Count of Merenberg
Encyclopedia
Count of Merenberg is the title bestowed in 1868 by the reign
ing Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont
, George Victor
, upon the morganatic
wife and male-line
descendants of Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau (1832-1905), who married Natalia Alexandrovna Pushkina (1836-1913), former wife of Russian
General
Mikhail Leontievich von Dubelt.
Nikolaus was a son of William, Duke of Nassau
and his second wife, Princess Pauline of Württemberg
. He was also a younger half-brother of Adolphe
, who was deposed
as reigning Duke of Nassau in 1866, but became Grand Duke of Luxembourg
in 1890. Natalia was a daughter of Alexander Pushkin, the renown
ed Russian writer who ranked, however, only as a dvoryanin
; an untitled member of the lower nobility
. Therefore, Natalia was created Countess von Merenberg, a title without territory, as she was not legally permitted to share her husband's princely title or rank, even though his family had ceased to be hereditary rulers when the kingdom of Prussia
annexed
Nassau.
Through Pushkin, Natalia descends from Peter the Great's African protégé, Abram Petrovich Gannibal
, as well as from the Cossack
leader Prince Petro Doroshenko
.
Georg Nikolaus' male line went extinct with the death of his son Georg Michael Alexander, Count von Merenberg (1897-1965). Georg Nikolaus' issue through the female line survives. Nikolaus´granddaughter, Countess Clothilde von Merenberg (born 1941), who married Enno von Rintelin, is the last surviving member of the Merenberg lineage
.
. If Nikolaus Wilhelm's children had been deemed dynastic, then his son Georg Nikolaus, Count of Merenberg would have succeeded as Head of the House of Nassau
upon William IV's death. Georg Nickolaus would have thus become the reigning Grand Duke of Luxembourg
.
However, his morganatic birth was deemed insurmountable, despite the fact that he had married a daughter of Tsar Alexander II of Russia
. In 1907, William IV, obtained passage of a law in Luxembourg confirming the exclusion of the Merenbergs from succession to the grand ducal throne. Georg Nikolaus's protests against the Luxembourg Diet
's confirmation of the succession rights of William IV's daughter, Princess Marie-Adélaïde, were expected to be taken up by the Netherlands and by the Great Powers which had guaranteed Luxembourg's neutrality in 1867. Nonetheless, Marie-Adélaïde did succeed her father, to become Luxembourg's first female monarch, in 1912. She was in turn succeeded by her sister Charlotte
, whose descendants have reigned over the grand duchy since then.
The heads of the house of Merenberg after 1912 were:
Reign
A reign is the term used to describe the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation or of a people . In most hereditary monarchies and some elective monarchies A reign is the term used to describe the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office...
ing Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont
Waldeck (state)
Waldeck was a sovereign principality in the German Empire and German Confederation and, until 1929, a constituent state of the Weimar Republic. It comprised territories in present-day Hesse and Lower Saxony, ....
, George Victor
George Victor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont
George Victor was the 3rd sovereign Prince of the German state of Waldeck and Pyrmont.He was born in Arolsen the son of George II, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont and his wife Princess Emma of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym...
, upon the morganatic
Morganatic marriage
In the context of European royalty, a morganatic marriage is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which prevents the passage of the husband's titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage...
wife and male-line
Patrilineality
Patrilineality is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritance of property, names or titles through the male line as well....
descendants of Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau (1832-1905), who married Natalia Alexandrovna Pushkina (1836-1913), former wife of Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Mikhail Leontievich von Dubelt.
William, Duke of Nassau
Wilhelm, Duke of Nassau, Prince of Nassau-Weilburg was the father of Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Queen Sophia .-Biography:Wilhelm was the eldest son of Frederick...
and his second wife, Princess Pauline of Württemberg
Princess Pauline of Württemberg
Princess Pauline Friederike Marie of Württemberg, full German name: Pauline Friederike Marie, Prinzessin von Württemberg was a member of the House of Württemberg and a Princess of Württemberg by birth...
. He was also a younger half-brother of Adolphe
Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Adolphe I, Grand Duke of Luxembourg was the last Duke of Nassau, and the fourth Grand Duke of Luxembourg.-Biography:...
, who was deposed
Deposition (politics)
Deposition by political means concerns the removal of a politician or monarch. It may be done by coup, impeachment, invasion or forced abdication...
as reigning Duke of Nassau in 1866, but became Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Grand Duke of Luxembourg
The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the sovereign monarch and head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was elevated from a duchy when placed in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
in 1890. Natalia was a daughter of Alexander Pushkin, the renown
Renown
Renown is fame. The word may also refer to:* HMS Renown, the name of multiple ships in the Royal Navy* Models of bus manufactured by Associated Equipment Company** AEC Renown ** AEC Renown - low-height double-decker bus built in 1960s...
ed Russian writer who ranked, however, only as a dvoryanin
Russian nobility
The Russian nobility arose in the 14th century and essentially governed Russia until the October Revolution of 1917.The Russian word for nobility, Dvoryanstvo , derives from the Russian word dvor , meaning the Court of a prince or duke and later, of the tsar. A nobleman is called dvoryanin...
; an untitled member of the lower nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
. Therefore, Natalia was created Countess von Merenberg, a title without territory, as she was not legally permitted to share her husband's princely title or rank, even though his family had ceased to be hereditary rulers when the kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
annexed
Annexation
Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...
