The Only Child of the Last Surviving Great-Granddaughter of Queen Victoria Has Died

Paul Brandram

Mr Paul Brandram passed away on 9 May 2020 at his home in Combrook, Warwickshire. He was seventy-two years-old. Paul was a nephew of King George II of Greece, King Alexander of Greece, King Paul of Greece, Queen Mother Helen of Romania, and Princess Irene, Duchess of Aosta (onetime Queen of Croatia). Amongst his first cousins, Paul counted Queen Alexandra of Yugoslavia,  King Michael of Romania, King Constantine II of Greece, Queen Sofīa of Spain, and Duke Amedeo of Savoy.

Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark

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Major Richard Campbell Brandram and Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark

Richard Paul George Andrew Brandram was born at London on 1 April 1948; one of Paul's godfathers was his mother's cousin Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Paul was the only child of Major Richard Campbell Brandram (1911-1994) and Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark (1913-2007). Richard, a member of the British Royal Artillery, and Katherine were wed at Athens on 21 April 1947. After her marriage, Paul's mother assumed the style and title of "Lady Catherine Brandram."

A charming photograph of the newborn Paul Brandram. Photograph (c) International News Photo

Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, holds Paul Brandram at his christening in 1948.

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Paul's maternal grandparents were King Constantine I of the Hellenes (1868-1923) and Queen Sophie (1870-1932; née Princess of Prussia). Paul's paternal grandparents were Richard Andrew Brandram (1874-1962), the founder of the Bickley Park School in Kent, and Maud Campbell Blaker (1877-1971).

King Constantine II of Greece, a best man, and Lady Helen Windsor, a bridesmaid, at the wedding of Paul Brandram and Jennifer Steele in 1975. Photograph (c) Alamy.

On 12 February 1975, Paul Brandram married Jennifer Diane Steele (b.1951) at London. The couple had three children: Sophie (b.1981), Nicholas "Nick" (b.1982), and Alexia (b.1985). Paul and Jennifer eventually divorced. In 2009 Paul married Kate Moreton Warhurst. Mr Brandram is survived by his wife, children, and grandchildren. According to the research of royal genealogist Daniel Willis, Paul Brandram was 524th in the line of succession to the British throne.

May Paul Rest In Peace.

An Exciting Engagement in the Royal House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies: Prince Jaime and Lady Charlotte

Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Noto, and Lady Charlotte Lindesay-Bethune

On Friday, 15 May, the engagement was announced between HRH Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Noto, and Lady Charlotte Lindesay-Bethune. The couple will marry in the Summer of 2021.

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Don Jaime de Borbón y Landaluce was born at Madrid on 26 June 1992 as the first child of Prince Pedro of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (b.1968) and Doña Sofía Landaluce y Melgarejo (b.1973). Jaime's parents married on 30 March 2001 at the Club de Hierro, Madrid, in an intimate ceremony attended by their family and close friends. In due time, Jaime was joined by six younger siblings: Juan (b.2003), Pablo (b.2004), Pedro (b.2007), Sofía (b.2008), Blanca (b.2011), and Maria (b.2015).

Anne and Carlos

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The paternal grandparents of Prince Jaime, Duke of Noto, are the Infante Don Carlos of Spain, Prince of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Calabria (1938-2015), and Princess Anne d'Orléans (b.1938). The maternal grandparents of Prince Jaime are Don José Manuel Landaluce y Dominguez (b.1944) and Doña Blanca Melgarejo y Gonzales (1946-2009). Jaime is a great-grandson of the late Count and Countess of Paris. 

