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The Luxembourg royals are mourning a “great loss.” Grand Duchess Maria Teresa’s Cuban-born uncle, Victor Batista Falla, died of coronavirus on Sunday. The Grand Ducal Court of Luxembourg announced the sad news on Monday, April 13. “It is with great sadness that Their Royal Highnesses the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess announce the death of Mr. Victor Batista Falla, uncle of His Royal Highness the Grand Duchess and last living brother of her mother,” the message read alongside pictures of the Grand Duchess’ maternal uncle.
“Mr. Victor Batista Falla, who lived in Madrid, had gone to visit his native country, Cuba, where he had not returned for 60 years. He died there on Easter Sunday at the age of 87 from COVID-19,” the palace statement continued. “Victor Batista Falla was a recognized publisher and one of the greatest patrons of Cuban literature in exile. His death is a great loss for the whole family of HRH the Grand Duchess.”
Like her uncle, the 64-year-old Grand Duchess, who married Grand Duke Henri in 1981, was also born in Cuba. Amid the ongoing health crisis, Maria Teresa has been working from home at Berg Castle in central Luxembourg , where she has been in “contact with the associations where she holds the presidency or patronage.”
The Grand Duchess isn’t the only royal who has lost a relative to COVID-19. Princess María Teresa of Bourbon-Parma, a relative of Spain’s King Felipe, became the first royal to die of coronavirus last month . She passed away at age 86 in Paris. The novel virus has also affected Prince Charles and Prince Albert of Monaco, who both tested positive , but have since recovered.