Prince William of Hesse-Kassel

Prince William of Hesse-Kassel (24 December 1787 – 5 September 1867) was the first son of Prince Frederick of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen. He was titular Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel-(Rumpenheim) and for many years heir presumptive to the throne of Hesse-Kassel.

Prince William
Born(1787-12-24)24 December 1787
Biebrich, Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel
Died5 September 1867(1867-09-05) (aged 79)
Copenhagen, Kingdom of Denmark
Spouse
(m. 1810; died 1864)
IssuePrincess Karoline
Marie Luise, Princess Frederick Augustus of Anhalt-Dessau
Louise, Queen of Denmark
Friedrich Wilhelm, Landgrave of Hesse
Auguste, Baroness Carl Frederik of Blixen-Finecke
Princess Sophie Wilhelmine
HouseHesse-Kassel
FatherPrince Frederick of Hesse-Kassel
MotherPrincess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen

Life and career

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Prince William was born in Biebrich on Christmas Eve in 1787, the son of Prince Frederick of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Caroline of Nassau-Usingen. His father was himself a younger son of Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and Princess Mary of Great Britain.[1]

Prince William lived most of his life in Denmark where he had several posts in the Danish military. He was military governor of Copenhagen from 1834 until 1848. He lived for many years in Prince William Mansion, Copenhagen and afterwards in Brockdorff's Palace part of Amalienborg Palace, the official residence for the Danish royal family. As a summer residence the family used Charlottenlund Palace outside of Copenhagen.

Besides his Danish residences, he also had part ownership of the family castle, Rumpenheim Castle. The castle served as a meeting place for the Hesse-Kassel-Rumpenheim branch for many years and gathered Danish, Hesse, British and other royal families.

Landgrave William took a keen interest in Danish affairs of state and in the succession issues in the 1840-ties. He and his wife Charlotte were among the leading figures in Denmark, especially after his brother-in-law, Christian VIII of Denmark became king in 1839.

Landgrave William was known for his ultra-conservatism, but also for his hospitality, honesty, loyalty, and generosity.

He died in 1867 in Copenhagen, the year after Hesse-Kassel was annexed to Prussia. He was buried at Rumpenheim Castle.

Marriage and children

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Gathering of royals in the castle of Rumpenheim (Including Landgrave Wilhelm (seated to the right in the picture), his grandson-in-law Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII and his granddaughter Princess Alexandra of Wales, later Queen Alexandra), 1865)

On 10 November 1810, William was married in Amalienborg Palace to Princess Louise Charlotte of Denmark (1789–1864) daughter of Hereditary Prince Frederick of Denmark and Norway (1753–1805) and Sophia Frederica of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1758–1794).

Children of the marriage:


Landgrave Wilhelm is the maternal grandfather of Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom, King Frederick VIII of Denmark, King George I of Greece, Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia, and Grand Duchess Adelheid of Luxembourg and paternal grandfather of Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse (elected King of Finland on 9 October 1918, but renounced the throne on 14 December 1918).

Ancestry

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Lesser 1904, p. 587.

Bibliography

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  • Bramsen, Bo (1985). Ferdinand og Caroline : en beretning om prinsen, der nødig ville være konge af Danmark [Ferdinand and Caroline: an account of the prince who was reluctant to be king of Denmark] (in Danish) (4th ed.). Copenhagen: Nordiske Landes Bogforlag. ISBN 8787439220.
  • Lesser, Johan (1904). "Vilhelm, Landgreve af Hessen-Kassel". In Bricka, Carl Frederik (ed.). Dansk Biografisk Lexikon. Tillige omfattende Norge for Tidsrummet 1537–1814 (in Danish). Vol. XVIII (1st ed.). Copenhagen: Gyldendalske Boghandels Forlag. pp. 587–588.
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