Frankopan
Encyclopedia
The Frankopans are a Croatia
n noble
family. Also called Frankapan, Frangepán in Hungarian
, and Frangipani in Italian
.
The Frankopan family is the leading princely Croatian aristocratic family which dates back to the 12th Century and even earlier to Roman times.
Along with the Zrinski
family it has, in Croatian history, ranked high in terms of importance by virtue of power, wealth, fame, glory and role in Croatia's public life. They are closely connected with the Roman
patrician Frangipani family
. The Frangipani were a Roman princely family, earlier called Onicii or Anicii. The family took the name Frangipani in the 8th Century. In 837 four brothers of the Frangipani family left Rome: Michele chose Venice as his domicile and Nicolò Dalmatia and Slavonia. The descendants of Michele obtained the island Veglia from the Venetians. The Frankopan family is mentioned in Croatian documents in 1133 when Dujam Frankopan is recorded as ruler and lord of the island of Krk
and of areas of Dalmatia. Around 1200 the family owned wide areas on the mainland, including the Castle of Ribnik, near Karlovac.
In 1227 the Mongol prince Genghis Khan advanced from Poland toward Hungary whose King, Bela IV, resisted bravely but finally had to seek refuge in Dalmatia. King Bela stayed with the Frankopans who assisted him with arms and funds and brought him into safety in Veglia and then brought him back to his own land. As reward the King gave the Frangipani the county of Segn with surrounding lands and the castle of Modrus.
In 1246 there was another war, between Frederic of Austria and Bela, who, with the assistance of the Frankopans, won a victory. As a further reward, King Bela then, by Royal Decree, created the Frankopans Lords of their territory for them and their descendants.
The Frankopans constantly supported the Catholic Church. In particular, Nikola Frankopan reconstructed the Holy House of Our Lady in 1294 in Tersatto (Trsat). It is recorded that, in 1291, Nikola Frankopan, sent a delegation to Nazareth to measure the Holy House after the House had been saved, presumably by the Crusaders, and brought to Trsat, or Tersatto, on the Adriatic Coast where the Frankopans had a Castle. In 1294 Nikola Frankopan, gave the Holy House to the Pope to be placed on Papal lands, at Loreto, near Ancona.
Although the possessions of the family were exposed to every assault both from the east and the west, their power increased steadily until the seventeenth century when their lands reached further east. The Zrinski
and Frankopan families came into closer affinity by marriage ties until in the eyes of the Europe
an courts they had become one of the most important families of Croatia.
In 1420 the Swedish King Erik of Pomerania called Ivan VI Frankopan, the eldest son of the Croatian ban Nikola IV, to Sweden
to accompany the Swedish King to the Holy Land and later to assist the King at the Court in Sweden. Ivan VI Frankopan lived in Sweden at intervals between 1420 and 1430. After his father's death he returned to his home country. His eldest son called Mattias (Matija) stayed in Sweden.
Bernát Frangepans (abt. 1450 died aft.1527) paternal grandmother Dorottya de Garay, was from a prominent Hungarian noble family. Through ancestry from royal Spanish families Bernát had even Árpad
ancestry (the Árpad dynasty founded the Kingdom of Hungary.) The famed Nikola Šubić Zrinski
, who died fighting and won the title of "Hero of Sziget," became the first outstanding example of the epithet "bulwark of Christianity". The Frankopan family was persecuted after the Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy, where the Prince and Marquess Fran Krsto Frankopan
led an uprising against Habsburg
King Leopold I
,to make Croatia independent. He, and his brother-in-law, Petar Zrinski, were executed in Wiener Neustadt
. The Fran Krsto Frankopan line died out soon thereafter, but the elder line from Trsat
is still in existence (see below).
Several of the Frankopan castles remain in Croatia
, mostly around the Gorski kotar
region and the island of Krk
. The castle at Stara Susica near Trsat
incorporates structures going back to the Illyria
n and Roman periods. The town of Bosiljevo
has a medieval fortified castle, renovated in the last century in the spirit of the Romanesque. The castle and park at Severin na Kupi
were owned by the Frankopan family until the mid 17th century. Other castles or property of the Frankopans could be found in Ribnik
, Bosiljevo
, Novi Vinodolski
, Ogulin
, Slunj
, Ozalj
, Cetingrad
, , Trsat
, and other surrounding towns. The Frankopan castle in the town of Krk
is currently used for open-air performances in the summer months.
The present members of the Frankopan family lived in England until Croatia became independent in 1991 and rid itself of the communist system. Members of the present family then assisted Croatia in the independence and recognition process. They also repaired several Churches and national monuments and awarded scholarship to a number of young Croats to study in the United Kingdom and in the United States.
"Since 2006 a judgment of the Italian courts has confirmed the genealogical entitlement and the right of all members of the Frankopan family to make use of the titles Princes Frankopan Frangipane Šubić and Counts Doimi de Lupis, even if, for political reasons, they did not always use them. The Frankopan family did not change its name under UK law as stated above."
The eldest son, Peter, Senior Fellow of Worcester College at Oxford University and Director of the University's Centre for Byzantine Studies, says that the "title (of the family) is not any claim on anything. It is just a reflection of the age of the family".. He says that his family split from other branches of the Frankopan family in the 14th century. Doimo III Frangipani or Frankopan, (+ 1348), Count of Veglia, married Elisabetta Subich, daughter of Jakab, Count of Bribir (+ post 1347); see
The family has now major investments in Croatia. In 1991, Prince Louis Frankopan and his wife Ingrid were appointed official spokespersons for the Croatian Government. Immediately after the end of the Croatian War of Independence, Louis Frankopan founded the Croatian Nobility Association, a private non-governmental organisation, but after internal disagreements, he resigned from the Association.
Louis Doimi de Lupis Frankopan read Geology at Oxford University and then took a Degree in Philosophy at London University. He also qualified as a [Barrister]], and is a member of Middle Temple
. He is a businessman and a banker and was for many years the Vice-President of a large Brazilian bank in London.
Louis Frankopan met his future wife at Oxford where they were both studying at the University. His wife, Ingrid Detter de Frankopan, is a distinguished Professor Emeritus at Stockholm University, sometime Fellow of LMH and of St. Antony's College, Oxford and sometime Advisor on International Law to HH John Paul II, professor of international law, double doctor, D.Phil. (Oxon), Jur.Dr.(Stockholm), Lic. en droit (Paris) and Dipl. Diritto Europeo (Turin), Barrister at Lincoln's Inn.
The present Frankopan family have five children, all educated at Oxford and/or Cambridge. There are two daughters, Paola and Christina, and three sons, Peter, Nicholas and Lawrence, Princes Frankopan, Counts Doimi de Lupis.
Their eldest daughter, Paola, Lady Nicholas Windsor, married to Lord Nicholas Windsor, who is son of H.R.H. the Duke and Duchess of Kent, cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. She read Classics at Cambridge University where she was a Choral Scholar and took a Diplôme d'Etudes Approfondis (M.Phil) at Paris IV, La Sorbonne in Philosophy, submitting a thesis on L'autorité de l'Etat in French. She has, as Paola Frankopan, written for The Tatler where she is a contributing editor and for Vogue USA She has published and introduction to the history of the Sanctuary of Trsat 'Trsatska Sveta Kuča', in Croatian.
Their eldest son Peter, D.Phil. (Oxon); M.Phil. (Oxon); M.A. (Cantab), studied Russian and French at Cambridge University where he was a Choral Scholar. He then read for a doctorate in History at Oxford University. He is now a historian and author of 'The First Crusade'. He is Director of Oxford University's Centre for Byzantine Research. He is University Lecturer at the Faculty of Modern Languages and Fellow of Worcester College, Oxford University. He is a Governor of Wellington College and trustee of the World Monuments Fund. Together with his wife, he founded Cambridge University's Frankopan Directorship for Gender Studies.
Their second daughter, Christina is an investment banker, . She read Economics at Cambridge University where she was a Choral Scholar. She is married to Patrick Nicholson, Head of Communications for Caritas Internationalis in the Vatican.
