Sophie of Baden, Princess of Lippe

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Principality of Lippe: Originally called Lippe-Detmold, the Principality of Lippe came into existence in 1789 when it was raised from a County within the Holy Roman Empire to a Principality. Leopold I, Count of Lippe-Detmold became the first Prince of Lippe.

At the end of World War I, Leopold IV, the last Prince of Lippe, was forced to abdicate on November 12, 1918. However, Leopold negotiated a treaty with the new government that allowed his family to remain in Lippe. Today the territory that encompassed the Principality of Lippe is located in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

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Sophie of Baden, Princess of Lippe; Credit – Wikipedia

Sophie of Baden was the wife of Woldemar, Prince of Lippe. Born on August 7, 1834, in Karlsruhe, then in the Grand Duchy of Baden, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, Sophie was second of the four children, all daughters, of Prince Wilhelm of Baden and Duchess Elisabeth Alexandrine of Württemberg. Her paternal grandparents were Karl Friedrich, the first Grand Duke of Baden, and his morganatic second wife Louise Caroline, Baroness Geyer von Geyersberg, Countess of Hochberg. Sophie’s maternal grandparents were Duke Ludwig of Württemberg and Princess Henriette of Nassau-Weilburg.

Sophie had three sisters:

On November 9, 1858, in Karlsruhe, Grand Duchy of Baden, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, Sophie married Woldemar, the future Prince of Lippe, the son of Leopold II, Prince of Lippe and Princess Emilie of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. Sophie and Woldemar had no children.

Sophie’s husband Woldemar, Prince of Lippe; Credit – Wikipedia

Woldemar had two elder siblings and six younger siblings. Woldemar and his elder brother Leopold III, Prince of Lippe were the only ones who married and neither had any children. This would eventually create a succession crisis. Woldemar became Prince of Lippe upon the death of his elder brother Leopold III on December 8, 1875.

Woldemar, Prince of Lippe died March 20, 1895, aged 70, in Detmold, Principality of Lippe, now in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. He was buried at the Mausoleum on the Büchenberg (link in German) in Detmold. Woldemar had no children to succeed him and his only surviving brother was Alexander who suffered from mental illness and had been declared incapacitated since 1871 and therefore, incapable of governing. A regency would be necessary during the reign of Alexander. However, Woldemar’s appointment of Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe as his brother’s regent sparked the Lippe succession dispute. This dispute between the two lines of the House of Lippe over the right to inherit lasted two decades and is discussed in Alexander, Prince of Lippe’s article.

Crypt in the Mausoleum on the Büchenberg; Credit – Von unbekannt / Tsungam – Foto: Eigenes Werk; Infotafel: Freunde der Residenz Detmold, Gemeinfrei, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20182639

Sophie survived her husband Woldemar by nine years, dying at the age of 70, on April 6, 1904, at the age of 70, in Detmold. She was buried with her husband.

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Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2020) Woldemar, Prince of Lippe, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/woldemar-prince-of-lippe/ (Accessed: 11 July 2023).
  • Prince William of Baden (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_William_of_Baden (Accessed: 11 July 2023).
  • Princess Sophie of Baden (2022) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Sophie_of_Baden (Accessed: 11 July 2023).