The House of Hesse-Darmstadt was one of several branches of the House of Hesse. After the fall of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt was raised to the Grand Duchy of Hesse, and Ludwig X, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt became the first Grand Duke, Ludwig I. Several years later, at the Congress of Vienna, Ludwig was forced to cede his Westphalian territories but in return was given the Rheinhessen region and the Grand Duchy of Hesse became the Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine. Today the territory that encompassed the Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine is in the German state of Hesse.
Ernst Ludwig, a grandson of Queen Victoria, was the last Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine. With the fall of the German states, Ernst Ludwig refused to abdicate but still lost his throne on November 9, 1918. However, unlike many of his counterparts, he was allowed to remain in Hesse and retained several of the family’s properties, including Schloss Wolfsgarten and the New Palace in Darmstadt.
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Below is an indexed listing with links to biographical articles about the Grand Ducal Family of Hesse and by Rhine as well as the Princely Family of Battenberg, the British Mountbattens, and other Hessian Royals at Unofficial Royalty. If it says “Notable Issue” before a name, that means not all of the children for the parent of that person are listed. Also listed below are links to Hesse and by Rhine, Battenberg, Mountbatten wedding articles, Hesse and by Rhine Miscellaneous Articles, and Hesse and by Rhine Content Areas.
House of Hesse-Darmstadt – Landgraves of Hesse-Darmstadt and Grand Dukes of Hesse and by Rhine (1567–1918)
Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (1806 – 1918)
Family of Grand Duke Ludwig I
- Ludwig I, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt 1790 – 1806, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine 1806 – 1830)
- Luise of Hesse-Darmstadt, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine (wife of Ludwig)
- Notable Issue: Ludwig II, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (see below)
Family of Grand Duke Ludwig II
- Ludwig II, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (reigned 1830 – 1848)
- Wilhelmine of Baden, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine (wife of Ludwig II)
- Notable Issue: Ludwig III, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (see below)
- Notable Issue: Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine (see ‘The Battenbergs’, below)
- Notable Issue: Marie of Hesse and by Rhine, Maria Alexandrovna, Empress of All Russia
Grand Duke Ludwig III
- Ludwig III, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (reigned 1848 – 1877)
- Mathilde Karoline of Bavaria, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine (wife of Ludwig III, no issue)
Family of Grand Duke Ludwig IV
- Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (grandson of Ludwig II, reigned 1877 – 1892)
- Alice of the United Kingdom, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine (wife of Ludwig IV)
- Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, Marchioness of Milford Haven
- Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia
- Irene of Hesse and by Rhine, Princess of Prussia
- Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (see below)
- Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine
- Alix of Hesse and by Rhine, Alexandra Feodorovna, Empress of All Russia
- Marie of Hesse and by Rhine
Family of Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig
- Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (reigned 1892 – 1918, monarchy abolished)
- Victoria Melita of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine (1st wife of Ernst Ludwig, had one daughter, divorced)
- Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine (2nd wife of Ernst Ludwig)
Pretenders to the Throne
- LAST REIGNING: Ernst Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine
- Former: Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine
- Former: Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine
- Former: Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse
- Former: Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse
- Current: Donatus, Landgrave of Hesse
Other Hesse and by Rhine Royals
- Anna of Hesse and by Rhine, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (granddaughter of Ludwig II, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine)
Hesse and by Rhine, Battenberg, Mountbatten Weddings
- Wedding of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom
- Wedding of Prince Henry of Battenberg and Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom
- Wedding of Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg and King Alfonso XIII of Spain
- Wedding of Lady Louise Mountbatten and King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden
Hesse and by Rhine Miscellaneous Articles
Hesse and by Rhine Content Area
- Profiles: Grand Dukes and Consorts of Hesse and by Rhine
- Hesse and by Rhine Royal Burial Sites
- Hesse and by Rhine Royal Dates
The Battenbergs – Family of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine
- Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine
- Countess Julia Hauke, Princess of Battenberg
- Marie of Battenberg, Princess of Erbach-Schönberg