Their second son, Nicholas, read History, first at Oxford and then at Cambridge University and is M.A. (Oxon); M.Phil. (Cantab); MBA (Columbia). He won two gold Medals for Great Britain at the Junior European Championships in Rowing in 1992. He is now an investment banker in London.
Their youngest son, Lawrence, read History at King’s College, London and was then Visiting Scholar in History at New College, Oxford. He is now a sports agent and is the Head of Lagardère Unlimited (UK) in London.
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n noble
Noble
Noble may refer to:* Nobility, a hereditary caste* Noble gas, chemical elements in group 18 of the periodic table* Noble metal, metals that are resistant to corrosion or oxidation...
family. Also called Frankapan, Frangepán in Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, and Frangipani in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
.
The Frankopan family is the leading princely Croatian aristocratic family which dates back to the 12th Century and even earlier to Roman times.
Along with the Zrinski
Zrinski
The Zrinski family was a Croatian noble family, influential during the period in history marked by the Ottoman wars in Europe in the Kingdom of Croatia and Hungary and in the later Austro-Hungarian Empire...
family it has, in Croatian history, ranked high in terms of importance by virtue of power, wealth, fame, glory and role in Croatia's public life. They are closely connected with the Roman
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
patrician Frangipani family
Frangipani family
The Frangipani or Frangipane is a princely family with roots in Ancient Rome. The family was powerful as a Roman patrician clan in the Middle Ages. The family was typically Guelff in sympathy and thus often bravely supported the papacy...
. The Frangipani were a Roman princely family, earlier called Onicii or Anicii. The family took the name Frangipani in the 8th Century. In 837 four brothers of the Frangipani family left Rome: Michele chose Venice as his domicile and Nicolò Dalmatia and Slavonia. The descendants of Michele obtained the island Veglia from the Venetians. The Frankopan family is mentioned in Croatian documents in 1133 when Dujam Frankopan is recorded as ruler and lord of the island of Krk
Krk
Krk is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
and of areas of Dalmatia. Around 1200 the family owned wide areas on the mainland, including the Castle of Ribnik, near Karlovac.
In 1227 the Mongol prince Genghis Khan advanced from Poland toward Hungary whose King, Bela IV, resisted bravely but finally had to seek refuge in Dalmatia. King Bela stayed with the Frankopans who assisted him with arms and funds and brought him into safety in Veglia and then brought him back to his own land. As reward the King gave the Frangipani the county of Segn with surrounding lands and the castle of Modrus.
In 1246 there was another war, between Frederic of Austria and Bela, who, with the assistance of the Frankopans, won a victory. As a further reward, King Bela then, by Royal Decree, created the Frankopans Lords of their territory for them and their descendants.
The Frankopans constantly supported the Catholic Church. In particular, Nikola Frankopan reconstructed the Holy House of Our Lady in 1294 in Tersatto (Trsat). It is recorded that, in 1291, Nikola Frankopan, sent a delegation to Nazareth to measure the Holy House after the House had been saved, presumably by the Crusaders, and brought to Trsat, or Tersatto, on the Adriatic Coast where the Frankopans had a Castle. In 1294 Nikola Frankopan, gave the Holy House to the Pope to be placed on Papal lands, at Loreto, near Ancona.
Although the possessions of the family were exposed to every assault both from the east and the west, their power increased steadily until the seventeenth century when their lands reached further east. The Zrinski
Zrinski
The Zrinski family was a Croatian noble family, influential during the period in history marked by the Ottoman wars in Europe in the Kingdom of Croatia and Hungary and in the later Austro-Hungarian Empire...
and Frankopan families came into closer affinity by marriage ties until in the eyes of the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an courts they had become one of the most important families of Croatia.
In 1420 the Swedish King Erik of Pomerania called Ivan VI Frankopan, the eldest son of the Croatian ban Nikola IV, to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
to accompany the Swedish King to the Holy Land and later to assist the King at the Court in Sweden. Ivan VI Frankopan lived in Sweden at intervals between 1420 and 1430. After his father's death he returned to his home country. His eldest son called Mattias (Matija) stayed in Sweden.
