Society 361 / 2012

Life & Style
Interview
A Romanian royal pays tribute
to the son of an Emperor
In an interview with SOCIETY, Prince Paul of Romania and his
wife Princess Lia of Romania talk about Otto von Habsburg’s
funeral, his devotion to the idea of a united Europe, the situation
in Romania and their son Carol Ferdinand.
Interview: Society
You came last year to
Austria in order to attend
Otto von Habsburg’s
funeral. What
were your expectations
and how did you experience
the funeral?
Prince Paul: We hoped that it would
be a beautiful day without rain. I think it
was a nice tribute to him, and with such
beautiful weather people were glad to
walk in the street and pay their last respects
to one of Europe’s titans.
Princess Lia: I think it was beautifully
organized so people could show respect
and admiration for such a great European.
Anyone with roots in Central or Eastern
Europe must concede that Archduke
Otto was one of the champions of getting
Eastern Europe into the European Union.
How well did you know Otto von
Habsburg?
Prince Paul: I had the pleasure to
get to know him 35 years ago in Paris. I
remember it very well. It was our first
big meeting concerning Europe, and we
talked about three hours only about European
affairs. He was to become a Member
of the European Parliament in 1979.
It impressed me how much he wanted
the European institutions to succeed. He
was talking very strongly about a united
Europe. Afterwards, we met several times
here and there over the years – in Brussels,
at the European Parliament or in Munich.
What made him so special in your
opinion?
Prince Paul: I think he was quite admired
in royal circles because he was one
of the first aristocrats to push the idea of
a united Europe. At the time of the Romanian
Revolution I talked to him about
Princess Lia, Archduchess
Francesca, Prince Paul
the problems of Romania and about the
possibility of Romania eventually joining
the EU. Of course he was very keen about
all countries behind the “Iron Curtain” in
becoming part of the EU. I think he was a
great man, he was living history. He was
indeed a visionary whose visions became
a reality and remain today as part of his
legacy. I am happy that Romania finally
got into the European Union, we needed
the membership therein. I believe that
you have to sustain each other. If one falls
the others can fall; just like we are seeing
now with the example of Greece.
When was the last time you met
him?
Prince Paul: Seven or eight years ago.
The last time I talked to him seriously
was twenty years ago at the time of the
Romanian Revolution. We talked about
the things that could happen. In spite of
the fact that we didn’t meet in eight years
there was a lot of correspondence. Archduke
Otto always answered his mail very
quickly. He did not use e-mail but always
answered with letters, sometimes they
were even handwritten.
Would you say that he didn’t want
to become a monarch?
Prince Paul: I never heard that he wanted
to be Emperor. He wanted to do things
for Austria and for Europe in general. I’m
however sure that he was not against the
political notion of monarchy. He could not
have been. Nor are we against monarchies.
But we respect the Romanian republic and
simultaneously we think that the role of
my ancestors was very important in forming
the country of today. Had he become
emperor or king, he probably would have
been most unhappy, for he would have
been limited to a ceremonial role, without
the possibility of leaving his mark in
politics in an overt manner.
122 | Society 1_2012