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She maintained a Paris apartment as well. She continued to live in grand style, drinking Baron de
Rothschild's Bordeaux, rearranging her Louis XVI furniture and attending exclusive parties. When travelling she brought along a large wardrobe, reported to be a thousand saris, hundreds of pairs of shoes
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The princely couple transferred a copious amount from the Baroda treasury, including some of its most famous jewellery, including four celebrated pearl carpets, a famed seven-strand necklace of priceless pearls (called the Baroda pearls), a three-strand diamond necklace with the famous Pink
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after the war. They went on a spending spree, buying all types of luxurious items. It was widely reported they spent $ 10 million on one of those trips. Indian officials audited the principality's finances. They concluded the
Gaekwad had taken several large interest-free loans from the Baroda
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summoned the
Gaekwad to contest this marriage. The latter argued that the law applied to the subjects of Baroda, and that he being their monarch was exempt from this law. This was confirmed by the Viceroy's legal advisers. The British government accepted the marriage, but did not refer to the
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After the dissolution of her second marriage, she clung to her exalted title. Her Rolls-Royce still sported the armorial insignia of Baroda. She would reminisce about the days when she was a Queen and received 101-gun salutes.
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The
Maharani suffered a tragedy in 1985, when Prince died by committing suicide at age 40. His death was attributed to alcoholism and drug addiction. Sita Devi died four years later of natural causes.
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After the
Maharani's death, a part of her inheritance was transferred to her niece (daughter of Rani Manjula Devi of the Sidli family) Anangarekha Devi who currently lives in Assam with her family.
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In 1946, the
Gaekwad took his second wife on a tour of Europe. The reason for their visit was to find a suitable residence away from India. They found that the independent Principality of
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336:. The Gaekwad subsequently began a romantic relationship with Sita Devi. The lovers consulted with his legal team. The lawyers recommended that the Hindu Sita Devi convert to
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455:(8 March 1945 – 8 May 1985). Nicknamed "Princie", he was the apple of her eye. She attended exclusive events and partied with other international luminaries, such as
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horse races in 1943. The
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After her conversion, Gaekwad took her as his second wife in 1943, which caused consternation with the
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and of course her jewellery. But her finances were eventually reduced enough for her to secretly auction some of her beloved jewels in 1974.
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included Sita Devi and
Princie on its list of "fun couples" for 1969. Sita Devi divorced the Gaekwad in 1956. He promptly moved to London.
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The Gaekwad visited often, bringing some of the great treasures of Baroda to Monaco. The Maharani became the custodian of these treasures.
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treasury. They demanded that these be returned. The prince complied by making several payments from his $ 8 million-a-year income.
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The Maharani was a car enthusiast and was reportedly very fond of her Mercedes W126, which was custom made for her by
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Years after the Maharani's death some of the precious items were discovered. In 1994 the pearl carpet was found in a
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she invited guests to touch the 30-carat (6.0 g) sapphire on her right hand for good luck.
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78.53-carat (15.706 g) diamond. The princely couple also had custody of the
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Maharani as "Her Highness" as was the protocol for the consorts of rulers of
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was a suitable place to set up their second home. They bought a mansion in
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Bahadur Garu and his wife Sri Rani Chinnamamba Devi (of Kapileswarapuram,
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that the previous Gaekwad of Baroda enacted. The British Viceroy in
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Acte de décès, Mairie de Paris, Registre 531, Numéro d'acte: 423
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diamond. When Baroda was integrated into the newly independent
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to dissolve her marriage to the Zamindar under Indian law.
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Gujarat State Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited (GSFC)
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and the Maharani took up permanent residence there.
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Indian Institute of Information Technology, Vadodara
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238:Prince Meka Appa Rao I, Prince of Vuyyuru
134:Learn how and when to remove this message
79:Learn how and when to remove this message
16:Indian princess and socialite (1917–1989)
608:"A short biography of Princess Niloufer"
1194:Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda
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1252:Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park
373:The couple also made two trips to the
296:Rao Venkata Kumara Mahipati Surya Rau
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700:Divorce of Sita Devi and the Gaekwad
646:; by John Lord (1971) Random House;
244:Pratap Singh Rao Gaekwad I of Baroda
451:She bore Gaekwad one child, a son,
1318:People from East Godavari district
286:Sita Devi was the daughter of the
148:Sita Devi (Maharani of Kapurthala)
106:tone or style may not reflect the
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721:, Time Magazine, 20 January 1975.
416:Maharanee of Baroda v Wildenstein
759:Images of Pearl Carpet of Baroda
499:to both Sita Devi and Princie.
