An Imperial Arrival: The Birth of Prince Alexander Georgievich Romanoff!

Grand Duke George and Princess Victoria. Photo (c) David Nivière. Courtesy of the Russian Imperial Chancellery.

Today, Prince Alexander Georgievich Romanoff was born in Moscow. He was named Alexander in honour of Prince St. Alexander Nevsky. The little prince is the first child of Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia and Princess Victoria Romanovna Romanoff, who wed in 2021. 

Alexander's grandmother, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia, issued the following communiqué:

By the Grace of God

We

Grand Duchess Maria of Russia

Head of the Russian Imperial House

Make an Announcement to All

On October 21, 2022, Our daughter-in-law, Her Serene Highness Princess Victoria Romanovna, the spouse of Our son and heir His Imperial Highness The Tsesarevich and Grand Duke George of Russia, was delivered of a son, Our grandson, who has been given the name Alexander.

Welcoming this new addition to Our Family as a sign of God’s grace, I ask all Our countrymen to offer fervent prayers to the Almighty for the health and well-being of the newborn. In accordance with Our current Family Law and the Family Act of September 14/27, 2020, Our grandson will be called His Serene Highness Prince Alexander Georgievich.

Issued in Madrid, 21 October, in the Year 2022 since the Nativity of Christ, and in the thirty-first year of our succession to the rights and duties of Our August Ancestors - the Emperors of All the Russia.

H.I.H. THE GRAND DUCHESS MARIA OF RUSSIA

Prince Alexander Romanoff is a double great-great-great-great-grandson of Emperor Alexander II of Russia:

Emperor Alexander II of Russia -> Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia -> Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia -> Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia -> Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia -> Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia -> Prince Alexander Romanoff

Emperor Alexander II of Russia -> Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia -> Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha -> Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia -> Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia -> Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia -> Prince Alexander Romanoff

Prince Alexander Romanoff is a great-great-great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom:

Queen Victoria -> Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha -> Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha -> Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia -> Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia -> Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia -> Prince Alexander Romanoff

Prince Alexander Romanoff is a great-great-great-grandson of German Emperor Wilhelm II:

German Emperor Wilhelm II -> Prince Joachim of Prussia -> Prince Karl Franz Josef of Prussia -> Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia -> Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia -> Prince Alexander Romanoff

Our congratulations to the Imperial House of Russia on the birth of Prince Alexander!

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The Ancestry of Prince Alexander Romanoff

1. HSH Prince Alexander Georgievich Romanoff (b.Moscow 21 October 2022)

Parents

2. HIH Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia (b.Madrid 13 March 1981)

m.(civ) Moscow 24 September (rel) Saint Petersburg 1 October 2021

3. Rebecca Virginia Bettarini, took the name Victoria Romanovna upon conversion to Russian Orthodoxy, granted the style and title HSH Princess Romanoff upon marriage (b.Rome 18 May 1982)

Grandparents

4. HRH Prince Franz Wilhelm Victor Christoph Stephan of Prussia, took the name Michael Pavlovich upon conversion to Russian Orthodoxy, granted the style and title HIH Grand Duke of Russia upon marriage (b.Grünberg 3 September 1943)

m.(civ) Dinard 4 September (rel) Madrid 22 September 1976 (div 1985)

5. HIH Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (b.Madrid 23 December 1953)

6. Ambassador Roberto Amedeo Simeone Bettarini (b.Taranto 5 May 1947)

m.Kinshasa 13 August 1977

7. Carla Virginia Cacciatore (b.Rome 30 August 1945)

Great-Grandparents

8. HRH Prince Karl Franz Josef Wilhelm Friedrich Eduard Paul of Prussia (Potsdam 15 December 1916-Arica, Chile 23 January 1975)

m.(civ) Doorn 1 October (rel) Berlin 5 October 1940 (div 1946)

