Category Archives: Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

source: Wikipedia

Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Prince Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Alfred Alexander William Ernest Albert), was the eldest child and only son of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, second son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, only surviving daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. Known within the family as ‘Young Affie’, he was born on October 15, 1874, at Buckingham Palace. At the time of his birth, he was styled HRH Prince Alfred of Edinburgh, as his father had not yet become Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

His christening was held November 27, 1874, in the Lower Bow Room at Buckingham Palace, with the following godparents:

Young Affie had four younger sisters:

Affie with his mother and sisters. source: Wikipedia

As it was expected he would one day inherit the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, young Affie was raised primarily in Germany. Separated from his family, he received a strict German education and later served as a Lieutenant in the Prussian 1st Foot Guards in Potsdam. But, unlike many of his relatives, he did not enjoy military life at all. It is believed that during this time he first contracted syphilis, which would later be a likely factor in his death.

In August 1893, his father succeeded to the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and young Alfred became the Hereditary Prince. Less than two years later, it was announced that Alfred was engaged to Duchess Elsa of Württemberg, but this marriage never took place.

In January 1899, he was noticeably absent from the celebrations for his parents’ 25th wedding anniversary. The details surrounding his death were never formally given, and vary from source to source. Some say he was suffering from a breakdown, others a tumor, others consumption. More than likely, he was suffering serious effects of syphilis he had contracted some years earlier. It is generally accepted that Prince Alfred shot himself while the rest of the family was gathered for the anniversary celebrations. Having survived the gunshot, he was cared for at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Thuringia, for several days, before being moved, against the doctors’ recommendation, to the Martinnsbrunn Sanatorium in Gratsch, near Meran, Austria (now Merano, Italy). This was apparently done at the direction of his mother who was both angry and embarrassed that his injury happened while the whole family was gathered together.

Prince Alfred, aged 24, died at the sanatorium on February 6, 1899. He was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum at the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, Duchess of Edinburgh, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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source: Wikipedia

Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, Duchess of Edinburgh, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia was the wife of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the second son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. She was born on October 17, 1853, at Tsarskoye Selo, near St. Petersburg, Russia, the only daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia and Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine.

Marie had seven siblings:

Marie with her father and siblings, 1860. source: Wikipedia

Raised as the only daughter, Maria was very close to her father, who was completely devoted to her. She also had very close relationships with her brothers but was not particularly close to her mother. Despite this, her mother’s death in 1880 was very difficult for Maria.

The Orthodox wedding of Maria and Alfred, painting by Nicholas Chevalier. source: Wikipedia

During a family holiday in Hesse in 1868, Marie first met Prince Alfred. Despite the misgivings of both her parents and Alfred’s mother, the couple was married on January 23, 1874, at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. Upon their return to London, they took up residence at Clarence House in London, and Eastwell Park in Kent, which they leased until 1893.

Marie and Alfred had five children:

The new Duchess of Edinburgh was not well received by British society, many of whom thought her very condescending and haughty. And from most accounts, this was very true. Used to the splendor and pageantry of the Russian court, she found the British court very dull by comparison. She also felt that, as the daughter of an Emperor, she should outrank all the other members of the British royal family – in particular, her sister-in-law, The Princess of Wales, who was merely the daughter of a king. Despite the demands of Marie and her father, Queen Victoria would not sanction anything of the sort.

In August 1893, her husband became the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha upon the death of his childless uncle, Ernst II. They had owned a home in Coburg – Palais Edinburg – since the early 1880s, but now took up permanent residence in Schloss Ehrenburg, the traditional ducal residence in the city. They also lived at Schloss Rosenau, which Ernst II had given to Alfred as his personal property. The new Grand Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Marie was very pleased with her new position, no longer outranked by her sisters-in-law, and no longer under the constant watchful eye of her mother-in-law. From that point on, she rarely spent any significant amount of time in Britain.

The Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha with their daughters, and the Dowager Duchess. source: Wikipedia

In 1899, Marie and Alfred celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. During the celebrations in January, their son Affie attempted suicide and died shortly thereafter. The following year, her husband died and the Ducal throne passed to his nephew, Charles Edward, Duke of Albany. Marie returned to Palais Edinburg and also spent much of her time at Schloss Rosenau.

