Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Bevern, Queen of Prussia

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, Queen of Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, Queen of Prussia

Elisabeth Christine was the wife of King Friedrich II of Prussia (Friedrich the Great), and the longest-serving Queen of Prussia, from 1740 until being widowed in 1786. She was born November 8, 1715, at Schloss Bevern, in Wolfenbüttel, Duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, now in Lower Saxony, Germany, the daughter of Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Elisabeth Christine had 12 siblings:

King Friedrich II of Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

On June 12, 1733, at her father’s summer residence, Schloss Salzdahlum in Wolfenbüttel, Elisabeth Christine married Crown Prince Friedrich of Prussia. The marriage had been arranged between the groom’s father, King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia, and the bride’s uncle, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI. They had no children and basically lived separate lives until their deaths.

The couple had little in common, and Friedrich resented the arranged marriage. The couple first lived at the Crown Prince’s Palace in Berlin, where Elisabeth Christine was particularly close to her father-in-law who was quite fond of her. In 1736, the couple moved to Rheinsberg Palace, where for the first time, her husband was able to maintain his own court. For the next four years, the couple enjoyed as normal a married life as could be expected, and she recalled these years as the “happiest of her life”.

It all changed in May 1740, when her father-in-law died and her husband succeeded him as King. The new King and Queen began to live separately. She was given Schönhausen Palace and apartments at the Berlin Stadtschloss, both in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia now in the German state of Brandenburg, and presided over her own quite large court, while the King lived primarily in Potsdam. Despite their separation, the new King understood the importance of court life and ensured that Elisabeth Christine had a very prominent and official role. While the King rarely attended any court functions, the Queen was always there, even often representing him at his own birthday celebrations.

Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, Queen of Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

Beloved by the people of Prussia, Elisabeth Christine became a symbol of strength during the Seven Years’ War, overseeing the evacuation of the royal court to Magdeburg in 1757. Further endearing herself to the Prussian people was her charity work. She donated the majority of her allowance to charitable causes each year. She was also responsible for bringing silk cultivation to Prussia and published several translations under a pseudonym.

Widowed in 1786, the Dowager Queen continued to have a very prominent role at court and was often consulted on matters of etiquette and court life. Despite her husband’s indifference during their marriage, she was also well provided for in his will, receiving an increase in her allowance, residence at any of the royal palaces of her choice, and the distinct order that she always be treated with the utmost respect due to her as Queen.

Eleven years later, on January 13, 1797, Dowager Queen Elisabeth Christine died at the Stadtschloss in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany, and was buried at the Berlin Cathedral.

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Friedrich Wilhelm I, King in Prussia

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Kingdom of Prussia: The Protestant Franconian branch of the House of Hohenzollern ruled as Margraves of Brandenburg, Dukes of Prussia, Electors of Brandenburg, Kings of Prussia from 1415 until 1918. In November 1700, in exchange for supporting the Holy Roman Empire in the Spanish War of Succession, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor agreed to allow Friedrich III, Duke of Prussia, Elector of Brandenburg to make Prussia a kingdom and become its first king. In the aftermath of World War I, Prussia had a revolution that resulted in the replacement of the monarchy with a republic. Wilhelm II, German Emperor, King of Prussia abdicated on November 9, 1918.

The Kingdom of Prussia had territory that today is part of Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, and Switzerland. All or parts of the following states of today’s Germany were part of the Kingdom of Prussia: Brandenburg, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saarland, Saxony-Anhalt, and Schleswig-Holstein.

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Friedrich Wilhelm I, King in Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

Friedrich Wilhelm I, King in Prussia

Friedrich Wilhelm I was the second King in Prussia, reigning from 1713 until 1740. He was born at the Berlin City Palace in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in the German state of Brandenburg, on August 14, 1688, to Friedrich I, King in Prussia and his second wife, Sophie Charlotte of Hanover. He had one older brother:

  • Prince Friedrich August (1685-1686) – died in infancy

Friedrich Wilhelm also had one half-sister from his father’s first marriage to Elisabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel:

Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, c1701. source: Wikipedia

For the first few years of his life, he was raised in Hanover, at the court of his grandmother, the Electress Sophia of Hanover, along with his cousins – his future wife, Sophie Dorothea of Hanover, and her brother, the future King George II of Great Britain. He returned to Berlin in 1692 and was educated by a Huguenot governess who did not speak German. At just six years old, he was given command of his own infantry regiment, and at eight years old, began to study under the direction of a Prussian general. However, his mother soon intervened because he could neither read nor write by the age of nine. A new Huguenot tutor was brought in to teach him. From a very young age, Friedrich Wilhelm developed a strong sense of thrift and a love for all things related to the military. For his tenth birthday, he was given his own estate at Wusterhausen where he learned the basic fundamentals of economics and management, both skills which would serve him well during his reign.

Sophie Dorothea of Hanover. source: Wikipedia

On November 28, 1706, in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in the German state of Brandenburg, Friedrich Wilhelm married his first cousin, Princess Sophie Dorothea of Hanover. She was the daughter of the future King George I of Great Britain and Sophie Dorothea of Celle. Despite a relatively unhappy marriage, the couple had 14 children:

Friedrich Wilhelm came to the Prussian throne upon his father’s death in 1713. Unlike his father who viewed the treasury as his own money and lived a lavish lifestyle, the new king chose to go the opposite direction. He sold many of his father’s possessions and lived an austere life. While his father was focused more on his personal enjoyment, Friedrich Wilhelm focused on strengthening Prussia, particularly the economy and the military. He was involved in every detail of the management of the Kingdom, even personally establishing guidelines for all state officials to ensure that everyone was doing their jobs to the fullest extent. He promoted farming throughout Prussia and encouraged the farmers to plan accordingly for the possibility of lean years. He also focused greatly on the military – reforming their training and tactics and leaving the Prussian army as one of the most powerful in Europe.

A devout Calvinist, Friedrich Wilhelm invited the Salzburg Protestants to settle in East Prussia when they were permitted to emigrate from Salzburg to a Protestant state. He ensured that they made their way safely, and personally greeted the first group.

Garrison Church, Potsdam. source: Wikipedia

King Friedrich Wilhelm I died at the Potsdam City Palace in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia, now in the German state of Brandenburg on May 31, 1740, and was interred at the Garrison Church in Potsdam. During World War I, his coffin was moved for safekeeping, first to Berlin and then to a salt mine near Berterode. After being recovered by American forces, he was re-interred at St. Elisabeth’s Church in Marburg, Germany in 1946. His coffin was moved again in 1953 to Hohenzollern Castle, and in 1991 his coffin was placed on the steps of the altar in the Kaiser Friedrich Mausoleum at the Church of Peace in Sanssouci Park in Potsdam, Germany.

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Sophie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Queen in Prussia

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Sophie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Queen in Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

Sophie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was the third wife of Friedrich I, King in Prussia. She was born at Grabow Castle in Grabow, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on May 6, 1685, the only daughter of Friedrich, Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow and Christine Wilhelmine of Hesse-Homburg. Sophie Luise had three older brothers:

Friedrich I, King in Prussia. source: Wikipedia

In Berlin on November 28, 1708, Sophie Luise married Friedrich I, King in Prussia, as his third wife. The couple had no children. Being so much younger than her husband, and close in age to his children, Sophie struggled to find acceptance at the Prussian court. It did not help that her predecessor Sophie Charlotte of Hanover was greatly loved and admired by the Prussian people, and many saw Sophie Luise as a poor replacement. The King surrounded her with courtiers who did not serve her best interests, and she avoided them as best she could, instead of spending most of her time with the lady-in-waiting who had accompanied her from Mecklenburg.

Over time, Sophie Luise became deeply religious, spending the majority of her time in prayer and listening to sermons, and often avoiding her duties as Queen Consort. As time progressed, her devotion became almost obsessive and manic. This caused distance between her and her husband, particularly because of her overzealous attempts to get him to convert from Calvinism to Lutheranism. This led to her husband Friedrich removing her closest confidantes and courtiers, and soon Sophie Luise became even more deeply entrenched in what is described as her obsession with religion, resulting in depression and mental derangement.

Friedrich was mostly unaware of Sophie Luise’s mental decline, until several months before his own death. Deeply ill, he awoke to find his wife standing before him, covered in blood and screaming at him. She had crashed through a glass door while running from her apartments to his, apparently to confront him in a fit of hysteria. Sophie Luise had no recollection of the event afterward, and Friedrich soon sent her back to Mecklenburg to be with her family. He would die just months later in 1713.

