Duke Alexander of Württemberg (24 April 1771 – 4 July 1833)p.448, Mikaberidze was a

Duke of Württemberg Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...

and son of

Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg Friedrich Eugen, Duke of Württemberg (21 January 1732 – 23 December 1797) was the fourth son of Karl Alexander, Duke of Württemberg, and Princess Maria Augusta of Thurn and Taxis. He was born in Stuttgart. From 1795 until 1797, he was Duke ...

and Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt. His sister Sophie Dorothea married Tsar Paul I of Russia.

Family

In 1798 he married Antoinette of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1779–1824). They had five children: * Marie of Württemberg (1799–1860), who in 1832 married Ernest I of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. * Paul of Württemberg (1800–1801) * Alexander of Württemberg (1804–1881), Duke of Württemberg * Ernest of Württemberg (1807–1868), Duke of Württemberg, who in 1860 married Natalie Eschborn, later ennobled as "von Grünhof" (1836–1905) : ** Alexandra Nathalie Ernestine von Grünhof (

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

, 10 August 1861– Hohenlübbichow, 13 April 1933), who in 1883 married

Robert von Keudell Robert von Keudell (27 February 1824 - April 25/26 1903) was a German diplomat, politician and music lover. Life Von Keudell's parents were the Prussian major Leopold von Keudell (1769-1831) and his wife Wilhelmine von Hartmann (1789-1848). He was ...

* Friedrich Wilhelm Ferdinand of Württemberg (

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

29 April 1810–

, 25 April 1815)

Descendants

Alexander of Württemberg was the founder of the fifth branch (called the ducal branch) of the

House of Württemberg The House of Württemberg is an uradel, ancient German nobility, German dynasty and former royal family of the Kingdom of Württemberg. History County The House probably originated in the vicinity of the Salian dynasty. Around 1080 the ancestors ...

, as the seventh son of

. On the extinction of the eldest branch in 1921, the ducal branch became the new dynastic-branch of the House. (The House of Württemberg's two morganatic branches - the dukes of Teck (extinct in the male line in 1981), and the morganatic branch of the dukes of Urach - were technically 'older' than the Ducal branch, but ineligible to succeed). Alexander of Württemberg is the direct ancestor of the present claimant to the dukedom of Württemberg,

Wilhelm Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Wilhe ...

Military service

Austria

Alexander began service in the

Württemberg army Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Württ ...

as a colonel on 21 April 1791, and transferred to the Austrian army, serving during the campaign against France in 1796–1799, and participating in the battles of Rastadt, Würtzburg, Offenbach,

Stockach Stockach () is a town in the district of Konstanz, in southern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Location It is situated in the Hegau region, about 5 km northwest of Lake Constance, 13 km north of Radolfzell and 25 km northwest of K ...

and

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

. In 1796 Prince Alexander became a Major General and a Fieldmarshal Lieutenant in the Austrian army in 1798.

Russia

In that year he met

Alexander Suvorov Count Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov-Rymniksky, Prince of Italy () was a Russian general and military theorist in the service of the Russian Empire. Born in Moscow, he studied military history as a young boy and joined the Imperial Russian ...

, and took up his recommendation to join the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

as a Lieutenant General and chief of the Riga Cuirassier Regiment which in August 1800 was reorganised into Riga Dragoon Regiment while Alexander was promoted to General of Cavalry (the rank below Field Marshal). In 1811 he was appointed Military Governor of Belorussia. During the 1812 Campaign Württemberg served at the Headquarters of the 1st Western Army and fought at

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Vitsyebsk (, ; , ; ) is a city in northern Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Vitebsk Region and Vitebsk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has 358,927 inhabitants, m ...

Smolensk Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest cities in Russia. It has been a regional capital for most of ...

Borodino The Battle of Borodino ( ) or Battle of Moscow (), in popular literature also known as the Battle of the Generals, took place on the outskirts of Moscow near the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812 during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. T ...

, Tarutino (awarded Order of St. George, 3rd class),

Maloyaroslavets Maloyaroslavets () is a town and the administrative center of Maloyaroslavetsky District in Kaluga Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Luzha River ( Oka's basin), northeast of Kaluga, the administrative center of the oblast. Pop ...

Vyazma Vyazma () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District, Smolensk Oblast, Vyazemsky District in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk, the ...

and Krasnoi. In 1813 he commanded the Siege of Danzig for which he was awarded a golden sword and the Order of St. George (2nd class). After the war he returned to Belorussia and his Riga Regiment. In 1822 he became the Head of the Communications Department (responsible for transport links) and initiated several large-scale waterway projects (the Windawski Canal, etc.) in western Russia. In 1826 Württemberg was appointed chief of Ekaterinoslav Cuirassier Regiment, and a member of the State Council, but returned to the Riga Dragoons in 1827. In 1832 he resigned from military service and left Russia on 24 November, never to return.

Awards and decorations

* : ** Knight of the Golden Eagle ** Commander of the Military Merit Order, 2nd Class, ''1799'' * : **

Gold Sword for Bravery The Gold Sword for Bravery () was a Russian award for bravery. It was set up with two grades on 27 July 1720 by Peter the Great, reclassified as a public order in 1807 and abolished in 1917. From 1913 to 1917 it was renamed the Saint George ...

, inscribed "For capture of Danzig" **

Knight of St. Andrew The Order of Barbados is a national Order of honours and decorations for Barbados. History The first Order of Barbados was instituted by Queen Elizabeth II by letters patent dated 25 July 1980. With Barbados becoming a republic on 30 November 20 ...

, in Diamonds, ''28 June 1798'' ** Knight of St. Alexander Nevsky, ''28 June 1798'' ** Knight of St. Anne, 1st Class, ''28 June 1798'' ** Grand Commander of St. John, ''28 June 1798'' ** Knight of St. George, 3rd Class, ''1812''; 2nd Class, ''12 November 1813'' ** Knight of St. Vladimir, 1st Class, ''25 February 1813'' *

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

: ** Knight of the Black Eagle, ''15 January 1814''''Liste der Ritter des Königlich Preußischen Hohen Ordens vom Schwarzen Adler'' (1851), "Von Seiner Majestät dem Könige Friedrich Wilhelm III. ernannte Ritter
p. 17
/ref> ** Knight of the Red Eagle, 2nd Class * : Order of Maximilian Joseph * : Bailiff Grand Cross

Ancestry

References

Notes

* Mikaberidze, Alexander, ''The Russian officer Corps in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars 1792-1815'', Savas Beatie, New York, 2005

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander Of Wurttemberg, Duke 1771 births 1833 deaths People from Montbéliard Dukes of Württemberg (titular) Russian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars German commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Austrian Empire commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Members of the Württembergian Chamber of Lords Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 1st class Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Third Degree Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Second Degree Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class Recipients of the Gold Sword for Bravery Knights Hospitaller Recipients of the Military Order of Max Joseph Knights of Malta Sons of dukes