Memories of the Past Decade: Radu Duda Announces Candidacy for the Romanian Presidency

Radu Duda of Romania: When an Actor turned Prince runs for President

Ten years ago, Prince Radu of Romania (né Duda) announced his candidacy for the Romanian Presidency in a press conference at Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest on 9 April 2009. Radu was accompanied by his wife Princess Margarita. The couple had married in 1996.

On 23 April 2009, King Michael of Romania gave a speech in support of his son-in-law's political aspirations. Some suspected that the king did so reluctantly as he had always sought to remain above the political fray. The king delivered his address from Elisabeta Palace. In full, the speech read as follows:

I spent half a century in exile together with my family and another ten years in government imposed restrictions in our own country. For us these were the most terrible years and perhaps for the country were even worse. Our whole life was dedicated to serving the country as we always wished to see her powerful, prosperous and proud within Europe. During these more than six decades all good hopes of the Romanian people were shattered, one by one. […] The right deed comes at the right time for the country. I believe that this moment has arrived. My Family through its presence in the democratic elections for the institution of the Chief of State strives to unite and restore to a state of health contemporary Romania. We want to prove how the people should be properly served. I am fully confident that Prince Radu has the capacity to bear forward this important responsibility and high ideal. 

Romania faces difficult times. I appeal to you all in supporting this important step forward for Romania. In these moments the country needs you united and generous, cohesive and responsible. 

Let us together give Romania hope in this difficult year! 

So help us God! 

Mihai R.

Radu Duda announces his bid for the Romanian Presidency in April 2009

In September 2009, Radu quit the presidential race. He attributed this decision to a lack of broad support from the political establishment, other groups and the business community in Romania. The Royal Forums elaborated:

The Prince said he was very sad to make the decision but had ‘hopes for the future’. He maintained that the election campaign was not a fair race but merely a fight between different political clans: “Most Romanian politicians act as though the state and public institutions are personal goods. The current president began the process of privatization of the Romanian state. The next president will continue it.” 

Radu Duda announced his intention to fun for Presidency in April and registered as an independent candidate, without links to or support of any political party. At the time, Prince Radu declared that should he be successful, he would not seek to restore the Monarchy. 

Former King Michael of Romania supported both his son-in-law’s campaign and his decision to end it.

Source: Prince Radu Duda drops bid for Presidency

For more on the Royal Families of Europe, please subscribe to ERHJ by clicking on the link:

Subscribe to Eurohistory!

On This Day In History: The Marriage of Queen Victoria's Parents

The Duke of Kent and Strathearn

The Duchess of Kent and Strathearn (née Saxe-Coburg-Saafeld)

On 29 May 1818 at Amorbach, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, and Princess Viktoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld were wed. This was the first marriage for Prince Edward (2 November 1767-23 January 1820), who was the fourth son and fifth child of King George III of the United Kingdom (1738-1820) and Queen Charlotte (1744-1818; née Mecklenburg-Strelitz). It was the second marriage for Princess Viktoria (17 August 1786-16 March 1861): she married her first husband, Emich Carl, Prince of Leiningen, on 21 December 1803 at Coburg. Viktoria was widowed when Emich Carl died in 1814, leaving behind Viktoria and their two children, Carl (1804-1856) and Feodora (1807-1872). Princess Viktoria was the fourth daughter and seventh child of Duke Franz Frederick Anton of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1750-1806) and his second wife Countess Augusta of Reuß-Ebersdorf (1757-1831).

The Dowager Duchess of Kent with her daughter Princess Victoria

Report on the christening of Princess Alexandrina Victoria of Kent Article (c) The Times of London (25 June 1819)

Princess Victoria of Kent, aged four

The couple's only child was born almost a year to the day after their marriage. On 24 May 1819, Princess Alexandrina Victoria of Kent entered the world at Kensington Palace. The princess was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on 24 June 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace. She was baptised Alexandrina after one of her godparents, Emperor Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. For the rest of her life, she would be known by her second name, Victoria. 

The Duke of Kent

Aged fifty-two, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, died of pneumonia on 23 January 1820 at Woolbrook Cottage, Sidmouth. He was buried at St George's Cathedral, Windsor. Edward died six days before his father King George, who passed away on 29 January 1820.

The Dowager Duchess of Kent with her grandchildren Prince Alfred and Princess Alice

The Dowager Duchess of Kent in 1860, one year before her death

Princess Viktoria, the Dowager Duchess of Kent, survived her husband by over forty years. At the age of seventy-four, the duchess drew her last breath on 16 March 1861 at Frogmore House, Windsor. The Dowager Duchess of Kent is buried at the Duchess of Kent's Mausoleum at Frogmore, Windsor.

For more on the Royal Families of Europe, please subscribe to ERHJ by clicking on the link:

Subscribe to Eurohistory!

The Prince of Venice Announces Cancer Diagnosis

Embed from Getty Images

Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, Prince of Venice, has made it public knowledge that he is suffering from cancer: the exact kind is not specified. The forty-six year-old prince stated that he was originally diagnosed in 2011. However, he has had a recurrence of the disease and decided to share this development with others.

Photo from the Instagram of Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia

For more on the Royal Families of Europe, please subscribe to ERHJ by clicking on the link:

Subscribe to Eurohistory!

All In The Family: The Princely Pleß Stepmother Who Married Her Stepson

doña Clothilde de Silva y González de Cándamo

Announcement of the marriage between Prince Hans Heinrich XV of Pleß and Clotilde de Silva y González Article (c) Chicago Tribune (24 January 1925)

Hans Heinrich and Clotilde of Pleß are married at London Article (c) The Philadelphia Inquirer (25 January 1925)

On 25 January 1925 at London, Prince Hans Heinrich XV of Pleß (1861-1938) took as his second wife doña Clothilde de Silva y González de Cándamo (1898-1978), the daughter of José de Silva y Borchgrave d'Altena (1866-1938), Marques de Arcicollar, and Clotilde González de Cándamo y Asencios (1870-?). Clotilde was thirty-seven years younger than her husband Hans Heinrich.

Prince Hans Henrich XV and Princess Daisy of Pleß

Sketch of Princess Daisy of Pleß by John Singer Sargent

Hans Henrich, Daisy, and their three sons

Hans Heinrich XV had formerly been married to Mary-Theresa "Daisy" Cornwallis-West (1873-1943), the noted diarist. The couple had wed in 1891 and divorced in 1922. Hans Heinrich and Daisy had three sons: Hans Heinrich XVII (1900-1984; married twice with no issue), Alexander "Lexel" (1905-1984; once engaged to Princess Ileana of Romania), and Bolko (1900-1936). Princess Daisy of Pleß was a confidante of both King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany.

Prince Hans Heinrich and Princess Clotilde of Pleß

Hans Heinrich, Clotilde, and their dogs

During the union of Hans Heinrich XV and Clotilde, two children arrived: Beatrix (b.1929) and Konrad (1930-1934). The marital bond between Prince Hans Heinrich and Princess Clotilde of Pleß gradually deteriorated: their marriage was annulled in 1934 in Germany, and the divorce of the couple was recognised in March 1936 by Poland, where the Pleß family had immense holdings. Reportedly, it was Clotilde who filed for divorce from Hans Heinrich.

Count Bolko of Hochberg

The funeral of Bolko on 6 July 1936

Pictured: Hans Heinrich XV of Pleß in a wheelchair being followed by his ex-wife/daughter-in-law Clotilde and his son Lexel at the funeral of his youngest son Bolko

Shortly after her divorce from Hans Heinrich, Clotilde married her stepson Count Bolko of Hochberg. The couple were wed on 5 July 1934 at Mittenwald. They had two children in swift succession: Gioia (b.11 October 1934) and Bolko (b.3 April 1936). Sadly, Bolko left behind his wife and surviving children when he died at the age of twenty-five on 22 June 1936 at Pleß. Bolko had been detained by the Gestapo on unspecific charges in March 1936.

