Fürst Franz Josef II von und zu Liechtenstein died 20 years ago, on 13 November 1989; he has been the Head of State of the small Principality for 51 years, from 1938 to 1989, leading it during its evolution from a poor agricultural Country to one of the richest Nations in the World.

Prince Franz Josef was born in Schloss Frauenthal, Austria, on 16 August 1906, the eldest of the eight children of Prince Aloys (1869-1955) and Princess Elisabeth, née Archduchess of Austria (1878-1960); his paternal grandparents were Prince Alfred (1842-1907) and Princess Henriette (1843-1931; Alfred’s first cousin), while his maternal grandparents were Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria (1833-1896) and his third wife Archduchess Maria Teresa, née Infanta of Portugal (1855-1944). Franz Josef was named after his godfather and maternal great-uncle, the Emperor of Austria.

Fürst Franz Josef II - source: Presse- und Informationsamt, Vaduz

Prince Franz Josef was born during the very long reign of his great-uncle Fürst Johannes II (a brother of Princess Henriette); in 1923 Prince Aloys, then 3^rd in the Line of Succession, renounced his rights, and in 1929 the deaths of Aloys’ elder brother and of Fürst Johannes left Franz Josef the first in the Line of Succession after his great-uncle Fürst Franz I (the younger brother of Princes Johannes II and Henriette).

On 30 March 1938 Fürst Franz I turned over the regency to Prince Franz Joseph, and died four months later, on 25 July 1938; Franz Josef became the Ruling Prince of Liechtenstein.

His accession happened in a very negative moment: the 1928 bankruptcy of the Liechtensteinian Sparkasse left the Government without money and very close to the bankrupt, and the 1929 economical crisis worsened further on the economical situation of the whole Country; moreover in 1938 the German Nazi government occupied Austria, and several lands and possessions of the Princely Family in that country were expropriated. Read more…

MAfan Historical Royals, Liechtenstein Royals Anniversary, Biography, Death, Franz Josef II

HRH Grand Duke Jean yesterday attended an annual concert held by the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra.

The 88-year-old Grand Duke was accompanied by his five children: HRH The Grand Duke of Luxembourg, HIRH Archduchess Marie Astrid of Austria, HRH Prince Jean, HRH Princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein and HRH Prince Guillaume.

The concert was held in homage to HRH the late Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte, Grand Duke Jean’s wife. The Grand Duchess died in January 2005 at the age of 77.

Click here to view the family’s current events thread.

JessRulz Austrian Royals, Liechtenstein Royals, Luxembourg Royals Archduchess Marie Astrid, Concert, Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte, Grand Duke Henri, Grand Duke Jean, Prince Guillaume, Prince Jean of Luxembourg, Princess Margaretha

 20 years ago, on the 18th of October 1989, Her Serene Highness Fürstin Gina von und zu Liechtenstein died in Grabs, Switzerland, aged 67. She had been for 46 years the wife of Fürst Franz Josef II, and therefore the mother of the present Fürst Hans Adam II.

Fürstin Gina - click to see at geneall.net

Countess Georgine “Gina” Norberte Johanna Franziska Antonie Marie Raphaela von Wilczek was born on 24 October 1921 in Graz, the only daughter and child of Count Ferdinand von Wilczek and his wife, born Countess Norbertine Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau; her mother died when Gina was only 17 months.

The then Countess grew up in Austria, and studied at the university in Vienna to become an interpreter.

In 1942 she met Fürst Franz Josef II von und zu Liechtenstein, who was a fourth cousin of Gina, and they married in Vaduz  the following year, on 7 March 1943; Franz Josef was 36 years old, Gina only 21; together they had five children, four sons and a daughter: Hans Adam, the present Fürst von und zu Liechtenstein, born in 1945; Philipp, born in 1946; Nikolaus, born in 1947; Norberta “Nora”, born in 1950, and twelve years later, in 1962, Franz Josef Wenzeslaus “Wenzel”. All their children except Wenzel, who has tragically died unmarried in 1991, have married and have children.

Franz Josef and Gina were very loved among the people in Liechtenstein: they were the first princely couple to live full-time in the little Country, and under the reign of Franz Josef the economy of the Principality developed, making Liechtenstein a very rich contry. Moreover the two Princes were somehow complementary: while Franz Josef was a very friendly but shy person, Gina was very warm, cordial, expansive and sociable, helping the Princely Family to be more popular among the people. Read more…

MAfan Historical Royals, Liechtenstein Royals Anniversary, Biography, Death, Fürstin Gina

HSH Prince Hans-Adam II, the ruling Prince of Liechtenstein, has angered European Jews through comments he made during an interview published this past Monday in the Liechtensteiner Volksblatt.

The 64-year-old Prince stated that it was the tiny alpine nation’s banking secrecy laws which allowed “some Jews to buy their safety during the Holocaust by using money they had deposited in Liechtenstein or Switzerland.” He also claimed that the laws helped citizens of Europe’s former communist countries, and are still “saving the lives” of those currently living in Third-World countries run by “bloodthirsty dictators.”

The comments were escalated by the current feud between Liechtenstein and their northern neighbour, Germany. Germany has been pressuring the government of Liechtenstein to clamp down on their confidential banking laws that it claims allows wealthy Germans to avoid paying taxes. German authorities last year paid a former LGT Group employee (the Liechtenstein national bank owned by the Princely Family) to obtain the names of Germans who are believed to be tax cheats.

Hans-Adam also fired a shot at Germany themselves, stating: “Germany and many other countries have an unbelievable mess with their state finances…Germany should clean up its own act, and think about its past.”

