Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg

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The Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg (House of Nassau-Weilburg, agnatically a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon) consists of the extended family of the sovereign Grand Duke.

The medieval duchy of Luxembourg was elevated to a grand duchy in 1815; William VI, Prince of Orange ascended the grand ducal throne as its first holder. William was through his Prussian mother a descendant of the medieval heiress Anne, Duchess of Luxembourg, and William's wife, his first cousin, was also Anne's descendant. The territories of the grand duchy, taken (including the ancestral castle of Luxembourg) from occupying French forces in the first stages of the fall of Napoleon, had been ceded to William by his first cousin king Frederick William III of Prussia, who genealogically was the heir-general of the line of the late Duchess Anne. In breach of the traditional line of succession of Luxembourg, the grand duchy however was agreed by great powers of Europe to be inherited in the male-line within the House of Nassau.

The male line descendants of HRH Grand Duke Adolphe held the titles Prince(ss) of Luxembourg and Prince(ss) of Nassau with the style of His/Her Grand Ducal Highness.

The male-line descendants of HRH Grand Duchess Charlotte hold the titles Prince(ss) of Luxembourg and Prince(ss) of Nassau with the style of His/Her Royal Highness (coming from their status as male-line descendants of Duke Robert of Parma). The title Prince of Bourbon-Parma was relinquished by HRH Grand Duke Jean in 1986, but he and his relatives have kept the style of His/Her Royal Highness.

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[edit] Religion

Grand Dukes Adolphe and William IV were Protestants; the religion of the House of Nassau changed after Guillaume's marriage to Marie Anne of Portugal, who was Roman Catholic.

[edit] The Grand Ducal Family

His Royal Highness Grand Duke Henri Albert Gabriel Félix Marie Guillaume of Luxembourg is the current Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He was born on April 16, 1955. He was married on February 14, 1981 to Maria Teresa Mestre and became grand duke when his father, Jean, abdicated on October 7, 2000. Their children are:

Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg

His Royal Highness Grand Duke Jean I Benoît Guillaume Robert Antoine Louis Marie Adolphe Marc d'Aviano of Luxembourg is the current Grand Duke's father. He was Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1964 to 2000, when he abdicated. Born on January 5, 1921, he became grand duke when his mother, the Grand Duchess Charlotte, abdicated in 1964.

[edit] Extended Family

  • His Royal Highness Prince Jean Félix Marie Guillaume of Luxembourg, the Grand Duke's brother, was born on May 15, 1957. He was married on 27 May 1987 to Hélène Vestur, now Countess Hélène de Nassau[citation needed], who was born in 1958. On 26 September 1986, Prince Jean renounced his right of succession to the Luxembourg throne. His children were styled as Count(esse)s of Nassau until given the title HRH Prince(ss) of Nassau on November 24, 2004. Prince Jean and his wife divorced soon after in 2004.
    • Her Royal Highness Princess Marie Gabriele Cécile Charlotte Sophie of Nassau, Prince Jean's eldest child and only daughter, was born out of wedlock on September 8, 1986.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Constantin Jean Philippe Marie Albert Marc d'Aviano of Nassau, Prince Jean's eldest son, was born on July 22, 1988.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Wenceslas François Baudouin Léopold Juraj Marie Marc d'Aviano of Nassau, Prince Jean's second son, was born on November 17, 1990.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Carl Johann Marie Félix Julian Marc d'Aviano of Nassau, Prince Jean's third son and youngest child, was born on August 15, 1992.
  • His Royal Highness Prince Guillaume Marie Louis Christian of Luxembourg, the Grand Duke's youngest brother, was born on 1 May 1963. He is Prince of Luxembourg and Prince of Nassau. He was married on September 8, 1994 to Sibilla Sandra Weiller (the daughter of the princess Donna Olimpia Torlonia di Civitella-Cesi and Paul-Annick Weiller, and great-granddaughter of Alfonso XIII of Spain), now Her Royal Highness Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Paul-Louis Jean Marie Guillaume of Nassau, Prince Guillaume's eldest son, was born on March 4, 1998.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Léopold Guillaume Marie Joseph of Nassau, Prince Guillaume's second son, was born on May 2, 2000. He is the twin brother of Princess Charlotte.
    • Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte Wilhelmine Maria da Gloria of Nassau, Prince Guillaume's only daughter, was born on 2 May 2000. She is the twin sister of Prince Léopold.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Jean André Guillaume Marie Gabriel Marc d'Aviano of Nassau, Prince Guillaume's youngest son, was born on July 13, 2004.
  • Her Royal Highness Duchess Elisabeth Hilda Zita Marie Anna Antonia Friederike Wilhelmine Louise of Hohenberg, the Grand Duke's aunt, was born on December 22, 1922. She married His Serene Highness Franz Ferdinand Friedrich Ernst Joseph Karl Leopold Mauritius Hubertus Maria, Duke of Hohenberg (September 13, 1927–August 15, 1977), on May 9, 1956. She is a Princess of Luxembourg, Princess of Nassau and Duchess of Hohenberg.
  • Her Royal Highness Princess Marie-Adélaïde Louise Thérèse Wilhelmine of Luxembourg, the Grand Duke's aunt, born on 21 May 1924, died 28 February 2007. She was born a Princess of Luxembourg, Princess of Nassau and Princess of Bourbon-Parma, and became Countess of Donnersmarck. She was married on 10 April 1958 to Marie Karl Josef Erdmann Jakob Edwin Lazarus Andreas Alois, Count Henckel of Donnersmarck, who was born on November 7, 1928.
  • Her Royal Highness Princess Marie-Gabriele Adelgonde Wilhelmine Louise of Luxembourg, the Grand Duke's aunt, was born on 2 August 1925. She is a Princess of Luxembourg, Princess of Nassau and Countess of Holstein-Ledreborg. She was married on 6 November 1951 to Knud, Count of Holstein-Ledreborg, who was born on 2 October 1919.
  • Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte Phyllis Joelle Marie of Luxembourg, the Grand Duke's first cousin, was born on 15 September 1967. She is Princess of Luxembourg and Princess of Nassau. She was married in 1993 to Marc Victor Cunningham, who was born on 24 September 1965.
  • His Royal Highness Prince Robert Louis Francois Marie of Luxembourg, the Grand Duke's first cousin, was born on 14 August 1968. He is Prince of Luxembourg and Prince of Nassau. He was married on 29 January 1994 to Julie Elizabeth Huston Ongaro, now Her Royal Highness Princess Julie of Nassau, who was born on 9 June 1966.
    • Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte Justine of Nassau, eldest child and only daughter of Prince Robert, was born on March 20, 1995.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Alexander Théodore Charles Marie of Nassau, elder son of Prince Robert, was born on April 18, 1997.
    • His Royal Highness Prince Frederik Henry Douglas Marie of Nassau, younger son of Prince Robert, was born on March 18, 2002.

[edit] See also