Category Archives: German Royals

Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg, Queen of Sweden

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg, Queen of Sweden; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg was the wife of King Gustavus II Adolphus the Great of Sweden. Born on November 11, 1599, in Königsberg, Duchy of Prussia, now Kaliningrad, Russia, she was the third of the eight children and the second of the four daughters of Johann Sigismund, Elector of Brandenburg and Anna of Prussia. Maria Eleonora’s paternal grandparents were Joachim III Friedrich, Elector of Brandenburg and Katarina of Brandenburg-Küstrin. Her maternal grandparents were Albrecht Friedrich, Duke of Prussia, and Marie Eleonore of Cleves, a niece of Anne of Cleves, the fourth wife of King Henry VIII of England.

Maria Eleonora had seven siblings, but three died in infancy:

Maria Eleonora’s mother Anna of Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

The childhood of Maria Eleonora and her siblings was dominated by their temperamental and strong-willed mother, Anna of Prussia. Anna was intellectually superior to her husband and reportedly threw plates and glasses at him during arguments. Anna, a fervent Lutheran, strongly disapproved of her husband’s conversion to Calvinism. After her husband’s death, Anna played an important role during the reign of her son. Against the will of her son Georg Wilhelm, Elector of Brandenburg, Anna arranged the marriage Maria Eleonora’s marriage to King Gustavus II Adolphus of Sweden.

Maria Eleonora’s husband Gustavus II Adolphus, King of Sweden; Credit – Wikipedia

On October 7, 1620, Maria Eleonora left Brandenburg for Sweden with her mother Anna, and her sister Katarina. Gustavus Adolphus and Maria Eleonora were married in Stockholm on November 25, 1620. Three days later, Maria Eleonora was crowned Queen of Sweden at the Storkykan (Great Church) in Stockholm, Sweden. During the first years of the marriage, Maria Eleonora’s mother and sister remained in Sweden. They did not return to Brandenburg until August 1624.

Gustavus Adolphus saying goodbye to his wife Maria Eleonora as he rides off to war; Credit – Wikipedia

Gustavus Adolphus is considered one of the greatest military commanders in history and made Sweden a great power, one of Europe’s largest and leading nations during the early modern period. For much of their marriage, Maria Eleonora and her husband lived apart because Gustavus Adolphus was often away at war.

Karl Philip, Gustavus Adolphus’ only surviving brother, accompanied him on a military campaign and died from dysentery (also called the bloody flux), the scourge of armies for centuries. The House of Vasa found itself without a male heir and therefore, in danger. This situation created hopes for Gustavus Adolphus’ first cousin Sigismund III Vasa, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1587 until he died in 1632 and King of Sweden and Grand Duke of Finland from his father’s death in 1592 until he was deposed by his uncle, Gustavus Adolphus’ father Karl IX, King of Sweden in 1599.

Although Maria Eleonora’s husband Gustavus Adolphus was successful in many endeavors, he did not provide a male heir. The couple had only one surviving child, a daughter.

  • Stillborn daughter, born July 24, 1621
  • Christina (1623 – 1624), died in infancy
  • Stillborn son, born May 1625
  • Christina, Queen of Sweden (1626 – 1689), unmarried, succeeded her father, abdicated, subsequently converted to Roman Catholicism, and moved to Rome

When Maria Eleonora gave birth to her fourth child, Gustavus Adolphus had originally been told that the child was a boy. His half-sister Katarina of Sweden, Countess Palatine of Kleeburg informed him that the child was not a boy but a girl, and then carried the baby to him, afraid of his reaction. Gustav Adolphus said, “She’ll be clever, she has made fools of us all!” and decided she would be called Christina after his mother. However, Maria Eleonora was in no condition to be told the truth about the baby’s gender, and Gustavus Adolphus waited several days before breaking the news to her. Maria Eleonora had a vicious reaction upon hearing the child was a girl and ordered the baby to be taken away from her.

Gustavus Adolphus ordered the birth to be announced with all the ceremonies usually given to the birth of a male heir. This seemed to indicate that Gustavus Adolphus had little hope of having other children. Maria Eleonora’s state of health seems to be the most likely explanation for this. Gustavus Adolphus recognized Christina’s eligibility as a female heir, and she became the undisputed heir presumptive. Maria Eleonora showed little affection for her daughter and was not allowed any influence in Christina’s upbringing. Christina was placed in the care of Gustavus Adolphus’ half-sister Katarina of Sweden, Countess Palatine of Kleeburg and Chancellor Axel Oxenstierna.

Gustavus Adolphus and Maria Eleonora, circa 1632; Credit – Wikipedia

In the year after Christina’s birth, Maria Eleonora was described as being in a state of hysteria due to her husband’s absence. At a later date, Gustavus Adolphus described her as being “a very sick woman”. However, it seems Maria Eleonora had several causes for her mental issues: she had lost three babies, she was an isolated foreigner in a hostile country, her brother joined Sweden’s enemies, and her husband’s life was constantly in danger when he was on military campaign.

Before Gustavus Adolphus left to lead the Swedish army in the Thirty Years’ War (1618 to 1648), he legally secured his daughter Christina’s right to inherit the throne. In case he never returned, he ordered Christina to receive an education normally given only to boys. Gustavus Adolphus was killed at the Battle of Lützen on November 16, 1632. The long delay in providing Gustavus Adolphus with a timely burial was due to his wife. Already suffering from mental issues, Maria Eleonora’s grief was quite painful, and her mental issues worsened considerably. She ordered her husband’s heart to be brought to her to keep him always near. She also refused to have her husband buried, spending whole days next to the body. Finally, eighteen months after the death of Gustavus Adolphus, the funeral and burial were held on June 22, 1634, at Riddarholmen Church in Stockholm, Sweden.

