Duchess Donata of Mecklenburg

Duchess Donata Spouse Alexander von Solodkoff Issue Thyra von Solodkoff Alix von Solodkoff Niklos-Alexis von Solodkoff House House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Father Duke Christian Louis of Mecklenburg Mother Princess Barbara of Prussia Born (1956-03-11) 11 March 1956 Kiel, Germany

Grand Ducal Family of Mecklenburg Mecklenburg-Schwerin HH The Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz HH The Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz HH Duchess Donata HH Duchess Edwina HH Duchess Woizlawa Feodora Mecklenburg-Strelitz HH The Duke HH The Duchess HH Duchess Olga HH Duke Alexander HH Duke Michael HH Duchess Elisabeth Christine HH Duchess Marie Catherine HH Duchess Irene HH Duke Carl Gregor

Duchess Donata of Mecklenburg (born 11 March 1956) is the senior member of the House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Since there are no males left in the family, the Schwerin branch itself is considered extinct due to the Salic law of succession. It is controversial whether its dynastic rights were inherited by the Carlow branch of the House of Mecklenburg.

Duchess of Mecklenburg

She was born in Kiel in the state of Schleswig-Holstein the eldest daughter of Duke Christian Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his wife Princess Barbara of Prussia. Her father was the younger brother to the last surviving male of the House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Friedrich Franz, Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. As Donata had only one sister Edwina (born 25 September 1960), and as her uncle had no children the House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin became extinct in the male line in 2001 when her uncle died. As a result the Mecklenburg-Strelitz line, headed by Borwin, Duke of Mecklenburg, will become the only surviving line of the House of Mecklenburg when both Donata and Edwina are dead.

Her paternal grandfather was the last reigning Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Frederick Francis IV. Her maternal grandfather was Prince Sigismund of Prussia.

Marriage and children

She married Alexander von Solodkoff on 19 September 1987, and had three children:

• Thyra von Solodkoff (b. 12 October 1989)
• Alix von Solodkoff (b. 17 March 1992)
• Niklot von Solodkoff (b. 8 December 1994)

Heir of Denmark

She is the heir of Gorm the Old, the first historical recognized King of Denmark, via male-preference primogeniture.

Ancestry

Sources

• Marlene A. Eilers, Queen Victoria's Descendants (Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1987), page 161-162.