Amalie Zephyrine of Salm-Kyrburg (french: Amélie Zéphyrine de Salm-Kyrbourg;
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, 6 March 1760 –
Sigmaringen
Sigmaringen ( Swabian: ''Semmerenga'') is a town in southern Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Situated on the upper Danube, it is the capital of the Sigmaringen district.
Sigmaringen is renowned for its castle, Schloss Sigmaringen ...
, 17 October 1841), was 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
**Ge ...
noblewoman by birth member of the
House of Salm
The House of Salm was an ancient Lotharingian noble family originating from Salmchâteau in the Ardennes (present-day Belgium) and ruling Salm. The dynasty is above all known for the experiences of the Upper Salm branch which came to be located ...
in the Salm-Kyrburg branch and through her marriage she was
Princess of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen.
Life
The eighth child and fifth (but third surviving) daughter of
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
Philip Joseph of Salm-Kyrburg (2nd Prince of
Salm-Kyrburg
Salm-Kyrburg was a state of the Holy Roman Empire located in present-day Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, one of the various partitions of Salm. It was twice created: the first time as a Wild- and Rhinegraviate (partitioned from Upper Salm), and se ...
) born from
his marriage with his step-niece Princess Marie Thérèse de
Hornes (1725-1783), eldest daughter and heiress of
Maximilian, Prince of Hornes
Maximilian Emanuel, 3rd Prince of Hornes, Count of Baucignies and of Solre-le-Château (31 August 1695, Brussels – 12 January 1763, Brussels), was a nobleman and Grand Huntsman of Brabant. His father was Philippe Emanuel, 2nd Prince of Hornes, ...
, Amalie Zephyrine was born and raised in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, although the family seat of the Salm-Kyrburg family was
Kirn
Kirn is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land. Kirn is a middle centre serving an area on the Nahe and in the Hunsrück.
Geography
Location
Kirn lies in a la ...
, which today is part of the German state of
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
.
[Gabriele Loges: ''Eine Prinzessin sorgt für den Erhalt der hohenzollerischen Fürstentümer. Geschichtsverein wandelt auf den Spuren von Amalie Zephyrine von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen'' (in German). In: '']Schwäbische Zeitung
''Schwäbische Zeitung'' (eng. "Swabian Times") is a daily newspaper published by Medienhaus Schwäbisch Media, Schwäbischer Verlag GmbH & Co. KG Drexler, Gessler in Ravensburg, Germany. It was first published in Leutkirch im Allgäu on December ...
'' of 15 December 2010. She was baptised at the
Church of Saint-Sulpice
, image = Paris Saint-Sulpice Fassade 4-5 A.jpg
, image_size =
, pushpin map = Paris
, pushpin label position =
, coordinates =
, location = Place Saint-Sulpice 6th arrond ...
.
She had was very close to her older brother
Frederick III, 3rd Prince of Salm-Kyrburg,
[''Von Paris nach Krauchenwies - Migration im Dienst der Dynastie am Beispiel von Antoinette Murat'' (in German). Presentation by historian Carmen Ziwes, 25 November 2010 in ]Krauchenwies
Krauchenwies is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.
Geography
Krauchenwies lies about south of Sigmaringen and north of Lake Constance. It is on the ''Oberschwäbischen Barockstraße'' (west route) ...
. who commissioned to the Parisian architect Jacques Denis Antoine the construction of a baroque summer residence for Amalie Zephyrine below the family seat of the family in Kirn. The residence was named ''Schloss Amalienlust'' in her honor, but was not fully completed during her lifetime. Residence, which was very modern and comfortable according to the ideas of the time, is, like the house not far from it, of the one whom Frederick III had it built for himself and his wife Princess Johanna Franziska of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, preserved largely true to the original. Sophisticated demands were satisfied by a theater that completed the Kirner Ensemble.
Following her parents' request, on 29 November 1781 in
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
, on the occasion of the marriage of Frederick III with Johanna Franziska, was announced the betrothal of Amalie Zephyrine with the ''
Erbprinz
The German nobility (german: deutscher Adel) and royalty were status groups of the medieval society in Central Europe, which enjoyed certain privileges relative to other people under the laws and customs in the German-speaking area, until the begi ...
''
Anton Aloys Meinrad Franz, heir of the
and brother of her sister-in-law; the wedding took place on the
Piaristenkloster Kirn on 13 August 1782, with the formal reception being celebrated in the
Schloss Dhaun, five kilometers away.
The newlyweds spent their first winter together in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, where on 3 September 1783 Amalie Zephyrine gave birth to her first child, an stillborn son.
