Prince Wilhelm of Prussia (1906–1940)

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Prince Wilhelm
200px
Prince Wilhelm, left, with his brother, Louis Ferdinand, in 1926
Born (1906-07-04)4 July 1906
Marmorpalais, near Potsdam, Prussia
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Nivelles, Belgium
Burial 29 May 1940
Antique Temple, Sanssouci Park, Potsdam, Germany
Spouse Dorothea von Salviati
Issue Princess Felicitas
Princess Christa
Full name
Wilhelm Friedrich Franz Joseph Christian Olaf
House Hohenzollern
Father Wilhelm, German Crown Prince
Mother Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin

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Prince Wilhelm of Prussia (Hohenzollern) (Wilhelm Friedrich Franz Joseph Christian Olaf, in English, William Frederick Francis Joseph Christian Olaf; 4 July 1906 – 26 May 1940) was the eldest child and son of Crown Prince Wilhelm of Germany and Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. At his birth, he was second in line to the German throne, and was expected to one day succeed to the throne after the deaths of his father and grandfather, both of whom ultimately outlived him.

Early life and childhood

File:Wilhelm1908.jpg
Prince Wilhelm with his mother, Crown Princess Cecilie, in 1908

Wilhelm was born on 4 July 1906 at the Hohenzollern family's private summer residence, Marmorpalais, or Marble Palace, near Potsdam, where his parents were residing until their own home, Schloss Cecilienhof, could be completed.[1] His father was Crown Prince Wilhelm, the eldest son and heir to the German Emperor, Wilhelm II. His mother was Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria was one of the Prince's godfathers.

The selection of a nanny for Wilhelm and his younger brother, Louis Ferdinand (born in 1907) caused considerable distress within the family.[2]

On his tenth birthday in 1916, Wilhelm was created a lieutenant in the 1st Guards Regiment, and was given the Order of the Black Eagle by his grandfather.[3] Two years later, when he was only twelve, the German monarchy was abolished. Wilhelm and his family remained in Germany, though his grandfather, the former Emperor, went into exile in the Netherlands. The former Crown Prince and his family remained in Potsdam, where Wilhelm and his younger brothers attended the local gymnasium.

File:Die Kronprinzlichen Söhne (in Uniform). Kriegs-Wohlfahrtskarte, 1914.jpg
Prince Wilhelm in 1914, with his younger brothers, Louis Ferdinand, Hubertus and Friedrich. The boys are dressed in the uniform of the Prussian army.

After graduating from secondary school, Wilhelm went on to study at the Universities of Königsberg, Munich and Bonn. In 1926, while a student at the University of Bonn, Wilhelm joined the Borussia Corps, a student organization of which his father, grandfather, and other members of the Prussian Royal Family were members.[4]

Marriage and children

While a student at Bonn, Wilhelm fell in love with a fellow student, Dorothea von Salviati (10 September 1907 – 7 May 1972). His grandfather did not approve of the marriage of a member of the minor nobility with the second in line to the German throne. At the time, the former Kaiser still believed in the possibility of a Hohenzollern restoration,[5] and he would not permit his grandson to make an unequal marriage. Wilhelm told his grandson: "Remember, there is every possible form of horse. We are thoroughbreds, however, and when we conclude a marriage such as with Fräulein von Salviati, it produces mongrels, and that cannot be allowed to happen."[6]

However, Wilhelm was determined to marry Dorothea. He renounced any rights to the succession for himself and his future children in 1933.[7][8] Wilhelm and Dorothea married on 3 June 1933 in Bonn. They had two daughters. In 1940, the marriage was recognised as dynastic and the girls were given the title and style of Princesses of Prussia.[9]

Military services

During the Weimar Republic, Wilhelm inadvertently caused a public scandal by attending Army manoeuvres in the uniform of the old Imperial First Foot Guards without first seeking government approval. The commander of the Reichswehr, Hans von Seeckt, was forced to resign as a result.[11]

At the beginning of World War II, Wilhelm was among a number of Princes from the former Germany monarchies who enlisted to serve in the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Germany.

Death and reaction

In May 1940, Wilhelm took part in the invasion of France. He was wounded during the fighting in Valenciennes and died in a field hospital in Nivelles on 26 May 1940.[2][12] His funeral service was held at the Church of Peace, and he was buried in the Hohenzollern family mausoleum in the Antique Temple in Sanssouci Park. The service drew over 50,000 mourners, by far the largest not officially organized demonstration during Nazi rule in Germany.[12]

His death and the ensuing sympathy of the German public revealed that despite years of Nazi ideologic indoctrination large parts of the German society still were affectionately bound to the former German royal houses. This greatly bothered Hitler, and he began to see the Hohenzollerns as a threat to his power. Shortly after Wilhelm's death, a decree known as the Prinzenerlaß, or Prince's Decree, was issued, barring all members of the former German royal houses from service in the Wehrmacht.[12][13]

Ancestry

Family of Prince Wilhelm of Prussia (1906–1940)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
16. Wilhelm I, German Emperor
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8. Frederick III, German Emperor
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
17. Princess Augusta of Saxe-Weimar
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4. Wilhelm II, German Emperor
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
18. Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
9. Victoria, Princess Royal
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
19. Victoria of the United Kingdom
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2. William, German Crown Prince
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
20. Christian August II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10. Frederick VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
21. Countess Louise-Sophie Danneskiold-Samsøe
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5. Princess Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
22. Ernst I, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11. Princess Adelheid of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
23. Princess Feodora of Leiningen
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1. Prince Wilhelm of Prussia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
24. Paul Frederick, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
12. Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
25. Princess Alexandrine of Prussia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6. Frederick Francis III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
26. Prince Heinrich LXIII Reuss of Köstritz
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
13. Princess Augusta Reuss of Köstritz
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
27. Countess Eleonore of Stolberg-Wernigerode
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3. Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
28. Nicholas I of Russia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14. Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
29. Princess Charlotte of Prussia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
7. Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
30. Leopold, Grand Duke of Baden
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15. Princess Cecilie of Baden
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
31. Princess Sophie of Sweden
 
 
 
 
 
 

References

  1. Potsdam tourism sights - Marmorpalais
  2. 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. Wilhelm von Preußen (1906–1940) - Wikipedia, Die freie Enzyklopädie.
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  8. boys clothing: German royalty -- Wilhelm Hohenzollern
  9. Genealogy of the Royal Family of Prussia: HRH Prince Wilhelm and his descendants at the Wayback Machine (archived October 28, 2009)
  10. Trauer um IKH Prinzessin Felicitas von Preussen (1934 - 2009)
  11. "Hans von Seeckt." Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 6 July 2008 [1].
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. Petropoulos, Jonathan. (2006) Royals and the Reich: The Princes Von Hessen in Nazi Germany. Page 242. Published - Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-516133-5

External links