The Fiftieth Birthday of the Duchess of Aosta

Princess Olga.
Painted by her mother Marina Karella (Princess Marina of Greece).

Today, Princess Olga of Savoy, Duchess of Aosta, celebrates her fiftieth birthday!

Princess Olga and her father Prince Michael.

Born at Athens on 17 November 1971, Princess Olga Isabelle of Greece is the second daughter of Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark (b.1939) and Princess Marina (b.1941; born Marina Karella), who married in 1965. Olga has one sister, Princess Alexandra (b.1968; married Nicolas Mirzayantz).

Princess Françoise d'Orléans and Prince Christoper of Greece on their wedding day, 1929.

The paternal grandparents of Olga are Prince Christopher of Greece and Denmark and Princess Françoise d'Orléans. The maternal grandparents of the princess are Theodoros Karella and Elly Chalikiopoulos.

Aimone and Olga's engagement picture, 2005.

On 7 May 2005, Princess Olga and Prince Aimone of Savoy (b.1967), Duke of Apulia, became engaged in Turin. Aimone is the only son of Prince Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, and his first wife Princess Claude d'Orléans. Although related in several different ways, Olga and Aimone are second cousins. Both are the great-grandchildren of Prince Jean d'Orléans, Duke de Guise, and his wife and first cousin Princess Isabelle d'Orléans.

The Duke and Duchess of Apulia on the day of their religious wedding, 2008.

On 16 September 2008, Aimone of Savoy and Olga of Greece were civilly married at the Italian embassy in Moscow, Russia, where the couple live. The pair celebrated their religious wedding on 27 September at the Church of Panagia Diasozousa on the Isle of Patmos in Greece. Their union was attended by their parents and by King Constantine II and Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes.

The Duke and Duchess of Apulia with their first child, Prince Umberto, at his baptism.

The first child of the Duke and Duchess of Apulia arrived in 2009. Prince Umberto Sathya of Savoy, Prince of Piedmont, was born on 7 March at Neuilly-sur-Seine. The prince was baptised on 18 June and received as godparents Princess Maria Gabriella of Savoy and Carlo Radicati di Primeglio.

The baptism of Prince Amedeo of Savoy.

Aimone and Olga welcomed their second child in 2011. Prince Amedeo Michel of Savoy, Duke of the Abruzzi, was born on 24 May at Paris. The prince was baptised on 8 June 2012 at Milan in the Basilica of San Marco and received as godparents Princess Mafalda of Savoy, Princess Marina of Greece and George Antaki.

The baptism of Princess Isabella of Savoy.

The Duke and Duchess of Apulia had their third child and only daughter in 2012. Princess Isabella Marina Vita of Savoy was born at Paris on 14 December. The princess was baptised on her first birthday, 14 December 2013, at the église Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin in Paris.

The 2020 Christmas card of the Aostas, showing Prince Umberto, Princess Isabella, and Prince Amedeo.

Prince Aimone and Princess Olga, Duke and Duchess of Aosta, live with their children in Russia. Naturally, they have very close ties with their families in Italy and Greece.