by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2017

The traditional burial site for the rulers of Mecklenburg-Strelitz is the Johanniterkirche (Church of St. John) in Mirow (link in German). The Johanniterkirche is located just near Mirow Castle on what is known as Castle Island in Mirow. The church was destroyed by a bombing during World War II, and while the crypt – containing four chambers – remained intact, many of the tombs suffered significant damage and looting. The church was rebuilt in the 1950s, and today contains two crypts – the Altes (old) Crypt and the Neue (New) Crypt. Some of the earlier chambers of the original crypt are no longer accessible.

Grand Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

• Carl II – reigned June 28, 1815 – November 6, 1816
• Georg – reigned November 6, 1816 – September 6, 1860
• Friedrich Wilhelm – reigned September 6, 1860 – May 30, 1904
• Adolf Friedrich V – reigned May 30, 1904 – June 11, 1914
• Adolf Friedrich VI -reigned June 11, 1914 – February 23, 1918

Unofficial Royalty: Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Index

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Carl II
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
reigned June 28, 1815 – November 6, 1816

Unofficial Royalty: Carl II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Carl was born in Mirow on October 10, 1741, the son of Duke Karl Ludwig of Mecklenburg, Prince of Mirow, and Princess Elisabeth of Saxe-Hildburghausen. His siblings included Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom (wife of King George III). He served in the military forces of Hanover and later was appointed Governor-General in 1776. Karl married twice – firstly to Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt, and had ten children. Following her death, he married her sister, Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt, and had another son. In 1794, he became Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, and upon its elevation to a grand duchy in 1815, became the first Grand Duke. He died just over a year later, on November 6, 1816, in Neustrelitz. Grand Duke Carl II is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt
Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
(first wife of Grand Duke Karl II)

Unofficial Royalty: Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Friederike was born in Darmstadt on August 20, 1752, the eldest daughter of Prince Georg Wilhelm of Hesse-Darmstadt and Maria Luise of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg. She married the future Grand Duke Carl II in September 1768, and they had ten children. Friederike died on May 22, 1782, just days after childbirth. She is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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Children of Grand Duke Carl II with Luise of Hesse-Darmstadt

Charlotte Georgine
November 17, 1769 – May 14, 1818
Charlotte Georgine married Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen on September 3, 1785, at the age of fifteen, and had twelve children. Upon her death, she was buried temporarily in the crypt at the castle church, while a new tomb was built, per her wishes, in the newly planned cemetery at Backsteinfeld in Hildburghausen. Her remains were moved there in 1824.

Karoline Auguste
February 17, 1771 – January 11, 1773
Caroline Auguste died a month before her second birthday. She is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Georg Karl
March 4, 1772 – May 21, 1773
Georg Karl lived just a few months past his first birthday. He is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Therese
April 5, 1773 – February 12, 1839
Wikipedia: Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Therese married Karl Alexander, Hereditary Prince of Thurn und Taxis in May 1789 and had seven children. She died in Regensburg at the age of 65 and is buried in the Crypt Chapel at Schloss St. Emmeram in Regensburg.

Friedrich Georg
September 1, 1774 – November 5, 1775
Friedrich Georg lived just a few months past his first birthday. He is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Luise
March 10, 1776 – July 19, 1810
Unofficial Royalty: Luise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen of Prussia
At just seventeen years old, Luise married the future King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia. They had nine children, including King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia, and King Wilhelm I (also the first German Emperor). She became Queen of Prussia upon her husband’s accession in 1797. Queen Luise died at Schloss Hohenzieritz and is buried in the Mausoleum on the grounds of Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin.

Friederike
March 3, 1778 – June 29, 1841
Unofficial Royalty: Friederike of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen of Hanover
Friederike married three times. First, in December 1793, to Prince Ludwig Karl of Prussia, with whom she had 3 children. Following his death, she married Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Solms-Braunfels in December 1798 and gave birth to their only child two months later. In the midst of trying to arrange for a divorce, Friedrich Wilhelm died. A year later, in May 1815, she married the Duke of Cumberland, who later went on to become King Ernst August I of Hanover in 1837. Just four years later, Queen Friederike died and is buried in the mausoleum in the gardens of Herrenhausen Palace in Hanover.