Bernát Frangepans (abt. 1450 died aft.1527) paternal grandmother Dorottya de Garay, was from a prominent Hungarian noble family. Through ancestry from royal Spanish families Bernát had even Árpad
Árpád
Árpád was the second Grand Prince of the Hungarians . Under his rule the Hungarian people settled in the Carpathian basin. The dynasty descending from him ruled the Hungarian tribes and later the Kingdom of Hungary until 1301...
ancestry (the Árpad dynasty founded the Kingdom of Hungary.) The famed Nikola Šubić Zrinski
Nikola Šubic Zrinski
Nikola Šubić Zrinski , was a Croatian nobleman and general in service of Habsburg Monarchy, ban of Croatia from 1542 to 1556, and member of the Zrinski noble family...
, who died fighting and won the title of "Hero of Sziget," became the first outstanding example of the epithet "bulwark of Christianity". The Frankopan family was persecuted after the Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy, where the Prince and Marquess Fran Krsto Frankopan
Fran Krsto Frankopan
Fran Krsto Frankopan was a Croatian baroque poet, nobleman and politician in the 17th century. He is remembered primarily for his involvement in the failed Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy.-Early life and poetry:...
led an uprising against Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
King Leopold I
Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
| style="float:right;" | Leopold I was a Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and King of Bohemia. A member of the Habsburg family, he was the second son of Emperor Ferdinand III and his first wife, Maria Anna of Spain. His maternal grandparents were Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria...
,to make Croatia independent. He, and his brother-in-law, Petar Zrinski, were executed in Wiener Neustadt
Wiener Neustadt
-Main sights:* The Late-Romanesque Dom, consecrated in 1279 and cathedral from 1469 to 1785. The choir and transept, in Gothic style, are from the 14th century. In the late 15th century 12 statues of the Apostles were added in the apse, while the bust of Cardinal Melchior Klesl is attributed to...
. The Fran Krsto Frankopan line died out soon thereafter, but the elder line from Trsat
Trsat
Trsat is part of the city of Rijeka, Croatia. It has a historic castle or fortress in a strategic location and several historic churches. The Croatian noble Prince Vuk Krsto Frankopan is buried in one of the churches. Trsat is a steep hill, 138 m high, rising over the gorge of the Rječina river,...
is still in existence (see below).
Notable members of the Frankopan family include
- Ivan FrankopanIvan FrankopanIvan Frankopan was a Croatian noble who ruled as Ban of Croatia from 1432 to 1436. He was one of the nine sons survived by Nicholas Frankopan.-Controversy over legacy:...
(died 1393). BanBan (title)Ban was a title used in several states in central and south-eastern Europe between the 7th century and the 20th century.-Etymology:The word ban has entered the English language probably as a borrowing from South Slavic ban, meaning "lord, master; ruler". The Slavic word is probably borrowed from...
(governor) of Croatia. - Nikola FrankopanNikola FrankopanNikola IV Frankopan was the Ban of Croatia and Dalmatia from 1426 to 1432. He was one of the first of his clan to make this name famous in Croatian history. Even before he became Banus, he owned the Island of Krk, the districts of Vinodol, Modruš, Senj, Gacka and Lika in Croatia. His properties...
(Hungarian: Miklós). Son of Ivan Frankopan. Ban of Croatia 1426-1432 - Nikola Frankopan (Hungarian: Miklós) (died 1456-1458). Son of Ban Nikola Frankopan. co-Ban of Croatia.
- Ivan VII Frankopan - ruled the Principality of KrkPrincipality of KrkThe Principality of Krk was a semi-independent principality on the Croatian-Adriatic island of Krk that existed from 1451 to 1480 during the late middle ages. Previous to the principality's foundation, Krk and the surrounding lands were ruled by several Frankopan princes...
1451–1480 - Stjepan Frankopan (Hungarian: István) (died 1481). Son of co-Ban Nikola Frankopan. Ban of Croatia.
