Prince Carl (Karl) of Solms-Braunfels (27 July 1812 – 13 November 1875), was a German prince and military officer in both the

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

army and in the cavalry of the

Grand Duchy of Hesse The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...

. As Commissioner General of the

Adelsverein The ''Mainzer Adelsverein at Biebrich am Rhein'' (''Verein zum Schutze Deutscher Einwanderer in Texas'', "Society for the Protection of German Immigrants in Texas"), better known as the ''Mainzer Adelsverein'' (, "Nobility Society of Mainz"), orga ...

, he spearheaded the establishment of colonies of German immigrants in Texas. Prince Solms named

New Braunfels, Texas New Braunfels ( ) is a city in Comal and Guadalupe counties in the U.S. state of Texas known for its German Texan heritage. It is the seat of Comal County. The city covers and had a population of 90,403 as of the 2020 Census. A suburb just north ...

in honor of his homeland.

Early years and family life

Prince Friedrich Wilhelm Karl Ludwig Georg Alfred Alexander of Solms-Braunfels was born in

Neustrelitz Neustrelitz (; East Low German: ''Niegenstrelitz'') is a town in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the shore of the Zierker See in the Mecklenburg Lake District. From 1738 ...

. His father was Prince Friedrick Wilhelm of

Solms-Braunfels Solms-Braunfels was a County and later Principality with Imperial immediacy in what is today the federal Land of Hesse in Germany. Solms-Braunfels was a partition of Solms, ruled by the House of Solms, and was raised to a Principality of th ...

, second husband of Princess Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who bore thirteen children during the course of her three marriages. Although he was the landless, younger son of a younger son of a minor German prince whose realm had been

mediatized Mediatization or mediatisation may refer to: * German mediatisation German mediatisation (; german: deutsche Mediatisierung) was the major territorial restructuring that took place between 1802 and 1814 in Germany and the surrounding region by ...

in 1806, Friedrich's 1834 marriage to Luise Auguste Stephanie Beyrich was considered below his princely station and had to be conducted

morganatically Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spou ...

. They had three children: * Marie (born 1835, married Wilhelm Bähr) * Karl Louis (1837-1918, married Wilhelmine Gantenhammer) * Melanie (born 1840, married Karl Heil) In 1837 his mother became queen consort of Hanover. Shortly before her death in 1841 his step-father,

King Ernest Augustus King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

, a member of the British royal family, succeeded in pressuring Friedrich to make a monetary arrangement with his wife and three children for a ''de facto'' royal annulment. Luise and her children were ennobled in the

under the name ''von Schönau'' on 25 March 1841. The family was further ennobled in 1912 with the surname ''von Schönau de Solms''. Prince Carl married Maria Josephine Sophie, widow of Prince Franz of

Salm-Salm The Principality of Salm-Salm (german: Fürstentum Salm-Salm; french: Principauté de Salm-Salm) was a state of the Holy Roman Empire. It was located in the present-day French departments of Bas-Rhin and Vosges; it was one of a number of partitions ...

and a princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg by birth, on 3 December 1845. The union produced five children: * Prince Ludwig (1847–1900) * Princess Eulalia (1851–1922), married Edouard, son of

Eugène, 8th Prince of Ligne Eugène François Charles Joseph Lamoral de Ligne d'Amblise et d'Epinoy (Brussels, 28 January 1804 – Brussels, 20 May 1880), 8th Prince of Ligne and of the Holy Roman Empire was a Belgium, Belgian diplomat and liberal politician. Family He wa ...

* Princess Marie (1852–1882) * Princess Sophie (1853–1869) * Prince Alexander (1855–1926). Carl was well-educated, well-connected, and handsome. An adventure seeker, he became Captain in the cavalry in the Imperial Army of

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 ...

in 1841.

Texas

It was during his service with the cavalry that Carl read books about Texas and became interested in joining the

. Appointed its Commissioner General in 1844, he was the motivating force for the first colony of German emigrants to Texas. He arrived on Texas soil in July 1844, making an exploratory tour as advisor to the Adelsverein, which owned the rights to the

Fisher–Miller Land Grant The Fisher–Miller Land Grant was part of an early colonization effort of the Republic of Texas. Its 3,878,000 acres covered between the Llano River and Colorado River (Texas), Colorado River. Originally granted to Henry Francis Fisher and Burcha ...

. Texas State Historical Association Subsequently Carl purchased an additional on the Guadalupe River on behalf of the Adelsverein, where he established the colony of

. His vision cleared the path for John O. Meusebach to follow in 1845 as the organizer, negotiator and political force needed for community-building structure in the "New Germany". In anticipation of his marriage to Maria Josephine Sophie, Prince Solms formed plans to build "Sophie's Castle", laying the cornerstone in New Braunfels in 1845. Sophie refused to leave Germany, and Carl never returned to Texas after his 3 December 1845 marriage to her.

Return to Germany and later years

After returning to Germany, he left the Austrian army and became a colonel in the cavalry of the

in 1846. He was able to rejoin the Austrian army in 1850, becoming a brigadier in 1859 with command of dragoons on

Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three Body of water, bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, ca ...

. He took part in the 1866

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

. OnWar.com He retired as a ''Feldmarschallleutnant'' (Lieutenant General) in 1868 to his residence at the estate of Rheingrafenstein near Kreuznach on the

Nahe River The Nahe () is a river in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, Germany, a left tributary to the Rhine. It has also given name to the wine region Nahe (wine region), Nahe situated around it. The name Nahe is derived from the Latin word ''Nava'', w ...

. Prince Solms died on 13 November 1875 and is interred in the city cemetery of

Bad Kreuznach Bad Kreuznach () is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a spa town, most well known for its medieval bridge dating from around 1300, the Alte Nahebrücke, which is one of the few remaining bridges in th ...

Timeline

Ancestry

References

External links

The SophienburgNew Braunfels Chamber of CommerceOfficial New Braunfels, Texas, web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carl Of Solms-Braunfels, Prince 1812 births 1875 deaths People from Neustrelitz People from Mecklenburg-Strelitz German princes Prussian nobility German city founders Austrian politicians German-American history German-American culture in Texas House of Solms-Braunfels American city founders