Princess Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis (''Elisabeth Margarete Maria Anna Beatriz Prinzessin von Thurn und Taxis''; born 24 March 1982) is a German journalist, author, socialite, and art collector. By birth, as the daughter of Johannes, 11th Prince of Thurn and Taxis, she is a member of the German princely

House of Thurn and Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (, ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the mail, postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the end of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, and ...

. Since 2012 Elisabeth has worked as a style editor-at-large for ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ' ...

''. A

Catholic traditionalist Traditionalist Catholicism is a movement that emphasizes beliefs, practices, customs, traditions, liturgical forms, devotions and presentations of teaching associated with the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965). Tr ...

, she has written as a columnist for ''Vatican Magazine'' and authored a book on Catholic spirituality called ''The Faith of Children: in Praise of the People's Devotion''. She has been referred to in the press as Princess TNT, a nickname once associated with her mother, Gloria, Princess of Thurn und Taxis.

Biography

Early life and family

Princess Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis was born on 24 March 1982 at

Schloss Thurn und Taxis Saint Emmeram's Abbey ( or ''Reichsabtei Sankt Emmeram'') was a Benedictines, Benedictine monastery founded around 739 at Regensburg in Bavaria (modern-day southeastern Germany) at the grave of the itinerant Franks, Frankish bishop Emmeram of R ...

, a 500-room palace in

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

owned by her family, the

Princely House of Thurn and Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (, ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the mail, postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the end of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, and ...

. She is the second child of Johannes, 11th Prince of Thurn and Taxis and Countess Gloria von Schönburg-Glauchau.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' Band XIX. "Schönburg". C.A. Starke Verlag, 2011, pp. 367–370. . She has an older sister, Princess Maria Theresia, and a younger brother,

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Alb ...

, who succeeded their father in 1990 as the 12th Prince of Thurn und Taxis. SchlossThurnundTaxis2010

Until 1918, the

held the rank of

royalty Royalty may refer to: * the mystique/prestige bestowed upon monarchs ** one or more monarchs, such as kings, queens, emperors, empresses, princes, princesses, etc. *** royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen-regnant, and sometimes h ...

in the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

, where they once owned the continental postal system as an Imperial

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

. As they were required to intermarry with other reigning or once-reigning dynasties, Elisabeth's mother is of similar background. Through her father, she is a descendant of

Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II (Peter Leopold Josef Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard; 5 May 1747 – 1 March 1792) was the penultimate Holy Roman Emperor, as well as King of Hungary, Croatia and King of Bohemia, Bohemia, and List of rulers of Austria, Archduke of Austri ...

John VI of Portugal '' Dom'' John VI (; 13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826), known as "the Clement" (), was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves from 1816 to 1825, and after the recognition of Brazil's independence, titular Emperor of Brazil ...

Louis Philippe, King of the French Louis Philippe I (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850), nicknamed the Citizen King, was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, the penultimate monarch of France, and the last French monarch to bear the title "King". He abdicated from his throne ...

and

Charles IV of Spain Charles IV (; 11 November 1748 – 20 January 1819) was King of Spain and ruler of the Spanish Empire from 1788 to 1808. The Spain inherited by Charles IV gave few indications of instability, but during his reign, Spain entered a series of disa ...

. Through her mother, by birth a member of a mediatised

comital Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

dynasty, Elisabeth descends from the houses of the Russian princely families Golitsyn and

Meshchersky The House of Meshchersky (Russian: Мещерский) is an old knyaz, princely family whose title was recognized by the Russian Empire. Origin The family descends from the medieval independent rulers of the Meshchera tribe.Ruvigny, Marquis of ...

and the German princes of

Reuss Reuss may refer to: *Reuss (surname) * Reuss (river) in Switzerland * Imperial County of Reuss or Reuß, several former states or countries in present-day Germany, and the People's State of Reuss * Principality of Reuss-Greiz and Principality of R ...

. The House of Thurn and Taxis is one of Germany's wealthiest and most prominent families. From her maternal side, she is a descendant of the

House of Schönburg A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condit ...

. Her mother is the daughter of the politician and journalist Joachim, Count of Schonburg-Glauchau, as well as the sister of socialite

Countess Maya von Schönburg-Glauchau Countess Maria Felicitas von Schönburg-Glauchau (; 15 August 1958 – 27 January 2019), also known as Maya von Schönburg, was a German socialite. Early life and family Countess Maya von Schönburg-Glauchau was born on 15 August 1958 to Joac ...

and author Alexander, Count of Schonburg-Glauchau, a grandnephew by marriage of Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Furstliche Hauser Band XIX''. C.A. Starke Verlag, Limburg an der Lahn. 2011. pp. 365, 368–369, 383–386. German. . Through her maternal grandmother,

Countess Beatrix Széchenyi de Sárvár-Felsővidék Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

, she is a descendant of Count István Széchenyi. During her childhood, Elisabeth and her siblings were frequent guests of

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

at his

Neverland Ranch Sycamore Valley Ranch, formerly Neverland Ranch"Neverland Never More"
, by William Etling (author ...

, visits she recalled in her blog after his death in 2009. Describing Jackson as "excruciatingly shy," she defended his reputation, writing, "I couldn't imagine Michael hurting a fly, let alone a friend." Elisabeth was educated at

Sevenoaks School Sevenoaks School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school. It is co-educational, a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding school, boarding and day school, located in Sevenoaks, Kent, England. Established in 1432, it ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, England, and has a bachelor's degree in media and communication studies from the

American University of Paris The American University of Paris (AUP) is a private university in Paris, France. Founded in 1962, the university is one of the oldest American institutions of higher education in Europe, and the first to be established in France. The university ...

Career

Elisabeth worked as a features editor for the London-based ''Finch’s Quarterly Review'' and penned a blog, "The Princess Diaries," for ''Finch's'' until departing in 2010. The blog contrasted the expectations, pleasures, difficulties and assumptions surrounding "princess" status with more "normal" issues like flat-hunting, London weather, and work. Elisabeth also contributed a monthly column in ''

'' and articles for German and international art and style publications, including New York-based style magazine ''

Quest A quest is a journey toward a specific mission or a goal. It serves as a plot device in mythology and fiction: a difficult journey towards a goal, often symbolic or allegorical. Tales of quests figure prominently in the folklore of every nat ...

''. A devout Roman Catholic, Elisabeth has written for the British ''

Catholic Herald The ''Catholic Herald'' is a London-based Roman Catholic monthly magazine, founded in 1888 and a sister organisation to the non-profit Catholic Herald Institute, based in New York. After 126 years as a weekly newspaper, it became a magazine ...

'' about the revival of

traditional A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examp ...

religious communities in France, as well as a monthly column in ''Vatican'' Magazine. She signed a 2008 petition asking the bishops of England and Wales to provide more Latin Sunday

Tridentine Mass The Tridentine Mass, also known as the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite or ''usus antiquior'' (), Vetus Ordo or the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) or the Traditional Rite, is the liturgy in the Roman Missal of the Catholic Church codified in ...

es. In December 2010, she published a liturgical volume titled ''The Faith of Children: in Praise of the People's Devotion''. The book, which featured a foreword by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

's elder brother,

Georg Ratzinger Georg Ratzinger PA (15 January 19241 July 2020) was a German Catholic priest, Cast Film, Soap Opera Actor, Comedian, and musician, known for his work as the conductor of the Regensburger Domspatzen, the cathedral choir of Regensburg. He was ...

, was published in Italian and German. In 2011, her blog posts from ''Finch’s Quarterly Review'' were translated into German and published as a book titled ''Tagebuch einer Prinzessin''. In 2012, she began working as a contributing style editor for fashion magazine ''Vogue''. In March 2015, she drew media criticism when she shared a photo on

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

of what appears to be a homeless woman in Paris reading an issue of Vogue, which she posted with the comment, "Paris is full of surprises....and @voguemagazine readers even in unexpected corners!" She later deleted the photo and apologised on Twitter for causing any offense. In October 2019 Elisabeth curated

Sotheby's Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...

''Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels'' sale in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

Personal life

Elisabeth has frequently featured in socialite diary items and appeared in a '' Vanity Fair'' article entitled "Fortune's Children" in June 2009, photographed by Bruce Weber. "I think it's a huge privilege to be able to use the access that we have in an interesting way," she said, discussing a book about art collectors she is writing in collaboration with her cousin, photographer Alex Flick. In 2009, she was made a Dame of the Order of Malta. Elisabeth has resided in New York City, London, and Rome.

Decorations

Dame of Honour and Devotion in Obedience of the

Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic Church, Cathol ...

. *

Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Perfect Friendship.

Ancestry

Books

* ''Tagebuch einer Prinzessin.'' (''The Princess Diaries''). Marion von Schröder. Berlin, 2011, * ''Fromm! Eine Einladung, das Katholische wieder mit allen Sinnen zu erleben.'' With a foreword by

, epilogue by Mgr. Wilhelm Imkamp. Kisslegg, 2009,

References

External links