Grand Duke Georg (below)

Friedrich Karl
January 7, 1781 – March 24, 1783
Friedrich Karl died at just two years old. He is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Auguste Albertine
May 19, 1782 – May 20, 1782
Auguste Albertine lived just one day, and her mother died just two days later. She is buried in her mother’s coffin, in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt
Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
(second wife of Grand Duke Karl II)

Unofficial Royalty: Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte was born in Darmstadt on November 5, 1755, a younger daughter of Prince Georg Wilhelm of Hesse-Darmstadt and Maria Luise of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg. She married the future Grand Duke Carl II in September 1784 and had one child – Duke Karl (1785). Charlotte died just twelve days after the birth of her son. She is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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Children of Grand Duke Carl II with Charlotte of Hesse-Darmstadt

Karl
November 30, 1785 – September 21, 1837
Wikipedia: Karl of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Karl spent his life serving with the Prussian forces, becoming a distinguished commander, and later served as President of the Prussian State Council. He never married and died in Berlin at the age of 51. He is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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Georg
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
reigned November 6, 1816 – September 6, 1860

Unofficial Royalty: Georg, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Grand Duke George was born in Hanover on August 12, 1779. He was instrumental in Mecklenburg-Strelitz’s entry into the Confederation of the Rhine in 1806 and participated in the Congress of Vienna in 1814/1815, which saw Mecklenburg-Strelitz elevated to a Grand Duchy. He succeeded his father as Grand Duke in 1816. The following year, in August 1817, he married Princess Marie of Hesse-Kassel and had four children. Grand Duke George died in Neustrelitz on September 6, 1860, and is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Marie of Hesse-Kassel
Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Unofficial Royalty: Marie of Hesse-Kassel, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Marie was born on January 21, 1796, the second daughter of Prince Friedrich of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Karoline of Nassau-Usingen. She married Grand Duke Georg on August 12, 1817, and had four children. She survived her husband by just over three months, dying in Neustrelitz on December 30, 1880. She is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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Children of Grand Duke Georg

Luise
1818 – 1842
Luise died of tuberculosis at the age of 24. She is buried in the Old Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Grand Duke Friedrich Wilhelm (below)

Karoline Marianne
January 10, 1821 – June 1, 1876
Unofficial Royalty: Karoline Marianne of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Karoline married Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark (later King Frederik VII) in June 1841. They had no children and were divorced in 1846. She lived quietly in Neustrelitz for the rest of her life and is buried in the Old Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Georg August
January 11, 1824 – June 8, 1876
Georg August married Grand Duchess Ekaterina Mikhailovna of Russia in February 1851 and had four children – Nikolaus (1854); Helene (1857); Georg Alexander (1859); and Karl Michael (1863). Following his death in St. Petersburg, his remains were brought back to Mirow where he is buried at the Johanniterkirche.

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Friedrich Wilhelm
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
reigned September 6, 1860 – May 30, 1904

Unofficial Royalty: Friedrich Wilhelm, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Grand Duke Friedrich Wilhelm was born in Neustrelitz on October 17, 1819. In August 1843, he married his first cousin, Princess Augusta of Cambridge at Buckingham Palace. They had two sons. He became Grand Duke upon his father’s death in 1860 and reigned until his own death in May 1904. He is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Augusta of Cambridge
Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Unofficial Royalty: Augusta of Cambridge, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Augusta was born in Hanover on July 19, 1822, the elder daughter of Prince Ernst August, The Duke of Cumberland (a son of King George III of the United Kingdom) and Princess Augusta of Hesse-Kassel. Augusta was a first cousin of Queen Victoria and the aunt of Queen Mary (born Princess May of Teck). She married the future Grand Duke Friedrich Wilhelm in August 1843 and had two sons. Grand Duchess Augusta remained very close to her British roots and maintained a home in London for much of her life. She was instrumental in the planning of the coronation of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, having been at the two previous coronations – that of her cousin, Queen Victoria, and her uncle, King William IV. Having survived her husband by 12 years, the Dowager Grand Duchess died in Neustrelitz on December 5, 1916. She is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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Children of Grand Duke Friedrich Wilhelm

