Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness, Mistress of the future King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Thelma, circa 1925

Mistress: a woman who has a continuing, extramarital sexual relationship with one man

Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness was the mistress of the future King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom from 1929 to 1932 while he was Prince of Wales.

Born Thelma Morgan on August 23, 1904, at the Grand Hotel National in Lucerne, Switzerland, Thelma and her identical twin sister Gloria were the second and third of the four children of Harry Hays Morgan Sr., an American diplomat who was U.S. consul in Buenos Aire, Argentina and in Brussels, Belgium, and his second wife Laura Delphine Kilpatrick. Thelma’s paternal grandparents were Philip Hicky Morgan and Beatrice Leslie Ford. Her maternal grandparents were Hugh Judson Kilpatrick, a Union Army General and an American ambassador to Chile, and his second wife Luisa Fernandez de Valdivieso, a member of a wealthy family of Spanish origin that emigrated to South America in the 17th century.

Thelma had three siblings:

  • Laura Consuelo Morgan (1901 – 1979), known as Consuelo, married (1) Count Jean de Maupas du Juglart, no children, divorced (2) Benjamin Thaw Jr., no children (3) Alfons B. Landa, no children
  • Gloria Morgan (1904 – 1965), Thelma’s identical twin, born Maria Mercedes Morgan, adopted the name Gloria as a teenager, married Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt, from the wealthy Vanderbilt family, had one daughter, the fashion designer Gloria Vanderbilt who was the mother of CNN anchor Anderson Cooper
  • Harry Hays Morgan Jr. (1898 – 1983), a film actor and diplomat, married (1) Ivor Elizabeth O’Connor, divorced (2) Edith Churchill Gordon, had one daughter (3) Ruth Broadbent Castor, no children

Thelma had two half-sisters from her father’s first marriage to Mary Edgerton:

  • Constance Morgan (1887 – 1892), died in childhood
  • Gladys Morgan (1889 – 1958), married Lieutenant John W. Henderson

Thelma and her identical twin sister Gloria were first educated by governesses while their father was on diplomatic assignments in Europe and South America. When they returned to the United States, Thelma and her twin sister Gloria attended the Convent of the Sacred Heart, a Roman Catholic all-girls school in the Manhattan borough of New York City, the Skerton Finishing School, and Miss Nightingale’s School, also in Manhattan. In 1921, with their father’s permission, 17-year-old Thelma and Gloria ended their education and moved into an apartment at 40 Fifth Avenue, a private townhouse in Manhattan.

Thelma and Gloria were known as “The Magnificent Morgans” and were already popular with the New York high society as teenagers. The sisters had some minor roles in silent movies, using the names Gloria and Thelma Rochelle, debuting as extras in the 1922 Marion Davies film The Young Diana. In 1923, Thelma founded her own film company, Thelma Morgan Pictures. She produced and acted in four films, Aphrodite (1923), Enemies of Women (1923), a William Randolph Hearst production whose cast included Lionel Barrymore and Clara Bow, So This Is Marriage? (1924), and Any Woman (1925).

On February 16, 1922, in Washington, DC, seventeen-year-old Thelma married twenty-nine-year-old James Vail Converse, a grandson of Theodore Vail, former president of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T). The marriage was childless and the couple divorced three years later. After her divorce and a brief relationship with actor Richard Bennet, Thelma went to Europe to visit her parents and her sister Consuelo.

Marmaduke Furness, 1st Viscount Furness

It was at a dinner in Paris, that Thelma met Marmaduke Furness, 1st Viscount Furness who was twenty-one years older than her. Marmaduke was the chairman of Furness Withy, a shipping company and one of the richest men in the world. His first wife had died in 1921. On June 27, 1926, Thelma and Marmaduke were married at St George’s Register Office in London. The couple divorced in 1933 due to Thelma’s affair with the Prince of Wales.

Thelma and Marmaduke had one son:

Thelma had a stepdaughter and a stepson from Marmaduke’s first marriage to the late Ada “Daisy” Hogg:

Thelma first met the Prince of Wales, the future King Edward VIII, called David by his family and friends, in 1926 at a ball at Londonderry House, the London home of Charles Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 7th Marquess of Londonderry. When they met again on June 14, 1929, at the Leicestershire Agricultural Show at Leicester, David asked her to dine with him. Thelma and David continued to meet regularly and she joined him on an African safari in 1930. During this period, David was having a long-time affair with Freda Dudley Ward along with several short affairs.

Thelma and the Prince of Wales in 1932; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1929, David’s father King George V gave him Fort Belvedere, a country house in Windsor Great Park, in Surrey, England where Thelma was a regular weekend companion and acted as David’s hostess. She also entertained Davis at her London home on Elsworthy Road in the Primrose Hill section of London and Burrough Court, the Furness country house in Burrough on the Hill, Leicestershire, England.

On a weekend in November 1930, Thelma invited two last-minute guests to a house party at Burrough Court, Ernest Simpson and Wallis Simpson. This was the first meeting of David and his future mistress and wife Wallis Simpson. Between 1931 and 1934, David met the Simpsons at various house parties and Wallis was presented at court. It appears that while Thelma was visiting her sister Gloria in the United States from January to March 1934, Wallis Simpson became David’s mistress. Upon her return to the United Kingdom, Thelma and David dined together once and she visited Fort Belvedere once. Although David was cordial, Thelma thought he was personally distant. Confused about the situation. Thelma called her friend Wallis Simpson who said, “Thelma, I think he likes me” and the rest is history.

Thelma (center) arriving in New York to assist her twin sister Gloria in her custody battle for her daughter. She arrived with her brother Harry Hays Morgan Jr and his wife.

On the rebound, Thelma had a short affair with Prince Aly Khan, a wealthy Pakistani diplomat, who had a long list of affairs. In 1934, Thelma’s sister Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, the widow of Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt, was at the center of a highly publicized court battle with Reginald’s sister Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney for the custody of her ten-year-old daughter Gloria Vanderbilt. Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney believed that her former sister-in-law Gloria was a bad influence and neglectful of her daughter and won custody of her niece at the end of a brutal custody battle.

The Morgan twins in 1955: Gloria (on the left) and Thelma (on the right); Credit – Wikipedia

After her divorce, Thelma divided her time between London and New York but from the 1940s until their deaths, Thelma and her sister Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt lived together in New York City and Los Angeles, California. They wrote a dual memoir called Double Exposure: A Twin Autobiography, published in 1958. Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt died on February 13, 1965, aged 60, in Los Angeles, California, and was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, Los Angeles, California.

Grave of Thelma and her identical twin sister Gloria; Credit – www.findagrave.com

Thelma, Viscountess Furness, aged 65, died of a heart attack on January 29, 1970, at the corner of Lexington Avenue and 73rd Street in Manhattan, New York City, on her way to the doctor. In her purse was one of the teddy bears she used to exchange with David. Thelma was buried with her sister Gloria at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, Los Angeles, California.

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.

Works Cited

  • Bloks, Moniek. (2021). Before Wallis – Thelma, Viscountess Furness . History of Royal Women. https://www.historyofroyalwomen.com/the-year-of-the-duchess-of-windsor-2021/the-year-of-the-duchess-of-windsor-thelma-viscountess-furness-part-one/
  • Donaldson, Frances. (1974). Edward VIII. Ballantine Biograpy.
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloria_Morgan_Vanderbilt
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Marmaduke Furness, 1st Viscount Furness. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marmaduke_Furness,_1st_Viscount_Furness
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelma_Furness,_Viscountess_Furness

Royal Birthdays & Anniversaries: December 3 – December 9

© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Below is a select list of birthdays and wedding anniversaries for current monarchies. It does not purport to be a complete list. Please see the Current Monarchies Index in the heading above for more information on current monarchies.

