Adolphus Frederick VI (17 June 1882 – 23 February 1918) was the last reigning grand duke of

Mecklenburg-Strelitz The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy in northern Germany consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district (the former Lordship of Stargard), ...

Early life

Adolphus Frederick George Ernest Albert Edward of Mecklenburg was born in

Neustrelitz Neustrelitz (; East Low German: ''Niegenstrelitz'') is a town in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the shore of the Zierker See in the Mecklenburg Lake District. From 17 ...

, the third child and eldest son of Adolphus Frederick V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, and his wife, the former Princess Elisabeth of Anhalt. He attended a gymnasium school in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

and later studied

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

and served in the Prussian army. Adolphus Frederick became

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

to the Grand Duchy, with the title of Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, following the death of his grandfather Grand Duke Frederick William on 30 May 1904. Adolphus Frederick and his younger brother Duke Karl Borwin are said to have agreed that Adolphus Frederick could devote his life to painting, while Karl Borwin would marry and continue the dynasty; but this agreement could never be realised, as Karl Borwin was killed during a duel with Count George Jametel in 1908. Adolphus Frederick was subsequently reported to be engaged to various European princesses, including

Princess Viktoria Luise of Prussia german: Viktoria Luise Adelheid Mathilde Charlotte , house = Hohenzollern , father = Wilhelm II, German Emperor , mother = Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein , birth_name = Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia ...

, the only daughter of the German Emperor William II and his consort,

Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein , house = Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg , father = Frederick VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein , mother = Princess Adelheid of Hohenlohe-Langenburg , birth_date = , birth_place = Dolzig Pal ...

. He succeeded as Grand Duke on the death of his father on 11 June 1914, just a few weeks before the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Adolphus Frederick was reported to have married morganatically with attempts made to force him to divorce his wife and conduct an equal marriage, but he was reported to have refused. Recent research has disproven claims that he was the father of the children of

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libre ...

tic soprano Mafalda Salvatini. An Italian by birth but raised mainly in Paris, and a star at the

Berlin State Opera The (), also known as the Berlin State Opera (german: Staatsoper Berlin), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Prussian king Frederick the Great from ...

and the

Deutsche Oper Berlin The Deutsche Oper Berlin is a German opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin. The resident building is the country's second largest opera house (after Munich's) and also home to the Berlin State Ballet. Since 2004, the D ...

, Salvatini had been his mistress from 1908 until his suicide in 1918. Her two sons, Charles E. (Horst) Gérard and the theatre production designer and painter Rolf Gérard, were shown not to be illegitimate children of the Grand Duke, though this had been suspected.

Succession crisis and a possible marriage

With Adolf Friedrich having come to the throne while unmarried and without a male heir there was an issue surrounding the succession as his cousin and heir, Russian based Duke Charles Michael of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1863–1934) had indicated just before

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

broke out that he wished to renounce his succession rights. If there was no male heir to Mecklenburg-Strelitz the

grand duchy A grand duchy is a country or territory whose official head of state or ruler is a monarch bearing the title of grand duke or grand duchess. Relatively rare until the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the term was often used in the ...

would merge with the neighboring

Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin The Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a territory in Northern Germany held by the House of Mecklenburg residing at Schwerin. It was a sovereign member state of the German Confederation and became a federated state of the North German Co ...

. During the war the topic of marriage was discussed by Adolf Friedrich and his friend

Daisy, Princess of Pless Daisy, Princess of Pless (Mary Theresa Olivia; ''née'' Cornwallis-West; 28 June 1873 – 29 June 1943) was a noted society beauty in the Edwardian period, and during her marriage a member of one of the wealthiest European noble families. Daisy a ...

, however in wartime it was very difficult to arrange a meeting with an eligible princess. Eventually, Daisy identified her husband's relative, Princess Benigna Reuss of Köstritz (1892–1983) as a suitable bride. She was third child and the only daughter of Prince Heinrich XXVIII Reuss of Köstritz (1859–1924) and his first wife, Countess Magdalene of

Solms-Laubach Solms-Laubach was a County of southern Hesse and eastern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The House of SolmsSee German article on the ''House of Solms'' or French article '' Maison de Solms. had its origins in Solms, Hesse. History Solms-Laubach ...

(1863–1925). As Adolf Friedrich was agreeable to the match his

Minister-President A minister-president or minister president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments with a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government where they preside over the council of ministers. I ...

Heinrich Bossart started negotiations with the future bride's family to bring about the marriage. However, before the engagement could be announced there was the complication of a connection to a woman whom Adolf Friedrich needed to be freed from. Rumor has it that the woman in question was Margrit Höllrigl, Countess Bubna of Litic with whom he had a relationship while he was based in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

. Because of this, the previously arranged marriage to Princess Benigna never materialized and after that she never married.

Death

On 23 February 1918 at

, Adolphus Frederick committed suicide. This left Mecklenburg-Strelitz facing a succession crisis, as the only surviving member of the Strelitz line,

Duke Charles Michael of Mecklenburg Charles Michael, Duke of Mecklenburg (german: Carl Michael Herzog zu Mecklenburg; russian: Михаил Георгиевич; – 6 December 1934) was an officer in the Imperial Russian Army, heir presumptive to the throne of Mecklenburg-Streli ...

, had served in the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

n military (in opposition to German and allied forces) and had indicated in 1914 that he wished to renounce his rights to the throne of Mecklenburg-Strelitz;Lines of Succession by Jiri Louda, p.222 at Adolphus Frederick's request, Charles Michael later agreed to defer any renunciation until the matter arose. There was also a

morganatic Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spouse ...

male-line relative, Duke Charles Michael's nephew George, Count of Carlow. Because Charles Michael was in Russia, Grand Duke Friedrich Franz IV of Mecklenburg-Schwerin became

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...

for Mecklenburg-Strelitz and remained such until the end of the German monarchies in 1918, when the government in Strelitz declared the end of the regency. Friedrich Franz IV received confirmation from Charles Michael that he wished to renounce his succession rights, although this only arrived in 1919, after the abolition of the monarchies and the establishment of the

Free State of Mecklenburg-Strelitz The Free State of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (german: Freistaat Mecklenburg-Strelitz) was a state of the Weimar Republic established in 1918 following the German Revolution which had overthrown the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. The state lasted ...

. Adolphus's fortune had been amassed by his grandfather and was estimated at 30 million marks (€ million in ). In his will, he left his entire fortune to Friedrich Franz IV of Mecklenburg-Schwerin's second son, Duke Christian Ludwig (1912–1996). He did this on the condition that Christian agree to become Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and take up residence in

; otherwise the inheritance would be reduced to 3 million

marks Marks may refer to: Business * Mark's, a Canadian retail chain * Marks & Spencer, a British retail chain * Collective trade marks, trademarks owned by an organisation for the benefit of its members * Marks & Co, the inspiration for the nove ...

.House laws of Mecklenburg
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Titles, styles and honours

Titles and styles

*17 June 1882 – 30 May 1904: ''His Highness'' The Duke Adolphus Frederick of Mecklenburg-Strelitz *30 May 1904 – 11 June 1914: ''His Royal Highness'' The Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz *11 June 1914 – 23 February 1918: ''His Royal Highness'' The Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Honours

He received the following awards:

Ancestors

References

Books

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adolphus Frederick 04 Of Mecklenburg, Grand Duke 1882 births 1918 suicides Protestant monarchs Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz People from Neustrelitz Hereditary Grand Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Grand Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz German landowners Major generals of Prussia German people of English descent German people of French descent Annulled Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class Recipients of the Military Merit Cross (Mecklenburg-Schwerin) Suicides in Germany