, father =

Karl August, 10th Prince of Thurn and Taxis Karl August Joseph Maria Maximilian Lamoral Antonius Ignatius Benediktus Valentin, 10th Prince of Thurn and Taxis (full German language, German name: ''Karl August Joseph Maria Maximilian Lamoral Antonius Ignatius Benediktus Valentin Fürst von Thu ...

, mother = Infanta Maria Anna of Portugal , birth_date = , birth_place =

Schloss Höfling Schloss Höfling is a Baroque castle in Regensburg, Bavaria. In 1985 the castle, which is owned by the House of Thurn and Taxis, was leased for one hundred years to the Walderdorff family. History The castle takes its name from the von Höfl ...

, Regensburg,

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is ...

, death_date = , death_place =

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 ...

, Germany , place of burial = Gruftkapelle, St. Emmeram's Palace, Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany , religion =

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Johannes, 11th Prince of Thurn and Taxis (5 June 1926 – 14 December 1990) was a German businessman and head of the

House of Thurn und 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 en ...

from 1982 until his death.Willis, Daniel. The Descendants of King George I of Great Britain. Clearfield, 2002, Baltimore, US. p. 516. .

Early life

Johannes was born at

in Regensburg,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, to

, and Infanta Maria Anna de Braganza. He had two older sisters and one younger brother.

Marriage and family

In the 1970s Johannes threw

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

parties and, because he was bisexual, he was often seen in gay discos. Before he was married, his "constant companion" was Princess Henriette von Auersperg, later von Bohlen und Halbach. On 31 May 1980 he married the much younger Countess Gloria of Schönburg-Glauchau (born 1960). The pair were fourth cousins twice removed, both descended from

Karl Alexander, 5th Prince of Thurn and Taxis , title = Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Karl Alexander von Thurn und Taxis.jpg , caption = , reign = 13 November 1805 – 15 July 1827 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor = ...

. The Schönburg-Glauchaus were a mediatised branch of the Schönburg dynasty of

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

s, which still possessed large estates in Germany after World War I, but became refugees in Africa under the Nazi regime and fell on hard times. The couple attracted massive media attention into the mid 1980s, with a '' haut bohème'' lifestyle locating them among the

jet set In journalism, jet set is a term for an international social group of wealthy people who travel the world to participate in social activities unavailable to ordinary people. The term, which replaced "café society", came from the lifestyle of tra ...

and the Princess Gloria's over-the-top appearance (characterized by bright hair color and flashy clothes) prompted '' Vanity Fair'' to describe her as "Princess TNT, the dynamite socialite", a

sobriquet A sobriquet ( ), or soubriquet, is a nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another, that is descriptive. A sobriquet is distinct from a pseudonym, as it is typically a familiar name used in place of a real name, without the need of expla ...

that stayed with her a long time. The couple had three children: * '' Maria Theresia Ludowika Klothilde Helene Alexandra'' (born 28 November 1980 in Regensburg). On 13 September 2014, she married

Hugo Wilson Hugo Wilson (born 1982) is an English artist and sculptor. Early life Wilson was born in London. He is the son of Kenneth Wilson and Diana Wilson, of Battersea, London. At the age of 17 he went to Florence, Italy to be trained as a painter at t ...

, a British artist, in

Tutzing Tutzing is a municipality in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria, Germany, on the west bank of the Starnberger See. Just 40 km south-west of Munich and with good views of the Alps, the town was traditionally a favorite vacation spot for thos ...

, Germany. They have two daughters. ** Mafalda Beatrix Maria Wilson (born 21 August 2015). ** Maya Romy Alexandra Wilson (born 22 September 2017). * '' Elisabeth Margarethe Maria Anna Beatriz'' (born 24 March 1982 in Regensburg). * '' Albert (II.) Maria Lamoral Miguel Johannes Gabriel'' (born 24 June 1983 in Regensburg). Upon the death of his father in 1982, Johannes became the head of the Thurn and Taxis family. He died on 14 December 1990 after two unsuccessful

heart transplant A heart transplant, or a cardiac transplant, is a surgical transplant procedure performed on patients with end-stage heart failure or severe coronary artery disease when other medical or surgical treatments have failed. , the most common procedu ...

s within two days, in

Großhadern Großhadern (in the town district Hadern) is a district in the south-west of the Bavarian state capital Munich. Großhadern is primarily a bourgeois residential area. Exceptions are the so-called "village core" with numerous small shops as well as ...

. With a legacy of U.S. $500 million in debts, his widow was forced to simplify her way of life to master the fiscal responsibilities of probating his estate and securing what remained of her husband's fortune.

Honours

Dynastic honours

Dynastic orders of non-reigning families: *

: Sovereign Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Parfaite AmitiéAlamy
Orders shown at Johannes funeral
/ref> * Saxon Royal Family: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of the Rue Crown The Order of the Rue Crown (german: Hausorden der Rautenkrone) or Order of the Crown of Saxony was a dynastic order of knighthood of the Kingdom of Saxony. The order takes its name from the green floral crown of rue ('' crancelin'') found in th ...

Portuguese Royal Family The Most Serene House of Braganza ( pt, Sereníssima Casa de Bragança), also known as the Brigantine Dynasty (''Dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese people, Portuguese origin which reigned in ...

: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa The Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (also known as The Order of Our Lady of Conception of Vila Vicosa; pt, Ordem de Nossa Senhora da Conceição de Vila Viçosa) is a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Braganza, the f ...

Russian Imperial Family The House of Romanov (also transcribed Romanoff; rus, Романовы, Románovy, rɐˈmanəvɨ) was the reigning imperial house of Russia from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after the Tsarina, Anastasia Romanova, was married to t ...

: Knight Grand Cordon of the Imperial Order of Saint Stanislaus

National and foreign honours

* Commander of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

Sovereign Military Order 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; ...

: Bailiff Knight Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, 3rd First Class

Ancestry

Sources

* Wolfgang Behringer. ''Thurn und Taxis: Die Geschichte ihrer Post und ihrer Unternehmen''. München/Zürich: 1990. * Martin Dallmeier and Martha Schad. ''Das Fürstliche Haus Thurn und Taxis, 300 Jahre Geschichte in Bildern''. Regensburg: 1996. * Bernd-Ulrich Hergemöller. ''Mann für Mann''. page 689

References

External links

Thurn und Taxis family homepage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johannes Of Thurn And Taxis, Prince 1926 births 1990 deaths Hereditary Princes of Thurn and Taxis Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Knights of the Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa Knights of Malta Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian) LGBT royalty 20th-century German businesspeople German LGBT businesspeople German billionaires German landowners 20th-century Christians 20th-century Roman Catholics German Roman Catholics LGBT Roman Catholics German people of Portuguese descent German people of Austrian descent German people of Liechtenstein descent German people of Hungarian descent German people of French descent German people of Spanish descent German people of Italian descent Burials at the Gruftkapelle, St. Emmeram's Abbey