The American-born Princess of Civitella-Cesi has "proved a match" for her husband's counsel "through several hours of cross-examination" in the princess' suit for divorce.
The former Mary Elsie Moore is seeking a divorce from her husband, Marino Torlonia, the Prince of Civitella-Ceci. The proceedings are taking place in a court in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
The princess is seeking custody of her minor daughters and her son. Her husband, however, is asserting that the princess and her children are Italian subjects, and is "contesting" the princess' divorce action, according to the New York Times.
Marino, who is also the Duke of Poli and Guadagnolo, claims that his wife has no right to "bring the action in an American court.
The couple was married at the princess' parents' estate Old Orchard, in Greenwich Connecticut in 1907.
In court, the princess described the prince as her "brutal husband." She acknowledged that she had signed papers, agreeing to return to Rome with her three children, but she said her "one thought" was to return to the United States "for the purpose of taking steps to secure the return of her American citizenship."
She made this decision after learning that her husband was having an affair with Marie Lorenzino, 23, who has been described as "beautiful."
The princess said she tried to talk to the young woman "about the trouble she was causing the family," but she "gained no satisfaction. She also spoke to her husband "without effect."
The princess' brother, Charles Arthur Moore of Greenwich, testified about to "efforts to effect a reconciliation." He said that the Prince told him that Marie was a "common woman," and he could "break away without difficulty."
The reconciliation failed, and the Princes and Princess arranged for a legal separation.
The Prince and Princess have three children: Alessandro, Cristina, and Marina. The couple's eldest child, Olimpia died in 1924.
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