Prince Michael of Kent facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Prince Michael |
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Portrait by Allan Warren, 2014
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| Born | 4 July 1942 Coppins, Iver, Buckinghamshire, England |
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| Spouse |
Baroness Marie-Christine von Reibnitz
(m. 1978) |
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| House | Windsor | ||||
| Father | Prince George, Duke of Kent | ||||
| Mother | Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark | ||||
| Signature |  |
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| Education |
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| Military career | |||||
| Service/ |
British Army | ||||
| Years of active service | 1961–1981 | ||||
| Rank | Major (active service) | ||||
| Unit | 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own) The Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) | ||||
| Battles/wars | Cyprus dispute | ||||
Prince Michael of Kent (born Michael George Charles Franklin on 4 July 1942) is a member of the British royal family. He is currently 52nd in line to the British throne.
Prince Michael is the younger son of Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark. This makes him a grandson of George V, a nephew of Edward VIII and George VI, and a first cousin of Elizabeth II. His mother was also a first cousin of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who was married to Elizabeth II. This means Prince Michael is both a second cousin and a first cousin once removed to Charles III.
During Queen Elizabeth II's reign, Prince Michael sometimes represented her at events in Commonwealth realms (countries where the British monarch is head of state) outside the United Kingdom. He also runs his own business and works around the world. He has even presented TV shows about Europe's royal families.
Contents
Early life
Prince Michael was born on 4 July 1942, at Coppins, a house in Iver, Buckinghamshire. He was the third child of Prince George, Duke of Kent. His father was a son of King George V and Queen Mary, and a younger brother of King George VI. When he was born, Michael was seventh in line to the British throne. His mother was Princess Marina, whose parents were Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark and Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia.
He was baptized on 4 August 1942 at Windsor Castle. His godparents included his uncle, King George VI, and Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. US President Franklin D. Roosevelt was also a godparent. Because of World War II, newspapers did not say exactly where the baptism took place.
Just seven weeks after Michael was born, his father died in a plane crash. This happened near Dunbeath, Scotland, on 25 August 1942.
When he was five years old, Prince Michael was a page boy at the wedding of his cousins, Princess Elizabeth (who later became Queen Elizabeth II) and Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten.
Education and military service
Prince Michael went to Sunningdale School and Eton College. He can speak French very well and also knows some German and Italian. He was the first member of the royal family to learn Russian and is a qualified interpreter in the language.
In January 1961, Michael joined the Mons Officer Cadet School. From there, he became an officer in the 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own) army regiment. Later, he served in The Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own). He served in Germany, Hong Kong, and Cyprus. In Cyprus, his group was part of a United Nations peacekeeping force in 1971.
He had a military career that lasted twenty years. During this time, he also worked for the Defence Intelligence Staff, which gathers information for the government. He left the Army in 1981 with the rank of Major.
After leaving active service, he received several honorary military titles. These include Honorary Rear Admiral in the Royal Naval Reserve and Honorary Air Marshal of RAF Benson. He also became Royal Honorary Colonel of the Honourable Artillery Company. In Canada, he is the Colonel-in-Chief of the Essex and Kent Scottish Regiment.
Activities and patronages
As the third child of King George V's fourth son, Prince Michael was not expected to do many official duties for the royal family. However, he has carried out official duties in other Commonwealth countries and has represented the Queen abroad.
Unlike his older brother, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, and his sister, Princess Alexandra, Prince Michael has never received money from the government for his royal duties. He was given the use of an apartment at Kensington Palace when he got married in 1978. This type of home is called a "grace and favour" apartment, meaning it's provided by the monarch.
Prince Michael represented the Queen at state funerals in India, Cyprus, and Swaziland. With his wife, Princess Michael of Kent, he also represented the Queen at independence celebrations in Belize and at the coronation of King Mswati III of Swaziland.
He supports many different charities and organizations. Some of these include the Kennel Club, Children's Burns Trust, and the Royal Automobile Club.
In June 2022, as he neared his 80th birthday, Prince Michael announced that he would be stepping back from public life.
Marriage and personal life
On 30 June 1978, Prince Michael married Baroness Marie-Christine von Reibnitz in a civil ceremony in Vienna, Austria. Marie-Christine was from a German noble family.
At the time of their marriage, Marie-Christine was a Roman Catholic and had been married before. Her first marriage had ended in divorce. Because she was Catholic, Prince Michael lost his place in the line of succession to the throne under an old law called the Act of Settlement 1701. However, this law was changed in 2015 by the Succession to the Crown Act 2013. This meant he was put back into the line of succession. As of 2022, he was 51st in line.
Prince Michael and Marie-Christine have two children. Both were raised in the Church of England, so they have always been in the line of succession:
- Lord Frederick Windsor, born 6 April 1979. He married Sophie Winkleman in 2009. They have two daughters, Maud and Isabella.
