Ernest Augustus (Ernest Augustus Christian George; ; 17 November 1887 – 30 January 1953) was Duke of Brunswick from 2 November 1913 to 8 November 1918. He was a grandson of George V of Hanover, thus a Prince of Hanover and a Prince of the United Kingdom. He was also a maternal grandson of Christian IX of Denmark and the son-in-law of German Emperor

Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until Abdication of Wilhelm II, his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as th ...

. The

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

ns had deposed King George from the Hanoverian throne in 1866, but his marriage ended the decades-long feud between the Prussians and the Hanoverians.

Early life

Ernest Augustus was born at Penzing near

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, the sixth and youngest child of former Crown Prince Ernest Augustus of Hanover and his wife,

Princess Thyra of Denmark Princess Thyra of Denmark (Thyra Amalie Caroline Charlotte Anna; 29 September 1853 – 26 February 1933) was the youngest daughter and fifth child of Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse-Kassel. In 1878, she married Ernest Augustus, t ...

. His great-grandfather, Prince Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, the fifth son of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

of the United Kingdom, became king of

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

in 1837 because

Salic Law The Salic law ( or ; ), also called the was the ancient Frankish Civil law (legal system), civil law code compiled around AD 500 by Clovis I, Clovis, the first Frankish King. The name may refer to the Salii, or "Salian Franks", but this is deba ...

barred Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom, from inheriting the Hanoverian throne. His father succeeded as pretender to the Hanoverian throne and as

Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain that was held by junior members of the British royal family. It was named after the county of Cumberland in England, and after Teviotdale in Scotland. Held by the King ...

in the peerage of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

in 1878. The younger Ernest Augustus became heir apparent to the dukedom of Cumberland and to the Hanoverian claim upon the deaths of his two elder brothers, George and Christian. Through his mother, he was a first cousin of

Christian X of Denmark Christian X (; 26 September 1870 – 20 April 1947) was King of Denmark from 1912 until his death in 1947, and the only King of Iceland as Kristján X, holding the title as a result of the personal union between Denmark and independent Icel ...

, Haakon VII of Norway,

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

of the United Kingdom,

Constantine I of Greece Constantine I (, Romanization, romanized: ''Konstantínos I''; – 11 January 1923) was King of Greece from 18 March 1913 to 11 June 1917 and again from 19 December 1920 to 27 September 1922. He was commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army dur ...

and

Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until Abdication of Nicholas II, hi ...

. In 1884, his paternal great-granduncle the reigning Duke of Brunswick (a male line descendant of

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

, the older brother of

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, his male line ancestor) died. Since the younger branch of the

House of Welf The House of Welf (also Guelf or Guelph) is a European dynasty that has included many German and British monarchs from the 11th to 20th century and Emperor Ivan VI of Russia in the 18th century. The originally Franconian family from the Meuse-Mo ...

ended with him, under house rules it would have passed to the Duke of Cumberland, who immediately claimed the throne. However, the Imperial Chancellor,

Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (; born ''Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck''; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as ...

, managed to get the Federal Council (Bundesrat) of the German Empire to rule that the Duke of Cumberland would disturb the peace of the empire if he ascended the throne of Brunswick. Bismarck did this because the duke had never formally renounced his claims to the kingdom of Hanover, which had been annexed to

in 1866 following the end of the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War (German: ''Preußisch-Österreichischer Krieg''), also known by many other names,Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Second War of Unification, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), ''Deutsc ...

(Hanover had sided with losing

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

). Instead, Prince Albrecht of Prussia became the regent of Brunswick. After Prince Albrecht's death in 1906, the duke offered that he and his elder son, Prince George, would renounce their claims to the Duchy of Brunswick in order to allow Ernest Augustus, his only other surviving son, to take possession of the Duchy, but this option was rejected by the Bundesrat and the regency continued, this time under Duke Johann Albrecht of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, who had previously acted as regent for his nephew in Mecklenburg.

Marriage and accession to the duchy of Brunswick

When Ernest Augustus's older brother George died in an automobile accident on 20 May 1912, the

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 ...

