Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse; Credit – Wikipedia

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

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

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

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

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

Philipp and Mafalda on their wedding day. photo: Wikipedia

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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