- Lady Gabriella Kingston, born 23 April 1981. She married Thomas Kingston in 2019. Her husband sadly passed away in February 2024.
In 2014, Prince Michael was successfully treated for prostate cancer.
Personal interests
Commercial
Prince Michael runs his own business that provides advice and services around the world. He is also a skilled interpreter of the Russian language.
Masonic
Prince Michael is an active Freemason. Freemasonry is a social and charitable organization. He holds important roles within the group, such as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons.
Russia
Prince Michael speaks Russian fluently and is very interested in Russia. He is well-known there and was even given an award called the Order of Friendship. His family has strong ties to the Russian royal family. For example, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia was a cousin to three of Prince Michael's grandparents.
When the remains of the Tsar and his family were found in 1991, Prince Michael provided a DNA sample to help identify them. He attended their burial in St Petersburg in 1998. He is also a patron of groups that work closely with Russia, like the Russo-British Chamber of Commerce.
Sport
Prince Michael was part of a rowing team at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst that won a competition in 1961. He also competed for Great Britain in a bobsleigh championship in 1971. He was a reserve for the 1972 Winter Olympics. In 1970, he took part in a car rally from London to Mexico, but he and his team did not finish the race.
Media scrutiny
In 2002, Prince Michael and his wife faced questions about the rent they paid for their apartment at Kensington Palace. Some people thought they were paying too little. Buckingham Palace then announced that the Queen was paying their rent, which was £120,000 a year, from her own money. This was in recognition of the royal duties and charity work they did without public funding.
Prince Michael has also been mentioned in the news for receiving financial help from a friend, Boris Berezovsky, between 2002 and 2008. Berezovsky said it was simply "a matter between friends."
In 2021, there were reports that Prince Michael had offered to connect people with Russian officials for money. He was filmed on a video call with reporters who were pretending to be business executives. Prince Michael said his connections in Russia could be helpful. He later stated that he had not been in contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin since 2003.
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles
As a child of a younger son of a British monarch, he is known as His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent.
Unofficial
Calabar, Nigeria
- 2017 – present:
- In Efik: Ada Idagha Ke Efik Eburutu
- In English: A person of honour and high standing in the Efik Eburutu Kingdom
Honours
1953: Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal
1977: Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal
18 January 2001: Knight of Justice of the Most Venerable Order of Saint John (KStJ)
2002: Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
2 June 2003: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO)
- 4 July 1992: Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO)
2012: Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
19 October 2015: Canadian Forces Decoration (CD)
2022: Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
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Foreign
UN: United Nations Medal for UNFICYP (1971)
Russia: Member of the Order of Friendship (4 November 2009 – 4 March 2022)
Two Sicilies: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Francis I (19 August 2017)
Peru: Grand Cross of the Order of the Sun (2 November 1994)
Honorary military appointments
- Canada
Colonel-in-Chief, The Essex and Kent Scottish (14 November 2001 – present)
- United Kingdom
Honorary Commodore, Royal Naval Reserve (1 April 1994 – 2004)- Honorary Commodore, Maritime Volunteer Service
- Honorary Rear Admiral, Royal Naval Reserve (2004–2015)
- Honorary Vice Admiral, Royal Naval Reserve (9 March 2015 – present)
- Honorary Auxiliary Commodore, Royal Naval Auxiliary Service (1990)
- Commodore-in-Chief, Maritime Reserves (2006–present)
Honorary Colonel, British Army (10 November 2010 – present)- Senior Colonel, The King's Royal Hussars
- Regimental Colonel, Honourable Artillery Company (2009–2012)
- Royal Honorary Colonel, Honourable Artillery Company (31 January 2012 – present). (member since 1981)
Honorary Air Commodore of RAF Benson (27 June 2002 – 2012)- Honorary Air Marshal of RAF Benson (1 March 2012 – present)
Fellowships
- Grand Master of the Order of Mark Master Masons of England
- Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation
- Chartered Institute of Linguists
- Royal Aeronautical Society
- Society of Genealogists
- Institute of Road Safety Officers
- Institute of the Motor Industry
Honorary academic degrees and awards
Degrees and appointments
- 1998: Plekhanov Economics Academy, Honorary Doctorate
- 2003: Sinerghia Economics and Finance Institute, Honorary Professor
- 2012: St Petersburg University of Humanities and Social Sciences, Honorary Doctorate
Awards
- 2002: The International Man of the Year Award, Plekhanov Economics Academy
- 2003: The "Glory of Russia", Plekhanov Economics Academy
Arms
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Issue
| Name | Birth | Marriage | Issue | |
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| Lord Frederick Windsor | 6 April 1979 | 12 September 2009 | Sophie Winkleman | Maud Windsor Isabella Windsor |
| Lady Gabriella Kingston | 23 April 1981 | 18 May 2019 | Thomas Kingston (Died 25 February 2024) |
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See also
In Spanish: Miguel de Kent para niños
- List of British princes
