Sad news today! Countess Marianne Bernadotte of Wisborg, Princess Bernadotte has passed away at the age of 100. The Actress who married a former Swedish Prince and was the last surviving aunt of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Countess Marianne had been a beloved member of the Swedish Royal Family for over six decades.
The daughter of Helge Lindberg and Thyra Dahlman, Marianne Lindberg was born and grew up in Helsingborg, and became an actress at The Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm until her second marriage, talking about her acting experience:
Along with your director and your fellow actors you find your way through to your part. You build up your own little world, a concentrate, where everyone invests of h-self to hold the pieces together and thus be able to offer the audience something whole.
In 1947, Marianne married Gabriel Tchang, the son of the Chinese Ambassador to Sweden, having three children before divorcing in 1957.
In 1961, she married Count Sigvard Bernadotte of Wisborg, the second son of King Gustav VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught, who lost his Royal Title after his first marriage and was made Count of Wisborg by the Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, though he later also used the title of Prince Bernadotte.
Countess Marianne was noted for her charitable work supporting dyslexia, physical disabilities, children’s eye care and the arts, including the Marianne & Sigvard Bernadotte Arts Fund, which she had continued to support after Count Sigvard’s death in 2002.
The last surviving aunt of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Countess Marianne was a beloved member of the Swedish Royal Family, and continued to attend royal events until her final years, which were spent in a nursing home on Gärdet in Stockholm, where Countess Marianne passed away, two months before her 101st Birthday.
King Edward VII Ruby Tiara
Pearl and Diamond Tiara
Pearl and Diamond Tiara
Origin: A Gift from her former mother-in-law, the wife of the Chinese Ambassador to Sweden.
Notable Appearances: King Carl XVI Gustaf’s Wedding Gala in 1976, the Wedding of Crown Princess Victoria in 2010 and the Wedding of Prince Carl Philip in 2015
Current Location: In the possession of Countess Marianne
King Edward VII Ruby Tiara
Origin: A Wedding Gift to Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden from her uncle and aunt, King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, inherited by her second son, Prince Sigvard.
Notable Appearances: The 60th Birthday of her father-in-law, King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden, in 1962 and the British State Visit to Sweden in 1983
Current Location: Contentiously bought by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and now worn by Queen Silvia
Amethyst Tiara
Origin: Possibly originates from Princess Therese, Duchess of Dalarna
Notable Appearances: Wedding of her great-niece, Princess Madeleine of Sweden, in 2013
Current Location: In the possession of Countess Marianne
Diamond Arch Tiara
Origin: Unknown
Notable Appearances: The Wedding of her niece, Queen Margrethe of Denmark, in 1967 and the Wedding of her niece, Princess Christina of Sweden, in 1974
Current Location: Unknown
Pearl Choker/Brooch
Origin: Unknown but personally acquired by Countess Marianne Bernadotte
Notable Appearances: Various State Banquets, the King Carl XVI Gustaf’s Wedding Gala in 1976, the Wedding of Crown Princess Victoria in 2010 and the Wedding of Prince Carl Philip in 2015
Current Location: In the possession of Countess Marianne
The Braganza Tiara
Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure
Queen Sofia’s 9-Prong Tiara
The Swedish Cameo Parure
The Connaught Diamond Tiara
The Baden Fringe Tiara
Napoleonic Amethyst Parure
King Edward VII Ruby Tiara
Swedish Aquamarine Kokoshnik Tiara
Napoleonic Cut Steel Tiara
Princess Lilian’s Laurel Wreath Tiara
Princess Sofia’s Wedding Tiara
Modern Fringe Tiara
Swedish Pink Topaz Parure
Bernadotte Emerald Parure
