Franz Joseph Maria Ludwig Anton Thassilo Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden (English: ''Prince Francis Joseph of Hohenzollern-Emden''; 30 August 1891 – 3 April 1964) was a member of the Roman Catholic branch of the House of Hohenzollern. He was born as Prince Franz Joseph 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, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenb ...

and adopted the surname Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden in 1933.

Early life

Franz Joseph was born in Heiligendamm in the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, the second son of Wilhelm, Prince of Hohenzollern and

Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...

. He had a twin brother, Prince Friedrich, Prince of Hohenzollern, who was born a few minutes before he was.

Military service

During World War I Franz Joseph served in Germany's Imperial Navy ('' Kaiserliche Marine'') as the second torpedo officer on the light cruiser SMS ''Emden'' at the

Battle of Cocos The Battle of Cocos was a single-ship action that occurred on 9 November 1914, after the Australian light cruiser , under the command of John Glossop, responded to an attack on a communications station at Direction Island by the German light c ...

. The SMS ''Emden'' had an extraordinary record capturing British ships, and as a result all those who served on her, including Franz Joseph, were given the right to add the ship's name to the end of their surnames. Since Germany had converted titles of nobility into family names in 1919, he became Franz Joseph Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden. In 1925 Franz Joseph wrote a book recording his naval service, ''Emden: Meine Erlebnisse auf S.M Schiff Emden'' (Leipzig: Eckstein, 1925), translated into English and published as ''Emden: My Experiences in S.M.S. Emden'' (reprinted as ''Emden: The Last Cruise of the Chivalrous Raider, 1914'', Brighton: Lyon, 1989, ). Franz Joseph also had the rank of '' Konteradmiral'' in the Romanian Naval Forces.

Nazi Party membership

In 1933 Franz Joseph became a member of the Schutzstaffel (SS) (member number 276 691). On 1 April 1936, he became a full member of the Nazi Party with membership number 3765580. As a leading Roman Catholic nobleman and a near relative of the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

Bourbon Bourbon may refer to: Food and drink * Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash * Bourbon barrel aged beer, a type of beer aged in bourbon barrels * Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit * A beer produced by Bras ...

, and

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

dynasties, Franz Joseph did much to lend respectability to the Nazi Party. From 1939 to 1944 Franz Joseph commanded a marine flak battery at the

Cuxhaven Cuxhaven (; ) is an independent town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town includes the northernmost point of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the shore of the North Sea at the mouth of the Elbe River. Cuxhaven has ...

naval base. In June 1944 he was released from active service. In November 1944 he was expelled from the SS together with other upper class Nazis whose devotion was becoming suspect in the face of Germany's, by then, near-certain defeat.Petropoulos, 425. In a letter to Heinrich Himmler dated 3 January 1945, Franz Joseph proclaimed his continued devotion to the Nazi cause and unsuccessfully begged to be readmitted to the SS.

Marriage and family

On 25 May 1921, Franz Joseph married his second cousin Princess Maria Alix of Saxony (1901–1990), a daughter of Friedrich August III of Saxony and Archduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany. His twin brother was married to Maria Alix's sister, Princess Margarete Karola of Saxony (1900–1962). Franz Joseph and Maria Alix had four children: # Karl Anton Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Maria Georg Manuel Rupprecht Heinrich Benedikt Tassilo Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden; born on 28 January 1922 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany; died on 3 November 1993 in

Hechingen Hechingen ( Swabian: ''Hächenga'') is a town in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated about south of the state capital of Stuttgart and north of Lake Constance and the Swiss border. Geography The town lies at the foot of the ...

, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; married in Rome, Italy on 15 August 1951 to Alexandra

Afif Afif ( ar, عفيف ) is a city in central Saudi Arabia, in the Najd region. It is situated approximately halfway between Riyadh and Mecca. The modern town was established in the 1910s as a ''hijra'', or "settlement", for the nomadic tribes of t ...

(16 November 1919 - 26 June 1996) # Meinrad Leopold Maria Friedrich Christian Ferdinand Albert Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden; born on 17 January 1925 in Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; died on 9 September 2009 in Murnau Hechendorf, Germany; married (civil) in Frankfurt, Germany on 25 August 1971 and (religious) in Sigmaringen on 11 September 1971 to Edina Freijn von Kap-Herr (born 23 August 1938 # Maria Margarethe Anna Viktoria Luise Josephine Mathilde Theresia vom Kinde Jesu Prinzessin von Hohenzollern-Emden; born on 2 January 1928 in Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; died on 4 August 2006 in Hechingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; married (civil) in Hechingen 18 December 1965 and (religious) at Burg Hohenzollern, Hechingen on 18 December 1965 to Duke Carl Gregor of Mecklenburg, second son of

George, Duke of Mecklenburg George, Duke of Mecklenburg (german: Georg Herzog zu Mecklenburg; – 6 July 1963) was the head of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz from 1934 until his death. Through his father, he was a descendant of Emperor Paul I of Russia. Early life He wa ...

head of the House of House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz # Emanuel Joseph Maria Wilhelm Ferdinand Burkhard Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden; born in Munich, Bavaria, Germany on 23 February 1929; died in Hechingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany on 8 February 1999; married (civil and religious) at Burg Hohenzollern on 25 May 1968 to Katharina Feodora Adelheid Sabine Sophie Felicitas Sieglinde, Princess of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (born 30 November 1943) a granddaughter of William Ernest, the last Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach; divorced in 1985 Franz Joseph lived with his family at Villa Eugenia in

. Franz Joseph died on 3 April 1964 at Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg. He and his wife are buried in the Erlöserkirche in Sigmaringen.

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Franz Joseph Of Hohenzollern-Emden, Prince 1891 births 1964 deaths Princes of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen German Roman Catholics Royalty in the Nazi Party Imperial German Navy personnel of World War I People from Sigmaringen People from the Province of Hohenzollern