Christian, Queen of Sweden as a child; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Eleonora and Gustavus Adolphus’ only surviving child Christina became Queen of Sweden at the age of six. However, Maria Eleonora was not included in the regency government during the minority of Christina because the council of the state did not consider her suitable as regent. In 1636, the regency government feared that Maria Eleonora’s mental instability would adversely influence the young Queen Christina. They decided to separate mother and daughter, and Maria Eleonora was sent to Gripsholm Castle.

Maria Eleonora wanted to end her exile at Gripsholm Castle and go to Brandenburg, her birthplace but was denied permission because her brother Georg Wilhelm, Elector of Brandenburg, was an enemy of Sweden. Instead, Maria Eleonora began secret negotiations with King Christian IV of Denmark, Sweden’s enemy, to allow her to live in Denmark. Maria Eleonora and her lady-in-waiting escaped from Gripsholm Castle on the night of July 22, 1640, by letting themselves down from a window. They were rowed across a nearby lake where a carriage was waiting for them. The carriage took them to Nyköping, where they boarded a Danish ship and were taken to Denmark.

Maria Eleonora, circa 1650; Credit – Wikipedia

Sweden and Brandenburg signed a peace treaty in 1641. Among the terms of the treaty was an agreement that Maria Eleonora’s nephew Friedrich Wilhelm, Elector of Brandenburg would host his aunt in Brandenburg, and Sweden would give her a pension. In 1643, Maria Eleonora left Denmark for Brandenburg, where she would live for five years. She was able to return to Sweden in 1648, enabling her to witness Christina’s coronation. Nyköping Castle was granted to her as a residence by order of her daughter.

Maria Eleonora’s daughter Christina, before 1656; Credit – Wikipedia

Christina caused scandals when she decided not to marry and when she abdicated her throne in 1654 in favor of her cousin Karl Gustav of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg, who reigned as Carl V Gustav, King of Sweden. Maria Eleonora had concerns about Christina’s abdication and how it would affect her financial situation. Christina and her cousin Carl V Gustav visited Maria Eleonora and promised she would have no financial worries. After her abdication, Christina left Sweden and lived for a year in Brussels, then in the Spanish Netherlands, now in Belgium. She then went to Austria and converted to Roman Catholicism. Christina spent the rest of her life in Rome, where she played a prominent role in the city’s cultural life. She is one of three women interred in the crypt at St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.

Tomb of Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg, Queen of Sweden; Credit – Howard Flantzer

Maria Eleanora survived her husband by twenty-three years, dying at the age of 55, on March 28, 1655, in Stockholm, Sweden, shortly after her daughter Queen Christina abdicated. Maria Eleanora was interred next to her husband at Riddarholmen Church in Stockholm, Sweden.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of Sweden Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna von Preußen (1576–1625) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_von_Preu%C3%9Fen_(1576%E2%80%931625)> [Accessed 21 August 2021].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Eleonora von Brandenburg – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Eleonora_von_Brandenburg> [Accessed 21 August 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Eleonora_of_Brandenburg> [Accessed 21 August 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan. 2021. King Gustavus II Adolphus the Great of Sweden. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-gustavus-ii-adolphus-the-great-of-sweden/> [Accessed 21 August 2021].
  • Sv.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna av Preussen (1576–1625) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_av_Preussen_(1576%E2%80%931625)> [Accessed 21 August 2021].

Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse; Credit – Wikipedia

Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse became head of the Electoral House of Hesse (also known as Hesse-Kassel) in 1940. In 1968, upon the death of his childless distant cousin, Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine, Philipp inherited the headship of the former Grand Ducal House of Hesse and by Rhine as well. This reunited the last two remaining branches of the historic House of Hesse, which had been divided in 1567.

Prince Philipp of Hesse-Kassel was born at Rumpenheim Castle in Offenbach on November 6, 1896, the third son of Prince Friedrich Carl, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Margarethe “Mossy” of Prussia. Philipp had five brothers:

Raised by an English governess, Philipp briefly attended school in England before continuing his studies in Germany. He attended the Goethe-Gymnasium in Frankfurt and the Helmholtz-Gymnasium in Potsdam. Philipp was the only one of his siblings who did not attend a military academy. However, when World War I began, he enlisted in the Hessian Dragoon-Regiment along with his older brother Max. Both served in Belgium, where Max was killed in action in October 1914. His eldest brother, Friedrich Wilhelm, was also killed in action in 1916, making Philipp second in line to the Headship of the Electoral House of Hesse. He continued his military service, serving on the Eastern Front and the Hindenburg Line before being wounded in active combat in 1917.

In October 1918, just weeks before the war ended, Philipp’s father was elected King of Finland. At the time, it was decided that Philipp, the eldest surviving son, would remain heir to the Electoral House, and his younger twin brother Wolfgang would be heir to the Finnish throne. However, following the fall of the German Empire, Philipp’s father quickly renounced the throne.

Following World War I, Philipp enlisted in the Transitional Army, before focusing on his education. He attended the Technical University in Darmstadt, studying art history and architecture for several years before taking a job at the Kaiser-Friedrich Museum in Berlin. In 1923, he moved to Rome, where he established a successful interior design business.

Philipp and Mafalda on their wedding day. photo: Wikipedia

On September 23, 1925, at Castello di Racconigi, near Turin, Philipp married Princess Mafalda of Savoy. She was the second daughter of King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy and Princess Elena of Montenegro. Philipp and Mafalda had four children:

  • Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse (1926) – married Princess Tatiana of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, had issue
  • Prince Heinrich of Hesse-Kassel (1927) – unmarried
  • Prince Otto of Hesse-Kassel (1937) – married (1) Angela von Doering, no issue; (2) Elisabeth Bonker, no issue
  • Princess Elisabeth of Hesse-Kassel (1940) – married Count Friedrich von Oppersdorff, had issue

Having returned to Germany in 1930, Philipp became a member of the National Socialist German Workers Party (the Nazi Party) and became a close friend of Hermann Göring. In 1933, he was appointed Governor Hesse-Nassau, and often served as a go-between for Hilter and Mussolini, primarily due to his marriage to the daughter of the Italian King. Due to his interest and knowledge of art, he also served as Hitler’s art agent in Italy, acquiring countless works for Hitler’s planned museum in Linz.