, sent a message of condolence to the Duke of Cumberland. In response to this friendly gesture, the Duke sent his only surviving son, Ernest Augustus, to Berlin to thank the Emperor for his message. Ernest Augustus and Wilhelm II were third cousins through George III of the United Kingdom. In Berlin, Ernest Augustus met and fell in love with the emperor's only daughter, Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia. On 24 May 1913, Ernest Augustus and Victoria Louise, third cousins once removed through descent from George III's sons King Ernest Augustus of Hanover and Edward, Duke of Kent, were married to each other. This marriage ended the decades-long rift between the Houses of Hohenzollern and

. The wedding of Prince Ernest Augustus and Princess Victoria Louise was also the last great gathering of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an sovereigns before the outbreak of the

Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, as recalled by

Constantine II of Greece Constantine II (, ; 2 June 1940 – 10 January 2023) was the last King of Greece, reigning from 6 March 1964 until the abolition of the Greek monarchy on 1 June 1973. Constantine was born in Athens as the only son of Crown Prince Paul and ...

, a grandson of the married couple, in 2003. In addition to the German Emperor and Empress and the Duke and Duchess of Cumberland, King

and Queen Mary of the United Kingdom and Tsar Nicholas II attended. Upon the announcement of his betrothal to Princess Victoria Louise in February 1913, Ernest Augustus swore allegiance to the German Empire and accepted a commission as a cavalry captain and company commander in the

Zieten–Hussars The Zieten Hussars,Also known as the Ziethen Hussars (both spellings are used in sources on military history) (), last designation: "Hussars Regiment 'von Zieten' (Brandenburg) No. 3" (''Husaren-Regiment von Zieten (Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3''), wa ...

, a Prussian Army regiment in which his grandfather (

) and great-grandfather (Ernest Augustus) had been

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

s. Two imprisoned British spies, Captain Stewart and Captain Trench, were pardoned and released by the German Emperor as a wedding present to the United Kingdom. George V of the United Kingdom had given consent to the marriage on 17 March 1913, as required by the Royal Marriages Act. VictoriaLouiseUniform

On 27 October 1913, the Duke of Cumberland formally renounced his claims to the duchy of Brunswick in favor of his surviving son. The following day, the Federal Council voted to allow Ernest Augustus to become the reigning Duke of Brunswick. The new Duke of Brunswick formally took possession of his duchy on 1 November. He received a promotion to colonel in the Prussian Zieten Hussars. The new duke and duchess of Brunswick moved into

Brunswick Palace Brunswick Palace ( or ''Braunschweiger Residenzschloss'') on the ''Bohlweg'' in the centre of the city of Brunswick (), was the residence of the Brunswick dukes from 1753 to 8 November 1918. History Work on the first building was begun in 1 ...

in the capital of Brunswick and began their family with the birth of their eldest son, Prince Ernest Augustus, less than a year after their wedding. During the First World War, Ernest Augustus rose to the rank of major-general.

Abdication and later life

In 1917, the British dukedom of Ernest Augustus's father, and his own title as a Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, were suspended by the

Titles Deprivation Act 1917 The Titles Deprivation Act 1917 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which authorised enemies of the United Kingdom during the First World War to be deprived of their British peerages and royal titles. Background The British royal fami ...

, which took effect in 1919, as a result of the Duke's service in the German army during the war. On 8 November 1918, Ernest Augustus was forced to abdicate his throne, as were all the other German kings, grand dukes, dukes, and princes during the

German Revolution of 1918–1919 German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

. Thus, when his father died in 1923, Ernest Augustus did not succeed to his father's title of Duke of Cumberland. For the next thirty years, Ernest Augustus remained as head of the House of Hanover, living in retirement on his various estates, mainly Blankenburg Castle in Germany and Cumberland Castle in Gmunden, Austria. He also owned Marienburg Castle near Hanover, although rarely ever living there until 1945. Schloss Blankenburg (Harz) 003.jpg, Blankenburg Castle near Brunswick Schloß Cumberland.jpg, Cumberland Castle,

Gmunden Gmunden () is a town in Upper Austria, in the district of Gmunden (district), Gmunden. It has 13,204 inhabitants (estimates 2016 ). Geography Gmunden covers an area of and has a median elevation of . It is situated next to the lake Traunsee on t ...

