| Prince Heinrich of Prussia | |||||
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%2c_brother_of_Kaiser_Wilhelm_II.jpg) Photograph by Ernest Flagg, 1914 | |||||
| Born | (1862-08-14)August 14, 1862 Berlin,Kingdom of Prussia,German Confederation | ||||
| Died | April 20, 1929(1929-04-20) (aged 66) Schloss Hemmelmark,Barkelsby,Schleswig-Holstein,Weimar Republic | ||||
| Burial | 24 April 1929 Schloss Hemmelmark, Barkelsby, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany | ||||
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| House | Hohenzollern | ||||
| Father | Frederick III, German Emperor | ||||
| Mother | Victoria, Princess Royal | ||||
| Signature | .svg) | ||||
| Military career | |||||
| Allegiance |  Kingdom of Prussia German Empire | ||||
| Branch |  Imperial German Navy | ||||
| Years of service | 1872–1919 | ||||
| Rank | Großadmiral (grand admiral) | ||||
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| Prussian Royalty |
| House of Hohenzollern |
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| Frederick III |
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Prince Heinrich of Prussia (German:Albert Wilhelm Heinrich; 14 August 1862 – 20 April 1929) was a younger brother of German Emperor and King of PrussiaWilhelm II and aPrince ofPrussia. Through his mother, he was also a grandson ofQueen Victoria. A career naval officer, he held various commands in theImperial German Navy and eventually rose to the rank ofGrand Admiral and the office ofInspector General of the Navy.
Born inBerlin, Prince Heinrich was the third child and second son of eight children born to Crown Prince Frederick William (later EmperorFrederick III), andVictoria, Princess Royal (later Empress Victoria and in widowhood Empress Frederick), eldest daughter of the BritishQueen Victoria. Henry was three years younger than his brother, the futureEmperor William II (born 27 January 1859). He was born on the same day as King Frederick William I "Soldier-King" of Prussia.
After attending thegymnasium inKassel, which he left in the middle grades in 1877, the 15-year-old Heinrich entered the Imperial Navy cadet program. His naval education included a two-year voyage around the world (1878–1880), the naval officer examination (Seeoffizierhauptprüfung) in October 1880, and attending the German naval academy (1884–1886).
As a Prussian prince, Henry quickly achieved command. In 1887, he commanded a torpedo boat and simultaneously the First Torpedo Boat Division; in 1888 the Imperial yachtSMY Hohenzollern; from 1889 to 1890 theprotected cruiserSMS Irene, thecoastal defense shipBeowulf, the ironcladSachsen and thepre-dreadnought battleshipWörth.
From 1897, Prince Henry commanded several naval task forces; these included an improvised squadron that took part with theEast Asia Squadron in consolidating and securing the German hold on the region ofKiaochow and the port ofTsingtao in 1898. The prince's success was more of the diplomatic than the military variety; he became the first European potentate ever to be received at the Chinese imperial court. In 1899 he became officially the commander of the East Asia Squadron, later of a capital-ship squadron and in 1903 commander of the Baltic Sea naval station. From 1906 to 1909, Henry was commander of theHigh Seas Fleet. In 1909, he was promoted to Grand Admiral.[citation needed]
At the beginning ofWorld War I, Prince Henry was named as Commander-in-Chief of the Baltic Fleet. Although the means provided to him were far inferior toRussia'sBaltic Fleet, he succeeded, until the 1917 Revolution, in puttingRussian naval forces far on the defensive and hindered them from making attacks on the German coast. After the end of hostilities with Russia, his mission was ended, and Prince Henry simply left active duty. With the war's end and the dissolution of the monarchy in Germany, Prince Henry left the navy.
On 24 May 1888, Henry marriedPrincess Irene of Hesse and by Rhine, his first cousin. His dying father, German EmperorFrederick III and his mother Empress Victoria were in attendance. The marriage produced three children:
| Name | Picture | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waldemar William Louis Frederick Victor Henry |  | 20 March 1889 | 2 May 1945 | MarriedPrincess Calixta of Lippe, but had no issue. |
| William Victor Charles Augustus HenrySigismund |  | 27 November 1896 | 14 November 1978 | Married Princess Charlotte of Saxe-Altenburg, had issue. |
| Henry Victor Louis Frederick | .JPG) | 9 January 1900 | 26 February 1904 | Was ahaemophiliac and died aged four after bumping his head[citation needed] |
Their sons Waldemar and Heinrich were bothhemophiliacs, a disease which they inherited through Irene from the maternal grandmother of both of their parents,Queen Victoria, who was acarrier.