In 1784, Amalie Zephyrine came to
Sigmaringen
Sigmaringen ( Swabian: ''Semmerenga'') is a town in southern Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Situated on the upper Danube, it is the capital of the Sigmaringen district.
Sigmaringen is renowned for its castle, Schloss Sigmaringen ...
for the first time,
[''Hohenzollern hinterlassen Spuren in Paris''](_blank)
(in German). In: ''Schwäbische Zeitung'' of 15 April 2010 but found life in the small residential town on the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
to be "unbearably restrictive". Paris was already a big city at the end of the 18th century, while Sigmaringen had barely 1000 inhabitants.
[Jochen Fischer: ''Schloss mit Geschichte und Geschichten'' (in German). In: '']Stuttgarter Zeitung
The ''Stuttgarter Zeitung'' ("Stuttgart newspaper") is a German-language daily newspaper (except Sundays) edited in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, with a run of about 200,000 sold copies daily.
History and profile
It was first edited ...
'', 19 August 2009. One year later, on 20 February 1785, Amalie Zephyrine gave birth a second son,
Karl Anton Frederick Meinrad Fidelis, but ten weeks later she fled disguised as a man from Sigmaringen to
Kirn
Kirn is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land. Kirn is a middle centre serving an area on the Nahe and in the Hunsrück.
Geography
Location
Kirn lies in a la ...
at the side of her brother Frederick III and his wife Johanna Franziska.
[Vera Romeu: ''Wie Geschichtsunterricht, nur kurzweiliger. Im Rahmen der Aktion “SZ öffnet Türen” erleben 50 Leser eine wunderbare Führung'' (in German). In: ''Schwäbische Zeitung'' of 7 November 2011.] She left her son behind.
![Salm, Construction hotel de](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Salm%2C_Construction_hotel_de.jpg)
Shortly after, Amalie Zephyrine also left Kirn and returned to her native Paris, where her brother Frederick III had commissioned the built of an aristocratic palace as a residence for the Salm-Kyrburg family to the architect
Pierre Rousseau
Pierre Jean-Baptiste Rousseau (11 February 1905 – 1983) was a French essayist, epistemologist, astronomer and journalist who authored numerous popular science essays and articles. He helped promote hard science to the general public and advocat ...
from 1782 to 1787; the residence, named the ''Hôtel de Salm'' (located on the Rue de Lille and next the
Quai d'Orsay
The Quai d'Orsay ( , ) is a quay in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. It is part of the left bank of the Seine opposite the Place de la Concorde. The Quai becomes the Quai Anatole-France east of the Palais Bourbon, and the Quai Branly west of t ...
) soon became in the gathering place for the aristocratic upper class of pre-revolutionary France, with Amalie Zephyrine as hostess –eventually, the Hôtel was seized by the Revolutionary government and is today the
Palais de la Légion d'Honneur
The Palais de la Légion d'honneur ( French for "Palace of the Legion of Honour") is a historic building on the Left Bank of the River Seine in Paris, France. It houses the Musée de la Légion d'honneur ("Museum of the Legion of Honour") and is ...
and being remodeled for that purpose by
Antoine-François Peyre in 1804–. On 20 December 1785, Amalie Zephyrine's father-in-law
Charles Frederick, Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen died, and her husband becoming in the new ruling Prince, and thus she became in the new Princess consort, but she refused to return to Sigmaringen. Five years later, on 23 August 1790, her sister-in-law Johanna Franziska, Princess consort of Salm-Kyrburg, also died; from her marriage with Frederick III, she had four children, one daughter and three sons, but only the youngest of the sons,
Frederik Ernst Otto Philip Anton Furnibert (born 14 December 1789), survive infancy and became in the ''Erbprinz'' of Salm-Kyrburg as heir of his father.
By that time, the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
had taken its course, and Amalie Zephyrine her brother Frederick III and her lover
Alexandre de Beauharnais Alexandre may refer to:
* Alexandre (given name)
* Alexandre (surname)
* Alexandre (film)
See also
* 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 o ...
fought on the side of the revolution. However, in March 1794 both men were imprisoned in the
Carmes Prison during the
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror (french: link=no, la Terreur) was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to revolutionary fervour, ...
after being accused of being "still attached to the
Ancien Régime
''Ancien'' may refer to
* the French word for "ancient, old"
** Société des anciens textes français
* the French for "former, senior"
** Virelai ancien
** Ancien Régime
** Ancien Régime in France
{{disambig ...
" and
guillotined
A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at t ...
on 23 July.
Amalie Zephyrine herself managed to survived the Reign of Terror, but the death of her brother devastated her, according to her correspondence.
