Princess Angela of Liechtenstein ( es, Ángela, born Angela Gisela Brown; February 3, 1958) is a Panamanian-American fashion designer and member of the Liechtenstein princely family.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' XVI. "Liechtenstein". C.A. Starke Verlag, 2001, pp. 52-54. . Born in

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

and raised in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, Angela became the first woman of primarily African descent to marry into a reigning European dynasty.de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal. Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. ''Le Petit Gotha''. Nouvelle Imprimerie Laballery, Paris 2002, pp. 632-634, 654-655 (French) She married

Prince Maximilian of Liechtenstein Prince Maximilian Nikolaus Maria of Liechtenstein (born 16 May 1969), known professionally as Max von Liechtenstein, is a member of the Liechtenstein princely family and businessman. He is the second son of Prince Hans-Adam II and Princess Ma ...

in January 2000 and the couple have a son, Prince Alfons, who is sixth in the

line of succession to the Liechtensteiner throne Succession to the Liechtensteiner throne is governed by the house laws of the Princely Family of Liechtenstein, which stipulate agnatic primogeniture. In 2004, the head of state, Hans-Adam II, publicly responded to criticism from a committee of ...

Early life and education

Angela Gisela Brown was born on February 3, 1958, in

Bocas Town, Bocas del Toro Bocas del Toro (), also known colloquially as Bocas Town, is the capital of the Panamanian province of Bocas del Toro and the district of Bocas del Toro. It is a town and a tourist resort located on the southern tip of Colón Island in the Boc ...

, Panama, to businessman Javier Francisco Brown and homemaker Silvia Maritza Burke. The family moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, United States, when Angela was five years old. After finishing high school, Angela studied fashion at

Parsons School of Design Parsons School of Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is a private art and design college located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhatt ...

, where she received the

Oscar de la Renta Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo (22 July 1932 – 20 October 2014), known professionally as Oscar de la Renta, was a Dominican fashion designer. Born in Santo Domingo, he was trained by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Antonio del Castillo. De la Renta ...

Gold Thimble Award and graduated in 1980. She was a stylist for three years before partnered with a firm in Hong Kong to create her own fashion label named "A. Brown". She became a creative director for the fashion brand Adrienne Vittadini, an American fashion house with a flagship in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

at the time, until September 1999.

Marriage

Angela met

, the second son of

Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein Hans-Adam II (Johannes Adam Ferdinand Alois Josef Maria Marco d'Aviano Pius; born 14 February 1945) is the reigning Prince of Liechtenstein, since 1989. He is the son of Prince Franz Joseph II and his wife, Countess Georgina von Wilczek. He al ...

, at a private party in New York in 1997. In 1999, the Principality of Liechtenstein's Information Bureau announced the forthcoming nuptials of Prince Maximilian to Angela Brown. Angela married Prince Maximilian civilly on January 21, 2000, in

Vaduz Vaduz ( or , High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' Hrsg. ...

, Liechtenstein, and religiously on January 29, 2000, at 11:00 am, at the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in

, wearing a dress that she designed herself and Kinsky tiara, an heirloom kept in the

House of Liechtenstein The House of Liechtenstein, from which the principality takes its name, is the family which reigns by hereditary right over the principality of Liechtenstein. Only dynastic members of the family are eligible to inherit the throne. The dynasty's m ...

since 1870. The marriage brought a person of

Afro-Panamanian Afro-Panamanians are Panamanians of African descent. The Afro-Panamanian population can be mainly broken into one of two categories "Afro-Colonials", Afro-Panamanians descended from slaves brought to Panama during the colonial period, and "Afro-A ...

ancestry into one of the remaining reigning families of Europe. The groom obtained prior consent and full support of the sovereign, who also attended the wedding. She is the first African descent woman to ever marry into a reigning European dynasty. While some members of the princely house were said to be shocked and to consider the interracial marriage and the eleven years age gap (with Angela being older than Prince Maximilian) "the end of an era", others were said to have expressed support. Prince Maximilian and Princess Angela have a son: * Prince Alfons Constantin Maria of Liechtenstein, Count of Rietberg (born on May 18, 2001, in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England). Since her marriage, Princess Angela participates, sometimes with her son, in ceremonial events in the principality. In 2006, Angela and her husband attended the wedding of Countess Elisabeth

d'Udekem d'Acoz The House d'Udekem () is the name of a noble family that belongs to the nobility of Belgium since 1816. History The origin of the Udekem family dates back to the Late Middle Ages, with the earliest member recorded as dying in 1472. In the 1 ...

(sister of

Queen Mathilde of Belgium Mathilde (born ''Jonkvrouw'' Mathilde Marie Christine Ghislaine d'Udekem d'Acoz ; 20 January 1973) is Queen of the Belgians as the wife of King Philippe. She is the first native-born Belgian queen. She has founded and assisted charities to ...

) and Margrave Alfonso Pallavicini. In 2015, Princess Angela gave an interview about Panama tourism. She and her family also spent time in Pedasí, Panama.

Titles and styles

Angela became a princess of Liechtenstein and Countess of Rietberg upon her marriage to Prince Maximilian, entitled to the style of Serene Highness. She also bears the coat of arms of the princely house.

References and notes

External links

Official website of the Princely House of Liechtenstein
{{DEFAULTSORT:Angela of Liechtenstein, Princess 1968 births Living people People from Bocas del Toro Province Panamanian emigrants to the United States Afro-Panamanian Liechtenstein Roman Catholics Liechtenstein princesses Princesses by marriage Liechtenstein people of Panamanian descent Parsons School of Design alumni

Early life and education

Marriage

Titles and styles

See also

References and notes

External links