However, his relationship with the Italian King would soon become a problem for Philipp. In July 1943, King Vittorio Emanuele III had Mussolini arrested. Hitler, believing that Philipp and his family were complicit in Mussolini’s downfall, had the family arrested. Philipp was taken into custody in September 1943 and sent to Flossenburg concentration camp, where he was kept in solitary confinement. His wife was placed in custody in Rome, and following interrogations in Munich and Berlin, Mafalda was sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp. Sadly, Mafalda was seriously injured when Buchenwald was bombed in August 1944, and died several days later.

In April 1945, Philipp was transferred to Dachau and then to Tyrol. At the end of World War II, he was freed by the Germans but almost immediately arrested by American forces. Due to his complicity in events of the Naxi regime, he was held by the Allies for two years, before finally being released in 1947.  Following his release, Philipp focused his efforts on the restoration of several of his properties damaged during World War II, and continuing with his interior design work.

Philipp was heir to his distant cousin Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine, who had no children. In 1960, Ludwig adopted Philipp’s eldest son Moritz as his rightful heir to ensure that the estates and assets of the House of Hesse and by Rhine would remain within the Hesse family. When Ludwig died in 1968, the House of Hesse and by Rhine was absorbed by the House of Hesse-Kassel. This would be the first time the historic House of Hesse was unified since initially being divided in 1567.

Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse died in Rome, Italy on October 25, 1980. He is buried in the family cemetery at the former Schloss Friedrichshof (now Schlosshotel Kronberg) in Kronberg im Taunus, Hesse. He was succeeded by his elder son, Moritz, as Head of the House of Hesse and pretender to the formal Grand Ducal throne of Hesse and by Rhine.

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This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Maximilian, Margrave of Baden

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Maximilian, Margrave of Baden and his wife in July 2017 at the wedding of Prince Ernst August of Hanover and Ekaterina Malysheva; Credit – Von Bernd Schwabe – Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60818074

Maximilian, Margrave of Baden was the head of the House of Zähringen and pretender to the former Grand Ducal throne of Baden from 1963 until his death in 2022. Paternally, he was the grandson of his namesake, Prince Maximilian, Margrave of Baden. Maternally, he was the oldest living grandchild of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg. Thus, he was a nephew of Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh and first cousin of King Charles III of the United Kingdom and his siblings.

 

Maximilian Andreas Friedrich Gustav Ernst August Bernhard, Prince of Baden, was born on July 3, 1933, in Salem, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, the elder son of Berthold, Margrave of Baden and Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark.

He has two siblings:

Max attended the Schule Schloss Salem, founded by his grandfather and Kurt Hahn, and then went on to study agriculture and forestry.

In the early 1960s, Max was engaged to his first cousin Princess Beatrix of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. Beatrix was the daughter of Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Princess Margarita of Greece and Denmark (his mother’s elder sister). However, the engagement was called off in 1961, and several years later, he married Archduchess Valerie of Austria. She was the daughter of Archduke Hubert of Austria and Princess Rosemary of Salm-Salm. Max and Valerie wed in a civil ceremony in Salem on September 23, 1966, followed by a religious ceremony held at Persenbeug Castle in Austria.

They have four children:

  • Marie Louise, Princess of Baden (1969) – married Richard Dudley Baker, had issue
  • Bernhard, Margrave of Baden (1970) – married Stephanie Kaul, had issue
  • Leopold, Prince of Baden (1971) – unmarried
  • Michael, Prince of Baden (1976) – married Christina Höhne, no issue

Upon his father’s death in October 1963, Max became Head of the House of Zähringen and pretender to the former grand ducal throne of Baden. He also inherited the family’s vast estates, including four castles in Salem, Baden-Baden, Zwingenberg and Eberstein, and over 2,000 hectares of forests, vineyards, and land. However, due to poor investments and the overall global economic crisis, Max found himself in debt. In 1995, he auctioned off most of the contents of Schloss Baden-Baden, bringing in over 55 million dollars. Three years later, he appointed his son and heir Bernhard as the administrator of the family’s assets.

Max spent many years overseeing the family’s wine production business, an industry that had been in the family for hundreds of years. Based at Schloss Staufenberg in Durbach, and Schloss Salem, the Margrave of Baden Winery has been producing wine since the late 1700s.

The Margrave of Baden was involved in countless organizations and associations during his lifetime. One lasted many years – his association with the German Red Cross. He served on the honorary council of the Baden Regional Association and was an active participant. Max and his wife Valerie lived in a wing of Salem Abbey, one of the family’s ancestral homes.

On December 29, 2022, Maximilian, Margrave of Baden, aged 89, died at Salem Abbey, a family home, in Salem, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. He was buried at the Mimmenhausen Cemetery, in Salem, Germany. His funeral on January 13, 2023, was attended by former and current royalty including King Philippe of Belgium, Prince Albert II of Monaco and his sister Caroline, Princess of Hanover, Prince Hassan of Jordan, Hereditary Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein, and the heads or representatives of most of the former ruling houses of Germany. Max’s first cousin King Charles III of the United Kingdom was represented by Donatus, Landgrave of Hesse.