The Prince’s comments were heavily criticised by the German Central Council of Jews; with their General Secretary Stephan Kramer telling Bild newspaper that “the comments are a mockery of the Holocaust and its survivors.” As Liechtenstein was a mainly neutral player in World War II, Kramer claims it is “historically incorrect” for the Prince’s portrayal of Liechtenstein as the “merciful helper of the Jews” to be voiced.

Kramer ended his interview by commenting on the Prince’s reigning status: “His Highness would be better off retiring.”

Information about the Liechtenstein Princely Family can be found in this forum.

JessRulz Liechtenstein Royals Finances, Germany, Hans-Adam II, Holocaust, LGT Group

Last Saturday, August 15th, the Princely Family of Liechtenstein came out in the country’s capital Vaduz to celebrate National Day. HSH Prince Hans-Adam II, the sovereign of the tiny principality, and his wife HSH Princess Marie Aglaë were at the head of the festivities.

Click to see the PPE gallery

The couple were joined by their eldest son, HSH Hereditary Prince Alois, and his family (wife HSH Hereditary Princess Sophie and three of their children Princess Marie-Caroline, Prince Georg and Prince Nikolaus); and their third son HSH Prince Constantin and his family (wife HSH Princess Marie and their children Prince Moritz, Princess Georgina and Prince Benedikt).

The first stop for the Princely Family was an open-air church service; before walking back to Vaduz Castle. Here, the citizens of Vaduz were welcomed by the family to snacks and refreshments, following a speech by the Hereditary Prince, who has been the Regent of Liechtenstein since 2004. This year’s National Day marked the 5th anniversary of Prince Alois becoming Regent for his father.

Prince Alois spoke of the need for Liechtenstein’s public spending to be lowered due to the current economic crisis, even though Liechtenstein was faring well when compared to other nations. The Prince also announced that Liechtenstein’s education system will be reformed.

Following their father’s speech, Princes Georg and Nikolaus tucked into some large pretzels, while their grandfather celebrated the day with a cold beer. All the children, as well as Hans-Adam and Marie Aglaë!, were all in high spirits and enjoyed the celebrations.

Click here to read the Liechtenstein National Day thread.

JessRulz Liechtenstein Royals Hans-Adam II, Hereditary Prince Alois, National Day, Princess Marie Aglaë

  Today Queen Fabiola of the Belgians performed her first official duty since her stay in hospital earlier this year. The 80 year old queen was admitted to the hospital in January due to a pneumonia. She left the St. John’s hospital in Brussels on February 20th.

The queen attended a concert of the annual queen Elisabeth concours, at the conservatorium in Brussels. The queen received a warm applause when she entered her loge. Fabiola was escorted by her niece, princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein, the second daughter of the late grand duchess Josephine-Charlotte of Luxembourg.

Click here to see a clip of the visit.

Marengo Belgian Royals, Liechtenstein Royals Princess Margaretha, Queen Fabiola

By the Decree of Serbian President Boris Tadic, Milan Protic has been assigned to the post of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Princely House of Liechtenstein at a non-residential basis, and he will be seated in Bern (Germany), the Official Gazette said in its latest issue.

NotAPretender Liechtenstein Royals Serbia

Liechtenstein has agreed to address its tax haven status by adopting international standards on tax cooperation.

The Prime Minister and Ruling Prince have agreed to talks with other countries in an attempt to remove the distinction between tax fraud and tax evasion.  Hereditary Prince Alois confirmed that this decision had been agreed to between the government, business leaders and the royal family. The princely House of Liechtenstein owns the LGT Group, Liechtenstein’s banking entity, which is the largest family-owned private wealth and asset manager in Europe.

Last year German intelligence agents accused LGT Group of tax evasion, an action which included accusations against Liechtenstein’s Prince Maximilian (as noted in this blog entry and this thread).

NotAPretender Liechtenstein Royals Finances, Government, Hereditary Prince Alois, LGT Group

Prince Maximilian (Max) of Liechtenstein, the second son of Ruling Prince Hans-Adam, has been accused by the German tax authorities of evading taxes on investment income while resident in Germany, where he has lived since 2001. It is alleged that the Prince owes taxes on income from a foundation set up by the Liechtenstein ruling family.

Prince Max denies that he owes taxes to the German government but has pledged to pay if it is determined that he does in fact owe money. In a statement issued by his lawyers, he said, “I have always fulfilled my tax duties in Germany to the best of my knowledge. If, contrary to my conviction, it turns out that I owe taxes to the German state, I will meet my obligations promptly.”

Although the prince did not draw any payments from the foundation, he took out a loan against the foundation’s assets. His lawyers claim that this action does not incur taxes. The German tax authorities state that since most of the payments from the foundation went to him and since he is resident in Germany, he owes tax on the assets.

The ruling family is standing behind Prince Max. Prince Alois, his eldest brother and de facto ruler of Liechtenstein, claimed last year that Germany was attacking Liechtenstein by targeting the LGT Group, the ruling family’s bank of which Prince Max is CEO, in a probe of possible tax evasion. The German government is keen to close the tax loophole whereby rich Germans can use Liechtenstein as a tax haven to shelter large amounts of money from German taxes. The probe, which started last year, is based on data about LGT which was purchased by the German tax authorities from an ex-employee of the bank.

You can read more about Prince Max, Princess Angela, and their son Prince Alfons in this thread; a discussion of the tax evasion charges against LGT may be found in this thread.

Lucia-mia Liechtenstein Royals Finances, Prince Max, Prince Maximilian