, title = Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Alexander Ferdinand von Thurn und Taxis.jpg , caption = , reign = 8 November 1739 – 17 March 1773 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor =

Anselm Franz Anselm Franz (January 20, 1900—November 18, 1994) was a pioneering Austrian jet engine engineer known for the development of the Jumo 004, the world's first mass-produced turbojet engine by Nazi Germany during World War II, and his work on tur ...

, successor = Karl Anselm , succession = Prince of Thurn and Taxis , spouse =

Margravine Sophie Christine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth , title = Hereditary Princess of Thurn and Taxis , reign = , image = , caption = , coronation = , spouse =Alexander Ferdinand, 3rd Prince of Thurn and Taxis , issue = Princess Sophie C ...

Princess Charlotte Louise of Lorraine
Princess Maria Henriette Josepha of Fürstenberg-Stühlingen , issue = Princess Sophie Christine

Karl Anselm, 4th Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Fürst Carl Anselm.jpg , caption = , reign = 17 March 1773 – 13 November 1805 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor = Alexander Ferdinand , successor = Karl Alexander , su ...

Princess Luise Auguste Charlotte
Prince Friedrich August
Prince Ludwig Franz
Princess Maria Theresia
Princess Josephine
Prince Heinrich Alexander
Prince Franz Joseph
Princess Maria Anna Josepha
Princess Marie Elisabetha Alexandrina
Prince Maximilian Joseph , house =

House of Thurn and Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (german: link=no, Fürstenhaus Thurn und Taxis ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the en ...

, father =

Anselm Franz, 2nd Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Anselm Franz von Thurn und Taxis.jpg , caption = , succession = Prince of Thurn and Taxis , reign = 21 February 1714 – 8 November 1739 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor = Eugen Alexand ...

, mother = Maria Ludovika Anna Franziska, Princess of Lobkowicz , birth_date = , birth_place =

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

, Free Imperial City of Frankfurt,

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

, death_date = , death_place =

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the ...

, Free Imperial City of Regensburg,

, burial_place = , religion =

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Alexander Ferdinand, 3rd Prince of Thurn and Taxis, full

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 ...

name: ''Alexander Ferdinand Fürst von Thurn und Taxis'' (21 March 1704 – 17 March 1773) was the third Prince of Thurn and Taxis,

Postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

General of the Imperial Reichspost, and Head of the Princely House of Thurn and Taxis from 8 November 1739 until his death on 17 March 1773. Alexander Ferdinand served as Principal Commissioner (german: Prinzipalkommissar) at the

Perpetual Imperial Diet The Perpetual Diet of Regensburg or the Eternal Diet of Regensburg, (german: Immerwährender Reichstag) also commonly called in English the perpetual Diet of Ratisbon,Jean Berenger, C.A. Simpson, ''The Habsburg Empire 1700-1918'' (2014), p. 134 fr ...

and

for

Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VII (6 August 1697 – 20 January 1745) was the prince-elector of Bavaria from 1726 and Holy Roman Emperor from 24 January 1742 to his death. He was a member of the House of Wittelsbach, and his reign as Holy Roman Emperor thus marked the ...

Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor Francis I (Francis Stephen; french: François Étienne; german: Franz Stefan; 8 December 1708 – 18 August 1765) was Holy Roman Emperor, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Lorraine and Duchy of Bar, Bar, and Grand Duke of Tuscany. He became the rule ...

, and

Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

from 1 February 1743 to 1745 and again from 1748 until 1773.

Early life

Alexander Ferdinand was the eldest child and only son of

and his wife Maria Ludovika Anna Franziska, Princess of

Lobkowicz The House of Lobkowicz (''Lobkovicové'' in modern Czech, sg. ''z Lobkovic''; ''Lobkowitz'' in German) is a Czech noble family that dates back to the 14th century and is one of the oldest Bohemian noble families. The family also belong to the G ...

(1683-1750).

Principal Commissioner

From 1 February 1743 to 1745, Alexander Ferdinand served as Principal Commissioner for

at the

. When the Diet relocated to

under

, Alexander Ferdinand was reinstated as Principal Commissioner in 1748. It was for this reason that Alexander Ferdinand moved the principal residence of the Princely House of Thurn and Taxis from

. On 30 May 1754, Alexander Ferdinand was added to the College of Imperial Princes.

Marriages and family

A proposed bride was Johanna of Baden-Baden (1704–1726), only surviving daughter of the late Margrave of Baden-Baden and his wife (Regent of

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the Rhine, the border with Fra ...

from 1707) Sibylle of Saxe-Lauenburg, but the match never materialized. Alexander Ferdinand married

, eldest daughter of

George Frederick Charles, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth George Frederick Charles, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (19 June 1688 at Obersulzbürg Castle, near Mühlhausen – 17 May 1735 in Bayreuth), was a German prince, member of the House of Hohenzollern, nominal Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth ...

and his wife

Princess Dorothea of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck Dorothea of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck, known also as ''Dorothea von Holstein-Beck'' and ''Dorothea von Ziedewitz'', (24 November 1685 – 25 December 1761), was a German princess of the House of Oldenburg and by marriage Margravine o ...

