The Serbian Twins Turn 40: the Birthday of Prince Philip and Prince Alexander!

Prince Alexander and Prince Philip.
Photograph courtesy of the Royal Family of Serbia.

Today, Prince Philip and Prince Alexander of Serbia celebrate their fortieth birthdays!

The birth of the twin princes is noted in the Chicago Tribune of 25 January 1982.

Princess Maria da Gloria holding Prince Alexander and Prince Philip while Prince Peter looks on, 1982.

Born on 15 January 1982 at Fairfax, Virginia, the fraternal twin princes Philip and Alexander were the second and third children of Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia (b.1945) and his wife Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans-Braganza (b.1946). The paternal grandparents of the princes are King Peter II of Yugoslavia (1923-1970) and Queen Alexandra (1921-1993; née Princess of Greece). Their maternal grandparents are Prince Pedro Gastão of Orléans-Braganza (1913-2007) and Princess Esperanza of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1914-2005).

Princess Maria da Gloria and Crown Prince Alexander on their wedding day, 1972.

Crown Prince Alexander and Princess Maria da Gloria married on 1 July 1972 at Villamanrique de la Condesa. The couple were fourth cousins, both being descendants of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his wife Princess Mária Antónia von Koháry. Alexander and Maria da Gloria met in Portugal while both where on holiday with family. The prince and princess found that they could best converse in French. Even after the princess became fluent in English, Alexander and Maria da Gloria continued to speak in French between one another.

Prince Alexander and Princess Maria da Gloria with their eldest son Prince Peter, 1982.
The couple were on vacation in Fort Meyers, Florida.
Photo (c) News-Press / Acey Harper.

The couple welcomed the arrival of their first child, Hereditary Prince Peter, on 5 February 1980 in Chicago, Illinois. Shortly thereafter, Prince Alexander and Princess Maria da Gloria moved to Virginia, where they purchased a home. It was in Virginia that they welcomed the arrival of their twins.

Princess Alicia, Duchess of Calabria, and King Constantine II of the Hellenes with Prince Philip and Prince Alexander during their baptism. King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía of Spain as well as Queen Anne-Marie of Greece watch the ceremony.

Prince Philip and Prince Alexander of Serbia were baptised at Villamanrique, Spain, in July 1982; their parents had been married at the same place a decade earlier. When their mother was asked who she and her husband had chosen to be the princes' godparents, Princess Maria da Gloria responded: "They are the same for the two children. Because we had only thought of one child and we asked our cousin King Constantine [of Greece] and my cousin Anita of Bourbon-Sicilies [Duchess of Calabria] to be the godfather and godmother. When the twins arrived, we did not want to ask those we had chosen to share these responsibilities, but they [the King of Greece and the Duchess of Calabria] are so wonderful that they insisted on remaining godfather and godmother of the two children. This is why Philip and Alexander have the same godfather and the same godmother."

Prince Philip and Princess Danica surrounded by family and friends on their wedding day, 2017.
Photo (c) Getty Images / Milica Radicevic.

Prince Philip and Princess Danica with their son Prince Stefan, 2018.
Photo (c) Getty Images / Srdjan Stevanovic.

Prince Philip of Serbia graduated from University College London (UCL) with a Bachelor of Arts Honours in Humanities and following that he worked for Landsbanki in the City of London. On 7 October 2017 at Belgrade, Prince Philip married Danica Marinkovic (b.1986). Prince Philip and Princess Danica had their first child, Prince Stefan of Serbia, in 2018. The family live in Belgrade.

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Prince Alexander of Serbia at the wedding of Prince Philip, 2017.
Photo (c) Getty Images / Milica Radicevic.

Prince Alexander of Serbia attended the University of San Francisco and graduated with a Communication Studies Degree with Emphasis on Public Relations and Journalism. The prince lives in the United States.