Franz Wilhelm Prince of Prussia
[In 1919 royalty and nobility were mandated to lose their privileges in Germany; thereafter hereditary titles were to be legally borne only as part of the surname, according t]
Article 109
of the Weimar Constitution. Styles such as ''majesty'' and ''highness'
were not retained.
(''Franz Wilhelm Victor Christoph Stephan Prinz von Preussen''; born 3 September 1943) is a German businessman and member of 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, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenbu ...
, the
former ruling German imperial house and royal house of
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
. From 1976 to 1986 he was known as Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich of Russia.
Biography
Franz Wilhelm Prince of Prussia was born in
Grünberg,
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
, as the son of
Prince Karl Franz of Prussia
Prince Karl Franz Josef Wilhelm Friedrich Eduard Paul of Prussia (15 December 1916 – 23 January 1975) was the only child of Prince Joachim of Prussia and his wife Princess Marie-Auguste of Anhalt. He was also the grandson of Wilhelm II, German ...
and his first wife
Princess Henriette von Schönaich-Carolath.
[Eilers, Marlene. Queen Victoria's Descendants. Rosvall Royal Books, Falkoping, Sweden, 1997. pp. 84, 121, 127, 172–173. ]['']Almanach de Gotha
The ''Almanach de Gotha'' (german: Gothaischer Hofkalender) is a directory of Europe's royalty and higher nobility, also including the major governmental, military and diplomatic corps, as well as statistical data by country. First publish ...
'', Gotha
Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the Gotha (district), district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine House of Wet ...
: Justus Perthes
Johann Georg Justus Perthes (11 September 1749, Rudolstadt, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt – 2 May 1816, Gotha, Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg) was a German publisher and founder of the publishing house that bears his name. Life
He was born in the Thuringian t ...
, 1944), pp. 89, 92.[''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' Band XIV. "Haus Preussen". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1997, p. 123, 153. ] He had a twin brother, Prince Friedrich Christian, who died three weeks after his birth. Prince Franz Wilhelm is a grandson of
Prince Joachim of Prussia
Prince Joachim Franz Humbert of Prussia (17 December 1890 – 18 July 1920) was the youngest son and sixth child of Wilhelm II, German Emperor, by his first wife, Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein. He committed suicide at age 29.
Prince Jo ...
, the youngest son of
Emperor Wilhelm II.
[de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal. Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. ''Le Petit Gotha''. Nouvelle Imprimerie Laballery, Paris 2002, pp. 77, 99, 111, 799. (French) ]
In 2002 Franz Wilhelm with
Theodor Tantzen founded the ''
Prinz von Preußen Grundbesitz AG'', a project development and project management company which restores old buildings in Germany. In 2004, with financing from a group of investors, he purchased the
Royal Porcelain Manufactury Berlin, saving it from
insolvency
In accounting, insolvency is the state of being unable to pay the debts, by a person or company ( debtor), at maturity; those in a state of insolvency are said to be ''insolvent''. There are two forms: cash-flow insolvency and balance-sheet ...
.
Personal life
Franz Wilhelm married his third cousin once removed,
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (russian: Мария Владимировна Романова; born 23 December 1953) has been a claimant to the headship of the Imperial Family of Russia (who reigned as Emperors and Autocrats of all ...
, great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria, civilly at
Dinard
Dinard (; br, Dinarzh, ; Gallo: ''Dinard'') is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department, Brittany, northwestern France.
Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a holiday destination, and this ...
on 4 September 1976 and religiously on 22 September 1976 at the Russian Orthodox Chapel in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
.
[Willis, Daniel A., ''The Descendants of King George I of Great Britain'', Clearfield Company, 2002, pp. 575, 696.] Before his marriage he converted to the
Russian Orthodox
Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most ...
faith and was created a Grand Duke of Russia with the name Mikhail Pavlovich by his father-in-law
Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia.
[ Massie, Robert K. The Romanovs: The Final Chapter. Jonathan Cape, 1995, pp. 263–264, 269–270, 274. , OCLC 185630578.] Franz Wilhelm and Grand Duchess Maria had one son before divorcing on 19 June 1985 (they separated in 1982), at which point he reverted to his previous title. He married Nadia Nour in 2019, to whom was bestowed upon marriage the courtesy style and title of ''Her Royal Highness Princess Nadia of Prussia''.
[
* Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia (born 1981).]
Titles, styles and honours
Titles and styles
In 1919 royalty and nobility were mandated to lose their privileges in Germany; thereafter hereditary titles were to be legally borne only as part of the surname, according to Article 109 of the Weimar Constitution. Styles such as ''Majesty'' and ''Highness'' were not retained.
*3 September 1943 – 22 September 1976: ''His Royal Highness'' Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia[
]
Dynastic honours
*Knight Grand Cross of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George
The Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George (SMOCG) ( it, Sacro Militare Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio, es, Sagrada Orden Militar Constantiniana de San Jorge), also historically referred to as the Imperial Constantinian Order ...
.
References
External links
House of Hohenzollern
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franz Wilhelm Of Prussia, Prince
1943 births
Living people
People from Zielona Góra
People from the Province of Silesia
Prussian princes
House of Hohenzollern
German twins