Name Princess of | Role 1877–1965 | |
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Born 19 December 1877
Stuttgart, Kingdom of Wurttemberg ( 1877-12-19 ) Issue Prince Hermann
Prince Dietrich House House of Wurttemberg (by birth)
House of Wied-Neuwied (by marriage) Father William II of Wurttemberg Mother Princess Marie of Waldeck and Pyrmont Died May 7, 1965, Ludwigsburg, Germany Spouse William Frederick, Prince of Wied (m. 1898–1945) Children Prince Dietrich, Prince Hermann Parents William II of Wurttemberg, Princess Marie of Waldeck and Pyrmont Grandparents Princess Catherine of Wurttemberg Great-grandparents Princess Pauline of Wurttemberg | ||
Princess Pauline of Wurttemberg (German: Prinzessin Pauline Olga Helene Emma von Wurttemberg; 19 December 1877 – 7 May 1965) was the elder daughter of William II of Wurttemberg and wife of William Frederick, Prince of Wied (elder brother of William, Prince of Albania). She was the last Princess of Wurttemberg, as well as the last senior member of the House of Wurttemberg. She was for many years the regional director of the German Red Cross, in several western Germany regions.
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If George III of the United Kingdom had died in infancy, as many predicted he would following his premature birth, Pauline, through the line of Princess Augusta (George III's sister) and her eldest daughter, Princess Augusta of Wurttemberg, would have succeeded to the throne of the United Kingdom.
Early life
Pauline was born at Stuttgart, Kingdom of Wurttemberg the first child of King William II of Wurttemberg (1848–1921) by his first wife Princess Marie of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1857–1882) daughter of George Victor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont and Princess Helena of Nassau.
She was a first cousin of:
World War II
Princess indicted for helping the Nazis March 3, 1948
Princess Pauline of Wurttemberg was indicted by a United States Military Government court for "having concealed two prominent Nazis since October 1945." The 70-year-old princess admitted "having deliberately provided a haven for Frau Gertrud Scholtz-Klink" and her husband, former Maj. General August Heissmayer of the SS. The Princess, according to the New York Times report, acknowledged knowing that Frau Scholtz-Klink was "known as the chief of all Nazi women's organizations," but she denied that she had been aware of Heissmayer's SS position. Princess Pauline and her nurse, who was also indicted, were released "on her personal bail." She will be tried in Ludwigsburg on March 23. She informed the United States interrogator that she was for many years the director of the German Red Cross for the Rhineland, Hesse, Nassau and Westphalia, and had met Frau Scholtz-Klinik, "during the Nazi regime in their respective capacities as leaders of important organizations." Frau Scholtz-Klink and her husband were interviewed at a police station in Tubingen in the French, and they "readily admitted that they sought the sanctuary of Princess Pauline's home on their arrival in this area in 1945." They said that Princess Pauline had told them "a German should not refuse to give them shelter." Princess Pauline made arrangements for the couple "to live quietly in the village of Bebenhausen" where they were found last Saturday by "French, United States and German authorities." Frau Scholtz-Klink told the authorities that she did not know whether "Adolf Hitler was alive or dead," but "as long as he lives in the hearts of his followers, he cannot die."
Marriage and family
Princess Pauline married on 29 October 1898 in Stuttgart to William Frederick, Prince of Wied (1872–1945), son of William, Prince of Wied and the spectacularly wealthy Princess Marie of the Netherlands.
They had two children: