Greek Royalty and Queen Mother of Romania. Her Royal Highness Princess Helen of Greece and Denmark was the third child and eldest daughter of Crown Prince Constantine of Greece, later to reign as King Constantine I, and his wife, the former Princess Sophia of Prussia, daughter of German Emperor Frederick III and his wife, Victoria, Princess Royal, the eldest child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. She was married on March 10, 1921 in Athens, Greece to her second cousin, Crown Prince Carol of Romania, who was later to reign as King Carol II, the eldest son of King Ferdinand of Romania and his Queen Consort, Marie, daughter of Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. The bride and groom were both great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria. The groom had led and would continue to lead a controversial life, ultimately resulting in their divorce in 1928, but not before the birth on October 25, 1921 of a son and heir, the future King Michael. Carol renounced his rights to the Romanian throne on December 28, 1925, due in part to his ongoing relationship with Magda Lupescu, and left the country for Paris. Their five-year-old son, Michael, became king of Romania on July 20, 1927 upon the death of his grandfather, King Ferdinand. Michael's reign would fall into two blocks of time separated by the reign of his father, Carol II, who returned to Romania from exile and reigned from June 8, 1930 until his forced abdication on September 6, 1940. Helen would spend most of Carol II's reign exiled in Italy. She would return to Romania during the second reign of her son and was granted the title "Queen Mother of Romania" with the style "Her Majesty" on September 8, 1940. King Michael was forced to abdicate on December 30, 1947 and Helen went into exile, eventually settling in Lausanne, Switzerland. The Queen Mother was known for her efforts to save Romanian Jews from Nazi Forces during World War II, which led to the State of Israel awarding her the title of Righteous Among the Nations in 1993. She was originally buried in the Cimetière du Bois-de-Vaux in Lausanne, Switzerland, but she was disinterred and reburied at the burial site of the Romanian royal family, the New Archbishopric and Royal Cathedral on the grounds of the Mănăstirea Curtea de Argeș in Romania, on October 19, 2019.
Greek Royalty and Queen Mother of Romania. Her Royal Highness Princess Helen of Greece and Denmark was the third child and eldest daughter of Crown Prince Constantine of Greece, later to reign as King Constantine I, and his wife, the former Princess Sophia of Prussia, daughter of German Emperor Frederick III and his wife, Victoria, Princess Royal, the eldest child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. She was married on March 10, 1921 in Athens, Greece to her second cousin, Crown Prince Carol of Romania, who was later to reign as King Carol II, the eldest son of King Ferdinand of Romania and his Queen Consort, Marie, daughter of Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. The bride and groom were both great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria. The groom had led and would continue to lead a controversial life, ultimately resulting in their divorce in 1928, but not before the birth on October 25, 1921 of a son and heir, the future King Michael. Carol renounced his rights to the Romanian throne on December 28, 1925, due in part to his ongoing relationship with Magda Lupescu, and left the country for Paris. Their five-year-old son, Michael, became king of Romania on July 20, 1927 upon the death of his grandfather, King Ferdinand. Michael's reign would fall into two blocks of time separated by the reign of his father, Carol II, who returned to Romania from exile and reigned from June 8, 1930 until his forced abdication on September 6, 1940. Helen would spend most of Carol II's reign exiled in Italy. She would return to Romania during the second reign of her son and was granted the title "Queen Mother of Romania" with the style "Her Majesty" on September 8, 1940. King Michael was forced to abdicate on December 30, 1947 and Helen went into exile, eventually settling in Lausanne, Switzerland. The Queen Mother was known for her efforts to save Romanian Jews from Nazi Forces during World War II, which led to the State of Israel awarding her the title of Righteous Among the Nations in 1993. She was originally buried in the Cimetière du Bois-de-Vaux in Lausanne, Switzerland, but she was disinterred and reburied at the burial site of the Romanian royal family, the New Archbishopric and Royal Cathedral on the grounds of the Mănăstirea Curtea de Argeș in Romania, on October 19, 2019.
Bio by: CMWJR
Gravesite Details
The Queen Mother of Romania was originally buried in the Cimetière du Bois-de-Vaux in Lausanne, Switzerland, but she was disinterred and reburied at the Mănăstirea Curtea de Argeș on October 19, 2019.
Family Members
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