Ghica family
She was born in Bucharest in 1828 as a member of the Ghica family and was the daughter of Mihai Ghica and the niece of the reigning Prince of Wallachia Grigore IV Ghica. She received a thorough education that was continued abroad – first in Dresden, then in Vienna, then in Venice, and finally in Berlin where she gave a sample of her mastery of Ancient Greek to Alexander Von Humboldt.