 

22nd birthday of Princess Aiko of Japan, daughter of Crown Prince Naruhito of Japan; born at the Hospital of the Imperial Household in Tokyo, Japan on December 1, 2001
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Aiko of Japan

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18th birthday of Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway, son of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, born on December 3, 2005, at Rikshospitalet University Hospital
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway

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24th wedding anniversary of King Philippe of the Belgians and Mathilde d’Udekem d’ Acoz; married civilly at the Brussels City Hall and religiously at the Cathedral of Saint Michel and Saint Gudula in Brussels, Belgium on December 4, 1999
Unofficial Royalty: Wedding of King Philippe of the Belgians and Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz

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Photo: Mattias Edwall, Swedish Royal Court

39th birthday of Princess Sofia of Sweden, born Sofia Hellqvist, wife of Prince Carl Philip of Sweden in Täby, Sweden on December 6, 1984
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Sofia of Sweden

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45th birthday of  Princess Bajrakitiyabha of Thailand, daughter of King Vajiralongkorn of Thailand, born at the Amphorn Sathan Residential Hall on the grounds of Dusit Palace in Bangkok, Thailand on December 7, 1978

Unofficial Royalty: Princess Bajrakitiyabha of Thailand

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© RVD – Erwin Olaf

20th birthday of Catharina-Amalia, The Princess of Orange, daughter of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, at Bronovo Hospital in The Hague, The Netherlands on December 7, 2003
Full name: Catharina-Amalia Beatrix Carmen Victoria
Unofficial Royalty: Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange

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Empress Masako of Japan; Credit – Wikipedia

60th birthday of Empress Masako of Japan, born Masako Owada, wife of Emperor Naruhito of Japan; born in Tokyo, Japan on December 9, 1963
Unofficial Royalty: Empress Masako of Japan

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December 3: Today in Royal History

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Princess Louise of the United Kingdom, Duchess of Argyll; Credit – Wikipedia

December 3, 1764 – Birth of Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Princess Friedrich of Württemberg, first wife of the future King Friedrich I of Württemberg, in Brunswick, Duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, now in Lower Saxony, Germany
Full name: Augusta Caroline Friederike Luise
Augusta was the daughter of Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Princess Augusta of Great Britain, a sister of King George III. In 1780, Augusta married Prince Friedrich of Württemberg, later King Friedrich I of Württemberg. Despite a very unhappy marriage, Augusta and Friedrich had four children. Augusta wanted to leave her husband as early as her first pregnancy.  In 1782, Friedrich had impressed Catherine II (the Great), Empress of All Russia while visiting Russia, and she made him Governor-General of Eastern Finland. Four years later, while they were visiting Catherine II in St. Petersburg, Augusta asked Catherine for protection from her husband. She claimed that Friedrich was abusive to her, and was having affairs with several men. Catherine took Augusta in and told Friedrich to leave the country. Augusta hoped to obtain a divorce, but her father would not permit it. So Catherine provided Augusta with a home at Koluvere Castle in Estonia, along with a custodian, Wilhelm von Pohlmann. Soon, Augusta and von Pohlmann began an affair and she became pregnant. On September 27, 1788, Augusta went into premature labor. Fearing that their affair would become known, von Pohlmann refused to call for a doctor and Augusta died of blood loss.
Unofficial Royalty: Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

December 3, 1821 – Birth of Jane Loftus, Marchioness of Ely, Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Victoria
Born Jane Hope-Vere, the daughter of  James Hope-Vere and Lady Elizabeth Hay, a daughter of the 7th Marquess of Tweeddale. She married John Loftus, 3rd Marquess of Ely.
Unofficial Royalty: Jane Loftus, Marchioness of Ely

December 3, 1838 – Birth of Luise of Prussia, Grand Duchess of Baden, wife of Grand Duke Friedrich I of Baden, in Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, now in Brandenburg, Germany
Full name: Luise Marie Elisabeth
Luise was the daughter of Wilhelm I, King of Prussia and Augusta of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. She had one older brother Friedrich III, German Emperor and King of Prussia. In 1856, Luise married the future Grand Duke Friedrich I of Baden. The couple had three children including Friedrich II, Grand Duke of Baden and Victoria who married King Gustav V of Sweden. Luise became involved in charitable causes in Baden, particularly those that helped and promoted women. Luise’s husband died in 1907. At the end of World War I, Luise along with her daughter Queen Victoria of Sweden, who was visiting, fled to Zwingenberg Palace in Zwingenberg, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The new Baden government then granted Luise permission to stay at Langenstein Castle, owned by the Swedish Count Douglas, who was related to the Baden Grand Ducal family through marriage. The Baden government ordered that Luise and her family be protected, primarily because her daughter was Queen of Sweden, and they did not want to cause any sort of diplomatic problems.  In 1919, Luise was given permission to return to Neues Schloss (New Castle) in Baden-Baden, Baden-Württemberg, Germany where she died at the age of 85.
Unofficial Royalty: Louise of Prussia, Grand Duchess of Baden

December 3, 1839 – Death of King Frederik VI of Denmark and Norway at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark; buried at Roskilde Cathedral in Roskilde, Denmark
Frederik VI was the only son and the eldest of the two children of King Christian VII of Denmark and Norway and his and Caroline Matilda of Wales, sister of King George III of the United Kingdom. Frederik’s father King Christian VII suffered from mental illness. His ill-treated mother Caroline Matilda had an affair with physician Johann Friedrich Struensee. After the affair was discovered Struenss was executed and Caroline Matilda was imprisoned in a castle and never saw her children again. In 1790, Frederik married his cousin Princess Marie of Hesse-Kassel. Frederik and Marie had eight children but unfortunately, six of them, including two boys, died in infancy. Only two daughters survived and both daughters had childless marriages. In 1808, 1808, Frederik became king upon the death of his father. After the French defeat in the Napoleonic Wars in 1814 and the loss of Norway, Frederik became more authoritarian and reactionary, giving up his former liberal ideas. He died at the age of 71.
Unofficial Royalty: King Frederik VI of Denmark and Norway

December 3, 1882 – Death of Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen in Meiningen, Duchy of Saxe-Meinigen, now in Thuringia, Germany; buried in the Ducal Crypt Chapel in the Meiningen municipal cemetery until 1977, when his remains were removed from the chapel, cremated and buried elsewhere in the cemetery
Bernhard was the only son of Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and the younger brother of Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen who married King William IV of the United Kingdom.  In 1803, three-year-old Bernhard became Duke of Saxe-Meiningen upon the death of his father. In 1825, Bernhard married Princess Marie Friederike of Hesse-Kassel and the couple had two children. Although he had earlier aligned himself with Prussia, in the mid-1860s, Bernhard instead sided with Austria during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. Following Austria’s defeat, the Prussians forced Bernhard to abdicate on September 20, 1866, in favor of his son, Georg II. Now the former Duke, Bernhard took up residence at the Great Palace in Meiningen, previously built as a dower home for his mother. He died there at the age of 81.
Unofficial Royalty: Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

December 3, 1935 – Death of Princess Victoria of the United Kingdom, daughter of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, at her home Coppins in Iver, Buckinghamshire, England; buried at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore in Windsor, England
Victoria’s mother Alexandra was extremely possessive, demanded complete devotion from her children, and insisted that they call her Motherdear. Victoria’s sisters Louise and Maud escaped into marriage, leaving her at home as her mother’s constant companion. She had several suitors including Prince Adolphus of Teck, Sir Arthur Davidson who was one of her father’s equerries, and Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery. Lord Rosebery was a former Prime Minister who had been widowed, and both he and Victoria would have liked to have married. However, Victoria’s mother actively discouraged her from marrying anyone. Instead, she remained a companion to her mother, Queen Alexandra, whom she lived with until the Queen’s death in 1925. Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna, Victoria’s first cousin, described her as little more than “a glorified maid.”  When her mother died, Victoria was 57 and was able to live her own life at last. She purchased a country home, Coppins, in Iver, Buckinghamshire, England. Victoria became active in the village life of Iver and was the honorary president of the Iver Horticultural Society. Victoria’s last years were plagued with health issues and she suffered from neuralgia, migraines, indigestion, depression, colds, and influenza. Princess Victoria died at her home Coppins at the age of 67.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Victoria of the United Kingdom

December 3, 1939 – Death of Princess Louise of the United Kingdom, Duchess of Argyll, daughter of Queen Victoria, at Kensington Palace in London, England; cremated and ashes buried at the Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore in Windsor, England
Louise developed a strong interest in the arts. Queen Victoria permitted her to enroll at The National Art Training School, to pursue her interests and she became a very skilled painter and sculptress. She sculpted a statue of Queen Victoria which stands today on the grounds of Kensington Palace. In 1871, Louise married John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne and heir to the Dukedom of Argyll. Queen Victoria found this to be a wonderful match, infusing ‘new blood’ into the royal family. Others, including the Prince of Wales, found it appalling that the Princess should marry below her class. Louise and her husband had no children. From 1878 – 1883, Louise’s husband was the Governor-General of Canada and the couple resided at Rideau Hall in Ottawa. Louise was widowed in 1914 when her husband passed away after a lengthy illness. She would survive him by more than 25 years. During this time, she remained an active member of the royal family, taking part in official events and maintaining contact with many of her patronages and charities. Louise spent her remaining years at Kensington Palace, where she died at the age of 91.
Unofficial Royalty: Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll

