Helen of Greece and Denmark
Elena of Greece and Denmark (1896-1982) | |
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Queen Mother of Romania | |
Spouse | Carol II of Romania |
Issue | Michael I |
House | House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg |
Father | Constantine I of Greece |
Mother | Sophia of Prussia |
Princess Elena (Helen) of Greece and Denmark was born on May 2, 1896 in Athens, the third child of King Constantine I of Greece and of his wife, Princess Sophia of Prussia.
Helen had three brothers each of whom reigned as kings of Greece - George II, Alexander, and Paul - and two sisters, Irene and Katherine.
On March 10, 1921 Helen married Crown Prince Carol of Romania, at Athens. Seven and a half months later their only child was born, Michael, King of Romania. Palace officials announced that Michael was born premature; the fact that he weighed nine pounds at birth fueled speculation that Helen had become pregnant before the wedding. Helen and Carol were divorced in 1928.
For her efforts as Queen Mother of Romania to rescue Romanian Jews during World War II, she was awarded the status of Righteous Among the Nations. [1]
Helen died at the age of 86 on November 28, 1982 in Lausanne, Switzerland where she had established her residence after exile.
References
- ^ Martin Gilbert, The Righteous: The Unsung Heroes of the Holocaust (Owl Books, 2003), 240. ISBN 0805062610.
House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen House of Romania |
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Carol I |
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Ferdinand I |
Carol II |
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Michael I |
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Margareta, Custodian of the Crown of Romania |
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Styles of Queen Elena (as consort) | |
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Reference style | Her Majesty |
Spoken style | Your Majesty |
Alternative style | Ma'am |
- Greek Orthodox Christians
- Danish princesses
- Greek princesses
- Greek Romanians
- Holocaust in Romania
- House of Glücksburg
- People from Athens
- Queens consort
- Righteous Among the Nations
- Romanian Orthodox Christians
- Romanian people of World War II
- Romanian royal consorts
- 1896 births
- 1982 deaths
- Romanian people stubs
- European royalty stubs