FILE - In this Wednesday, March 29, 2017, file photo, Britain's Prince Charles smiles during a welcoming ceremony at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace in Bucharest, Romania. A Transylvanian university says Prince Charles has received an honorary degree for his devotion to Romania at the start of a private visit to the East European country it was announced on Monday, May 29, 2017. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)
Republished May 29, 2017 - 5:03 PM
Original Publication Date May 29, 2017 - 1:04 PM
BUCHAREST, Romania - A Transylvanian university says Prince Charles has received an honorary degree for his devotion to Romania at the start of a private visit to the East European country.
The rector of Cluj's Babes-Bolyai University, Ioan Aurel Popa, bestowed the "doctor honoris causa distinction on the prince Monday for his role as "a real protector of Transylvania and Romania."
Charles, who is enamoured of Romania, told students and professors gathered for the ceremony said he was enticed by the "hilly, woody and fertile landscape," he encountered in Transylvania 20 years ago.
He owns two properties in the northwest Transylvania region which he visits yearly.
In March, he made a three-day official visit to Romania on behalf of the British government.
News from © The Associated Press, 2017