Princess Johanna of Hesse and by Rhine
Encyclopedia
Princess Johanna of Hesse and by Rhine (Prinzessin Johanna Marina Eleonore von Hessen und bei Rhein), (20 September 1936 – 14 June 1939), was the third child and only daughter of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse
Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse
Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse was the first child of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich....
and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark (sister of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh). She was orphaned at age fourteen months when her parents, two older brothers Ludwig
Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine
Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the eldest son of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, an older sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.He was killed at age six in an airplane crash in 1937...
and Prince Alexander
Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine (1933-1937)
Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the second son of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, an elder sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.He was killed at age four in an airplane crash in 1937...
and paternal grandmother Grand Duchess Eleonore were killed in an airplane crash
Sabena OO-AUB Ostend crash
Sabena OO-AUB was a Junkers Ju 52 airliner owned by Belgian airline Sabena, operating as a scheduled domestic passenger flight between Cologne, Germany, to London, United Kingdom, which crashed near Ostend, Belgium on . The flight was scheduled to stop at Brussels, but bad weather forced the pilot...
on their way to a family wedding in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
After the accident, her uncle Ludwig
Prince Louis of Hesse and by Rhine
Louis, Prince of Hesse and by Rhine was the youngest son of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse by his second wife Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich....
married his bride Margaret Geddes. The couple adopted Johanna, their orphaned niece, and planned to raise her as their own daughter, but she developed meningitis
Meningitis
Meningitis is inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, and less commonly by certain drugs...
and died twenty months later at the age of two and a half. Her maternal grandmother, Princess Alice of Battenberg
Princess Alice of Battenberg
Princess Alice of Battenberg, later Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark was the mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and mother-in-law of Elizabeth II....
, said later that the unconscious Johanna so closely resembled her mother at the same age that it felt like losing her daughter Cecilie all over again. Following Johanna's death, she was buried with her parents and brothers at the Rosenhöhe. Her uncle Ludwig and aunt Margaret were not able to have children of their own.
"Family curse"
Some considered the Hessian family victims of a curseCurse
A curse is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object...
due to the number of premature deaths in the family. Johanna was a great niece of Tsarina Alexandra
Alexandra Fyodorovna of Hesse
Alix of Hesse and by Rhine later Alexandra Feodorovna Romanova , was Empress consort of Russia as spouse of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of the Russian Empire...
and Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fyodorovna
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fyodorovna
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna of Russia canonized as St. Elizabeth Romanova was a German princess of the House of Hesse, and the wife of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia, fifth son of Emperor Alexander II of Russia and Princess Marie of Hesse and the Rhine...
, both of whom were killed with family members during the Russian Revolution of 1917
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
. Her maternal great-grandmother Princess Alice of the United Kingdom
Princess Alice of the United Kingdom
The Princess Alice was a member of the British royal family, the third child and second daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.Alice's education was devised by Albert's close friend and adviser, Baron Stockmar...
and a great aunt, Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine
Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine
Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the youngest daughter of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and Ludwig IV, the Grand Duke of Hesse. Her mother was the second daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
, died of diphtheria
Diphtheria
Diphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, a facultative anaerobic, Gram-positive bacterium. It is characterized by sore throat, low fever, and an adherent membrane on the tonsils, pharynx, and/or nasal cavity...
. A haemophiliac great-uncle, Prince Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine
Prince Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine
Prince Friedrich of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the haemophiliac second son of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, thus he is a grandson of Queen Victoria...
, tumbled twenty feet through an open window at age two and died of a brain hemorrhage hours later. An aunt, Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine, died at age eight of virulent typhoid, though she was rumored to have eaten from a poisoned dish meant for Nicholas II of Russia
Nicholas II of Russia
Nicholas II was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Prince of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is known as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church.Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until...
. One of Johanna's great-uncles, Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas George Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, PC, FRS , was a British statesman and naval officer, and an uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
, was killed in 1979 by the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
along with his 14-year-old grandson, Nicholas Knatchbull, and his daughter's mother-in-law, Doreen Knatchbull, Baroness Brabourne
Doreen Knatchbull, Baroness Brabourne
Doreen Knatchbull, Baroness Brabourne, CI was an Anglo-Irish aristocrat, socialite and victim of the Provisional IRA.-Family life:...
. Early deaths continued into the next generation, when Leonora Knatchbull, a great-granddaughter of Earl Mountbatten of Burma, died at age five of a kidney tumor in 1991.
Patrilineal descent
Descent before Gilbert I, Count of the Maasgau is taken from http://fabpedigree.com/s072/f560414.htm and may be inaccurate.- Brunulf I, Neustrian Nobleman, Count
- Aubri I, Neustrian Nobleman, Count
- Walter I, Neustrian Nobleman, Count
- Walter II, Neustrian Nobleman, Count
- Albo, Neustrian Nobleman, Count
- Mainer, Count of Sens, d. 800
- Gainfroi, Count of the Maasgau,
- Gilbert I, Count of the Maasgau, d. 842
- Gilbert II, Count of the Maasgau, 825–875
- Reginar, Duke of LorraineReginar, Duke of LorraineReginar I Longneck was the Duke of Lorraine from 910 until his death. He stands at the head of the clan of Reginarids, an important Lotharingian noble family....
, 850–915 - Reginar II, Count of Hainaut, 890–932
- Reginar III, Count of Hainaut, 920–973
- Lambert I, Count of Leuven, 950–1015
- Lambert II, Count of LeuvenLambert II, Count of LeuvenLambert II was count of Leuven between 1033 and 1054. Lambert was the son of Lambert I of Leuven .According the he followed his brother Henry I of Leuven....
