Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa

Efthymia
Duchess of Rhithasa
Born	19 February 1998 (age 26) Arcadia, Lihnidos
Full name Efthymia Filippa Aglaia
House	Vasiliou
Father	Yorgos of Ikaria
Mother	Stella II
Religion	Fabrian Catholic

Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa (Efthymia Filippa Aglaia; born 19 February 1998) is the current Crown Princess of Lihnidos, Duchess of Rhithasa, and heir apparent to the current Empress Stella II. Efthymia is the oldest of the four children of Empress Stella and Yorgos of Ikaria. Efthymia was officially named the crown princess on 27 November 2007 after the Crown Council unanimously approved her being named heir to the throne of Lihnidos. If she were to inherit the throne from her mother, she would reign as the 17th monarch and 9th Empress of Lihnidos.

Efthymia was born at Saint Maria's Hospital in Arcadia, Lihnidos, the capital city, on 19 February 1998. At the time of her birth she was considered third-in-line to the throne after her grandmother Teresa and mother. Once reaching the appropriate age, she was enrolled at Saint Anna's School for Girls in Arcadia, the same school that her mother attended when she was the same age. Efthymia attended Saint Anna's throughout primary and secondary education and graduated in 2016. She is currently enrolled at the University of Arcadia studying for a Bachelors Degree in Applied Economics.

Efthymia is a follower of the Fabrian Catholic Church like most members of her family and is an avid follower of fashion trends. Much like her mother, Efthymia tends to remain private and rarely expresses her opinion publicly or talks about her personal life.

Early Life and Education

Efthymia was born on 19 February 1998 at Saint Maria's Hospital in room 584 at 3:12 PM. She was born to Princess Stella of Lihnidos (later Stella II) and Yorgos of Ikaria. She was a twin to Prince Spyridion and was considered to be the first child, having been born minutes before her brother. After her birth she was baptized on 28 February 1998 and was considered to be third-in-line for the throne.

Efthymia's early childhood was spent surrounded by her siblings, who by the age of four, included her twin, Spyridion, as well as two more sisters, Maria and Athanasia. Her mother, having been named crown princess in 2000, found it difficult to spend much time with her children, leaving Efthymia's father, Yorgos, as the parent that she developed an early bond with. Efthymia's relationship with her mother improved over time as Stella was able to spend more time with her children.

At the age of five she was enrolled at the same school her mother had attended for primary and secondary education, Saint Anna's School for Girls, one of the most prestigious private Fabrian Catholic schools in the nation. She struggled through secondary education, often needing the help of private tutors on sciences and history, but did surprisingly well in math and managed to pass an honors calculus class with a low A grade during her last year of secondary education. She graduated from Saint Anna's with a GPA of 3.1.

After graduating from Saint Anna's, Efthymia applied for her mother's alma mater, the University of Arcadia. She was accepted in 2015 and begun her first year in 2016. In 2018 she declared her major and began studying for a Bachelors of Applied Economics. She is due to graduate at the end of the spring semester in 2020.

Heir Apparent

Efthymia became the heir apparent on 27 November 2007 after the death of her grandmother, Empress Teresa. Following the death of her grandmother and her mother's ascension to the throne, she was presented to the Crown Council as her mother's chosen heir. The council voted unanimously in favor of her being named the crown princess. Being nine at the time, she was forced to undergo further consideration by the council at the age of eighteen and was once again given unanimous support among the council.

Efthymia's mother refused to allow her to participate in any more than a few of the duties traditionally given to the crown princess in her youth. Her mother, having taken on many duties which later put a strain on her personal life, only permitted Efthymia to begin to take a more active role after her eighteenth birthday. Following her final approval by the Crown Council, Efthymia was granted her own office beside her mother's in the imperial offices and given a budget to take on a small number of staff. Since 2016, she has used only a small portion of the yearly budget allocated to her office and has donated the remaining amounts at the end of the fiscal years to a variety of charities.

Since her eighteenth birthday, Efthymia has participated in three Crown Council sessions, all of which occurred during times when her mother was out of the country. Efthymia is reported to have a friendly relationship with a majority of the members and is often seen with children of the heads of the noble houses. Despite taking a more hands off approach than her mother did when Efthymia's age, many have described her as a hard-working and diligent woman who wishes to do what she believes is in the best interest of others.

Personal Life

Relationships

Efthymia has been in one known relationship in the past. According to one of her classmates, during her time in secondary school Efthymia was engaged in a romantic relationship with Nikilos Lois. While unclear how the two met, she reportedly attempted to keep their relationship a secret due to Nikilos's relatively low social class, but failed when the two were caught sneaking into a movie theater one evening after Efthymia had managed to leave the grounds of the Imperial Palace undetected. As Lihnidosi succession law requires that any individual in line for the throne must have their marriage approved by the reigning monarch, it is likely that her mother forced her to end the relationship after the discovery.

