A princess in Germany has become the first aristocrat to take off her clothes for the Playboy magazine. Xenia Florence Gabriela Sophie Iris, the Princess of Saxony, is appearing topless in the local edition of the magazine, hoping that her decision will show "every woman is beautiful the way she is", according to German magazine Bild. Her great-great-great-grandfather was the last King of Saxony, Friedrich August III, who died in 1932. The princess told the outlet that "he would have approved" the photoshoot.
"He was described to me as very humorous and loving. So he would definitely have approved of it. I feel a special connection with him," she told Bild in a poolside chat.
The 37-year-old claims a link to the 1,000-year-old House of Wettin. And she thinks her royal family won't approve of this.
"I would be surprised if they bought a copy. But of course I hope that they will at least tolerate it," Princess Xenia said about her relatives from the House of Wettin.
Talking about her royal origin, the princess said it seemed "like a curse" during her childhood. The aristocratic title finally became known to her school friends when she was in Class 7, and the experience was "terrible".
"Immediately the first girls asked me if I had a maid and the boys asked if I would marry them so they could become a prince," said Princess Xenia.
But now she sees her royal title as a "blessing" to make the most of. It has allowed her to take part in numerous reality shows such as 'Die Burg', 'Summer House of the Stars' and 'Battle of the Reality Stars'.
"I want to bring the real back to reality TV and at the same time show people who I really am," the princess told Bild.
She revealed her royal ancestry in her biography titled 'Xenia: The Life of a Princess in the 21st Century' in 2011. But the House of Wettin, the oldest documented families of the German nobility, rejected her claim.
"She is a nothing. She can't have a biography. This thing is a dreadful faux pas, a misfortune for the 1,000-year-old House of Wettin," Maria Emanuel, the head of now-defunct dynasty, had said about Princess Xenia's biography.
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