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Jaime's grandfather the Infante Don Carlos, Duke of Calabria, did not recognise the marriage of Pedro and Sofía as equal. In May 2002, a delegate of the Spanish branch of the Constantinian Order of Saint George wrote the following regarding the couple's union: "The marriage of the Duke of Noto was not authorised in accordance with the requirements of the Law on marriages of the Two Sicilies of 1829. No formal authorisation was given, the marriage did not conform to past precedents in the House, and the invitations were issued in the name of the bride and groom rather than jointly with the groom's parents. The descendants of this marriage will not therefore be Two Sicilies dynasts." Two years later, on June 2004, the same representative of the order, who was also a friend of the late Infante D. Carlos, stated: "D. Sofia is accorded the title of 'Duchess of Noto', but the children are not T-S dynasts; they are however Spanish dynasts. In the view of the Infante D. Carlos, they are Excelentisimo Senores." However, at some unknown date, presumably in or after 2004, the Infante D. Carlos decided to recognise the marriage of his son and daughter-in-law as dynastic. This change of heart was influenced by the Infante's first cousin and dear friend King Juan Carlos of Spain granting approval for the 2004 marriage of the Prince of Asturias, now King Felipe VI of Spain, to Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano, now Queen Letizia of Spain. Since this retroactive demorganatisation, the children of the Duke and Duchess of Noto (titled Duke and Duchess of Calabria since 2015) bear the style of Royal Highness and the title of Prince(ss) of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.

The 16th Earl of Lindsay

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Lady Charlotte Diana Lindesay-Bethune was born on 12 May 1993 as the youngest child of the 16th Earl of Lindsay (James Randolph Lindesay-Bethune; b.1955) and the Countess of Lindsay (née Diana Mary Chamberlayne-Macdonald; b.1961). Lady Charlotte's parents' married on 2 March 1982. The couple have four other children: Lady Frances Lindesay-Bethune(b.1986); Lady Alexandra Lindesay-Bethune (b.1988); the Honourable William Lindesay-Bethune, Viscount Garnock (b.1990); and the Honourable David Lindesay-Bethune (b.1993; twin brother of Lady Charlotte).

David, 15th Earl of Lindsay

The Douglas-Scott-Montagu family by Bassano Ltd in 1934. Photograph (c) National Portrait Gallery.

The paternal grandparents of Lady Charlotte Lindesay-Bethune are David Lindesay-Bethune, 15th Earl of Lindsay (1926-1989) and the Honourable Mary-Clare Douglas-Scott-Montagu (1928-2016). The maternal grandparents of Lady Charlotte are Major Nigel Chamberlayne-Macdonald (1927-2013) and Penelope Chamberlayne (b.1932).

Duke Friedrich II of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg

Duchess Magdalena Auguste of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg

Prince Jaime and Lady Charlotte are ninth cousins. The couple are both descended from Duke Friedrich II of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (1676-1732) and Princess Magdalena Auguste of Anhalt-Zerbst (1679-1740). Furthermore, Jaime and Charlotte are descendants of King George II of Great Britain.

The Duke and Duchess of Calabria announce the engagement of their son Prince Jaime to Lady Charlotte.

We send our best wishes to Prince Jaime and Lady Charlotte as well as to their families upon the occasion of this wonderful news. To learn more about the ancestry of Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and Lady Charlotte Lindesay-Bethune, please visit this link: The Heirs of Europe: Bourbon-Two Sicilies

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The Passing of Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1937-2020)

Princess Maria Immaculata of the Two Sicilies

 

It is with sadness that we report the recent passing in Spain of Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. She died at Mallorca today, 14 May, and her funeral is to take place tomorrow, 15 May, in the strictest intimacy. Her death was communicated to us by one of her children. Maria Immaculata was eighty-two years-old.

 

Princess Cecilia Lubomirskaya and Prince Gabriele of the Two Sicilies

 

The princess was born on 25 June 1937 at Warsaw as the daughter of Prince Gabriele of the Two Sicilies (1897-1975) and his second wife Princess Cecilia Lubomirska (1907-2001), who had wed in 1932. Maria Immaculata had three full siblings: Prince Giovanni (1933-2000), Princess Maria Margarita (1934-2014; married Luis Gonzaga Maldonado y Gordon), and Prince Casimir (b.1938; married Princess Maria Cristina of Savoy-Aosta). From Prince Gabriele's first marriage in 1927 to Princess Malgorzata Czartoryska (1902-1929), the princess had one older half-brother, Prince Antonio (1929-2019; married Duchess Elisabeth of Württemberg).

