Wikipedia

Duke Paul Frederick of Mecklenburg

Duke Paul Frederick of Mecklenburg (German: Herzog Paul Friedrich zu Mecklenburg; 19 September 1852 – 17 May 1923) was a member of the House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and general of the Mecklenburg cavalry.[1]

Duke Paul Frederick
Born(1852-09-19)19 September 1852
Ludwigslust
Died17 May 1923(1923-05-17) (aged 70)
Ludwigslust
SpousePrincess Marie of Windisch-Graetz
IssueDuke Paul Friedrich
Duchess Marie Louise
Duchess Marie Antoinette
Duke Henry Borwin
Duke Joseph of Mecklenburg
HouseHouse of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
FatherFrederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
MotherPrincess Augusta Reuss of Köstritz
ReligionLutheranism, after 1897 Roman Catholicism

Life edit

Duke Paul Frederick was born in Ludwigslust Castle as the second eldest son of Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his first wife Princess Augusta Reuss of Köstritz, the daughter of Prince Henry LXIII Reuss of Köstritz.[2]

Duke Paul Frederick married in Schwerin on 5 May 1881 his cousin, the Austrian born Princess Marie of Windisch-Graetz, the daughter of Prince Hugo of Windisch-Graetz and his wife Duchess Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.[2] The couple who had five children who were all raised Roman Catholic, the religion of Princess Marie,[3] lived a quiet life in Venice. While in Venice the family befriended Cardinal Sarto (later Pope Pius X) who often visited the family and acted as a spiritual advisor for them.[4]

On 21 April 1884 Duke Paul Frederick renounced his and his sons rights of succession to Mecklenburg-Schwerin in favour of his younger brothers and their sons, so they would take precedence over him and his.[2][5] In 1887, Duke Paul Fredrick raised a Lutheran decided to convert to Roman Catholicism the religion of his wife and children.[6]

In 1906 after upsetting his nephew Frederick Francis IV, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, over the amount of money that he was spending Duke Paul Frederick and his wife were ordered to submit to the controller of the royal household.[7]

Duke Paul Frederick died in Ludwigslust, where he and his wife are both buried in the Louisenkapelle.

Issue edit

  • HH Duke Paul Friedrich of Mecklenburg (1882–1904)
  • HH Duchess Maria Luise of Mecklenburg (1883–1883)
  • HH Duchess Marie Antoinette of Mecklenburg (1884–1944)
  • HH Duke Henry Borwin of Mecklenburg (1885–1942). Although his father had renounced his dynastic obligations, his right to marry a spouse of his choice (or a commoner) was not recognized and his two first marriages were unlawful (with no right to share his title) in Mecklenburg and the last one considered morganatic:
    • 1. Elizabeth Tibbits Pratt (1860–1928), widow of Amédée De Gasquet-James of New Orleans; married in Dover, on 15 June 1911[8] and divorced in April 1913;
    • 2. Natalie Oelrichs (1880–1931), widow of polo player Peter D. Martin of San Francisco,[9] daughter of Charles May Oelrichs and sister of Blanche Oelrichs; married in 1915 and divorced in 1921.[10] She was also known as the Duchess of Stargard.[11]
    • 3. Carola von Alers (1882–1974), daughter of Wilhelm von Alers and Adelaide von Chamisso de Boncourt; married in 1921.
  • HH Duke Joseph of Mecklenburg (1889–1889)

Title, style and honours edit

Title & style edit

  • 19 September 1852 – 17 May 1923: His Highness Duke Paul Frederick of Mecklenburg[1]

Honours edit

German decorations[12]
Foreign decorations[12]

Ancestry edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c Almanach de Gotha (160th ed.). Justus Perthes. 1923. p. 75.
  2. ^ a b c Huberty, Michel; Alain Giraud; F. B. Magdelaine (1945). L'Allemagne Dynastique, Tome VI : Bade-Mecklembourg. A. Giraud. pp. 233, 239. ISBN 978-2-901138-06-8.
  3. ^ "The Spirit of Roman Catholicism". The Toronto World. 27 October 1884. p. 2.
  4. ^ "The Pope as a Matchmaker". Yukon World. 12 February 1905. p. 4.
  5. ^ "News by the Mail". Bruce Herald. 3 June 1884. p. 3.
  6. ^ "Catholic News". New Zealand Tablet. 26 August 1887. p. 31.
  7. ^ "European Intelligence in News and Comment". The New York Times. 8 April 1906. p. SM7.
  8. ^ Times, Special Cable to The New York (12 October 1912). "WEDS GERMAN DUKE, HER CHILDREN SUE; Want Former Mrs. Pratt Tibbitts Removed as Executrix of Their Father's Will". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  9. ^ Times, Special to The New York (23 July 1902). "MARTIN-OELRICHS WEDDING". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  10. ^ "AMERICAN DUCHESS DIES OF PNEUMONIA'; Lily, Duchess of Mecklenburg, Former Natalie Oelrichs, Stricken in West" (PDF). The New York Times. 24 February 1931. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  11. ^ The Inquirer, Special Cable to (17 November 1923). "U.S. DUCHESS OF MYSTERY IS TO MARRY AGAIN". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 33. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  12. ^ a b Grossherzoglich Mecklenburg-Schwerinscher Staatskalendar, 1908, p. 2
  13. ^ "Königliche Orden", Hof- und – Staatshandbuch des Königreichs Bayern (in German), Munich: Druck and Verlag, 1914, p. 10, retrieved 3 March 2021
  14. ^ Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Hessen (1879), "Großherzogliche Orden und Ehrenzeichen" p. 11
  15. ^ Staatshandbuch für das Großherzogtum Sachsen / Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach (1900), "Großherzogliche Hausorden" p. 15 Archived 30 July 2019 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ "Schwarzer Adler-orden", Königlich Preussische Ordensliste (in German), vol. 1, Berlin, 1886, p. 8 – via hathitrust.org{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  17. ^ "Ritter-Orden", Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie, 1918, p. 56, retrieved 2 November 2019
  18. ^ Bille-Hansen, A. C.; Holck, Harald, eds. (1920) [1st pub.:1801]. Statshaandbog for Kongeriget Danmark for Aaret 1920 [State Manual of the Kingdom of Denmark for the Year 1920] (PDF). Kongelig Dansk Hof- og Statskalender (in Danish). Copenhagen: J.H. Schultz A.-S. Universitetsbogtrykkeri. p. 39. Retrieved 4 July 2020 – via da:DIS Danmark.
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