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Baden Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Christina of Holstein-Gottorp, Queen of Sweden

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Christina of Hesse, Queen of Sweden; Credit – Wikipedia

Christina of Holstein-Gottorp was the second wife of Karl IX, King of Sweden. Born on April 13, 1573, in Kiel, Duchy of Holstein-Gottorp, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, she was the fourth of the ten children and the second of the five daughters of Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, and Christine of Hesse. Her father was the third son of King Frederik I of Denmark and Norway and his second wife, Sophie of Pomerania. In 1544, Adolf, his brother Johann, and their half-brother King Christian III of Denmark divided the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, which belonged to Denmark. Adolf, as the youngest, got the first choice. Since he selected the part with the Gottorp Castle, the line of the House of Oldenburg, founded by him was called the House of Holstein-Gottorp.

Christina had nine siblings:

Christina’s husband, the future King Karl IX of Sweden; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria of Palatinate-Simmern, the first wife of the future Karl IX, King of Sweden, died in 1589 at the age of 28. Three years later, forty-two-year-old Karl married nineteen-year-old Christina, the first cousin of his first wife. The couple was married on August 27, 1592, at Nyköping Castle in Nyköping, Södermanland, Sweden. At the time of the marriage, Karl was a Prince of Sweden and the Duke of Södermanland, and so Christina became a Princess of Sweden and the Duchess of Södermanland. Karl was a staunch Lutheran. Sweden was then ruled by Karl’s brother, Johan III, King of Sweden, who, although Protestant, was married to a Catholic Polish princess and had Catholic sympathies. Karl’s marriage to Christina created a stronger alliance with the German Protestants.

Karl had six children with his first wife Maria, but five of them died in infancy or childhood before his second marriage. Christina became the stepmother of Karl’s only surviving child:

Christina and Karl had four children of their own:

In 1592, Karl’s brother, Johan III, King of Sweden, died and was succeeded by his Roman Catholic son Sigismund III Vasa, who was already King of Poland. Eventually, because of religious issues, the Riksdag (legislature) gained control of the Swedish government and appointed the Lutheran Karl Regent of Sweden. Finally, on February 24, 1604, the Swedish Riksdag declared that Karl’s nephew Sigismund abdicated the Swedish throne and Karl was recognized as the sovereign, Karl IX, King of Sweden. After a delay of three years, Karl and his wife Christina were crowned King and Queen of Sweden on March 15, 1607, at Uppsala Cathedral in Uppsala, Sweden.

In 1604, Christina was appointed to be regent if Karl should die before their sons reached the age of majority. As the potential guardian, Christina held an important leadership position. Although Karl did not allow Christina to dictate policy, he did ask for her advice. She did prevent the potential election of her son Karl Philip as Tsar of Russia. Count Jacob Pontusson De la Gardie, a Swedish statesman, had proposed ten-year-old Karl Philip as a candidate for Tsar of Russia. When her husband Karl died in 1611, Christina refused to allow Karl Philip to leave for Russia. However, in 1613, Karl Philip went to Denmark to discuss the terms of a potential tsardom. When he got to Denmark, Karl Philip found out that Russian nobles had rejected several candidates, including him, and that Michael Romanov became the consensus candidate and had been elected the first Romanov ruler of Russia. Christina was relieved that the Russian affair was finally over.

On October 30, 1611, at Nyköping Castle in Nyköping, Södermanland, Sweden, 61-year-old Karl IX, King of Sweden, died. He was buried at Strängnäs Cathedral in Strängnäs, Södermanland, Sweden. After the death of Karl IX, Christina and Johan, Duke of Östergötland, the son of Karl’s brother Johan III, King of Sweden, shared the short regency of Gustavus II Adolphus, King of Sweden. The regency lasted from October 1611 to December 1611, when Christina’s elder son was declared of age. However, Christina remained the guardian of her younger son Karl Philip and was regent for his Duchies of Södermanland, Närke, and Värmland. Despite the short regency for her elder son, Christina was considered the real power behind the throne during the early years of Gustavus II Adolphus’s reign. She prevented his marriage to Ebba Magnusdotter Brahe because she feared the complications of marriage with a noble and realized a dynastic marriage could have substantial political benefits.

Christina’s younger son, Karl Philip; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1621, Christina’s younger son Karl Philip accompanied his brother Gustavus II Adolphus on his military campaign in the Baltic States. During the campaign, Karl Philip became seriously ill and traveled to Narva, then a Swedish possession, now in Estonia, for treatment and rest. Karl Philip did not recover, dying on January 25, 1622, at the age of only 20. Christina was heartbroken after the death of her younger son, and she retired from public life and lived in seclusion. After Karl Philip’s death, his morganatic, secret marriage to Elisabet Ribbing was discovered, and Christina became the guardian of his posthumous daughter, Elisabet Gyllenhielm.

Christina survived her husband by fourteen years, dying at the age of 52, on December 8, 1625, at Gripsholm Castle in Mariefred, Södermanland, Sweden. She was buried in the family crypt at Strängnäs Cathedral in Strängnäs, Sweden, below her husband’s most unusual grave monument, a rider on a horse wearing gold armor placed over the family crypt. The gold armor had been made by twelve of Stockholm’s most prominent goldsmiths.

Karl IX’s grave monument; Credit – Av Kigsz – Eget arbete, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=71076804

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of Sweden Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Christine von Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorf – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christine_von_Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorf> [Accessed 14 July 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf,_Duke_of_Holstein-Gottorp> [Accessed 14 July 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Christina of Holstein-Gottorp – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina_of_Holstein-Gottorp> [Accessed 14 July 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan. Karl IX, King of Sweden. [online] Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/karl-ix-king-of-sweden/> [Accessed 14 July 2021].
  • Sv.wikipedia.org. 2021. Kristina av Holstein-Gottorp – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristina_av_Holstein-Gottorp> [Accessed 14 July 2021].

Berthold, Margrave of Baden

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Berthold, Margrave of Baden was the Head of the House of Zähringen and Pretender to the former Grand Ducal throne of Baden from 1929 until his death in 1963.

