15 Sunday May 2011
Tags
European royal families, Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family
King Michael of Romania & Queen Anne, Athens 14 May 1962
King Michael of Romania and Queen Anne among the invitees at the wedding of Don Juan Carlos of Spain (future King of Spain) and Princess Sophia of Greece, in Athens, 14th May 1962.
15 Monday Nov 2010
Posted in Anniversaries & Birthdays, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Princess Helena of Romania, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family
HRH Princess Helen of Romania w. her husband HE Alexander Nixon. Photo by ©Valentin Mandache
15 November 2010: A very Happy Birthday to HRH Princess Helena of Romania!
25 Monday Oct 2010
Posted in Anniversaries & Birthdays, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, King Michael of Romania, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family, South-East European Monarchs
A Very Happy Birthday to HM King Michael of Romania, 25 October 2010!
HM King Michael of Romania celebrates today his 89th birthday! He is an example to follow by all his fellow countrymen of high moral standards and dignity in the face of vicious and continuous adversity endured throughout his life, a monarch and a human being to be respected by the generations to come! In my work over the years as a historian, I came across a great multitude of books and articles on HM King Michael and also researched countless archive materials covering the inter-war period, the dramatic WWII and the postwar years. The common denominator of all of these documents is the upright attitude, compassion, continuous striving for justice and great personal suffering and sacrifices of His Majesty. King Michael’ memory and exemplary deeds have also been all around me while I grew up in communist Romania, during his long and difficult years of exile. His memory was kept alive by our grand parents, many of whom proudly served their county under our Sovereign and had the fondest memories of him. I vividly remember my grandfather, who was a member of the Romanian Royal Air Forces during the WWII, talking each and every day about His Majesty, about his character, about the freedom and prosperity the country was contemplating to achieve under his reign in the postwar peacetime, but which sadly have never materialised. Every story my grandfather was referring to, was pointed in time “before the war”, “during the war” or “after the war”. In all that very emotional recounting, King Michael of Romania was a central figure. His Majesty’s speeches for the New Year’s eve on Radio Free Europe or the Voice of America were always eagerly awaited by my family and constituted the highlight of the year for countless Romanians during the dark and long years of the communist dictatorship. HM King Michael of Romania’s life example is even more relevant nowadays, during a chaotic post-communist transition, when rapaciousness, rush to get rich quick and disregard of one’s fellow being gravely affects the moral fabric of the country.
To celebrate this great event for us, there is a special charity concert today 25th October at 6 pm at the ‘Romanian Athenaeum’ concert hall in Bucharest.
Diana Mandache
18 Saturday Sep 2010
Tags
Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, European royal families, Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Noblesse et Royautés, non reigning monarchs, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family, South-East European Monarchs
Queen Anne w. King Michael of Romania, Crown Princess Margarita (Source: Romanian Royal Family)
A very Happy Birthday to HM Queen Anne of Romania, 18 September 2010!
I would like to extend here my well wishes to Queen Anne for her birthday anniversary! Most of the heritage architecture of Bucharest and Romania has been created during the reign of the Romanian monarchs. The Royal Family represents the link with those achievements, cultivating with abnegation, through the work of its members, the appreciation of this country’s history. Queen Anne’s exemplary life, from her education and remarkable modesty in the spirit of the catholic church, to the meritorious service during the Second World War in the French Forces, and sacrifices endured with dignity during the long exile together with her husband, King Michael of Romania, is an ideal worth emulating for us all! Valentin Mandache (Historic Houses or Romania)
Listen the interview: Queen Anne of Romania TVR 1, September 2008 – French and Romanian languages
Read also ‘Istoria Regalitatii’: Regina Ana a 87-a aniversare a zilei de nastere
All rights reserved Diana Mandache’s Weblog Royal History
10 Thursday Jun 2010
Tags
Ceremonii la Palatul Elisabeta, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Prince Nicholas of Romania, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family, Royal ceremonies, Royal Ceremony at the Elisabeta Palace
HRH Prince Nicholas of Romania (3rd in line to the throne), HRH Princess Helena of Romania (2nd in line to the throne) - Diana Mandache's Weblog: Royal History
I am honoured to be invited together with my husband, Valentin, to the 25th birthday anniversary of Prince Nicholas and Investiture Ceremony with the titles of Prince of Romania and that of Royal Highness. The ceremony will take place on 14 June at 6 pm in the Hall of the Kings at the Elisabeta Palace. HRH Prince Nicholas of Romania was born on 1 April 1985. Also there will be a special concert occasioned by this event on 15 May at 7.30 pm at the Bucharest Conservatory of Music. DM
see also the article THE NEW FUNDAMENTAL RULES of the ROMANIAN DYNASTY. AN APPRAISAL (RDQ, 1/2008)
Picture of the day: HRH Prince Nicholas & HM King Michael of Romania, 14 June 2010, Elisabeta Palace
HRH Prince Nicholas: Romanian televisions & slideshow
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27 Thursday May 2010
Tags
Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, European royal families, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, non reigning monarchs, Prince Radu, Principele Radu, Principesa Margareta, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana
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Birthday Anniversary: HRH Prince Radu of Romania. OperettaTheatre, 26 May 2010
I have been honoured to be invited together with my husband, Valentin, to this wonderful representation entitled “Royal Fashion”, bursting with energizing royalist messages, directed by Dan Puric; we thoroughly enjoyed it!