Prince Hans Heinrich XVII of Pleß

Prince Alexander of Pleß

Bolko's father Prince Hans Heinrich XV of Pleß died on 31 January 1938 at Paris at the age of seventy-six. His mother Princess Daisy died on 29 June 1943 at Waldenburg, aged seventy. Bolko's widow (and former stepmother) Clotilde passed away at Munich on 12 December 1978 at the age of eighty. Hans Heinrich XV was succeeded as Prince of Pleß by his two eldest sons, Hans Heinrich XVII (2 February 1900-26 January 1984) and Lexel (1 Feb 1905-22 February 1984).

The children of Bolko and Clotilde (l to r): Bolko Jr., Beatrix, and Gioia.

Prince Bolko and Princess Elisabeth of Pleß

Countess Felicitas of Hochberg

Upon the death of Lexel in February 1984, Count Bolko of Hochberg (b.1936), only son of Count Bolko of Hochberg and doña Clotilde de Silva y González, inherited the title Prince of Pleß. Prince Bolko has one daughter, Countess Felicitas of Hochberg (b.1965) from his first marriage to Ruth Marie Therese Reuther (18 May 1940-13 November 2013). Prince Bolko wed again in 2013 to Elisabeth Malisse. The heir to the princely Pleß title is Count Peter of Hochberg (b.1956)

For more on the Royal Families of Europe, please subscribe to ERHJ by clicking on the link:

Subscribe to Eurohistory!

Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia Remarries

Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia (b.1943) has married for a second time. The prince recently wed his long-time partner Nadia Nour. The information was made public on the Instagram account of Franz Wilhelm's son, Grand Duke George of Russia.

View this post on Instagram

поздравляю моего отца, который недавно женился на этой прекрасной даме. Congratulations to my father that recently got married to this beautiful lady#wedding#princefranzwilhelmofprussia#hoenzollern#history#europeanroyalfamilies#royalfamilyofgermany#kaiser#prussia#princeofprussia#Пруссия#принц #принцФранцВильгельмПрусский#congratulations#celebration#гогенцоллерны

A post shared by Georgyi M. Romanoff Романов (@grand_duke_george_of_russia) on May 23, 2019 at 1:51pm PDT

Franz Wilhelm is the eldest son of the late Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia (1916-1975) and Princess Henriette of Schönaich-Carolath (1918-1972). Franz Wilhelm was married from 1976-1985 to Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (b.1953), with whom he has one son, Grand Duke George (b.1981).

View this post on Instagram

Mas que agradecido a mis primos , Sus Altezas Reales los Principes de Prusia, Nadia Nour von Preusen y Franz Willhelm von Preusen por haberme acompañado en la inauguración de la tienda @carta_dalviero de mi Gemelo mayor Alvaro. 👑🙏🌹⚜️😘 Extremely grateful to my cousins , Their Royal Highnesses the Princes of Prussia, Nadia Nour von Preusen and Franz Willhelm von Preusen for accompanying me in the inauguration of my dear friend Alvaro #royalhighnesses #HRH #prussia #preußen #prusse #princes #principes #family #royalconnections #inauguration #style #elegance #class #estilo #clase #elegancia #classe #mystyle#menstyle #beardsofinstagram #beardstyle #inauguracion #picoftheday #antiquedealersofinstagram

A post shared by Dr. Karim Gaafar Talkhan (@otros_tiempos) on May 12, 2019 at 8:34am PDT

The prince and princess form a discreet couple, who royal watchers will have seen attending Gotha events several times in recent years. Prince Franz Wilhelm and Princess Nadia were present for the wedding of Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia and Princess Sophie (née Isenburg) in 2011. They also attended the wedding of Hereditary Prince Ferdinand of Leiningen and Hereditary Princess Viktoria Luise (née Prussia) in 2017. At both events, Franz Wilhelm's ex-wife Grand Duchess Maria of Russia and their son Grand Duke George were present: it seems that all parties get along very well. We wish Prince Franz Wilhelm and Princess Nadia of Prussia much happiness!

For more on the Royal Families of Europe, please subscribe to ERHJ by clicking on the link:

Subscribe to Eurohistory!

