Erzherzogin Michaela von Österreich

Michaela von Habsburg, officially Michaela von Österreich, was born on September 13, 1954, in Würzburg. She belongs to the House of Habsburg-Lorraine and is an Austrian archduchess. Her parents were Otto von Habsburg, the last Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary, and Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen. Michaela has a twin sister, Monika, and five other siblings. After the death of his father, Emperor Charles I, Otto became head of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. Michaela left her parents’ home at an early age and moved to New York. In the late 1970s, she worked as a freelance photographer in Tokyo before relocating to the United States. She later turned to history and became a historian and researcher of her own dynasty. She was also active in the fashion industry and eventually created her own jewelry collection, named “Princess Michaela.” A minor diplomatic incident occurred in 1978 at a reception held at the Austrian embassy in Tokyo. Michaela signed the guest book as “Michaela von Habsburg.” Because noble titles had been abolished in Austria after the end of the First World War, embassy staff removed the page and asked the guests to enter their signatures again. Michaela then signed as “Michaela Habsburg.” At the age of 29, Michaela married Eric Alba Terán d’Antena on January 14, 1984, in the Panamanian town of Anton. He was 63 years old at the time. They had three children. Their son Marc Juan Terán d’Antena was born on May 7, 1984, and married Trisha Johnston in 2012. Their daughter Carla Terán d’Antena was born on August 17, 1987. She never married and has a daughter born out of wedlock with Eduardo Tarre Martín. Their youngest son, Justin Christopher Terán d’Antena, was born on March 4, 1989, and married Irene Salander in 2019; the couple have one child. Michaela and Eric Terán d’Antena divorced in 1993 or 1994. On October 22, 1994, Michaela married Count Hubertus von Kagenek in Florida. He is the eldest son of Franz Joseph von Kagenek and his wife, Elisabeth of Bavaria. The couple had no children and divorced in 1998. In 2011, Michaela attended the funeral of her father, Otto von Habsburg, together with her siblings. Her life thus combines membership in a formerly ruling European dynasty with an international professional career as a photographer, fashion specialist, and historian. After moving to the United States at an early age, she increasingly devoted herself to the history and heritage of her family.