All rights reserved©Diana Mandache’s weblog: Royal History
30 Wednesday Dec 2009
Posted in Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Crown Princess Margarita, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Monarhia, Noblesse et Royautés, non reigning monarchs, Prince Radu, Principesa Margareta, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family, South-East European Monarchs
Last night (28 Dec.2009) I watched on the Romanian national TV station (TVR1) a short interview with HM King Michael of Romania. It preceded the message of the Romanian Royal Family for the New Year 2010.
I was thrilled to hear HM analyzing the precarious state of nation, now in a middle of an economic and political crisis, in such an even headed and informed manner. HM cares about and deeply loves his country, no matter how many evils are inside the society. King Michael stated that he well understands that during the soviet occupation and subsequent communist regime the mentalities of many fellow citizens were radically altered, and many of the civilization values gained during the Kingdom vanished in many ways. What HM does not embrace is the continuous decay of the country in the last two decades, since it is truly free from outside oppression, generated because of the eternal political disputes, un-European mores and attitudes, which brought Romania into a deep economic crisis, from which it will now take many years to recover.
The monarchy has modernised the country over eight eventful decades since the 1860s until mid 1940s. What remains today of the country is only a shadow of the glorious old Kingdom of Romania; a shadow of a state that has a long and difficult way ahead to recover its values and prosperity…
Diana Mandache
©www.royalromania.wordpress.com
14 Saturday Nov 2009
Posted in Anniversaries & Birthdays, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
European royal families, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Principesa Elena, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family
HRH Princess Helena of Romania, Alnmouth (Northumberland), 2009. Courtesy of HE Alexander Nixon
15 November 2009: A very Happy Birthday to HRH Princess Helena of Romania!
King Michael and Queen Anne’s second daughter: her first photograph
Queen Anne & Princess Helena, 8 December 1950, Lausanne (Diana Mandache collection)
www.royalromania.wordpress.com
18 Friday Sep 2009
Posted in Anniversaries & Birthdays, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
European royal families, Familia regala, King Michael of Romania, Noblesse et Royautés, non reigning monarchs, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, South-East European Monarchs
A very Happy Birthday to HM Queen Anne of Romania, 18 September 2009
Queen Anne of Romania, daughter of Prince René of Bourbon-Parma and Princess Margrethe of Denmark, celebrates today her 86th anniversary!
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Photo by Valentin Mandache. All rights reserved ©Diana Mandache’s Weblog Royal History www.royalromania.wordpress.com
22 Friday May 2009
Posted in Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Castele si palate regale, Castles and Palaces, Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Meniuri regale, Monarhia, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family, Royal castles, Royal Menus
The menu card is an important piece in the setting and organisation of a royal banquet. The office of the master of ceremony at Cotroceni Royal Palace and Pelesh Royal Castle in Romania has developed over the years interesting and elaborate designs for their menu cards. These designs speak of the epoch in which they were created. The menu plate presented in the image bellow dates from 1896 and is in the Art Nouveau style, from the time when the crown princely couple of Romania, Ferdinand and Marie, moved in residence to the Cotroceni Palace in March 1896.
