The Czech branch of the House of Thurn and Taxis (german: Thurn und Taxis) is a

dynastic A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A d ...

cadet branch of the Princely House of Thurn and Taxis, a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

noble family that was a key player in the

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in the 16th century and became well known as the owner of breweries and builder of many castles. Descendants of the House of Thurn und Taxis in Bohemia, a family that played an important role in Czech national culture and local history for 140 years, are today dispersed around the world.

Foundation

The Czech branch of the House of Thurn und Taxis was founded in 1808 by Prince Maximilian Joseph von Thurn und Taxis, the youngest child of

Alexander Ferdinand, 3rd Prince of Thurn and Taxis , title = Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Alexander Ferdinand von Thurn und Taxis.jpg , caption = , reign = 8 November 1739 – 17 March 1773 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor ...

(1704–1773), a founder of a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry in the Princely House of Thurn and Taxis, The Order of Parfaite Amitié, and his third wife Princess Maria Henriette von

Fürstenberg Fürstenberg (also Fuerstenberg and Furstenberg) may refer to: Historical states * Fürstenberg-Baar, county (1441–1559) * Fürstenberg-Blumberg, county (1559–1614) * Fürstenberg-Donaueschingen, county (1617–1698) * Fürstenberg-Fürsten ...

(1732–1772).

Maximilian Joseph von Thurn und Taxis

Prince Maximilian Joseph von Thurn und Taxis (Regensburg, 29 May 1769 – Prague, 15 May 1831) married Princess Eleonore von

Lobkowicz The House of Lobkowicz (''Lobkovicové'' in modern Czech, sg. ''z Lobkovic''; ''Lobkowitz'' in German) is a Czech noble family that dates back to the 14th century and is one of the oldest Bohemian noble families. The family also belong to the Ge ...

(Prague, 22 April 1770 – Lautschin, 9 November 1834), in 1791. She belonged to a Czech noble family whose origin can be traced back to Mares Martin z Ujezda (1376–90). In 1808, he inherited Lautschin (Loučeň in Czech) and Dobrovice castles from his cousin Princess Maria Josefa von

(1756-1809), and in 1820 permanently settled in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

.Mareček 1998, p.80 Besides Lautschin and other rural estates, the family also owned real estate in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

that included two palaces: one in the city's uptown (V jámě 635–636, no longer exists) and one in the old town (Vrtbovský Palace in Malá Strana, purchased in 1814). Maximilian and Eleonore had six sons: *Karl Anselm von Thurn und Taxis (1792–1844), the firstborn (not to be confused with his uncle

Karl Anselm, 4th Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Fürst Carl Anselm.jpg , caption = , reign = 17 March 1773 – 13 November 1805 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor = Alexander Ferdinand , successor = Karl Alexander , su ...

of Regensburg, heir to the senior line of the House of Thurn und Taxis) * August Maria Maximilian von Thurn und Taxis (1794–1862) * Joseph von Thurn und Taxis (1796–1857) * Karl Theodor von Thurn und Taxis (1797–1868) * Friedrich Hannibal Thurn and Taxis (1799–1857) * Wilhelm Karl von Thurn und Taxis (1801–1848)

Karl Anselm von Thurn und Taxis

In 1815, Prince Karl Anselm von Thurn und Taxis (Prague, 18 June 1792 – Teplitz, 25 August 1844) married Countess Marie Isabelle von und zu Eltz Faust von Stromberg (Dresden, 10 February 1795 – Prague, 12 March 1859). They had six children: * Marie Sophie (Countess von Montfort) * Hugo (1817–1889), heir to the family estate * Eleonore * Emmerich (1820–1900), general and Knight in the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriage ...

* Marie Theresa (Countess von Belcredi) * Rudolf (1833–1904), who became Baron von Troskow. Prince Rudolf von Thurn und Taxis, later known as Rudolf, Baron von Troskow (Prague, 25 November 1833 – Velehrad, 4 July 1904), was married in 1857 to Jenny Ständler (Prague, 9 April 1830 – Graz, 28 September 1914). They had several children. Rudolf was an intellectual who loved Czech music and literature and was an avid patron of the arts. He studied law and in 1861 founded ''Právník'' ("The Lawyer"), the first Czech language law journal. Aided by writer and historian

Karel Jaromír Erben Karel Jaromír Erben (; 7 November 1811 – 21 November 1870) was a Czech folklorist Folklore studies, less often known as folkloristics, and occasionally tradition studies or folk life studies in the United Kingdom, is the branch of anthropol ...

