Editing Michael I of Romania (section)

==Marriage==

===Engagement===
In November 1947, Michael I met a distant relative, [[Anne of Romania|Princess Anne of Bourbon-Parma]] who was visiting London for the [[wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh]].<ref name="curley">{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZOJwAAAAIAAJ&q=historical+order | title=Monarchs-in-Waiting | publisher=Dodd, Mead & Co. | author= Walter Curley | author-link= Walter Curley | year=1973 | location=Cornwall, NY | page= 77 | isbn=0-396-06840-5}}</ref> In fact, a year previously [[Helen of Greece and Denmark|Queen Helen, The Queen Mother]] had invited Anne, her mother, and brothers for a visit to [[Bucharest]], but the plan did not come off.<ref name="erhj">{{cite journal|last=Eilers-Koenig|first=Marlene|title=The Marriage of King Michael and Queen Anne of Romania|journal=European Royal History Journal|volume=11.3|issue=LXIII|pages=3–10|publisher=Arturo E. Beeche|year=2008}}</ref> Meanwhile, King Michael I had glimpsed Princess Anne in a [[newsreel]] and requested a photograph from the film footage.<ref name="erhj"/>

She did not want to accompany her parents to London for the royal wedding as she wished to avoid meeting Michael I in official surroundings. Instead, she planned to stay behind, go alone to the Paris railway station and, pretending to be a passerby in the crowd, privately observe the king as his entourage escorted him to his London-bound train.<ref name="erhj"/> However, at the last moment she was persuaded by her first cousin, [[Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg|Prince Jean, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg]], to come to London, where he planned to host a party. Upon arrival in London, she stopped by [[Claridge's]] to see her parents, and found herself being introduced unexpectedly to King Michael I. Abashed to the point of confusion, she [[salute|clicked her heels]] instead of [[curtsey]]ing, and fled in embarrassment. Charmed, the king saw her again the night of the wedding at the Luxembourg embassy ''soirée'', confided in her some of his concerns about the Communist takeover of Romania and fears for his mother's safety, and nicknamed her ''Nan''.<ref name="erhj"/> They saw each other several times thereafter on outings in London, always [[chaperone (social)|chaperoned]] by her mother or brother.

A few days later, she accepted an invitation to accompany Michael and his mother when he piloted a [[Beechcraft]] aeroplane to take his aunt [[Princess Irene, Duchess of Aosta]], back home to [[Lausanne]].<ref name="erhj"/> Sixteen days after meeting, Michael proposed to Anne while the couple were out on a drive in Lausanne. She initially declined, but later accepted after taking long walks and drives with him.<ref name=":0" /> Although Michael gave her an engagement ring a few days later, he felt obliged to refrain from a public announcement until he informed his government, despite the fact that the press besieged them in anticipation.<ref name="erhj"/>

Michael I returned to [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]], where he was told by the prime minister that a wedding announcement was not "opportune". Yet within days it was used as the government's public explanation for Michael's sudden "[[abdication]]", when in fact the king was [[deposition (politics)|deposed]] by the [[Romanian Communist Party|Communists]] on 30 December.<ref name="erhj"/> Princess Anne was unable to get further news of King Michael I until he left the country. They finally reunited in [[Davos]] on 23 January 1948.<ref name="erhj"/>

===Wedding===

As a [[House of Bourbon|Bourbon]], Anne was bound by the [[Canon law (Roman Catholic Church)|canon law]] of the [[Roman Catholic Church]], which required that she receive a [[dispensation (Catholic Church)|dispensation]] to marry a non-Catholic Christian (King Michael I was [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]]). At the time, such a dispensation was normally only given if the non-Roman Catholic partner promised to allow the children of the marriage to be raised as Roman Catholics. Michael refused to make this promise since it would have violated Romania's monarchical constitution, and would be likely to have a detrimental impact upon any possible restoration.<ref name="erhj"/> The [[Holy See]] (which handled the matter directly since King Michael I was a member of a reigning dynasty) refused to grant the dispensation unless Michael made the required promise.

