Prussian naval theorist and admiral.

Father:
Friedrich Wilhelm Carl von Hohenzollern, Prince of Prussia (1783-1851)
Mother:
Maria Anna Amalie of Hesse-Homburg (1785–1846)

Spouse:
Theresia Elssler (1808-1878), later elevated to Theresia von Barnim by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia.

As a young man, Adalbert entered the Prussian army and served in the artillery. Several journeys led him between 1826 and 1842 to the Netherlands, Britain, Russia, Turkey, Greece, and Brazil. He recognized during his many sea voyages the importance that sea power had for a modern commercial and industrial nation. He studied carefully the theory of naval warfare and in 1835-1836 wrote a first plan for the construction of a Prussian fleet. Prussia at that time was a land power focused on Continental Europe, possessing practically no navy of its own; rather, it relied on the allied powers of Britain, the Netherlands, and Denmark. During the Schleswig-Holstein War of 1848-1851, however, the failure of this strategy became apparent: Britain and the Netherlands remained neutral and Denmark became the enemy. Within a few days the Danish navy had destroyed German maritime commerce in the North Sea and the Baltic. During the Revolutions of 1848, the German National Assembly which met at St. Paul's Church in Frankfurt resolved with "a majority clearly bordering on unanimity" to establish a German Imperial fleet and named Prince Adalbert to lead the so-called Maritime Technical Commission. He presented his recommendations in a "Memorandum on the Construction of a German Fleet" (Denkschrift über die Bildung einer deutschen Flotte) (Potsdam 1848). In this memorandum, still regarded highly for its insights on naval strategy, Adalbert distinguished between three fleet models: A naval force intended solely for defensive actions in relation to coastal defense; An offensive naval force intended for national defense, and for the most necessary protection of commerce; or An independent naval power. Adalbert himself favored the middle solution, because it would not provoke the great sea powers (such as Britain), but would provide the German navy with significant value as an ally. In 1849, his cousin, Prussian King Frederick William IV, ordered Adalbert to resign his office in the fledging Imperial Navy. The reactionary king distrusted the National Assembly because of its revolutionary nature, and had already turned down its offer to take up the German Imperial crown. Despite the setback, Prince Adalbert continued to give active support to the construction of a fleet. In 1852, Adalbert argued that Prussia needed to build a naval base on the North Sea. He arranged the Jade Treaty of July 20, 1853, in which Prussia and the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg jointly withdrew from a region on the west bank of the Jade bay, where from 1854 onward Prussia established the fortress, naval base and city of Wilhelmshaven. On March 30, 1854, Prince Adalbert was named Admiral of the Prussian Coast and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. In the summer of 1856, while on a training cruise of Prussian warships, he was shot at by pirates within sight of Morocco's Rif coast and was lightly wounded. During the Second Schleswig War of 1864 (also known as the "Danish-Prussian War") he commanded the Baltic Squadron, without being able to take an active role in the war. After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871, which led to the creation of the German Empire, Adalbert laid down his title of "Prince-Admiral" and retired from the now-renamed Imperial Navy. He died two years later of liver disease. Adalbert was married to the dancer Therese Elssler (Frau von Barnim); their only son, Adalbert v. Barnim (born 1841), died in 1860 during an expedition on the Nile.
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