Sunday, October 27, 2024

A Habsburg engagement: Anna-Carolina of Austria to marry Briton


 

John Constable Straker was born on October 23, 1990, in Northumberland, most likely in Hexham, as his parents, James Andrew John Straker and Rodrica Consuelo Chichester-Constable.  He has three younger siblings, Isabel, Crispin and Beatrice.    HI & RH Archduchess Anna-Carolina of Austria is a member of the former ruling family of Austria. She was born in Munich, Germany, on June 11, 1988, the eldest of six children of HI & RH Archduke Eduard Karl Joseph Michael Marcus Antonius Koloman Volkhold Maria of Austria and Baroness Maria Theresia Katharina Elisabeth von Gudenus.  Her younger siblings are Archduchesses Theresa, Sophie, Ladislaja, and Rose and Archduke Paul.

Her paternal grandparents are HI & RH Archduke Michael of Austria and HSH Princess Christina of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg, whose brother, Aloys, is the Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg.   

Archduke Eduard is Hungary's Ambassador to the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta, succeeding his father, Archduke Michael in the latter position. His son, Archduke Paul, a recent graduate of Thomas Aquinas College in Massachusetts, is an intern with the Order's UN Mission in New York City.

https://rlo.acton.org/archives/126019-an-interview-with-archduke-eduard-habsburg.html

Anna-Carolina also has Habsburg ancestry from her mother, a descendant of Archduke Johann of Austria (1782-1959) and his morganatic wife, Anna Plochl.   Johann was the 13th child of Emperor Leopold II of Austria and Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain.   

Johann and Anna had one son, Count Franz von Meran, who married Countess Theresia von Lamberg.  Maria Theresia is a descendant of Franz's son Count Johann, Count of Meran (1867-1947)) and his wife Countess Ladislaja von Lamberg (1870-1952).

@LinkedIn


 Jack is a graduate of Eton (2009).   He has a Master of Arts from the University of Oxford (foreign languages and literature) and an MBA from the IE Business School.  After several years working in London, he returned home in the summer of 2022, to take over the family business. He is the co-owner of the Burton Constable Holiday Park & Arboretum.   

His mother's family home, Burton Constable, is now owned by the National Heritage Memorial Fund The Fund purchased the house and estate in 1992 and established the Burton Constable Foundation.  Rodrica and Jack are members of the Foundation.  The family maintains an apartment in one of the Hall's wings.  The Straker estate, Greenshaw House, is in Hexham.

Jack is also a member of the Historic Houses' Next Generation Committee.

Although his father, James Straker, was Anglican,  Jack and his siblings were raised as Roman Catholics, their mother's faith.  He and his brother Crispin have been volunteers with the Order of Malta.  For three years, he was the advisor to Fra' Matthew Festing, Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Order of Malta.  His position ended in September 2017 following Festing's resignation earlier that year.

Due to Archduke Eduard's position in Rome, it is possible that Anna-Carolina and Jack could marry at the Vatican.  Eduard's brother, Archduke Paul, is a priest with the Order of Legionaries of Christ.

The future bride and groom are (if I counted right) 14th cousins once removed as both are descendants of King James V of Scotland (1512-1542).   Anna-Carolina is a descendant of the king's legitimate daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots.  Jack's line of descent is through two of James's illegitimate sons,  James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (1531-1570) and Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Orkney (1533-1593). 

According to the French-language blog, https://gothanjou.blog/  Archduchess Anna-Carolina has 66 lines of descent from King James V of Scotland.

King James V's mother was Margaret Tudor, the elder daughter of King Henry VII of England.   

https://burtonconstableholidaypark.co.uk/

https://peeragenews.blogspot.com/2024/10/strakerhabsurg-lothringen-engagement.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jc9_uPSjT30

https://www.thebostonpilot.com/article.php?ID=198213

No comments: