Rep. n° 25/2023

Ballenstedt, September 15, 2023. Dr. Marek Sobola, Servare et Manere Secretary-General and Honorary Consul of Romania to Slovakia, was the first Slovak to participate in the Solemn Investiture of the House Order of Albert the Bear (German: Hausorden Albrechts des Bären) in the year 950 anniversary of the first documented written mention of Ballenstedt. The day-long event at Ballenstedt Castle culminated in the solemn Duke’s Gala.

The current Head of the House of Ascania is His Highness Eduard Prinz von Anhalt which is also related to the British Royal Family. Duke of Anhalt is the cousin of King Charles III and therefore is often invited to large family occasions in London or Windsor.

In Ballenstedt, more than 70 invited foreign and domestic personalities from the cultural, scientific, political life as well as the business sphere, who contributed to Anhalt and the history of the Duke’s House of Ascania, met. Before the actual act of the Investiture, the Chancellor of the House Order, Alexander von Bismarck, together with the Treasurer Karl-Heinz Meyer, highlighted the excellent services of many personalities who were subsequently accepted among the members of the Order.

Since January 11, 2021, the Secretary-General of Servare et Manere has been the holder of the Duke Joachim Ernst Memorial Badge (Herzog Joachim Ernst Erinnerungszeichen), a relatively rare award of the House of Ascania. The award was given to him in accordance with the Statute, for his merits in preserving the memory of His Highness Joachim Ernst, Duke of Anhalt, the last monarch of the Duchy of Anhalt, which ceased to exist in 1918.