Prince Maurice of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau (Willem Frederik Maurits Alexander Hendrik Karel; 15 September 1843 – 4 June 1850), was the second son of

King William III of the Netherlands William III (Dutch: ''Willem Alexander Paul Frederik Lodewijk''; English: ''William Alexander Paul Frederick Louis''; 19 February 1817 – 23 November 1890) was King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1849 until his death in 18 ...

and his first spouse,

Sophie of Württemberg Sophie of Württemberg (Sophie Friederike Matilda; 17 June 1818 – 3 June 1877) was Queen of the Netherlands as the first wife of King William III. Sophie separated from William in 1855 but continued to perform her duties as queen in public. ...

. When Prince Maurice suffered from meningitis, Queen Sophie wanted to consult another

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

for a

second opinion A second opinion is an opinion on a matter disputed by two or more parties. Law In legal cases, a second opinion which contradicts the opinion of a jointly retained expert may be disregarded as not being impartial. Consumer rights In cas ...

, but King William III refused and the child died. Their already strained relationship fell apart almost completely, as Sophie blamed William for Maurice's death. The embittered queen wrote to one of her friends: Nevertheless, the couple had one more son, Prince Alexander, born a year after Maurice's death.

Ancestry

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maurice Of The Netherlands 1843 births 1850 deaths Dutch members of the Dutch Reformed Church House of Orange-Nassau Burials in the Royal Crypt at Nieuwe Kerk, Delft Princes of Orange-Nassau Royalty and nobility who died as children Sons of kings