Adolphus Frederick V (; 22 July 1848 – 11 June 1914) was reigning grand duke of

Mecklenburg-Strelitz The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy in Northern Germany consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district (the former Lordship of Stargard) ...

from 1904 to 1914.

Biography

Duke George Adolphus Frederick Augustus Victor Ernest Adalbert Gustavus William Wellington of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was born in

Neustrelitz Neustrelitz (; ) is a town in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the shore of the Zierker See in the Mecklenburg Lake District. From 1738 until 1918 it was the capital o ...

, the only surviving child of Frederick William, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg, and Princess Augusta of Cambridge. Following the death of his grandfather Grand Duke George on 6 September 1860, Adolphus Frederick became the

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

to the grand duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz with the title of Hereditary Grand Duke. Adolphus Frederick took part in the

Franco-Prussian war The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

and represented his father at the proclamation of King

William I William I may refer to: Kings * William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England * William I of Sicily (died 1166) * William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion * William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...

of Prussia as

German Emperor The German Emperor (, ) was the official title of the head of state and Hereditary monarchy, hereditary ruler of the German Empire. A specifically chosen term, it was introduced with the 1 January 1871 constitution and lasted until the abdicati ...

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

. He succeeded his father as grand duke on 30 May 1904.''Lines of Succession'' by Jiri Louda, p.219 Table III His mother, Grand Duchess Augusta, was disgusted at her son's military ways. She wrote to her niece,

Mary of Teck Mary of Teck (Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes; 26 May 186724 March 1953) was List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 6 May 1910 until 20 Janua ...

, "Strelitz that was never a Military State, suddenly is all drums and fifes, ... such a pity, a bad imitation of

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch Low German: ''Swerin''; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Zwierzyn''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germ ...

& small German Courts, whilst ''we were'' a Gentlemanlike ''Civilian'' court!" In 1907 Adolphus Frederick announced that he would grant Mecklenburg-Strelitz a constitution, but this was met with opposition from nobles. In his attempt to create a constitution he offered to pay $2,500,000 to the national treasury if the nobles and land-owning classes dropped their opposition. In 1912 he repeated attempts to create a constitution for Mecklenburg-Strelitz, which along with

Mecklenburg-Schwerin The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin () was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1701, when Frederick William, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Frederick William and Adolphus Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Adolphus Frederick II divided ...

were the only European states without one. In January 1914, Adolphus Frederick was reported to be the second richest person in Germany after the Emperor William II with a fortune of $88,750,000. Adolphus Frederick died in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and was succeeded by his eldest son Adolphus Frederick VI.

Marriage and children

Adolphus Frederick was married on 17 April 1877 in

Dessau Dessau is a district of the independent city of Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the ''States of Germany, Bundesland'' (Federal State) of Saxony-Anhalt. Until 1 July 2007, it was an independent ...

to Elisabeth of Anhalt. His mother commented on his wife, "She welters in happiness at her luxurious "Schloss" wearing a new Paris dress daily, Diamonds, also, when we are quite ''entre nous'' - Yes, she does enjoy being a ''Grand'' Duchess! poor dear, I am glad ''she'' does, for I never did." Adolphus Frederick and Elisabeth had four children. * Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1878–1948) married 22 June 1899 and divorced 31 December 1908 Count George Jametel (1859–1944), married secondly on 11 August 1914 Prince Julius Ernst of

Lippe Lippe () is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Herford, Minden-Lübbecke, Höxter, Paderborn, Gütersloh, and district-free Bielefeld, which forms the region Ostwestfalen-Lippe. ...

(1873–1952). * Duchess Jutta of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1880–1946) married 27 July 1899

Danilo, Crown Prince of Montenegro Danilo Aleksandar Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyrl, Данило Александар Петровић-Његош; 29 June 1871– 24 September 1939) was the Crown Prince of Montenegro. He was the eldest son of King Nicholas I of Montenegro and Queen M ...

. * Adolphus Frederick VI, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1882–1918). *Duke Karl Borwin of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Karl Borwin Christian Alexander Arthur, Herzog von Mecklenburg-Strelitz; 10 October 1888 – 24 August 1908); killed in a duel with his brother-in-law Count George Jametel, defending his sister's honor.

Honours

He received the following orders and decorations:

Ancestry

References

Books

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adolphus Frederick 05 Of Mecklenburg, Grand Duke 1848 births 1914 deaths Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz People from Neustrelitz Hereditary grand dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Grand dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Generals of Cavalry (Prussia) German people of English descent Recipients of the Iron Cross (1870), 2nd class Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Russia) Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian), 1st class Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Fourth Degree Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Extra Knights Companion of the Garter Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania Military personnel from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania