Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse
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Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse (Georg Donatus Wilhelm Nikolaus Eduard Heinrich Karl, 8 November 1906- 16 November 1937) was the first child of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich.
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[edit] Marriage and Children
On 2 February 1931 at Darmstadt Georg married Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, daughter of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg, a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. They had four children:
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| His Grand Ducal Highness Prince Ludwig Ernst Andreas of Hesse | 25 October 1931 | 16 November 1937 | Killed in air accident |
| His Grand Ducal Highness Prince Alexander Georg Karl Heinrich of Hesse | 14 April 1933 | 16 November 1937 | Killed in air accident |
| Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Johanna Marina Eleonore of Hesse | 20 September 1936 | 14 June 1939 | Died from meningitis. |
| Stillborn son[citation needed] | 16 November 1937 | 16 November 1937 | Stillborn in air accident |
On May 1, 1937 Georg and Cecilie both joined the Nazi Party. [1]
[edit] Death
In October 1937, Georg Donatus' father, Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig of Hesse died. A few weeks after the funeral, Ernst Ludwig's younger son, Prince Louis was due to be married to Margaret Geddes. On 16 November 1937, Georg Donatus, Cecilie, their two young sons, Georg's mother Grand Duchess Eleonore, the children's nurse, a family friend, a pilot and two crewmen, left Darmstadt for the United Kingdom, where Prince Ludwig was due to be married. The aeroplane hit a factory chimney near Ostend and crashed into flames, killing all those on board. Cecilie was heavily pregnant with her fourth child at the time of the crash, and the remains of the fetus were found in the wreckage, indicating that Cecilie had gone into labour. The only survivor of the family was Johanna; she was not on the plane at the time. Johanna was adopted by Prince Louis and Princess Margaret, however, she died in 1939 from meningitis.
[edit] Titles
- His Royal Highness The Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine
Georg Donatus never acceded to the grand ducal throne as it had been abolished at the end of the First World War. Titles became surnames after that point and it was rare for the head of a royal, grand ducal or ducal family to change his title upon accession as head of a house.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Jonathan Petropoulos, Royals and the Reich: The Princes von Hessen in Nazi Germany (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006), 382.
| House of Hesse-Darmstadt Born: 1906 Died: 1937 |
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|---|---|---|
| Titles in pretence | ||
| Preceded by Ernst Ludwig |
* NOT REIGNING * Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (1937-1937) * Reason for Succession Failure: * Grand Dukedom abolished in 1918 |
Succeeded by Louis |
