'Simeon II of Bulgaria' or ''Simeon of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha'' (born
June 16,
1937) was head of state as the
Tsar of Bulgaria, ''Tsar Simeon II'', from 1943 to 1946. He served as
Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 2001 until August 2005. He is known in the English speaking world as 'Simeon
Saxe-Coburg Gotha', which is an
English form of his family's original
German name Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha. He is still mostly referred to as Tsar Simeon II, or simply "The King" ("Царят").
Simeon II is one of the last living heads of state from the
World War II era and he is also the only monarch in history who later became head of the government through land-slide victory in democratic nation-wide elections, after 55 years of exile imposed on his family by the communists. It was a first for Bulgaria, for
Europe, and for the world. Simeon II is the only living person on Earth who still has, since he never abdicated, the title of Tsar (ancient Slavic modification of the Latin 'Caesar').
Simeon II and the British
Queen Elizabeth II belong to the
House of Wettin. Simeon II is
Knight of the Golden Fleece.
Royal history
Simeon is the son of Tsar
Boris III (of the
House of Saxe-Coburg). and Tsaritsa
Giovanna (of the
House of Savoy). He became Tsar on
August 28 1943 upon the death of his father, shortly after his return to Bulgaria from a meeting with
Adolf Hitler.
[1] Since Tsar Simeon was only six years old upon assuming the throne, his uncle
Prince Kyril of Bulgaria, Prime Minister
Bogdan Filov and Army General Mihov were appointed
regents.
[2] On 5 September 1944 the Soviet army invaded Bulgaria and on
9 September 1944, Prince Kyril and the other regents were deposed by a
Soviet-backed
coup and arrested. The three regents, all the members of the last three governments, Parliament deputies, heads of the army and eminent journalists were executed by the Communists in February 1945.
[3] Executions of eminent representatives of the high and middle class of Bulgaria continued till the 1950s and the State Gazette issues of those days are full of names of thousands of people who are reported as "disappeared with no trace" ("bezsledno izcheznal").
[4]
Path to exile
The Royal family (Queen Giovanna, Simeon II and his sister Maria-Louisa) remained under arrest at Vrana Palace, near Sofia. In her Memoires Queen Giovanna remembers that the Soviet soldiers used to entertain themselves by shooting at random in the direction where she was walking with the children. On
15 September,
1946 a rigged Soviet-style referendum was held in the presence of the Soviet army in Bulgaria. It resulted in over 95% approval for the new communist republic and abolished the monarchy. On
16 September 1946 the royal family was exiled from Bulgaria. However, Simeon II has never signed any abdication papers. The royal family first went to
Alexandria,
Egypt, where Queen Giovanna's father
Victor Emanuel III, former king of
Italy, lived in exile.
[5] There Simeon II finished Victoria College. In July 1951 the Spanish government of
Francisco Franco granted asylum to the exiled family.
Exile in Spain
In
Madrid Simeon II graduated from the Lycée Français and studied law and political science. In 1955, upon turning eighteen, he read his proclamation to the Bulgarian people as the Tsar of Bulgaria, in accordance with the
Tarnovo Constitution. In 1958 he enrolled at
Valley Forge Military Academy and College in the
United States, where he was known as "Cadet Rylski No. 6883",
[3] and graduated as a second lieutenant. Once again in Spain, Simeon studied law and business administration, and went on to become a businessman.
Career
Simeon spent most of his adult life working as a businessman: for thirteen years he was chairman of the Spanish subsidiary of
Thomson, a French defence and electronics group, and he was also an advisor in the banking, hotel, electronics, and catering sectors.
Political activities in exile
Simeon issued several political declarations during his exile through his Royal Chancellery in Madrid directed at the Communist regime in Bulgaria and his exiled compatriots. His early attempts at forming an official
government in exile did not come to fruition.
Marriage and family
In 1962 Simeon married a member of the Spanish aristocracy,
Doña Margarita Gomez-Acebo y Cejuela. The couple had five children — four sons (Kardam, Kyril, Kubrat and Konstantin) and a daughter, Kalina, all of whom subsequently married Spaniards.
[3]
★
Kardam (born 1962) married Doña Miriam Ungria y López. They have two sons,
Boris and
Beltran.
★
Kyrill (born 1964) married Doña Rosario Nadal y Fuster-Puigdorfila. They have two daughters, HRH
Mafalda and
Olimpia, and one son,
Tassilo.
★
Kubrat (born 1965) married Doña Carla Maria Royo-Villanova y Urrestarazu. They have three sons:
Mirko,
Lukás and
Tirso.
★
Konstantin-Assen (born 1967) married Doña María Garcia de la Rasilla y Gortazar. They have twins,
Umberto and
Sofia.
★
Kalina (born 1972) married Don
Antonio "Kitín" Muñoz Valcárcel. They have one son,
Simeon.
Political return
In 1996, fifty years after the 1946 referendum which was held in the presence of the Soviet army, Simeon II returned to Bulgaria and was met everywhere by huge crowds, cheering: “We want our King!"
[8] He did not, at that point, make any political announcements or political moves.