, on 11 April 1731 in

. Alexander Ferdinand and Sophie Christine had five children: *Princess Sophie Christine of Thurn and Taxis (baptized 8 December 1731 – 23 December 1731) *

(2 June 1733 – 13 November 1805) :∞ 3 September 1753

Duchess Auguste of Württemberg , title = , reign =17 March 1773 – 1776 , image = Augusta di Wurtt.jpg , caption = , coronation = , succession = Princess consort of Thurn and Taxis , spouse = Karl Anselm, 4th Prince of T ...

(30 October 1734 – 4 June 1787) :∞ 1787 Elisabeth Hildebrand, Frau von Train *Princess Luise Auguste Charlotte of Thurn and Taxis (27 October 1734 – January 1735) *Prince Friedrich August of Thurn and Taxis (baptized 5 December 1736 – 12 September 1755) *Prince Ludwig Franz Karl Lamoral Joseph of Thurn and Taxis (13 October 1737 – 7 August 1738) Alexander Ferdinand married secondly Princess Louise de

Lorraine Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gra ...

(1722-1747), third eldest daughter of

Louis, Prince of Lambesc Louis of Lorraine (13 February 1692 – 9 September 1743) was a member of a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine, the House of Guise and known as the ''Prince de Lambesc''. Early life The older of two children born to the Prince Henri de Lorra ...

and his wife Jeanne Henriette de Durfort, on 22 March 1745 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. Si ...

, but she died January 6, 1747 without issue. Alexander Ferdinand married thirdly Princess Maria Henriette Josepha of

Fürstenberg-Stühlingen Fürstenberg-Stühlingen was a German county during the Middle Ages. It was located in the territorial landgraviate of Stühlingen. It emerged as a partition of Fürstenberg-Blumberg in 1614. It was partitioned in 1704 between the sons of Count Pr ...

, daughter of

Joseph Wilhelm Ernst, Prince of Fürstenberg Joseph Wilhelm Ernst, Prince of Fürstenberg (13 April 1699 - 29 April 1762) was a prince of Fürstenberg-Fürstenberg who changed his residence to Donaueschingen, at the head of the Danube, and thus converted the existing settlement into a town. ...

and his wife Countess Theresia Anna Maria Eleonore of Waldstein-Wartenberg, on 21 September 1750 in

. Alexander Ferdinand and Maria Henriette Josepha had seven children: * Princess Maria Theresia of Thurn and Taxis (born 16 January 1755 – 20 December 1810) :∞ 20 August 1780 Ferdinand, Count of Ahlefeldt-Langeland (9 May 1747 - 28 September 1815) *Princess Josephine of Thurn and Taxis (born 1 August 1759; died at young age) *Prince Heinrich Alexander of Thurn and Taxis (baptized 14 September 1762; died at young age) *Prince Franz Joseph of Thurn and Taxis (2 October 1764; buried 20 February 1765) *Princess Maria Anna Josepha of Thurn and Taxis (baptized 28 Sep 1766 – 10 August 1805) * Princess Marie Elisabetha Alexandrina of Thurn and Taxis (30 November 1767 – 21 July 1822) :∞ 4 November 1790 Karl Joseph,

Landgrave Landgrave (german: Landgraf, nl, landgraaf, sv, lantgreve, french: landgrave; la, comes magnus, ', ', ', ', ') was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of ', ' (" margrave") ...

of Fürstenberg (26 June 1760 – 25 March 1799) :∞ Joseph, Baron of Lasaberg (died 15 March 1855) *Prince Maximilian Joseph of Thurn and Taxis (9 May 1769 – 15 May 1831) :∞ 6 June 1791 Princess Eleonore of

(22 April 1770 – 9 November 1834) :from this marriage the

Czech branch of the House of Thurn and Taxis The Czech branch of the House of Thurn and Taxis (german: Thurn und Taxis) is a dynastic cadet branch of the Princely House of Thurn and Taxis, a German noble family that was a key player in the postal services in Europe in the 16th century and b ...

descends

Ancestry

References

* Wolfgang Behringer, ''Thurn und Taxis'', Piper, München/Zürich 1990 * Martin Dallmeier, Martha Schad: ''Das Fürstliche Haus Thurn und Taxis. 300 Jahre Geschichte in Bildern''. Verlag Friedrich Pustet, Regensburg 1996, .

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander Ferdinand Of Thurn And Taxis, Prince 1704 births 1773 deaths People from the Free City of Frankfurt German Roman Catholics Hereditary Princes of Thurn and Taxis German landowners Knights of the Golden Fleece Postmasters General of the Holy Roman Empire