BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) - 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 enamored 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.

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