Nassau.
Through Pushkin, Natalia descends from Peter the Great's African protégé, Abram Petrovich Gannibal
Abram Petrovich Gannibal
Major-General Abram Petrovich Gannibal, also Hannibal or Ganibal or Ibrahim Hannibal or Abram Petrov , was brought to Russia as a gift for Peter the Great and became major-general, military engineer, governor of Reval and nobleman of the Russian Empire...
, as well as from the Cossack
Cossack
Cossacks are a group of predominantly East Slavic people who originally were members of democratic, semi-military communities in what is today Ukraine and Southern Russia inhabiting sparsely populated areas and islands in the lower Dnieper and Don basins and who played an important role in the...
leader Prince Petro Doroshenko
Petro Doroshenko
Petro Dorofeyevych Doroshenko was a Cossack political and military leader, Hetman of Right-bank Ukraine and a Russian voyevoda.-Earlier life:...
.
Members of family
Their surviving children were:- Countess Sophie von MerenbergSophie of MerenbergCountess Sophie of Merenberg, Countess de Torby, was the eldest daughter of Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm of Nassau and Natalya Alexandrovna Pushkina.-Early life:...
(1868-1927). In 1891, she married Grand Duke Michael Mihailovich of RussiaGrand Duke Michael Mihailovich of RussiaGrand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia was a son of Grand Duke Michael Nicolaievich of Russia and a first cousin of Alexander III of Russia. He followed a military career, but was banished from living in Russia when in 1891 he contracted a morganatic marriage with Countess Sophie of Merenberg...
(1861-1929). As this marriage was also deemed morganaticMorganatic marriageIn the context of European royalty, a morganatic marriage is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which prevents the passage of the husband's titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage...
, she was not allowed to share her husband's titles and rank. Instead she was created Countess de Torby by the Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Her issue survives, among them the current Marquess of Milford HavenMarquess of Milford HavenMarquess of Milford Haven is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1917 for Prince Louis of Battenberg, the former First Sea Lord, and a relation to the British Royal family, who amidst the anti-German sentiments of the First World War abandoned the use of his German...
.
- Countess Alexandra von Merenberg (1869-1950). She married Máximo de Elía y Ramos Mexía (d. 1929).
- Georg Nikolaus, Count von Merenberg (1871-1948). He had two sons (of whom the elder died young), and one daughter from his first marriage (1895) with Princess Olga Alexandrovna YurievskayaCatherine DolgorukovPrincess Ekaterina Mikhailovna Dolgorukova , also known as Catherine Dolgorukova, Catherine Dolgoruki, or Catherine Dolgorukaya, , was the daughter of Prince Michael Dolgorukov and Vera Vishnevskaya...
(1874-1925), a morganatic daughter of Emperor Alexander II of RussiaAlexander II of RussiaAlexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
.
Georg Nikolaus' male line went extinct with the death of his son Georg Michael Alexander, Count von Merenberg (1897-1965). Georg Nikolaus' issue through the female line survives. Nikolaus´granddaughter, Countess Clothilde von Merenberg (born 1941), who married Enno von Rintelin, is the last surviving member of the Merenberg lineage
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
.
Luxembourg crown
When Prince Nikolaus Wilhelm died in 1905, his nephew Grand Duke William IV of Luxembourg (or Guillaume IV) became the last dynastic male of the House of NassauHouse of Nassau
The House of Nassau is a diversified aristocratic dynasty in Europe. It is named after the lordship associated with Nassau Castle, located in present-day Nassau, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The lords of Nassau were originally titled Count of Nassau, then elevated to the princely class as...
. If Nikolaus Wilhelm's children had been deemed dynastic, then his son Georg Nikolaus, Count of Merenberg would have succeeded as Head of the House of Nassau
House of Nassau
The House of Nassau is a diversified aristocratic dynasty in Europe. It is named after the lordship associated with Nassau Castle, located in present-day Nassau, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The lords of Nassau were originally titled Count of Nassau, then elevated to the princely class as...
upon William IV's death. Georg Nickolaus would have thus become the reigning Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Grand Duke of Luxembourg
The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the sovereign monarch and head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was elevated from a duchy when placed in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
.
However, his morganatic birth was deemed insurmountable, despite the fact that he had married a daughter of Tsar Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
. In 1907, William IV, obtained passage of a law in Luxembourg confirming the exclusion of the Merenbergs from succession to the grand ducal throne. Georg Nikolaus's protests against the Luxembourg Diet
Diet (assembly)
In politics, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly. The term is mainly used historically for the Imperial Diet, the general assembly of the Imperial Estates of the Holy Roman Empire, and for the legislative bodies of certain countries.-Etymology:...
's confirmation of the succession rights of William IV's daughter, Princess Marie-Adélaïde, were expected to be taken up by the Netherlands and by the Great Powers which had guaranteed Luxembourg's neutrality in 1867. Nonetheless, Marie-Adélaïde did succeed her father, to become Luxembourg's first female monarch, in 1912. She was in turn succeeded by her sister Charlotte
Charlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg
Charlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg was the reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg from 1919 to 1964.-Early life and life as Grand Duchess:...
, whose descendants have reigned over the grand duchy since then.
The heads of the house of Merenberg after 1912 were:
- Georg Nikolaus (1912-48)
- Georg Michael Alexander (1948-65)