- Prince Louis of Battenberg, later Louis Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford-Haven (see ‘The Mountbattens’ below)
- Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, wife of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford-Haven
- Alexander of Battenberg, Prince of Bulgaria
- Johanna Loisinger, Countess von Hartenau, wife of Prince Alexander
- Prince Henry of Battenberg
- Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom, wife of Prince Henry
- Prince Franz Joseph of Battenberg
The Mountbattens
- Prince Ludwig of Battenberg, later Louis Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven
- Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, Marchioness of Milford Haven
- Princess Alice of Battenberg, Princess Andreas of Greece (married Prince Andreas of Greece, had issue, including Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh – see Greek index / see British Index)
- Princess Louise of Battenberg, later Lady Louise Mountbatten, Queen of Sweden (married King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden, no issue – see Swedish index)
- Prince George of Battenberg, later George Mountbatten, 2nd Marquess of Milford Haven (married Countess Nadejda Mikhailovna de Torby, had issue)
- Prince Louis of Battenberg, later Lord Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (married Edwina Ashley, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, had issue)
Other Notable Hessian Royals
Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt (1567–1806, became Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine in 1806)
- Maria Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen (daughter of Georg II, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt)
- Karoline Luise of Hesse-Darmstadt, Margravine of Baden (daughter of Ludwig VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt)
- Friederike Luise of Hesse-Darmstadt, Queen of Prussia (daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt)
- Wilhelmine Louise of Hesse-Darmstadt, Grand Duchess Natalia Alexeievna of Russia (daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt)
- Luise of Hesse-Darmstadt, Grand Duchess of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (daughter of Ludwig IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt)
- Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (daughter of Prince Georg Wilhelm of Hesse-Darmstadt, granddaughter of Ludwig VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt
- Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (daughter of Prince Georg Wilhelm of Hesse-Darmstadt, granddaughter of Ludwig VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt
- Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Zweibrücken (daughter of Prince Georg Wilhelm of Hesse-Darmstadt, granddaughter of Ludwig VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt
Landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg (1622–1866)
- Karoline of Hesse-Homburg, Princess of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Regent of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (daughter of Friedrich V, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg)
- Friedrich VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg (reigned 1820 – 1829)
- Princess Elizabeth of the United Kingdom, Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg (wife of Friedrich VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg)
- Princess Caroline Amalie of Hesse-Homburg, Princess of Reuss of Greiz (daughter of Gustav, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg)
Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel (1567–1804), Electorate of Hesse (1804-1866)
- Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark and Norway (daughter of Wilhelm VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel)
- Elisabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel, Electoral Princess of Brandenburg (daughter of Wilhelm VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel)
- Marie Luise of Hesse-Kassel, Princess of Orange (daughter of Karl I, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel)
- Friedrich of Hesse-Kassel, King Fredrik I of Sweden, Friedrich V, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
- Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (reigned 1760 – 1785)
- Princess Mary of Great Britain, Landgravine of Hesse-Kassel
- Marie of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark (daughter of Prince Karl of Hesse-Kassel, granddaughter of Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Mary of Great Britain)
- Marie of Hesse-Kassel, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (daughter of Prince Frederick of Hesse-Kassel, granddaughter of Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Mary of Great Britain)
- Augusta of Hesse-Kassel, Duchess of Cambridge (daughter of Prince Friedrich of Hesse-Kassel, granddaughter of Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Mary of Great Britain)
- Marie Friederike of Hesse-Kassel, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen (daughter of Wilhelm II, Elector of Hesse)
- Louise of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark (daughter of Prince William of Hesse-Kassel, great-granddaughter of Friedrich II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Mary of Great Britain)
- Friedrich Karl, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
- Philipp of Hesse-Kassel, Head of the House of Hesse (son of Friedrich Karl, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel)