Saptamana 13 / Week 13

Acum doua saptamani incepeam sa scriu despre monarhiile din Balcani, facand o scurta prezentare a familiei regale a Iugoslaviei si a legaturilor sale de rudenie cu familia regala romana. Saptamana aceasta voi continua acest subiect si voi scrie putin despre vecinii nostri sudici, din Bulgaria.





                               © Diana Mandache

    ML regina Elisabeta a Greciei (printesa Romaniei), regina Maria a

                    Romaniei & regina Giovanna a Bulgariei





Dupa cum mentionam mai devreme, destinul Bulgariei moderne, la fel ca si cel al Romaniei, Iugoslaviei sau Greciei, este strans legat de institutia monarhica. Evolutia monarhiei, in fiecare din aceste state, a fost relativ asemanatoare: in toate cele 4 cazuri dinastiile au fost create prin oferirea tronului unui membru dintr-o familie regala sau princiara europeana, in incercarea de a cimenta statul national modern si a obtine independenta fata de fosta putere suzerana din zona (Imperiul Otoman).

Actuala dinastie bulgara a fost intemeiata de Ferdinand I de Saxa-Coburg-Koháry, care asemenea lui Carol I al Romaniei, a fost mai intai principe, iar apoi rege (tar) al Bulgarei. Este relevant de aratat ca Saxa-Coburg este una dintre cele mai redutabile familii europene. Descendentii acestei case ocupa in prezent tronurile Marii Britanii si Belgiei, iar in trecut, il ocupau si pe cel al Portugaliei. Regina Maria a Romaniei a fost si ea principesa de Saxa-Coburg-Gotha, inaintea casatoriei.

Asa cum am obisnuit cititorii acestui blog, voi prezenta legaturile de famile dintre casa regala bulgara si cea a Romaniei cu ajutorul tabelelor genealogice. ASR Principesa Mostenitoare Margareta se inrudeste cu regele bulgarilor, atat din partea tatalui, cat si a mamei, dupa cum se poate observa mai jos:





Descendenta din casa de Saxa-Coburg
(linia paterna a ASR Principesa Mostenitoare a Romaniei)

  



Descendenta din casa de Bourbon-Parma
(linia materna a ASR Principesa Mostenitoare a Romaniei)



In prezent, la sefia casei regale bulgare se afla, MS regele Simeon al II-lea, care, asemeni regelui Mihai I al Romaniei sau a regelui Petru al II-lea al Iugoslaviei, a preluat coroana la o varsta foarte frageda (6 ani), fiind obligat sa plece in exil in urma celui de-al doilea razboi mondial, cand tara a cazut in sfera de influenta a comunistilor sovietici.





                         © ASR Principele Radu al Romaniei

   stanga la dreapta: ASR Principele Mostenitor al Serbiei & Iugoslaviei,

             ML regina & regele Bulgariei, ALR Principesa Mostenitoare

                                 & Principele Radu ai Romaniei





Regele bulgarilor a trait in Spania pana la dezmembrarea blocului comunist din Europa de Est, intorcandu-se in tara natala la mijlocul anilor ’90, dupa 50 de ani de exil.

In postarea de saptamana viitoare voi analiza succinct activitatea MS regele Simeon al II-lea dupa intoarcerea in Bulgaria.

Supa bulgareasca “Tarator”

(supa rece de castraveti cu iaurt)

Aceasta reteta este ideala pentru o zi calda de vara. Daca ma uit pe geam imi dau seama ca m-am grabit putin… Oricum recomand sa incercati aceasta reteta bulgareasca in primul rand pentru ca are un gust delicios, dar si pentru ca e lejera si se prepara foarte rapid.

Am curatat doi castraveti medii si i-am taiat cuburi. Intr-un bol, am amestecat doi catei de usturoi razuiti cu ulei de masline (o lingura mare) si sare. Am adaugat peste mujdei castravetele taiat cuburi si doua maini de miez de nuca, pe care l-am tocat, nu prea marunt, in prealabil, iar la urma 1 ½ l de iaurt. Am amestecat totul si am introdus la frigider cateva ore.

Inainte de a servi, am tocat marunt o legatura de marar proaspat si l-am adaugat, amestecand bine inca o tura. Supa “Tarator” merge foarte bine cu paine prajita.

Retetele simple, cu putine ingrediente tind sa fie extrem de apreciate. Sfatul meu in cazul lor este sa va asigurati ca le preparati cu cele mai proaspete si de calitate produse la care aveti acces.

Reteta detaliata se afla in “Cartea regala de bucate”, Ed. Curtea Veche, Bucuresti 2010, pag. 132.

***

Two weeks ago I started to write about the Balkan monarchies by making a brief presentation of the Yugoslavian royal family and also showing the family bonds that exist between this and the Romanian royal family. This week I will continue on the subject by writing about our Southern neighbors in Bulgaria.

As I mentioned previously, the destiny of modern Bulgaria, just like that of Romania, Yugoslavia or Greece, was strongly linked to monarchy. The evolution of the institution, in each of the 4 countries, was similar: each of the dynasties was established by offering the vacant throne to a member of the European royalty in an attempt to strengthen the modern national state and obtain independence from Sublime Porte.  

The present-day Bulgarian dynasty was established by Ferdinand I of Saxe-Coburg-Koháry, who just as Carol I in Romania, was firstly prince and then king (czar) of Bulgaria. It is worth mentioning that Saxe-Coburg was and continues to be one of the most prominent European princely families. Its descendants occupy at present the thrones of Great Britain and Belgium, while in the past, besides Bulgaria, they also reigned over Portugal. Queen Marie of Romania was herself a princess of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha before her marriage.   

As I have accustomed the readers of this blog, I will highlight the family ties between the royal houses of Romania and Bulgaria with the help of family trees. HRH Crown Princess Margarita of Romania is related to the king of the Bulgarians both on her father’s and her mother’s sides, as you can see:

[see The Saxa-Coburg genealogic table above]

[see The Bourbon-Parma genealogic table above]

At present, the headship of the royal house of Bulgaria is assumed by HM king Simeon II, who, just as king Michael I of Romania or king Peter II of Yugoslavia, succeeded to the throne at a very early age (6 years old) and was compelled to go into exile after the second world war, when the country was included into the Soviet sphere of influence.  

The king of the Bulgarians lived in Spain until the fall of the Communist bloc in Eastern Europe and returned to the country of his birth in the mid-‘90s, after 50 years in exile.

In next week’s post, I will write a bit about HM king Simeon II’s work after his return to his native Bulgaria.

Bulgarian “Tarator” Soup

(cold soup made of yogurt & cucumbers)

This is an ideal recipe for a hot summer’s day. Looking out the window I can see that I got a bit ahead of myself… In any case, I do suggest that you try this Bulgarian dish, not only because it is delicious, but also because it is very refreshing and easy to prepare.  

I peeled two medium sized cucumbers and cut them into cubes. In a medium sized bowl I added a big spoonful of olive oil, two crushed cloves of garlic and salt. I mixed everything together and added the cucumber cubes, a cup of coarsely chopped walnuts and about a liter and a half of plain yogurt. I gave it all a stir and put it in the fridge for a few hours.

Before serving, I finely chopped some fresh dill and stirred it in. This cold Bulgarian “Tarator” soup goes very well with toast.

Simple recipes that have few ingredients and are easy to make tend to be very popular. My advice is that you make sure that they are prepared with the freshest and highest quality ingredients that you can get your hands on.

The detailed recipe can be found in “Cartea regala de bucate”, Ed. Curtea Veche, Bucuresti 2010, pag. 132.