Princess Pauline Olga Helene Emma of Württemberg (19 December 18777 May 1965) was the only child of William II of Württemberg and Princess Marie of Waldeck and Pyrmont to reach adulthood. Pauline was the wife of William Frederick, Prince of Wied, and worked for many years as the regional director of the German Red Cross in western Germany.

Early life

Pauline was born at

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

in the Kingdom of Württemberg, the elder daughter of William II of Württemberg (1848–1921) by his first wife, Princess Marie of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1857–1882). Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh (editor). Burke's Guide to the Royal Family, Burke's Peerage, London, 1973, pp. 210-212, 215-216, 258, 302. She became their only surviving child after the deaths of her brother Prince Ulrich and unnamed stillborn sister.

World War II

She was indicted for concealing, since October 1945, a pair of important Nazis by a military court of the United States. She confessed to knowingly sheltering Gertrud Scholtz-Klink and her spouse, former SS Maj. General August Heissmeyer.Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
Fashioning a Nation
retrieved 12 December 2018.

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

. 3 March 1948. Princess indicted for helping the Nazis. The Princess was aware that Scholtz-Klink was the head of the Nazi women's organizations, but she denied that she had been aware of Heissmayer's SS position. Princess Pauline was bailed out of custody but scheduled for trial in March 1948. She stated that she came to know Scholtz-Klink during the years when both women headed significant institutions under the Nazis, the Princess asserting that she had then been the director of the German Red Cross for

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

, Nassau, the

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

and

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

. Heissmeyer and Scholtz-Klink informed the French that they asked for Princess Pauline's aid in 1945; Princess Pauline arranged for them to stay inconspicuously in

Bebenhausen Bebenhausen () is a village (pop. 347) in the Tübingen district, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Since 1974 it is a district of the city of Tübingen, its least populous one. It is located 3 km north of Tübingen proper (about 5 km northeast of t ...

, where they were arrested by Allied authorities.

Marriage and family

Princess Pauline married on 29 October 1898 in

to William Frederick, Prince of Wied (1872–1945), son of

William, Prince of Wied William V, Prince of Wied (; 22 August 184522 October 1907) was a German army officer and politician, elder son of Hermann, Prince of Wied. He was the father of William, Prince of Albania and brother of Queen Elisabeth of Romania. By birth he ...

and the spectacularly wealthy

Princess Marie of the Netherlands Princess Marie of the Netherlands (; 5 June 184122 June 1910) was the fourth child and younger daughter of Prince Frederick of the Netherlands and wife of William, 5th Prince of Wied. She was the mother of William, Prince of Albania. She was the ...

. Her husband's elder brother was

William, Prince of Albania Wilhelm, Prince of Albania (Wilhelm Friedrich Heinrich; , 26 March 1876 – 18 April 1945) was sovereign of the Principality of Albania from 7 March to 3 September 1914. His reign officially came to an end on 31 January 1925, when the country w ...

, and she was a first cousin of the Dutch queen,

Wilhelmina of the Netherlands Wilhelmina (; Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria; 31 August 1880 – 28 November 1962) was List of monarchs of the Netherlands, Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. She reigned for nearly 58 years, making her the longest- ...

. They had 2 children: *Hermann, Hereditary Prince of Wied (18 August 1899 – 5 November 1941), married Countess Marie Antonia von

Stolberg-Wernigerode The County of Stolberg-Wernigerode () was a county of the Holy Roman Empire located in the Harz region around Wernigerode, now part of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg. History The Counts of Wernigerode h ...

, and had issue, including Friedrich Wilhelm, Prince of Wied, who married Princess Guda of Waldeck und Pyrmont, daughter of

Josias, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont Josias, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont () (13 May 1896 – 30 November 1967) was the heir apparent to the throne of the Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont and a general in the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS). From 1946 until his death, he wa ...

. *Prince Dietrich of Wied (30 October 1901 – 8 June 1976), married Countess Antoinette Julia von Grote, and had issue. The Countess was a niece of Countess Thyra von Grote, who married German diplomat Martin Rücker von Jenisch, in 1905, She was also a niece of American expatriate Harry Van Bergen and a granddaughter of businessman Anthony T. Van Bergen.

Descendants

Through Prince Dietrich, she was a grandmother of Prince Maximilian (1929–2008), Prince Ulrich (1931–2010) and Prince Ludwig-Eugen (1938–2001). Her grandson Prince Ulrich married Ilke Fischer and they were the parents of Prince Ulrich (b. 1970), who married Clarissa Elizabeth Makepeace-Massingham (b. 1971); and Prince Marie (b. 1973), who married Friedrich, Hereditary Duke of Württemberg (1961–2018), eldest son of

Carl, Duke of Württemberg Carl Herzog von Württemberg (''Carl Maria Peter Ferdinand Philipp Albrecht Joseph Michael Pius Konrad Robert Ulrich''; 1 August 1936 – 7 June 2022) was the head of the House of Württemberg from 1975 to 2022. He was succeeded by his grandson ...

and heir to 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 ...

. Hereditary Duke Friedrich died in a car accident in 2018 and his funeral was attended by King

Philippe Philippe is a masculine given name, cognate to Philip, and sometimes also a surname. The name may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince ...

and

Queen Mathilde of Belgium Mathilde Marie Christine Ghislaine d'Udekem d'Acoz (; born 20 January 1973) is Queen of the Belgians as the wife of King Philippe. She is the first native-born Belgian queen, and has four children. She formerly worked as a speech therapist. ...

Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein Hans-Adam II (Johannes Adam Ferdinand Alois Josef Maria Marco d'Aviano Pius; born 14 February 1945) is the Prince of Liechtenstein, reigning since 1989. He is the son of Prince Franz Joseph II and his wife, Countess Georgina von Wilczek. He a ...

, and Bernhard, Hereditary Prince of Baden.

Ancestry

References

External links

*The Royal House of Stuart, London, 1969, 1971, 1976, Addington, A. C., Reference: 218 *L'Allemagne dynastique, Huberty, Giraud, Magdelaine, Reference: II 547 ; III 74 {{DEFAULTSORT:Pauline Of Wurttemberg 1877 births 1965 deaths Nobility from Stuttgart House of Wied-Neuwied Princesses of Württemberg Daughters of kings Royalty in the Nazi Party Nazis convicted of crimes Prisoners and detainees of the United States military