Princess Margherita, Archduchess of Austria-Este

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Happy Birthday to Princess Margherita, the Dowager Archduchess of Austria-Este, who turns 89 today! The eldest of the two daughters of Prince Amedeo of Savoy-Aosta, the 3rd Duke of Aosta and Princess Anne of Orléans, she spent a period of her childhood in Ethiopia, as her father was the Italian Viceroy of Italian East Africa and the Commander of the Italian forces in the East African Campaign of World War II, until his death in an Allied Prisoner-of-War camp in 1942, highly regarded by both Allied and Axis leaders. After the Allied Armistice with Italy, the Dowager Duchess of Aosta, along with her sister-in-law, the Princess Irene, and their children were interned by the Nazis in Austria for almost a year until being liberated in May 1945.  After the Italian Monarchy was abolished in 1946, the family went into exile, and were only allowed to return in 1948. In 1953, Princess Margherita married Archduke Robert of Austria, the Archduke of Austria-Este, second son of Emperor Karl and Empress Zita of Austria. The couple have five children, including Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este, and resided in Paris where the Archduke was a bank clerk, and remained happily married until his death in 1996. The Dowager Archduchess is usually seen at family events in Belgium and Italy, and will probably be seen at the upcoming wedding of her granddaughter, Countess Olympia von und zu Arco-Zinneberg and Prince Jean-Christophe Napoleon. I wish HRH a very Happy Birthday and Many Happy Returns!

Click HERE to learn about her Savoy-Aosta Tiara!

3 thoughts on “Princess Margherita, Archduchess of Austria-Este

  1. Oh! I have seen photos of Princess Astrid, the current Archduchess, in the gorgeous emerald necklace the Dowager Archduchess is wearing in the middle photo. It’s smashing! Happy Birthday to the Dowager Archduchess!

    1. The necklace is the subject of a future article! I debated posting it today, but I’ve decided it will be more suitable in the article to mark her 80th Birthday next year! However, her small wedding tiara will be featured on Princess Astrid’s Birthday!

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