German entrepreneur. From 1980 to 2013 he was the head of the ancient Brabant Dynasty of European royalty and its surviving German branch, the House of Hesse. He was the first son of the last actual Prince and Landgrave of Hesse, Philip, whose monarchy was discontinued in 1918 along with all the other German monarchies, so that his son had no genuine title but a very long surname. German royal and noble titles were outlawed after WW1, but have subsequently been allowed by that country's government to be added as part of the surnames of former royals such as he; thus he ended up with a surname consisting of all of five words. As a courtesy he (like many other former royals) was often styled as if his family's titles still were authentic, and then called Highness. He was born in Italy and, growing up in Germany, suffered the trauma of living through both parents being arrested by the Nazis during WW2 and his mother's death in the Buchenwald concentration camp in 1944. He became a much appreciated international socialite and a collector of art of renown with what have been seen as remarkable cultural assets . In 1954 near Frankfurt am Main in a building named Friedrichshof, a favorite home of one of the last Empresses of Germany, the Kronberg Palace Hotel opened and was run by him first class for the House of Hesse until his death. On the international social scene one of his best friends was Dame Edna Everage (Barry Humphries).
German entrepreneur. From 1980 to 2013 he was the head of the ancient Brabant Dynasty of European royalty and its surviving German branch, the House of Hesse. He was the first son of the last actual Prince and Landgrave of Hesse, Philip, whose monarchy was discontinued in 1918 along with all the other German monarchies, so that his son had no genuine title but a very long surname. German royal and noble titles were outlawed after WW1, but have subsequently been allowed by that country's government to be added as part of the surnames of former royals such as he; thus he ended up with a surname consisting of all of five words. As a courtesy he (like many other former royals) was often styled as if his family's titles still were authentic, and then called Highness. He was born in Italy and, growing up in Germany, suffered the trauma of living through both parents being arrested by the Nazis during WW2 and his mother's death in the Buchenwald concentration camp in 1944. He became a much appreciated international socialite and a collector of art of renown with what have been seen as remarkable cultural assets . In 1954 near Frankfurt am Main in a building named Friedrichshof, a favorite home of one of the last Empresses of Germany, the Kronberg Palace Hotel opened and was run by him first class for the House of Hesse until his death. On the international social scene one of his best friends was Dame Edna Everage (Barry Humphries).
Bio by: Count Demitz
Family Members
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