Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece
Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece, Princess of Denmark (born Marie-Chantal Claire Miller, 17 September 1968) is the wife of Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, son of Constantine II of Greece and Anne-Marie of Denmark. Her husband is the heir apparent to the defunct throne of Greece, as the monarchy was abolished in 1973. She is a Danish princess by marriage, as her husband is a male-line descendant of Christian IX of Denmark.
Marie-Chantal | |
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Crown Princess of Greece | |
Marie-Chantal in 2013 | |
Born | Marie-Chantal Claire Miller 17 September 1968 London, England |
Spouse | |
Issue |
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Father | Robert Warren Miller |
Mother | Chantal Pesantes |
Religion | Greek Orthodox prev. Roman Catholic |
Early life
Marie-Chantal Miller was born in London, England, to Robert Warren Miller, an American-born British businessman, and wife María Clara "Chantal" Pesantes Becerra, an Ecuadorian.[1] She has an older sister, Pia, ex-wife of Christopher Getty, and a younger sister, Alexandra, ex-wife of Prince Alexander von Fürstenberg.[2] She was baptized in the Catholic faith at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City by the Archbishop of New York, Cardinal John O'Connor, with Princess Donatella Missikoff Flick serving as her godmother.[3]
Marie-Chantal was raised in Hong Kong where she attended The Peak School until she was 9 years old when she went to board at Institut Le Rosey in Switzerland. In 1982 she transferred to the Ecole Active Bilingue in Paris until her senior year which she took at The Masters School in New York. After graduating she attended the Academy of Arts for one year. She began a degree in History of Art at New York University in 1993 but dropped out a year later after Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, proposed to her on a skiing holiday in Gstaad, Switzerland, at Christmas.
Career
Marie-Chantal is the Founder and Creative Director of Marie-Chantal, an international childrenswear brand founded in 2000.[4] She is a trustee of the Royal Academy Trust and a board director of DFS Group Ltd.
Marriage and issue
In 1995, Marie-Chantal became engaged to Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, son of the deposed King Constantine II and Queen Anne Marie. She converted from Roman Catholicism to Greek Orthodoxy on 22 May 1995 in a private Chrismation (confirmation) ceremony held at St Paul's Chapel in New York. Her engagement ring was a cabochon-cut sapphire and heart-shaped diamond ring.[5] The wedding was planned by Lady Elizabeth Anson and Robert Isabell. Marie-Chantal wore a Valentino dress.[6] The ceremony was held on 1 July 1995 at St Sophia's Cathedral in London. Attendees included many members of European royal families.
The couple have five children:
- Princess Maria-Olympia (born 25 July 1996 at NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital in New York City),
- Prince Constantine-Alexios (born 29 October 1998 at NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital in New York City),
- Prince Achileas-Andreas (born 12 August 2000 at NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital in New York City),
- Prince Odysseus-Kimon (born 17 September 2004 at Portland Hospital in London), and
- Prince Aristidis-Stavros (born 29 June 2008 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles)
Controversies
In 2010, the British employment tribunal ordered Marie-Chantal Miller to pay a £17,500 compensation fine for illegal dismissal of her Filipino maid and for disregarding "the proper dismissal process".[7]
Notable published works
- Manners Begin at Breakfast: Modern etiquette for families (2019). ISBN 9780865653719
Honours
National Honours
Greek Royal Family Dame-Grand-Cross of the Order of Saints Olga and Sophia (1995)
Foreign Honours
Commemorative Badge of the 50th Birthday Medal of King Carl XVI Gustaf (1996)
References
- "Some ancestry of the Miller sisters". www.wargs.com.
- "HRH Crown Princess Pavlos". 22 September 2010. Archived from the original on 22 September 2010. Retrieved 31 July 2019 – via Greekroyalfamily.org.
- Colacello, Bob. "Greece's Royal Couple".
- "Designer Kids Clothes from Marie-Chantal Children". mariechantal.com. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
- "Crown jewels: The fabulous rings which sealed the love of Europe's royal couples". HELLO! magazine. UK.
- "Royal weddings in history". Vogue. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013.
- Abs