Prince Karl Gero Albrecht Joseph Wilhelm Anton Maria of Urach, Count of Württemberg, 3rd Duke of Urach (19 August 1899 – 15 August 1981), sometimes referred to as Vytautas II, was the head of the morganatic Urach branch of the

House of Württemberg The House of Württemberg is a German dynasty and former royal family from Württemberg. History County The House probably originated in the vicinity of the Salian dynasty. Around 1080 the ancestors of modern Württemberg, which was then called ...

. He was also the second successor to the defunct Lithuanian throne upon the death of his uncrowned father, Lithuanian King-elect

Mindaugas II Prince Wilhelm of Urach, Count of Württemberg, 2nd Duke of Urach (''Wilhelm Karl Florestan Gero Crescentius''; German: ''Fürst Wilhelm von Urach, Graf von Württemberg, 2. Herzog von Urach''; 30 May 1864 – 24 March 1928), was a German prince w ...

Life

He was born in Lichtenstein, then part of the

Kingdom of Württemberg The Kingdom of Württemberg (german: Königreich Württemberg ) was a German state that existed from 1805 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which exist ...

, at his family's Lichtenstein Castle, being the second son of

Duke Wilhelm of Urach Count Friedrich Wilhelm Alexander Ferdinand of Württemberg, 1st Duke of Urach (6 July 1810 – 17 July 1869), was the son of Duke Wilhelm of Württemberg (1761–1830), younger brother of King Frederick I of Württemberg, by his morganatic wif ...

and his first wife

Duchess Amalie in Bavaria , title = Duchess of Urach , image = AmalieinBayern.jpg , caption = , reign = , coronation = , predecessor = , successor = , succession = , spouse = Wilhelm, 2nd Duke of Urach , is ...

. In 1917 he graduated from the Karls-Gymnasium school in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

. After graduation he served in the

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 fightin ...

as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

. He was heavily wounded in 1918. After the war Karl Gero von Urach studied architecture, and later worked as an

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. In 1928, on his father's death, Karl Gero became the third Duke (

Herzog ''Herzog'' (female ''Herzogin'') is a German hereditary title held by one who rules a territorial duchy, exercises feudal authority over an estate called a duchy, or possesses a right by law or tradition to be referred to by the ducal title. T ...

) of Urach, as his elder brother

Wilhelm Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Mount ...

had resolved to marry morganatically (he was a director at

Mercedes Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

for most of his life, and had two daughters). In 1935 he entered

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

and became a

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literally ...

, and in 1940 was promoted to

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

. Until 1945 he was based at the local army headquarters at

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in thr ...

and

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

. On 20 June 1940 Karl Gero von Urach married Countess Gabriele of Waldburg zu Zeil und Trauchburg (1910–2005). The marriage was childless. Karl Gero von Urach died at Lichtenstein Castle on 15 August 1981, and his nephew Karl Anselm succeeded to the Dukedom.

Ancestry

References

Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart – Bestand GU 126 – Karl Gero Herzog von Urach (1899–1981)

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Urach, Karl Gero, Duke of 1899 births 1981 deaths People from Reutlingen (district) Dukes of Urach People from the Kingdom of Württemberg German Roman Catholics Karl Gero German Army personnel of World War I German Army officers of World War II Military personnel from Baden-Württemberg