The remaining years of her life saw the overthrow of the Russian monarchy, the murders of many of her Russian relatives, and the end of the Duchies of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Her last remaining brother, Grand Duke Paul, was murdered by the Bolsheviks in January 1919, leaving Marie the last of her generation.

The Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha died on October 24, 1920, in Zurich, Switzerland. Legend has it that she received a telegram addressed to ‘Frau Coburg’ which distressed her so greatly that it caused her death. She is buried alongside her husband in the Ducal Mausoleum at the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany.

Following her death, Palais Edinburg was left to her daughter, Princess Alexandra. The villa behind it, which had formed part of the residence, was left to her daughter Victoria Melita and became known as the Kirill Palace. Both would eventually be sold to the government around 1940.

The Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery. photo: by Störfix – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4010189

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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source: Wikipedia

Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was the fourth child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Born at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England on August 6, 1844, Alfred was christened on September 6, 1844, in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle with the names Alfred Ernest Albert. His godparents were:

Alfred had eight siblings:

 

After being educated at home, along with his older brother The Prince of Wales (future King Edward VII), Alfred entered the British Navy at just 14 years old. Rising quickly through the ranks, by February 1866 he had been elevated to the rank of Captain, and the following year was given command of his own ship, HMS Galatea.

During his military career, Alfred found himself potentially taking a throne of his own. After having deposed their ruler, King Otto, the people of Greece voted to determine the future of the Greek monarchy. Prince Alfred received 95% of the votes. Despite this, under the terms of the London Conference of 1832, members of the ruling families of the Great Powers (Britain, France, and Russia) were prohibited from ascending the Greek throne. In addition, Queen Victoria was adamantly opposed to the idea, as Alfred was already intended to succeed his uncle Ernst as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Alfred’s father and elder brother had both renounced their rights of succession, leaving Alfred as heir-apparent to his uncle. The Greek throne ended up going to Prince Vilhelm of Denmark, who reigned as King George I of the Hellenes.

Along with his military career, from 1863-1865, Prince Alfred studied at the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Bonn. With his future role as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in mind, in 1865 Alfred purchased a palace in Coburg, just across the square from Schloss Ehrenburg, the official ducal residence. This palace – known as Palais Edinburg – would be his residence in Coburg until his accession 28 years later. The following year, in May 1866, he was created Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Ulster, and Earl of Kent. Along with this came a parliamentary allowance of £15,000 per year, and a seat in the House of Lords.

From a young age, Prince Alfred developed a strong interest in stamp collecting. Through the years, he amassed a rather extensive collection, which he later sold to King Edward VII who passed it on to his son, King George V. Today, it forms part of the Royal Philatelic Collection, housed at St James’ Palace in London, England.

On January 24, 1867, Alfred set sail on HMS Galatea for a trip around the world. Following a visit to Cape Town in South Africa, he arrived in Australia on October 31 – the first British royal to set foot in the country. On March 12, 1868, while visiting Sydney, Prince Alfred was the victim of an assassination attempt. An Irishman, Henry James O’Farrell, fired at the Prince from behind, striking him just to the side of his spine. Alfred was quickly taken to Government House in Sydney, where he spent several weeks recovering before again assuming command of his ship and returning home in June 1868. In an outpouring of support for the Prince, the people voted for some sort of memorial to be built in his honor. This led to the construction of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney. In addition to being the first British royal in Australia, Prince Alfred was also the first to visit New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong, India, and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in visits over the next several years.

 

On January 24, 1874, at the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, Russia, Alfred married Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, the only daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia and Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine. The couple settled at Clarence House in London, England, and Eastwell Park in Kent, England which they leased until 1893.

Alfred and Marie had five children:

Over the next nearly twenty years, Alfred’s distinguished naval career saw him serve as Admiral Superintendent of Naval Reserves, Commander-in-Chief of both the Channel Fleet and the Mediterranean Fleet, as well as Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth. And in June 1893, he was made Admiral of the Fleet, the highest rank in the British Navy.