- Christoph FrankopanChristoph FrankopanChristoph Frankopans Brinjski, Croatian: Krsto Frankopan Brinjski, Hungarian: Frangepán Kristóf, Frankapan, Frangipani was a Croatian count from the noble House of Frankopan and ban of the region of Croatia in the Hungarian Medieval Kingdom in 1527 under the reign of the King John I of Hungary.-...
(Hungarian: Kristóf) (died 1527). Grandson of Ban Stjepan Frankopan. Ban of Croatia, 1527. - Katarina ZrinskaKatarina ZrinskaCountess Ana Katarina Zrinska was a Croatian noblewoman, born into the House of Frankopan noble family. She married Count Petar Zrinski of the House of Zrinski in 1641 and later became known as Katarina Zrinska. She is remembered in Croatia as a patron of the arts, a writer and patriot...
(Hungarian: Katalin) (died 1673). Daughter of Ban Vuk Krsto FrankopanVuk Krsto FrankopanVuk Krsto Frankopan was a Croatian nobleman and soldier of the Frankopan family, father of noted poet and politician Fran Krsto Frankopan. He was born about 1588....
. Married Petar ZrinskiPetar ZrinskiPetar Zrinski was a Croatian Ban and writer. A member of the Zrinski noble family, he was noted for his role in the attempted Croatian-Hungarian rebellion of 1664-1670 which ultimately led to his execution for high treason.-Zrinski family:Petar Zrinski was born in Vrbovec, a small town near...
, Ban of Croatia. - Franjo FrankopanFranjo FrankopanCount Franjo Frankopan Cetinski , was a Croatian nobleman and Latinist.Frankopan was the son of knez Ivan Frankopan Cetinski and the member of Cetin branch of the Frankopan family. His given name was Ivan, but after joining the Franciscan order he took the name Franjo. He followed the steps of his...
. co-Ban of Croatia , 1567-1573. - Nikola IX Frankopan of Tržac (Tersacz), Ban of Croatia 1617-1622.
- Fran Krsto FrankopanFran Krsto FrankopanFran Krsto Frankopan was a Croatian baroque poet, nobleman and politician in the 17th century. He is remembered primarily for his involvement in the failed Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy.-Early life and poetry:...
(Hungarian: Ferenc Kristóf, beheaded in 1671). Promulgated the Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy, known as Wesselényi conspiracy in Hungary.
Several of the Frankopan castles remain in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, mostly around the Gorski kotar
Gorski kotar
Gorski kotar is the mountainous region in Croatia between Karlovac and Rijeka. Together with Lika and the Ogulin-Plaški valley it forms Mountainous Croatia. Because 63% of its surface is forested it is popularly called the green lungs of Croatia or Croatian Switzerland...
region and the island of Krk
Krk
Krk is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
. The castle at Stara Susica near Trsat
Trsat
Trsat is part of the city of Rijeka, Croatia. It has a historic castle or fortress in a strategic location and several historic churches. The Croatian noble Prince Vuk Krsto Frankopan is buried in one of the churches. Trsat is a steep hill, 138 m high, rising over the gorge of the Rječina river,...
incorporates structures going back to the Illyria
Illyria
In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....
n and Roman periods. The town of Bosiljevo
Bosiljevo
Bosiljevo is a village and municipality in Karlovac county, Croatia. It is located in the Gorski kotar region, on the highways A1 and A6 leading to Zagreb, Rijeka and Split.-Settlements:...
has a medieval fortified castle, renovated in the last century in the spirit of the Romanesque. The castle and park at Severin na Kupi
Severin na Kupi
Severin na Kupi is a village in Croatia. It is part of Vrbovsko in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. It is connected by the D3 highway.-References:...
were owned by the Frankopan family until the mid 17th century. Other castles or property of the Frankopans could be found in Ribnik
Ribnik
Ribnik is a village and a municipality in western Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in the western part of the Republika Srpska entity and the southern part of the Bosanska Krajina region...