[[Helen of Greece and Denmark|Helen, Queen Mother of Romania]] and her sister [[Princess Irene, Duchess of Aosta]] (an Orthodox married to a Catholic Prince) met with the fiancée's parents in Paris, where the two families resolved to take their case to the [[Vatican City|Vatican]] in person. In early March, the couple's mothers met with [[Pius XII|Pope Pius XII]] who, despite the entreaties of the Queen Mother and the fact that Anne's mother, [[Princess Margrethe of Denmark|Princess Margrethe]] pounded her fist on the table in anger, refused permission for Anne to marry King Michael I.<ref name="erhj"/>

It has been surmised that the Pope's refusal was, in part, motivated by the fact that when [[Giovanna of Italy|Princess Giovanna of Savoy]] married Anne's cousin, [[Boris III of Bulgaria|King Boris III of Bulgaria]], in 1930, the couple had undertaken to raise their future children as Roman Catholics, but had [[baptism|baptized]] them in the Orthodox faith in deference to [[Bulgaria]]'s state religion.<ref name="erhj"/> However, King Michael I declined to make a promise he could not keep politically, while Anne's mother was herself the daughter of a [[interfaith marriage|mixed marriage]] between a Catholic ([[Princess Marie of Orléans (1865–1909)|Princess Marie d'Orléans]]) and a [[Protestant]] ([[Prince Valdemar of Denmark]]), who had abided by their pre-[[ne temere]] [[compromise]] to raise their sons as Protestant and their daughter, Margrethe, as Catholic.<ref name="erhj"/>

Although under a great deal of stress,<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/08/01/queen-anne-of-romania--obituary/|title=Queen Anne of Romania – obituary|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=August 2016|access-date=2 August 2016}}</ref> the engaged couple resolved to proceed. Anne's paternal uncle, [[Xavier, Duke of Parma|Prince Xavier of Bourbon-Parma]], issued a statement objecting to any marriage conducted against the will of the Pope and the bride's family. It was he, not the [[Pontiff]], who forbade Anne's parents to attend the wedding.<ref name="erhj"/>  King Michael I's spokesman declared on 9 June that the parents had been asked and had given their consent, and that the bride's family would be represented at the [[nuptials]] by her maternal uncle, the Protestant [[Count Erik of Rosenborg|Prince Erik of Denmark]], who was to give the bride away.<ref name="erhj"/>

The wedding ceremony was held on 10 June 1948 in Athens, Greece, in the throne room of the Royal Palace;<ref name=":0" /> the ceremony was performed by [[Damaskinos of Athens|Archbishop Damaskinos]], and [[Paul of Greece|King Paul I of Greece]] served as ''[[participants in wedding ceremonies#Groomsmen|koumbaros]]''.<ref name="erhj"/> Guests at the wedding included: Michael's mother [[Helen of Greece and Denmark|The Queen Mother of Romania]], aunts [[Frederica of Hanover|Queen Frederica]], [[Princess Irene, Duchess of Aosta|The Dowager Duchess of Aosta]], [[Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark]]; cousins [[Prince Amedeo, Duke of Aosta (b. 1943)|Prince Amedeo, 5th Duke of Aosta]], [[Queen Sofía of Spain|Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark]], [[Constantine II of Greece|Crown Prince Constantine of Greece]] and [[Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark]], the three youngest ones serving as bridesmaids and pageboy; Anne's maternal uncle [[Count Erik of Rosenborg|Prince Erik of Denmark]]; [[Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia]], [[Princess Olga of Greece and Denmark]], [[Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia]], [[Prince George William of Hanover (1915–2006)|Prince George Wilhelm of Hanover]] and many other dignitaries. King Michael I's father, [[Carol II of Romania|Carol]], and his sisters, [[Maria of Yugoslavia|Maria, Queen Mother of Yugoslavia]], [[Princess Elisabeth of Romania]] (ex-Queen Consort of Greece) and [[Princess Ileana of Romania]] were notified, but not invited.{{Why|date=March 2016}}<ref name="erhj"/>

