Louis William, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg (29 August 1770 in Homburg – 19 January 1839 in

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

), was Landgrave of

Hesse-Homburg Hesse-Homburg was a state of the Holy Roman Empire and a sovereign member of the German Confederation, which consisted of the lordship of Homburg at the foot of the Taunus, which was then known as ''Die Höhe'' ("the Heights"). The reigning princ ...

from 1829 until his death.

Biography

Louis was the second son of Landgrave

Frederick V Frederick V or Friedrich V may refer to: *Frederick V, Duke of Swabia (1164–1170) * Frederick V, Count of Zollern (d.1289) *Frederick V, Burgrave of Nuremberg (c. 1333–1398), German noble * Frederick V of Austria (1415–1493), or Frederick II ...

and his wife Caroline of Hesse-Darmstadt, a daughter of Landgrave

Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis ...

Hesse-Darmstadt The Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt () was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a younger branch of the House of Hesse. It was formed in 1567 following the division of the Landgraviate of Hesse among the four sons of Landgrave Philip I. ...

and Caroline of Zweibrücken, "the Great Landgravine". Louis, as he was usually called, was educated together with his elder brother Frederick VI. They studied together in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

, and in 1788, they joined the Royal Prussian Army together. In 1793, he fought in the Battle of Pirmasens. In 1798, he was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. In 1804, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel, and he married Princess Augusta Amalia of

Nassau-Usingen Nassau-Usingen was a county of the Holy Roman Empire in the Upper Rhenish Circle that became a principality in 1688. The origin of the county lies in the medieval county of Weilnau that was acquired by the counts of Nassau-Weilburg in 1602. Tha ...

, daughter of

Frederick Augustus, Duke of Nassau Friedrich August, Duke of Nassau, Prince of Nassau-Usingen (23 April 1738 in Usingen – 24 March 1816 in Wiesbaden) was the last Prince of Nassau-Usingen and, jointly with his cousin, Friedrich Wilhelm of Nassau-Weilburg, first Duke of Nassau. ...

. This "dynastic marriage" with the daughter of a neighbouring prince was an unhappy one, as she was in love with Count Frederick William of Bismarck. The marriage ended in divorce. Augusta Amalia married Frederick William; Louis William did not marry again.

Ricarda Huch Ricarda Huch (; 18 July 1864 – 17 November 1947) was a pioneering German intellectual. Trained as a historian, and the author of many works of European history, she also wrote novels, poems, and a play. Asteroid 879 Ricarda is named in her honou ...

gives more details in her ''Count Mark and the Princes of Nassau-Usingen. A tragic biography'' of 1925. In 1806, he fought in the

Battle of Jena-Auerstedt A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

and was taken prisoner by the French. After his release, he became major general of the

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

. Here, he reorganized the army in the framework of the

Prussian reforms The Prussian Reform Movement was a series of constitutional, administrative, social, and economic reforms early in 19th-century Prussia. They are sometimes known as the Stein–Hardenberg Reforms, for Karl Freiherr vom Stein and Karl August v ...

. In 1810, he was transferred to Berlin. In 1813, he fought in the German campaign with his own "Hesse-Homburg Brigade". In the

Battle of Leipzig The Battle of Leipzig, also known as the Battle of the Nations, was fought from 16 to 19 October 1813 at Leipzig, Saxony. The Coalition armies of Austria, Prussia, Sweden, and Russia, led by Tsar Alexander I, Karl von Schwarzenberg, and G ...

, his troops stormed the Grimma gate and he was injured. In 1813, he was promoted to

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

and Supreme Commander of the Reserve Corps. During the

Hundred Days The Hundred Days ( ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition (), marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII o ...

, he again fought Napoleon's army. After the Second Peace of Paris, he was appointed

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

. Louis rarely visited Homburg. Hesse-Homburg was administered between 1828 and 1832 by Carl von Ibell. A wealthy man, Louis travelled to many European countries; however, he was always interested in the situation in his own small country. He supported the education reform Ibell was implementing, which provided for a single school system with Protestant, Catholic and Jewish students. The building for a shared school was inaugurated in 1831, and it is now called ("Landgrave Louis School"). He also promoted the creation of a

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa health treatments are known as balneotherapy. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters and hot springs goes back to pre ...

Bad Homburg Bad Homburg vor der Höhe (, ) is the district town of the Hochtaunuskreis, Hesse, Germany, on the southern slope of the Taunus mountains. Bad Homburg is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. The town's official name is ''Bad Homburg ...

. He renovated the springs in the town, and added a small spa hall, which today houses a casino. The district of

Meisenheim Meisenheim () is a town in the Bad Kreuznach (district), Bad Kreuznach Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the Meisenheim (Verbandsgemeinde), like-named ''Verbandsgemeinde'', and is also its seat. Meise ...

joined the

German Customs Union The (), or German Customs Union, was a coalition of German states formed to manage tariffs and economic policies within their territories. Organized by the 1833 treaties, it formally started on 1 January 1834. However, its foundations had b ...

in 1829; the rest of Hesse-Homburg joined in 1835. The

July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after French Revolution, the first of 1789–99. It led to the overthrow of King Cha ...

of 1830 sparked unrest in Hesse-Homburg. The army mutinied and several youths from Homburg participated in the

Frankfurter Wachensturm The Frankfurter Wachensturm (German: charge of the Frankfurt guard house) on 3 April 1833 was a failed attempt to start a revolution in Germany. Events About 50 students attacked the soldiers and policemen of the Frankfurt Police offices ''Haup ...

. In 1838, he celebrated the 50th anniversary of his career as a Prussian officer. He paid a two-week visit to Homburg and returned to Luxembourg, where he died on 19 January 1839. He was buried in the crypt of Bad Homburg Castle.

Ancestry

References

* Karl Schwartz: ''Landgraf Friedrich V. von Hessen-Homburg und seine Familie. Aus Archivalien und Familienpapieren'', Rudolstadt, 1878 {{DEFAULTSORT:Louis William of Hesse-Homburg Landgraves of Hesse-Darmstadt House of Hesse-Homburg Prussian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars 1770 births 1839 deaths 18th-century Prussian military personnel Generals of Infantry (Prussia) Knights Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath People from Bad Homburg vor der Höhe Military personnel from Hesse 18th-century nobility from the Holy Roman Empire