Luise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Princess of Waldeck and Pyrmont

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

The County of Waldeck was a county within the Holy Roman Empire since 1180.  In 1625, the much smaller County of Pyrmont became part of the much larger County of Waldeck through inheritance and the combined territory was known as the County of Waldeck-Pyrmont. In 1712,  Friedrich Anton Ulrich, Count of Waldeck-Pyrmont was elevated to Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont by Holy Emperor Karl VI.

Friedrich, the last Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont, abdicated on November 13, 1918, and negotiated an agreement with the government that gave him and his descendants the ownership of the family home Arolsen Castle and Arolsen Forest. Today the territory that encompassed the Principality of Waldeck-Pyrmont is located in the German states of Hesse and Lower Saxony

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Luise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Princess of Waldeck and Pyrmont, 1886; Credit – Wikipedia

The second wife of Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Princess Luise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg was born on January 6, 1858, at Schloss Luisenlund in Kiel, Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Named Luise Karoline Juliane, she was the third of the three children and the second of the three daughters of Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and Princess Adelheid of Schaumburg-Lippe. Luise’s paternal grandparents were Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and Princess Luise Karoline of Hesse-Kassel. Her maternal grandparents were Georg Wilhelm, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe and Princess Ida of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

Luise had four siblings:

Luise’s husband Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont; Credit – Wikipedia

Helena of Nassau, the first wife of Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, had been in poor health for the last decade of her life and died on October 28, 1888, aged 57. On April 29, 1891, at Schloss Luisenlund in Güby, Duchy of Schleswig, now in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, 60-year-old Georg Viktor married 33-year-old Luise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg.

Luise became the stepmother to Georg Viktor’s five surviving children. Her eldest stepchild was three years older than Luise, the youngest was fifteen years younger.

Luise and Georg Viktor had one son Prince Wolrad of Waldeck and Pyrmont, born on June 26, 1892, in Arolsen, Principality of Waldeck-Pyrmont, now in the German state of Hesse. Through his half-sister Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, Wolrad was the uncle of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, the reigning monarch during World War I. He was also the uncle of Charles Edward, the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha during World War I, and Princess Alice of Albany through his half-sister Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont who had married Prince, Leopold, Duke of Albany, the youngest son of Queen Victoria.

A year after the birth of his son Wolrad, Georg Viktor, aged 62, died from pneumonia on May 12, 1893, in the spa town Marienbad, Kingdom of Bohemia, now in the Czech Republic. He was buried with his first wife Helena in the Princely Cemetery at Schloss Rhoden (link in German) in Rhoden, Principality of Waldeck-Pyrmont, now in the German state of Hesse.

Luise’s son Prince Wolrad of Waldeck and Pyrmont; Credit – Wikipedia

Because he showed little interest in his studies, Wolrad was directed toward a military career. He became a Lieutenant in the Dragoon Regiment of the Grand Ducal Hessian Division of the Imperial German Army. During World War I, he fought during the early battles, the Battle of the Frontiers (August 7 – September 6, 1914) and the First Battle of the Marne (September 6 – September 12, 1914). On the evening of October 17, 1914, two months after the start of World War I, Prince Wolrad led a cavalry patrol near Moorslede, Belgium. The patrol came under fire from the advancing British troops. Several of the dragoons were hit and fell off their horses and Prince Wolrad’s horse was also hit. The prince and his aide reached a nearby trench, but then Prince Wolrad saw one of his men lying injured a short distance from the trench. The prince crawled to the wounded man and tried to pull him to safety, but was fatally hit by gunfire and died from his wounds at the age of 22.

Luise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Princess of Waldeck and Pyrmont, 1907; Credit – Wikipedia

Luise survived her husband by 43 years, dying on July 2, 1936, aged 78, in Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. She was buried with her husband Georg Viktor, their son Wolrad, and her husband’s first wife Helena of Nassau in the Princely Cemetery at Schloss Rhoden (link in German) in Rhoden, Hesse, Germany.

Princely Mausoleum and Cemetery at Schloss Rhoden; Credit – www.findagrave.com

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Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2021). Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/georg-viktor-prince-of-waldeck-and-pyrmont/
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2021). Prince Wolrad of Waldeck-Pyrmont. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/prince-wolrad-of-waldeck-pyrmont/
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich,_Duke_of_Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Gl%C3%BCcksburg
  • Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Princess Louise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Louise_of_Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Gl%C3%BCcksburg