by Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2015
Photo Credit – Wikipedia
Princess Hermine Reuss of Greiz, the second wife of Wilhelm II, formerly German Emperor, was born on December 17, 1887, in Greiz, Principality of Reuss-Greiz, German Empire, now in Thuringia, Germany. She was the fifth of the sixth children of Heinrich XXII, 5th Prince Reuss of Greiz and his wife Princess Ida of Schaumburg-Lippe. Hermine had one brother and four sisters:
- Heinrich XXIV, 6th Prince Reuss of Greiz (1878 – 1927), unmarried
- Princess Emma Reuss of Greiz (1881 – 1961), married Count Erich von Ehrenburg, had one son and one daughter
- Princess Marie Reuss of Greiz (1882 – 1942), married Baron Ferdinand von Gnagnoni, no children
- Princess Caroline Reuss of Greiz (1884 – 1905), married Wilhelm Ernst, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, no children
- Princess Ida Reuss of Greiz (1891 – 1977), married Prince Christoph Martin III zu Stolberg-Rossla (link in German), had two sons and two daughters
Hermine (on the left) and her sisters in 1903; Photo Credit – Wikipedia
When Hermine was not quite four-years-old, her mother died and Hermine was raised by Louise, Grand Duchess of Baden, the daughter of Wilhelm I, German Emperor and King of Prussia.
On January 7, 1907, Hermine married Prince Johann Georg von Schoenaich-Carolath, who died in 1920 from tuberculosis. Hermine and Johann Georg had five children:
- Prince Hans Georg von Schönaich-Carolath (1907 – 1943), married Baroness Sibylle von Zedlitz und Leipe, killed in action during World War II
- Prince Georg Wilhelm von Schönaich-Carolath (1909 – 1927), died unmarried
- Princess Hermine von Schönaich-Carolath (born 9 May 1910), married Hugo Herbert Hartung
- Prince Ferdinand von Schönaich-Carolath (1913 –1973), married (1) Rose Rauch, married (2) Baroness Margret von Seckendorff
- Princess Henriette von Schönaich-Carolath (1918 – 1972), married Prince Karl Franz of Prussia (grandson of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and only child of Prince Joachim of Prussia), had three children including Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia whose wife Maria Vladimirovna, Grand Duchess of Russia is a claimant to the Headship of the Imperial Family of Russia
Hermine with her children in 1923; Photo Credit – Wikipedia
In January 1922, one of Hermine’s sons sent birthday wishes to Wilhelm II, formerly German Emperor, living in exile at Huis Doorn in Doorn, the Netherlands, who then invited the boy and his mother to Doorn. Wilhelm found Hermine very attractive and greatly enjoyed her company. Having both been recently widowed, the two had much in common. Wilhelm was determined to marry Hermine despite objections from his children. 63-year-old Wilhelm and 34-year-old Hermine married on November 5, 1922, in Doorn. Although Wilhelm had abdicated, he continued to use his royal styles and titles and therefore Hermine was styled Her Imperial Majesty The German Empress, Queen of Prussia.
Wilhelm and Hermine in 1933 at Huis Doorn; Photo Credit – Wikipedia
Hermine’s youngest child Princess Henriette came to live with Hermine and Wilhelm at Huis Doorn. Wilhelm stayed out of his stepchildren’s affairs, with the exception of Henriette. He seemed to have a genuine affection for her, and she came to be known as “the general”. On August 6, 1940, at his residence at Doorn, Wilhelm officially announced the engagement of his stepdaughter Princess Henriette and his grandson Prince Karl Franz of Prussia, the only child of Wilhelm’s son Prince Joachim who had died by suicide in 1920. The couple married at Huis Doorn on October 5, 1940, had three children and divorced in 1946.
Hermine with Wilhelm and her youngest daughter Henriette in Doorn in 1931; Photo Credit – Wikipedia
Hermine returned to Germany after Wilhelm’s death in 1941. After World War II, Hermine was imprisoned for a while at Paulinenhof, a Soviet internment camp near Brandenburg, East Germany. On August 7, 1947, at the age of 59, Hermine died suddenly of a heart attack in a small apartment in Frankfurt an der Oder in the Soviet Zone of Germany while under house arrest by the Red Army occupation forces. . She was buried at the Temple of Antiquities in Potsdam, Germany where Wilhelm’s first wife, Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein, and several other family members are also buried.
Temple of Antiquities; Photo Credit – Wikipedia
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