William, Prince of Hohenzollern () (7 March 1864 – 22 October 1927) was the eldest son of

Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern (; 22 September 1835 – 8 June 1905) was the head of the Swabian branch of the House of Hohenzollern, and played a fleeting role in European power politics in connection with the Franco-Prussian War. He was born ...

and Infanta Antónia of Portugal. William was an older brother of Ferdinand of Romania. His first cousins included (among others)

Carlos I of Portugal Dom (title), ''Dom'' Carlos I (; 28 September 1863 – 1 February 1908), known as "the Diplomat" (), "the Oceanographer" () among many other names, was List of Portuguese monarchs, King of Portugal from 1889 until his Lisbon Regicide, assassin ...

Albert I of Belgium Albert I (8 April 1875 – 17 February 1934) was King of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 until his death in 1934. He is popularly referred to as the Knight King (, ) or Soldier King (, ) in Belgium in reference to his role during World War I ...

, Frederick Augustus III of Saxony, and Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony. Between 1880 and 1886, William was

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...

to the Romanian throne. On 20 December 1886, he renounced his rights to the throne in favour of his brother Ferdinand.Renunciation letter of Guillaume de Hohenzollern, in French, dated on 20 December 1886Gheorghe Bengescu (1907)- Bibliographie franco-roumaine depuis le commencement du XIXe siècle jusqu'à nos jours.
/ref>

Family

On 27 June 1889, William married Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Her parents were Prince Louis, Count of Trani and Mathilde Ludovika, Duchess in Bavaria. Louis was the eldest son of

Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies Ferdinand II (; ; ; 12 January 1810 – 22 May 1859) was King of the Two Sicilies from 1830 until his death in 1859. Family Ferdinand was born in Palermo to King Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his second wife Maria Isabella of Spain. ...

and his second wife Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria. Mathilde was the fourth daughter of Maximilian, Duke in Bavaria and Princess Ludovika of Bavaria. William and Maria Teresa had three children: * Augusta Victoria of Hohenzollern (19 August 1890 – 29 August 1966). Married first

Manuel II of Portugal Dom (title), Dom Manuel II (Manuel Maria Filipe Carlos Amélio Luís Miguel Rafael Gabriel Gonzaga Francisco de Assis Eugénio de Saxe-Coburgo-Gotha e Bragança; 15 November 1889 – 2 July 1932), sometimes known as Manuel the Unfortunate () or ...

and secondly Robert, Count Douglas. * Prince Frederick Victor of Hohenzollern (30 August 1891 – 6 February 1965). Married Princess Margarete Karola of Saxony. She was a daughter of Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and Archduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany. * Prince Francis Joseph of Hohenzollern, adopted the title ''Prince of Hohenzollern-Emden'' (30 August 1891 – 3 April 1964). He married Princess Maria Alix of Saxony, also a daughter of Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and Archduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany. William succeeded his father as

Prince of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern Castle, Hohenzollern, Margraviate of Bran ...

on 8 June 1905. Maria Teresa died on 1 May 1909. On 20 January 1915, Wilhelm married secondly Princess Adelgunde of Bavaria. She was a daughter of

Ludwig III of Bavaria Ludwig III (Ludwig Luitpold Josef Maria Aloys Alfred; 7 January 1845 – 18 October 1921) was the last King of Bavaria, reigning from 1913 to 1918. Initially, he served in the Bavarian Army, Bavarian military as a lieutenant and went on to hold ...

and Maria Theresia of Austria-Este. There were no children from this marriage. William's title was effectively abolished with the collapse of the

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 ...

. He continued to use his princely surname, which was permitted by the constitution.

Romanian succession

On 22 November 1880, William's father, Prince Leopold, renounced his rights to the succession of the

principality of Romania The United Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia (), commonly called United Principalities or Wallachia and Moldavia, was the personal union of the Moldavia, Principality of Moldavia and the Wallachia, Principality of Wallachia. The union was ...

Renunciation letter of Leopold de Hohenzollern, in French, dated on 22 November 1880" in favour of his sons. Having become familiar with the situation there, the 22-year-old William renounced all rights to the succession of the kingdom (since 1881) of

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

by a letter in French dated on 20 December 1886. In 1914, upon the death of king

Carol I of Romania Carol I or Charles I of Romania (born Karl Eitel Friedrich Zephyrinus Ludwig von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen; 20 April 1839 – ), was the monarch of Romania from 1866 to his death in 1914, ruling as Prince (''Domnitor'') from 1866 to 1881, and as ...

, William's next brother

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

became king.

Honours and awards

;German orders and decorations
Handbuch über den Königlich Preußischen Hof und Staat
' (1918), Genealogy p.6 ;Foreign orders and decorations
Handbuch über den Königlich Preussischen Hof und Staat
', 1908, p. 5

Ancestry

References

*"The Book of Kings: A Royal Genealogy" by C. Arnold McNaughton. {{DEFAULTSORT:William, Prince of Hohenzollern Princes of Hohenzollern Members of the Prussian House of Lords Nobility from Düsseldorf People from the Rhine Province Generals of Infantry (Prussia) 19th-century German landowners 1864 births 1927 deaths Recipients of the Iron Cross, 1st class Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Romania) Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Members of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre 2 2 Grand Crosses of Military Merit Military personnel from North Rhine-Westphalia German people of French descent German people of Portuguese descent Pretenders Heirs presumptive