The Solms-Laubach - Douglas wedding

 

Countess Emma and Count Mauritz 

 It was a marriage where the bride and groom could count(ly) their many family connections.  On April 25, 2026, at the Evangelische Stadtkirche in Laubach, H Ill H Countess Emma Margaretha of Schloss-Laubach married Count Mauritz Douglas.

The 33-year-old bride is the eldest of five children of H. Ill. H. Karl Georg, Count of Solms-Laubach, and his first wife, Julia Willers.  Count Mauritz Otto Wenzel Douglas, 32, is the only child of Swedish Count Archibald Douglas and HI & RH Archduchess Walburg of Austria, daughter of the late HI &RH Archduke Otto of Austria and HSH Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen.

The civil wedding took place on April 24 at Schloss Laubach.  The mayor, Matthias Meyer, officiated at the ceremony.  He posted details about the service on his official Instagram account.  I have translated the message into English.

@buergermeister_fuer_laubach

"It was an honor and a pleasure for me as a registrar, mayor of Laubach, and friend of the family to conduct the wedding of Countess Emma to Solms-Laubach and Count Mauritz Douglas.

Lena had accompanied the civil wedding ceremony beautifully with three piano pieces.

We wish the young couple all the best and love for their journey together."

Countess Emma's 90-year-old grandmother, Princess Madeleine of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, who married  Otto, Count of Solms-Laubach, in 1958, was among the guests.  Princess Madeleine's late brother, Richard, Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, was married to Princess Benedikte of Denmark.    

Three of Emma's paternal aunts, Countesses Tatiana, Christina, and Maria, are married to Count Patrick von Saurma, Count Kilian von Pezold, and Prince Stephan zur Lippe.  One of Christina's daughters, Helene, is the wife of the Hereditary Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg.

Mauritz is a great-grandson of Austria's last Emperor Karl, who abdicated in 1918, and Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma.

The Prince and Princess Zur Lippe with their family

Helene, Hereditary Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg and her sister-in-law, Princess Amelie, Mrs. Schmid von Schmidsfelden

The Prince of Castell-Rüdenhausen with Hereditary Count Philipp and Count Nikolaus of Königsegg-Aulendorf

Gustav, Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg.  He and the bride are second cousins

Count Mauritz heads to church

The Count and Countess of Neipperg (Archduchess Andrea of Austria) with the Hereditary Count and Countess of Neipperg

The bride's mother, Julia, and Count Archibald Douglas and Archduchess Walburga

The bride's brother, Hereditary Count August

The Count and Countess of Neipperg (Archduchess Andrea of Austria)

Archduchesses Monika and Micaela of Austria, sisters of the mother of the bride

Archduchess Gabriela and her family

The children of Archduke Karl (Archduchess Eleonore, with her husband,  Jerome d'Ambrosio. Archduchess Gloria and Archduke Ferdinand 

The wedding was an ecumenical service as Emma is Lutheran and her husband is a Roman Catholic.  Although neither of Walburga's brothers, Archduke Karl and Archduke Georg, attended the wedding, their children were present.  Other guests included the Margrave of Baden, the Prince and Princess Zur Lippe with their family,  the Prince of Waldburg-Zeil-Hohenems,  the Prince and Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg with their family,  the Prince of Solms-Lich,  the Prince of Waldeck-Pyrmont and his two brothers, 

|After the wedding, the bride and groom, along with their guests, returned to Schloss Laubach for the reception, followed by a gala dinner in the evening.

https://royalmusingsblogspotcom.blogspot.com/2025/09/a-countly-engagement-count-mauritz.html

Countess Emma's younger sister, Clara, is preparing for her wedding.  In November 2025, Clara became engaged to Paul von Posern, the second son of Konrad von Posern and Duchess Edwina of Mecklenburg (daughter of Duke Christian Ludwig and Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Princess Barbara of Prussia)

My thanks (many thanks) to the photographer who has allowed me to use these photos. The copyright 

Two Georges Parallel Lives in the Age of the American Revolution

Last week, I went to see The Two Georges: Parallel Lives in the Age of the American Revolution at the Library of Congress (Thomas Jefferson building). I used my phone to take photos, so I can't edit them.  

A large percentage of items, including correspondence (all reproductions) were provided by the Royal Collection and HM King Charles III.

The two men had more in common than you would think.  Both were farmers, both were surveyors, both had difficult childhoods. I spent nearly two hours in the exhibit, going back through for a second time.

According to the Library of Congress, the "exhibition brings together three extraordinary collections — George Washington’s papers from the Library of Congress, George III’s scientific instruments from the Science Museum Group in London, and George III’s papers from the Royal Collection and Royal Archives — for the first time. These materials allow us to examine the parallel lives of these two men, who were born just six years apart. They show how both were shaped by the British Empire, the Enlightenment, and revolution. They reveal their shared interests in science and agriculture and illuminate how they approached the challenges of their time, including war, slavery, politics, and the pressures of public life."

This is a portrait of HRH Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales, father of George III.  The portrait was painted by Bartholomew Dandridge (1691-1755).  His youngest brother, Colonel John Dandridge, emigrated from England and settled in Virginia.  John's eldest daughter (and Bartholomew's niece), Martha, married George Washington.  

The exhibit runs through July 4th.

 

The companion book is excellent -- it is not a catalog of the exhibit, but it does include the item on display.  As one would expect from the Library of Congress, the book is well-researched.  True scholarship.

It is available in hardcover and paperback editions.

https://amzn.to/42g2mAv  (US)

And yes, the book is also available through Amazon UK

https://amzn.to/4tSgOuv