In 2017, multiple posts on social media led many to believe that Efthymia is in a relationship with the Grand Duchess of Ithaca's grandson, Galan. While neither family made an official statement regarding the supposed relationship, the theory gained ground and drew similarities to the relationship between Efthymia's mother and father, who at the time of their marriage held the same positions as Efthymia and Galan would presently.

In June of 2018 the Imperial Palace confirmed that Efthymia was in a relationship with Prince Roletus of Petra. If the relationship were to result in a marriage, Prince Roletus would be the first foreign-born consort in over 120 years.

Courtship Controversy

Following the announcement in June that Efthymia was in a relationship with Prince Roletus of Petra, reports surfaced that pointed to discontent among members of the Crown Council. One such report, printed on 30 June in the Arcadia Daily newspaper, suggested that a significant number of council members were unhappy with the relationship and had lobbied the empress to force its end. The report explained that the primary reason for the discontent among the council members was the desire to see a Lihnidosi-born consort for the crown princess once she marry and take the throne. As there had been no foreign-born consort in over 120 years, this was seen as a plausible, if not likely reason. The report only gained traction due to the Arcadia Daily being owned by the family of the empress's consort, most notably the Duchess of Ikaria, who holds a seat on the Crown Council. The imperial offices and the spokesperson for the empress described the report as fiction.

On 13 July it was reported that a session of the Crown Council had been held on 11 July to hold a vote on Efthymia's position as heir. This seemed to contradict the claim by the Imperial Palace that all was well. The vote was reportedly held after several members of the council demanded a vote on Efthymia's status, although who those individuals were was not given. According to the report, also written in the Arcadia Daily, the council's vote showed that the crown princess still had support from the council. The exact results of the vote were not disclosed, however the story alluded that the vote was close. When asked about the vote, the spokesperson for the empress said that there was, "nothing new to announce at this time," regarding Efthymia's status as heir.

Political Views

The political positions that Efthymia holds are unknown to the public as she has kept out of national politics entirely. Having only become eligible to vote after her eighteenth birthday, she has only voted in one national election and has been seen with her mother when voting in recent local city elections held for Arcadia. It is unknown what party she is registered as a member of, if registered as a member of any party, and she is not a member of any political organizations or clubs at university.

There has been speculation that her unwillingness to comment on political matters or get involved in any political organizations signals a change from her mother's and grandmother's conservative politics. Some political commentators have suggested that her mother may be discouraging or outright disallowing any membership in political organizations so to not signal a coming end to the streak in conservative monarchs.

Perception and Reputation

Efthymia is held in a favorable light on the national stage despite rarely speaking with national media and seemingly attempting to stay out of the spotlight. The majority of the news reported regarding Efthymia are from secondhand sources that speak on conditions of anonymity. Her donations to a number of charities across the nation and beyond have generated large amounts of positive press and her friendly relationships with the members of the Crown Council has led them to speak positively of her when asked.

Titles, styles, honors, and arms

Styles of The Duchess of Rhithasa
Reference style	Her Imperial Highness
Spoken style	Your Imperial Highness
Alternative style	Your Highness

Titles and styles

• 19 February 1998 - 27 November 2007: Her Imperial Highness Princess Efthymia
• 27 November 2007 - present: Her Imperial Highness Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa

Honors

• Grand Cross of the Order of the Dolphin
• Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the Lihnidosi Empire

Arms

Coat of Arms of Princess Efthymia (1998-2007)	Coat of Arms of Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa (2007–present)

Ancestry

Family of Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa

16. Galinthias, Count of Meteze 8. Pietr of Meteze 17. Evangelina Sagona 4. Cletus of Meteze 18. Telephus Mustou 9. Odessa Mustou 19. Aretina Rokou 2. Yorgos of Ikaria 20. Ibycus Theofanis 10. Marios Theofanis 21. Vara Antonopoulou 5. Yanna, Duchess of Ikaria 22. Aeson, Duke of Ikaria 11. Rhoda, Duchess of Ikaria 23. Marrita of Selias 1. Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa 24. Athamus, Grand Duke of Ithaca 12. Thiseas, Grand Duke of Ithaca 25. Tressa of Thespaikastros 6. Priapus of Ithaca 26. Anton Boosalis 13. Jacinda of Amararae 27. Uriana, Duchess of Amararae 3. Stella II of Lihnidos 28. Klaus Michaelides 14. Daemon, Duke of Edacia 29. Cascadia, Duchess of Edacia 7. Teresa of Lihnidos 30. Athanasios II of Lihnidos 15. Selene II of Lihnidos 31. Theoni of Messenia

See also

Princess Efthymia, Duchess of Rhithasa House of Vasiliou Born: 19 February 1998
Lines of succession
First Heir apparent	Succession to the Lihnidosi throne	Followed by Prince Spyridion of Lihnidos
Regnal titles
Preceded by Stella II of Lihnidos	Duchess of Rhithasa 2007–present	Incumbent