Young Saxe-Meiningens

both images: Marlene A. Eilers Koenig Collection

New to my collection.  The first image shows the Hereditary Princess of Saxe-Meiningen,  nee Princess Charlotte of Prussia, wearing Thüringen costume.  The eldest daughter of Emperor Friedrich III,  Charlotte married the future Duke Bernhard III of Saxe-Meiningen in 1878.  They had one daughter, Princess Feodora.

Bernhard II succeeded his father, Georg II in 1914.  He reigned until November 1918.

Princess Luise Marie (1899- and Prince Bernhard  (1901-1984) were the younger children of Prince Friedrich, youngest surviving son of Georg II and his second wife, Princess Feodora of Hohenlohe-Langenburg.   Friedrich's elder brother, Ernst II, succeeded Bernhard as the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen.

Ernst's marriage was morganatic, and his sons could not succeed him.  Thus, when Ernst died in 1941, the headship of the family passed to Prince Friedrich's eldest son, Georg.  Friedrich died in action in 1914.

Georg married Countess Klara-Marie von Korff gennant Schmising-Kersenbrock, a Roman Catholic.  The children were raised as Roman Catholics, and the only son, Hereditary Prince Friedrich-Alfred became a monk  Duke Georg III died in a Russian prisoner of war camp and was succeeded by his brother, Bernhard, who appears in the above photo with his sister, Luise Marie.

Princess Luise Marie married in 1936 to Baron Götz von Wangenheim.   They had two children, Baroness Karin (1937)  and Baron Ernst Friedrich (1941).   Baron Götz was killed in action in Russia in 1941.