, title = Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg , image = Karl Thomas, 5. Fürst zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort.jpg , succession = Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg , reign = 1814–1849 , predecessor = Dominic Constantine , successor = Charles Henry , spouse = Countess Sophie of Windisch-Grätz , issue = , house = House of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg , royal anthem = , father =

Dominic Constantine, Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort , title = Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg prev. Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort , image = Dominik Constantin, 4. Fürst zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort (1762-1814).jpg , succession1 = Prince of Löwenstein-Wer ...

, mother = Princess Leopoldine of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Bartenstein , birth_date = , birth_place = Bartenstein (today part of

Schrozberg Schrozberg is a town in the district of Schwäbisch Hall, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located west of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, and northeast of Schwäbisch Hall. Schrozburg Castle of the Lords of Schrozberg was built in the 12th c ...

) , death_date = , death_place =

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 ...

, place of burial = , religion = } Prince Charles Thomas Albert Louis Joseph Constantine of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (18 July 1783 in Bartenstein (today part of

) – 3 November 1849 in

) was an Austrian officer during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

and from 1814 onwards, a member of the landless

high nobility Traditional rank amongst European royalty, peers, and nobility is rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Although they vary over time and among geographic regions (for example, one region's prince might be equal to another's grand duk ...

Background

The noble family dates back to the days of Elector Palatine Frederick the Victorious (1425–1476). His children from his

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 ...

with

Clara Tott Clara Tott, in other sources Clara Dett, Clara of Dettingen, Tettingen, or Clare Dettin ( – 1520), was a court singer associated with the Elector Palatine Frederick I, whom she is said to have secretly married. Life Clara Tott was the ...

were not able to inherit the

Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate ...

properties, so they formed a separate noble family. After the death of Count

Louis III Louis III may refer to: * Louis the Younger, sometimes III of Germany (835–882) * Louis III of France (865–882) * Louis the Blind, Louis III, Holy Roman Emperor, (c. 880–928) * Louis the Child, sometimes III of Germany (893–911) * Louis I ...

in 1611, the family was split into two main lines, the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

Löwenstein-Wertheim-Virneburg line (later Freudenberg) and the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort line.

Life

Prince Charles Thomas was the first-born son from the marriage of Prince

(1762–1814) with Maria Leopoldine, Princess of Hohenlohe-Bartenstein (1761–1807). Prince Charles had six sisters and three half siblings from his father's second marriage. He and his younger brother Constantine were raised during the final years of the

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 ...

. They were very aware of the privileges of the class of

Imperial Prince Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. '' Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors ...

s. They were educated at court in

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg ...

and later at the court of

Prince Clemens Wenceslaus of Saxony Prince Clemens Wenceslaus of Saxony (German: ''Clemens Wenzeslaus August Hubertus Franz Xaver von Sachsen'') (28 September 1739 – 27 July 1812) was a Saxon prince from the House of Wettin and the Archbishop- Elector of Trier from 1768 until 18 ...

, the Prince-Elector of

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

. Nothing is known about any higher education that Charles Thomas may have enjoyed. In 1802, he participated in a diplomatic mission of the Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg family 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 ...

. His father's territory was

mediatized Mediatization or mediatisation may refer to: * German mediatisation German mediatisation (; german: deutsche Mediatisierung) was the major territorial restructuring that took place between 1802 and 1814 in Germany and the surrounding region by ...

during the events following the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

. The Löwenstein territories were divided between the newly elevated Grand Duchies of Baden and Hesse and the Kingdoms of Bavaria and Württemberg. Charles Thomas joined the Austrian army and fought in several battles of the

. Most recently, he served as major in the Galician Ulanes Regiment "Prince of Schwarzenberg" No. 2. In 1812 and 1813, the family lost its territory on the left bank of the Rhine, including Rochefort. This led to a name change: the House of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort changed its name to Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. In 1814, Charles Thomas's father died. He resigned from the military and took up administration of the family possessions. As a member of the high nobility, he held a seat in the First Chamber in Baden, Bavaria, Hesse and Württemberg. However, he had little interest in the political issues of those four states. Initially, his senior officials concerned themselves with the interests of the high nobility. From the early 1830s, his son Constatine did the same. After Constantine died in 1838, the senior officials took over again. Throughout his life, Charles Thomas felt a strong bond with the Austrian Empire and its ruling Habsburg dynasty. He married an Austrian wife and took up permanent residence in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in the 1840s. As he grew older, he devoted more and more time to his Catholic faith and developed a devotion, which served as a model for his grandson and successor Charles Henry.

Marriage and issue

Thomas Charles married on 29 September 1799 in

Ellwangen Ellwangen an der Jagst, officially Ellwangen (Jagst), in common use simply Ellwangen () is a town in the district of Ostalbkreis in the east of Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It is situated about north of Aalen. Ellwangen has 25,000 inhabitants. ...

to Countess Sophie of Windisch-Grätz (1784–1848), a daughter of Count Joseph Nicholas of Windisch-Graetz. They had the following children: *

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

(1802–1838), married to Princess Agnes of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (1804–1835); * Marie Leopoldine, (1804–1869), married to her uncle, Prince Constantine of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (1786–1844); * Marie Louise Adelaide Eulalia (1806–1884), married to Prince Camille of Rohan (1800–1892); * Sophia Maria Theresa (1809–1838), married to Prince Heinrich XX of Reuss-Greiz; * Maria Kreszentia Octavie (1813–1878), married to Prince Victor Alexander of Isenburg und Büdingen zu Birnstein; * Aegidia Eulalie (1820–1895)

References

* Frank Raberg: ''Biographisches Handbuch der württembergischen Landtagsabgeordneten 1815–1933'',

Kohlhammer Verlag W. Kohlhammer Verlag GmbH, or Kohlhammer Verlag, is a German publishing house headquartered in Stuttgart. History Kohlhammer Verlag was founded in Stuttgart on 30 April 1866 by . Kohlhammer had taken over the businesses of his late father-in-l ...

, Stuttgart, 2001, , p. 525 * Harald Stockert: ''Adel im Übergang. Die Fürsten und Grafen von Löwenstein-Wertheim zwischen Landesherrschaft und Standesherrschaft'', Kohlhammer Verlag, Stuttgart, 2000,

External links

Karl Thomas Ludwig Joseph Fürst zu

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles Thomas Lowenstein Wertheim Rosenberg Princes of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg Members of the Bavarian Reichsrat 1783 births 1849 deaths 19th-century German people Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria