Queen Elena’s life, the mother of King Michael I of Romania, was like a reversed Cinderella story. A descendant of Empress Catherine the Great, Queen Victoria, and James I of England, granddaughter of emperors and daughter of kings, Elena seemed destined for a serene existence as a sovereign. She did indeed become a queen — but never a reigning one.

A queen born of royal lineage

Her father, husband, son, and brother were each forced, in turn, to renounce their thrones. She endured humiliations that few women experience, and even fewer queens.

Queen Elena of Romania, wife of King Carol II, was undoubtedly the most unhappy of Romania’s queens. Carol abandoned her for his mistress, Elena Lupescu, took her child away, and drove her into exile. She returned to Romania only after her son Michael ascended the throne.

Elena of Greece and Denmark was born in 1896, the daughter of King Constantine I of Greece and Queen Sophia of Prussia. In July 1917, when she was only twenty-one, King Constantine was forced to abdicate. Along with her family, Elena went into exile in Switzerland.

It was there that she met Prince Carol of Romania, already known throughout Europe for his tempestuous love affair with Zizi Lambrino. The two met during the preparations for the wedding between Carol’s sister, Princess Elisabeth of Romania, and Elena’s brother, Crown Prince George of Greece. Carol asked the abdicated King Constantine for Elena’s hand in marriage, and thus two royal weddings were arranged between the Greek and Romanian royal houses.

Later, in her memoirs, Elena confessed that her mother had warned her against marrying Carol: “Had I listened to my mother, I would have been spared many years of unhappiness.” Nonetheless, Princess Elena married Crown Prince Carol in Athens on March 10, 1921. The marriage, however, proved disastrous. They divorced on June 21, 1928.

Between 1940 and 1947, she bore the title of Queen Mother of Romania. She died on November 28, 1982, in Lausanne, Switzerland.

A destiny marked by abdications and exile

The young princess from Greece and Denmark, whose ancestry embodied centuries of European royalty, would come to play a luminous role in the dark history of twentieth-century Romania. 

Posterity has come to recognize how much Queen Mother Elena meant to her country, her affection, moral strength, and refined education were decisive in shaping her son Michael as a man and as a king during a time of chaos, cruelty, and alienation.

Queen Elena’s deep faith, from which she drew strength, and her wisdom were legendary. She was a discreet but guiding presence for her family, not because she imposed advice, but because she possessed the rare ability to learn from her own mistakes and grow through them. 

Despite the immense suffering she endured, she never allowed bitterness to dominate her spirit, a quality her son inherited.

Her influence on King Michael was profound. She helped him maintain clarity and dignity in the most trying times, becoming his moral compass and emotional refuge. The Romanian Royal House later described her as “a source of strength, tact, and unwavering calm, whose wisdom and kindness were among the greatest treasures King Michael and the country possessed.”

The courage of a mother and the dignity of a queen

Humor was another of Queen Elena’s remarkable traits — one of her secret weapons, shared with her son. As Queen Mother of Romania, she remained courageous even through repeated exiles that would have broken a less determined spirit. During the Second World War, she showed exceptional moral strength, defending what was right and good despite the immense dangers around her.

Her actions during the Holocaust, when she intervened to help Jews persecuted by the Antonescu regime, demonstrated her compassion and bravery. For her efforts, the Yad Vashem Memorial in Jerusalem posthumously awarded her the title of “Righteous Among the Nations.”

A life of love, loss, and perseverance

When Queen Elena arrived in Romania in October 1920, she entered a world of contrasts and turmoil. Her marriage to Crown Prince Carol brought moments of joy but also deep humiliation. While she rejoiced at the birth of her son, the future King Michael, she soon had to endure her husband’s numerous scandals and the heartbreak of his abdication and exile in France.

After King Ferdinand’s death, their six-year-old son was proclaimed King Michael I. Elena remained in Romania as Queen Mother, showing great diplomacy and modesty, earning Queen Marie’s admiration and affection. She shielded her son from political intrigues and personal pain, trying to offer him as normal a childhood as possible despite the absence of his father.

Carol’s return to the throne in 1930 marked the beginning of a long period of humiliation and injustice for Elena. In 1932, she was forced into exile in Florence, where she bought a beautiful residence she named Villa Sparta, decorating it with exquisite taste.

Villa Sparta became her sanctuary — a place of peace where her family often gathered, including her beloved son Michael, who was allowed to visit only a few weeks a year. For him, those brief visits were moments of pure joy.

The years of war and the final exile

In 1940, at General Ion Antonescu’s initiative, Queen Mother Elena returned to Romania to stand beside her son, who once again needed her guidance and strength. From 1940 until January 3, 1948, she lived in Romania, supporting King Michael through the hardships of war and the political chaos that followed.

After 1945, the Queen faced one of the most difficult times of her life. With the Soviet occupation and the collapse of the monarchy looming, she remained an irreplaceable moral support for her young son, who was only nineteen. Calm, dignified, and unshaken, she stood by him until the end — through the forced abdication of December 30, 1947.

In 1948, Queen Elena began the last and longest exile of her life. She returned to Villa Sparta in Florence, where she continued to care for her family and to serve as a moral and spiritual mentor to her granddaughter, Princess Margareta.

For Queen Anne and for Princesses Margareta, Elena, Irina, Sofia, and Maria, the Queen Mother and her home in Florence remained a cherished symbol of strength, grace, and continuity.

Legacy and memory

Queen Mother Elena of Romania remains an enduring symbol of the Royal Family and a European model of dignity. Her noble origin was matched only by the moral values and principles she upheld throughout her life — faith, compassion, and integrity.

Uniquely in European history, she was the granddaughter of four kings, daughter of two kings, sister of three kings, wife of a king, and mother of a king. Few women in history have carried such royal lineage with such humility and grace.

Today, both Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest and Săvârșin Castle bear her imprint — not only in their architecture but in the atmosphere of warmth and refinement she brought to them. Of the two, Săvârșin Castle remains her most personal creation, a reflection of her taste, spirit, and love for beauty.

Queen Elena’s story is that of a woman who endured betrayal, exile, and loss, yet never surrendered her faith or dignity. Her courage, wisdom, and compassion continue to inspire those who look beyond crowns and thrones to find the true majesty of the human spirit.

We also recommend: The forbidden love between King Carol II and Elena Lupescu. “Duduia” won him over with a simple candy