, d. 1054 - Henry II, Count of LeuvenHenry II, Count of LeuvenHenry II was Count of Leuven from 1054 through 1071. Henry II was the son of Lambert II, Count of Leuven and Oda of Verdun. His maternal uncles included Pope Stephen X and Godfrey the Bearded, Duke of Lorraine....
, 1020–1078 - Godfrey I, Count of Leuven, 1060–1139
- Godfrey II, Count of Leuven, 1187–1226
- Godfrey III, Count of Leuven, 1140–1190
- Henry I, Duke of BrabantHenry I, Duke of BrabantHenry I of Brabant , named "The Courageous" Duke of Brabant and Duke of Lower Lotharingia until his death.-Biography:...
, 1165–1235 - Henry II, Duke of BrabantHenry II, Duke of BrabantHenry II of Brabant was Duke of Brabant and Lothier after the death of his father Henry I in 1235...
, 1207–1248 - Henry I, Landgrave of HesseHenry I, Landgrave of HesseHenry I of Hesse "the Child" was the first Landgrave of Hesse. He was the son of Henry II, Duke of Brabant and Sophie of Thuringia.-Life:...
, 1244–1308 - Otto I, Landgrave of HesseOtto I, Landgrave of HesseOtto I of Hesse , Landgrave of Hesse.He was a son of Henry I, Landgrave of Hesse and his first wife Adelheid of Brunswick-Lunenburg. Following the death of his father in 1308, he inherited Upper Hesse, the "Land on the Lahn", which included Marburg, Giessen, Grünberg and Alsfeld...
, 1272–1328 - Louis the Junker, Landgrave of Hesse, 1305–1345
- Hermann II, Landgrave of HesseHermann II, Landgrave of HesseHermann II of Hesse was Landgrave of Hesse from 1376 to 1413.Hermann II, called "the Learned" was born in 1345 in Grebenstein castle, the son of Louis the Junker. He studied in Paris and in Prague. After the death of Otto, the intended heir to the throne, Henry II appointed his own nephew...
, 1341–1413 - Louis I, Landgrave of HesseLouis I, Landgrave of HesseLouis I of Hesse , called "the Peaceful" was Landgrave of Lower Hesse from 1413-1458....
, 1402–1458 - Louis II, Landgrave of HesseLouis II, Landgrave of HesseLouis II of Hesse , called Louis the Frank, was the Landgrave of Lower Hesse from 1458 - 1471....
, 1438–1471 - William II, Landgrave of HesseWilliam II, Landgrave of HesseWilliam II was Landgrave of Lower Hesse from 1493 and Landgrave of Upper Hesse after the death of his cousin, William III, Landgrave of Upper Hesse in 1500....
, 1469–1509 - Philip I, Landgrave of HessePhilip I, Landgrave of HessePhilip I of Hesse, , nicknamed der Großmütige was a leading champion of the Protestant Reformation and one of the most important of the early Protestant rulers in Germany....
, 1504–1567 - George I, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtGeorge I, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtGeorge I of Hesse-Darmstadt was the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1567 to 1596.Born on 10 September 1547 in Kassel, he was the fourth son of Philip I the Magnanimous of Hesse and Christine of Saxony....
, 1547–1596 - Louis V, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis V, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis V of Hesse-Darmstadt was the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1596 to 1626.He was born on 24 September 1577 as the son of George I, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and Magdalene of Lippe....
, 1577–1626 - George II, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtGeorge II, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtGeorge II of Hesse-Darmstadt, was the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1626 - 1661. He was the son of Ludwig V and Magdalena von Brandenburg.He married Sophia Eleonore of Saxony on April 1, 1627...
, 1605–1661 - Louis VI, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis VI, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis VI of Hesse-Darmstadt was Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1661 to 1678.He was the eldest of three sons of the Landgrave George II of Hesse-Darmstadt and Sophia Eleonore of Saxony.- Marriage and children :...
, 1630–1678 - Ernest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtErnest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtErnest Louis of Hesse-Darmstadt was Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1678 to 1739. His parents were Landgrave Louis VI of Hesse-Darmstadt and Elisabeth Dorothea of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg ....
, 1667–1739 - Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis VIII was the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1739 to 1768. He was the son of Ernest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and Margravine Dorothea Charlotte of Brandenburg-Ansbach....
, 1691–1768 - Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-DarmstadtLouis IX of Hesse-Darmstadt was the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1768 - 1790. He was a son of Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, and Charlotte of Hanau-Lichtenberg and Müntzenberg....
, 1719–1790 - Louis I, Grand Duke of HesseLouis I, Grand Duke of HesseLouis I, Grand Duke of Hesse was Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and later the first Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine....
, 1753–1830 - Louis II, Grand Duke of HesseLouis II, Grand Duke of HesseLouis II was Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine from 1830 until 5 March 1848 . He was the son of Louis I, Grand Duke of Hesse....
, 1777–1848 - Prince Charles of Hesse and by Rhine, 1809–1877
- Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of HesseErnest Louis, Grand Duke of HesseErnest Louis Charles Albert William , was the last Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine from 1892 until 1918...
, 1868–1937 - Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of HesseGeorg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of HesseGeorg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse was the first child of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich....
, 1906–1937 - Princess Johanna of Hesse and by Rhine, 1936–1939