As no papal dispensation was given for the marriage, when it was celebrated according to the rites of the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]], it was deemed invalid by the Roman Catholic Church, but perfectly legal by every other authority. The couple eventually took part in a religious ceremony again, on 9 November 1966, at the Roman Catholic Church of St Charles in [[Monaco]], thus satisfying Roman Catholic canon law.<ref name="erhj"/>

===Family===
{{more citations needed|section|date=December 2017}}
Michael and [[Anne of Romania|Anne]] had five daughters, five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren:

*[[Margareta of Romania|Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania]] (b. 26 March 1949), married [[Prince Radu of Romania|Radu Duda]] in 1996.
*[[Princess Elena of Romania]] (b. 15 November 1950), married [[Robin Medforth-Mills]] on 20 July 1983 and was divorced on 28 November 1991. They have two children. She married secondly Alexander McAteer on 14 August 1998. 
**[[Nicholas Medforth-Mills|Nicholas de Roumanie Medforth-Mills]] (b. 1 April 1985), married civilly Alina-Maria Binder on 6 October 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://nicolaealromaniei.ro/en/biografie/ |title=Biography |access-date=8 November 2024 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806160115/https://nicolaealromaniei.ro/en/biografie/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Before his marriage, he had a relationship with Nicoleta Cirjan, which resulted in a daughter.<ref>{{cite web | title=Nicholas Medforth-Mills: Baby-Skandal! Vaterschaftstest überführt Ex-Prinz | website=News.de | date=2 June 2019 | url=https://www.news.de/promis/855765976/ex-prinz-nicholas-von-rumaenien-uneheliche-tochter-mit-nicoleta-cirjan-nicholas-medforth-mills-ist-laut-dna-test-vater-von-anna-iris-3/1/ | language=de | access-date=10 August 2023}}</ref>
***Iris Anna Cirjan (b. 9 February 2016)
***Maria Alexandra Medforth-Mills (b. 7 November 2020)
***Michael de Roumanie Medforth-Mills (b. 15 April 2022)
**Elisabeta-Karina de Roumanie Medforth-Mills (b. 4 January 1989); she married civilly Kurt Metcalfe on 26 April 2024. They have one son:
***Augustus Mihai de Roumanie Metcalfe (b. 23 May 2024)<ref>[https://www.romaniaregala.ro/jurnal/nou-nascut-in-familia-principesei-elena/ Romania Regala]</ref>
*Princess Irina of Romania (b. 28 February 1953), married John [[Torsten Kreuger|Kreuger]] on 4 October 1983, from whom she was divorced on 24 November 2003. They have two children. She married secondly John Wesley Walker on 10 November 2007. 
**Michael-Torsten Kreuger (b. 25 February 1984), married Tara Marie Littlefield on 26 February 2011.
***Kohen Kreuger (b. 28 March 2012)
**Angelica-Margareta Bianca Kreuger (b. 29 December 1986), married Richard Robert Knight on 25 October 2009 and divorced in November 2018.
***Courtney Bianca Knight (b. 31 May 2007)
***Diana Knight (b. 2011)
*Princess Sophie of Romania (b. 29 October 1957), married Alain Michel Biarneix on 29 August 1998 and was divorced in 2002, with a daughter.
**Elisabeta-Maria de Roumanie Biarneix (b. 15 August 1999)
*[[Princess Maria of Romania (born 1964)|Princess Maria of Romania]] (b. 13 July 1964), married Kazimierz Wiesław [[Mystkowski]]<ref>[http://www.genealogia.okiem.pl/genealogia.php?n=mystkowski Genealogy]</ref> on 16 September 1995 and divorced in December 2003.