Hereditary Prince Friedrich Wilhelm
born and died January 13, 1845
Friedrich Wilhelm is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich V (below)

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Adolf Friedrich V
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
reigned May 30, 1904 – June 11, 1914

Unofficial Royalty: Adolf Friedrich V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich V was born in Neustrelitz on July 22, 1848. In April 1877, he married Princess Elisabeth of Anhalt and had four children. He became Grand Duke in 1904 and reigned until his death in June 1914. He is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

Elisabeth of Anhalt
Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Unofficial Royalty: Elisabeth of Anhalt, Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Elisabeth was born in Anhalt on September 7, 1857, the daughter of Friedrich I, Duke of Anhalt and Princess Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg. In April 1877, she married the future Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich V and had four children. The Dowager Grand Duchess Elisabeth died in Neustrelitz on July 20, 1933, outliving her husband by over 39 years, and seeing the fall of the German Empire and the end of the monarchy in Mecklenburg-Strelitz. She is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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Children of Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich V

Duchess Marie
May 8, 1878 – October 14, 1948
Wikipedia: Marie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Marie caused a scandal in her youth when she became pregnant by one of the palace servants. She gave birth to a daughter in 1898, who was quietly raised under the eye of Marie’s grandmother, Grand Duchess Augusta. In June 1899, Marie married Count George Jametel and had two children. Her husband had numerous affairs, and in January 1908, Marie filed for divorce. Later that year, her brother Karl Borwin reportedly challenged Jametel to a duel to defend her honor. Karl Borwin was killed in the exchange, and the couple was divorced in December 1908. She married again in August 1914, to Prince Julius Ernst of Lippe, and had two more children. Marie died in Oberkassel and is buried in the Lippe Family mausoleum at Heisterbach Abbey.

Duchess Jutta
January 24, 1880 – February 17, 1946
Wikipedia: Jutta of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Jutta married Crown Prince Danilo of Montenegro in July 1899 and took the name Militza. They had no children. Although Montenegro ceased to exist as a kingdom in 1918, her husband assumed the title of King for just one week in 1921 before abdicating the title in favor of his nephew. They lived in exile, primarily in France, for the rest of their lives. Jutta/Militza died in Rome and is buried in the Cimitero Acattolico di Roma (the non-Catholic cemetery).

Grand Duke Adolf Friedrich VI (below)

Duke Karl Borwin
October 10, 1888 – August 24, 1908
Karl Borwin died just a few months before his 20th birthday. Reportedly, he died in a duel with his brother-in-law, Count George Jametel (the husband of his sister Marie). Marie and her husband had been separated for two years due to Jametel’s affairs, but in 1908, his affair with Infanta Eulalia of Spain became public, and Karl Borwin allegedly challenged him to a duel to defend his sister’s honor. There is also speculation that Karl Borwin actually committed suicide, but no proof of this. Officially, he died “after a short, severe and insidious suffering” on August 24, 1908. His remains were returned to Mirow, where is buried in the New Crypt at the Johanniterkirche.

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Adolf Friedrich VI
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
reigned June 11, 1914 – February 23, 1918

Unofficial Royalty: Adolf Friedrich VI, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Adolf Friedrich VI was the last Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He was born in Neustrelitz on June 17, 1882. He reigned from his father’s death in 1914, until his death by suicide in Neustrelitz on the night of February 23, 1918. He is buried on the Liebesinsel (Love Island) just next to Mirow Castle and the Johanniterkirche in Mirow.

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