The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-06-30
Mad Ron1anceS
of King Carol
Amaze Europe
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Continued from Page II
and ran away to live in Paris with
her.
Now, his four-year moral holiday
over and his tempestuous career
steadied by the weight Of more ma
ture years. Carol has come back to
Rumania to attempt to make his
peace with his wife and recover the
throne from his 6-year-old son, who
assembled to it upon the death Of
King Ferdinand during Carols alb
sence.
TINE gay and reckless young
i Carol is product of his en-
vironment and inheritance. He
grew up surrounded by the deep po-
litical conspiracies and romantic in
trigue of the Balkans, where mar
riages were made for political rea-
sons and love went roaming any
where.
At IS, he was carrying on a 40
lent romance with a woman who
was 80 and royalty was laugh
ing in an amused way. A little
older, he began to play" the cho-
rus girls of the National theater at
Bucharest, and il seems that the
theater manager won royal favor by
aiding him.
Such was the atmosphere in which
he grew up.
90 it had been with his father,
~ old King Ferdinand who died
of a broken heart after Carol had
renowned the throne and run
away to Paris to live with Madame
Lupescu.
For old King Ferdinand, back in
his youthful days, had a somewhat
similar love affair Of his own.
The young Prince Ferdinand
fell madly in love with one of the
old queens ladies-in- waiting. Helene
Vacaresco her name was and she
was as beautiful and intelligent as
any woman in Rumania-but, alas,
the daughter of a commoner.
Nevertheless, the sentimental old
Queen Elizabeth encouraged the
romance as a poetess, she
reasoned that true love should have
its way, royal considerations to the
contrary Notwithstanding.
rrI-a IL o,,oava vouo hnr consent
to a morganatic marriage, but
when the hard-boiled old King
Carol heard of the plan he gave
vent to an outburst that shook
the palace rafters. If Prince Fer
dinand married commoner, he
stormed, it would cost him the
throne.
Ferdinand, finding the lure of the
throne more compelling than a
charming face, chose the former
and the marriage plans collapsed.
Years later his son, the pres
ent Carol, made an exactly oppo-
site decision when he chose to elope
with Madame Lurescu and let the
throne go to hang.
FERDINAND was only an indit-
Il ferent bridegroom when the
beautiful Princess Marie, the To-
year-old granddaughter Of Queen
Victoria of England, was brought to
Rumania in 1898 to marry him at
the age of 80.
But beautiful, vivacious, and in
telligent Marie made good queen
for the stolid King Ferdinand and
soon eclipsed him to a point where
she became the real head of the
royal household and famous as
"the mother-in-law of the Balkan S.
She bore him six children, five
of whom are still living. So well
has she succeeded in the royal mar
riage market, that she has married
one of her three daughters to the
king of Jugoslavia, another to a
prince of Greece and is said to have
designs on the prince of Wales, the
greatest catch" of all, for her third
and youngest girl.
queen Mares close friendship
with Prince Batu Stirbey, a power
full and equally mysterious figure at
the royal court until his Danish
ment by King Carol the other day,
caused much comment in Rumania
for years.
1t is reported that Carol, then
crown prince, once struck Stirbey in
the face. When Carol returned as
king one of his first acts was to
have the private telephone line be-
tween the queens apartments and
Stirbey'S palace ripped out.
Next: Zizi Lambrino prince
renOunceS his throne for a pretty
commoner, and then reconsiders and
deserts his wife and baby.