Gustav, 7th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-BerleburgIn 1919

royalty Royalty may refer to: * the mystique/prestige bestowed upon monarchs ** one or more monarchs, such as kings, queens, emperors, empresses, princes, princesses, etc. *** royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen-regnant, and sometimes h ...

and

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

were mandated to lose their privileges in Germany, hereditary titles were to be legally borne thereafter only as part of the surname, according t
Article 109
of the

Weimar Constitution The Constitution of the German Reich (), usually known as the Weimar Constitution (), was the constitution that governed Germany during the Weimar Republic era. The constitution created a federal semi-presidential republic with a parliament whose ...

. (Gustav Frederik Philip Richard; born 12 January 1969), is the eldest child and only son of

Princess Benedikte of Denmark Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Benedikte Astrid Ingeborg Ingrid, born 29 April 1944) is a member of the Danish royal family. She is the second daughter and child of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid o ...

and

Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Richard Casimir Karl August Robert Konstantin; 29 October 1934 – 13 March 2017) was the head of the House of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and husband of Princess Benedikte of Denmark. Early lif ...

Biography

Prince Gustav is the head of the

House of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg was one of several imperial counties and later principalities ruled by the House of Sayn-Wittgenstein. Most of the former county is located in the present district of Siegen-Wittgenstein (in the modern state of North ...

, the senior branch of the formerly princely house of

Sayn-Wittgenstein Sayn-Wittgenstein was a county of medieval Germany, located in the Sauerland of eastern North Rhine-Westphalia. History Sayn-Wittgenstein was created when Count Salentin of Sayn-Homburg (1314-1392), a member of the House of Sponheim, married ...

.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' XIX. "Sayn-Wittgenstein". C.A. Starke Verlag, 2011, pp.314–338. . He resides at '' Schloss Berleburg-Wittgenstein'' in the town of

Bad Berleburg Bad Berleburg (, earlier also Berleburg) is a town, in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is one of Germany's largest towns by land area. It is located approximately northeast of Siegen and northwest of ...

, in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

, Germany. He is the son of

Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Richard, 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Richard Casimir Karl August Robert Konstantin; 29 October 1934 – 13 March 2017) was the head of the House of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and husband of Princess Benedikte of Denmark. Early l ...

and

and has two sisters,

Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, Countess Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille (Alexandra Rosemarie Ingrid Benedikte; born 20 November 1970), is the first daughter and second of three children of Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berle ...

and

Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Nathalie Xenia Margrethe Benedikte; born 2 May 1975) is a Danish equestrian, an Olympian, and the daughter of Princess Benedikte of Denmark and Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. Sh ...

. The principality and princely title of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg descended, historically, according to

semi-Salic The Salic law ( or ; ), also called the was the ancient Frankish civil law code compiled around AD 500 by Clovis, the first Frankish King. The name may refer to the Salii, or "Salian Franks", but this is debated. The written text is in Late L ...

primogeniture Primogeniture () is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn Legitimacy (family law), legitimate child to inheritance, inherit all or most of their parent's estate (law), estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some childre ...

. If Gustav were to die without legitimate issue, the family heritage would devolve upon his father's younger brother, Prince Robin zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. Gustav was formerly engaged to be married to Elvire Pasté de Rochefort (granddaughter of French Ambassador André Rodocanachi and wife Nada Diplarakou, herself sister of

Aliki Diplarakou Aliki, Lady Russell (; born Aliki Diplarakou; 28 August 1912 – 30 October 2002) was the first Maniot Greek contestant to win the Miss Europe title. She previously had won the "Miss Hellas" () title at the Miss Star Hellas pageant. Family She w ...

and grand-aunt of Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg); the engagement was announced on 16 August 2000 and the wedding planned for 12 May 2001 in Paris. However the wedding did not take place, reportedly due to financial issues with the bride's family, and it was announced on 16 July 2001 that they had separated. For many years, he resided with his partner, Carina Axelsson, although they were unable to marry due to a clause in Gustav's grandfather's will preventing him from inheriting family property if he marries someone not of Protestant, noble and Aryan descent. However, on 27 April 2022, the Danish court confirmed that Gustav could marry Axelsson on 3 June 2022, civilly and on 4 June 2022, religiously in

. The couple's son, Prince Gustav Albrecht, was born on 26 May 2023 in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

via surrogacy. On 26 April 2024, the couple welcomed their second child, a girl, Princess Mafalda, also via surrogacy. He is the godfather of Count Richard von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth, son of his sister

Alexandra Alexandra () is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander (, ). Etymology, Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; genitive, GEN , ; ...

; Konstantin Johannsmann, son of his second sister

Nathalie Nathalie is a female given name. It is a variant of the name Natalie/ Natalia which is found in many languages, and is especially common in French and English-speaking countries. Notable people with the name include: * Nathalie (born 1979), Ital ...

; and

Prince Vincent of Denmark Prince Vincent of Denmark, Count of Monpezat, (Vincent Frederik Minik Alexander; born 8 January 2011) is a member of the Danish royal family. He is the third child and younger son of King Frederik X and Queen Mary, the sixth grandchild and you ...

, son of his first cousin,

Frederik X Frederik X (Frederik André Henrik Christian, ; born 26 May 1968) is King of Denmark. He acceded to the throne following Abdication of Margrethe II, his mother's abdication in 2024. Frederik is the eldest son of Margrethe II and Prince Henri ...

Ancestry

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gustav Of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, Hereditary Prince 1969 births Nobility from Frankfurt am Main House of Sayn-Wittgenstein Living people Pretenders