Discussions about the Imperial Family and European Royalty > Balkan Royal Families

Tzar Boris III of Bulgaria and his family

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popov_2000:
Two pictures of Tsaritsa Ioanna.

The first picture was taken in Madrid in 1991 at the home of Simeon II. On the picture you can see Ioanna and her son Simeon II.

The second picture was taken in Portugal in 1998 at the home of Ioanna. On the picture you can see Ioanna and then Bulgarian President Peter Stoyanov with his wife.

popov_2000:
On this web site you can see photos of "Saint Ivan of Rila" Church.

http://www.rilaeu.com/p1bgeu1.htm

Marlene:

--- Quote ---It seemed to me that Princess Giovanna had at some point converted to orthodoxy. I remember reading that during her exile in Portugal catholic royals were reluctant to meet her because of that. Need to check my sources.
--- End quote ---



Giovanna never converted.  She remained Roman Catholic but raised her children in the Orthodox church.  She had a Roman Catholic funeral.  

Marlene:

--- Quote ---Angelo Roncalli was Apostolic Nuncio to Bulgaria from 1925 to 1935. He helped arrange the wedding between Tsar Boris III and Princess Giovanna. After the Orthodox wedding in Sofia he helped Tsaritsa Ioanna, because The Vatican was angry with her. I do not know if they were angry because of a simple wedding or maybe even conversion. Angelo Roncalli was a family friend to the Bulgarian Royal family. Angelo Roncalli would also later become Pope John XXIII.
--- End quote ---



See my article, A Bride for Boris, in the June 2005 issue of Royalty Digest.   Ferdinand was exommunicated from the Catholic church because of his decision to have his eldest son, Boris rebaptised into the Orthodox church.  He had "promised" the Pope at the time of his marriage to the very Catholic Princess Marie Louise of Parma that the children of their marriage would be RC.  Marie Louise was not thrilled to say the least when this happened ... The other children were raised Catholic.

Boris and Giovanna did not suffer the same sort of wrath from the Catholic church ... Boris had paid lipservice to Rome, about the children of the marriage,  but when Marie Louise was born in 1933, she was baptised in the Orthodox church.  Boris could not be excommunicated, and Givoanna was not excommunicated.  She knew that the children had to be Orthodox.  It was never an issue for her.  But she herself retained to Catholic faith.

popov_2000:
Even if she remained Catholic, she believed equally in both the Catholic and the Orthodox religion. Like I said, Ioanna herself build an Orthodox Church in her home. The name of this Church was “Saint Ivan of Rila”. There were regular masses held by Orthodox Priests in the Church and attended by Ioanna. The Church was not Catholic and you can see the pictures from this Church on the link I posted.

Simeon II have said that his mother wanted to be buried in Bulgaria next to her husband. However, since the body of Boris III was never found Ioanna was buried in Italy.

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