Prince Alfred (right) with his brothers Edward, Prince of Wales (left) and Arthur, Duke of Connaught, June 1893. source: Wikipedia

However, his Royal Navy career would soon come to an end. On August 23, 1893, Alfred’s uncle Ernst died, and he became the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. While this had been the plan for many years, Alfred resented having to give up his naval career as well as his British life. He gave up his annuity and his seat in the House of Lords and became the first person to voluntarily resign from the Privy Council. However, he successfully petitioned Parliament to continue the separate funding he received to maintain Clarence House for the rest of his life.

The transition to his new position was not easy. The people were mostly against the idea of a British prince being their Duke (despite the fact that his father was born a Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha). But Alfred managed to build up the people’s confidence in him, and soon became quite popular. Leaving most of the governing to the State Ministry, Alfred instead spent his time traveling, hunting, and following all the latest advances of the Royal Navy – the career which he missed greatly.

Sadly, his reign would be rather short. On July 30, 1900, at Schloss Rosenau, in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany, Alfred died from throat cancer at the age of 55. He was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenburg Cemetery in Coburg. He was succeeded by his nephew, Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Albany, son of his late brother Leopold.

The Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery. photo: by Störfix – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4010189

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Recommended Book

  • Dearest Affie: Alfred, Queen Victoria’s Second Son – John Van Der Kiste

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Queen Victoria Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (Viktoria Adelheid Helene Luise Marie Friederike) was born on December 31, 1885, at Grünholz Manor (link in German) in Thumby, Duchy of Schleswig-Holstein, now in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. She was the eldest of the six children of Friedrich Ferdinand, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and his wife Princess Karoline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg. Her father was the eldest son of Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and a nephew of King Christian IX of Denmark. Her mother was a granddaughter of Princess Feodora of Leiningen, the half-sister of Queen Victoria from her mother’s first marriage.

Princess Viktoria Adelheid’s birthplace Grünholz Manor; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Viktoria Adelheid had four sisters and one brother:

Viktoria Adelheid and Charles Edward in1905; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

On February 15, 1905, at a court ball at the Berliner Stadtschloss, the engagement of Viktoria Adelheid and Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was announced. Charles Edward, born a British prince, was the only son of Queen Victoria’s youngest son Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany and Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont.  Sadly, Prince Leopold, who had inherited hemophilia from his mother, died following a fall three months before Charles Edward was born.  Charles Edward became Duke of Albany at birth and succeeded his uncle Alfred as the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha at the age of 16.  The wedding was held on October 11, 1905, at Glücksburg Castle.

The couple had five children:

Viktoria Adelheid and her family in 1918; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

After World War I, Charles Edward abdicated from the throne of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. During the period between the two World Wars, Charles Edward became active in the Nazi Party.  In 1932, Princess Sibylla, the daughter of Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid, married Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Duke of Västerbotten. As Sibylla’s father was a prominent member of the Nazi Party, the wedding almost was a state affair. Adolf Hitler, who would soon become the German Chancellor, wrote a letter to Sibylla’s father congratulating the couple. The civil service was held on October 19, 1932, at Veste Castle in Coburg with the Nazi mayor of Coburg officiating, followed by a large reception, which included a torchlight procession of 4,000 members of the Nazi party. The religious wedding was held on the following day at St. Moritz Church in Coburg. During the wedding festivities, numerous swastikas and other Nazi symbols could be seen throughout Coburg. The Nazi connection did not sit well with the Swedish people, and the groom’s grandfather King Gustaf V of Sweden, protesting Coburg’s close relation to the Nazi Party, refused to attend the wedding.

Pre-wedding activities 1932 from left to right: Charles Edward, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Princess Sibylla (bride), Prince Gustaf Adolf (groom), Crown Princess Louise of Sweden, Viktoria Adelheid; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Three sons of Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid served in the German armed forces during World War II and their son Hubertus was killed in action in 1943. After the end of World War II, Charles Edward was placed under house arrest on June 4, 1945, at his residence, the Veste Coburg, because of his Nazi sympathies. Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid were housed in a stable cottage on the grounds of the Veste Coburg. Charles Edward’s sister Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone and her husband the 1st Earl of Athlone came to Coburg to plead for his release but were unsuccessful. However, they were able to successfully negotiate for an improvement in the couple’s living conditions. Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid were able to move into a part of one of their own houses, close to the market where it was easier for them to do their own shopping.

Several times Charles Edward faced trial for his alleged Nazi activities. His relatives insisted that his support of the Nazis had not been for ideological reasons, but because Charles Edward believed Hitler could save Germany from Communism, and that he had confined himself to the humanitarian activities of the German Red Cross. In 1949, a denazification appeals court classified Charles Edward as a Nazi Follower, Category IV. He was heavily fined and almost bankrupted.

After World War II, some of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha properties that were now in East Germany were seized. The family was left with Schloss Callenberg in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany and Schloss Greinburg an der Donau in Grein, Austria. These two properties are still owned by the family. Charles Edward spent the last years of his life in seclusion. He died of cancer on March 6, 1954, at the age of 69 in Coburg and was buried in the family cemetery in the forest of Schloss Callenberg.

After her husband’s death, Viktoria Adelheid spent time traveling, often with her sister-in-law, Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone. Viktoria Adelheid was much happier than she had been during the dark days after World War II. She spoke animatedly in broken English or Princess Alice, whose German was excellent, provided a rapid translation.  Viktoria Adelheid died on October 3, 1970, at the age of 84 at Schloss Greinburg in Grein, Austria, and was buried beside her husband in the Waldfriedhof (Forest Cemetery) at Schloss Callenberg.

Cemetery at Schloss Callenberg; Credit – By I, Presse03, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2524640

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. In 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Prince Charles Edward was born at Claremont House near Esher, Surrey, England on July 19, 1884. He was the only son and the second of the two children of Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany and his wife Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont. Sadly, Charles Edward’s father died three months before he was born. Prince Leopold, who inherited hemophilia from his mother Queen Victoria, died at age 30 from a fall that caused a cerebral hemorrhage, the injuries having been exacerbated by his hemophilia. Luckily, Charles Edward was in no danger of inheriting hemophilia. Males have XY chromosomes and females have XX chromosomes. Each parent transmits one chromosome to their offspring. Hemophilia is transmitted on the X chromosome. The hemophiliac male will transmit his Y chromosome to his sons, and therefore the sons will not have hemophilia. However, all daughters of hemophiliac males will be carriers as they all will receive their father’s X chromosome with the hemophilia gene. For more information see Unofficial Royalty: Hemophilia in Queen Victoria’s Family.

His father Prince Leopold had always been drawn to the story of the Stuarts who lost the throne and wanted his son to be named Charles Edward for Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, also known as Bonnie Prince Charlie. The infant prince was named Leopold Charles Edward George Albert. Formally he was known as Charles Edward and in the family, he was called Charlie. At his birth, Charles Edward inherited his father’s title Duke of Albany.

About two weeks after his birth, Charles Edward became ill and it was thought advisable to baptize him privately at Claremont House on August 4, 1884. Later in the year, he was christened publicly on December 4, 1884, at Christ Church in Esher, Surrey, England. His godparents were:

Charles had one older sibling, a sister:

 

Charles Edward and his sister Alice were first educated at home by their governess Miss Jane Potts. After Charles Edward got to be “too much for Miss Potts,” as his sister says in her memoir For My Grandchildren, he was sent as a day student to Sanroyd School, then to prep school at Lyndhurst and on to Eton College.  Charles Edward remained at Eton College until an event occurred that would change his life drastically.

Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was the second of the two sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.  Albert’s elder brother succeeded their father as Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.  Ernst II had married Princess Alexandrine of Baden, but when it became increasingly clear that the marriage would produce no children, a plan for the succession needed to be devised. A union between the United Kingdom and the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was undesirable. For most of Ernst II’s reign, his brother Albert was the heir presumptive. When Albert died in 1861, his second son Alfred became the heir presumptive after his older brother, the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII of the United Kingdom), renounced his succession rights.

Alfred married and had one son and four daughters, and his son Alfred (known as Young Affie) became the next in the line of succession. In 1893, Ernst II died and Alfred became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his son Young Affie became Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Young Affie was involved in a scandal with his mistress and shot himself during his parents’ 25th wedding anniversary celebrations. His parents sent him off to a spa to recover, but Young Affie died two weeks later on February 6, 1899. Prince Albert’s third son, Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, had renounced the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha succession for himself and his only son Prince Arthur of Connaught. That left only Charles Edward. It is rumored that Prince Arthur of Connaught, who was attending Eton with Charles Edward, threatened to beat up his cousin if he did not accept the duchy.

In 1899, 15-year-old Charles Edward left Eton to continue his education in Germany. Various relatives argued about where Charles Edward should attend school. Finally, Cousin Willy, Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia, arranged for Charles Edward to attend Leichterfelde Military Cadet Academy, the German equivalent of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. The Duchess of Albany and her daughter Alice stayed a prolonged time in Germany to ease Charles Edward’s adjustment, but the adjustment did not last long. Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha died of throat cancer on July 30, 1900, and 16-year-old Charles Edward became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. After becoming Duke, Charles Edward continued his education at the University of Bonn where he studied law and political science. Until Charles Edward reached his 21st birthday, Hereditary Prince Ernst of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, the husband of Alfred’s daughter Alexandra, served as the Regent of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

 

On February 15, 1905, at a court ball at the Berliner Stadtschloss, the engagement of Charles Edward and Princess Viktoria Adelheid of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg was announced. Viktoria Adelheid, who was called Dick in the family, was the niece of Empress Augusta Victoria, wife of Charles Edward’s first cousin Wilhelm II, German Emperor, and Wilhelm is said to have selected the bride. She was the eldest daughter of Friedrich Ferdinand, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein and Princess Karoline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg. The wedding was held on October 11, 1905, at Glücksburg Castle.

Charles Edward and Viktoria Adelheid in 1905; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

The couple had five children:

Charles Edward and his family in 1918; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Charles Edward showed a great interest in cars and early aviation. In 1910 in Gotha, he built an airplane landing site with a hangar and a flying school. In 1913, he was involved in transforming the Gotha Coach Factory into an airplane manufacturer.

During World War I, Charles Edward was a General on the staff of the General Command of the 3rd Army of the German Empire. Before 1867, the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had its own army, but in 1867 a treaty was signed with Prussia, and the Duchy’s army was added to the 6th Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 95 of the 22nd Division of the Army Corps.  Charles Edward considered the 6th Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 95 his army and accompanied the regiment to the front. He visited the regiment often and spent more than one-third of World War I with the regiment. In December 1914, Charles Edward was promoted to General of Infantry. Although he held the rank of General, Charles Edward had no active command during World War I. To demonstrate his unconditional loyalty to the German Empire, Carl Edward signed a law on March 12, 1917, that said non-German members of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha could not be in the line of succession and succeed to the throne if their home country was at war with the German Empire. An attack on London on June 17, 1917, by seventeen twin-engine bombers built at Charles Edward’s Gotha Coach Factory cost 160 lives and increased the anti-German sentiment in the United Kingdom.

Charles Edward visiting the troops in 1914; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Charles Edward had been invested as a Knight of the Garter in 1902, but he was struck off the roll of the Order of the Garter in 1915 by his first cousin King George V of the United Kingdom along with six other Austrian or German royals. Further action was taken against him after the British Parliament passed the 1917 Titles Deprivation Act which allowed the Privy Council to investigate “any persons enjoying any dignity or title as a peer or British prince who have, during the present war, borne arms against His Majesty or His Allies, or who have adhered to His Majesty’s enemies.” Under the terms of that act, an Order in Council on March 28, 1919, formally removed Charles Edward’s British peerages, the Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and the Baron of Arklow. Charles Edward and his children also lost their titles of Prince and Princess of the United Kingdom and the styles Royal Highness and Highness. Along with Charles Edward, three others, Ernst August, Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale, Earl of Armagh; Ernst August (Duke of Brunswick), Prince of Great Britain and Ireland; and Henry, Viscount Taaffe of Corren and Baron of Ballymote, lost their titles. According to the Titles Deprivation Act, the male heirs of these four people have the right to petition for restoration of their titles but no heir has ever done so.

On November 9, 1918, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed Charles Edward as Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. Saxe-Coburg and Gotha broke into two republics, Coburg and Gotha. In 1920, Gotha joined the newly created state of Thuringia, while Coburg joined the Free State of Bavaria. After losing his throne, being branded as a traitor by his birth country, and fearing the threat of Communism, Charles Edward searched for something new. He became associated with various right-wing paramilitary and political organizations. In 1932, he took part in the creation of the Harzburg Front, through which the German National People’s Party became associated with the Nazi Party.

Charles Edward first met Adolf Hitler on October 14, 1922, when he welcomed Hitler as a guest of honor at a festival in Coburg. In the following decades, Charles Edward met Hitler personally at least 21 times. After the first electoral successes of the Nazi Party in Coburg in 1929, Charles Edward openly supported the Nazi Party. On March 23, 1932, in the Coburg National newspaper, Charles Edward supported Hitler in the presidential election against the incumbent Paul von Hindenburg. After the Nazi Party won the general election in 1933, the Nazi swastika flag was flown over the Veste Coburg, the home of Charles Edward.

As a result of his support of the Nazi Party, Charles Edward was appointed to several positions and represented the Nazi Party in Germany and abroad. He became a member of the Sturmabteilung (SA or Brownshirts), the paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party, and rose to the rank of Obergruppenführer.  He served as president of the German Red Cross from 1933 to 1945, and the German Red Cross became a part of the Nazi Party and was no longer affiliated with the neutral International Red Cross. In December of 1935, Charles Edward was elected President of the German-English Society, whose goal was to explore a possible pact between the two countries. In January 1936, Charles Edward returned to his home country when he represented Adolf Hitler at the funeral of King George V. After King Edward VIII abdicated the British throne and married Wallis Simpson, it was Charles Edward who hosted their unauthorized trip to Germany in 1937. Charles Edward was too old for active service during World War II, but three of his sons served in the German armed forces, and his son Hubertus was killed in action in 1943.

Charles Edward giving a speech as President of the German Red Cross in 1936; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

After the end of World War II, Charles Edward was placed under house arrest on June 4, 1945, at his residence, the Veste Coburg, because of his Nazi sympathies. Charles Edward and his wife were housed in a stable cottage on the grounds of the Veste Coburg. His sister Alice and her husband came to Coburg to plead for his release but they were unsuccessful. However, they were able to successfully negotiate for an improvement in Charles Edward’s living conditions. Charles Edward and his wife were able to move into a part of one of their own houses, close to the market where it was easier for them to do their shopping. Several times Charles Edward faced trial for his alleged Nazi activities. In 1949, a denazification appeals court classified Charles Edward as a Nazi Follower, Category IV. He was heavily fined and almost bankrupted.

After World War II, some of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha properties that were now in East Germany were seized.  The family was left with Schloss Callenberg in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany and Schloss Greinburg an der Donau in Grein, Austria. Charles Edward spent the last years of his life in seclusion. He died of cancer on March 6, 1954, at the age of 69 in his apartment on Elsässer Straße (Street) in Coburg, Bavaria, Germany, and was buried in the Waldfriedhof (Forest Cemetery) at Schloss Callenberg. His wife Viktoria Adelheid died on October 3, 1970, and was buried beside her husband.

The cemetery at Schloss Callenberg; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

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Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha could have become Queen Consort of Sweden if her husband had not tragically died in a plane accident. Sibylla Calma Marie Alice Bathildis Feodora was born on January 18, 1908, at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha in the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany. Sibylla was the second of the five children of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. Her father was the posthumous son of Queen Victoria’s youngest son Prince Leopold, so, therefore, Sibylla was a great-grandchild of Queen Victoria. Sibylla started her education at home and then attended the Gymnasium Alexandrinum in Coburg and the Kunstgewerbeschule in Weimar, Saxony.

Sibylla had an elder brother and two younger brothers and a younger sister:

  • Johann Leopold, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1906 – 1972) married (1) unequally 1932 Feodora, Baroness von der Horst, renounced his rights as head of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; divorced 1962; had issue (2) 1963 Maria Theresa Reindl, no issue
  • Prince Hubertus (1909 – 1943) unmarried, killed in action during World War II
  • Princess Caroline Mathilde (1912 – 1983) married (1) 1931 Friedrich, Count of Castell-Rüdenhausen; divorced; had issue (2) 1938 Captain Max Schnirring who died in action during World War II; had issue (3) 1946 Karl Otto Andree; divorced; no issue
  • Prince Friedrich Josias (1918 – 1998) married (1) 1942 Countess Viktoria-Luise of Solms-Baruth; divorced; had issue (2) 1948 Denyse de Muralt; divorced; had issue (3) 1964 Katherine Bremme; no issue

Princess Sibylla (center) with her parents and siblings in 1918; Photo Credit – “Bundesarchiv Bild 183-R14326, Karl-Eduard von Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, Familie” by Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R14326 / CC-BY-SA. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 de via Wikimedia Commons

Sibylla’s father was affected by the Titles Deprivation Act 1917 which was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom authorizing enemies of the United Kingdom during World War I to be deprived of their British peerages and royal titles. Besides being the sovereign Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Sibylla’s father had been born a Prince of the United Kingdom. Because his father Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany died before his son’s birth Charles Edward succeeded to his father’s titles at birth and he was styled His Royal Highness The Duke of Albany. In 1900, at the age of 16, Charles Edward inherited the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from his uncle Alfred, the second son of Queen Victoria. Alfred’s only son, Prince Alfred died in 1899. Queen Victoria’s third son Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, had renounced his claims to the duchy as did his only son, Prince Arthur of Connaught. Charles Edward was conflicted as to what side he should support in World War I, but he finally supported Germany and was a general in the German Army. On March 28, 1919, Charles Edward’s British peerages, the Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and Baron of Arklow, were formally removed. In addition, Charles Edward and his children also lost their entitlement to the titles of Prince and Princess of the United Kingdom and the styles Royal Highness and Highness.

In November 1931, Sibylla was a bridesmaid at the wedding of Lady May Cambridge, a niece of Queen Mary, wife of King George V of the United Kingdom. One of the other bridesmaids was Princess Ingrid of Sweden, who introduced Sibylla to her brother, Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden, Duke of Västerbotten. Prince Gustaf Adolf was the eldest son of Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden (the future King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden) and was therefore second in the line of succession to the Swedish throne. Sibylla and Gustaf Adolf, who were second cousins, became engaged on June 16, 1932.

The Nazi Party was gaining considerable power in Germany at the time. As Sibylla’s father was a prominent member of the Nazi Party, the wedding almost was a state affair. Adolf Hitler, who would soon become the German Chancellor, wrote a letter to Sibylla’s father congratulating the couple. The civil service was held on October 19, 1932, at Veste Castle in Coburg with the Nazi Mayor of Coburg officiating, followed by a large reception, which included a torchlight procession of 4,000 members of the Nazi party. The religious wedding was held on the following day at St. Moritz Church in Coburg. During the wedding festivities, numerous swastikas and other Nazi symbols could be seen throughout Coburg. The Nazi connection did not sit well with the Swedish people, and the groom’s grandfather King Gustaf V of Sweden, protesting Coburg’s close relation to the Nazi Party, refused to attend the wedding.

 

Sibylla and Gustaf Adolf had four daughters and one son:

The couple lived at Haga Palace and their daughters were nicknamed the Haga Princesses. Princess Sibylla participated in official duties, but she never felt at home in Sweden. She never learned to speak fluent Swedish and spoke German with her children. In addition, she had to deal with the distrust caused by the crimes of the Germans during World War II and the activities of her father in the Nazi Party.

Tragically, Prince Gustaf Adolf was killed in a commercial airplane crash on January 26, 1947, at the Kastrup Airport in Kastrup, Denmark near Copenhagen.  He was returning to Stockholm from a hunting trip and a visit to Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands. The plane had landed at Kastrup Airport for a routine stop before continuing to Stockholm. After the plane took off from Kastrup Airport, it climbed to an altitude of only 150 feet, stalled, and plummeted nose-first to the ground, where it exploded on impact. All 22 people aboard the plane were killed. Sibylla was a 39-year-old widow with five children ranging in age from nine months to 12 years old.

After her stepmother-in-law Queen Louise died in 1965, Sibylla was the senior royal princess and acted in a supporting role for her father-in-law King Gustaf VI Adolf. She became more popular and continued the activities started by Queen Louise such as the ladies’ democratic lunches.

 

Unfortunately, Sibylla did not live long enough to see her son Carl Gustaf become king. Her last public appearance was on King Gustaf VI Adolf’s 90th birthday on November 11, 1972. On November 28, 1972, Sibylla died of colon cancer at the age of 64, less than a year before her son would become king. At her request, Sibylla’s remains were cremated and interred next to her husband at the Royal Cemetery at Haga Park in Solna, Sweden.

Grave of Prince Gustaf Adolf and Princess Sibylla; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

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