{{Infobox noble , name = Alexander , title = 5th Prince of Pless , image = , caption = , alt = , CoA = Pless-Wappen

, more = no , succession = , reign = , reign-type = , predecessor = Hans-Heinrich XVII, 4th Prince of Pless , successor = , suc-type = , spouse = , spouse-type = , issue = , issue-link = , issue-pipe = , full name = Alexander Friedrich-Wilhelm Georg Konrad-Ernst-Maximilian Fürst von Pless , other_titles = Count of Hochberg
Baron of Fuerstenstein , noble family = House of Hochberg , house-type = , father = Hans Heinrich XV, 3rd Prince of Pless , mother = ''Mary-Theresa'' Olivia Cornwallis-West , birth_date={{Birth date, 1905, 2, 1, df=y , birth_place =

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, christening_date = 28 February 1905 , christening_place = St-James's Palace, London , death_date ={{Death date and age, 1984, 2, 22, 1905, 2, 1, df=y , death_place = Pollença , burial_date = , burial_place = Pollença , religion = Christian ( Roman Catholicism since 1920, previously

Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

) , occupation = Businessman; Soldier , memorials = , url = , module = Alexander, Count von Hochberg-Fürstenstein, Prince von Pless or Aleksander Pszczyński (1 February 1905 – 22 February 1984) was a German aristocrat and polish military officer (2nd Lieutenant). Personal security guard for Prime Minister of Poland general Wladyslaw Sikorski. Awarded Monte Cassino Commemorative Cross and Cross of Merit with Swords for his service in Polish Army. In 1984, he briefly served as the head of the Hochberg von Pless princely family.

Biography

He was born 1 February 1905 in

, to Hans Heinrich XV, 3rd

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

von Pleß and his first wife Daisy, Princess of Pless. As an heir of once mighty

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

n ducal family of Dukes von Pless, Alexander (officially styled ''Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm Georg Konrad Ernst Maximilian

Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...

von Hochberg, baron zu Fürstenstein, 5th Fürst von Pless'') had been a Polish citizen when Upper Silesia and Pless became part of Poland in 1921. Due to fiscal problems and indebtedness his estate was partly taken the Polish State (65% of the family's assets). Following his father's death in 1938 he emigrated to Paris, where he later joined the

Polish Army in the West The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II. Polish forces were also raised within Soviet territories; the ...

in the latter stages of the war. He served with distinction in North Africa and in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. After the war he settled in Pollensa on the Spanish island of Majorca, where he died on 22 February 1984. The von Pless line of his family is now headed by his nephew Bolko Graf von Hochberg, 6th ''Fürst'' von Pless (b. Munich 3 Apr 1936).

References

* {{cite book , last=Ludovici , first=Laurence James , title=The Three of Us , publisher=Marjay Books , location=London , year=1993 * {{cite book , last=Luke , first=Michael , title=Hansel Pless: Prisoner of History. A Life of H.S.H. Hans Heinrich XVII, 4th Prince of Pless , publisher=Cygnet Press , location=London , year=2002

Ancestry

{{ahnentafel , collapsed=yes , align=center , boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc; , boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9; , boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc; , boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc; , boxstyle_5=background-color: #9fe; , 1= 1. Alexander von Hochberg, 5th Prince of Pless (1905–1984) , 2= 2. Hans-Heinrich XV. von Hochberg, 3rd Prince of Pless (1861–1938) , 3= 3. Mary-Theresa Cornwallis-West (1873–1943) , 4= 4. Hans-Heinrich XI. von Hochberg, Duke and 2nd Prince of Pless (1833–1907) , 5= 5. Marie von Kleist (1828–1883) , 6= 6. William Cornwallis-West (1835–1917) , 7= 7.

Mary FitzPatrick Mary Fitzpatrick (born 20 February 1969) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who has served as a Senator since June 2020, after being nominated by the Taoiseach. Early life Fitzpatrick is from the Navan Road in Dublin and was educated at Our ...

(1854–1920) , 8= 8. Hans-Heinrich X. von Hochberg, 1st Prince of Pless (1806–1855) , 9= 9. Ida von Stechow (1811–1843) , 10= 10. Eduard, 1st Count von Kleist (1795–1852) , 11= 11. Countess Luise von Hochberg (1804–1851) , 12= 12.

Frederick Richard West Frederick Richard West (6 February 1799 – 1 May 1862) was a British Tory MP for Denbigh Boroughs and East Grinstead. He was a member of the Canterbury Association. Early life West was born in 1799 in Hanover Square, London. He was the third ...

(1799–1862) , 13= 13. Theresa Whitby (1805–1886) , 14= 14. Frederick FitzPatrick (1821–1898) , 15= 15. Lady Olivia Taylour (1824–1916) , 16= 16. Count Hans-Heinrich VI. von Hochberg (1768–1833) , 17= 17. Princess Anne von Anhalt-Köthen-Pless (1770–1830) , 18= 18. Friderich von Stechow (1771–1839) , 19= 19. Baroness Caroline von der Recke (1772–1835) , 20= 20. Leopold von Kleist (1752–1830) , 21= 21. Auguste Friederike von Klitzing (1779–1801) , 22= 22. Count Hans-Heinrich VI. von Hochberg (1768–1833) , 23= 23. Princess Anne von Anhalt-Köthen-Pless (1770–1830) , 24= 24. Frederick West (1765–1852) , 25= 25. Mary Myddelton (1784–1843) , 26= 26. John Whitby (1774–1806) , 27= 27. Mary Anne Symonds (1783–1850) , 28= 28. Frederick FitzPatrick (1790–1871) , 29= 29. Edwina Stone () , 30= 30. Thomas Taylour, 2nd Marquess of Headfort (1787–1870) , 31=31. Olivia Stevenson (1790–1834) {{Authority control {{DEFAULTSORT:Hochberg, Alexander 1905 births 1984 deaths Polish Army officers Silesian nobility {{Poland-bio-stub {{Germany-mil-bio-stub {{Germany-noble-stub