King Charles III's Returns to His Estates in Erdély (Transylvania)

Photo by Dan Marsh via Wikipedia Commons

After a diplomatic meeting with with President Klaus Iohannis in Bucharest, Romania, Daily News Hungary reports that King Charles III took a trip to Transylvania, where he owns several properties. As Prince of Whales, he made a point to visit with some regularity.

Until recently, King Charles’s estate in the Hungarian village of Zalánpatak (Romanian: Valea Zalanului) in Transylvania, was a little known secret. The village, now in Romania, was once part of pre-World War II Hungary, and is populated almost wholly by Hungarians. According to Wikipedia, the population of the town is but a mere 139, though it does not state if the Prince is included in that number.

Hungary Today reported: “The Prince is known to be an admirer of Transylvania and has said that the region has a connection between man and nature that is almost unique in Europe today. He purchased several houses in the villages of Zalánpatak and Szászfehéregyháza in 2008 and again in 2013.” With an almost magical medieval atmosphere, wild game including boar and bears, and strong traditions of Hungarian folk culture, it is no surprise that the King has found Transylvania so enticing.

According to transylvaniancastle.com, his property “is composed of several buildings, and has a patch of forest and extensive flower meadows with mineral springs and small brooks belonging to it. The property is characterized by its rich biodiversity of plants, mushrooms, insects, birds and large mammals including bears (sometimes crossing the back yard). Wolves can be heard howling at times in winter nights.”

Undertaking the restoration of the now King’s abodes was Count Tibor Kálnoky, a descendent of the founders of Zalánpatak, and an entrepreneur who has made a mission of restoring old homes in the area and sparking an interest in sustainable rural tourism in the Szekler land. Count Kálnoky stated that the British King was taken with Transylvania because, “it was a place where the local population still lives in total harmony with the environment, with nature…it is the perfect co-habitation of man with nature.” In the video at the bottom of the page, you can take a tour of the Prince’s fully restored estate. It’s worth pointing out that the restoration to this and Kálnoky’s properties is done after extensive research into each house’s original look, which extends to all furniture and materials. Count Kálnoky describes the process as ‘painstaking’ and it shows in the results, which are museum-piece quality.

Have a look below, and take a tour of a Transylvanian location fit for a prince.

(All photos, unless captioned otherwise, are used with permission by transylvaniancastle.com)

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