December 3, 1944 – Death of Prince Andreas (Andrew) of Greece, son of King George I of Greece and father of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, at the Metropole Hotel in Monte Carlo, Monaco; first buried at the Russian Orthodox Church in Nice, France; in 1946, his remains were reinterred in the royal cemetery at Tatoi Palace in Greece
The father of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Andreas was the son of King George I of Greece (born a Prince of Denmark) and Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna of Russia. In 1903, he married Princess Alice of Battenberg, daughter of Prince Louis of Battenberg and Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine. The couple had four daughters and one son. Andreas’ life was often interrupted by the political turmoil in Greece. By the early 1930s, Andreas had less and less contact with his family. His wife suffered a nervous breakdown and was institutionalized, his four daughters had all married into former German royal families, and his son was attending school first in Germany and then in the United Kingdom. Somewhat at a loss, having been basically forced into a life of retirement, Andreas moved to the French Riviera. The onset of World War II brought an end to the little contact Andreas had with his wife and children. His wife had returned to Greece, his daughters were all behind German lines, and his son was fighting for the British forces. Prince Andreas died at the Metropole Hotel in Monte Carlo on December 3, 1944, at the age of 62.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Andreas of Greece

December 3, 2005 – Birth of Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway, son of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, at the Rikshospitalet University Hospital in Oslo, Norway
Sverre Magnus is the youngest of the two children of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and his wife Crown Princess Mette-Marit (née Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby), and one of the five grandchildren of King Harald V of Norway. The prince is third in the line of succession to the Norwegian throne, behind his father and sister Princess Ingrid Alexandra.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway

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.

Freda Dudley Ward, Mistress of the future King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Freda Dudley Ward, 1919; Credit – Wikipedia

Mistress: a woman who has a continuing, extramarital sexual relationship with one man

Freda Dudley Ward was the mistress of the future King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom from 1918 – 1934 while he was Prince of Wales.

Born Winifred May Birkin on July 28, 1894, Freda Dudley Ward was the eldest of the four children of Colonel Charles Wilfred Birkin and his American wife Claire Lloyd Howe. Freda’s paternal grandparents were Sir Thomas Birkin, 1st Baronet and Harriet Tebbutt. Her paternal grandfather was a wealthy lace manufacturer, whose company had its headquarters in Nottingham, England with large factories in the Kingdom of Saxony (now in Germany) and Chester, Pennsylvania in the United States. Freda’s maternal grandparents were Alexander Howe, from a family of American politicians, and Ada Webb.

Freda had three younger siblings:

  • Violet Birkin (1899 – 1953), married Douglas Holden Blew-Jones, had one daughter
  • Vera Birkin (1903 – 1970), married Frank James Wriothesley Seely, had five children
  • Sir Charles Birkin, 5th Baronet (1907 – 1985), married Janet Johnson, had three children

On July 9, 1913, Freda married William Dudley Ward, the Liberal Member of Parliament for Southampton. William’s family surname was Ward but Dudley Ward became their official surname through common usage.

Freda with her two daughters in 1918; Credit – Wikipedia

Freda and William had two daughters:

The Prince of Wales in 1919; Credit – Wikipedia

In March 1918, during World War I, Freda and a male friend were walking through Belgrave Square in London. They noticed, through an open door, that a party was going on in one of the homes. They then noticed that maroons, fireworks used as a danger or warning signal, were going off indicating a German Zeppelin raid. They could see the guests running down the stairs to the safety of the cellar. The hostess called out to Freda and her friend to join her guests in the cellar. While in the darkness of the cellar, a young man started a conversation with Freda. He asked where she lived and then she asked him where he lived. He replied in London and sometimes in Windsor. When the air raid was over, the party hostess invited Freda and her friend to join the party, saying, “His Royal Highness is so anxious that you should do so.” Freda spent the evening dancing with the Prince of Wales, the future King Edward VIII. Her male friend disappeared during the evening, and in the early hours of the next morning, the Prince of Wales, called David by his family and friends, escorted Freda home.

The next day, David called upon Freda at her home and said he would like to see her again, beginning what would be a sixteen year relationship. While the relationship itself was discrete, it was never a secret and was well-known in British society. Throughout their relationship, David called Freda every morning – her household called it “the baker’s call” – and usually visited her sometime during the day. David adored Freda’s two daughters who called him “Little Prince.” Freda and her husband eventually separated and in 1931, they divorced.

The Prince of Wales with Freda Dudley Ward at the opening Union Station in Toronto, Canada, 1927; Credit – Wikipedia

After 1924, David had several short affairs and one longer affair from 1929 – 1932 with American Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness. Thelma was born Thelma Morgan, the identical twin of Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt who was the mother of Gloria Vanderbilt, the fashion designer and the mother of CNN news anchor Anderson Cooper. During this period, David’s attachment to Freda remained more or less the same.

David with Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness in 1932; Credit – Wikipedia

In May 1934, Freda’s daughter Penelope had an appendectomy and was seriously ill. Freda spent most of her time at the nursing home where Penelope was recovering. Only when Penelope was out of danger did Freda realize that weeks had gone by without David calling her or visiting her. Freda called St. James Palace in London where David had apartments. The switchboard operator and Freda had spoken nearly daily for years and she told Freda that she had something terrible to tell her. The Prince of Wales had given orders that her calls were not to be put through. Freda would never speak to David again. In January 1934, Wallis Warfield Simpson had become David’s mistress. On January 20, 1936, David’s father King George V died and David became King Edward VIII. Wallis divorced her second husband in October 1936. On December 10, 1936, David abdicated his throne so he could marry Wallis, because, as he said in his famous speech, he was unable to do his job “as I would have wished to do” without the support of “the woman I love”.

Freda’s second husband Peter de Casa Maury; Credit – The Peerage 

On October 20, 1937, Freda married Cuban-born Pedro Monés, the 1st Marquis de Casa Maury who was a naturalized British citizen but retained his Spanish title. He legally changed his name to Peter de Casa Maury. Peter was a former Wing Commander of the Royal Air Force and intelligence officer, a race car driver, and the founder of Curzon Cinemas. Freda then held the Spanish title Marquesa de Casa Maury. The couple had no children and divorced in 1954. Peter died on June 27, 1968.

Freda Dudley Ward (left) and Lady Birkenhead attending a christening in 1937

After Peter’s death in 1968, Freda retired to a small home in Chelsea, London where she continued her interest in home decorating, focusing on the country house look. She died at her Chelsea home on March 16, 1983, at the age of 88.

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.

Works Cited

  • Donaldson, Frances. (1974). Edward VIII. Ballantine Biograpy.
  • Pedro Jose Isidro Manuel Ricardo Mones Maury, Marques de Casa Maury. The Peerage. (2007a). https://www.thepeerage.com/p14286.htm#i142853
  • Trethewey, Rachel. (2023, October 8). As never-before-seen photos are auctioned, meet the married lover who came before Wallis. Daily Mail Online. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12592745/Wallis-Simpson-prince-Edward-VIII-affair-Freda-Dudley-Ward.html
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Freda Dudley Ward. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freda_Dudley_Ward
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Sir Thomas Birkin, 1st Baronet. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Thomas_Birkin,_1st_Baronet
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). William Dudley Ward. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Dudley_Ward
  • Winifred May Birkin. The Peerage. (2007). https://www.thepeerage.com/p992.htm#i9915

December 2: Today in Royal History

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Archduchess Maria Leopoldina of Austria, Empress of Brazil, Queen of Portugal; Credit – Wikipedia

December 2, 1767 – Birth of Leopold I, Prince of Lippe in Detmold, County of Lippe-Detmold, now in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
Full name: Wilhelm Leopold
As a child, Leopold’s lack of strength of character, lack of interest, lack of concentration, and a tendency to mental disorders became apparent. In 1782, Leopold’s father died and the fourteen-year-old succeeded him. In 1790, Leopold’s mental disorders interfered with his role as reigning prince and he was deemed legally incapacitated and placed under guardianship. In 1795, the guardianship was conditionally lifted after Leopold’s condition improved. Leopold married Princess Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg in 1796 and the couple had two sons. Because of Leopold’s tenuous mental condition, Pauline became his governmental adviser and colleague. Within the next few years, Leopold developed intestinal tuberculosis, and his mental disorders returned with memory loss. He died at the age of 34 and his five-year-old son Leopold II, Prince of Lippe succeeded him with his mother Pauline very capably acting as Regent of the Principality of Lippe.
Unofficial Royalty: Leopold I, Prince of Lippe

