Carol Lambrino

Mircea Grigore Carol Hohenzollern (born Mircea Grigore Carol Lambrino; 8 January 1920 – 27 January 2006), also known as Prince Mircea Grigore Carol al României (anglicised as: of Romania) according to his amended Romanian birth certificate or as Carol Lambrino, was the elder son of King Carol II of Romania. Early life Carol Lambrino was born in Bucharest as son of Crown Prince Carol of Romania and his first wife, Zizi Lambrino. At the time of his birth he was registered with the name Mircea Grigore Carol Lambrino. He was named by his father after his youngest brother Prince Mircea of Romania who died in 1916. His grandfather King Ferdinand forced the annulment of his parents' marriage in January 1919 in the Supreme Court of Romania and Carol was born outside the 300-day period allowed to permit legitimacy, on 8 January 1920. The legality of the annulment has been questioned. After his birth, Carol and his mother were forced to leave Romania and settled in Paris. During his younger years and his reign, including during his personal dictatorship (1938–1940) when he held absolute power in Romania, King Carol II recognized his first-born Mircea Carol as a prince on several occasions. One of these situations was a letter published on the front page by the Romanian daily newspaper Epoca (17 January 1920). Signed by Crown Prince Carol, the document is a statement in which the future king recognized his paternity of Princess Ioana's baby. Legitimisation After the death of his father, former King Carol II, in Portugal, 4 April 1953, Carol claimed the right to inherit some of his father's estate in accordance with Portuguese law. In order to do so, it was necessary to prove that he was his father's legitimate son.