Louise Sophie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg

Louise Sophie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg

Princess Feodora Louise Sophie Adelheid Henriette Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg (born  April 8, 1866 in Kiel , † April 28, 1952 in Bad Nauheim ) was the sister of the last German Empress.

Life

Louise Sophie was the daughter of Duke Friedrich VIII of Schleswig-Holstein (1829-1880) and his wife Princess Adelheid zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg (1835-1900), daughter of Prince Ernst I zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg and his wife Princess Feodora Leiningen born.

Since her father, Duke Friedrich VIII. Had to give up all hope of an independent continued existence of the duchy after the German-Danish War in 1864, he and his family withdrew to Primkenau Castle ( Sprottau district ). It was here that Louise Sophie and her siblings spent a carefree youth. Their upbringing and schooling was in the hands of several tutors. The training included practical housework and gardening, as well as sports. The princess developed a particular fondness for cycling. In the family circle this earned her the nickname "Bicycle Princess".

Louise Sophie and Friedrich Leopold

With the marriage of her sister Auguste Viktoria to Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, who later became Emperor Wilhelm II, in 1881, the ducal family suddenly became public interest. This was reinforced by her marriage to the Prussian Prince Friedrich Leopold (1865-1931), a cousin of the emperor from the Glienicke line. The wedding took place on June 24, 1889 in Berlin .

In addition to her own obligations, Louise Sophie often stood by her sister, Empress Auguste Viktoria, in representational tasks or represented her alone when visiting social institutions and hospitals.

Blows of fate

• In 1917 her son, Prince Friedrich Karl, died near Rouen from the serious injuries he had suffered as a pilot in the air battle for England .
• In 1923, her daughter Princess Viktoria Margarete died of severe flu. After their failed marriage, she wanted to marry her cousin August Wilhelm von Prussia (1887–1949), fourth son of the last German Emperor Wilhelm II.
• In 1927 the experienced military rider , Prince Friedrich Sigismund, fell so unhappy from his horse that he died of internal injuries.
• In 1939 the National Socialists forced the family to sell the family seat, Schloss Klein Glienicke .

progeny

Princess Louise Sophie and Prince Friedrich Leopold of Prussia, the only son of Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia (1828–1885) and Princess Maria Anna of Anhalt-Dessau (1837–1906), had the following four children:

• Viktoria Margarete Elisabeth Marie Ulrike (1890–1923) ∞ Prince Heinrich XXXIII. Reuss to Köstritz
• Joachim Viktor Wilhelm Leopold Friedrich Sigismund (1891–1927, riding accident) ∞ Princess Marie Luise zu Schaumburg-Lippe
• Tassilo Wilhelm Humbert Leopold Friedrich Karl (1893–1917, fallen in France)
• Franz Joseph Oskar Ernst Patrick Friedrich Leopold (1895–1959)

literature

• "Behind the scenes at the Prussian Court", John Murray, London (1939)
• Guido Hinterkeuser: Princess Louise Sophie of Prussia and House Glienicke. Unknown inventory lists from 1949 . In: Susanne Kähler / Wolfgang Krogel (ed.): The Bear of Berlin. Yearbook of the Association for the History of Berlin . 65th year, Berlin 2016, pp. 69–86.