Princess Marie of Edinburgh, Queen of Romania (2024)

by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Queen Marie of Romania was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, and perhaps one of the most polarizing royals of her time. Called Missy in the family, she was born Princess Marie Alexandra Victoria of Edinburgh on October 29, 1875, at Eastwell Parkin Kent, England. Her parents were Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (later Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha), and Grand duch*ess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. Through her mother, she was also a granddaughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia.

Marie had four siblings:

• Prince Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1874-1899) – unmarried, no issue
• Princess Victoria Melita (1876-1936) – married (1) Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine (divorced), had issue; (2) Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia, had issue
• Princess Alexandra (1878-1942) – married Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, had issue
• Princess Beatrice (1884-1966) – married Infante Alfonso of Spain, Duke of Galliera, had issue

Missy, as she was known in the family, was christened on December 15, 1875, in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle, with the following godparents:

• Tsarevich Alexander Alexandrovich of Russia (her maternal uncle, later Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia)
• Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn(her paternal uncle)
• Empress Marie Alexandra of Russia (her maternal grandmother, born Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine)
• duch*ess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (her paternal great-aunt by marriage) born Alexandrine of Baden)
• The Princess of Wales (her paternal aunt by marriage, born Alexandra of Denmark)

Marie grew up primarily at Eastwell Park in Kent, England and Clarence House in London, England, The family also lived in Malta where her father was stationed several times during his career in the British Royal Navy. Later, the family took up residence in Coburg, where Marie’s father had become heir-presumptive to his childless uncle, Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Marie’s mother quickly worked to make her daughters more ‘German’ than ‘British’, and had them confirmed in the Lutheran Church instead of the Anglican church in which they had been raised.

Marie had always been very close with her cousin, the future King George V. He had been a frequent guest while the family lived in Malta, and the two considered marriage. While Queen Victoria and both of their fathers were very supportive of the match, their mothers were not. The Princess of Wales disliked everything German, still reeling over the Schleswig-Holstein Question. The duch*ess of Edinburgh disliked all things British. She did not want her daughter to remain British and was also against the marriage of first cousins, which was forbidden in her Russian Orthodox faith. When George did propose, Marie was obliged to refuse. The two remained devoted to each other for the rest of their lives.

Instead, Marie was soon engaged to the Crown Prince of Romania. Born Prince Ferdinand of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, he was the heir-presumptive to his uncle, King Carol I of Romania. After gaining the approval of Queen Victoria, Marie and Ferdinand were married on January 10, 1893,at Sigmaringen Castle in Sigmaringen, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Following the civil ceremony, both Catholic and Protestant ceremonies were held due to their different religions.

The couple officially had six children. The two youngest children are believed to have been fathered by Marie’s lover but were formally acknowledged by Ferdinand as his own:

• King Carol II (1893-1953), married (1) Ioana “Zizi” Lambrino, had issue; (2) Princess Helen of Greece and Denmark, had issue; (3) Elena “Magda” Lupescu, no issue
• Princess Elisabeta, Queen of the Hellenes (1894-1956), married King George II of Greece, no issue
• Princess Maria, Queen of Yugoslavia (1900-1961), married King Alexander I of Yugoslavia, had issue
• Prince Nicholas (1903-1978), married (1) Ioana Doletti, no issue (2) Thereza Lisboa Figueira de Mello, no issue
• Princess Ileana, Archduch*ess of Austria (1909-1991) – married (1) Archduke Anton of Austria-Tuscany, had issue; (2) Dr. Stefan Issarescu, no issue
• Prince Mircea (1913-1916), died from typhoid fever at age 3

Marie found her new life quite challenging. Being very free-spirited, she found the strict Romanian court to be stifling. Her husband’s uncle King Carol I controlled every aspect of the couple’s lives. Her relationship with Ferdinand was also a struggle, as the two tried to settle into a content relationship. She later wrote to her husband that “it is such a shame that we had to waste so many years of our youth just to learn how to live together!”

With a growing family and a stifled existence in the Romanian court, Marie is alleged to have embarked on several affairs, possibly even giving birth to a child by one of her reported lovers. It is also speculated that several of her younger children were from another man.

Just after World War I started, King Carol I died and Marie’s husband Ferdinand ascended the Romanian throne. Drawn quickly into the war, Queen Marie threw herself into her charitable work, rallying support for the war effort, and serving tirelessly as a nurse. In 1919, after the end of World War I, she represented Romania at the Paris Peace Conference, replacing the Romanian delegation which had left due to extreme conflict with the French prime minister. Marie is credited with smoothing the situation and helping to bring about Romania’s huge gains at the end of the conference.

In 1922, a huge coronation ceremony was held for Ferdinand and Marie in Alba Iulia. A Romanian Orthodox cathedral, the Coronation Cathedral,was built there and the two were crowned in an elaborate ceremony full of pomp and pageantry. A few years later, Marie converted to the Orthodox faith, which further endeared her to the Romanian people.

The next years saw The Queen travel extensively. Visits to Britain and the United States brought huge crowds out to see the famous Queen of Romania, and she didn’t disappoint them. While in the United States in 1926 with two of her children, Queen Marie met with President Calvin Coolidge and his wife. She also traveled to Washington State, where she presided at the dedication of The Maryhill Museum, being opened by her friend, Samuel Hill. She later donated many possessions to the museum, which are still displayed today. (Read more about Queen Marie and The Maryhill Museum HERE.)

Soon after her return to Romania, King Ferdinand died on July 20, 1927. As their son Carol had previously renounced his right to the throne, it was Marie’s grandson Mihai who succeeded Ferdinand. Mihai was just 5 years old, and a Regency Council was established, led by Marie’s younger son Prince Nicholas. Three years later, Carol would return and reclaim the throne. He would later abdicate in 1940, returning Mihai to the throne.

In January 1928, after several months in seclusion following her husband’s death, Queen Marie returned to public life. Following her son Carol reclaiming the throne in 1930, Queen Marie found herself more on the fringes of the Romanian monarchy. She spent her remaining years enjoying the company of her grandchildren and her homes at Bran Castle and Balchik Palace. Throughout the years, she had written her memoirs, which were published in several volumes.

Queen Marie of Romania died on July 18, 1938, at Pelişor Castle in Sinaia, Romania, in the presence of her son Carol, daughter Elisabeth, and grandson Mihai. Her body lay in state for three days at Cotroceni Palace before she was buried at the Curtea de Argeş Cathedral, Curtea de Argeş, Romania. At her request, her heart was interred in the Stella Maris chapel at her beloved Balchik Palace. After Balchik became part of Bulgaria, Queen Marie’s heart was moved to a chapel at Bran Castle by her daughter Ileana. Her heart was moved to the National History Museum when the chapel at Bran Castle was desecrated by the Communists. Finally, in 2015, Queen Marie’s heart was brought to its final resting place, atPelişor Castle, where it was placed on display in the room where Marie died.

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Romania Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• Kingdom of Romania Index
• Rulers of Romania
• Romanian Royal Dates
• Romanian Royal Burial Sites
• Profiles: Romanian Kings and Consorts