Sophie Luise, Queen in Prussia, lived the rest of her life with her widowed mother and died on July 29, 1735, at Schwerin Castle in Mecklenburg, Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, now in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. She is buried in the Schelfkirche St. Nikolai in Schwerin.

Sophienkirche, Berlin. photo: By A.Savin (Wikimedia Commons · WikiPhotoSpace) – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25766110

The Sophienkirche in Berlin is named for Sophie Luise. Construction began during the reign of her husband Friedrich I, but he died just months before it was completed in 1713. His successor Friedrich Wilhelm I, the son of his second wife Sophie Charlotte of Hanover, refused to name the church after his stepmother Sophie Luise as had been intended, consecrating it as the Spandauischekirche (Spandau Church). Later, when Friedrich Wilhelm I’s son  Friedrich II (the Great) came to the throne, he renamed it the Sophienkirche (Sophie Church), which remains the name to this day.

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Sophie Charlotte of Hanover, Queen in Prussia

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Sophie Charlotte of Hanover

Sophie Charlotte of Hanover was the second wife of King Friedrich I in Prussia, and the first Queen in Prussia. She was born at Iburg Castle in Osnabrück, Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg, later in the Electorate of Hanover, now in Lower Saxony, Germany, on October 30, 1668, the only daughter of Ernst August, Elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Sophia of the Palatinate. Her mother was named heiress-presumptive the British throne under the Act of Settlement 1701, and it would be Sophie Charlotte’s eldest brother who would become King George I of Great Britain in 1714. She had six brothers:

Raised initially at Iburg Castle, the family moved to Osnabrück Castle in 1673 and later to Hanover in 1679. Given a well-rounded education, she was proposed as a potential bride for Louis, the Grand Dauphin of France, son of King Louis XIV, and then even considered as a bride for the King himself following the death of his wife in 1683. Neither of these alliances panned out.

Friedrich I, King in Prussia. source: Wikipedia

Instead, on October 8, 1684, she married Friedrich of Hohenzollern, the future King Friedrich I in Prussia. He was the son of Friedrich Wilhelm, Elector of Brandenburg and Luise Henriette of Orange-Nassau. Friedrich had been widowed in 1683 and had one young daughter. Sophie Charlotte and Friedrich had two sons:

Upon marriage, Sophie Charlotte became Electress of Brandenburg, and would later become the first Queen in Prussia in 1701. The marriage – arranged purely for political purposes – was not a happy one. Several years after having given birth to her children, Sophie Charlotte retired to private life. In 1696, she had received an estate – Lietzow – just outside of Berlin, and soon began construction on a summer residence. The new home – called Lietzenburg – was completed and inaugurated in July 1699, and became Sophie Charlotte’s primary residence. Here, she lived separately from her husband and maintained her own court. After her husband became King in Prussia in 1701, the residence was expanded, with new wings and courtyards, becoming the palace that exists today. Following Sophie Charlotte’s death, her husband renamed the palace in her honor – Charlottenburg Palace.

Charlottenburg Palace. source: Wikipedia

At Lietzenburg, the Electress – and then Queen – indulged in her love of the arts, philosophy, and theology. She surrounded herself with some of the leading minds of the day, including Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a prominent German mathematician and philosopher, who she had known since her childhood. With Leibniz, she was instrumental in the founding of the Prussian Academy of Sciences.

Sadly, at just 36 years of age, Sophie Charlotte died of pneumonia on January 21, 1705, while visiting her mother in the Electorate of Hanover. She was buried in the crypt at the Berlin Cathedral in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany.