9. HSH Princess Henriette Hermine Wanda Ida Luise von Schönaich-Carolath (Berlin 25 November 1918-Neuendettelsau 16 March 1972)

10. HIH Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia (Porvoo, Finland 30 August 1917-Miami 21 April 1992)

m.(civ) Montreux 12 August (rel) Lausanne 13 August 1948

11. HRH Princess Leonida Georgievna Bagration-Moukhransky (Tbilisi 23 September 1914-Madrid 23 May 2010)

12. Aldo Giulio Icilio Bettarini (Rome 14 April 1910-Rome 10 December 1976)

m.Rome 16 February 1939

13. Marcella Tomassini (Rome 27 June 1908-Rome 1977)

14. Giulio Cacciatore (Melito Porto Salvo, Reggio di Calabria 2 June 1916-Rome 14 October 1988)

m.Rome 10 November 1944

15. Elsa Spoletini (b.Rome 25 March 1924)

Great-Great-Grandparents

16. HRH Prince Joachim Franz Hubert of Prussia (Berlin 17 December 1890-Potsdam 18 July 1920)

m.Schloß Bellevue 11 March 1916 

17. HH Princess Marie Auguste Antoinette Friederike Alexandra Hilda Luise of Anhalt (Ballenstedt 10 June 1898-Essen 22 May 1983)

18. HSH Prince Johann Georg Ludwig Ferdinand August von Schönaich-Carolath (Saabor 11 September 1873-Wölfelsgrund 7 April 1920)

m.Greiz 7 January 1907

19. HSH Princess Hermine Reuss zu Greiz (Greiz 17 December 1887-Paulinenhof 7 August 1947)

20. HIH Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia (Tsarskoie-Selo 30 September 1876-Neuilly 12 October 1938)

m.Tegernsee 8 October 1905

21. HRH Princess Victoria Melita of Great Britain and Ireland, took the name Victoria Feodorovna upon conversion to Russian Orthodoxy (Malta 25 November 1876-Amorbach 2 March 1936)

22. HRH Prince George Alexandrovich Bagration-Moukhransky (St.Petersburg 16 July 1884-Madrid 29 September 1957)

m.Tbilisi Jul 1908 

23. Elena Zlotnicky (Tbilisi 29 March 1886-Madrid 25 April 1979)

24. Amedeo Angiolo Giuseppe Bettarini (Poggibonsi 21 October 1883-Rome 23 December 1947)

m.Rome 3 February 1910

25. Carolina de Luca (Rome 14 October 1892-)

26. Simeone Tomassini (1863-)

m.

27. Elvira Bartolini (1880-)

28. Alberto Cacciatore (Polistena, Reggio di Calabria 1874-Villa San Giovanni, Reggio di Calabria 5 November 1918) 

m.

29. Virginia Rossetti (San Procopio, Reggio di Calabria 1890-)

30. Giovanni Crisostomo Spoletini (Bellegra 4 May 1895-Rome 29 April 1988)

m.Bellegra 18 December 1919

31. Benedetta Regina Maria Ciani (Bellegra 21 July 1897-Rome 10 February 1979)

The Descent of Prince Alexander Romanoff from Empress Catherine the Great

 

Empress Catherine II of Russia (1729-1796)

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Emperor Paul of Russia (1754-1801)

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Emperor Nicholas I of Russia (1796-1855)

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Emperor Alexander II of Russia (1818-1881)

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Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia (1847-1909)

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Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia (1876-1938)

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Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich of Russia (1917-1992)

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Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (b.1953)

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Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia (b.1981)

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Prince Alexander Georgievich Romanoff (b.2022) 

Baron Georg Heinrich "Heini" Thyssen-Bornemisza (1950-2022)

The baron's death notice in the Neue Zürcher Zeitung of 15 October 2022.

Georg Heinrich and his father Hans Heinrich in St. Moritz. 

Photo (c) Mike Forster/ANL/Shutterstock.