The following menu card is a design specially made for the Pelesh Castle banquets and dinners and used for many decades starting with the last years of the 19th century. Pelesh Castle was a symbol of the monarchy and the first royal residence built by King Carol I, at his own expense, and today remains the most beautiful and well provided royal castle in Romania.
29 Sunday Mar 2009
Tags
Casa Regala, Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, European royal families, Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Monarhia, Noblesse et Royautés, Prince Radu, Principele Radu, Principesa Margareta, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family
Princess Margarita‘s birthday celebrations were organised in Bucharest & Sinaia: on 26th March – a private Gala Dinner at the CEC Bank Palace from Calea Victoriei Avenue; on 27th March – the Romanian royals made a visit with their guests to Sinaia at Pelesh Castle. They returned in Bucharest in the same day to attend a Gala Performance at the National Opera at 6.30 pm. ©Diana Mandache
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All rights reserved ©Diana Mandache http://royalromania.wordpress.com
16 Monday Mar 2009
Posted in Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, Familia regala, King Michael of Romania, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romania, Romanian Royal Family, Royalty
A new book about the Romanian Royal Family was launched today, 16 March 2009, at the National History Museum of Romania in Bucharest. The album is entitled “Coroana Româna” (The Romanian Crown) and is authored by HRH Princess Margarita and Prince Radu. The book is written in Romanian and presents the five generations of Romanian royals since the foundation of the dynasty.
I was fortunate enough to be invited at this event in my quality as one of the contributors to the book with illustrations from my collection. Please see bellow the videorecording which I made during Princess Margarita’s speech. She emphasized the importance of learning the country’s royal history for the Romanian public, after the long decades when the communist and first post-communist regimes tried to erase that epoch from the collective memory.
All rights reserved ©Diana & Valentin Mandache
07 Saturday Mar 2009
Posted in Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Anne of Bourbon-Parma, Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, King Michael of Romania, Principesa Margareta, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romanian Royal Family
15 Saturday Nov 2008
Posted in Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Anne of Bourbon-Parma, Casa Regala, Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, Eastern Europe, Familia regala, Familia regala romana, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Line of Succesion, Monarhia, Prince Nicholas of Romania, Princess Helena, Principele Nicolae al Romaniei, Principesa Elena, Principesa Margareta, Queen Anne, Regele Mihai, Regina Ana, Romania, Romanian Royal Family, Royal ceremonies
Royalty Digest Quarterly, No 1/2008, 49-52pp 
THE NEW FUNDAMENTAL RULES of the ROMANIAN DYNASTY. AN APPRAISAL
By Diana Mandache
During the nearly five decades of communist regime in Romania, King Michael and his family almost lost their hope of coming back to a democratic Romania. After the fall of Ceausescu’s dictatorship, the King tried unsuccessfully on several occasions between in 1990-91 to return to his country. The new authorities, in large part second-generation communist apparatchiks, permitted him to return only for a short private visit in the spring of 1992, on Easter Day. Ion Iliescu, the country’s then president and the government were too scared of the possibility that the monarchy would be restored through popular support. The 1996 elections in Romania brought for the first time to power since King’s abdication a non-communist government. The immediate result a year later was the granting the Romanian citizenship to HM King Michael of which he has abusively stripped in 1948 by the Romanian communists with the approval of the Russian occupiers. The final permission to reside in his home country was granted in 2001, after 12 years since the toppling of the communist regime.
What has happened with King Michael is not unique, the former monarchs of Yugoslavia and Bulgaria were also subjected to similar restrictions by their respective countries authorities, too afraid that the popular support for monarchy would threaten their positions inherited from the communist regimes. In December 1997, on the fiftieth anniversary of his forced abdication, HM King Michael announced a dynastic document that recognised the male primogeniture among the siblings, but also allowed the succession of females to the throne. HM made acknowledged on that occasion that his eldest daughter Margarita (in Romanian Margareta) is the Crown Princess of Romania and his heir apparent. On 30 December 2007, in a ceremony with highly symbolic significance, at the Săvârşin Castle (Romania), HM King Michael signed and presented officially the new Royal House Statute. That took place in the same day and hour with his forced abdication 60 years ago. The document is entitled the ‘Fundamental Rules of the Romanian Royal Family – The Complete Statute of the Dynasty’.