Some of the estates in Bulgaria that had been expropriated under Communism and were believed to be his property were returned to the Bulgarian royal family. In 2001 Simeon II proclaimed his will to return to Bulgaria for the common good and announced the formation of a new political party, the
National Movement Simeon II ("NMSII"), dedicated to "reforms and political integrity." Simeon II himself promised a period of 800 days, after which the
Bulgarian people would feel the positive effects of his government and would have higher standard of living. Simeon II won a land-slide victory in the nation-wide elections held on
June 17,
2001, NMSII won 120 out of 240 seats in Parliament, overturning the two pre-existing political parties. Simeon Saxe-Coburg & Gotha gave an oath as
Prime Minister of Bulgaria on
July 24, forming a coalition with the ethnic Turkish party
Movement for Rights and Freedoms ("MRF"). He gave ministerial positions in his government mainly to
technocrats and Western-educated economic specialists. In 2002 his efforts were recognised by his receiving the 2002
Path to Peace Award from the
Path to Peace Foundation.
[9] In 2005, Simeon formed a new coalition government with the Bulgarian Socialist Party and Turkish ethnic party Movement for Rights & Freedom.
Simeon's popularity declined during his four-year rule as Prime Minister. In particular, the 800 days economic quick fix program did not meet popular expectations. However, the development of Bulgaria's capital markets have moved forward, with the first
Eurolev issue in 2004. During his time in power, Bulgaria became a member of NATO and accelerated its accession to the EU.
National Movement for Stability and Progress
At the elections held on
June 25,
2005, Simeon's party,
NDSV, polled 20% of the vote and remained a second political power, being overtaken by the Socialists (31%). No single party won a majority of seats. As NDSV was initially unwilling to join a coalition with the Bulgarian Socialist party (BSP), BSP tried to form a coalition government with the third political power - the Turkish ethnic party MRF. The new coalition was headed on
July 20 by Prime Minister
Sergey Stanishev of the
Bulgarian Socialist Party. After a close-run failure at the Parliament to win a majority of votes to form a new government, the Bulgarian Socialist Party renewed negotiations with the NDSV. After three weeks of deliberation, Simeon II agreed on
15 August to join a three-party coalition government headed by Stanishev. The new coalition government includes the Bulgarian Socialist Party, National Movement Simeon II and the ethnic Turkish party (Movement for Rights & Freedom). Simeon II was given the unofficial ceremonial post of Chairman of the Coalition's Council.
Views on restoration of the Bulgarian monarchy
Simeon II Saxe-Coburg Gotha has always declined to comment on whether he believes Bulgaria should restore the monarchy, saying it is a matter for the people of Bulgaria to decide. He gave an oath before the republican constitution at the Parliament as a Prime Minister in 2001. High-ranking representatives of the
Bulgarian Orthodox Church declared that they would join an eventual discussion about the restoration of monarchy.
Simeon II Saxe-Coburg Gotha does not take part in political
debates. He wishes to be King of his entire people, regardless of political affiliation stating, "The monarch's role is moderation ... to be above parties and politics ... "
[4]
Ancestors
References
1. Crowns In Conflict by Theo Aronson, p.202
2. The Royal Families of Europe by Geoffrey Hindley, p.156
3. ibid
4. Royalty in Exile by Charles Fenyvesi, p.161
5. The Royal Families of Europe, p.156
6. ibid
7. ibid
8. Elected Prime Minister
9. Path to Peace Foundation website
10. Royalty in Exile by Charles Fenyvesi, p.161
Bibliography
Books
★ Curley, Walter J.P. (1975) ''Monarchs in Waiting'', London: Hutchinson & Co. (pp.23-25: "Bulgaria: His Majesty King Simeon II")
★ Fenyvesi, Charles (1981) ''Royalty in Exile'', London: Robson Books. (pp.153-171: "Czar Simeon of the Bulgars") ISBN 0-86051-131-6
★ Dimitroff, Pashanko (1986) ''Boris III of Bulgaria 1894-1943'', London. ISBN 0-86332-140-2
★ Groueff, Stephane (1987) ''Crown of Thorns'', Lanham MD. and London. ISBN 0-8191-5778-3
★ Lauder-Frost, Gregory (1989) ''The Betrayal of Bulgaria'', Monarchist League Policy Paper, London.
★ Aronson, T. (1986) ''Crowns In Conflict'', London: John Murray (Publishers) Ltd. ISBN 0-7195-4279-0
★ Hindley, G. (1979) ''The Royal Families of Europe'', London: Lyric Books Ltd. ISBN0 0-07-093530-0
Articles
★ ''The Daily Telegraph'', Obituary for "HM Queen Ioanna of the Bulgarians", London, 28 February 2000.
See also
★
List of monarchs who lost their thrones or abdicated in the 20th century
★
House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
External links
★ http://www.b-info.com/places/Bulgaria/Royal/Simeon/
★
The first website about Simeon II of Bulgaria focuses on his pre-1995 history
★
''Financial Times'' July 2001 Biography
★ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Wettin#The_House_of_Saxe-Coburg_and_Gotha
★ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Wettin
★ http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Prince_Albert_of_Saxe-Coburg_and_Gotha
★ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Golden_Fleece
★
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha's address, February 10 2005 concerning amending the constitution to bring it in line with EU requirements
★
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha's statement, July 5 2002 concerning Bulgaria's candidacy for
NATO membership: "The role of the international community should be gradually transformed from crisis response to integration. Palliative measures intended to mitigate yet another crisis cannot bring stability and prosperity. The best solution is the region's integration into the European and Euroatlantic institutions."
★
[1] NMSII website
★
[2] MRF website
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