King Michael died earlier this month and will be buried later today in Curtea de Argeș, where the other members of the Royal Family are also buried. A ceremony was held in front of the Royal Palace in Bucharest at 11:00, which was attended by dozens of royals from across the world, as well as Romanian and international officials. Some guests include Prince Charles, King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, The Grand Duke of Luxembourg, King Juan Carlos of Spain and so on.
The funeral procession then went off on Calea Victoriei, where thousands of people waited to pay their respects. After a religious ceremony at the Patriarchy, it will later be carried to the Royal Train Station and transported on the Royal Train to Curtea de Argeș, where it will finally be put to rest. King Michael was the last WW2 head of state still living. He lead a coup d'etat in 1944 against the Romanian government which made the country turn its guns against the Nazis and helped shorten the war. He was later forced to abdicate by the communists in 1947. He was exiled and lived on a farm for some years, before receiving his Romanian citizenship again in 1997.
EDIT, since people are asking about the humvee: They put the coffin on a gun carriage which must be pulled by an operational military vehicle. It's a tradition reserved for kings who have been military leaders. Not all sovereign rulers are military commanders, some delegate their tasks to generals, but King Michael lead the Romanian Army during WW2. This hasn't been done in 52 years. It's an older tradition, inspired by the Franks, who used to carry their king on their shields.
magicsebi on December 16th, 2017 at 10:23 UTC »
A bit of info here. Photograph by Dan Mihai Balanescu.
King Michael died earlier this month and will be buried later today in Curtea de Argeș, where the other members of the Royal Family are also buried. A ceremony was held in front of the Royal Palace in Bucharest at 11:00, which was attended by dozens of royals from across the world, as well as Romanian and international officials. Some guests include Prince Charles, King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, The Grand Duke of Luxembourg, King Juan Carlos of Spain and so on.
The funeral procession then went off on Calea Victoriei, where thousands of people waited to pay their respects. After a religious ceremony at the Patriarchy, it will later be carried to the Royal Train Station and transported on the Royal Train to Curtea de Argeș, where it will finally be put to rest. King Michael was the last WW2 head of state still living. He lead a coup d'etat in 1944 against the Romanian government which made the country turn its guns against the Nazis and helped shorten the war. He was later forced to abdicate by the communists in 1947. He was exiled and lived on a farm for some years, before receiving his Romanian citizenship again in 1997.
EDIT, since people are asking about the humvee: They put the coffin on a gun carriage which must be pulled by an operational military vehicle. It's a tradition reserved for kings who have been military leaders. Not all sovereign rulers are military commanders, some delegate their tasks to generals, but King Michael lead the Romanian Army during WW2. This hasn't been done in 52 years. It's an older tradition, inspired by the Franks, who used to carry their king on their shields.
thotzr on December 16th, 2017 at 10:57 UTC »
Wasn't King Michael the last leader from WWII? If so then this is the end of an era. As a lover of history I feel incredibly sad.
Rear4ssault on December 16th, 2017 at 11:30 UTC »
"When I die, make sure to point a cannon at the mourning royals"