December 2, 1826 – Death of Archduchess Maria Leopoldina of Austria, Empress of Brazil, Queen of Portugal, wife of Pedro I of Brazil/Pedro IV of Portugal, at São Cristóvão Palace in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; first buried at the Church of the Ajuda Convent in Rio de Janeiro, reinterred in 1954 at the Monument to the Independence of Brazil in São Paulo, Brazil
Known as Leopoldina, she was the daughter of Emperor Franz I of Austria and the second of his four wives, Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily. In 1817, she married Pedro, Crown Prince of Portugal and Prince of Brazil, son of King João VI of Portugal. At that time, Brazil was ruled as a kingdom united with Portugal. The couple had seven children. In 1821, Pedro became the Regent of Brazil. In August 1822, Pedro appointed Leopoldina Regent of Brazil while he was away on a trip. While Pedro was away, Leopoldina received news that Portugal intended to recall Pedro and relegate Brazil to the status of a colony. Leopoldina met with the Council of State and signed the Decree of Independence, declaring Brazil independent from Portugal. Pedro I was declared Emperor of Brazil and Leopoldina became Empress of Brazil. In 1826, 29-year-old Leopoldina died from puerperal fever (childbed fever) after a miscarriage.
Unofficial Royalty: Maria Leopoldina of Austria, Empress of Brazil, Queen of Portugal

December 2, 1849 – Death of Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, Queen of the United Kingdom, wife of King William IV of the United Kingdom, at Bentley Priory in Stanmore, Middlesex, England; buried at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, in Windsor, England
After twenty-one-year-old Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of George, Prince of Wales, died delivering a stillborn son, the unmarried, aging sons of King George III began a frantic search for brides to provide for the succession. One of the sons was William, Duke of Clarence (the future King William IV). William had never married but had lived for 20 years with actress Dorothea Jordan. Soon after the death of Princess Charlotte of Wales, negotiations began for the marriage of William to Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, and the engagement was announced on April 19, 1818. William was 52 and Adelaide was 25. Adelaide loved children but was destined not to have one of her own. Sadly, Adelaide had babies who died in early infancy, a miscarriage, and two stillbirths. A child of William and Adelaide would have succeeded to the throne as William’s two elder brothers (George IV and Frederick, Duke of York) had no surviving children.  Adelaide wrote to her widowed sister-in-law the Duchess of Kent, “My children are dead, but your child lives, and she is mine too.” That child was the future Queen Victoria. In 1830, Adelaide’s husband William became king upon the death of his brother King George IV.  He reigned for only seven years and was succeeded by his niece Victoria. Adelaide survived William by 12 years, dying at the age of 57.
Unofficial Royalty: Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, Queen of the United Kingdom

December 2, 1865 – Birth of Olga Valerianovna Karnovich, the second, morganatic wife of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, in St. Petersburg, Russia
Olga first married Major General Erich Augustinovich von Pistohlkors, an officer of the Imperial Guard and an aide to Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich. As a friend of Pistohlkors, Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich often spent his evenings with him and his wife Olga. Paul appreciated Olga’s elegance and lively spirit and an affair began. Pistohlkors turned a blind eye to the affair. Olga gave birth in 1897 to a son who was then known as Vladimir von Pistohlkors because his mother was still married to Pistohlkors. Eventually, Olga divorced her husband and Paul asked for permission to marry Olga from his nephew Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia. Olga gave birth in 1897 to a son who was then known as Vladimir von Pistohlkors because his mother was still married to Pistohlkors. Eventually, Olga divorced her husband and Paul asked for permission to marry Olga from his nephew Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia but Nicholas II denied permission. Paul made a morganatic marriage to Olga on October 10, 1902. Paul was banished from Russia, dismissed from his military commissions, and all his property was seized. Ten years later, Nicholas II relented and decided to pardon his only surviving paternal uncle. Grand Duke Paul’s titles and properties were returned and Nicholas II recognized Paul’s marriage to Olga. Olga and Paul had one son and two daughters. During the Russian Revolution, her son Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Paley was one of the five Romanovs executed on July 18, 1918, with Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna. On January 28, 1919, her husband Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich along with three other Grand Dukes were executed by a firing squad in the courtyard of the Peter and Paul Fortress.
Unofficial Royalty: Olga Valerianovna Karnovich, Princess Paley

December 2, 1915 – Birth of Prince Mikasa of Japan, son of Emperor Taishō of Japan, at the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan
Prince Mikasa was the youngest of the four sons of Emperor Taishō and Empress Teimei, and the youngest brother of Emperor Hirohito (Shōwa). He studied archaeology, Middle Eastern studies, and Semitic languages at the University of Tokyo. From 1954 until he died in 2016, he directed the Japanese Society for Middle East Studies. He also held visiting and guest faculty appointments in Middle Eastern studies and archaeology at universities in Japan and abroad. In 1941, Prince Mikasa married Yuriko Takagi, daughter of Japanese noble Viscount Masanari, who was known as Princess Mikasa after her marriage. The couple had three sons and two daughters. All three sons predeceased their parents. Prince Mikasa died of heart failure on October 27, 2016, at the age of 100, a little more than a month before his 101st birthday. At the time of his death, he was the world’s oldest royal, the longest-lived member of the Japanese Imperial Family, and the last of the five Japanese princes in the line of succession. (Today, there are only three princes in the line of succession. See The Japanese Succession Crisis.) Prince Mikasa lived during the reigns of three emperors: his father Emperor Taishō, his brother Emperor Hirohito, and his nephew Emperor Akihito.
Unofficial Royalty: Prince Mikasa of Japan

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.

Anna Sophie of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Princess of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Anna Sophie of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Princess of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt; Credit – Wikipedia

Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen: The County of Schwarzburg was a state of the Holy Roman Empire from 1195 to 1595, when it was partitioned into Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. The new counties remained in the Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution. In 1697, the County of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was elevated to the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. The County of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was elevated to the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt in 1710.

The death of Karl Günther, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen without an heir in 1909 caused the Principalities of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen to be united under Günther Victor, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt in a personal union. Following his succession in Sondershausen, Prince Günther Victor dropped the name Rudolstadt from his title and assumed the title Prince of Schwarzburg.

At the end of World War I, Prince Günther Victor was the last German prince to renounce his throne, abdicating on November 22, 1918. He made an agreement with the government that awarded him an annual pension and the right to use several of the family residences. The territory that encompassed the Principalities of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen is now located in the German state of Thuringia.

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Princess Anna Sophie of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg was the wife of Ludwig Friedrich I, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. Born on December 22, 1670, in Gotha, then in the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, now in the German state of Thuringia, Anna Sophie was the eldest of the eight children and the eldest of the six daughters of Friedrich I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and his first wife Magdalena Sibylle of Saxe-Weissenfels. Her paternal grandparents were Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg and Elisabeth Sophie of Saxe-Altenburg. Anna Sophie’s maternal grandparents were August, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels, and Anna Maria of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.

Anna Sophie had seven younger siblings but only five survived childhood:

When Anna Sophie was ten-years-old, her mother Magdalena Sibylle died, aged 32, on January 7, 1681, just three months after giving birth to her last child. Later in 1681, Anna Sophie’s father Friedrich married a second time to Christine of Baden-Durlach, daughter of Frederick VI, Margrave of Baden-Durlach and Christina Magdalena of the Palatinate-Zweibrücken. Friedrich’s second marriage to Christine of Baden-Durlach was childless.

Anna Sophie’s husband; Ludwig Friedrich, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt; Credit – Wikipedia

On October 15, 1691, at Friedenstein Palace in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, now in the German state of Thuringia, the nearly 21-year-old Anna Sophie married 24-year-old Ludwig Friedrich of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, the son and heir of Albrecht Anton, Count of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, and his wife Countess Emilie Juliane of Barby-Mühlingen. Emilie Juliane was the most productive of the German female hymn-writers, composing nearly 600 hymns. She was an early adherent of Pietism, a movement within Lutheranism that emphasized biblical doctrine, individual piety, and living a vigorous Christian life.

Anna Sophie’s daughter, also named Anna Sophie, who was the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld by marriage and great-great-grandmother of Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert; Credit – Wikipedia

Ludwig Friedrich and Anna Sophie had thirteen children. Via their daughter, Anna Sophie who married Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Ludwig Friedrich and Anna Sophie are the ancestors of Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert, and their uncle Leopold I, King of the Belgians. The royal families of Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom are their descendants.