The marriage of Princess Maria Immaculata and Miguel Garcia de Saéz y Telleca

On 29 June 1970 at San Carlos, Ibiza, Maria Immaculata married Don Miguel Garcia de Saéz y Tellecea (6 September 1921-12 March 1982), the son of Guillermo Garcia de Saéz and Margarita Tellecca. Educated at Cambridge and the Sorbonne, Miguel was a Spanish politician who eventually attained the position of director general of the National Institute of Emigration. Maria Immaculata and Miguel had two children: Don José-Luis Garcia de Saéz y de Borbón (b.Madrid 3 March 1972) and Doña Maria-Ilia (Cecilia) Garcia de Saéz y de Borbón (b.Madrid 11 December 1973). The couple divorced on 25 October 1979; they received a religious annulment on 24 April 1980. Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was a Dame Grand Cross of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George.

Prince Alfonso of the Two Sicilies, Count of Caserta

Princess Maria Antonietta of the Two Sicilies, Countess of Caserta

 

Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was a granddaughter of Prince Alfonso of the Two Sicilies (1841-1934), Count of Castera, and his wife and first cousin Princess Maria Antonietta of the Two Sicilies (1851-1938). The princess was a great-granddaughter of King Ferdinando II of the Two Sicilies (1810-1859) and his second wife Archduchess Theresa of Austria (1816-1867). Maria Immaculata was a first cousin of the following Grand Dames of the Gotha: Princess Lucia of the Two Sicilies, the last Duchess of Genoa; Princess Maria de las Mercedes of the Two Sicilies, Countess of Barcelona; and Princes Maria de la Esperanza of the Two Sicilies, Princess Pedro Gastão of Brazil.

Maria Immaculata

 

May The Princess Rest In Peace.

The Passing of Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1937-2020)

Princess Maria Immaculata of the Two Sicilies

 

It is with sadness that we report the recent passing in Spain of Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. She died at Mallorca today, 14 May, and her funeral is to take place tomorrow, 15 May, in the strictest intimacy. Her death was communicated to us by one of her children. Maria Immaculata was eighty-two years-old.

 

Princess Cecilia Lubomirskaya and Prince Gabriele of the Two Sicilies

 

The princess was born on 25 June 1937 at Warsaw as the daughter of Prince Gabriele of the Two Sicilies (1897-1975) and his second wife Princess Cecilia Lubomirska (1907-2001), who had wed in 1932. Maria Immaculata had three full siblings: Prince Giovanni (1933-2000), Princess Maria Margarita (1934-2014; married Luis Gonzaga Maldonado y Gordon), and Prince Casimir (b.1938; married Princess Maria Cristina of Savoy-Aosta). From Prince Gabriele's first marriage in 1927 to Princess Malgorzata Czartoryska (1902-1929), the princess had one older half-brother, Prince Antonio (1929-2019; married Duchess Elisabeth of Württemberg).

The marriage of Princess Maria Immaculata and Miguel Garcia de Saéz y Telleca

On 29 June 1970 at San Carlos, Ibiza, Maria Immaculata married Don Miguel Garcia de Saéz y Tellecea (6 September 1921-12 March 1982), the son of Guillermo Garcia de Saéz and Margarita Tellecca. Educated at Cambridge and the Sorbonne, Miguel was a Spanish politician who eventually attained the position of director general of the National Institute of Emigration. Maria Immaculata and Miguel had two children: Don José-Luis Garcia de Saéz y de Borbón (b.Madrid 3 March 1972) and Doña Maria-Ilia (Cecilia) Garcia de Saéz y de Borbón (b.Madrid 11 December 1973). The couple divorced on 25 October 1979; they received a religious annulment on 24 April 1980. Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was a Dame Grand Cross of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George.

Prince Alfonso of the Two Sicilies, Count of Caserta

Princess Maria Antonietta of the Two Sicilies, Countess of Caserta

 

Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was a granddaughter of Prince Alfonso of the Two Sicilies (1841-1934), Count of Castera, and his wife and first cousin Princess Maria Antonietta of the Two Sicilies (1851-1938). The princess was a great-granddaughter of King Ferdinando II of the Two Sicilies (1810-1859) and his second wife Archduchess Theresa of Austria (1816-1867). Maria Immaculata was a first cousin of the following Grand Dames of the Gotha: Princess Lucia of the Two Sicilies, the last Duchess of Genoa; Princess Maria de las Mercedes of the Two Sicilies, Countess of Barcelona; and Princes Maria de la Esperanza of the Two Sicilies, Princess Pedro Gastão of Brazil.

