Prince Mircea of Romania (; 3 January 19132 November 1916) was the third son and last child of
King Ferdinand of Romania and his wife,
Marie of Edinburgh
Marie (born Princess Marie Alexandra Victoria of Edinburgh; 29 October 1875 – 18 July 1938) was the last Queen of Romania as the wife of King Ferdinand I.
Marie was born into the British royal family. Her parents were Prince Alfred, ...
and a great-grandson of
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
through his mother. He died aged three in 1916.
Birth
Prince Mircea was born in
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
on , as the third son and last child of the ''Crown Prince'' Ferdinand of Romania and his wife, the ''Crown Princess'' Marie of Edinburgh. He was baptised on at the
Royal Palace (presently the National Museum of Art).
Prince Eitel Friedrich of Prussia
Prince Wilhelm Eitel Friedrich Christian Karl of Prussia (7 July 1883 – 8 December 1942) was the second son of Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany by his first wife, Princess Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg. He was born ...
arrived by train to
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
to represent his father. He was met there by
King Carol I,
Crown Prince Ferdinand and
Prince Carol. His godparents were the
German Emperor Wilhelm II,
King Carol I,
Queen Elisabeth and
Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia. His mother, the ''Crown Princess'' was absent due to a possible attack of
phlebitis
Phlebitis (or Venitis) is inflammation of a vein, usually in the legs. It most commonly occurs in superficial veins. Phlebitis often occurs in conjunction with thrombosis and is then called thrombophlebitis or superficial thrombophlebitis. Unlike ...
. During his short life, he was known to get along very well with his sister,
Princess Ileana of Romania
Princess Ileana of Romania, also known as Mother Alexandra (23 December 1908 – 21 January 1991), was the youngest daughter of King Ferdinand I of Romania and his consort, Queen Marie of Romania. She was a great-granddaughter of Queen Victor ...
. His governess was ''Mary Green''.
Death
Prince Mircea died at
Buftea on 2 November 1916 of
typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
, during a time of war, when enemy troops were approaching
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
and many battles were taking place close to the city. The royal family had to quickly bury him on the grounds of
Cotroceni Palace
Cotroceni Palace ( Romanian: ''Palatul Cotroceni'') is the official residence of the President of Romania. It is located at ''Bulevardul Geniului, nr. 1'', in Bucharest, Romania. The palace also houses the National Cotroceni Museum.
History
T ...
, before they went into retreat to
Iași, the old capital of
Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and for ...
, the unoccupied part north-eastern
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
. His death certificate was partially burnt. His original tombstone read:
In 1920, Mircea's eldest brother, the
future Carol II, named his child with
Zizi Lambrino
Joanna Marie Valentina "Zizi" Lambrino (3 October 1898 – 11 March 1953) was the first wife of the later King Carol II of Romania. They had one son, Carol, born in 1920, in Bucharest.
Life
Born in the former Byzantine, Phanariot Rangabe-Lambr ...
Mircea Grigore, in memory of Prince Mircea who had died just four years earlier. In 1941, Mircea was reburied, at the request of Princess Ileana, from Cotroceni to the little chapel of
Bran Castle
Bran Castle ( ro, Castelul Bran; german: Schloss Bran; hu, Törcsvári kastély) is a castle in Bran, southwest of Brașov. It is a national monument and landmark in Transylvania. The fortress is on the Transylvanian side of the historical bo ...
, close to the burial place of Marie's heart.
In January 2018, it was announced that the remains of
King Carol II
Carol II (4 April 1953) was King of Romania from 8 June 1930 until his forced abdication on 6 September 1940. The eldest son of Ferdinand I of Romania, Ferdinand I, he became crown prince upon the death of his grand-uncle, King Carol I of Roman ...
will be moved to the new Archdiocesan and Royal Cathedral, along with those of
Queen Mother Helen. In addition, the remains of Prince Mircea will also be moved to the new cathedral.
Etymology
''Mircea'' is an exclusively Romanian-used name that is derived from the
Old Slavic ''mir'' meaning "peace" or "world".
Prince Mircea was named after
Mircea I of Wallachia
Mircea the Elder ( ro, Mircea cel Bătrân, ; c. 1355 – 31 January 1418) was the Voivode of Wallachia from 1386 until his death in 1418. He was the son of Radu I of Wallachia and brother of Dan I of Wallachia, after whose death he inherited ...
, a medieval Romanian
Prince of Wallachia
This is a list of rulers of Wallachia, from the first mention of a medieval polity situated between the Southern Carpathians and the Danube until the union with Moldavia in 1859, which led to the creation of Romania.
Notes
Dynastic rule is hard t ...
who organised a vigorous resistance to the Turks in the 14th century, and whose troops fought side by side with the Serbians on the fatal field of
Kossovo.
Ancestry
Notes
* The most common used date is January 3, but the date on his first tomb had the Old Style date, 22 December 1912.
* It was believed at the time that his biological father was Prince
Barbu Știrbey
Prince Barbu Alexandru Știrbey (; 4 November 1872 – 24 March 1946) was 30th Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Romania in 1927. He was the son of Prince Alexandru Știrbey and his wife Princess Maria Ghika-Comănești, and grandson of another ...
and now most historians agree that this is true.
* Mary Green was also the governess of his sister, Princess Ileana and his brother, Prince Nicholas.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mircea Of Romania, Prince
1913 births
1916 deaths
Deaths from typhoid fever
Princes of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
Members of the Romanian Orthodox Church
Romanian princes
Infectious disease deaths in Romania
Royalty who died as children