Franz Wilhelm Prinz von Preussen
{{Short description|Prussian prince (born 1943)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Franz Wilhelm Prinz von Preussen
| image = Prince Franz Wilhelm of Prussia.jpg
| caption = Franz Wilhelm in 2016
| title =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1943|9|3|df=y}}
| birth_place = Grünberg, Silesia, Nazi Germany (now Poland)
| house = Hohenzollern
| spouse = {{plainlist|
- {{marriage|Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia|1976|1985|reason=div}}
- {{marriage|Nadia Nour El Etreby|2019}}
}}
| father = Prince Karl Franz of Prussia
| mother = Princess Henriette of Schönaich-Carolath
| issue = Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia
}}
Franz Wilhelm Victor Christoph Stephan Prinz von PreussenIn 1919 royalty and nobility were mandated to lose their privileges in Germany; thereafter hereditary titles were to be legally borne only as part of the surname, according to [http://www.zum.de/psm/weimar/weimar_vve.php#First_Chapter_:_The_Individual Article 109] of the Weimar Constitution. Styles such as majesty and highness [http://www.bmi.bund.de/cae/servlet/contentblob/150142/publicationFile/35310/Anschriften.pdf were not retained.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150724030433/http://www.bmi.bund.de/cae/servlet/contentblob/150142/publicationFile/35310/Anschriften.pdf |date=24 July 2015 }} (born 3 September 1943) is a German businessman and member of the House of Hohenzollern, the former ruling German imperial house and royal house of Prussia. From 1976 to 1985 he was known as Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich of Russia. He is also a great-grandson of German Emperor Wilhelm II.
Biography
Franz Wilhelm Prince of Prussia was born in Grünberg, Silesia, as the son of Prince Karl Franz of Prussia and his first wife Princess Henriette von Schönaich-Carolath.Eilers, Marlene. Queen Victoria's Descendants. Rosvall Royal Books, Falkoping, Sweden, 1997. pp. 84, 121, 127, 172–173. {{ISBN|91-630-5964-9}}Almanach de Gotha, Gotha: Justus Perthes, 1944), pp. 89, 92.{{Unreliable source|date=December 2022}}Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser Band XIV. "Haus Preussen". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1997, p. 123, 153. {{ISBN|3-7980-0700-4}} He had a twin brother, Prince Friedrich Christian, who died three weeks after his birth. Prince Franz Wilhelm is a grandson of Prince Joachim of Prussia, the youngest son of Emperor Wilhelm II.de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal. Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. Le Petit Gotha. Nouvelle Imprimerie Laballery, Paris 2002, pp. 77, 99, 111, 799. (French) {{ISBN|2-9507974-3-1}}
In 2002 Franz Wilhelm with Theodor Tantzen founded the Prinz von Preußen Grundbesitz AG, a project development and project management company which restores old buildings in Germany.{{cite news | last =Tzortzis | first =Andreas| title =Homes fit for a prince (or princess)|work=International Herald Tribune| date =31 May 2006 | url =http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/01/12/news/repruss.php | access-date =6 June 2007 }} In 2004, with financing from a group of investors, he purchased the Royal Porcelain Manufactury Berlin, saving it from insolvency.{{cite news | title =Prince Saves Traditional Porcelain Maker | publisher=DW World | date =13 December 2004 | url =http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1426932,00.html | access-date =23 July 2008 }}
Personal life
Franz Wilhelm married his third cousin once removed, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia, great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria, civilly on 4 September 1976 at Dinard and religiously on 22 September at the Russian Orthodox Chapel in Madrid.Willis, Daniel A., The Descendants of King George I of Great Britain, Clearfield Company, 2002, pp. 575, 696. Before his marriage, he converted to the Russian Orthodox faith and was created a Grand Duke of Russia with the name Mikhail Pavlovich by his father-in-law Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia.{{cite web|url=http://www.imperialhouse.ru/eng/imperialhouse/succession.html|title=Dynastic Succession|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090609161754/http://www.imperialhouse.ru/eng/imperialhouse/succession.html|archive-date=9 June 2009}}Massie, Robert K. The Romanovs: The Final Chapter. Jonathan Cape, 1995, pp. 263–264, 269–270, 274. {{ISBN|0-224-04192-4}}, OCLC 185630578. Franz Wilhelm and Grand Duchess Maria had one son before divorcing on 19 June 1985 (they separated in 1982), at which point he reverted to his previous title. He married Nadia Nour El Etreby (born 2 August 1949) on 14 March 2019, to whom was bestowed upon marriage the courtesy style and title of Her Royal Highness Princess Nadia of Prussia.
- Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia (born 13 March 1981).
Dynastic honours
- Knight Grand Cross of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George.{{cite web |url=http://www.constantinianorder.org/the-order/necrologies-from-1969.html |title=Necrologies (From 1969) |access-date=2013-09-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921113315/http://www.constantinianorder.org/the-order/necrologies-from-1969.html |archive-date=21 September 2013 }}
References
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090511180329/http://www.preussen.de/en/today.html House of Hohenzollern]
{{Russian grand dukes}}
{{Prussian princes}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prinz von Preussen, Franz Wilhelm}}
Category:People from Zielona Góra
Category:People from the Province of Silesia