Gloria, Princess of Thurn and Taxis
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Mariae Gloria Ferdinanda Joachima Josefine Wilhelmine Huberta, Princess of Thurn and Taxis (German: Gloria Fürstin von Thurn and Taxis), born Countess Mariae Gloria of Schönburg in Glauchau and Waldenburg (Mariae Gloria Gräfin von Schönburg zu Glachau und Waldenburg), daughter of Count Joachim and Countess Beatrix (born Countess Széchényi of Sárvár) on February 23, 1960, is a German princess and socialite. The mother of Albert, the head of the princely house of Thurn and Taxis, she controlled the $2 billion Thurn and Taxis fortune after her husband Johannes died in 1990. Johannes, born in 1926, married the penniless countess who had worked as a waitress. The couple had three children:
- Her Serene Highness Princess Maria Theresia Ludovika Klothilde Helene Alexandra of Thurn and Taxis, born November 28, 1980 in Regensburg
- Her Serene Highness Princess Elisabeth Margarethe Maria Anna Beatriz of Thurn and Taxis, born March 24, 1982 in Regensburg.
- His Serene Highness Prince Albert Maria Lamoral Miguel Johannes Gabriel of Thurn and Taxis, born June 24, 1983 in Regensburg, who succeeded his father in 1990 as Albert II, Prince of Thurn and Taxis.
Known as the punk princess and "Princess TNT", Gloria was an icon in the 1980s. She was known for her exuberant and lavish spending and whirlwind social life. However, on Johannes' death, the spending came to a halt as massive taxes were due on the estate he left behind.
In 2001, she was severely criticized for stating in a talkshow that the high AIDS-rate in African countries was not due to a lack of safe sex practices, but to the fact that "the blacks like to copulate ('schnackseln') a lot".
- Note regarding personal names: Fürstin is a title, translated as Princess, not a first or middle name. The male form is Fürst.
