Princess Anne of Bourbon-Parma, also known as Queen Anne of Romania (Anne Antoinette Françoise Charlotte Zita Marguerite of Bourbon-Parma,[2] 18 September 1923 – 1 August 2016), was the wife of former king Michael I of Romania.
In November 1947, Anne met King Michael I of Romania who was visiting London for the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh.[2] They met several times in London, always with her mother or brother. Michael asked her to marry him. Michael returned to Romania, where he was told by the prime minister it was not the right tine to announce the wedding. A few days later, the government said the wedding was the reason for Michael's sudden "abdication". In fact the king was deposed by the Communists on 30 December.[5]
Wedding
Michael and Anne on a 2014 Romanian stamp
Anne was a Catholic and under their rules, she needed the church's permission to marry Michael who was not a Catholic. This permission could be given if Michael agreed to allow their future children to be raised as Catholics. Michael refused to do this, as it was against the laws of Romania, and it would make it impossible for him to regain his position as king.[5] The Holy See refused to grant permission for the wedding. The two families decided to take their case to the Vatican. In early March, the couple's mothers met with Pope Pius XII who also refused permission for Anne to marry Michael.[5]
Anne and Michael decided to marry without church permission. Anne's paternal uncle, Xavier, Duke of Parma, said he objected to the marriage that did not have the Pope's permission. He also told Anne's parents not to attend the wedding.[5] Anne's family was represented at the ceremony by her maternal uncle, Prince Eric of Denmark.[5]
The couple took part in a religious ceremony on 9 November 1966, at the Roman Catholic Church of St Charles in Monaco, to make the marriage "legal" for the church.[5]
Adult life
After their wedding in 1948, Anne and Michael lived in Hertfordshire for four years. They became market gardeners and farmed poultry. In 1956 they moved to Versoix on Lake Geneva, and raised five daughters there.[3] In 1992 Anne and Michael visited Romania for three days; it was Anne's first visit to the country.[3] From 1993 to 1997, Michael was refused entry to Romania by the Romanian government.[3] Anne visited the country a number of times representing her husband. After 1997, there were no restrictions on Anne and Michael's entry into Romania. Elisabeta Palace was made available for them to use, and they recovered some properties from the state, including Săvârşin Castle and Peleş Castle.[5]
Flowers and candles in front of the fence of the former Royal Palace in Bucharest on 13 August 2016
Anne died on 1 August 2016 in a hospital in Morges, Switzerland, at the age of 92.[10][11][12] The family refused a posthumous military medal.[13] Romania's President Klaus Iohannis said "Her Majesty Queen Ana of Romania will remain forever in memory and in our hearts as one of the most important symbols of wisdom, dignity and, especially, as a model of moral conduct."[14] The government made 13 August 2016 a national day of mourning. The Romanian flag was flown at half-mast on all buildings. Television and radio broadcasts were told to make their programs suitable for the memory of Anne of Romania. The funeral was held at the Curtea de Argeș Cathedral.[15] The government of Moldova also held a national day of mourning on 13 August in memory of Queen Anne, asking for everyone to observe a moment of silence at 10 am on that day.[16]
Radu, Prince of Hohenzollern-Veringen, Anne of Romania: A War, an Exile, a Life, Bucharest: The Romanian Cultural Foundation Publishing House, Bucharest, 2002 ISBN973-577-338-4. (A quasi-official biography by her son-in-law, originally published in Romanian as Un război, un exil, o viaţă, Bucharest, 2000).[27]
↑ 5.05.15.25.35.45.55.65.7Eilers-Koenig, Marlene (2008). "The Marriage of King Michael and Queen Anne of Romania". European Royal History Journal. 11.3 (LXIII). Arturo E. Beeche: 3–10.
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