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Denmark

Prince marries girlfriend after long legal battle

A 19-year battle has been brought to a happy end for one of Europe’s royal families. Last weekend, Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary, Prince Joachim, Princess Marie and Princess Benedikte, along with a number of other guests and family members, took part in celebrating Prince Gustav and Princess Carina. They were married on Saturday in Berleburg Palace Chapel.

Gustav, 7th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Carina were married on 4 June. He is a German-Danish prince and the eldest child of Princess Benedikte of Denmark and Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. This makes him the nephew of both Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and Queen Anne Marie of Greece.

The wedding party took place in the gazebo of the garden at Berleburg Palace, located in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Berleburg Palace is one of the few noble residences in Germany which has been inhabited by the same family for the last 750 years. The palace was built in the 13th century.

Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark and his wife, Crown Princess Mary, were the bride and groom’s witnesses at the wedding.

The controversy of the delayed wedding dates back to 1939, when the prince’s grandfather, Gustav Albrecht, 5th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, wrote a will in which he demanded that his grandson’s future spouse should be Aryan, noble and protestant if he were to inherit Berleburg Palace.

Carina does not meet these requirements. She has previously worked as a model and is now a children’s book author. Her mother is Mexican, and she was born Catholic.

The couple has been fighting for many years to become a married couple, and after a decision in the German Supreme Court, it was settled that the prince is the rightful owner of the above-mentioned palace and the associated assets, even though not everyone in the family agrees.

About author

Senior Europe Correspondent Oskar Aanmoen has a master in military and political history of the Nordic countries. He has written six books on historical subjects and more than 1.500 articles for Royal Central. He has also interview both Serbian and Norwegian royals. Aanmoen is based in Oslo, Norway.