, Bosiljevo
Bosiljevo
Bosiljevo is a village and municipality in Karlovac county, Croatia. It is located in the Gorski kotar region, on the highways A1 and A6 leading to Zagreb, Rijeka and Split.-Settlements:...
, Novi Vinodolski
Novi Vinodolski
Novi Vinodolski is a town on the Adriatic in Croatia, located south of Crikvenica, Selce and Bribir and north of Senj. The population of Novi is 3,988, with a total of 5,131 people in the municipality ....
, Ogulin
Ogulin
Ogulin is a town in north-western Croatia, in Karlovac County. It has a population of 8,712 , and a total municipal population of 15,054...
, Slunj
Slunj
Slunj is a town in the mountainous part of Central Croatia, located along the important North-South route to the Adriatic Sea between Karlovac and Plitvice Lakes National Park, on the meeting of the rivers Korana and Slunjčica...
, Ozalj
Ozalj
Ozalj is a town in central Croatia, located north of Karlovac and southwest of Jastrebarsko, on the Kupa river. It is close to Žumberak in the north and the border with Slovenia in the northwest, with Metlika being the closest Slovenian town.-Population:...
, Cetingrad
Cetingrad
Cetingrad is a municipality in Karlovac County, Croatia near Croatia's border with Bosnia. The population of the village itself is 351, while the total municipality population is 2,746...
, , Trsat
Trsat
Trsat is part of the city of Rijeka, Croatia. It has a historic castle or fortress in a strategic location and several historic churches. The Croatian noble Prince Vuk Krsto Frankopan is buried in one of the churches. Trsat is a steep hill, 138 m high, rising over the gorge of the Rječina river,...
, and other surrounding towns. The Frankopan castle in the town of Krk
Krk
Krk is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
is currently used for open-air performances in the summer months.
The present members of the Frankopan family lived in England until Croatia became independent in 1991 and rid itself of the communist system. Members of the present family then assisted Croatia in the independence and recognition process. They also repaired several Churches and national monuments and awarded scholarship to a number of young Croats to study in the United Kingdom and in the United States.
Recent History
The present members of the Frankopan family are Louis and Ingrid Doimi de Lupis Frankopan and their five children and ten grandchildren. In 2006 The Times published an article suggesting that the family had added Frankopan to their surname under British Civil law but later published a retraction and a clarification. The Times corrected the article, stating:"Since 2006 a judgment of the Italian courts has confirmed the genealogical entitlement and the right of all members of the Frankopan family to make use of the titles Princes Frankopan Frangipane Šubić and Counts Doimi de Lupis, even if, for political reasons, they did not always use them. The Frankopan family did not change its name under UK law as stated above."
The eldest son, Peter, Senior Fellow of Worcester College at Oxford University and Director of the University's Centre for Byzantine Studies, says that the "title (of the family) is not any claim on anything. It is just a reflection of the age of the family".. He says that his family split from other branches of the Frankopan family in the 14th century. Doimo III Frangipani or Frankopan, (+ 1348), Count of Veglia, married Elisabetta Subich, daughter of Jakab, Count of Bribir (+ post 1347); see
The family has now major investments in Croatia. In 1991, Prince Louis Frankopan and his wife Ingrid were appointed official spokespersons for the Croatian Government. Immediately after the end of the Croatian War of Independence, Louis Frankopan founded the Croatian Nobility Association, a private non-governmental organisation, but after internal disagreements, he resigned from the Association.
Louis Doimi de Lupis Frankopan read Geology at Oxford University and then took a Degree in Philosophy at London University. He also qualified as a [Barrister]], and is a member of Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
. He is a businessman and a banker and was for many years the Vice-President of a large Brazilian bank in London.
Louis Frankopan met his future wife at Oxford where they were both studying at the University. His wife, Ingrid Detter de Frankopan, is a distinguished Professor Emeritus at Stockholm University, sometime Fellow of LMH and of St. Antony's College, Oxford and sometime Advisor on International Law to HH John Paul II, professor of international law, double doctor, D.Phil. (Oxon), Jur.Dr.(Stockholm), Lic. en droit (Paris) and Dipl. Diritto Europeo (Turin), Barrister at Lincoln's Inn.