Georg Heinrich "Heini" Thyssen-Bornemisza passed away recently. The Swiss-born German aristocrat and businessman was seventy-two years-old.

Baron Hans Heinrich Bornemisza de Kászon and Princess Teresa zur Lippe-Weißenfeld. Photo (c) Getty Images.

Born on 19 March 1950 at Lugano, Switzerland, Baron Georg Heinrich Alfred Gábor Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kászon was the first and only child of Baron Hans Heinrich Bornemisza de Kászon (1921-2002) and Princess Teresa zur Lippe-Weissenfeld (1925-2008), who married in 1946 and divorced in 1954. Georg Heinrich's paternal grandparents were Baron Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kászon (né Thyssen; 1875-1947) and Countess Margit Bornemisza de Kászon (1887-1971). His maternal grandparents were Prince Alfred zur Lippe-Weissenfeld (1896-1970) and Countess Franziska von Schönborn-Buchheim (1902-1987).

The Thyssen dynasty.

Hans Heinrich with his three sons (left to right) Alexander, Lorne, and Georg Heinrich, ca. 1986.

Photo (c) Wolfgang Kühn / United Archives GmbH / Alamy Stock Photo.

From his father's subsequent marriages to Fiona Campbell-Walter and Denise Shorto, Georg Heinrich had three younger half-siblings: Baroness Francesca (b.1958; married and divorced Archduke Karl of Austria), Baron Lorne (b.1963), and Baron Alexander (b.1974). From his mother's subsequent marriage to Prince Maximilian zu Fürstenberg, Georg Heinrich had three younger half-siblings: Princess Teresa (b.1960), Prince Maximilian (b.1962), and Princess Katarina (1966-1992). Baron Georg Heinrich was the godfather of Count Friedrich von Schönburg-Glauchau (b.1985), the son of Count Rudolph von Schönburg-Glauchau and Princess Marie-Luise of Prussia. 

Prince Eduard of Anhalt, Princess Teresa, Princess Corinne of Anhalt, and Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, ca. 1987.

Photo (c) Wolfgang Kuhn/United Archives via Getty Images.

According to the website of the NOMIS Foundation, Georg Heinrich Thyssen studied mathematics at the University of Munich; and he went on to receive a law degree from the University of Zurich. For thirty-five years, he held a series of executive positions within the Thyssen-Bornemisza Group (TBG). Georg Heinrich Thyssen chaired TBG AG and oversaw several major acquisitions.

https://nomisfoundation.ch/2022/10/15/nomis-foundation-grieves-loss-of-chairman-georg-heinrich-heini-thyssen-bornemisza/

May Georg Heinrich Rest in Peace.

60 Years Since the Passing of Fürstin Margarete of Hohenzollern, Daughter of the Last Saxon King

Fürstin Margarete with her dogs, ~1955.

Sixty years ago, on 16 October 1962, Fürstin Margarete of Hohenzollern died at Freiburg im Breisgau. She was sixty-two years-old.

Margarete of Saxony.

Born on 24 January 1900 at Dresden, Princess Margarete Karola Wilhelmine Viktoria Adelheid Albertine Petrusa Bertram Paula of Saxony was the fifth child and second surviving daughter of eventual King Friedrich August III of Saxony and Archduchess Luisa of Austria-Tuscany. Margarete had six siblings: Crown Prince Georg "Jury" (1893-1943), Prince Friedrich Christian "Tia" (1893-1968; married Princess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn and Taxis), Prince Ernst Heinrich "Erni" (1896-1971; married 1st Princess Sophie of Luxembourg; married 2nd Virginia Dulon), Princess Maria (1898-1898), Princess Maria Alix "Lalli" (1901-1990; married Prince Franz Joseph of Hohenzollern-Emden), and Princess Anna Monica "Anni" (1903-1976; married 1st Archduke Joseph Franz of Austria; married 2nd Reginald Kazanjian).