She used her connections to find out the location of the graves, which had been kept hidden from the French public, and in 1797 secretly purchased that land on Rue de Picpus and had it opened up to the rest of the garden, which is today called the
Picpus Cemetery
Picpus Cemetery (french: Cimetière de Picpus, ) is the largest private cemetery in Paris, France, located in the 12th arrondissement. It was created from land seized from the convent of the Chanoinesses de St-Augustin, during the French Revolut ...
.
Nevertheless, Amalie Zephyrine managed to kept good relations with a number of influential figures of the Revolution, including such as
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord
Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (, ; 2 February 1754 – 17 May 1838), 1st Prince of Benevento, then Prince of Talleyrand, was a French clergyman, politician and leading diplomat. After studying theology, he became Agent-General of the ...
and
Joséphine de Beauharnais
Josephine may refer to:
People
* Josephine (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
* Josephine (singer), a Greek pop singer
Places
*Josephine, Texas, United States
*Mount Josephine (disambiguation)
* Josephine Count ...
, the widow of her former lover, who had married
Napoléon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
in 1796. Because her nephew and new Prince Frederick IV of Salm-Kyrburg was still a minor, Amalie Zephyrine and her younger brother
Maurice Maurice may refer to:
People
* Saint Maurice (died 287), Roman legionary and Christian martyr
* Maurice (emperor) or Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (539–602), Byzantine emperor
*Maurice (bishop of London) (died 1107), Lord Chancellor and ...
acted as guardians and regents for the
Principality of Salm-Kyrburg from 1794 until 14 December 1810, when Frederick IV attained his legal majority of age.
Helene d'Isque (later renamed ''von Schatzberg''; died 1861), was born in 1799 and lived in Amalie Zephyrine's household from August 1800 to January 1824, the year she married
Friedrich von Laßberg. Since the beginning, the protection that the princess gave to the girl gave rise to rumours; recent research suggests that in fact, Helene was Amalie Zephyrine's illegitimate daughter, born from her extramarital relationship with the French Colonel Charles de Voumard (who later called himself ''Karl Heinrich Voumard von Wehrburg''; born 1761 – died 1841), who had been appointed by the princess in 1797 as tutor of her eight-year-old orphaned nephew Prince Frederick IV of Salm-Kyrburg.
From the
Second Congress of Rastatt
The Second Congress of Rastatt, which began its deliberations in November 1797, was intended to negotiate a general peace between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Empire, and to draw up a compensation plan to compensate those princes whose ...
in 1799 to the
Rhine Confederation Act in 1806, Amalie Zephyrine used her relationships with the Napoleonic court to work in favor of her son Karl for the preservation of the Principality of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and its full sovereignty. At the end, she was able to avert the imminent
Mediatisation 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 ...
of both the Houses of
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
( en, Nothing without God)
, national_anthem =
, common_languages = German
, religion = Roman Catholic
, currency =
, title_leader = Prince
, leader1 ...
and
Hohenzollern-Hechingen
Hohenzollern-Hechingen was a small principality in southwestern Germany. Its rulers belonged to the Swabian branch of the Hohenzollern dynasty.
History
The County of Hohenzollern-Hechingen was created in 1576, upon the partition of the Coun ...
in favor 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 ...
or the
Grand Duchy of Baden
The Grand Duchy of Baden (german: Großherzogtum Baden) was a state in the southwest German Empire on the east bank of the Rhine. It existed between 1806 and 1918.
It came into existence in the 12th century as the Margraviate of Baden and subs ...
; for this, she is considered as the "savior" of the Hohenzollerns.
At the same time, Amalie Zephyrine campaigned for the newly created
Principality of Salm
The Principality of Salm was a short-lived client state of Napoleonic France located in Westphalia.
History
Salm was created in 1802 as a state of the Holy Roman Empire in order to compensate the princes of Salm-Kyrburg and Salm-Salm, who ha ...
and represented the interest of its designated princes, her underage nephew Frederick IV of Salm-Kyrburg (of whom she was guardian and regent) and
Konstantin of Salm-Salm.
In 1806, for political reasons, Amalie Zephyrine arranged the betrothal of her son Karl, ''Erbprinz'' of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, with
Antoinette Murat, the orphaned niece and ward of
Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat ( , also , ; it, Gioacchino Murati; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French military commander and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the ...
, who was married to Napoleon Bonaparte's youngest sister
Caroline and who rose to become
Grand Duke of Berg and
King of Naples
The following is a list of rulers of the Kingdom of Naples, from its first separation from the Kingdom of Sicily to its merger with the same into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
Kingdom of Naples (1282–1501)
House of Anjou
In 1382, the ...