Berthold, Margrave of Baden; Credit – Wikipedia

Prince Berthold Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst August Heinrich Karl of Baden was born in Karlsruhe, Germany on February 24, 1906. He was the only son of Prince Maximilian of Baden, Margrave of Baden and Princess Marie Luise of Hanover. Berthold had one older sister:

Berthold, his wife and two elder children, c1936. source: private collection

On August 17, 1931 in Baden-Baden, Berthold married Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark, the second daughter of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg (as well as the elder sister of Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh). The couple were second cousins through their mutual great-grandfather, King Christian IX of Denmark. Berthold and Theodora had three children:

 

The last reigning Grand Duke of Baden, Friedrich II, had no children. Although the Headship of the House would pass to Berthold’s father Max, the Grand Duke’s assets would not. As part of an agreement following the end of the monarchy, Friedrich’s assets and estates would pass to the Republic of Baden if he had no legal children. To avoid this from happening, Friedrich and his wife, Hilda, legally adopted Berthold in August 1927. When Friedrich died the following year, his father became Head of the House, but it was Berthold who actually inherited all of the family’s assets.

 

Berthold, Margrave of Baden died suddenly on October 27, 1963, in Spaichingen, Germany, from an apparent heart attack. He is buried in the Mimmenhausen Cemetery in Salem, along with his wife, his parents, and his daughter.

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Baden Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Maria of Palatinate-Simmern, Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Södermanland

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Karl IX, King of Sweden with his first wife Maria and second wife Christina, 1598 by Hieronymus Nützel; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria of the Palatinate-Simmern was the first wife of the future Karl IX, King of Sweden but she died before he became king. She was born in Heidelberg, Electorate of the Palatinate, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, on July 24, 1561. Maria was the eldest of the twelve children and the eldest of the seven daughters of Ludwig VI, Elector Palatine and Elisabeth of Hesse.

Maria had eleven younger siblings but only two siblings survived childhood:

  • Elisabeth (born and died 1562), died in infancy
  • Dorothea Elisabeth (born and died 1565), died in infancy
  • Dorothea (1566 – 1568), died in early childhood
  • Friedrich Philip (1567- 1568), died in infancy
  • Johann Friedrich (born and died 1569), died in infancy
  • Ludwig (1570 – 1571), died in infancy
  • Katharina (1572 – 1586), died in childhood
  • Christine (1573 – 1619), unmarried
  • Friedrich IV, Elector Palatine (1574 – 1610), married Louise Juliana of Orange-Nassau, had eight children
  • Philip (born and died 1575), died in infancy
  • Elisabeth (1576 – 1577), died in infancy

Maria was raised as a fervent Lutheran. Her father gave preference to Lutheranism over Calvinism, removing Calvinists from positions at Heidelberg University. In 1578, Prince Karl of Sweden, Duke of Södermanland traveled throughout the German monarchies looking for a suitable Protestant bride. Eighteen-year-old Karl visited Heidelberg in the Electorate of Palatinate and proposed to fifteen-year-old Maria. Her father accepted the marriage proposal on the condition that she be allowed to practice Lutheranism in Sweden which was then ruled by Karl’s brother Johan III, King of Sweden who, although Protestant, was married to a Catholic Polish princess and had Catholic sympathies. Maria and Karl were married on May 11, 1579, in Heidelberg. The newlyweds remained in Heidelberg until September 1579. In Sweden, they had the use of several castles in Karl’s Duchy of Södermanland.

Maria’s husband Karl; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria and Karl had six children but only one daughter survived childhood:

  • Margareta Elisabeth of Sweden (1580 – 1585), died in childhood
  • Elisabeth Sabina of Sweden (1582 – 1585), died in childhood
  • Ludwig of Sweden (born and died 1583), died in infancy
  • Katharina of Sweden (1584 – 1638), married Count Palatine Johann Kasimir von Pfalz-Zweibrücken-Kleeburg, had eight children including Carl X Gustav, King of Sweden
  • Gustav of Sweden (born and 1587), died in infancy
  • Maria Sweden (1588 – 1589), died in infancy

Marieholm, the former royal estate named after Maria; Credit – By (WT-shared) Riggwelter at wts.wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22603872

Maria and Karl had a happy marriage. She accompanied Karl on his travels when she was not prevented by her pregnancies. Maria had a mild and conciliatory nature and was able to control her husband’s hot temper. No portrait of Maria survives but she was described as beautiful. The town Mariestad, founded in 1583, and the royal estate Marieholm (link in Swedish) in Mariestad are named for her.

On July 29, 1589, Maria died after a long illness, aged 28, at Eskilstuna Castle in Eskilstuna, Södermanland, Sweden, and was greatly mourned by Karl. She was buried at Strängnäs Cathedral in Strängnäs, Södermanland, Sweden. Her husband Karl married again in 1592 to Maria’s first cousin Christina of Holstein-Gottorp and had four children. Karl became King of Sweden in 1604. He died in 1611 at the age of 61 and was also buried at Strängnäs Cathedral.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of Sweden Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna Maria von der Pfalz – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Maria_von_der_Pfalz> [Accessed 13 July 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Louis VI, Elector Palatine – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_VI,_Elector_Palatine> [Accessed 13 July 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria of the Palatinate, Swedish princess – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_of_the_Palatinate,_Swedish_princess> [Accessed 13 July 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan. Karl IX, King of Sweden. [online] Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/karl-ix-king-of-sweden/> [Accessed 13 July 2021].
  • Sv.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria av Pfalz – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_av_Pfalz> [Accessed 13 July 2021].

Prince Maximilian of Baden, Margrave of Baden

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Prince Maximilian of Baden was the heir to the throne of the Grand Duchy of Baden, and served briefly as Chancellor of the German Empire.

