Yesterday evening, the Lieutenant of the Grand Master, H.E. Fra’ John T. Dunlap, honoured H.R.H Princess Maria Luisa of Bulgaria by bestowing upon her the Dame Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Order of Malta. 

The presentation took place at our mission in New York with other members of the United Nations community in attendance. We were delighted to have been joined by the Deputy Permanent Representative of Bulgaria as well as Monsignor Robert Murphy, Deputy Permanent Observer for the Holy See. During the presentation, Rev. Msgr Murphy blessed the cross before H.E. Fra’ John Dunlap honoured the Princess. 

The Lieutenant of the Grand Master said “Our friendship has blossomed and I am so happy that I was able to honour your life’s achievements by finally making you a member of our beloved Order.  An order with which you are quite familiar given that your brother, the King, has been a member for years, your husband Bron is a member and countless generations of your ancestors have been members for almost a thousand years”.

Her Royal Highness was born in the Vrana Palace in Sofia on 13 January 1933 to His Majesty Tsar Boris III and to Her Majesty the Tsaritsa Giovanna, daughter of King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy.   She is the older sister of His Majesty King Simeon of Bulgaria.