Prince Heinrich of Bavaria (24 June 1884 – 8 November 1916) was a member of theBavarian Royal House ofWittelsbach and a highly decorated Army officer in theFirst World War.

Prince Heinrich of Bavaria
c. 1910
Born	(1884-06-24)24 June 1884 Munich,Kingdom of Bavaria,German Empire
Died	7 November 1916(1916-11-07) (aged 32)[1] Argeș County,Kingdom of Romania
Burial	Theatinerkirche,Munich,Bavaria
House	Wittelsbach
Father	Prince Arnulf of Bavaria
Mother	Princess Therese of Liechtenstein
Signature
Military career
Allegiance	German Empire  Kingdom of Bavaria
Rank	Major
Unit	1st Royal Bavarian Heavy Cavalry Royal Bavarian Infantry Lifeguards Regiment
Commands	III. BattalionAlpenkorps
Battles / wars	World War I Battle of the Olt Valley †
Awards	Military Order of Max Joseph Iron Cross (1914)

Heinrich was born inMunich,Kingdom of Bavaria. He was the only child ofPrince Arnulf of Bavaria and his wifePrincess Therese of Liechtenstein.

Heinrich was brought up in Munich, where one of his tutors wasJoseph Gebhard Himmler, the father ofHeinrich Himmler. The elder Himmler was an ardent royalist who, following the birth of his second son, petitioned the prince to allow him to be named after him -Heinrich. The prince agreed and also becameHeinrich Himmler's godfather.^[2] "{H}e took a lively interest in the progress of his godson and in how the Himmlers were faring. It was a warm relationship, as is shown by the preserved correspondence between Gebhard and the prince; at Christmas the Himmlers regularly received a visit from the prince and his mother..."^[3]

At the age of 17, following hisAbitur, Heinrich joined the Bavarian army with the rank ofLeutnant. Initially, he served with the Royal BavarianInfanterie-Leib-Regiment, but later was reassigned the1st Royal Bavarian Heavy Cavalry “Prince Charles of Bavaria”.

After the outbreak ofWorld War I, the regiment saw action on the Western front, where Prince Heinrich was badly wounded. Upon recovering, he returned to his old infantry regiment and in June 1915, was promoted tomajor. At the same time, he was put in charge of the III. Battalion of the newly establishedDeutsches Alpenkorps stationed in theCarnic Alps. In late 1916, the battalion was transferred toRomania where it fought atTurnu Roşu Pass. On 7 November 1916, during operations in the area nearPoiana Spinului, while conducting a personal reconnaissance of the front line, he was shot and killed by Romanian soldiers. His last words reportedly were, "Noblesse oblige. I do not mean that with respect to my family but rather my duty as an officer."^[4]

Heinrich's body was transported back to Munich, where he was buried by his father's side at theTheatinerkirche. On 6 March 1917, for his exceptional bravery, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of theMilitary Order of Max Joseph, Bavaria's highest military honour.

Prince Heinrich received the following honours, orders and decorations:^[5]

•   Kingdom of Bavaria:
  • Order of Saint Hubert (24 June 1902)^[6][7]
  • Military Order of Max Joseph, Knight's Cross (6 March 1917)^[7]
  • Military Merit Order, 4th Class^[6]
  • Military Merit Order, 4th Class with Swords (10 October 1914)^[6][7]
  • Military Merit Order, 3rd Class with Swords (18 September 1916)^[7]
  • Jubilee Medal for the Bavarian Army (12 March 1905)^[6][7]
  • à la suite of the Royal Bavarian 12th Infantry Regiment "Prinz Arnulf" (Königlich Bayerisches 12. Infanterie-Regiment „Prinz Arnulf“)^[8]
•  Duchy of Brunswick:
  • Order of Henry the Lion, Grand Cross (16 June 1914)^[6][7]
  • War Merit Cross 2nd Class^[7]
•  Hohenzollern principalities: PrincelyHouse Order of Hohenzollern, Honor Cross 1st Class with Swords (17 August 1916)^[7]
•   Kingdom of Prussia:
  • Order of the Black Eagle^[6]
  • Iron Cross 2nd Class^[6]
  • Iron Cross 1st Class^[7]
  • RoyalHouse Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross with Swords^[7]
•    Saxon duchies:Ducal Saxe-Ernestine House Order, Grand Cross (6 November 1907)^[6][7]
•  Kingdom of Württemberg:Order of the Württemberg Crown, Grand Cross^[6]

•   Austria-Hungary:Military Merit Cross, 3rd Class with War Decoration^[7]
•   Kingdom of Bulgaria:Order of Saint Alexander, Grand Cross (29 April 1908)^[6][7]
•   Ottoman Empire:
  • Order of Glory, Grand Cordon^[6]
  • Order of Osmanieh 1st Class (29 April 1908)^[6][7]
  • Liakat Medal in Gold with Sabers^[6]
  • War Medal^[6]
•   Portugal:Military Order of Christ, Grand Cross^[6]
•   Spain:
  • Order of Charles III, Knight Grand Cross (1906)^[6][7]
  • Cross of theMilitary Knightly Order of Our Lady of Montesa (1906)^[6][7]

• Barrett, Michael B. (2013).Prelude to Blitzkrieg: The 1916 Austro-German Campaign in Romania. Indiana University Press.ISBN 978-0-253-00865-7.
• Longerich, Peter (6 December 2012).Heinrich Himmler: A Life. Oxford University Press.ISBN 978-0-19-965174-0.
• Jirí Louda and Michael MacLagan, Lines of Succession: Heraldry of the Royal Families of Europe, 2nd edition (London, U.K.: Little, Brown and Company, 1999)
• Breitman, Richard (2004).Himmler and the Final Solution: The Architect of Genocide. Pimlico, Random House, London.ISBN 1-84413-089-4.