  • Friedrich Anton, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1692 – 1744), married (1) Sophia Wilhelmina of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, had one son and two daughters (2) Christina Sophia of East Frisia, no children
  • Amalie Magdalene of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (born and died 1693), died in infancy, twin of Sophie Luise
  • Sophie Luise of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (born and died 1693), died in infancy, twin of Amalie Magdalene
  • Sophie Juliane of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1694 – 1776), a nun at Gandersheim Abbey
  • Wilhelm Ludwig of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1696 – 1757), married morganatically Caroline Henriette Gebauer who was created Baroness of Brockenburg, had three sons and two daughters
  • Christine Dorothea of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1697 – 1698), died in infancy
  • Albrecht Anton of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1698 – 1720), unmarried
  • Emilie Juliane of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1699 – 1774), unmarried
  • Anna Sophie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1700 – 1780), married Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, had four sons and four daughters
  • Sophia Dorothea of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1706 – 1737), unmarried, twin of Friederike Luise
  • Friederike Luise of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1706 – 1787), unmarried, twin of Sophia Dorothea
  • Magdalena Sibylle of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1707 – 1795), a nun at Gandersheim Abbey
  • Ludwig Günther II, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1708 – 1790), married Sophie Henriette of Reuss-Untergreiz, had two daughters and two sons

View of Schwarzburg Castle, lithograph around 1860; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1697, Albrecht Anton, Count of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Ludwig Friedrich’s father, was raised to a Prince and the County of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was raised to a principality by Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I. However, Albrecht Anton chose not to accept his elevation due to his religious modesty which focused on the Pietism of his mother. He also wanted to avoid a confrontation with his neighbors, the dukes from the Ernestine lines of the House of Wettin, (whose duchy names began with “Saxe”) who had opposed his elevation. In 1710, the elevation to Prince was offered again and this time, Albrecht Anton accepted it. However, he did not publish notice of his elevation and continued to use the style Count of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. On December 15, 1710, Albrecht Anton died and his son Ludwig Friedrich succeeded him. Ludwig Friedrich published notice of the elevation to Prince in 1711 and began using the style Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt on April 15, 1711. The elevation strengthened the position of the House of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt against the House of Wettin.

Schlosskirche Schwarzburg, circa 1890; Credit – Wikipedia

On June 24, 1718, Ludwig Friedrich I, aged 50, died in Rudolstadt, Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, now in Thuringia, Germany. He was buried at the Schlosskirche Schwarzburg (link in German), the castle church at Schwarzburg Castle (link in German), in Schwarzburg, Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, now in the German state of Thuringia. Anna Sophie survived her husband by ten years, dying on December 28, 1728, at the age of 58, and was buried with her husband at the Schlosskirche Schwarzburg.

Stadtkirche St. Andreas; Credit – Wikipedia

In the early 1940s, the remains of the Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt family buried at the Schlosskirche Schwarzburg were transferred to the Stadtkirche St. Andreas (link in German) in Rudolstadt, now in the German state of Thuringia, before the demolition of the Schlosskirche Schwarzburg and Schwarzburg Castle. The German government took possession of Schwarzburg Castle and compensated the widow of the last reigning prince. They planned to convert the castle into Adolf Hitler’s Imperial Guest House. In June 1940, demolition began on Schwarzburg Castle, one of the most important Baroque castles in central Germany. In 1942, the construction was stopped and the Imperial Guest House was never finished. The ruins of the castle and the incomplete construction of the guest house were left for years. The only thing that remained of the castle church was the tower dome but it was destroyed in a fire caused by fireworks on New Year’s Eve 1980. There has been much reconstruction on the castle especially after Schwarzburg Castle was transferred to the Thuringian Palaces and Gardens Foundation in 1994.

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.

Works Cited

  • Anna Sophie von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Sophie_von_Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg (Accessed: 06 September 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2020) Ludwig Friedrich I, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/ludwig-friedrich-i-prince-of-schwarzburg-rudolstadt/ (Accessed: 06 September 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2020. Royal Burial Sites Of The Principality Of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/royal-burial-sites/royal-burial-sites-of-the-principality-of-schwarzburg-rudolstadt/> [Accessed 06 September 2023].
  • Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (2022) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_I,_Duke_of_Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (Accessed: 06 September 2023).
  • Princess Anna Sophie of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Anna_Sophie_of_Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (Accessed: 06 September 2023).

Marguerite Bellanger, Mistress of Napoleon III, Emperor of the French

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Marguerite Bellanger, born Julie Justine Marine Leboeuf, circa 1870; Credit – Wikipedia

Marguerite Bellanger was the mistress of Napoleon III, Emperor of the French from 1863 until 1870 when he was deposed and exiled.

Born Julie Justine Marine Leboeuf on June 10, 1838, in Saint-Lambert-des-Levées, Maine-et-Loire, France, Marguerite Bellanger, her stage name, was the daughter of François Leboeuf and Julie Hanot. Marguerite’s family was poor and when she was fifteen, she began working as a laundress. After an affair with a lieutenant from the French army, Marguerite joined a local circus, performing as an acrobat and a trick rider.

Margurite traveled to Paris and made her acting debut at the Théâtre de la Tour d’Auvergne using the stage name Marguerite Bellanger, Bellanger being the surname of an uncle. Her acting career was not successful and Marguerite became a popular courtesan, cocotte in French. Cocette is defined as a woman in France under the Second Empire who was paid for sexual services but who was not or no longer registered as a prostitute by the police. Marguerite was much in demand and lived a very comfortable life.

Napoleon III, Emperor of the French in 1863; Credit – Wikipedia

In June 1863, Napoleon III, Emperor of the French, known as Louis-Napoleon, while driving through a park in his carriage, happened to see 25-year-old Marguerite sheltering from the rain under a tree. She soon became his mistress, and, with the knowledge of all those around him, including his wife Empress Eugénie, Marguerite traveled with Louis-Napoleon on his private and official trips. Empress Eugénie had given her husband his heir in 1856 after a two-day labor that endangered both mother and child and required a lengthy recovery. Empress Eugénie found sex with her husband disgusting and it is doubtful that she allowed further approaches by her husband. She accepted her husband’s lovers and mistresses.

The grounds of the Château de Saint-Cloud where Louis-Napoleon gave Marguerite a home; Credit – Wikipedia

Louis-Napoleon gave Marguerite two homes: one at 57 rue des Vignes in the Passy section of Paris and the other on the grounds of the Château de Saint-Cloud, Louis-Napoleon’s preferred residence.

Marguerite and her son Charles; Credit – Look and Learn

In February 1864, Marguerite gave birth to a son Charles Jules Auguste François Marie Leboeuf, who was in all likelihood, Louis-Napoleon’s son. After the birth of her son, Louis-Napoleon gave Marguerite the Château de Villeneuve-sous-Dammartin, near Meaux, France.

Napoleon III at the Battle of Sedan by Wilhelm Camphausen; Credit – Wikipedia

In July 1870, France entered the Franco-Prussian War. Without significant allied support, and with unprepared and limited forces, the French army was quickly defeated. Louis-Napoleon was captured at the Battle of Sedan and surrendered on September 1, 1870. As word reached Paris, the Third Republic was declared on September 4, 1870, ending, for the last time, the French monarchy. Louis-Napoleon was held by the Prussians in a castle in Wilhelmshöhe, near Kassel until peace was established between France and Germany. He was released in March 1871 and quickly went into exile. Arriving in England on March 20, 1871, Napoleon and his family settled at Camden Place, a large country house in Chislehurst, England where he lived until his death in 1873. With Louis-Napoleon’s exile, his affair with Marguerite ended. In 1872, she married William Kulbach, Baronet, a Captain in the British Army and the couple lived in England and France. When Louis-Napoleon died in 1873, Marguerite went to England to mourn him.

Marguerite Bellanger, aged 48, died on November 23, 1886, at the Château de Villeneuve-sous-Dammartin, near Meaux, France. Her funeral was held at the Church of Saint-Pierre-de-Chaillot in Paris and she was buried in Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris. Her only child Charles Leboeuf had a military career and died in Paris on December 7, 1941. He was buried with his mother.

Burial site of Marguerite Bellanger and her son in Montparnasse Cemetery; Credit – https://androom.home.xs4all.nl/biography/i020183.htm

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.

Works Cited

  • Mehl, Scott. (2016). Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, Emperor Napoleon III of the French. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/louis-napoleon-bonaparte-emperor-napoleon-iii-of-the-french/
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2019). Charles Lebœuf. Wikipedia (French). https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Leb%C5%93uf
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, September 10). Marguerite Bellanger. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marguerite_Bellanger
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023, August 29). Marguerite Bellanger. Wikipedia (French). https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marguerite_Bellanger

Josias, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

The County of Waldeck was a county within the Holy Roman Empire since 1180.  In 1625, the much smaller County of Pyrmont became part of the much larger County of Waldeck through inheritance and the combined territory was known as the County of Waldeck-Pyrmont. In 1712,  Friedrich Anton Ulrich, Count of Waldeck-Pyrmont was elevated to Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont by Holy Emperor Karl VI.

