Mariya Edinburgskaya

Maria Alexandra Victoria of Edinburgh (eng. Marie Alexandra Victoria of Edinburgh), married and widowed, was known as Mary of Romania (rum. Maria a României; October 29, 1875, Eastwell Park - July 18, 1938, Pelisor Castle) - British princess; daughter of Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna. By father - the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, by mother - Emperor Alexander II. Married - the last Queen of Romania.

Maria spent her childhood and youth in Malta, in Kent and Coburg. Having refused the offer of her cousin, the future King George V, in 1892 she was chosen as the future wife of the Crown Prince of Romania Ferdinand - the nephew of the childless King Carol I. After the wedding, which took place in 1893, and until 1914, when Mary's husband became king , she bore the title of Crown Princess of Romania. As the crown princess, Maria was very popular among the people, had a great influence on her weak-willed spouse and controlled almost all of his actions.

After the outbreak of the First World War, Maria forced Ferdinand to join the Entente and declare war on Germany, which he eventually did in 1916, having already become king. Soon after Romania entered the war, Bucharest was occupied by the Central Powers, and Maria, her husband and children, were forced to take refuge in Moldavia. There she served as a nurse in military hospitals, caring for the wounded and sick with cholera soldiers. On December 1, 1918, the province of Transylvania, following Bessarabia and Bukovina, united with the Old Kingdom. Maria, now Queen of Greater Romania, participated in the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, which saw the international recognition of the enlarged Romania. which reflected their status as queen and king of the united state.

As queen, Maria was popular both in Romania itself and abroad. In 1926, Maria and her two children made a diplomatic trip to the United States. They were enthusiastically received by the people and visited several cities before returning to Romania. On her return, the queen found that her husband Ferdinand was seriously ill; he died a few months later. Having become queen dowager, Maria refused to participate in the regency council with her minor grandson Michael I, but she did not leave politics. In the 1930s, Maria's eldest son, Karol, who had previously renounced his rights to the throne, deposed his son and usurped the throne, becoming King Karol II. Karol removed his mother from the political scene and tried with all his might to crush her popularity, as a result of which Maria left Bucharest and spent the rest of her life in her two residences. In 1937, the former queen fell ill with cirrhosis and died the following year.

After Romania turned into a Socialist Republic, the monarchy began to be mercilessly criticized by communist officials. Several biographies of the royal family began to describe Mary as either a drunkard or a promiscuous woman, referring to her alleged multiple liaisons and orgies she allegedly organized before and during the war. In the years leading up to the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Maria's popularity rose again. She is primarily remembered for her work as a nurse, but is also known for her extensive literary work, including her critically acclaimed autobiography.