Prince Albert of Prussia (; 8 May 1837 – 13 September 1906) was a Prussian

general field marshal ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (; from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire, (''Reichsgeneralfeldmarscha ...

, ''Herrenmeister'' (Grand Master) of the

Order of Saint John The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic Church, Catholic Military order (religious society), military order. It was founded in the Crusader states, crusader K ...

from 1883 until his death, and

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of the

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 ...

from 1885, also until his death.

Biography

Albert was born in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

on 8 May 1837, the son of Prince Albert of Prussia and Princess Marianne, daughter of

King William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was King of the Netherlands and List of monarchs of Luxembourg, Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1815 until his abdication in 1840. Born as the son of William V, Prince of Orange, ...

. His father was the brother of King Frederick William IV of Prussia and

William I, German Emperor Wilhelm I (Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 1861 and German Emperor from 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the first head of state of a united Germany. ...

. Albrecht entered the Prussian army in 1847, serving in the

First Schleswig War The First Schleswig War (), also known as the Schleswig-Holstein uprising () and the Three Years' War (), was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig–Holstein question: who should control the Du ...

and participating in the battles of Skalitz, Schweinschädel and Königgrätz in 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 ...

in 1866. In the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

in 1870, he commanded a guard cavalry brigade at

Gravelotte Gravelotte (; ) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in north-eastern France, 11 km west of Metz. It is part of the functional area (''aire d'attraction'') of Metz. Its population is 827 (2019). From 1871 until the end of ...

and Sedan. After the fall of the Second Empire, he was subordinated to

Edwin von Manteuffel Edwin Karl Rochus Freiherr von Manteuffel (24 February 1809 – 17 June 1885) was a Prussian ''Generalfeldmarschall'' noted for his victories in the Franco-Prussian War, and the first Imperial Lieutenant () of Alsace–Lorraine from 1879 until h ...

in the fighting around

Bapaume Bapaume (original Dutch name Batpalmen) is a Communes of France, commune in the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region of northern France. Geography Bapaume is a farming and light indus ...

and St. Quentin. In 1874, he became commander of the

X Corps 10th Corps, Tenth Corps, or X Corps may refer to: France * 10th Army Corps (France) * X Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * X Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army * ...

stationed in Hannover. In 1883, he succeeded his uncle

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

as ''Herrenmeister'' of the

Order of Saint John (Bailiwick of Brandenburg) The Bailiwick of Brandenburg of the Chivalric Order of Saint John of the Hospital at Jerusalem (), commonly known as the Order of Saint John or the Johanniter Order (German: ''Johanniterorden''), is the Germans, German Protestantism, Protestant b ...

. In 1885, Albert was chosen as Regent for the

, as

German Chancellor The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, is the head of the federal government of Germany. The chancellor is the chief executive of the Federal Cabinet and heads the executive branch. Th ...

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 ...

had removed

Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, 3rd Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale (; 21 September 1845 – 14 November 1923), was the eldest child and only son of George V of Hanover and his wife, Marie of Saxe-Altenburg. Ernest Augustus was dep ...

, from office. In 1913, Ernst August's son, Ernest Augustus, became Duke of Brunswick who only reigned for 5 years and 6 days. After accepting the regency, Albert and Marie resided chiefly in Brunswick,

, and

Kamenz Kamenz () or Kamjenc ( Sorbian, ) is a town (''Große Kreisstadt'') in the district of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany. Until 2008 it was the administrative seat of Kamenz District. The town is known as the birthplace of the philosopher and poet Gotth ...

. Prince Albrecht died at Schloss Kamenz on 13 September 1906. He was buried in the Mausoleum auf dem Hutberge in the park of Schloss Kamenz. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the mausoleum was plundered and the bodies of Albert and his wife were reburied in the park.

Marriage and issue

Albert's parents had been unhappily married to each other and were later divorced. The unhappiness of that marriage had been a formative influence on Albert during his growing years. His decision to wait until he was 36 before marrying is thought to have been a reflection of his parents' marital situation. On 9 April 1873 in

, he married Princess Marie of Saxe-Altenburg. They had three sons: * Prince Friedrich Heinrich Albrecht (15 April 1874 – 13 November 1940) * Prince Joachim Albrecht (27 September 1876 – 24 October 1939); married firstly Baroness Marie of Liebenberg (née Blich-Sulzer) (1872-1919) and Karoline Kornelia Stockhammer (1891-1952) * Prince Friedrich Wilhelm (12 July 1880 – 9 March 1925); married Princess Agatha of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst

Honours and awards

;German honours
Handbuch über den Königlich Preußischen Hof und Staat
' (1906), Genealogy p. 4 ;Foreign honours

Ancestry

References

External links

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Albert, Prince of Prussia (1837-1906) 1837 births 1906 deaths Field marshals of the German Empire Field marshals of Prussia House of Hohenzollern Prussian people of the Austro-Prussian War German military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War Military personnel from Berlin People from the Province of Brandenburg Prussian princes Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Recipients of the Iron Cross (1870), 1st class Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Knights Commander of the Military Order of William Recipients of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights of Justice of the Order of St John 19th-century regents 20th-century regents