18 Wednesday Apr 2012
Posted in Historic Residences, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, King Carol I, King Michael of Romania, Pelesh Castle, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Palaces, Rumania
I would like to present you an article of mine published recently in Revista de Museologia #52, Madrid, about Pelesh Royal Castle in the Transylvanian Alps, built by King Carol I.
15 Monday Nov 2010
Tags
Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, Pelesh Castle, Queen Elizabeth of Romania, Regina Elisabeta, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Chapel, Royal Palaces
Photo by ©Diana Mandache
I will remain always dedicated to my research work on royal topics, which often influenced my life paths, with ups and downs along the way. The photograph above is very evocative for me in that regard; it depicts a private chapel from the Pelesh castle, a recollection place much loved by Queen Elisabeta (Carmen Sylva), where she prayed for her lost child, Princess Maria (Itty), who died in 1874. This holly place was specially dedicated to the lost princess. DM
All rights reserved Diana Mandache’s Weblog
31 Monday May 2010
Posted in Romanian Royal Family, Royal Ceremonies
Tags
Ceremonii la Palatul Elisabeta, Crown Princess Margarita of Romania, Diana Mandache, Elisabeta Palace, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Michael of Romania, Medalia Regele Mihai I pentru Loialitate, Palatul Elisabeta, Principele Radu, Principesa Margareta, Regele Mihai, Romanian Royal Family, Royal ceremonies, Royal Ceremony at the Elisabeta Palace, Royal Palaces, The King Michael I Medal for Loyalty
Today I had the great honour to receive ‘The King Michael I Medal for Loyalty’ – ‘Medalia Regele Mihai I pentru Loialitate’ from His Majesty at a special award ceremony that took place at the Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest. Five awarders were honoured with this particular decoration: Diana Mandache, Dan Stuparu, Denise Theodoru, Adrian Silvan Ionescu and Gabriel Badea Paun. Needless to say that it has been a very special day for me, which I shall never forget. Together with my husband, the architectural historian Valentin Mandache, we arrived in time for the event, which started at 3 pm. I was trembling with emotion waiting in line for my turn to receive the medal from His Majesty. I had to make sure that my shoe heals are kept under control while I was doing the reverences. Happily all ended up well. The ceremony itself was simple and sober. Valentin took some memorable photo-shots presented in the above slideshow. We greatly enjoyed being once again at the Elisabeta Palace and seeing HM King Michael of Romania, TRH Crown Princess Margarita and Prince Radu. I was awarded the medal in recognition of my activity as a historian over the last two decades since I started research work on the Romanian royal history at the Cotroceni Palace Museum, within the grounds of the former residence of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania. In the meanwhile I wrote and published, in the English speaking world, a few books and many articles on the subject and undertook specialist research in various archives and institutions in the United Kingdom, United States, Germany and Romania. The ceremony today was the true recognition of my activity and efforts within the royal history field and I am deeply grateful to His Majesty for this award. Diana Mandache
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All rights reserved Diana Mandache’s Weblog: Royal History
24 Monday May 2010
Tags
Diana Mandache, European royal families, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Carol I, King Ferdinand, Queen Marie of Romania, Regele Ferdinand, Regina Maria, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Palaces
This is a drawing dating from 1893 and is an interior design proposal for Princess Marie’s boudoir at the time when the French architect Paul Gottereau started the works for the rebuilding of Cotroceni palace. The edifice was the official residence of Ferdinand & Marie. This design proposal was sent for the approval of Princess Marie. Unfortunately in the contemporary Cotroceni palace not all of the old decorations or furniture seen in the drawing above are still in place, due to the vicisitudes endured by this building over the ensuing decades, events that ranged from natural to human catastrophes such as earthquakes or the communist takeover in 1947. DM
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I endeavor in the “Weekly Pictures” post series to bring to light worthy of note, often less known images from the royal past and present and thus further enhance the understanding of royal history and what it represents for us.
Weekly picture: ©Diana Mandache’s weblog Royal History
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material is strictly prohibited
21 Friday May 2010
Posted in Historic Residences, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Romanian Royal Family, King Carol I, Familia regala, European royal families, Regele Carol I, Royal Palaces, istoria regalitatii, Diana Mandache, Cotroceni Royal Palace, Palatul Regal Cotroceni
King Carol I at his desk, Cotroceni Palace (1870s), painting by Carol Popp de Szathmary (Diana Mandache's Weblog: Royal History)
King Carol I of Romania at his desk in the old Palace at Cotroceni (Bucharest), 1870s.