Friedel and Margarete.

On 2 June 1920 at Sibyllenort, Princess Margarete of Saxony married Prince Friedrich "Friedel" of Hohenzollern (1891-1965; eventual Fürst of Hohenzollern), the son of Fürst Wilhelm of Hohenzollern and his first wife Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Margarete's sister Lalli went on to marry Margarete's brother-in-law Joschi in 1921.

Left to right: Princess Margarete holding Prince Franz Joseph, Princess Maria Adelgunde, King Friedrich August with Princess Maria Theresia in front of him, Princess Maria Antonia, and Prince Friedrich with Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, ~1927.

Fürstin Margarete and her eldest son Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, 1928.

Fürstin Margarete and her son Prince Johann Georg, 1934.

Fürstin Margarete on the ski slopes with her daughters Princess Maria Antonia and Princess Maria Adelgunde, 1935.

Fürstin Margarete and her youngest child Prince Ferfried, 1943.

Margarete and Friedrich had seven children: Princess Maria Antonia "Mimi" (1921-2011; married Count Heinrich von Waldburg zu Wolfegg und Waldsee), Princess Maria Adelgunde "Mädi" (1921-2006; married 1st Prince Konstantin of Bavaria; married 2nd Werner Hess; married 3rd Hans Huber), Princess Maria Theresia "Hesi" (1922-2004), Fürst Friedrich Wilhelm "Fritz" (1924-2010; married Princess Margarita zu Leiningen), Prince Franz Josef "Frale" (1926-1996; married 1st Princess Maria Fernanda of Thurn and Taxis; married 2nd Princess Diane of Bourbon-Parma), Prince Johann Georg "Hansi" (1932-2016; married Princess Birgitta of Sweden), and Prince Ferfried (1943-2022; married 1st Angela von Morgen; married 2nd Eliane Etter; married 3rd Maja Meinert). 

Left to right: Princess Maria Alix of Hohenzollern, Queen Marie of Romania, Prince Franz Joseph of Hohenzollern-Emden, King Ferdinand of Romania, Fürst Wilhelm of Hohenzollern, Fürstin Adelgunde of Hohenzollern, Princess Margarete of Hohenzollern, and Prince Friedrich of Hohenzollern, ~1927 at Schloß Sigmaringen. 

A happy couple on holiday: Margarete and Friedel whilst on a cruise on the Nile River, 1960.

Romanians Commemorate the Centennial of the Coronation of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie

The royal couple.

Today, Nicholas and Alina-Maria of Romania commemorated the centennial of the Coronation of Nicholas' great-great-grandparents, King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania. 

The Coronation of King Ferdinand I and Queen Marie of Romania.

Photo (c) Tallandier / Bridgeman Images.

On 15 October 1922, King Ferdinand and Queen Marie were crowned as monarchs of Greater Romania in a lavish ceremony at Alba Iulia Cathedral, which is now known as Coronation Cathedral (Catedrala Încoronării). The importance of this event drew from the fact that the king and queen had overseen a massive expansion of the borders of the Romanian kingdom following World War I; this was greatly due to the diplomatic lobbying of Queen Marie at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. The coronation was attended by the Duke of York (future King George VI), the Duke of Genoa, Prince Paul of Serbia (later Regent of Yugoslavia), and the ceremony was witnessed by over twenty thousand Romanians. 

The resting place of the king and queen, Curtea de Argeș.

Nicholas and Alina-Maria, as well as students from the local technical school named after King Ferdinand, attended a service at Curtea de Argeș Cathedral, the burial place of all the departed kings and queens of Romania. Archimandrite Caliopie Ichim officiated over the ceremony. 

A Charming Photo of the Aosta Family!

Photo (c) Casa Reale di Savoia.

On the revamped website of the Royal House of Savoy, there is a lovely picture of the royal family. We see Prince Aimone, Duke of Aosta, and Princess Olga, Duchess of Aosta, with their three children: Prince Umberto, Prince Amedeo, and Princess Isabella.

