Countess Adelaide of Lippe-Biesterfeld
Encyclopedia
Countess Adelaide of Lippe-Biesterfeld (22 June 1870 - 3 September 1948) was the eldest child of Ernest II, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld and Countess Karoline of Wartensleben.
After the death of Woldemar, Prince of Lippe
in 1895, her parents were involved in a regency and succession dispute to the principality of Lippe. Though Woldemar's younger brother Alexander
succeeded, he was incapable of ruling due to a mental illness. Consequently, two branches of the House of Lippe
argued over rights to a regency. Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe
, a brother-in-law of Wilhelm II, German Emperor was chosen, but another settlement allowed Ernest to become the regent of Lippe-Detmold on 17 July 1897.
, Adelaide married Prince Friedrich Johann of Saxe-Meiningen, a younger son of Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen
on 24 April 1889. They had the following children together:
debated over rights to the principality of Lippe-Detmold.
As Adelaide's great-grandmother was a member of the petite noblesse, her family's claim to full royalty was challenged. This claim threatened the succession to Saxe-Meiningen
, as Adelaide was married to the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen's heir apparent
; were her father deemed a lesser royal status, it might be thought that her own claim was not equal enough for her husband's family.
Family and early life
Adelaide was born on 22 June 1870 to Ernest II, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld and his wife Countess Karoline of Wartensleben.After the death of Woldemar, Prince of Lippe
Woldemar, Prince of Lippe
Woldemar of Lippe was the sovereign of the Principality of Lippe reigning from 1875 until his death.-Early life and reign:...
in 1895, her parents were involved in a regency and succession dispute to the principality of Lippe. Though Woldemar's younger brother Alexander
Alexander, Prince of Lippe
Alexander, Prince of Lippe was the penultimate sovereign of the Principality of Lippe. Succeeding to the throne in 1895, power was exercised by a regent throughout his reign on account of his mental illness....
succeeded, he was incapable of ruling due to a mental illness. Consequently, two branches of the House of Lippe
House of Lippe
The House of Lippe is a German Royal House. The House of Lippe descends from Count Jobst Hermann of Lippe whose son Bernhard I was the founder of the state of Lippe in 1123....
argued over rights to a regency. Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe
Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe
Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe was the regent of the Principality of Lippe from 1895 till 1897.-Early life:He was born in Bückeburg the seventh child of Adolf I, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe and Princess Hermine of Waldeck-Pyrmont .Following the death of Prince Woldemar on the 20 March 1895 and...
, a brother-in-law of Wilhelm II, German Emperor was chosen, but another settlement allowed Ernest to become the regent of Lippe-Detmold on 17 July 1897.
Marriage and issue
At NeudorfNeudorf
There are communes and places that have the name Neudorf :-In Austria:*Neudorf bei Staatz, in the district of Mistelbach, Lower Austria*Wiener Neudorf, in the district of Mödling, Lower Austria*Neudorf bei Parndorf, in Burgenland...
, Adelaide married Prince Friedrich Johann of Saxe-Meiningen, a younger son of Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen
Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen
Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen , was the penultimate Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, reigning from 1866 to 1914.-Family and early life:...
on 24 April 1889. They had the following children together:
| Name | |Death | Feodora Karola Charlotte Marie Adelaide Auguste Mathilde Princess Feodora of Saxe-Meiningen (1890-1972) Princess Feodora of Saxe-Meiningen was the eldest child of Prince Friedrich Johann of Saxe-Meiningen, a younger son of Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, and Countess Adelaide of Lippe-Biesterfeld, a daughter of Ernst, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld... | 29 May 1890 | 12 March 1972 | married on 21 January 1910 to Wilhelm Ernst, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adelaide Erna Karoline Marie Elisabeth | 16 August 1891 | 25 April 1971 | married on 3 August 1914 to Prince Adalbert of Prussia Prince Adalbert of Prussia Prince Adalbert of Prussia was a son of Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany by his first wife, Princess Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein.-Marriage:He married Princess Adelheid "Adi" of Saxe-Meiningen on 3 August 1914 in... . |
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| Georg, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen | 11 October 1892 | 6 January 1946 | Died as a POW in Russian camp of Cherepovets Cherepovets Cherepovets is the largest city in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the bank of the Rybinsk Reservoir of the Sheksna River, a tributary of the Volga River. Population: 311,869 ; It is served by Cherepovets Airport.-Location:... , Soviet Union Soviet Union The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991.... ; married Countess Klara-Maria of Korff genannt Schmising-Kerssenbrock; had issue including Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen, wife of Crown Prince Otto of Austria Otto von Habsburg Otto von Habsburg , also known by his royal name as Archduke Otto of Austria, was the last Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary from 1916 until the dissolution of the empire in 1918, a realm which comprised modern-day Austria, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,... . |
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| Ernst Leopold Friedrich Wilhelm Otto | 23 September 1895 | 17 August 1914 | Killed in action, near Maubeuge Maubeuge Maubeuge is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It is situated on both banks of the Sambre , east of Valenciennes and about from the Belgian border.-History:... , France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
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| Luise Marie Elisabeth Mathilde Helene Katharine | 13 March 1899 | 14 February 1985 | married on 25 October 1936 to Götz, Freiherr von Wangenheim | ||
| Bernhard, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen | 30 June 1901 | 4 October 1984 | married firstly Margot Grössler (morganatic) and secondly Baroness Vera Schäffer of Bernstein (equal marriage) | ||
Role in Lippe succession dispute
Two branches of the House of LippeHouse of Lippe
The House of Lippe is a German Royal House. The House of Lippe descends from Count Jobst Hermann of Lippe whose son Bernhard I was the founder of the state of Lippe in 1123....
debated over rights to the principality of Lippe-Detmold.
As Adelaide's great-grandmother was a member of the petite noblesse, her family's claim to full royalty was challenged. This claim threatened the succession to Saxe-Meiningen
Saxe-Meiningen
The Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine line of the Wettin dynasty, located in the southwest of the present-day German state of Thuringia....
, as Adelaide was married to the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen's heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
; were her father deemed a lesser royal status, it might be thought that her own claim was not equal enough for her husband's family.
Titles and styles
- 22 June 1870 – 24 April 1889: Her Highness Countess Adelaide of Lippe-Biesterfeld
- 24 April 1889 – 3 September 1948: Her Highness Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen