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Prince Charles of Prussia

Prince Frederick Charles Alexander of Prussia(German:Friedrich Karl Alexander;29 June 1801 – 21 January 1883) was a younger son ofFrederick William III of Prussia.He served as a Prussian general for much of his adult life and became the firstHerrenmeister(Grand Master) of theOrder of Saint Johnafter its restoration as a chivalric order.[1]Nevertheless, he is perhaps remembered more often for his patronage of art and for his sizable collections of art and armor.

Prince Charles of Prussia
Portrait of Charles in military uniform
Portrait byFranz Krüger,1852
Born(1801-06-29)29 June 1801
Charlottenburg Palace,Brandenburg,Holy Roman Empire
Died21 January 1883(1883-01-21)(aged 81)
Berlin,German Empire
Burial
Ss. Peter and Paul, Wannsee,Berlin
Spouse
​
​
(m.1827;died1877)​
Issue
Names
German:Friedrich Karl Alexander
English:Frederick Charles Alexander
HouseHouse of Hohenzollern
FatherFrederick William III of Prussia
MotherLouise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Background and family

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The Prussian Crown Prince and Princess arrive on the steamer "Ishora" inSt. Petersburgin June 1834, painting by Leopold Ludwig Müller

Charles was born inCharlottenburg PalacenearBerlin,the third son ofFrederick William III of Prussiaby his wifeLouise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.He was named Frederick Charles Alexander at birth, but came to be known as Charles, because there were several other Fredericks in his family at that time. His father was already King of Prussia by the time of Charles' birth, and both of his elder brothers were to succeed to the throne, while his elder sisterCharlottewould marry TsarNicholas I of Russia.Charles also had two younger sisters,AlexandraandLouise,and a younger brother,Albert.His male line granddaughterPrincess Louise Margaret of PrussiamarriedPrince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn,third son ofQueen Victoria.

Army career

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Photograph of Prince Charles of Prussia,c. 1860

Prince Charles entered thePrussian armyin 1811 at the age of ten, with the rank of lieutenant in a regiment of the guards. In 1819, he became a member of the PrussianStaatsrat.In 1820, he became a major in the First Regiment of Foot Guards. In 1822, he became colonel of the 12th Infantry Regiment. In 1824, he was promoted to major general. In 1830, he commanded the 2nd Guards Division. He was further promoted to lieutenant-general in 1832 and general of infantry in 1844. He served as Inspector-General (1848) and asGeneralfeldzeugmeisterand chief of the artillery (1854).

Charles served as Governor ofMainzfrom 1864 to 1866. In 1852, he becameHerrenmeisterof theOrder of Saint John (Bailiwick of Brandenburg).

Marriage and issue

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On 26 May 1827 inCharlottenburg,Charles marriedPrincess Marie of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach,a daughter ofCharles Frederick, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenachand his wifeGrand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia.[2]Two years later, in 1829, Marie's younger sisterAugustawould marry Charles' older brother,Wilhelm,the futureKaiser.

Charles and Marie had three children together:

Image Name Birth Death Notes
Prince Friedrich Karl Nikolaus of Prussia 20 March 1828 15 June 1885 MarriedPrincess Maria Anna of Anhalt-Dessau;father of 1 son and 3 daughters includingLouise Margaret, Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn.
Princess Marie Louise Anna of Prussia 1 March 1829 10 May 1901 MarriedAlexis, Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld
Princess Maria Anna Friederike of Prussia 17 May 1836 12 June 1918 MarriedFriedrich Wilhelm of Hesse-Kassel

The family lived inWilhelmstrasse,opposite the residence of German ChancellorOtto von Bismarck.[3]In possession of great wealth and a great art collector, his palace contained many art treasures.[1]Charles was also a collector of rare weaponry, and carefully acquired and preserved knives, swords, daggers, rifles, pistols, and revolvers from many different countries and time periods.[3]As a result of his vast collection, one source stated his palace was "one of the most famous repositories of bric-a-brac in Europe...his collection of arms and armor is believed to know no rival save in the great State armories at Turin and Vienna".[1]

Death

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The Study of Prince Karl of Prussia, byEduard Gaertner.

Marie died in January 1877, only five months before what would have been the golden jubilee of their wedding. Although they had married for family and dynastic reasons, their marriage had been happy and harmonious, and they had been deeply attached to each other. After her death, Charles aged rapidly, and gradually grew infirm from ailments typical of advancing age. In 1882, his foot slipped while he was getting up from the dinner table, causing him to fall down heavily and fracture his left thighbone.[1]The fall and fracture accentuated his ailments, and it was reported that survival was unlikely.[1]He died in Berlin a few months later, on 21 January 1883, aged 81. Hislast wordswere "Long live the Emperor."[2]

At the time of his death, Charles was the only surviving brother ofEmperor Wilhelm I.His death disrupted plans for the celebration of the silver wedding anniversary of his nephew,Crown Prince Frederick William,as well as plans for a visit from thePrinceand Princess of Walesto Berlin.[1][2]

Honours

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He received the following decorations and awards:[4]

German honours
Foreign honours

Ancestry

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References

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  1. ^abcdef"Prince Charles of Prussia",The New York Times,Berlin, 19 June 1882
  2. ^abc"Kaiser William's Brother Dead",The New York Times,Berlin, 22 January 1883
  3. ^ab"Prince Charles of Prussia",The New York Times,8 February 1883
  4. ^Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreich Preußen(1882–83), Genealogy p. 2
  5. ^abcdef"Königlich Preussische Ordensliste",Preussische Ordens-Liste(in German),1,Berlin:8,20,30,573,921,964,1877 – via hathitrust.org
  6. ^Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Herzogtum Anhalt(1867) "Herzoglicher Haus-orden Albrecht des Bären" p.16
  7. ^Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreichs Bayern(in German). Königl. Oberpostamt. 1867. p. 10.Retrieved15 July2019.
  8. ^Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Baden(1873), "Großherzogliche Orden"pp. 59,63,73
  9. ^Staatshandbücher für das Herzogtums Sachsen-Altenburg(1869), "Herzogliche Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden"p. 20
  10. ^Staat Hannover (1857).Hof- und Staatshandbuch für das Königreich Hannover: 1857.Berenberg. pp.32,64.
  11. ^Kurfürstlich Hessisches Hof- und Staatshandbuch: 1856.Waisenhaus. 1856. p. 11.
  12. ^Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Hessen(1879), "Großherzogliche Orden und Ehrenzeichen"pp. 10,130
  13. ^Hof- und Staatshandbuch des Großherzogtums Oldenburg: für das Jahr 1872/73,"Der Großherzogliche Haus-und Verdienst Orden" p. 30
  14. ^Staatshandbuch für das Großherzogtum Sachsen / Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach(1869), "Großherzogliche Hausorden"p. 11Archived14 June 2020 at theWayback Machine
  15. ^Staatshandbuch für das Großherzogtum Sachsen / Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach(1880), "Großherzogliche Hausorden"p. 13
  16. ^Staatshandbuch für den Freistaat Sachsen: 1865/66.Heinrich. 1866. p. 4.
  17. ^Württemberg (Kingdom). Statistisches Landesamt (1877).Staatshandbuch für Württemberg.Druck von W. Kohlhammer. pp.21,52.
  18. ^"A Szent István Rend tagjai"Archived22 December 2010 at theWayback Machine
  19. ^H. Tarlier (1854).Almanach royal officiel, publié, exécution d'un arrête du roi(in French). Vol. 1. p.37.
  20. ^Jørgen Pedersen (2009).Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009(in Danish). Syddansk Universitetsforlag. p. 468.ISBN978-87-7674-434-2.
  21. ^M. & B. Wattel (2009).Les Grand'Croix de la Légion d'honneur de 1805 à nos jours. Titulaires français et étrangers.Paris: Archives & Culture. p. 510.ISBN978-2-35077-135-9.
  22. ^The Royal Tourist—Kalakaua's Letters Home from Tokio to London. Editor: Richard A. Greer. Data: 10 March 1881
  23. ^Sovereign Ordonnance of 6 April 1869
  24. ^"Militaire Willems-Orde: Preussen, Friedrich Karl Alexander Prinz von"[Military William Order: Prussia, Frederick Charles Alexander Prince of].Ministerie van Defensie(in Dutch). 25 August 1878.Retrieved14 June2020.
  25. ^"Caballeros de la insigne orden del toisón de oro",Guía Oficial de España(in Spanish), 1882, p. 136,retrieved14 June2020
  26. ^"Sveriges statskalender"(in Swedish). 1877. p. 369.Retrieved6 January2018– via runeberg.org.
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Prince Charles of Prussia
Born:29 June 1801Died:21 January 1883
Preceded by Herrenmeister(Grand Master) of the Order of Saint John
1853–1883 		Succeeded by
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