, Austria Panoramaaufnahme Schloss Marienburg cropped.jpg, Marienburg Castle near Hanover While Ernest Augustus never officially joined the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

, he donated funds and was close to several leaders. As a former British prince, Ernest Augustus, as well as Victoria Louise, desired a ''rapprochement'' between the United Kingdom and Germany. Ostensibly desiring to pursue an alliance with the UK, in the mid-1930s,

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

took advantage of their sentiment by asking the couple to arrange a match between their daughter Princess Frederica and the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

. The Duke and Duchess of Brunswick refused, believing that the age difference was too great. After his abdication in 1936, Edward VIII and his wife visited "the Cumberlands" at Cumberland Castle in Gmunden, Austria. In 1938 Princess Frederica married Prince

Paul of Greece Paul (; 14 December 1901 – 6 March 1964) was King of Greece from 1 April 1947 until his death on 6 March 1964. Paul was born in Athens as the third son of Constantine I of Greece, Crown Prince Constantine and Sophia of Prussia, Crown Princess ...

, brother and heir-presumptive of King

George II of Greece George II (; 19 July ld Style and New Style dates, Old Style: 7 July1890 – 1 April 1947) was King of Greece from 27 September 1922 until 25 March 1924, and again from 25 November 1935 until his death on 1 April 1947. The eldest son of King ...

. By the time the Second World War ended in Europe in April 1945, he and his family were staying at Blankenburg. A few days before Blankenburg was handed over to the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

by British and U.S. forces in late 1945, to become part of

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

, the family was able to move to Marienburg Castle, at the time located in the British Occupation Zone, with all their furniture, transported by British Army trucks, on the order of . Ernest Augustus lived to see his daughter Frederica become a queen consort in 1947 when her husband Paul became King of the Hellenes. Ernest Augustus died at Marienburg Castle in 1953. He was interred, later to be joined by the remains of his wife, in front of the Royal Mausoleum in the Berggarten at

Herrenhausen Gardens The Herrenhausen Gardens (, ) of Herrenhausen Palace are located in Herrenhausen, an urban district of Hanover, the capital of Lower Saxony, Germany. Dating to the era of the King of Hanover, Kings of Hanover, they comprise Great Garden (), Ber ...

in Hanover, which is the burial chapel of King Ernest Augustus of Hanover and his wife.

Issue

The Duke and Duchess of Brunswick had five children:By Royal Warrant of 17 June 1914, George V granted the eldest son and any children thereafter born to Prince Ernest Augustus of Hanover, then reigning Duke of Brunswick, the title of Prince (or Princess) of Great Britain and Ireland with the style Highness. The provisions of this Royal Warrant ceased with George V's

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

of 30 November 1917, and Hanoverian princes and princesses born after this date were no longer allowed the title Prince of Great Britain and Ireland with the style Highness. However, in 1931, the former Duke of Brunswick, as head of the House of Hanover and the senior male-line descendant of George III, issued a decree stating that the members of the former Hanoverian royal family would continue to bear the title of Prince (or Princess) of Great Britain and Ireland with the style of Royal Highness. This decree had no legal effect in the United Kingdom, although no British sovereigns since have attempted to stop this practice on the part of the former Hanoverian royal family. The members of the House of Hanover continued to seek the British sovereign's approval when they married, in accordance with the

Royal Marriages Act 1772 The Royal Marriages Act 1772 (12 Geo. 3. c. 11) was an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard ...

. In 1999, prior to the wedding of Ernest Augustus, Prince of Hanover (b. 1954) to Princess Caroline of Monaco, the couple received official consent from the reigning British monarch,

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. The 1772 act was repealed on 26 March 2015 in accordance with the

Perth Agreement The Perth Agreement was made in Australia in 2011 by the prime ministers of what were then the sixteen states known as Commonwealth realms, all recognising Elizabeth II as their head of state. The document agreed that the governments of the real ...

. * Ernest Augustus, Hereditary Prince of Brunswick (18 March 1914 – 9 December 1987); married (1) 1951, Princess Ortrud of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (19 December 1925 – 6 February 1980), and had issue; and (2) 1981, Countess Monika zu Solms-Laubach (8 August 1929 – 4 June 2015). * Prince George William (25 March 1915 – 8 January 2006); married 1946 Princess Sophie of Greece and Denmark (26 June 1914 – 24 November 2001), and had issue. * Princess Frederica (18 April 1917 – 6 February 1981); married 1938

(14 December 1901 – 6 March 1964), and had issue. Via Frederica, the Duke of Brunswick is the great-grandfather of

Felipe VI of Spain Felipe VI (; Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. In accordance with the Spanish Constitution, as monarch, he is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armed For ...