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Elizabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel, Electoral Princess of Brandenburg

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Elizabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel, Electoral Princess of Brandenburg – source: Wikipedia

Elisabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel was the first wife of the future Friedrich I, King in Prussia. She was born in Kassel on November 18, 1661, the youngest child of Wilhelm VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Hedwig Sophie of Brandenburg. Elisabeth Henriette had six older siblings:

Friedrich, Electoral Prince of Brandenburg (future King in Prussia). source: Wikipedia

On August 13, 1679, in Berlin, Elisabeth Henriette married Friedrich, Electoral Prince of Brandenburg. The two were first cousins and had known each other for most of their lives. I Elisabeth Henriette’s mother encouraged and promoted the marriage, which was a love match. They became officially engaged in 1676 but had secretly been engaged three years earlier. Following their marriage, they took up residence at Köpenick Palace in Berlin, and had one daughter:

Köpenick Palace. photo: By A.Savin (Wikimedia Commons · WikiPhotoSpace) – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33316525

Sadly, Elisabeth Henriette contracted smallpox and died on July 7, 1683, just weeks before her 4th wedding anniversary.  She is buried at Berlin Cathedral. Eighteen years later, in 1701, her husband would become King in Prussia, reigning until he died in 1713.

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Friedrich I, King in Prussia

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2019

Kingdom of Prussia: The Protestant Franconian branch of the House of Hohenzollern ruled as Margraves of Brandenburg, Dukes of Prussia, Electors of Brandenburg, Kings of Prussia from 1415 until 1918. In November 1700, in exchange for supporting the Holy Roman Empire in the Spanish War of Succession, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor agreed to allow Friedrich III, Duke of Prussia, Elector of Brandenburg to make Prussia a kingdom and become its first king. In the aftermath of World War I, Prussia had a revolution that resulted in the replacement of the monarchy with a republic. Wilhelm II, German Emperor, King of Prussia abdicated on November 9, 1918.

The Kingdom of Prussia had territory that today is part of Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, and Switzerland. All or parts of the following states of today’s Germany were part of the Kingdom of Prussia: Brandenburg, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saarland, Saxony-Anhalt, and Schleswig-Holstein.

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Friedrich I, King in Prussia; Credit – Wikipedia

Friedrich I was the founder of the Kingdom of Prussia and its first King, reigning from 1701 until 1713. He was born on July 11, 1657, at Königsberg Castle in Königsberg, Electorate of Brandenburg, now Kaliningrad, Russia,  the third son of Friedrich Wilhelm, Elector of Brandenburg and Countess Louise Henriette of Orange-Nassau. Friedrich had five siblings:

  • Wilhelm Heinrich, Electoral Prince of Brandenburg (1648-1649) – died in infancy
  • Karl Emil, Electoral Prince of Brandenburg (1655-1674) – unmarried
  • Amalia (1664-1665) – died in childhood
  • Heinrich (born and died 1664) – died in infancy
  • Ludwig (16661687) – married Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł, no issue

He also had seven half-siblings from his father’s second marriage, to Sophie Dorothea of Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg:

While still an infant, Friedrich’s shoulder was injured when his nurse accidentally dropped him. This physical impairment caused him problems for the rest of his life but also resulted in being particularly doted upon by his mother. His formal education began in 1662, under the supervision of Otto von Schwerin, First Minister of Brandenburg. Friedrich studied religion, history, and geography, and learned French, Polish, and Latin. As a younger son, he was not expected to succeed as the Elector, so in 1664, his father gave him the Principality of Halberstadt. In 1670, he was appointed Captain of a cavalry unit but did not actually serve due to his shoulder injury. Four years later, in 1674, his older brother Karl Emil died, and Friedrich became the heir.

Elisabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel. source: Wikipedia

Friedrich married three times. On August 13, 1679, he married Elisabeth Henriette of Hesse-Kassel, the daughter of Wilhelm VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Hedwig Sophie of Brandenburg. Soon after their marriage, they took up residence at Schloss Köpenick in Berlin. Elisabeth Henriette died of smallpox four years later, but the couple did have one daughter:

Sophie Charlotte of Hanover. source: Wikipedia

On October 8, 1684, Friedrich married Sophie Charlotte of Hanover, daughter of Ernst August, Elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Sophia of the Palatinate. The couple had two sons:

Sophie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. source: Wikipedia

Three years after his second wife died, Friedrich married for the third time. His bride was Sophie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, daughter of Friedrich, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow and Christine Wilhelmine of Hesse-Homburg. They had no children.

Upon his father’s death in April 1688, Friedrich succeeded him as Friedrich III, Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia. The Electorate was part of the Holy Roman Empire, while the Duchy of Prussia, formerly a fief of the Crown of Poland, lay outside the Empire’s borders. The Duchy had been inherited by the Hohenzollern prince-electors of Brandenburg in 1618 and was ruled in personal union. In November 1700, in exchange for supporting the Holy Roman Empire in the Spanish War of Succession, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor agreed to allow Friedrich to make Prussia a kingdom and become its first king. However, there were several concessions. Because the Hohenzollerns’ sovereignty over the Duchy of Prussia was dependent upon succession in the male line, it would return to the Polish crown if there were no male heirs to succeed. Friedrich also had to agree to style himself King IN Prussia and pay large amounts of money to the Holy Roman Emperor and the German clergy.

The coronation of Friedrich I, King in Prussia. source: Wikipedia

On January 18, 1701, Friedrich crowned himself King (as Friedrich I) in the castle church at Königsberg Castle. He also remained Elector of Brandenburg and added several other titles over the next few years. In 1702, he inherited the counties of Lingen and Moers following the death of King William III of England (later incorporated into the County of Tecklenburg) and was elected Prince of Neuchâtel in 1707, which was recognized by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. He and his heirs bore the title ‘Sovereign Prince of Orange, Neuchâtel, and Valangin’.  A huge supporter of the arts and education, Friedrich founded the Academy of Arts in 1696 and the Academy of Sciences in 1700.

King Friedrich I was in ill health for some time. He died in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany, on February 25, 1713, and was buried at the Berliner Dom in Berlin. His son, Friedrich Wilhelm I succeeded him.

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Princess Tatjana of Liechtenstein

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Princess Tatjana with her mother, Princess Marie, 2014. photo: Exclusiv.li

Princess Tatjana with her mother Princess Marie, 2014.  photo: Exclusiv.li

Princess Tatjana Nora Maria of Liechtenstein was born April 10, 1973, in St Gallen, Switzerland. She is the youngest of the four children and the only daughter of Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein and Princess Marie, born Countess Marie Aglaë of Wchinitz and Tettau. As Liechtenstein follows agnatic primogeniture (male-only), Princess Tatjana is not in the line of succession to the throne of Liechtenstein.

Princess Tatjana has three older brothers:

Tatjana was educated at schools in Vaduz, Liechtenstein from 1984 – 1992. She then studied business administration at the European Business School in Madrid, Spain. Tatjana is fluent in German, English, French, and Spanish.

On June 5, 1999, Princess Tatjana married Baron Philipp von Lattorff in St. Florin’s Cathedral in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. He was born in Graz, Austria, on March 25, 1968, the eldest son of Baron Claus-Juergen von Lattorff and the Hungarian Countess Julia Batthyány von Német-Ujvár. Philipp is a manager at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals.

The couple had seven children:

    • Lukas von Lattorff (born 2000)
    • Elisabeth von Lattorff (born 2002)
    • Marie von Lattorff (born 2004)
    • Camilla von Lattorff (born 2005)
    • Anna von Lattorff (born 2007)
    • Sophie von Lattorff (born 2009)
    • Maximilian von Lattorff (born 2011)

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Prince Constantin of Liechtenstein

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2019

photo: Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation

photo: Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation

Prince Constantin Ferdinand Maria of Liechtenstein was born March 15, 1972, in St Gallen, Switzerland, the third of the three sons and the third of the four children of Prince Hans-Adam II  of Liechtenstein and Princess Marie, born Countess Marie Aglaë of Wchinitz and Tettau.

Prince Constantin has three siblings:

Prince Constantin attended primary school in Vaduz, Liechtenstein and then attended the Liechtensteinisches Gymnasium also in Vaduzfrom 1983 – 1991. He received a law degree from the University of Salzburg in Austria and worked primarily in the financial field, holding positions at investment firms both in the United States and in Europe. He also served on the boards and management teams of several of the family’s companies. From 2012 until his death in 2023, Prince Constantin served as General Director and chairman of the board of directors of the Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation, an organization established in 1970 to oversee and manage the assets and companies owned by the Liechtenstein princely family. These include real estate holdings in Liechtenstein and Austria, the Princely Wine Cellars, the family’s extensive art collections, and the LGT Group – the largest family-owned private wealth management firm in Europe.

LIE-Constantin-Marie-1999

On May  14,1999 , Prince Constantin married Countess Marie Gabriele Franziska Kálnoky de Kőröspatak in a civil ceremony in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. The couple had a religious ceremony on July 17, 1999, held in Číčov, Slovakia. They had three children:

  • Prince Moritz (born 2003)
  • Princess Georgina (born 2005)
  • Prince Benedikt (born 2008)
photo: Exclusiv.li

Prince Constantin and Princess Marie, 2014. photo: Exclusiv.li

Constantin’s wife Princess Marie was born on July 16, 1975, in Graz, Austria, the daughter of Count Alois Kálnoky von Kőröspatak and Sieglinde Freiin von Oer. She works with the Hofkellerei des Fürsten von Liechtenstein (The Wine Cellars of the Prince of Liechtenstein), helping to promote and market the wines throughout Europe and the world.

Prince Constantin died unexpectedly on December 5, 2023, at the age of 51. A statement released by the Prince House of Liechtenstein on December 6, 2023 said: “The Princely House regrets to announce that H.S.H. Prince Constantin von und zu Liechtenstein passed away unexpectedly on 5 December 2023.” A private family funeral and burial took place at the Cathedral of St. Florin in Vaduz, Liechtenstein on December 10, 2023.

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Prince Maximilian of Liechtenstein

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Embed from Getty Images 

Prince Maximilian Nicolaus Maria of Liechtenstein was born May 16, 1969, in St Gallen, Switzerland, the second son of the three sons and the second of the four children of Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein and Princess Marie, born Countess Marie Aglaë of Wchinitz and Tettau.

Maximilian has three siblings:

Prince Maximilian attended primary school in Vaduz, Liechtenstein, and graduated from the Liechtenstein Gymnasium (high school) in 1988. Following a year working within the family’s businesses, he attended the European Business School in Frankfurt, Germany, and graduated in 1993. He then worked at Chase Capital Partners, in New York City until 1996. In 1997, he enrolled in Harvard Business School, earning his Masters Degree in Business Administration in 1998. He then worked for Industrie Kapital in Hamburg and London (a venture capital firm), and JPMorgan Partners in Germany.

Prince Max, as he is known, has served as CEO of the LGT Group, the largest family-owned private wealth management firm in Europe, since 2006. The LGT Group is part of the Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation.

photo: The Royal Correspondent

Prince Maximilian and Princess Angela; photo: The Royal Correspondent

Maximilian married Angela Gisella Brown in a civil ceremony in Vaduz, Liechtenstein on January 21, 2000, followed by a religious ceremony held at the Church of St Vincent Ferrer in New York City on January 29, 2000. The couple had met in 1997 at a party in New York City and became engaged in 1999. They had one son:

  • Prince Alfons Constantin Maria of Liechtenstein (born 2001)

Princess Angela was born in Panama on February 3, 1958, and is of Afro-Panamanian descent. She attended the Parsons School of Design in New York City and worked as a fashion designer until the time of her engagement.

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Princess Ariane of the Netherlands

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

December 2023

Princess Ariane was born in Bronovo Hospital in The Hague, the Netherlands on April 10, 2007. She is the youngest of the three daughters of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Queen Máxima (née Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti). She was given the names Ariane Wilhelmina Máxima Inés:

  • Ariane: to complete the “triple-A rating” according to her father, her parents thought it was a pretty name
  • Wilhelmina: for her great-great-grandmother Queen Wilhelmina
  • Máxima: for her mother
  • Inés: for her maternal aunt, one of her godparents
Ariane_christening

Ariane’s sisters and cousins at her christening!!! Photo Credit – http://37.media.tumblr.com

Ariane was christened in the Kloosterkerk in The Hague, the Netherlands on October 20, 2007.  Her godparents were:

Ariane_godparents_family

A more subdued photo of Ariane’s family and her godparents; http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com

Ariane has two older sisters:

Ariane’s family in 2022: Queen Máxima, King Willem-Alexander, Princess Ariane, Princess Amalia, and Princess Alexia

Princess Ariane attended the Bloemcamp School (website translated from Dutch via Google Translator) in Wassenaar, The Netherlands. From 2021 – 2023, Ariane attended Christelijk Gymnasium Sorghvliet, an independent Protestant school in The Hague, The Netherlands. Beginning in the fall of 2023, Ariane continued her secondary school studies at the United World College of the Adriatic in Duino, Italy, in pursuit of her International Baccalaureate. 

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