The Malta Independent on Sunday
A tale of kings and queens, Malta and the Baha’i community
future king of England. These were all turned down by her family. In 1892 she was chosen as the future wife of Crown Prince Ferdinand of Romania, the heir apparent of King Carol I. Her life as Queen of Romania would be a challenging one and she had her share of suffering. Apart from political intrigues and war she suffered the loss of her youngest son who died aged three in 1916.
Later in 1924 she returned to San Anton gardens where a tree, planted in her name, can still be found there. Her time in Malta was one of the happiest and in her autobiography it became clear how important this happy period of her life was to her.
For the Bahá’í community of Malta, which has existed on the island for over 60 years, Queen Maria's connections with the is- land has another significance. Beginning in 1867 in Adrianople and continuing later in ‘Akká, Bahá’u’lláh (founder of the Bahá’í Faith), wrote to the kings and rulers of the world, including Emperor Napoleon III, Queen Victoria, Kaiser Wilhelm I, Tsar Alexander II, Emperor Franz Joseph, Pope Pius IX, Sultan Abdul-Aziz and the Iranian ruler, Nasiri'd-Din Shah. In these letters, Bahá’u’lláh openly proclaimed His station as a Messenger of God. He urged the leaders to pursue justice and disarmament and exhorted them to band together into a commonwealth of nations, warning them of the dire consequences should they fail to establish peace.
Two of these recipients were Queen Victoria and Czar Alexander II of Russia. During Bahá'u'l- láh's long imprisonment and exile under the Ottoman Empire he was offered assistance at different times, from both the Russian and British governments. Although he refused to avail himself of their offers of protection it is significant to note that Queen Marie, who was a grandchild of both Victoria and Alexander II, spoke movingly of the Bahá’í faith and what it meant to her. The acceptance of Bahá'u'lláh's station by this Queen made her the first crowned head to embrace the Bahá’í faith.
“The Baha’i teachings bring peace and understanding. It is like a wide embrace gathering together all those who have long searched for words of hope. It accepts all great prophets gone before, it destroys no other creeds and leaves all doors open. Saddened by the continual strife amongst believers of many confessions and wearied of their intolerance towards each other, I discovered in the Baha’i teaching the real spirit of Christ so often denied and misunderstood: Unity instead of strife, Hope instead of condemnation, Love instead of hate, and a great reassurance for all men.” If you are interested in learning more or would like to participate in the bicentennial celebrations of the Bahá’í community send an email on: info@bahaimalta.org or join the Facebook group Baha’i Community of Malta