Magda Lupescu
Magda Lupescu ( born September 15, 1896 in Iaşi as Elena Lupescu, † June 29, 1977 in Estoril, Portugal) was the third, morganatic wife of the Romanian king Charles II
Childhood and origins
She was born the daughter of Nicolae Lupescu, a pharmacist, and his wife Elise Falk, an Austrian Jew who converted to Catholicism before her marriage. Probably her father was originally Jew who converted to the Orthodox faith and adopted the name Lupescu ( his original name should be " Wolf" was; Rumanian lupu = Wolf. ). She had a younger brother Constantin Lupescu Schloim.
Elena was brought up from childhood as a Catholic. She was educated at the " Diaconesele ", a Bucharest primary school, which was led by Bavarian nuns, at that time one of the best girls schools in the country.
My family first moved to Sulina, a town on the Danube, where her father opened a pharmacy in 1912 they moved back to Jassy ( Iasi ). On February 17, 1919 married Elena Ion Tâmpeanu, a Romanian officer. Elena had allegedly some extramarital affairs and the marriage ended in divorce very soon (about 1924). Elena took after the divorce back to her birth name Lupescu.
In some sources it is claimed that Elena was of royal descent, possibly even an illegitimate daughter of King Charles I, thus a cousin of Charles II was. There are three arguments for this: 1) her father owned a pharmacy, and that was for Jews, according to Romanian law at that time prohibited, 2) they attended one of the best schools and 3 ) married an officer and it was not allowed officers, persons of Jewish to marry descent. There are, however, counter-arguments: Half of the population of Jassy was Jewish, and by corruption laws could be circumvented. As a German -speaking Catholic school choice was not so unusual. In addition, she and her parents at the time of her marriage no longer Jewish.
Royal mistress
In March 1923, it should have come to the first meeting between Elena Lupescu and the then Crown Prince Carol. At this time, Carol has been married befitting with Elena of Greece. For his many affairs known Carol made from the relationship with Elena Lupescu no secret. Once before, during the war, he entered into a morganatic marriage, which was later canceled. 1925 he joined with Elena Lupescu in Milan in public together on, and the pictures went through all the newspapers. In 1926, he was therefore excluded from the succession. A year later, Carol's father died, King Ferdinand and Carol's son Michael followed him on the throne. In 1928 the marriage was dissolved by Elena of Greece. Carol went with Elena Lupescu in exile, but returned back in 1930 and was appointed with the promise to separate from Elena king. Carol parted not Elena, but she participated in any public appearance at his side and lived in a villa outside of Bucharest.
Second exile
1940 Carol had to go into exile again and release the throne for his son, Elena followed him, first to Spain, then to Portugal, Mexico and Brazil. On 3 July 1947 the couple finally married in a hotel room in Rio de Janeiro. They took the name Princess of Romania. The couple settled in Estoril in Portugal to last. In 1953 her husband died, she survived him by 24 years and was buried next to him in the São Vicente de Fora monastery. In 2003 the remains were transferred to Bucharest.