On This Day In History: The Death of Grand Duchess Leonida of Russia

On 23 May 2010, Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna died at La Paz Hospital in Madrid. The grand duchess was ninety-five years-old. She was the last surviving member of the Imperial House of Romanov to have been born in the Russian Empire before its fall in 1917. The website of the Russian Imperial House offered a detailed account of the last few days in the extraordinary life of Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna:

On 21 May 2010, the grand duchess’s health began to deteriorate sharply. Doctors were summoned and were able to stop the heart attack; and on the following day, Her Imperial Highness was feeling somewhat better. But by evening, the pain and labored breathing had returned. 

On 10/23 May, on the Feast Day of the Holy Trinity, Grand Duchess Maria Wladimirovna informed Fr. Andrei Kordochkin, the rector of the Church of the Nativity of Christ, a parish of the Moscow Patriarchate, of her most august mother’s illness. Fr. Andrei immediately arrived at the Imperial Family’s apartment and gave the grand duchess the Most Holy Mysteries of Christ, and read the Canon for the Departure of the Soul. In the evening, Her Imperial Highness was taken to “La Paz” hospital. At her side the entire time was Grand Duchess Maria Wladimirovna. At 11:55pm local time, the Dowager Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna departed this life in the Lord. 

News of the death of the senior member of the Russian Imperial House brought sorrow and expressions of sympathy from people all over the world. The first condolences received were from His Holiness, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia: 

"TELEGRAM TO HER IMPERIAL HIGHNESS, GRAND DUCHESS MARIA WLADIMIROVNA YOUR IMPERIAL HIGHNESS! It was with enormous sorrow that I learned of the death in the Lord of Her Imperial Highness, Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna. She lived a full, long, and complex life. She confronted suffering in her life many times, and time has taken its toll, but through it all, she maintained a passionate love for Russia and for the traditions of Holy Orthodoxy. We are grateful for her involvement in the life of the Church, both at home and abroad, and for her significant contributions to the reestablishment of the unity in the Church. Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna maintained an active interest in affairs in Russia, and sincerely empathized with our sorrows and rejoiced in our successes. I will always remember the times I met her, especially the first meeting, which took place in 1992 during the historic visit of the grand-ducal couple to St. Petersburg. I well remember also my last meeting with her, in Smolensk. Please accept my heartfelt condolences on this loss that has befallen you and your family. May the Lord grant rest to his servant in the abodes of the righteous, and grant us all His all-mighty help in the service of the fatherland and its people. With respect, +KIRILL, PATRIARCH OF MOSCOW AND ALL RUSSIA" 

In the days after the death of the dowager grand duchess, condolences were received also from the Chair of the Office of External Church Relations, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk; the First Hierarch of the Russia Orthodox Church Abroad, Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York; Metropolitan Kornilii of Talliinn and All Estonia; Archbishop Vikentii of Ekaterinburg and Verkhoturia; Archbishop Aleksei of Kostroma and Galitsa, Archbishop Kirill of San Francisco and Western America; Archbishop Ionafan of Tulchyn and Bratslav; Archbishop Innokentii of Korsun; Metropolitan Polikarp of Spain and Portugal and Exarch of the Mediterranean; from King Juan-Carlos I of Spain and Queen Sofia; Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and North Ireland; King Albert II of the Belgians and Queen Paola; King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden and Queen Silvia; Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands; Tsar Simeon II of Bulgaria and Tsaritsa Margarita; King Constantine II of Greece and Queen Anna-Maria; King Leka of Albania; the Head of the Yugoslavian Royal House Crown Prince Alexander Karageorgievich and Princess Catherine; the Head of the Austrian Imperial House, Archduke Otto; the Head of the German Imperial and Prussian Royal House, Prince Georg-Freidrich; the Head of the Bavarian Royal House, Duke Franz; the Head of the Portuguese Royal House, Dom Duarte, Duke of Braganza; the Head of the Georgian Royal House, Tsarevich David Georgievich; the Head of the Italian Royal House, Prince Victor-Emmanuel of Savoy; from the vice-chair of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, L. K. Sliska; the Chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, V. D. Zor’kin; the Chair of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, V. M Lebedev; the Chairman of the Central Elections Commission, V. E. Churov; the governor of Tula District, V. D. Dudkin; the governor of Kemerovo District, A. I. Tuleev; the general director of the judicial department of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, A. V. Gusev; the vice-chair of the State Duma Committee for Transport, S. A. Gavrilov; from the President of the Transdnistria Moldovan Republic, I. N. Smirnov; the Minister of Culture of France, F. Mitterrand; from the great-great-grandson of Emperor Alexander III, P. E. Kulikovskii and his wife; from government and civic figures; representatives of the clergy; academic and cultural groups; from members of the Russian and European nobility; and from many countrymen, who have expressed their sincere feelings of support for the Imperial family at this difficult time of sorrow and loss.

