Carol Lambrino
Encyclopedia
Mircea Grigore Carol Hohenzollern (8 August 1920 – 27 January 2006), also known as Mircea Grigore Carol al României (anglicised
as: of Romania) according to his amended Romanian birth certificate or as Carol Lambrino according to his original Romanian birth certificate, self-styled HRH Prince Carol of Romania, was the eldest son of King Carol II of Romania
, a great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
as the eldest son of the then Crown Prince Carol of Romania
from his first marriage to Zizi Lambrino
. At the time of his birth he was registered with the name Mircea Grigore Carol Lambrino. His grandfather King Ferdinand
forced the annulment of his parents marriage in January 1919 in the Supreme Court of Romania and Carol was born outside the 300-day period allowed to permit legitimacy, on 8th of August 1920. The legality of the annulment has been questioned.
After his birth, Carol and his mother were forced to leave Romania and settled in Paris
. Never during his reign, not even during his personal dictatorship (1938–1940) when he held absolute power in Romania, did King Carol II recognize Carol Mircea as a prince or grant him the right to bear the family name "Hohenzollern."
in 1955 in a Portuguese court, which ruled that he was the legitimate first born son of King Carol II and allowed him to claim the surname Hohenzollern in place of Lambrino. The Portuguese ruling was subsequently confirmed by a Paris
ian court, which also awarded him rights of inheritance to his father's properties. No title (i.e. no "von" or "of" particle adjoined to the family name "Hohenzollern") or dynastic rights were awarded to Carol by any European court. Furthermore, he has never been recognized or referred to as prince by the Romanian Royal Family
. These rulings have cast some doubt over the legitimacy of King Carol II's later marriages. In October 1995 a Romania
n court ruled that he was the legitimate son of King Carol II.
His half brother King Michael
appealed this ruling, but lost the case in an upper court of appeal in 1999. In March 2002 the Supreme Court of Romania ruled that there should be a retrial and in July 2002 a lower court ruled again in Carol's favour. King Michael again appealed and in January 2003 he again lost the appeal. King Michael again appealed in December 2003 and is currently awaiting the result of the appeal regarding the original verdict.
Carol Mircea died in London
and was buried in Romania after a funeral held at the Cozia Monastery
. He never claimed the defunct throne of Romania, unlike his son Paul.
to Helene Henriette Nagavitzine/Navagatzine (b. 26 May 1925 Paris
), with whom he had one son before divorcing in 1958.
He was married secondly to Thelma Jeanne Williams (Nashville
, Davidson County
, Tennessee
, 15 November 1930 – Rutland, Rutland County, Vermont
, 5 June 1988) on 20 December 1960 in Paris
, with whom he had one son before divorcing in 1977.
He married his third wife Antonia Colville (Bracken, Church Crookham
, Hampshire
, 29 May 1939 – 13 June 2007), the great granddaughter of Charles Colville, 1st Viscount Colville of Culross
at Fulham
Town Hall on 27 June 1984, without issue. Carol and his third wife settled in Parsons Green
and led a quiet life.
Anglicisation
Anglicisation, or anglicization , is the process of converting verbal or written elements of any other language into a form that is more comprehensible to an English speaker, or, more generally, of altering something such that it becomes English in form or character.The term most often refers to...
as: of Romania) according to his amended Romanian birth certificate or as Carol Lambrino according to his original Romanian birth certificate, self-styled HRH Prince Carol of Romania, was the eldest son of King Carol II of Romania
Carol II of Romania
Carol II reigned as King of Romania from 8 June 1930 until 6 September 1940. Eldest son of Ferdinand, King of Romania, and his wife, Queen Marie, a daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second eldest son of Queen Victoria...
, a great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
Early life
Carol was born in BucharestBucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
as the eldest son of the then Crown Prince Carol of Romania
Carol II of Romania
Carol II reigned as King of Romania from 8 June 1930 until 6 September 1940. Eldest son of Ferdinand, King of Romania, and his wife, Queen Marie, a daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second eldest son of Queen Victoria...
from his first marriage to Zizi Lambrino
Zizi Lambrino
Joanna Marie Valentina "Zizi" Lambrino was the first wife of King Carol II of Romania...
. At the time of his birth he was registered with the name Mircea Grigore Carol Lambrino. His grandfather King Ferdinand
Ferdinand I of Romania
Ferdinand was the King of Romania from 10 October 1914 until his death.-Early life:Born in Sigmaringen in southwestern Germany, the Roman Catholic Prince Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, later simply of Hohenzollern, was a son of Leopold, Prince of...
forced the annulment of his parents marriage in January 1919 in the Supreme Court of Romania and Carol was born outside the 300-day period allowed to permit legitimacy, on 8th of August 1920. The legality of the annulment has been questioned.