 

Prince Amedeo, Princess Claude, Princess Bianca, Princess Mafalda, and Prince Aimone.

Born on 13 October 1967 at Florence, Prince Aimone Umberto Emanuele Filiberto Luigi Amedeo Elena Maria Fiorenzo of Savoy-Aosta, then Duke of Apulia, was the second child and first son of Prince Amedeo (1943-2021), Duke of Aosta, and Princess Claude d'Orléans (b.1943). Aimone has two sisters: Princess Bianca (b.1966) and Princess Mafalda (b.1969). 

Prince Michael, Princess Marina, Princess Alexandra, and Princess Olga. 

Born on 17 November 1971 at Athens, Princess Olga Isabelle of Greece is the second daughter of author Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark (b.1939) and artist Marina Karella (b.1940). Olga has one sister, Princess Alexandra (b.1968).

Aimone and Olga's engagement, 2005.

The Duke and Duchess of Apulia on the day of their religious wedding, 2008.

Prince Aimone and Princess Olga announced their engagement in 2005. On 16 September 2008, Aimone of Savoy and Olga of Greece were civilly married at the Italian embassy in Moscow, Russia, where the couple live. The pair celebrated their religious wedding on 27 September at the Church of Panagia Diasozousa on the Isle of Patmos in Greece. Their union was attended by their parents and by King Constantine II and Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes. 

The Duke and Duchess of Apulia with their first child, Prince Umberto, at his baptism.

The baptism of Prince Amedeo of Savoy.

The baptism of Princess Isabella of Savoy.

The Duke and Duchess of Aosta have three children. Prince Umberto Sathya of Savoy-Aosta, Prince of Piedmont, was born on 7 March 2009 at Paris. Prince Amedeo Michele of Savoy-Aosta, Duke of the Abruzzi, was born on 24 May 2011 at Paris. Princess Isabella Vita Marina of Savoy-Aosta was born on 14 December 2012 at Paris. 

Princess Olga and Prince Aimone arrive at the reception following the wedding of Grand Duke George of Russia in Saint Petersburg, 2021.

The 50th Birthday of Twins Prince Jaime and Princess Margarita of Bourbon-Parma!

Princess Irene with the twins.

Today, Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Parma, Count of Bardi, and Princess Margarita of Bourbon-Parma, Countess of Colorno, celebrate their fiftieth birthdays!

The twins with their older brother Prince Carlos.

On 13 October 1972 at Nimeguen, the twins Prince Jaime Bernardo and Princess Margarita Maria Beatrix of Bourbon-Parma were born as the second and third children of Prince Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma, and Princess Irene of the Netherlands, who wed in 1964. Jaime and Margarita joined an older brother, Prince Carlos (b.1970; married Annemarie Cecilia Gualthérie van Weezel), and were followed by a younger sister, Princess Maria Carolina (b.1974; married Albert Brenninkmeijer). 

Prince Jaime and Princess Irene.

King Willem Alexander and Queen Máxima with their three daughters.

Princess Viktória and Prince Jaime.

On 5 October 2013 at Apeldoorn, Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Parma married Viktória Cservenyák (b.1982). The couple's wedding was attended by many relatives, including the groom's aunt Princess Beatrix of The Netherlands and his first cousin King Willem Alexander of The Netherlands. Jaime and Viktória have two daughters: Princess Zita Clara (b.2014) and Princess Gloria Irene (b.2016).

On 3 May 2008 at Maarsbergen, Princess Margarita of Bourbon-Parma married Tjalling Siebe ten Cate (b.1975). The princess had previously been married from 2001 until 2006 to Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn. Margarita and Tjalling have two daughters: Julia (b.2008) and Paola (b.2011).

Wishing Prince Jaime and Princess Margarita a very Happy Birthday!