Henry received one of the first pilot's licenses in Germany, and was judged a spirited and excellent seaman. He was dedicated to modern technology and was able to understand quickly the practical value of technical innovations. Ayachting enthusiast, Prince Henry became one of the first members of theYacht Club of Kiel, established by a group of naval officers in 1887, and quickly became the club's patron.
Henry was interested in motor cars as well and supposedly invented a windshield wiper[1] and, according to other sources, the car horn.
In his honor, thePrinz-Heinrich-Fahrt (Prince Heinrich Tour) was established in 1908, like the earlierKaiserpreis a precursor to theGerman Grand Prix. Henry and his brother William gave patronage to theKaiserlicher Automobilclub (Imperial Automobile Club). From 1911 to 1914 the British car makersVauxhall Motors produced a model, the C-10, which was called the "Vauxhall Prince Henry" in his honour after initially being built for participation in the 1911 race.
After theGerman Revolution, Henry lived with his family inHemmelmark nearEckernförde, inSchleswig-Holstein. He continued with motor sports and sailing and even in old age was a very successful participant in regattas. He popularized thePrince Henry cap, which is still worn, especially by older sailors.
In 1899, Henry received an honorary doctorate (Doctor of Engineeringhonoris causa) from theTechnische Hochschule in Charlottenburg (nowTechnische Universität Berlin) . Also in foreign countries he received numerous similar honors, including an honorary doctorate (LL.D.) fromHarvard University in March 1902, during his visit to the United States.[2]
Prince Henry died ofthroat cancer on 20 April 1929 in Hemmelmark.[3]
George Burroughs Torrey painted a portrait of him.
Austria-Hungary:K.u.K. Infantry Regiment Nr. 20 – Oberstinhaber (Colonel in Chief)[5]
Austria-Hungary:K.u.K. Kriegsmarine (Navy) – Admiral (Honorary)[8]
United Kingdom:Royal Navy –Admiral of the Fleet (Honorary) 27 January 1910.[10]
Russian Empire: Imperial Dragoon Regiment Nr. 33 – Colonel[5]
Prussia:
Hohenzollern: Cross of Honour of thePrincely House Order of Hohenzollern, 1st Class
Anhalt: Grand Cross of theOrder of Albert the Bear,1884[16]
Baden:[17]
Bavaria:Knight of St. Hubert,1886[14][18]
Brunswick: Grand Cross of theOrder of Henry the Lion,1888[19]
Ernestine duchies: Grand Cross of theSaxe-Ernestine House Order,1885[20]
Free Hanseatic Cities:Hanseatic Crosses
Hesse and by Rhine:
Mecklenburg:Grand Cross of the Wendish Crown, with Crown in Ore and Diamonds
Oldenburg:Grand Cross of the Order of Duke Peter Friedrich Ludwig, with Golden Crown,18 February 1878[22]
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach:Grand Cross of the White Falcon,1882[23]
Saxony:
Württemberg:Grand Cross of the Württemberg Crown,1882[25]
Austria-Hungary: Grand Cross of theRoyal Hungarian Order of St. Stephen,1872[26]
Belgium: Grand Cordon of theOrder of Leopold
Brazil:Grand Cross of the Southern Cross
Bulgaria:Grand Cross of St. Alexander
China:Order of the Double Dragon, Class I Grade II
Denmark:Knight of the Elephant,30 July 1888[27]
Finland:Grand Cross of the Cross of Liberty,1918[28]
Greece:Grand Cross of the Redeemer
Hawaii: Grand Cross of theOrder of Kalākaua
Italy:
Tuscan Grand Ducal family:Grand Cross of St. Joseph.svg)
Holy See: Knight of theSupreme Order of Christ
Japan: Grand Cordon of theOrder of the Chrysanthemum,10 June 1879[30]
Korea: Grand Cordon of theOrder of the Golden Ruler,1904[31]
Montenegro: Grand Cross of theOrder of Prince Danilo I
Netherlands:Grand Cross of the Netherlands Lion
Ottoman Empire:Order of Osmanieh, 1st Class with Diamonds
Portugal:
Romania:Grand Cross of the Star of Romania Russia:
Serbia:Grand Cross of the White Eagle
Johor: First Class of theRoyal Family Order of Johor,24 February 1898[32]
Siam: Knight of theOrder of the Royal House of Chakri,24 December 1899[33]
Spain:
Sweden-Norway:
United Kingdom:
Venezuela: Collar of theOrder of the LiberatorAdmiral Prince Henry of Prussia, brother of the kaiser, has invented and patented an electrical device for cleaning windows of automobiles in rainy or frosty weather. The device is set in operation by the pressing of a button.
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| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by New post | Commander-in-Chief of High Seas Fleet of theImperial German Navy 1907–1909 | Succeeded by |