, he also contributed vocabulary to Czech legal terminology. He was sincerely devoted to the Czech national cause and was one of its important players: among others, he was the publisher of ''Boleslavan'' (" Boleslav's Magazine"), a Czech language weekly dedicated to the cause, and became the first chairman of the famous Czech choir Hlahol. He was also a member of the Committee for the Establishment of the Czech National Theatre (1861) and one of the founders of Czech arts society

Umělecká beseda The Umělecká beseda was a Czech artists' forum, bringing together creative artists in literature, music and fine art. First founded in 1863, it formed an important part of Czech cultural life in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Under Comm ...

in Prague (1863). He supported Czech writers

Božena Němcová Božena Němcová () (4 February 1820 in Vienna – 21 January 1862 in Prague) was a Czech writer of the final phase of the ''Czech National Revival'' movement. Her image is featured on the 500 CZK denomination of the Česká koruna. Biograph ...

Vítězslav Hálek Vítězslav Hálek (; 5 April 1835, in Odolena Voda – 8 October 1874), also known as Vincenc Hálek, was a Czech poet, writer, journalist, dramatist and theatre critic. He is considered one of the most important representatives of the May Schoo ...

, and

Karolina Světlá Karolina Světlá (born Johana Rottová) (24 February 1830 in Prague – 7 September 1899 in Prague) was a Czech female author of the 19th century. She was associated with the literary May School. She married Professor Petr Mužák (1821–1892) i ...

, and promoted Czech composers

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...

and

Bedřich Smetana Bedřich Smetana ( , ; 2 March 1824 – 12 May 1884) was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style that became closely identified with his people's aspirations to a cultural and political "revival." He has been regarded i ...

. The latter composed the opera ''Braniboři v Čechách'' ("

The Brandenburgers in Bohemia ''The Brandenburgers in Bohemia'' ( cz, Braniboři v Čechách) is a three-act opera, the first by Bedřich Smetana. The Czech libretto was written by Karel Sabina, and is based on events from Czech history. The work was composed in the years 1862 ...

") at Rudolf's estate in

Niměřice Niměřice is a municipality and village in Mladá Boleslav District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia ...

. In 1894, Rudolf gave up his princely title and family name, receiving at his request the title of ''

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

von Troskow'' from the Emperor

Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

. Ten years later he died while visiting his daughter Hedvika in

Velehrad Velehrad is a municipality and village in Uherské Hradiště District in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,100 inhabitants. It is known as a pilgrimage site. Geography Most of the municipality lies in the Chřiby highlands. ...

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The me ...

. In 1930, his and his wife's remains were exhumed and reinterred in the family grave in Stará Boleslav.

Hugo Maximilian von Thurn und Taxis

Prince Hugo Maximilian von Thurn und Taxis (Prague, 3 July 1817 – Lautschin, 28 November 1889) married Countess Almeria von Belcredi (Ingrowitz, 8 October 1819 – Lautschin, 25 September 1914), sister of Count Richard von Belcredi, who served as

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. It ...

of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

. Hugo's estate included castles in Dobrovice, Lautschin (Loucen in Czech) and Mzells (Mcely), and estates in Vlkava, Niměřice and Ceteň. They had four legitimate children:Mareček 1998, p.89; Marek *Karoline (1846-1931) *Egmont (1849-1866) *Alexander (his heir) (1851-1939) *Maria Theresia (1856-1908)

Alexander von Thurn und Taxis

Prince Alexander Johann Vincenz Rudolf Hugo Karl Lamoral Eligius von Thurn und Taxis (Lautschin, 1 December 1851 – Lautschin, 21 July 1939) married in 1875 Princess Marie zu

Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfürst Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfürst was a county in northeastern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The name Hohenlohe derives from the castle of Hohenloch near Uffenheim in Mittelfranken, which came into the possession of the descendants of Conrad of ...

(Venice, 28 December 1855 – Lautschin, 16 February 1934). They inherited Lautschin in 1889.

