Will Boris marry a Grand Duchess

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April 11, 1929

King Boris is determined to find a bride, reports the Associated Press.  As "religious obstacles" appear to have prevented his marriage with Princess Giovanna of Italy,  there is now talk in Sofia that the King may soon announce his engagement to Grand Duchess Kira Kirillovna of Russia.

The 19-year-old Grand Duchess is the younger daughter of Grand Duke Kirill and Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna of Russia. 

Grand Duke Kirill is the head of the Russian Imperial family.   The young Grand Duchess is a niece of Queen Marie of Romania. 

There would be no question of religious differences as Kira is Russian Orthodox.

The plans for the Italian marriage apparently fell apart after the Pope refused to issue a dispensation to allow the marriage to take place.  He would agree to the marriage only if King Boris agreed to raise any children born of the marriage in the Roman Catholic faith.

The King could not agree to this.  The Bulgarian constitution requires that the heir to the throne be raised in the Bulgarian Orthodox church.

The Vatican also "demanded the establishment of a papal nuncio," as well as the appointment of several Roman Catholic bishops in Sofia.  The Bulgarian government considered this proviso to be "unacceptable."

Italian President Mussolini favored the alliance in disregard to the Vatican's conditions.  But King Boris, worn out by the opposition, has no interest in further pursuing his suit due to the opposition to the marriage abroad and in Bulgaria.

The King, who is currently on a tour of European capitals, will end without the "heralded visit to Rome." This is due to the "seeming impossibility" of achieving a reconciliation of the "divergent views" between the Roman Catholic and the Bulgarian Orthodox church.