Prince Maximilian of Baden, Margrave of Baden – photo: By Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R04103 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5367974

Prince Maximilian Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm of Baden was born in Baden-Baden on July 10, 1867. He was the only son of Prince Wilhelm of Baden (a younger son of Grand Duke Leopold of Baden), and Princess Maria Maximilianovna of Leuchtenburg (a granddaughter of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia). Max had one older sister:

After his initial education, Max studied law and cameralism at Leipzig University before training as an officer in the Prussian Army. In 1907, upon the death of his uncle, Grand Duke Friedrich I of Baden, Max became heir-presumptive to his childless cousin, Friedrich II. In addition to his new position, he became President of the upper house of parliament in Baden. Four years later, he left the Prussian army with the rank of Major General.

Prince Max with his wife and children, c.1910. source: Wikipedia

On July 10, 1900, in Gmunden, Austria, Max married Princess Marie Luise of Hanover. She was the daughter of Ernst August, Crown Prince of Hanover and Princess Thyra of Denmark. The couple had two children:

Max returned to military service in 1914 at the beginning of World War I, serving as a general staff member, representing his cousin Friedrich II. However, he soon retired due to ill health. He became honorary president of Baden’s chapter of the German Red Cross, using his family connections to help prisoners of war. Staunchly liberal, he remained out of politics but spoke out against military policies he disagreed with. Despite maintaining a relatively low profile, it was through his friendship with Kurt Hahn that Max would later be appointed Chancellor of Germany. He was initially considered for the job in July 1917, and once again in September 1918 but was turned down by Kaiser Wilhelm II. However, later that same month, when it was clear that the German front was soon to fall, the entire cabinet of Chancellor Georg von Hertling resigned. Von Hertling himself recommended Prince Max to succeed him. This time the Kaiser agreed, and Max was formally appointed on October 3, 1918.

Just a month later, it was clear that the German Empire was ending. At noon on November 9, 1918, Prince Max announced Kaiser Wilhem II’s abdication and the formal renunciation of the Crown Prince. Max also resigned as Chancellor. Friedrich Ebert, the leader of the SPD, asked Max to remain in Berlin as Regent, but Max refused and returned to Baden.

With no further role in politics, Prince Max retired to Baden. He wrote and published several books, and in 1920, he helped Kurt Hahn establish the Schule Schloss Salem , a boarding school in Salem, Germany, later attended by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the brother of his son’s wife.

On August 9, 1928, the last reigning Grand Duke of Baden, Friedrich II, died, and Max became the pretender to the former throne and the Head of the House of Zähringen. At that time, he assumed the historic title of Margrave of Baden. Just over a year later, on November 6, 1929, Prince Max, Margrave of Baden died of kidney failure following several strokes. He is buried in the Mimmenhausen Cemetery in Salem.

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Baden Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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Franz, Duke of Bavaria

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Franz, Duke of Bavaria, is the current Head of the House of Wittelsbach and Pretender to the former throne of Bavaria. He is also the current heir to the Jacobite Succession.

Franz, Duke of Bavaria; photo: By Christoph Wagener – Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22663494

Franz Bonaventura Adalbert Maria, Prince of Bavaria was born in Munich on July 14, 1933, the son of Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria and Countess Maria Draskovich of Trakostjan. He has three siblings:

Franz’s family left Bavaria in 1937, eventually settling in Hungary by 1940. In 1944, they were arrested after the German occupation and held in several concentration camps before being freed by American forces in April 1945. Following the war, Franz finished his secondary education at the Benedictine Abbey in Ettal and then studied business at the Universities of Munich and Zurich.

From an early age, Franz had a strong interest in art, which would become a lifelong passion. In addition to amassing a large personal collection, he holds numerous positions on boards and associations of museums and art-related organizations:

  • Chairman of the Association for the Promotion of the Alte Pinakothek, an art museum in Munich
  • Deputy Chairman of the Munich Gallery Association
  • Member of the Board of Trustees of the Society of Friends and Patrons of the Glyptothek and Antikensammlungen Munich
  • Honorary President of the Friends of the Egyptian Collection Munich
  • Member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Munich
  • Member of the Board of Trustees of the Munich University of Philosophy
  • Member of the Board of Trustees of the Institute for Bavarian History
  • Honorary Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Eugen Biser Foundation
  • Honorary Trustee, and Chairman of the International Council of the Museum of Modern Art in NYC.

Upon his father’s death in 1996, Franz became Head of the House of Wittelsbach and pretender to the former Bavarian throne. At that time, he took the title Duke of Bavaria. Franz never married, so his heir is his younger brother, Max, Duke in Bavaria.

 

In June 2021, an official portrait was released of Franz with his long-term partner Dr. Thomas Greinwald. This is the first time the head of a European royal dynasty has publicly acknowledged a same-sex relationship. The couple lives in a wing of Nymphenburg Palace in Munich, Germany, and uses Berg Castle in Starnberg, Germany as their country home.

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Bavarian Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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Maria Sophie of Bavaria, Queen of the Two Sicilies

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was located in today’s southern Italy. It included the island of Sicily and all of the Italian peninsula south of the Papal States. Ferdinando I, the first King of the Two Sicilies, had previously reigned over two kingdoms, as Ferdinando IV of the Kingdom of Naples and Ferdinando III of the Kingdom of Sicily. He had been deposed twice from the throne of Naples: once by the revolutionary Parthenopean Republic for six months in 1799 and again by Napoleon in 1805, before being restored in 1816 after the defeat of Napoleon. After the 1816 restoration, the two kingdoms were united into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.

Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. Francesco II, King of the Two Sicilies was deposed, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies ceased to exist, and its territory was incorporated into the Kingdom of Sardinia. Eventually, the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

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Maria Sophie, Queen of the Two Sicilies; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Sophie, Duchess in Bavaria was the wife of Francesco II, the last King of the Two Sicilies. Maria Sophie Amalie was born on October 4, 1841, at Possenhofen Castle in Possenhofen, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria. She was the sixth of the nine children and the third of the five daughters of Maximilian Joseph, Duke in Bavaria and Princess Ludovika of Bavaria. Pius August, Duke in Bavaria and Princess Amélie Louise of Arenberg were her paternal grandparents. Her maternal grandparents were Maximilian I Joseph, King of Bavaria and his second wife Caroline of Baden. Maria Sophie was a younger sister of the more well-known Elisabeth, Duchess in Bavaria (Sisi) who married Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria and was assassinated in 1898. The painting below is a group portrait of the siblings of Empress Elisabeth given to her by her brother Karl Theodor on the occasion of her wedding.

Maria Sophie with her siblings: (left to right) Sophie Charlotte, Maximilian Emanuel, Karl Theodor, Helene, Ludwig Wilhelm, Mathilde Ludovika, and Maria Sophie; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Sophie had eight siblings:

Maria Sophie’s father Maximilian Joseph was from a junior branch of the House of Wittelsbach. Maximilian Joseph did much to promote Bavarian folk music. He played the zither, the national instrument of Bavaria, and composed music for it. Although the family had a home in Munich, Herzog-Max-Palais (Duke Max Palace, link in German), Maria Sophie’s parents had no obligations with the Bavarian royal court and their nine children spent much time living a carefree, unstructured, unrestrained childhood at Possenhofen Castle on Lake Starnberg.

Maria Sophie’s husband Francesco II, King of the Two Sicilies; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1858, 16-year-old Maria Sophie of Bavaria was betrothed to 23-year-old Francesco, Duke of Calabria, the eldest son and heir of Ferdinando II, King of the Two Sicilies and his first wife Maria Cristina of Savoy. On January 8, 1859, a proxy marriage was held at the Court Church of All Saints in the Munich Residenz, the royal palace of the Bavarian monarchs. The couple married in person on February 5, 1859, in Bari, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, now in Italy.

Three months after the marriage, Francesco’s father Ferdinando II, King of the Two Sicilies died on May 22, 1859, aged 49 from a strangulated hernia after hesitating for months to have surgery. Francesco began his two-year reign as King of the Two Sicilies and Maria Sophie became Queen of the Two Sicilies. During the reign of Francesco’s father, Ferdinando II, the Italian unification movement led by Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, later Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Italy, and Giuseppe Garibaldi, a noted general and politician, began. The Second War of Italian Independence began shortly before Ferdinando II’s death. During the reign of Francesco II, Giuseppe Garibaldi’s 1860-1861 invasion called the Expedition of the Thousand led to the fall of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which then was annexed to the new Kingdom of Italy in 1861, ending the reign of Francesco II, King of the Two Sicilies. After losing the throne of the Two Sicilies, Francesco and Maria Sophie lived in Rome as guests of Pope Pius IX. In 1870, the annexation of the Papal States to Italy, including Rome, forced Francesco and Maria Sophie to find refuge in Austria, France, and Bavaria.

Maria Sophie in the 1860s; Credit – Wikipedia

Francesco had a congenital condition that prevented him from consummating his marriage. Maria Sophie, after having been patient for some time, began having affairs. While in Rome, Maria Sophie fell in love with Belgian Count Armand de Lawayss and became pregnant. To avoid scandal, the pregnancy was kept secret and Maria Sophie stayed at her parents’ home Possenhofen Castle in Bavaria. On November 24, 1862, Maria Sophie gave birth to a daughter at St. Ursula’s Convent in Augsburg, Kingdom of Bavaria. The child was immediately given to the father’s family. A year later, on the advice of her family, Maria Sophie decided to confess the affair to her husband. Subsequently, the relationship between Maria Sophie and Francesco improved, and after nearly ten years after his marriage, Francesco finally had surgery that corrected the condition. Maria Sofia became pregnant and a daughter was born to joyful parents but sadly, she lived for only three months. Francesco and Maria Sophie had no other children.

  • Maria Cristina Pia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (December 24, 1869 – March 28, 1870)

Garatshausen Castle; Credit – Von 2micha – Eigenes Werk, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8311631

In 1870, Maria Sophie purchased Garatshausen Castle (link in German) on Lake Starnberg in the Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria from her brother Ludwig Wilhelm, and the castle became their home. The former Francesco II, King of the Two Sicilies died on December 27, 1894, aged 58, in Arco, where he spent winters, then in Austria-Hungary, now in Italy. He was originally buried with his daughter at the Church of the Holy Spirit of the Neapolitans (link in Italian) in Rome.

After her husband’s death, Maria Sophie lived for a time in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria. She also spent time in Paris, France where she lived in a house her husband had purchased. There she presided over an informal Bourbon-Two Sicilies court in exile. Maria Sophie never stopped hoping that the former Kingdom of the Two Sicilies would be returned to her husband’s family. It was even rumored she was involved in the 1900 anarchist assassination of Umberto I, King of Italy in hopes of destabilizing the Kingdom of Italy.

During World War I, Maria Sophie was actively on the side of the German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire in their war against the Kingdom of Italy. Again, some rumors claimed she participated in sabotage and espionage against Italy hoping that an Italian defeat would restore the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Despite her dislike of the Kingdom of Italy, Maria Sophie would anonymously visit Italian soldiers in prisoner-of-war camps in Germany, giving them books and food.

