Historian, Specialist Lecturer and Author

Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent is the younger child of the late Baron Gunther von Reibnitz and his wife, the late Marianne, née Countess Szapary. She was born at Carlsbad in Bohemia on the estate of her maternal grandmother Princess Hedwig Windisch - Graetz.

Her Royal Highness descends from ancient European lineage on both sides of her Family. Having lived in Austria, Australia and on her father’s farm in Mozambique, the princess moved to London from Vienna to continue her historical studies including the History of the Fine and Decorative Arts. Prior to her marriage, Princess Michael formed her own successful interior design company, Szapar Designs. While in London, she met His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent, the first cousin of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The couple married in Vienna in 1978 and have two children, Lord Frederick (28) a classics graduate from Magdalen College, Oxford, who now works for the London branch of JP Morgan Bank, and Lady Gabriella Windsor (26) who graduated from Brown University, Providence R.I. (majoring in Comparative Literature) and is now a freelance writer.

Their Royal Highnesses carry out a great number of public and charitable duties at their own expense as they do not benefit from the Civil List. Both speak several languages and have commercial interests in many different fields and countries, not least in Russia. They live in an apartment in Kensington Palace.

Her Royal Highness has an abiding love of history and the arts and with such a background, it is not surprising that since her marriage she has written three historical biographies, all of which were bestsellers and translated worldwide: “Crowned in a Far Country:Eight Royal Brides”; “Cupid and the King: Five Royal Paramours”, and “The Serpent and the Moon: Two Rivals for the Love of a Renaissance King”. A script for a possible film of the last is currently being written. Princess Michael is working on her fourth book, her first historical novel set in fifteenth century France.

It was the success of her books that stimulated international interest in Princess Michael to give lectures on her specialist subjects, initially speaking to the French Institute in New York City. For 13 years, she served on the Board of the Victoria and Albert Museum, and for the past fifteen years has pursued a successful lecture career, speaking on various historical subjects at museums and universities. Her Royal Highness has spoken all over the U.S., principally at museums and universities, and typically undertakes two tours in the U.S. each year in Spring and Autumn, speaking in about thirty venues each year. Princess Michael has also lectured in other countries including Canada, Argentina, Greece, Austria, Switzerland and Russia, for a variety of charities and national institutions, most often at eminent museums, universities and galleries. She has lectured for 'Save Venice' and for ‘Venetian Heritage’ and the English Speaking Union in a number of different cities, as well as for the Young Presidents Organization.

Princess Michael's other deep love is for her animals - in particular horses, dogs and her adored Siamese and Burmese cats - and, of course, for her garden. She has a number of lectures in her repertoire on the history of the garden.

To view lecture topics click here

To view Princess Michael's personal website - click here