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31 Sunday Jan 2010
Posted in Historic Residences, Romanian Royal Family
Tags
Balkans, Castele si palate regale, Eastern Europe, Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, King Ferdinand, Noblesse et Royautés, Queen Marie of Romania, Regele Ferdinand, Regina Maria, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Palaces, Scroviste Palace
Mock country house, Scroviste royal retreat complex, located on lake Snagov shore, North of Bucharest (RNA. Diana & Valentin Mandache)
The image above shows one of the guest houses from within the grounds of Scroviste royal palace, on the shore of Snagov lake. It is a design combining peasant farmhouse and Neo-Romanian architecture within a peculiar Arts and Crafts matrix (see my earlier post on Romanian Arts and Crafts architecture for details). The house has a ground floor pergola made from wooden poles carved with ethnographic motifs. Similar type carved poles adorn the extended first floor veranda. The palace gardens were landscaped by Fr. Rebhun, a talented and prolific Austrian landscape architect, very active in Romania in those decades, with many completed royal and public park commissions (Royal Pelesh Castle gardens, Cismigiu Park in central Bucharest, etc.) . What I like in this instance in terms of landscape architecture is the pergola with climbing roses, the house nestled between two imposing trees and the peasant stone stone cross at the base of the right hand tree, which together with the wonderful architecture of the house and its special location on the shore of a prairie lake constitute a metaphor of the Romanian peasant life and country’s natural landscape, an excellent product of those very creative decades of early 20th c. in this country.©Valentin Mandache: Historic Houses of Romania
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All rights reserved Diana Mandache’s Weblog
10 Sunday Jan 2010
Tags
European royal families, Familia regala, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, istoria regalitatii, King Carol I, Noblesse et Royautés, Queen Marie of Romania, Regele Ferdinand, Regina Maria, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Palaces
St Johann Evangelist church, Sigmaringen/ Photo ©Diana Mandache
On this day 117 years ago Princess Marie of Edinburgh & Ferdinand Prince of Romania got married at Sigmaringen, in the splendid baroque church shown above.
10 January 1893: At 16.30 hours the Dean Lauchert celebrated the religious wedding in the Roman Catholic rite in the Church of the Court. At this ceremony, beside the couple, participated the Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany, King Carol I of Romania, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, Princess Josephine of Hohenzollern, Prince and Princess Leopold of Hohenzollern, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught as representatives of Queen Victoria, the Great Duke Alexei of Russia, Princesses Victoria and Alexandra of Great Britain and Ireland, Prince Alfred of Great Britain, the Earl of Flanders and Prince Albert of Belgium and his son, the Crown Prince of Saxe-Meiningen with the Princess, Prince and Princess Wilhelm of Hohenzollern, Prince and Princess Frederick of Hohenzollern, Prince Carol of Hohenzollern, Earl Schuwalov the Russian Ambassador in Berlin, Sir Malet the English Ambassador in Berlin, Sir John Cowell, Major-General and Marshal of Queen Victoria’s Court, Major-General Arthur Ellis Marshal of the Prince of Wales’s Court, General Major Schrabisch messenger of the Duke of Coburg, Wedel Minister of Prussian Royal House, Chamberlain Edgar of Wedel, and on the part of Romania – the Prime Minister Lascar Catargiu, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Al. Lahovary, the president of law assemblies G.Gr.Cantacuzino and General G. Manu, former ministers Dimitrie A. Sturdza and General I.Em.Florescu and I.Kalinderu.
After the service, the Anglican vicar Mr. Lloyd, sent by Queen Victoria, celebrated the religious wedding in the Anglican rite in the Red Hall of the Sigmaringen Castle.
All rights reserved © Diana Mandache
28 Monday Dec 2009
Tags
Carmen Sylva, European royal families, Familia regala, istoria regalitatii, Noblesse et Royautés, Queen Elizabeth of Romania, Regina Elisabeta, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Palaces
Queen Elisabeth of Romania (Pelesh castle). Diana Mandache's weblog Royal History (Weekly Picture: 28 Dec.2009) Photo©Valentin Mandache
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I endeavour in the “Weekly Pictures” post series to bring to light worthy of note, often less known images from the royal past and present and thus further enhance the understanding of royal history and what it represents for us.
Weekly picture: ©Diana Mandache’s weblog Royal History
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author is strictly prohibited.
22 Tuesday Dec 2009
Tags
Balkans, Eastern Europe, Familia regala, King Michael of Romania, Monarhia, Noblesse et Royautés, non reigning monarchs, Regele Mihai, Romanian Revolution 1989, Romanian Royal Family, Royal Palaces
The royal palace and King Carol I Foundation were badly affected by machine-gun fire exchanges during the Romanian Revolution when Ceausescu was toppled from power, December 1989 (Diana Mandache's Weblog http://www.royalromania.wordpress.com)
The royal palace and King Carol I Foundation were badly affected by machine-gun fire exchanges during the Romanian Revolution when Ceausescu was toppled from power, December 1989
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I endeavour in the “Weekly Pictures” post series to bring to light worthy of note, often less known images from the royal past and present and thus further enhance the understanding of royal history and what it represents for us.
Weekly picture: Diana Mandache’s weblog Royal History.
All rights reserved ©www.royalromania.wordpress.com
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Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author is strictly prohibited.
