Prince Hermann of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (1886–1964)
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Prince Hermann of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (14 February 1886 – 6 June 1964) was a member of the
House of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (german: Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) was a historical German state, created as a duchy in 1809 by the merger of the Ernestine duchies of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach, which had been in personal union since 1741. It was raised ...
. He was heir to his relative
William Ernest, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach William Ernest, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Wilhelm Ernst Karl Alexander Friedrich Heinrich Bernhard Albert Georg Hermann, '' en, William Ernest Charles Alexander Frederick Henry Bernard Albert George Herman''; 10 June 1876 – 24 April 19 ...
until 1909, when he was disinherited of his royal status. From that point onwards, Hermann was commonly referred to with the lesser style,
Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...
Ostheim (
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: ...
Ostheim).


Early life

Prince Hermann of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was born on 14 February 1886 in
Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian language, Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second- ...
. He was educated by a tutor until deemed old enough to enter the Imperial German Army. He joined the Cuirassiers of the Guard in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
, where he was separated from the guidance of his family and tutor, and began to build up a reputation as a
spendthrift A spendthrift (also profligate or prodigal) is someone who is extravagant and recklessly wasteful with money, often to a point where the spending climbs well beyond his or her means. "Spendthrift" derives from an obsolete sense of the word "thrift" ...
like his father. He was given $10,000 a year to spend, and he and those he bought items from realized that any debts contracted would eventually be paid by his family, thus increasing the amount Hermann could spend. By the end of the year, Hermann was a quarter of a million dollars in debt, which his family duly paid; he was sent to a small town as a disciplinary measure. He persuaded his family that he was ill, and was able to travel to
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...
, racking up more debts along the way; one rumor said he sold his mother's jewels ''en route'' to France.


Heir to Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

William Ernest, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach William Ernest, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Wilhelm Ernst Karl Alexander Friedrich Heinrich Bernhard Albert Georg Hermann, '' en, William Ernest Charles Alexander Frederick Henry Bernard Albert George Herman''; 10 June 1876 – 24 April 19 ...
remained childless for much of his early life, fueling speculation of the succession to his duchy. As a descendant of
Charles Augustus, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Karl August, sometimes anglicised as Charles Augustus (3 September 1757 – 14 June 1828), was the sovereign Duke of Saxe-Weimar and of Saxe-Eisenach (in personal union) from 1758, Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach from its creation (as a political un ...
through a younger son, firstly Hermann and secondly his brother were
heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...
s until the birth of Charles Augustus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach in 1912.


Loss of inheritance

A lifelong
spendthrift A spendthrift (also profligate or prodigal) is someone who is extravagant and recklessly wasteful with money, often to a point where the spending climbs well beyond his or her means. "Spendthrift" derives from an obsolete sense of the word "thrift" ...
, Prince Hermann was
heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...
to the duchy of
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (german: Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) was a historical German state, created as a duchy in 1809 by the merger of the Ernestine duchies of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach, which had been in personal union since 1741. It was ra ...
until his disinheritance on 2 August 1909. The ducal family forced him to renounce his rights of succession to the Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach throne, as well as his royal status, title and prerogatives, granting him a lesser, noble title, Count Ostheim, along with a small allowance on the grounds that he stay out of the duchy. Herman was not the only member of his family to have a bad reputation; his father Prince William as well as their cousin Prince Bernhard were all viewed with displeasure, so much so, that the still-living Prince William had been overlooked concerning the duchy's succession. Hermann had a younger brother, Prince Albert, who took up his position as next-in-line to the duchy. Hermann was also driven out of the German army "for all sorts of unsavory scrapes", as he was wanted in both
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
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 ...
for debts, and for being a "common swindler". His Austrian arrest warrant was issued soon after his younger sister Princess Sophie of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was denied permission to enter into a
morganatic marriage 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 spous ...
; she committed suicide soon after, on 18 September 1913. In 1921 Count Hermann claimed in a lawsuit with Grand Duke William Ernest that he and his mother were induced by a ruse and told that he would be forcibly expelled from Paris unless he agreed to travel from there to Germany; instead Hermann was confined in an
insane asylum The lunatic asylum (or insane asylum) was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. The fall of the lunatic asylum and its eventual replacement by modern psychiatric hospitals explains the rise of organized, institutional psychiatry ...
. He was only freed after signing documents renouncing all claims to Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and assuming the style Count Ostheim. Hermann went on to claim that the Grand Duke was guilty of
usury Usury () is the practice of making unethical or immoral monetary loans that unfairly enrich the lender. The term may be used in a moral sense—condemning taking advantage of others' misfortunes—or in a legal sense, where an interest rate is c ...
, as he was lent certain sums of money to pay off his debts in exchange for renouncing 48,000
marks Marks may refer to: Business * Mark's, a Canadian retail chain * Marks & Spencer, a British retail chain * Collective trade marks, trademarks owned by an organisation for the benefit of its members * Marks & Co, the inspiration for the novel ...
appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...
in favor of William Ernest. During that time, the German government had been completing negotiations for a settlement on the former royal family (their titles had been abolished in 1918); thus had Hermann not been disinherited, he would have stood to inherit quite a large bit of money.


Marriage

Before he became disinherited, Prince Hermann desired to marry
Princess Marie Bonaparte Princess Marie Bonaparte (2 July 1882 – 21 September 1962), known as Princess George of Greece and Denmark upon her marriage, was a French author and psychoanalyst, closely linked with Sigmund Freud. Her wealth contributed to the popularity o ...
, a great heiress; he might have succeeded but for his unsavory reputation. Though there was a chance he would succeed to the Grand Ducal throne, Marie's father disliked Hermann for possessing an "evil" reputation, and consequently allowed her instead to marry
Prince George of Greece and Denmark Prince George of Greece and Denmark ( el, Γεώργιος; 24 June 1869 – 25 November 1957) was the second son and child of George I of Greece and Olga Konstantinovna of Russia, and is remembered chiefly for having once saved the life of hi ...
. Before her refusal, however, Hermann was able to obtain a great deal of money, as it was assumed he would soon have a great deal of wealth to spend; when it became clear there was to be no marriage, a "crash" came. It was these money troubles, along with other problems, that led to his disinheritance. Despite being disinherited, Hermann openly boasted he would travel to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
in search of a wealthy wife, and then return to Germany and pay off his debts within a year; all this was said while staying in Zurich awaiting funds from his family. Instead, Hermann, now Count Ostheim,
morganatic 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 spous ...
ally married Wanda Paola Lottero, an
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
stage actress, on 5 September 1909 in
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. They visited the
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on several occasions. They were divorced two years later, on 22 June 1911 after Wanda grew tired of supporting him with her earnings and divorced him on the grounds of financial "non-support", "cruelty", and "infidelity". Wanda later gained notoriety for having a short-lived affair with King Konstantínos I of the Hellenes in 1912. On 4 August 1918, Hermann married secondly to Suzanne Aagot Midling at
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
. They had one surviving child before her death on 16 October 1931: * Alexander Kyrill ''
Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...
'' von Ostheim (born 7 August 1922); he died unmarried in Stockholm on 28 March 1943 On 16 November 1932, Hermann's engagement with Isabel Neilson, daughter of former British MP and prominent actor and author
Francis Neilson Francis Neilson (26 January 1867 – 13 April 1961) was an accomplished actor; playwright, stage director; political figure; member of the British House of Commons; avid lecturer; author of more than 60 books, plays and opera librettos and the ...
, was announced. Hermann and Isabel were married civilly and religiously in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...
on 28 November 1932. A small family luncheon accompanied the wedding; afterwards, the couple honeymooned to Spain and North Africa. They had no children. Hermann died in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
on 6 June 1964 at the age of 78.


Ancestry


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hermann Of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Prince House of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Princes of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Disinherited European royalty 1886 births 1964 deaths