Friedrich, the last Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont, was the brother of Marie, the first wife of King Wilhelm II of Württemberg, Emma who married King Willem III of the Netherlands, and Helena, the wife of Queen Victoria’s hemophiliac son Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany and the mother of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Friedrich abdicated on November 13, 1918, and negotiated an agreement with the government that gave him and his descendants the ownership of the family home Arolsen Castle and Arolsen Forest. Today the territory that encompassed the Principality of Waldeck-Pyrmont is located in the German states of Hesse and Lower Saxony

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Josias, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont; Credit – By Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1969-041-62 / CC-BY-SA, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5482509

Josias, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont was the last heir apparent to the throne of the Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Head of the Princely House of Waldeck and Pyrmont from 1946 until his death in 1967, and a convicted Nazi war criminal. Josias Georg Wilhelm Adolf was born on May 13, 1896, at Arolsen Castle in Arolsen, then in the Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont, now in the German state of Hesse. He was the eldest of the four children and the eldest of the three sons of Friedrich, the last reigning Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont and Princess Bathildis of Schaumburg-Lippe. Josias’ paternal grandparents were Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont and his first wife Princess Helena of Nassau. His maternal grandparents were  Prince Wilhelm of Schaumburg-Lippe and Princess Bathildis of Anhalt-Dessau. Through his father, Josias was the first cousin of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands and two grandchildren of Queen Victoria, Charles Edward, the last reigning Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his sister Princess Alice of Albany, Countess of Athlone.

Josias had three younger siblings:

Beginning in 1902, Josias was educated by private tutors. In 1912, he began to attend the Royal Wilhelms-Gymnasium (link in German) in Kassel, then in the Kingdom of Prussia, now in the German state of Hesse. In 1914, 18-year-old Josias passed the Notabitur (link in German), which replaced the usual Abitur, exams taken for a high school diploma, for students in the final years of high school who wanted to serve in the German Army during World War I.

When World War I broke out, Josias enlisted in the German army and was wounded several times, including a grazing shot to his head. After the defeat of the German Empire in World War I and the end of all the German monarchies, Josias’ father Friedrich, Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont abdicated on November 13, 1918. He was the only German prince who refused to sign an abdication agreement. However, Friedrich did negotiate an agreement with the new government that gave him and his descendants the ownership of the family home Arolsen Castle and the Arolsen Forest.

On August 25, 1922, at Rastede Palace in Rastede, in Lower Saxony, Germany, Josias married Duchess Altburg of Oldenburg, the daughter of Friedrich August II, the last reigning Grand Duke of Oldenburg, and his second wife Duchess Elisabeth Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.

Josias and Altburg had four daughters and one son. Adolf Hitler and Heinrich Himmler, the two most powerful Nazis, were among the godparents of their only son Wittekind.

  • Princess Margarethe of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1923 – 2003), married Franz II, Count of Erbach-Erbach von Warthenberg-Roth, had two children, divorced in 1979
  • Princess Alexandra of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1924 – 2009), married Botho, Prince of Bentheim and Steinfurt, had two children
  • Princess Ingrid of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1931 – ), unmarried
  • Prince Wittekind, Head of the Princely House of Waldeck and Pyrmont (born 1936), married, Cecilia Countess Goëß-Saurau, had three sons
  • Princess Guda of Waldeck and Pyrmont (born 1939), married Friedrich Wilhelm, Prince of Wied, had two children, divorced in 1962

Josias, with the rank of an SS-Obergruppenführer; Credit – By Franz Langhammer – Retrieved from germanianternational.com, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11725055

Josias’ parents both lived through World War II but neither joined the Nazi Party. However, their eldest son Josias, his wife Altburg, and their eldest child Margarethe were members of the Nazi Party. Josias joined the Nazi Party in 1929 and by 1930, he was a member of the Schutzstaffel, better known as the SS. The SS was the primary agency of security, surveillance, and terror in Nazi Germany and German-occupied Europe. In September 1930, Josias became the Adjutant and Staff Chief of Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany, and the main architect of The Holocaust. In 1933, Josias was promoted to the rank of SS Lieutenant General. He was promoted again in 1938, to the Higher SS and Police Leader for Weimar. In this position, he had supervisory authority over the Buchenwald concentration camp. His final rank was SS- Obergruppenführer, the highest commissioned SS rank and General of Waffen-SS. Members of the Waffen-SS were involved in numerous atrocities. At the Nuremberg Trials (1945 – 1946), the Waffen-SS was judged to be a criminal organization because of its direct involvement in numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Toward the end of World War II, Josias oversaw the efforts to conceal the horrors of the Buchenwald concentration camp by sending off inmates, resulting in thousands of deaths. Some inmates were sent on forced marches. Others were put in sealed trains for days. On one train trip that was supposed to last eighteen hours, only 300 of the 3,105 on the train survived the poor conditions, after days without any provisions for food or sanitation.

Josias; mug shot after being arrested; Credit – By unknown soldier or employee of the U.S. Army Signal Corps – Stiftung Gedenkstätten Buchenwald und Mittelbau-Dora, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4783531

Josias was captured by American General George Patton’s forces at the Buchenwald concentration camp on April 13, 1945, the day the camp was liberated. While he was in custody, Josias learned of the death of his father on May 26, 1946. Josias was now the Head of the Princely House of Waldeck and Pyrmont and began to use the title Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont but Josias would soon face two trials during the post-war period.

Josias in black facing the judges as a defendant at the Buchenwald Trial in 1947; Credit – Wikipedia

The Buchenwald Trial or United States of America vs. Josias Prince of Waldeck et al was a war crime trial conducted by the United States Army from April 11 to August 14, 1947, at the internment camp for war criminals, the SS and important witnesses in Dachau, Germany at the site of the former Dachau concentration camp. Thirty-one people, including Josias and many of the doctors responsible for Nazi human experimentation, were indicted for war crimes related to the Buchenwald concentration camp and its satellite camps, and all thirty-one defendants were convicted. On August 14, 1947, Josias was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment and was sent to Landsberg War Criminal Prison Nr. 1 in Landsberg am Lech, Bavaria, Germany.

On September 17, 1949, a denazification appeals court classified Josias as a Level 2 – Offender: Activist, Militant, or Profiteer, on the five-tier scale of the denazification system, with Level 1, Main Offender, being the worst. As a result, 70% of his property was seized along with other sanctions and fines.

On November 29, 1950, after serving just three years in prison, Josias was released. He was one of the first to benefit from US High Commissioner for Germany John J. McCloy’s amnesty program. At the strong urging of the West German government, and under pressure from the West German people, McCloy approved recommendations for the commutation of sentences of some Nazi criminals. In 1953, Josias received an amnesty from Georg-August Zinn, Minister President of Hesse reducing his fine from the denazification appeals court by more than half of the original fine.

Schaumberg Castle where Josias spent his final years; Credit – By Carsten Steger – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=122795425

Josias, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont spent the last years of his life in seclusion at Schaumburg Castle near Limburg an der Lahn in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. He was investigated in the late 1950s and early 1960s in connection to atrocities at the Buchenwald concertation camp, the war-time murder of civilian workers, and the Röhm Purge of 1934, a series of political executions without trials intended to consolidate Hitler’s power. However, most investigations were discontinued because the statute of limitations had expired or guilt could not be proven.

Waldeck-Pyrmont Princely Mausoleum and Cemetery; Credit – www.findagrave.com

Josias, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont died, aged, 71, on November 30, 1967, at Schaumburg Castle, and was buried in the Princely Cemetery at Schloss Rhoden (link in German), the burial site of the Waldeck-Pyrmont family in Rhoden, now in the German state of Hesse. He was succeeded as Head of the Princely House of Waldeck and Pyrmont by his only son Prince Wittekind. Josias’ wife Altburg survived him by 34 years, dying on June 16, 2001, aged 98. She was buried with her husband in the Princely Cemetery at Schloss Rhoden.

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.

Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2021). Friedrich, Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/friedrich-prince-of-waldeck-pyrmont/
  • Petropoulos, Jonathan. (2009). Royals and the Reich. Oxford University Press.
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Buchenwald Trial. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buchenwald_trial
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Josias zu Waldeck und Pyrmont. German Wikipedia. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josias_zu_Waldeck_und_Pyrmont
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Josias, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josias,_Hereditary_Prince_of_Waldeck_and_Pyrmont

Leonora Dori Galigai, Favorite of Marie de’ Medici, Queen of France

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Favorite: a person treated with special or undue favor by a king, queen, or another royal person

Leonora Dori Galigai and later, her husband Concino Concini, were favorites of Marie de’ Medici, Queen of France, the second wife of Henri IV, King of France. Neither Leonora nor Concino had a happy ending.

