Tuscany (1906-1983).

(Left to right) Prince Jean d’Orléans, Prince Antonio of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Margravine Helene Pallavicini,  and Duke Ludwig of Württemberg 

The duke gave up his dynastic rights in 1959. In 1960, Ludwig married Baroness Adelheid von une zu Bodman (b.1938); the couple divorced in 1970. Ludwig and Adelheid had three children: twins Christoph and Isabelle (b.1960), and Sybille (b.1963). Ludwig remarried in 1972 to Angelika Kiessig (b.1942); their union ended in 1988. Ludwig and Angelika had one daughter, Christiane (b.1973).

Ludwig worked as an interior designer. He is survived by his four children, and by his siblings: Princess Marie Christine of Liechtenstein; Margravine Helene Pallavicini; Princess Elisabeth of Bourbon-Two Sicilies; Princess Marie-Thérèse d’Orléans, Duchess of Montpensier; and Duke Carl of Württemberg. Ludwig was predeceased by his youngest sibling, Duchess Marie Antoinette. A memorial service for Duke Ludwig will be held at Schloß Altshausen on 19 October.

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