Princess Irene Emma Elisabeth was the second child of Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard. Born at Soestdijk Palace on August 5th in 1939. The princess was given the name Irene, which means Peace due to the threat of war in Europe, at that time. Various souvenirs were put on the market for her birth, including a jug, beakers and plates.
beakers made to commemorate her birth
Her baptism was supposed to take place in the September of 1939, but this was postponed due to the outbreak of the Second World War.
In May 1940 her parents fled to London with their children.
The Austin Friars Church had been a Dutch congregation in London for years and the pastor Van Dorp would hold the baptism ceremony there at the request of Prince Bernhard. This would take place on May 31st. When the British King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (her godparents) heard this, they insisted that the baptism should take place in the chapel of Buckingham Palace and so it happened.
After this, princess Juliana and the children left for Canada where they stayed until the war ended in 1945.
Following her school education she studied Spanish.
On a winter sports holiday in 1963 she met the Spanish prince Carlos Hugo of Bourbon-Parma; the leader of the Carlists and pretender to the Spanish throne. In 1964 she was baptised in Rome as a member of the Roman Catholic Church. The couple wanted to get married, but because he did not want to give up his claim to the Spanish throne, the Dutch cabinet could not give permission for this marriage. Irene was able to get married, but lost her rights to the Dutch throne. The couple married quietly in Rome on April 29th in 1964. No one from the Royal family was present. Given all the commotion surrounding this wedding, few souvenirs were made. A duo of beakers were made by Sphinx of Maastricht in the colours black and red, they are very rare to find nowadays. Also some drinking glasses with a photo of the couple were made.
Two rare beakers, a commemorative cloth and drinking glass made for the wedding
The princess had 4 children.
A divorce followed in 1981. The princess has lived a very private life ever since and has been involved in nature projects. She also published several books.
She currently lives in Doorn.