Leonora Dori Galigai; Credit – Wikipedia

The daughter of Jacopo di Sebastiano Dori and Caterina Dori, Leonora Dori Galigai was born on May 19, 1568, in Florence, then in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy. Her father was a carpenter and her mother was a wet nurse at the court of the Medicis who were Grand Dukes of Tuscany from 1569 to 1737. Jacopo was able to buy the adoption of his children by the Galigai family, a poor but noble Florentine family from which he was descended in the female line. This gave his children some advantages socially and politically.

Leonora had two brothers and one sister:

  • Andrea Dori Galigai
  • Sebastiano Dori Galigai, Archbishop of Tours (? – 1694)
  • Cassandra Dori Galigai

In 1588, Ferdinando I de’Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany appointed twenty-year-old Leonora to be the maid to his thirteen-year-old niece Marie de’ Medici. Having lost her mother at the age of five, and her father at the age of twelve, Marie was raised by her uncle Ferdinando, who had succeeded her father as Grand Duke of Tuscany. For nearly thirty years, Leonora remained in service to Marie, becoming her close friend and confidante. In late 1600, when Marie traveled to France to become the second wife of Henri IV, King of France, Leonora was included in her retinue as lady-in-waiting and wardrobe attendant.

Leonora’s husband Concino Concini; Credit – Wikipedia

Also in Marie’s retinue was Concino Concini, whose father was First Secretary to Marie’s uncle. During the journey to France, Concino romanced Leonora and proposed to her. King Henri IV opposed the marriage because he considered Concino too ambitious but he finally gave his approval, and Leonora and Concino were married on July 12, 1601. Marie de’ Medici, now Queen of France, gave Leonora a large dowry. In 1605, Concino became maître d’hôtel (chief steward) of Queen Marie’s household, and in 1608, he received the additional appointment of premier écuyer of the queen, being in charge of her royal stables. These positions allowed Concino to amass a small fortune, which he invested in real estate.

Leonora and Concino had two children, named after King Henri IV and Queen Marie:

  • Henri Concini (1603 – 1631), died of the plague
  • Marie Concini (1607 – 1617), died in childhood

In 1610, King Henri IV was assassinated and Queen Marie was appointed Regent for their eldest son, the eight-year-old King Louis XIII of France. Leonora exploited her friendship with Queen Marie, encouraging the rapid rise of her husband’s career. Concino became Queen Marie’s most trusted advisor. He was created Marquis d’Ancre and a Marshal of France. Leonora and Concino successfully plotted to have King Henri IV’s very capable Chief Minister, Maximilien de Béthune, Duke of Sully dismissed. Queen Marie was strongly influenced by Concino and Leonora and many of her policies were in sharp contrast to those of her late husband. Concino and Leonora hoped to influence the suppression of Protestantism in France. However, Queen Marie, as Regent, maintained her late husband’s policy of religious tolerance. As one of her first acts, Marie reconfirmed Henri IV’s Edict of Nantes, which ordered religious tolerance for Protestants in France while asserting the supremacy of the Roman Catholic Church.

The behavior and policies of Concino and Leonora caused hatred among the French people. The French nobility had to deal with their power being weakened because Concino and Leonora’s Tuscan followers were given preference in the awarding of positions and privileges. The French common people resented the power of these Tuscans who had become masters of France.

A contemporary depiction of the assassination of Concino Concini; Credit – Wikipedia

Finally, sixteen-year-old King Louis XIII, who detested Leonora and Concino, stepped up and asserted his position as King. In April 1617, he organized a coup d’état with Charles d’Albert, Duke of Luynes, a close advisor and favorite of King Louis XIII from childhood until his death, who held numerous top positions within the French court. Since Concino could not be arrested because he had a personal army of more than 7,000 soldiers, it was planned to have him assassinated. On April 24, 1617, Concino Concini was killed in the courtyard of the Louvre Palace in Paris. He was buried at the Church of Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois in Paris but an angry crowd of Parisians exhumed his body and dragged it through the streets of Paris. After being stoned and beaten, Concino’s body was hanged by the feet from a gallows, and then dismembered and burned.

17th-century engraving of the execution of Leonora; Credit – Wikipedia

After the death of her husband, the tides also turned against Leonora. She was arrested, accused of witchcraft, and sent to the Bastille. Queen Marie was unable to help her old friend because she had been sent into exile at the Château de Blois in the Loire Valley on the orders of her son King Louis XIII. After a short trial, Leonora was found guilty of having bewitched Queen Marie, Regent of France. On July 8, 1617, at the Place de Grève in Paris, now the Place de l’Hôtel-de-Ville, Leonora was beheaded, and then her headless body burned at the stake.

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.

Works Cited

  • Leonora Doria Galigai. geni_family_tree. (2016). https://www.geni.com/people/Leonora-Doria-Galigai/6000000022782162100
  • Mehl, Scott. (2016). Marie de’ Medici, Queen of France. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/marie-de-medici-queen-of-france/
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Leonora Galigaï. Wikipedia (German). https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonora_Galiga%C3%AF
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Leonora Dori. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonora_Dori
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2022). Leonora Dori Galigai. Wikipedia (Italian). https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonora_Dori_Galigai

Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor also King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and Croatia, Archduke of Austria

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor; Credit – Wikipedia

The Holy Roman Empire was a limited elective monarchy composed of hundreds of kingdoms, principalities, duchies, counties, prince-bishoprics, and Free Imperial Cities in central Europe. The Holy Roman Empire was not really holy since, after Holy Roman Emperor Charles V in 1530, no emperors were crowned by the pope or a bishop. It was not Roman but rather German because it was mainly in the regions of present-day Germany and Austria. It was an empire in name only – the territories it covered were mostly independent each with its own rulers. The Holy Roman Emperor directly ruled over only his family territories, and could not issue decrees and rule autonomously over the Holy Roman Empire. A Holy Roman Emperor was only as strong as his army and alliances, including marriage alliances, made him, and his power was severely restricted by the many sovereigns of the constituent monarchies of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century, prince-electors, or electors for short, elected the Holy Roman Emperor from among the sovereigns of the constituent states.

Frequently but not always, it was common practice to elect the deceased Holy Roman Emperor’s heir. The Holy Roman Empire was an elective monarchy. No person had a legal right to the succession simply because he was related to the current Holy Roman Emperor. However, the Holy Roman Emperor could and often did, while still alive, have a relative (usually a son) elected to succeed him after his death. This elected heir apparent used the title King of the Romans.

Learn more at Unofficial Royalty: What was the Holy Roman Empire?

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Joseph II reigned from 1765 to 1790 as Holy Roman Emperor after being elected Holy Roman Emperor following the death of his father Franz I, Holy Roman Emperor in 1765. He was co-regent with his mother from 1765 – 1780 of Bohemia, Hungary, Croatia, Austria, and several other Habsburg hereditary lands and was the sole ruler from 1780 to 1790, following the death in 1780 of his mother Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria, the only woman to be ruler of the Habsburg hereditary lands in her own right. Joseph’s mother was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Transylvania, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands, and Parma. Maria Theresa, who had arranged for her husband to be elected Holy Roman Emperor, wielded the real power and Joseph’s father was content to leave the act of reigning to his wife.

Born Joseph Benedikt Anton Michael Adam on March 13, 1741, at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria, he was the fourth of the sixteen children and the eldest of the five sons of Franz I, Holy Roman Emperor (reigned 1745 – 1765) also Duke of Lorraine (reigned 1729 – 1737), Grand Duke of Tuscany (reigned 1737 – 1765), born of Franz I, Holy Roman Emperor (reigned 1745 – 1765) also Duke of Lorraine (reigned 1729 – 1737), Grand Duke of Tuscany (reigned 1737 – 1765), born François Étienne of Lorraine and Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria, in her own right Queen of Bohemia (reigned 1740 – 1741 and 1743 – 1780), Queen of Hungary, Queen of Croatia, Archduchess of Austria (reigned 1740 – 1780) along with a number of other titles of Habsburg hereditary lands.