Maria Immaculata

 

May The Princess Rest In Peace.

Celebrating the Union of D. Duarte and D. Isabel: The Silver Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Bragança

On 13 May 1995, Dom Duarte Pio João Miguel Gabriel Rafael de Bragança (b.1945), the Head of the Royal House of Portugal, married Dona Isabel Inês Castro Curvello de Herédia (b.1966). Duarte was the son of Dom Duarte Nuño (1907-1976), Duke of Bragança, and Princess Maria Francisca of Orléans-Bragança (1914-1968); Isabel was the daughter of Dom Jorge de Herédia and Dona Raquel Leonor Pinheiro de Castro Curvello. The Duke and Duchess of Bragança were wed at Jerónimos Monastery in Belém, Lisbon. Theirs was the first Portuguese royal marriage to be held in the country since that of the eventual King Carlos I of Portugal (1863-1908) and Queen Amélie (1865-1952; née Orléans) in 1886.

A "royal mob" observes the bullfight on 11 May at the Campo Pequeno arena.

The celebrations surrounding the wedding of D. Duarte and D. Isabel's marriage were truly of magnificent proportions. Royal guests began arriving on Thursday, 11 May, in Lisbon - that evening, a bullfight was held that had the Duke of Bragança and dona Isabel surrounded by the Hereditary Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg on their left and the Countess of Paris ("Tante Bebelle" to the duke, whose late mother Maria Francisca was the sister of Isabelle, Countess of Paris). Bourbons, Habsburgs and Savoys were also in the crowd to watch the bullfight at the arena of Campo Pequeno. 

Dom Duarte and Dona Isabel at the welcome dinner on 12 May at Queluz Palace.

On Friday, 12 May, guests attended a welcome dinner hosted at Queluz Palace. The evening began with a tea served at the Palace Hotel, followed by an exhibition held by the Portuguese School of Equestrian Art and afterwards a group of Timorese people interpreted diverse typical dances with motifs related to marriage and maternity. There was also a concert performed by several student musical groups, at the end of which the dinner was served, in the Rooms of Glasses and Music of the Palace.

The royal wedding occurred on the following day, 13 May; it was broadcast live on Portuguese television. Dom Duarte had stated that "I would feel more comfortable with a quiet wedding, but I realize that a lot of people want to celebrate with us." Dona Isabel noted: "I want my wedding to be above all a religious ceremony. These are not suitable times for great parties, with so many needy people." However, owing to the 3,000 person guest-list, it was inevitable that the Bragança nuptials would be on a grand scale. The bride's wedding gown was designed by Portuguese couturier Laurinda Farmhouse and her hair was done by Alexandre of Paris.

The Duke of Bragança arrived at Jerónimos Monastery at 3:55pm with his brother Dom Miguel. Shortly thereafter, Dona Isabel arrived on the arm of her father, Dom Jorge de Herédia. The religious ceremony was conducted by His Beatitude the Patriarch Cardinal of Lisbon, D. António Ribeiro. There was a sense that the wedding of the Head of the Royal House of Portugal and his Consort was a semi-state occasion, owing to the attendance of the Portuguese President Mário Soares with his wife as well as of Prime Minister Aníbal Cavaco Silva with his wife. Of course, the Gotha was also out in full force to witness the wedding of one of their most amiable cousins to the splendid young woman who had accepted his hand in marriage. 

Here pictured in profile: Princess Teresa of Orléans-Bragança, Queen Mother Giovanna of Bulgaria, Queen Margarita of Bulgaria, Archduke Otto of Austria, Hereditary Grand Duchess Maria Teresa and Hereditary Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, Prince Philippe of Belgium, and Infanta Margarita of Spain.