264:Princess Sita Devi of Pithapuram
116:guide to writing better articles
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1226:Birla Vishwakarma Mahavidyalaya
764:Moon of Baroda on Diamond Divas
676:, Time Magazine, 21 March 1969.
1211:Baroda School of Legal Studies
893:Vadodara Municipal Corporation
847:Political integration of India
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1132:Ahmedabad Vadodara Expressway
317:, daughter-in-law of the 7th
266:(formerly known as “Queen of
174:Co-Maharani Consort of Baroda
734:Baroda Pearl & Sita Devi
626:Tribune India 18 August 2002
595:Tribune India 13 August 2006
324:She met her second husband,
926:Maharaja Fateh Singh Museum
663:Time Magazine Sept 13, 1968
432:Museum of Islamic Art, Doha
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1328:20th-century Indian people
1173:IPCL Sports Complex Ground
1137:Mumbai Vadodara Expressway
827:British East India Company
754:The Pearl Carpet of Baroda
468:Wallis, Duchess of Windsor
161:Princess Consort of Vuyyur
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1323:20th-century Indian women
1112:Nandesari railway station
256:Surya Rau I of Pithapuram
1122:Vadodara railway station
996:Sardar Patel Planetarium
305:Sita Devi first married
146:Not to be confused with
34:This article includes a
1081:Vadodara Stock Exchange
862:2001 Gujarat earthquake
495:awarded citizenship of
110:used on Knowledge (XXG)
63:more precise citations.
1206:Baroda Medical College
1117:Ranoli railway station
307:Meka Rangaiah Appa Rao
114:See Knowledge (XXG)'s
1216:Railway Staff College
1107:Bajva railway station
991:Chimnabai Clock Tower
749:The Star of the South
405:, believing it to be
309:Bahadur, Zamindar of
247:(m. 1943 - div. 1956)
241:(m. 1935 - div. 1943)
1199:Faculty of Fine Arts
1066:General Motors India
744:Baroda Pearl Auction
326:Pratap Singh Gaekwad
1303:History of Vadodara
1061:Larsen & Toubro
1047:Reliance Industries
931:Pratap Vilas Palace
1127:National Highway 8
921:Laxmi Vilas Palace
867:2002 Gujarat riots
689:Internetstones.com
453:Sayaji Rao Gaekwad
403:Daniel Wildenstein
328:of Baroda, at the
156:Princess Sita Devi
36:list of references
1313:Indian princesses
1308:Indian socialites
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1178:Moti Bagh Stadium
903:Vadodara District
842:Bombay Presidency
539:1943–1955 :
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515:1917–1935 :
457:Aristotle Onassis
384:Star of the South
315:Princess Niloufer
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108:encyclopedic tone
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1042:Gujarat Refinery
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877:2005 train crash
871:Best Bakery case
837:Baroda Residency
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1298:Baroda State
1235:Other topics
1076:Apollo Tyres
971:Kirti Stambh
966:Kirti Mandir
857:BBCI Railway
852:Bombay State
739:Baroda Pearl
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527:Her Highness
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219:(1989-02-15)
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55:Please help
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1293:1989 deaths
1288:1917 births
1267:Kayavarohan
956:Kala Bhavan
951:Nyay Mandir
936:Sayaji Baug
832:British Raj
543:Sita Devi,
532:Sita Devi,
365:Monte Carlo
294:– Sri Raja
201:12 May 1917
69:August 2022
61:introducing
1282:Categories
1168:Uttarayana
1071:Sun Pharma
1038:Indian Oil
1033:ICICI Bank
981:EME Temple
886:Government
555:References
521:Pithapuram
292:Pithapuram
197:1917-05-12
1242:Champaner
1187:Education
1163:Maa Aarki
1095:Transport
914:landmarks
536:of Vuyyur
436:Amsterdam
407:La Poésie
349:New Delhi
282:Biography
182:1943–1948
169:1935–1943
1247:Pavagadh
1153:Navratri
800:Vadodara
545:Maharani
541:Maharani
288:Maharaja
1146:Culture
1086:Siemens
1021:Economy
810:History
674:Profile
311:Vuyyuru
276:jet set
268:Baroda”
57:improve
1262:Dabhoi
803:topics
719:Monaco
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549:Baroda
510:Titles
497:Monaco
361:Monaco
334:prince
330:Madras
252:Father
234:Spouse
228:France
204:Madras
179:Tenure
166:Tenure
1158:Garba
1005:Roads
446:India
396:India
338:Islam
319:Nizam
224:Paris
42:, or
1257:Ajwa
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