Cultural influence

Both Alexander and Marie were avid patrons of the arts (Alexander himself played violin and Marie was an amateur painter), and although they were not wealthy compared to their Regensburg relatives, they were generous and never hesitated to support a good cause. Marie's protégé

Rainer Maria Rilke René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), shortened to Rainer Maria Rilke (), was an Austrian poet and novelist. He has been acclaimed as an idiosyncratic and expressive poet, and is widely recogni ...

used to visit the family at their castles Lautschin and Duino. He dedicated his ''Duino Elegies'' to the princess, who in turn wrote about him in her published memoirs. Besides Rilke, regular guests at the castle in Lautschin included Karel Sladkovský and

who in 1880 dedicated his composition ''Z domoviny'' for violin and piano to Alexander. After Smetana's death, Alexander designated the house in nearby Jabkenice, where Smetana lived his last years, as Smetana's museum and donated land for his memorial. Other artists and intellectuals known to visit the castle included F. X. Salda,

Eliška Krásnohorská Eliška Krásnohorská (18 November 1847, in Prague – 26 November 1926, in Prague) was a Czech people, Czech feminist author. She was introduced to literature and feminism by Karolína Světlá. She wrote works of lyric poetry and literary critic ...

Karel Bendl Karel Bendl, or german: Karl Bendl, pseudonym: ''Podskalský'' (16 April 1838, Prague, Bohemia, Austrian Empire 20 September 1897, Prague) was a Czech composer. Life Bendl was born and died in Prague. He studied at the organ school, where he ...

, members of the Czech Quartet (who included composer Josef Suk), and

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

(who visited the castle during his European travels in 1899). Alexander also loved to travel and he was a passionate hunter who made several hunting trips to Africa, occasionally accompanied by Czech traveller Bedřich Machulka; he later donated his animal trophies to the National Museum in Prague. He belonged to the

Knights of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

and financially assisted a number of charitable causes. Together with his father Prince Hugo he was also instrumental in building the first railway in the region. The railway was built on land that he donated for the project.

Sports influence

When his son Prince Erich, who studied in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, brought to Lautschin a new game, he helped him establish the first football team in Bohemia (1889). The team made history when it played in the first official football match historically recorded in Bohemia (1893). The Lautschin team competed against Regatta, the best team in the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. The match took place at the famous Císařská louka in Prague on 18 April 1893 and ended with the Thurn Taxis team losing 0:5. This was still considered a great success for the Lautschin players and the Vienna newspapers Wiener Sportzeitung did not hesitate to conclude that the team from Lautschin was the second best team after Regatta in the Empire.

Burial place

The family's burial place is in Sýčina (Seitzin) near Dobrovice.

Legitimate offspring

Prince Alexander had three legitimate children: *Erich (Mzells, 11 January 1876 – Kremsegg, 20 October 1952) *Eugen (Prague, 27 March 1878 – Prague, 4 March 1903) *

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

(Mzells, 8 July 1881 – Duino, 11 March 1937) Prince Erich married Countess Gabrielle Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau (eldest daughter of

Rudolf, 9th Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau Rudolf, 9th Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau (german: Rudolf Fürst Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau; 11 December 185913 March 1930) was the titular pretender Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau. Early life Rudolf was born at Hermanmiestetz, ...

) in 1903 and in 1925 moved to

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

where he died in 1952. He had nine children, and his son Alexander Ferdinand (1906–1992) held the Lautschin Castle until the end of the war in 1945 when it was confiscated by the Czechoslovak state (his cousin, Ludwig (Luigi) held Mzells Castle until 1948). Prince Alexander married Princess Marie de

Ligne The ''ligne'' ( ), or line or Paris line, is a historic unit of length used in France and elsewhere prior to the adoption of the metric system in the late 18th century, and used in various sciences after that time. The ''loi du 19 frimaire an V ...

(1885-1971), member of an ancient

House of Ligne The House of Ligne is one of the oldest Belgian noble families, dating back to the eleventh century.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' XIV. "Ligne". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1991, pp. 495-500. . The family's name comes from the ...

. Together they had three children: * Raimundo (heir) *Luigi *Margareta They divorced in 1919. In 1923 Prince Alexander left the dynastic House of Thurn und Taxis to become the first '' Duca di Castel Duino'' by grant of

Victor Emmanuel III of Italy Victor Emmanuel III (Vittorio Emanuele Ferdinando Maria Gennaro di Savoia; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. He also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia (1936–1941) and K ...

