Bucharest, May 16, 2023 – Official sources from Bucharest confirm the visit of King Charles III to Romania. The visit is the first of a British monarch in Romania and, at the same time, our country will be the first foreign destination of King Charles III after his lavish coronation. The visit to Romania is scheduled starting on June 2, 2023.
It seems that the visit was agreed upon at the coronation ceremony, which was attended by President Klaus Iohannis and Princess Margareta, heir to the Romanian crown. According to information, King Charles III would spend several days in Romania and have an official meeting with President Klaus Iohannis, as well as visits to the central region of Romania, Transylvania, where the most famous property in Romania is located which is held royally, at Viscri, a village that was inhabited in the past by a Saxon community.
King Charles III of Great Britain, known before his accession to the throne as Prince Charles, has close ties with Romania. Charles has visited Romania several times over the years. He showed a special interest in Romanian culture, history and landscapes. He also had numerous meetings with political leaders and members of Romanian civil society.
Prince Charles, the current Monarch, fell in love with Transylvania since his first visit to Romania, made in 1998. Since then, he has been constantly returning to our country, where it is said that he owns around 10 properties. What properties does Prince Charles have in Romania? The most famous of them is located in the Transylvanian village of Viscri, which became famous throughout Europe thanks to the Prince. The area has acquired a fantastic tourist potential, especially after the appearance, in 2011, of the documentary Wild Carpathia, in which Prince Charles is a true ambassador of Romania.
“The pastures here are truly unique at the European and world level. I have never seen anything like it, there is nothing like it left anywhere. I am a jewel in Romania’s crown. Maybe people don’t see it, but Romania is a wonderful country,” said Prince Charles in the Wild Carpathia documentary.
“Maramureș is wonderful… I also remember Bucovina. That’s magical about Romania,” said Prince Charles in an interview with Romanian media. He confessed that during his first visits to the area, he did not even find accommodation, sleeping at night in monasteries, on the floor.
What properties does Prince Charles have in Romania?
A great lover of Romanian traditions and the beauty of Transylvania, Prince Charles bought several properties in our country over time. Although he has never made any public statement related to the number of his properties, it is known that Prince Charles owns four houses in the village of Valea Zălanului in Covasna, the Apafi Mansion in the locality of Mălâncrav, Sibiu county, the already famous house in Viscri, Brașov county, and four more houses in the village of Breb in Maramureș.
He bought his first property in Romania in 2003: it is one of the houses in the village of Breb, several hundred years old, which he restored. Breb also brought three more wooden houses that he bought in the area and moved them to the Maramureş village, which became famous in Great Britain. The prince tried to preserve the authenticity of these dwellings. All the houses he rehabilitated were made with traditional materials.
Charles was involved in several philanthropic projects in Romania. In particular, he supported architectural heritage and environmental conservation projects, promoting sustainable development in Romanian rural areas. Through his foundation, King Charles supported various initiatives in Romania, with an emphasis on rural development, sustainable agriculture, preservation of traditions, and promotion of tourism.
The kinship ties between the British Monarchy and the former Royal House of Romania
Queen Elizabeth II and the former King of Romania, Michael I, had a famous great-grandmother, Queen Victoria. Thus, the former monarch of Romania is also a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, but also of Prince Consort Phillip.
The story of the special bond between our kings and those of Great Britain begins almost a century ago, thanks to an exceptional character in every way. At birth she was named Marie Alexandra Victoria, Princess of Edinburgh, but we know her, like the rest of the world, as Queen Maria of Romania.
At just 16, the game of matrimonial alliances between royal houses betrothed her to Ferdinand of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. A German prince and nephew of the Kaiser, he was also the heir to the throne of Romania. We owe three generations of our Royal House to them: Charles II, Michael I and Princess Margareta.