. * Prince Christian Oscar Ernest Augustus William Victor George Henry of Hanover (1 September 1919 – 10 December 1981); married 1963 (divorced 1976) Mireille Dutry (b. 10 January 1946), and had issue. ** Princess Caroline Louise (3 May 1965) ** Princess Mireille (3 June 1971) * Prince Guelph Henry Ernest Augustus George Christian Berthold Frederick William Louis Ferdinand of Hanover (11 March 1923 – 12 July 1997); married 1960 Princess Alexandra of Ysenburg and Büdingen (23 October 1937 – 1 June 2015), and had no issue.

Honours

Grand Cross of Henry the Lion, ''ca. 1903''; Sovereign Grand Master, ''1 November 1913'' (

Duchy of Brunswick The Duchy of Brunswick () was a historical German state that ceased to exist in 1918. Its capital city, capital was the city of Braunschweig, Brunswick (). It was established as the successor state of the Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel ...

) *

Knight of St. George, ''29 August 1903'';Ruvigny, Melville Henry Massue, 9th Marquis of. ''Titled Nobility of Europe: An International Peerage'', London: Harrison & Sons, 1914. p. 56 Sovereign Grand Master, ''14 November 1923'' ( Hanoverian Royal Family) * UK Royal Guelphic Order ribbon

Grand Cross of the

Royal Guelphic Order The Royal Guelphic Order (), sometimes referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Kingdom of Hanover, Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent (later King George IV). It takes its name from the House ...

, ''ca. 1903''; Sovereign Grand Master, ''14 November 1923'' ( Hanoverian Royal Family) * D-HAN-B-Order-Ernest-August_BAR

Grand Cross of the Order of Ernst August, ''ca. 1903''; Sovereign Grand Master, ''14 November 1923'' ( Hanoverian Royal Family) * Order_of_the_Elephant_Ribbon_bar

Knight of the Elephant, ''15 November 1905'' (

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

) *

Commemorative Medal for the Golden Wedding of King Christian IX and Queen Louise (Denmark) * DEN_Medal_of_Merit_ribbon

King Christian IX Centenary Medal (Denmark) * Bavaria012

Knight of St. Hubert, ''1909'' (

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria ( ; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1806 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German Empire in 1871, the kingd ...

) *

Knight of the Black Eagle, ''13 February 1913'' (

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

) *

Grand Cross of the Red Eagle, ''ca. February 1913'' (German Empire) * OOSA

Knight of St. Andrew, ''24 May 1913'' (

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

) *

War Merit Cross, 2nd Class, ''ca. 1914'' (Duchy of Brunswick) * Air_Medal_ribbon

War Merit Cross, 1st Class, ''ca. 1914'' (Duchy of Brunswick) * D-PRU EK 1914 2 Klasse BAR

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

, 2nd Class, ''ca. 1914'' (German Empire) * D-PRU EK 1914 2 Klasse BAR

, 1st Class, ''ca. 1914'' (German Empire) * Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary - Ribbon bar Grand-Cross

Grand Cross of St. Stephen, ''ca. 1914'' (

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

)''Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie'' (1918), "Ritter-Orden: St. Stephan-Orden
p. 56
/ref> * GRE Order Redeemer 1Class

Grand Cross of the Redeemer, ''9 January 1938'' (

Kingdom of Greece The Kingdom of Greece (, Romanization, romanized: ''Vasíleion tis Elládos'', pronounced ) was the Greece, Greek Nation state, nation-state established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally ...

)

Ancestry

References

Sources

Succession Laws in the House of Braunschweig
by François R. Velde * - Total pages: 544 * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ernest Augustus 03 of Hanover 1887 births 1953 deaths Dukes of Brunswick Hanoverian princes British princes House of Hanover People from Penzing (Vienna) Nobility from Vienna Major generals of Prussia Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Heirs apparent who never acceded Burials at Berggarten Mausoleum, Herrenhausen (Hanover) German Army generals of World War I Military personnel from Vienna Pretenders Monarchs who abdicated