The life of Michael I

Mihai I (October 25, 1921-) was the last king of the Kingdom of Romania, from July 20, 1927 to June 8, 1930 and September 1940. Reigned from September 6 to December 30, 1947. His father was Carol II and his mother was Princess Elena of Greece.

Michael I was born in 1921. He is the great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and a cousin of Elizabeth II. In 1947, when Elizabeth, still a British princess, married Prince Philip, Michael I went from Romania to London to attend the wedding; in 1981, when Prince Charles of the United Kingdom married Princess Diana, Michael I was one of the guests; in April 2011 On the 29th, he witnessed the wedding of the British royal family Prince William.

Michael I succeeded to the throne in 1927 and became the youngest monarch in Europe. In 1930, his father Carlo II returned to the country, and Michael I was reduced to the crown prince.

Under the haze of World War II, Michael I ascended the throne again in 1940. On December 30, 1947, the Romanian People's Republic was established. Michael I announced his abdication and later moved to Switzerland.

Michael I had lunch with the German Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, shook hands with former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and was awarded a medal by Stalin, Chairman of the Soviet Council of Ministers (1945 , awarded the Victory Medal in recognition of his break with Germany and active cooperation with the Soviet Red Army. After Michael I abdicated, the Victory Medal was auctioned and its whereabouts are now unknown). After the collapse of the Communist regime in Romania, he moved back to Romania.

Carlo II's father left Romania and became the heir to the throne. Mihai's grandfather, the then King of Romania, passed away, and Mihai naturally became the youngest monarch in Europe. In 1930, Carlo II returned to the country and Michael I was reduced to the crown prince.

Before World War II, Romania's political system was a constitutional monarchy. Michael I, 85 years old now (2008), is the last king of that former kingdom. He had lunch with German Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, shook hands with former British Prime Minister Churchill and was awarded a medal by Soviet leader Stalin. After experiencing many ups and downs in life, tranquility has become the only tone of the old man's life.

Michael I is a quiet old man. His ups and downs in life have made him no longer have too many demands on the outside world. He is used to paying attention to this noisy society silently.

"I have dealt with the Nazis for four years and had contacts with the Soviet Union for three years," Michael I fell into memories. He still mumbles a bit due to a stutter he had as a child.

Michael I was born in 1921. His father Carlo II married three times during his lifetime, and gave birth to Michael I with his second wife, Princess Elena of Greece. After Carlo II divorced Queen Elena, he officially married his third wife, Elena Lupescu, in 1947. Due to his parents' divorce and other reasons, Michael I had a very cold relationship with his father, and they had little contact with each other.

Under the haze of World War II, Michael I ascended the throne in 1940. Until the establishment of the Romanian People's Republic on December 30, 1947, Michael I announced his abdication and then moved to Switzerland.

What’s interesting is that when he went to Switzerland, he not only carried luggage, but also 4 cars. Collecting cars was his lifelong passion.

In Switzerland, he mainly relies on financial support from others. "It's not a good thing to raise money, but you have to do it," he raised his eyebrows with a helpless expression.

After the drastic changes in the Romanian political situation in December 1989, King Michael I returned to China and lived in the Elizabeth Palace in Bucharest. He spends a few months of the year living in Romania and almost all the rest of the year in Switzerland.

In 1940, at the age of 18, he officially ascended the throne. The fact that we had to face was that the Romanian government in power at the time sided with fascist Germany and participated in the war against the Soviet Union.

During World War II, the Nazi fascists crazily massacred Jews. Michael I and his mother made certain efforts to stop this brutal massacre in Romania.

He said that his and his mother's actions aroused extreme dissatisfaction among the Nazis. The Nazi leader later issued a "strong protest" to Antonescu, the Prime Minister of the Romanian government who was loyal to fascist Germany and held real power.

In the summer of 1944, when the Soviet Red Army launched a powerful offensive against the German troops in Romania, King Michael I cooperated with the Romanian Communist Party. On August 23, Michael I arrested Lieutenant General Antonescu in the palace. From then on, the Romanian army turned its guns and took military action against the Germans until the war was won.

Subsequently, Michael I announced the establishment of a new government, ceased fire with the Soviet Union, and fled into the mountains that night. German planes arrived at the Royal Palace of Romania a few hours later and began bombing it indiscriminately. Michael I later had to move into Elisabeth Palace and use it as his royal residence.

Some historians commented that Michael's move shortened the duration of World War II by several weeks and prevented tens of thousands of lives from becoming cannon fodder. After the war, Soviet commander Stalin personally awarded him the Soviet Victory Medal and presented him with a Soviet aircraft. According to the Romania News Agency, Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded the "60th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War" medal to King Michael I in Moscow on May 9, 2005.

Some historians commented that Michael's move shortened the duration of World War II by several weeks and prevented tens of thousands of lives from becoming cannon fodder.