Coat of arms of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies on the entrance to the royal crypt at the Basilica of Santa Chiara; Credit – Di Giuseppe Guida – Flickr: Basilica di Santa Chiara., CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20267754

After World War I, Maria Sophie returned to her birthplace of Bavaria, Germany, living in Munich. It is there that she died on January 19, 1925, at the age of 83. Maria Sophie was initially buried with her husband and daughter at the Church of the Holy Spirit of the Neapolitans (link in Italian) in Rome. In 1984, their remains were transferred to the Basilica of Santa Chiara in Naples, Italy, the traditional burial site of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies in Naples, Italy.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of the Two Sicilies Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Marie in Bayern – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_in_Bayern> [Accessed 18 August 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Duke Maximilian Joseph in Bavaria – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_Maximilian_Joseph_in_Bavaria> [Accessed 18 August 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Sophie of Bavaria – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Sophie_of_Bavaria> [Accessed 18 August 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Francesco II, King of the Two Sicilies. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/francesco-ii-king-of-the-two-sicilies/> [Accessed 18 August 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Cristina Pia di Borbone-Due Sicilie – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Cristina_Pia_di_Borbone-Due_Sicilie> [Accessed 16 August 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Sofia di Baviera – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Sofia_di_Baviera> [Accessed 18 August 2021].

Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Albrecht with his younger half-brother, Prince Heinrich; Credit – Wikipedia

Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria was Head of the House of Wittelsbach and pretender to the former Bavarian throne from 1955 until he died in 1996. He was the eldest surviving grandson of the last reigning King of Bavaria, Ludwig III, and also the heir to the Jacobite succession.

Prince Albrecht Luitpold Ferdinand Michael of Bavaria was born in Munich on May 3, 1905, the son of Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria and Duchess Marie Gabriele in Bavaria. He had three siblings, all of whom died young:

  • Luitpold, Hereditary Prince of Bavaria (1901) – died in his youth
  • Princess Irmingard (1902) – died in infancy
  • Prince Rudolf (1909) – died in childhood

Albrecht also had six half-siblings from his father’s second marriage to Princess Antonia of Luxembourg:

  • Prince Heinrich (1922) – married Anne Marie de Lustrac, no issue
  • Princess Irmingard (1923) – married Prince Ludwig of Bavaria, had issue
  • Princess Editha (1924) – married (1) Tito Tmmaso Brunetti, had issue; (2) Gustav Schimert, had issue
  • Princess Hilda (1926) – married Juan Lockett de Loayza, had issue
  • Princess Gabriele (1927) – married Karl, Duke of Croy, had issue
  • Princess Sophie (1935) – married Jean-Engelbert, Duke of Arenberg, had issue

Albrecht (left) with his father and elder brother Luitpold. photo: Wikipedia

Upon the death of his elder brother in 1914, Albrecht became Hereditary Prince of Bavaria, second in line to the Bavarian throne. However, four years later, in November 1918, the monarchy was abolished. After leaving Bavaria for a short time, he returned to Munich and began studying Forestry but was unable to complete his studies due to the rising Nazi regime.

On September 3, 1930 in Berchtesgaden, Albrecht married Countess Maria Drawkovich of Trakostjan, the daughter of Count Dionys Draskovich von Trakostjan and Princess Juliana Rose von Tentenuovo. At the time of their marriage, a family council deemed the marriage unequal, thus initially excluding Albrecht and his children from the line of succession. However, in 1948, it was ruled that the Head of the House (Albrecht’s father at the time) had the sole authority to determine the validity of the union, and their marriage was recognized as dynastic in May 1949. This reinstated Albrecht and his descendants as heirs to the former Bavarian throne.

Albrecht and his wife had four children:

  • Princess Marie Gabrielle (1931) – married Georg, Prince von Waldburg zu Zeil und Trauchburg, had issue
  • Princess Marie Charlotte (1931) – married Paul, Prince von Quadt zu Wykradt und Isny, had issue
  • Franz, Duke of Bavaria (1933) – unmarried
  • Prince Max, Duke in Bavaria (1937) – married Countess Elisabeth Douglas, had issue, including Sophie, Hereditary Princess of Liechtenstein

After several years living in Bad Kreuth in upper Bavaria, Albrecht and his family left the country in 1937, settling briefly in Croatia and then in Hungary by 1940. In October 1944 following the German invasion, the family was arrested and imprisoned in several concentration camps before finally being freed by American forces in April 1945.

Upon his father’s death in August 1955, Albrecht became Head of the House of Wittelsbach and pretender to the former Bavarian throne. It was at that time that he took on the style ‘Duke in Bavaria’. In addition, he became the recognized heir to the Jacobite succession.

Several years later, in 1959, Albrecht orchestrated an official ceremony at which the Greek Crown Jewels were returned to the Greek king. The jewels were originally made for Prince Otto of Bavaria, who had been elected as Greece’s first modern-day King in 1832, but was formally deposed in 1862, and had taken the jewels with him upon returning to Bavaria. Otto was then succeeded by Prince Vilhelm of Denmark who became King George I of the Hellenes. It was King George’s grandson, King Paul of the Hellenes, who accepted the jewels at the ceremony.

Following the death of his first wife in 1969, Albrecht remarried two years later, on April 21, 1971 in Weichselboden, Austria. His second wife was Countess Marie-Jenke Keglevich of Buzin, the daughter of Count Stephan Keglevich de Buzin and Countess Klára Zichy of Zich and Vásonkeö. They had no children.

Having returned to the study of forestry, Albrecht also developed a passion for hunting. He amassed a large collection of antlers, many of which became part of the Deer Museum at Berchtesgaden Castle. In addition, he and his second wife published two books of their research about deer, for which they received honorary doctorates from the University of Munich.

Berg Castle. photo: By 2micha – Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8311566

Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria died on July 8, 1996, at Berg Castle in Starnberg. Germany. Following a funeral at the Theatinerkirche in Munich, he was buried in the Wittelsbach cemetery at Andechs Abbey in Starnberg along with both of his wives.

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Bavarian Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.