.
The marriage was concluded secularly in the
Hôtel de Breteuil
The Hôtel de Breteuil is a historic building in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France.
History
The hôtel particulier was built for Henri Le Tonnelier de Breteuil and his second wife. It was designed by architect Ernest Sanson, and its constru ...
in Paris on 3 February 1808 and ecclesiastically the next day.
In 1808, after more than 20 eventful years in Paris, Amalie Zephyrine finally returned to
Sigmaringen
Sigmaringen ( Swabian: ''Semmerenga'') is a town in southern Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Situated on the upper Danube, it is the capital of the Sigmaringen district.
Sigmaringen is renowned for its castle, Schloss Sigmaringen ...
. At first, she lived with her son and daughter-in-law from July 1808 in the
Schloss Krauchenwies.
In nearby former
Inzigkofen Priory they settled down its own royal household from the 1810 after the secularized monastery was transformed into a country palace.
In 1811 she finally left Krauchenwies to live in Inzigkofen from then on. Towards the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
, she left a remarkable
English-style landscape park that still exists until today.
In the park, she had a monument erected to her beloved brother Frederick III.
Later and until her death, she lived in what is now known as the ''Alten Prinzenbau'' (Old Prince's Palace) in Sigmaringen, which her husband Prince Anton Aloys had built especially for her between 1822 and 1825. Inzigkofen served her and her grandson
Karl Anton
Karl Anton or Karel Anton (25 October 1898 12 April 1979) was a Bohemian-born German film director, screenwriter and film producer.
Biography
He was born in Prague on 25 October 1898. His father Wilhelm Anton (1861–1918) was a physician. An ...
as a summer residence.
![Deutschland BW Donau 18-58-57](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Deutschland_BW_Donau_18-58-57.JPG)
Although Amalie Zephyrine's husband was still alive and they remained married, they lived amicably apart for the remainder of their lives: in the
House of Hohenzollern
The House of Hohenzollern (, also , german: Haus Hohenzollern, , ro, Casa de Hohenzollern) is a German royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzol ...
, unlike other German aristocratic houses, there was never a discussion about a possible divorce; however, Prince Anton Aloys visited her regularly and corresponded with her on friendly terms. He also always paid for her bills.
On 17 October 1831, Prince Anton Aloys died and his son succeeded him as the new
Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was a principality in Southwestern Germany. Its rulers belonged to the senior Swabian branch of the House of Hohenzollern. The Swabian Hohenzollerns were elevated to princes in 1623. The small sovereign state with the cap ...
. Amalie Zephyrine survive him by exactly ten years, dying on 17 October 1841 at the age of 81.
Her son had a cliff on the banks of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
in Sigmaringen named the "
Amalienfels" in her honor. Her name and the combined family coat of arms of the Houses of Salm-Kyrburg and Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen are carved into the rock.
Her great-great-grandson was
Albert I, King of the Belgians from 1909 to 1934. Another great-grandson, Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, was crowned King of Romania in 1866 as
Carol I
Carol I or Charles I of Romania (20 April 1839 – ), born Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, was the monarch of Romania from 1866 to his death in 1914, ruling as Prince (''Domnitor'') from 1866 to 1881, and as King from 1881 to 1914. He w ...
.
Ancestry
References
Bibliography
* Bumiller, Casimir: Von Napoleons Gnaden - Die Fürstinnen von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen und von Fürstenberg wollten 1806 die Souveränität ihrer Herrschaften erhalten, in: Momente, Beiträge zur Landeskunde von Baden-Württemberg, 3/2006
* Haug, Gunter: Die Schicksalsfürstin. Amalie Zephyrine, die Retterin von Hohenzollern, 2005 (narrated story)
* Loges, Gabriele: ''Paris, Sigmaringen oder Die Freiheit der Amalie Zephyrine von Hohenzollern'', Klöpfer & Meyer, Tübingen 2013, (novel)
* Histoire de la vie de la Princesse Amélie Zéphyrine de Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, née Princesse de Salm-Kyrburg, ma mère, écrite par elle-même, reçue après sa mort / Lebensgeschichte der Fürstin Amalie Zephyrine von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, geborene Prinzessin von Salm-Kyrburg, meiner Mutter, von ihr eigenhändig verfasst, nach ihrem Tod erhalten, 1760–1831. Edited by Christina Egli and Edwin Ernst Weber, Ed. Isele, Eggingen 2015,
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amalie Zephyrine of Salm-Kyrburg
1760 births
1841 deaths
Princesses of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
Nobility from Paris
Salm family
Mothers of monarchs