After his birth, Carol and his mother were forced to leave Romania and settled in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Never during his reign, not even during his personal dictatorship (1938–1940) when he held absolute power in Romania, did King Carol II recognize Carol Mircea as a prince or grant him the right to bear the family name "Hohenzollern."
Legitimisation
He was first successful in his quest to prove his legitimacyLegitimacy (law)
At common law, legitimacy is the status of a child who is born to parents who are legally married to one another; and of a child who is born shortly after the parents' divorce. In canon and in civil law, the offspring of putative marriages have been considered legitimate children...
in 1955 in a Portuguese court, which ruled that he was the legitimate first born son of King Carol II and allowed him to claim the surname Hohenzollern in place of Lambrino. The Portuguese ruling was subsequently confirmed by a Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
ian court, which also awarded him rights of inheritance to his father's properties. No title (i.e. no "von" or "of" particle adjoined to the family name "Hohenzollern") or dynastic rights were awarded to Carol by any European court. Furthermore, he has never been recognized or referred to as prince by the Romanian Royal Family
Romanian Royal Family
The current Romanian royal family , an integral part of the larger royal house of Romania, consists of the family of King Michael I of Romania who bear a royal title...
. These rulings have cast some doubt over the legitimacy of King Carol II's later marriages. In October 1995 a Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n court ruled that he was the legitimate son of King Carol II.
His half brother King Michael
Michael I of Romania
Michael was the last King of Romania. He reigned from 20 July 1927 to 8 June 1930, and again from 6 September 1940 until 30 December 1947 when he was forced, by the Communist Party of Romania , to abdicate to the Soviet armies of occupation...
appealed this ruling, but lost the case in an upper court of appeal in 1999. In March 2002 the Supreme Court of Romania ruled that there should be a retrial and in July 2002 a lower court ruled again in Carol's favour. King Michael again appealed and in January 2003 he again lost the appeal. King Michael again appealed in December 2003 and is currently awaiting the result of the appeal regarding the original verdict.
Carol Mircea died in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and was buried in Romania after a funeral held at the Cozia Monastery
Cozia Monastery
Cozia Monastery, erected close to Călimănești by Mircea cel Bătrân in 1388 and housing his tomb, is one of the most valuable monuments of national medieval art and architecture in Romania....
. He never claimed the defunct throne of Romania, unlike his son Paul.
Marriages and children
Carol was married three times, firstly on 22 March 1948 in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to Helene Henriette Nagavitzine/Navagatzine (b. 26 May 1925 Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
), with whom he had one son before divorcing in 1958.
- Paul-Philippe Hohenzollern (born 1948 in Paris, France)
He was married secondly to Thelma Jeanne Williams (Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Davidson County
Davidson County, Tennessee
Davidson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 626,681. Its county seat is Nashville.In 1963, the City of Nashville and the Davidson County government merged, so the county government is now known as the "Metropolitan Government of Nashville and...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, 15 November 1930 – Rutland, Rutland County, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
, 5 June 1988) on 20 December 1960 in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, with whom he had one son before divorcing in 1977.
- Ion George Nicholas Alexander Lambrino, or (von) Hohenzollern (born 1 September 1961 in PoolePoolePoole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
, DorsetDorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
), unmarried and without issue
He married his third wife Antonia Colville (Bracken, Church Crookham
Church Crookham
Church Crookham is a suburb, village and civil parish on the southern edge of the town of Fleet, in north east Hampshire, England, located south west of London...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, 29 May 1939 – 13 June 2007), the great granddaughter of Charles Colville, 1st Viscount Colville of Culross
Charles Colville, 1st Viscount Colville of Culross
Charles John Colville, 1st Viscount Colville of Culross KT, GCVO, PC , known as The Lord Colville of Culross between 1849 and 1902, was a British nobleman, Conservative politician and courtier.-Background and education:...
at Fulham
Fulham
Fulham is an area of southwest London in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, SW6 located south west of Charing Cross. It lies on the left bank of the Thames, between Putney and Chelsea. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
Town Hall on 27 June 1984, without issue. Carol and his third wife settled in Parsons Green
Parsons Green
Parsons Green is an area in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.The mainly residential area is named after the village green now called Parsons Green Park where the vicar of Fulham used to live...
and led a quiet life.