Joseph’s paternal grandparents were Leopold, Duke of Lorraine and Princess Élisabeth Charlotte d’Orléans, the daughter of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans (brother of King Louis XIV of France) and his second wife Princess Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate. His maternal grandparents were Karl VI, Holy Roman Emperor (and ruler of the Habsburg hereditary lands) and Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Joseph’s parents and their family; Joseph is in the red, standing next to his mother; Credit – Wikipedia

Joseph had fifteen siblings but eight of them died in childhood and four of the eight died from smallpox:

Joseph in 1765: Credit – Wikipedia

Joseph’s mother Maria Theresa had a comprehensive, detailed educational program arranged for him to prepare him as optimally as possible for his future duties as a ruler. Starting at a young age, he received riding and fencing lessons. A Jesuit priest gave him religious instruction, supplemented by instruction in ethics, morality, and philosophy. Joseph had a talent for languages, learning Latin, French, Italian, Hungarian, and Czech. Science, mathematics, dance, and theater classes were included in the curriculum. As Joseph grew older, the focus shifted to history lessons, and the study of natural, constitutional, church, and international law. He received specific instruction related to the inner workings of the monarchy and military training.
Starting in 1760, Joseph was allowed to participate in the meetings of the high administrative authorities and the Council of State.

Joseph’s first wife Isabella of Parma; Credit – Wikipedia

To strengthen the relations between the Habsburgs and the Bourbons, Joseph’s mother Maria Theresa and King Louis XV of France arranged a marriage between Joseph and Louis XV’s granddaughter Princess Isabella of Parma, daughter of Felipe of Spain, Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla and Louise Élisabeth of France. A proxy marriage was held on September 5, 1760 at Padua Cathedral in Padua, then in the Republic of Venice, now in Italy. Josef Wenzel I, Prince of Liechtenstein, who had a successful military career in the Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Empire and as a diplomat for the Holy Roman Empire, was given the honor of escorting Isabella to Vienna, Austria. On October 6, 1760, at the Augustinerkirche (Augustinian Church) in Vienna, Austria, the two 18-year-olds Joseph and Isabella were married by the Papal Nuncio Cardinal Vitaliano Borromeo.

Isabella with her elder daughter Maria Theresa; Credit – Wikipedia

Joseph and Isabella had two daughters but neither survived childhood:

Joseph adored his wife but Isabella hated the strict court ceremonies and was very reserved toward Joseph. Joseph’s sister Archduchess Maria Christina was Isabella’s best friend and closest confidante. Some modern historians believe that Isabella and Maria Christina likely had a romantic, and possibly a sexual relationship. They exchanged letters and small notes in French but only the nearly two hundred letters and notes written by Isabella have survived. Isabella’s letters and notes show a deep affection toward Maria Christina and are characteristic of a romantic-sexual relationship.

Isabella had a very difficult first pregnancy with her first child Maria Theresa, suffering from many physical symptoms, depression, and a lingering fear of death. This was only worsened by her inexperienced husband not understanding her problems. Isabella had miscarriages in August 1762 and January 1763. Her mother-in-law Maria Theresa, who had given birth to sixteen children, was so worried that she advised her son Joseph to wait for six months before trying for another child. However, Isabella was soon again pregnant. In the fall of 1763, there was an outbreak of smallpox in and around Vienna, and the pregnant Isabella became ill with smallpox. Isabella’s high fever induced labor three months early, and on November 22, 1763, she gave birth to a second daughter. The baby was baptized Maria Christina, as Isabella requested, but died the same day. Five days later, a month short of her 22nd birthday, Isabella died from smallpox at Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria. Isabella was interred in the Maria Theresa Crypt at the Imperial Crypt in the Capuchin Church in Vienna, Austria. The coffin of her daughter Maria Christina was placed under Isabella’s coffin. In 1770, when Isabella’s elder daughter Maria Theresa died at the age of seven, her tomb was placed next to her mother’s and younger sister’s coffins.

Isabella’s tomb in the middle with the coffin of her younger daughter sticking out underneath. To the right is the tomb of Isabella’s elder daughter Maria Theresa who died in 1770; Credit – By C.Stadler/Bwag – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28671919

Joseph was devastated by Isabella’s death and never fully recovered. In a letter to Isabella’s father, Joseph wrote: “I have lost everything. My adorable wife and only friend is no more. (…) What a frightful separation! Can I survive it? Yes, and only to be unhappy all my life. (…) There is nothing I will enjoy ever again.”

Joseph’s second wife Maria Josepha of Bavaria; Credit – Wikipedia

At his mother’s insistence, Joseph married again to his second cousin Maria Josepha of Bavaria, daughter of Karl VII, Holy Roman Emperor and Maria Amalie of Austria. After a proxy marriage on proxy on January 13, 1765, Joseph and Maria Josepha were married in person on January 25, 1765, at the Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna. Joseph, who never wanted to remarry after the death of Isabella, found Maria Josepha unattractive. On May 28, 1767, after only two years of a childless marriage, Maria Josepha died of smallpox, as had her predecessor Isabella. Joseph never remarried.

Joseph and Isabella’s daughter Maria Theresa; Credit – Wikipedia

Sadly, Joseph had one more death to endure. On January 23, 1770, Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria, the seven-year-old daughter of Joseph and his first wife Isabella, died from pleurisy. She was buried next to her mother and sister in a tomb with an effigy representing Maria Theresa sleeping on a bed, covered by a blanket, with her hands in prayer. (See photo above.) Joseph was heartbroken over his daughter’s death and cried out to heaven, “I’ve stopped being a father. Oh my God give me back my daughter…”

Coronation of Joseph as as King of the Romans in Frankfurt Cathedral, April 3 1764; Credit – Wikipedia

During his unsuccessful marriage to Maria Josepha of Bavaria, Joseph’s father Franz I, Holy Roman Emperor died suddenly of a stroke or heart attack on August 18, 1765, at the age of 56, in his carriage while returning from the opera in Innsbruck, Austria. Holy Roman Emperors could and often did, while still alive, have a relative (usually a son) elected to succeed them after their death. This elected heir apparent used the title King of the Romans. In 1764, Joseph had been elected and crowned King of the Romans, and so when his father died, Joseph became Holy Roman Emperor although his mother Maria Theresa continued to wield the real power. On September 17, 1765, Joseph was elevated by his mother Maria Theresa to be her co-regent in the Habsburg hereditary lands. The Grand Duchy of Tuscany that Joseph had inherited from his father was given to his younger brother Leopold, who would be the childless Joseph’s successor.

Joseph in 1775; Credit – Wikipedia

It was not until his mother’s death in 1780, that Joseph could finally pursue his own policies. Josephinism was the name given collectively to his policies. Joseph was educated during the Age of Enlightenment which emphasized rationality, order, and careful organization in statecraft. Joseph issued over 6,000 edicts, plus 11,000 new laws designed to regulate and reorder every aspect of the lands he ruled. Among many other issues, Joseph tried to reduce the influence of the nobility and clergy, and the serfdom of the peasants was abolished in 1781. Despite Joseph’s policies provoking resistance both inside and outside the Habsburg hereditary lands, he is still remembered by historians as an enlightened ruler.

Joseph came from a family in which all members played at least one musical instrument and music was important to him. He declared the Burgtheater in Vienna as the German national theater. Joseph was passionate about opera, and often attended opera rehearsals at the Burgtheater, accompanying the singers on the harpsichord like a professional. Antonio Salieri was his choirmaster and opera director but he focused on the fashionable Italian opera. Joseph commissioned Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to write the first opera in the German language: Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio) in 1782.

Coffin of Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor in front of the tomb of his parents; Credit – By Wotau – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21894136

Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor died from tuberculosis, aged 48, on February 20, 1790, in Vienna, Austria. Before his death, Joseph had renounced the Habsburg practice of separate burial, a form of partial burial in which internal organs are buried separately from the rest of the body. He was buried in a field marshal’s uniform in an oak coffin at the Imperial Crypt in the Capuchin Church in Vienna, Austria. At a later date, the oak coffin was put in a simple copper coffin and placed in front in front of his parents’ magnificent double sarcophagus.

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.

Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2021) Francis Stephen of Lorraine, Duke of Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Holy Roman Emperor, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/francis-stephen-of-lorraine-duke-of-lorraine-grand-duke-of-tuscany-holy-roman-emperor/ (Accessed: 03 September 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2013) Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria, and Queen of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/maria-theresa-archduchess-of-austria-queen-of-hungary-croatia-and-bohemia/ (Accessed: 03 September 2023).
  • Joseph II. (2023) Wikipedia (German). Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_II. (Accessed: 03 September 2023).
  • Joseph II (Empereur du Saint-Empire) (2023) Wikipedia (French). Available at: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_II_(empereur_du_Saint-Empire) (Accessed: 03 September 2023).
  • Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor (Accessed: 03 September 2023).
  • Wheatcroft, Andrew. (1995) The Habsburgs. London: Viking.
  • Wilson, Peter H. (2016) Heart of Europe – A History of the Holy Roman Empire. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.