Crown Custodian Margareta: I have never considered giving up on Romania, this is my country

Custodian of the Romanian Crown, Princess Margareta, said on Friday that Romania is her country and that in the 30 years since she first stepped on Romanian soil, she has never considered giving up to serve it.

Princess Margareta attended alongside Prince Radu, Princesses Sofia and Elena, Prince Leka of Albania and 50 personalities from Romania, Sweden, Holland, Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, the launch at the Carturesti Carusel bookstore of the volumes "Her Majesty's World" and "Margareta. Three Decades of the Crown", an event devoted to the 30th anniversary of her first arrival to Romania.

"Stepping on Romanian soil was tremendous, in a way. So overwhelming it cannot be put into words. And I immediately created a team, the [Princess Margareta Royal Foundation]. My sister was with me on that plane. (...) What is really important is that people have better understood what is Romania, which back then wasn't on the map, and that we succeeded in doing something, and each of the people here have not only written something, but they have also donated to the Foundation. Each of them has generously offered either time, objects, or money, personality, professionalism, something. Well done for our country," Her Majesty told the reporters.

The Crown Custodian confessed that creating the Foundation was the most beautiful moment in these 30 years, and the hardest - when the authorities of the '90s denied King Mihai's stay in Romania.

"When I created the Foundation, that's the first most beautiful moment, because I saw that people are willful, generous, then again when I got married, of course when I met Prince [Radu]. When King Mihai, my father, was driven out, that was a terrible moment," she said.

Princess Margareta said that she loves the Romanians' generosity, their sense of humor and creative energy and also the fact that "they are sometimes stubborn".

She said that what she has learned in these 30 years is that "we must never give up". "We must go forward, step by step, step by step, slowly, so that in the end we can raise our heads and see the sun."

Representatives of the Corint and Curtea Veche publishing houses Sandra Gatejeanu-Gheorghe and Daniel Tandru, authors and co-authors of the two volumes spoke about the books.

"Her Majesty's World" is a collection of 45 essays put out by the Corint Publishing House under the supervision of Professors Alexandru Muraru and Daniel Sandru.

The first chapter comprises "royal words" about Crown Custodian Margareta by members of the Romanian royal family (Prince Radu, Princess Elena, Princess Sofia, Princess Maria) and members of European royal families (the Prince of Wales, the Crown Prince of Albania).

Ioan Aurel Pop, Andrew Popper, Ioan-Luca Vlad, Alexandru Muraru, Radu Carp and Corinne Fery von Arx talk about the Royal House and Her Majesty's institutional role.

Some of the personalities who sketch a portrait of the Custodian of the Crown are Frederic Mitterrand, Anneli Ute Gabanyi, Madeleine Arnot, Nelly Miricioiu, Danielle Maillefer, Jean Milligan, Rodica Coposu, Flavia Balescu-Coposu, Michael Shafir, Radu Calin Cristea, Adrian Cioroianu, Mona Vrabiescu-Kleckner and Rudy Kleckner, Sandra Pralong, Ruxandra Obreja, Teodor Ilincai, Ion Andrei Gherasim, Daniel Sandru.

The volume ''Margareta. Three Decades of the Crown'', by Sandra Gatejeanu-Gheorghe, is part of the Royal Collection of the Curtea Veche Publishing House. In 30 short chapters consisting of text, photos and documents, the book presents the journal of each of the 30 years spent by Her Majesty Margareta and the royal family in the country, from January 1990 until today.

Her Majesty, Princess Margareta and her sister, Princess Sofia, first stepped on Romanian soil on January 18, 1990, the day the royal family returned to the country, 42 years after King Mihai and the Queen Mother went into exile, on January 4, 1948.