The present Frankopan family have five children, all educated at Oxford and/or Cambridge. There are two daughters, Paola and Christina, and three sons, Peter, Nicholas and Lawrence, Princes Frankopan, Counts Doimi de Lupis.
Their eldest daughter, Paola, Lady Nicholas Windsor, married to Lord Nicholas Windsor, who is son of H.R.H. the Duke and Duchess of Kent, cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. She read Classics at Cambridge University where she was a Choral Scholar and took a Diplôme d'Etudes Approfondis (M.Phil) at Paris IV, La Sorbonne in Philosophy, submitting a thesis on L'autorité de l'Etat in French. She has, as Paola Frankopan, written for The Tatler where she is a contributing editor and for Vogue USA She has published and introduction to the history of the Sanctuary of Trsat 'Trsatska Sveta Kuča', in Croatian.
Their eldest son Peter, D.Phil. (Oxon); M.Phil. (Oxon); M.A. (Cantab), studied Russian and French at Cambridge University where he was a Choral Scholar. He then read for a doctorate in History at Oxford University. He is now a historian and author of 'The First Crusade'. He is Director of Oxford University's Centre for Byzantine Research. He is University Lecturer at the Faculty of Modern Languages and Fellow of Worcester College, Oxford University. He is a Governor of Wellington College and trustee of the World Monuments Fund. Together with his wife, he founded Cambridge University's Frankopan Directorship for Gender Studies.
Their second daughter, Christina is an investment banker, . She read Economics at Cambridge University where she was a Choral Scholar. She is married to Patrick Nicholson, Head of Communications for Caritas Internationalis in the Vatican.
Their second son, Nicholas, read History, first at Oxford and then at Cambridge University and is M.A. (Oxon); M.Phil. (Cantab); MBA (Columbia). He won two gold Medals for Great Britain at the Junior European Championships in Rowing in 1992. He is now an investment banker in London.
Their youngest son, Lawrence, read History at King’s College, London and was then Visiting Scholar in History at New College, Oxford. He is now a sports agent and is the Head of Lagardère Unlimited (UK) in London.
External links
- Francois Velde. "Styles of the members of the British royal family" from the Heraldica website. First published January 2006. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
- The family site La Casata dei Lupi, (Italian language), contains photos of Lord and Lady Nicholas, their first son Albert, and members of the Lupis family. Retrieved 26 September 2009. As of 26 September 2009, this was the only source online that had the name of the second son as Leopold Ernest Augustus Guelph Windsor. This name has been confirmed in the 1st November by an official announcement sent to family members: "PAOLA AND NICHOLAS ANNOUNCE WITH JOY THE BIRTH OF THEIR SECOND SON LEOPOLD A BROTHER TO ALBERT BORN ON THE 8th OF SEPTEMBER 2009 8lb 2oz".
- Doimi de Lupis genealogy (Italian language) hosted by Società Genealogica Italiana - SGI. Retrieved 26 September 2009. The page calls Lady Nicholas Windsor "S.A.R. Lady Paola Luisa Marica Doimi de Lupis de Frankopan Subich", and her sons "S.A.R. Lord Albert (Bertie) Louis Philip Edward Windsor" and "S.A.R. Lord Leopold Ernest Augustus Guelph Windsor", instead of the fact that Lady Nicholas is not a HRH (English for S.A.R) in the United Kingdom. Her husband's great-grandfather George V of the United KingdomGeorge V of the United KingdomGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
and his sons abandoned the use of all German titles, including the titles of Duke/ Duchess of Saxony in 1917. Her husband and her sons are direct descendants of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha family and the Kings of England. The site reflects the Italian protocol and customs, according to the "Cerimoniale della Presidenza della Repubblica Italiana", stating that all the members of a sovereign and reigning families that come to visit Italy, are addressed as "Le Loro Altezze Reali", (LLAARR) (English TRH) or "Sua Altezza Reale" "SAR" (en.: HRH) etc. (check the official site of "Ministero degli affari Esteri - Cerimoniale diplomatico).