Princess Leonida Georgievna Bagration-Mukhransky

Princess Leonida Georgievna Bagration-Mukhransky was born on 6 October 1914 at Tbilisi, Georgia. She descended from the oldest Christian royal family in the world: the Bagrationi of Georgia. Leonida's parents were Prince George Alexandrovich (1884-1957) and Princess Elena Sigismundovna (1886–1979; née Złotnicka-Nowina).

Sumner Moore Kirby

After the Russian Revolution, the family eventually made its way to France. It was there that Leonida met her first husband, American Woolsworth heir Sumner Moore Kirby (1895–1945). The couple were married at Nice on 6 November 1934. Leonida and Sumner had one daughter, Hélène Louise Kirby (b.Geneva 26 January 1935); the pair's union ended in divorce on 18 November 1937.

Grand Duke Vladimir and Grand Duchess Leonida of Russia

During World War II, Leonida met Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia in France at a café. The couple would not see each other again for a few years: their next meeting would take place in Spain during the late 1940s. The relationship between the two parties blossomed into love. On 13 August 1948, Grand Duke Vladimir and Princess Leonida were married at Lausanne. By virtue of her marriage, the bride was henceforth titled as Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna of Russia. 

Grand Duke Vladimir, Grand Duchess Leonida, and their daughter Grand Duchess Maria

After several years of marriage, the grand duke and grand duchess welcomed the arrival of their only child. Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia was born at Madrid on 23 December 1953. Her godparents were Queen Mother Giovanna of Bulgaria (née Savoy) and her granduncle Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich of Russia. 

For the rest of her long life, Grand Duchess Leonida dedicated herself wholeheartedly to her roles as a wife, mother, and grandmother. An iron fist in a velvet glove, the grand duchess did everything in her power to support her husband, Grand Duke Vladimir (1917-1992), her daughter and current Head of the Imperial House, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna (b.1953), and her only grandchild, Grand Duke George Mikhailovich (b.1981). Her passing was immensely mourned by her family and by all supporters of the Imperial House of Romanov who understood the pivotal part that Grand Duchess Leonida Georgievna had played in securing the dynasty's future. 

King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain Celebrate Their Fifteenth Anniversary

Embed from Getty Images

Today, Their Majesties the King and Queen of Spain celebrate fifteen years of marriage.

King Juan Carlos celebrates the engagement of his son Felipe with his fiancée Letizia in 2003.

On 1 November 2003, the Spanish Royal House announced that then Infante Felipe, Prince of Asturias, was engaged to Ms Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano. Felipe (b.1968) is the only son of King Juan Carlos of Spain (b.1938) and Queen Sofía (b.1938; née Greece). Letizia (b.1972) is the eldest daughter of Jesús José Ortiz Álvarez and his first wife María de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodríguez. The announcement was met with some consternation from certain circles due to the fact that Letizia was a divorcée, having been civilly married from 1998-1999 to Alonso Guerrero Pérez (b.1962).

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

The wedding of Felipe and Letizia was held on 22 May 2004 in Almudena Cathedral at the Royal Palace of Madrid. Felipe was at that time the heir to the Spanish throne. Letizia had worked as a journalist. The Roman Catholic wedding was presided over by the Archbishop of Madrid, Antonio María Rouco Varela. It was considered a state wedding, the first in Spain for more than fifty years, and it was also the first wedding to be held in the cathedral of Madrid, which had been consecrated in 1993. Five hours of the coverage of the royal couple's wedding can be viewed at the link:

To view the guest list and to see where attendees were seated during the ceremony, please visit this link from the Royal House: Marriage of His Royal Highness the Prince of Asturias with Doña Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images