Romania has marked Royalty Day
May 10th, first celebration of Royalty Day in Romania without King Mihai.
Roxana Vasile, 11.05.2018, 13:55
May 10th used to be Romania’s National Day before the coming to power of the communist regime. The communists banned the celebration of this day as it was tightly connected to the history of the Romanian monarchy. On May 10th 1866, prince Carol of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen became the ruler of the United Romanian Principalities. A new Constitution was issued in which the name of Romania was used for the first time in official documents and the new ruler set out to reform and modernize the young Romanian state.
11 years later, on May 10th 1877, Romania proclaimed its independence from the Ottoman Empire and after four more years, also on May 10th, in 1881, the country officially became a kingdom with Carol 1st crowned king of Romania. The king chose the same day for the crowning ceremony in order to celebrate four years since the country had obtained its independence and 15 years of his rule. May 10th used to be Romania’s national day until 1947 when the communists came to power and forced the abdication of King Mihai 1st, Romania’s fourth and last Sovereign.
A national holiday nowadays thanks to its triple significance, May 10th is also celebrated by the Royal family and by Romanians through a series of events including a military ceremony, a marathon, an exhibition and a Royal Concert given by the National Radio Orchestra. The peak of these festivities was the traditional Garden Party at the Elisabeta Palace, the Bucharest residence of the royal family.
According to tradition, three of king Mihai’s five daughters, including crown custodian Princess Margareta, have welcomed from the balcony several hundred of guests coming from all over Romania as well as from the neighboring Romanian-speaking Republic of Moldova. The princesses addressed the people gathered in the garden where a huge portrait of their father had been posted.
Tens of doves were released and over 1,000 balloons went up into the sky. A Romanian Army brass band performed on the occasion but the party was shadowed by the remembrance of King Mihai’s death at the age of 96 on December 5th. The king was buried on December 16th in Curtea de Arges, southern Romania, where the other Romanian sovereigns are also buried. “This is the first May 10th without King Mihai but we must go on. For his legacy, for our country. We are very fine and, as I’ve already told you, we are not alone” — Her Majesty Margareta, Custodian of the Romanian Crown said.