Dom Duarte arrives with his brother Dom Miguel

Dona Isabel arrives on the arm of her father

A view of the Roman Catholic wedding at Jerónimos Monastery

After the religious ceremony, the newly married Duke and Duchess of Bragança exited the Monastery and greeted their fellow countryman and other spectators who had gathered outside to join in the celebrations of the special day.

Eurohistory wishes TRH the Duke and Duchess of Bragança a very Happy Anniversary! 

27 Year-Old Great-Grandson of Infanta Beatriz of Spain Has Died From Cancer

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Alejandro Lequio García passed away today, 13 May, at the Hospital Quirón in Barcelona. Alejandro, also known as "Álex," had been ill with cancer since 2018. He was twenty-seven years-old.

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Álex was born on 23 June 1992 as the only child of Alessandro Lecquio di Assaba y Torlonia (b.1960) and Ana Obregón (b.1955). Álex's mother Ana is a well-known Spanish actress and television presenter.

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Álex's paternal grandparents were Count Clemente Lecquio di Assaba (1925-1971) and Alessandra "Sandra" Torlonia di Civitella-Cesi (1936-2014), whose mother was Infanta Beatriz of Spain (1909-2002), a daughter of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and Queen Victoria Eugenia, who was born a Princess of Battenberg. Álex had two siblings: an older brother Clemente (b.1988) and a younger sister Ginerva (b.2016). 

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Alex had two main passions in life: his family and his work. He once mused about familial bond he shared with his parents: "The level of the relationship, the closeness that my mother and I have, and that me and my father have, as well as the closeness of the three of us together is so strong that we are the best of friends."

May Álex Rest In Peace.

Government Gives Royal House of Romania Free Use of Elisabeta Palace for 49 Years

Elisabeta Palace, the headquarters of the Romanian Royal Family in Bucharest

Yesterday, 11 May 2020, the government of Prime Minister Ludovic Orban of Romania gave free use of the Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest to Her Majesty's Household Association (specifically, to the entity called Asociației Casa Majestăţii Sale). The decision was made by the Orban government following the April designation of the association, which is an organisation that runs the affairs of the household of Margarita of Romania, as a "public utility institution." In summary, the Household of the Custodian of the Crown has received free use of the Elisabeta Palace for forty-nine years. This news came after the celebration of 10 May (known as "King's Day" or "Monarchy Day"), at which time Orban sent a warm message to the Custodian of the Crown highlighting the important role that the royal family has had in Romania in the past and in the present.

The Prime Minister's message to the Custodian of the Crown on 10 May 2020.

This step by the Romanian government was taken for several reasons. According to Law no. 406/2001, which was passed in 2001, Elisabeta Palace was given to King Michael of Romania as a residence in his capacity as a former head of state. When the king died in 2017, an issue arose as to the future of the palace, which had been utilised for a number of years as a headquarters for Crown Princess Margarita of Romania. As Margarita was not a former head of state and not entitled to reside at the palace under Law 406/2001, in 2018 the parliament attempted to pass a law allowing for Margarita's continued occupation of the Elisabeta Palace; this legislation was opposed by the Tudose government on the grounds that the Romanian Royal Household was not a public utility institution. The measure did pass the Senate but failed in the Chamber of Deputies. The current prime minister, Ludovic Orban, took the step last month to recognise the Asociației Casa Majestăţii Sale, established in 2009, as a public utility institution, and this allowed the prime minister to take the measures for guaranteeing that Margarita of Romania will be able to retain the Elisabeta Palace as her base of operations in the capital.

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According to recent news reports, the Elisabeta Palace is valued at 44 million lei (just under $10 million). The royal family, headed by Her Majesty Margarita, also owns extensive real estate in Sinaia. Currently, the only members of the royal family to reside in Romania are the following: HM Margarita, HRH Prince Radu, TRH Prince Nicholas and Princess Alina-Maria, and HRH Princess Sophie.

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Unless a successive government tries to intervene in this matter, the Romanian Royal Household will retain the right to use Elisabeta Palace free of charge until 2069. It will be most interesting to see what the future holds for the current and, hopefully, successive royal occupants of the palace.