. Alexander's sons Raimundo and Luigi joined their father and were recognized in Italy as ''Princes della Torre e Tasso''. The prince's daughter Princess Margarita remained a member of the Thurn und Taxis family until her marriage in 1931 to

Prince Gaetano of Bourbon-Parma Prince Gaetano of Bourbon-Parma (11 June 1905 – 9 March 1958) was the youngest son of Robert I, the last reigning Duke of Parma and of his second wife Maria Antonia of Portugal. A prince of the House of Bourbon-Parma The House of Bourbon ...

. Alexander married

American heiress ''American Heiress'' is a telenovela which debuted on March 13, 2007 at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on the American television network MyNetworkTV. This romantic melodrama tells the story of a roughneck pilot and a pampered heiress who survive a plane cras ...

Helen Holbrook

Walker Walker or The Walker may refer to: People *Walker (given name) *Walker (surname) *Walker (Brazilian footballer) (born 1982), Brazilian footballer Places In the United States *Walker, Arizona, in Yavapai County *Walker, Mono County, California * ...

in Vrana. After Alexander's death, the castle in Duino was inherited by his son

Raimundo, 2nd Duke of Castel Duino Raimondo, Prince della Torre e Tasso, 2nd Duke of Castel Duino (16 March 1907 – 17 March 1986) was the son of Alessandro, 1st Duke of Castel Duino and Princess Marie de Ligne.Genealogy of della Torre e Tasso in: ''Genealogisches Handbuch des Ade ...

(1907–1986), and then his grandson

Carlo Alessandro, 3rd Duke of Castel Duino , image = , caption = , reign = 17 March 1986 – present , reign-type = Period , succession = Duke of Castel Duino , predecessor = Raimundo , successor = Prince Dimitri , suc-type = Heir-Apparent , spouse = ...

, and has remained a part of the Torre e Tasso family estate.Mareček 1998, p.97, pp.100–104; Marek

Bibliography

*Dragounová, Marie. 1922. ''Kronika rodu Dragounů, loučeňských poštmistrů''. (Chronicle of the Dragoun Family, Postmasters at Loučeň). Unpublished text. Deposited in Státní archiv Nymburk. *Dročár, Jan. ''Zapomenutý šlechtic,'' 25 June 2007, http://www.pozitivni-noviny.cz/cz/clanek-2007060059 (1 March 2008), Pozitivní noviny. *''FK Loučeň: Nejstarší fotbalový klub v Čechách (1893)''. 2003. Program guide. Published at the occasion of the 110th anniversary of the Loučeň Football Club. *Mareček, Zdeněk. 1998. ''Loučeň a Thurn Taxisové: Pohledy do doby minulé i nedávné''. Loučeň, Czech Republic: Obec Loučeň. *Mareček, Zdeněk. 2003. ''Vyprávění o tom, jak fotbal na Loučeň přišel''. Unpublished text. * *Nováček, Jiří. 2003. ''Čechy naučili hrát fotbal anglický komorník se zahradníkem''. Unpublished text. *Paine, Albert Bigelow. ''Mark Twain''. eBooks@Adelaide. http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/t/twain/mark/paine/chapter206.html (31 March 2008), ebooks.adelaide.edu.au *Thurn-Taxis, Marie. 1997. ''Rainer Maria Rilke v mých vzpomínkách''. Praha: Nadace Arbor vitae. *Votypka, Vladimír. 2005. ''Paradoxy české šlechty''. Praha: Nakladatelství Dokořán. *"Z tajností fotbalového pravěku". ''Stadion'' 32 (9 August 1988). *Zapletal, Vladimír. ''JUDr. Rudolf Knize Thurn-Taxis''. (2nd ed.) http://www.pozitivni-noviny.cz/cz/clanek-2007060063 (26 June 2007) Pozitivní noviny. *Von Thurn und Taxis, Princess Marie, The Poet and The Princess: Memories of Rainer Maria Rilke, Amun Press, 2017

References

External links

* * * * *http://www.pozitivni-noviny.cz/cz/clanek-2007060059 *http://www.pozitivni-noviny.cz/cz/clanek-2007060063 * * **http://www.zamekloucen.cz/ *http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/t/twain/mark/paine/chapter206.html {{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130719071511/http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/t/twain/mark/paine/chapter206.html , date=19 July 2013 *http://www.hlahol.cz/english/history.html Thurn und Taxis German Bohemian noble families

Thurn and Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (german: link=no, Fürstenhaus Thurn und Taxis ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the end ...

Italian nobility Knights of Malta