House of Hohenzollern
The House of Hohenzollern (/ˌhoʊənˈzɒlərn/, US also /-nˈzɔːl-, -ntˈsɔːl-/;[1][2][3][4] German: Haus Hohenzollern, pronounced [ˌhaʊs hoːənˈtsɔlɐn] ⓘ; Romanian: Casa de Hohenzollern) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenburg, Prussia, the German Empire, and Romania. The family came from the area around the town of Hechingen in Swabia during the late 11th century and took their name from Hohenzollern Castle.[5] The first ancestors of the Hohenzollerns were mentioned in 1061.
"Hohenzollern" redirects here. For other uses, see Hohenzollern (disambiguation).House of Hohenzollern
Before 1061
- Germany and Prussia:
Prince Georg Friedrich (1994–present) - Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen:
Prince Karl Friedrich (2010–present)
- Germany and Prussia:
Kaiser Wilhelm II (1888–1918) - Romania:
King Michael I (1927–1930, 1940–1947)
- German Emperor
- Count of Zollern
- Margrave of Brandenburg
- Duke of Prussia
- Burgrave of Nuremberg
- Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth
- Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach
- King of Prussia
- King of Romania
- Grand Master of the Teutonic Order
- Prince of Hohenzollern-Hechingen (before 1869)
- Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (before 1869)
- Prince of Hohenzollern (after 1869)
- Prince of Neuchâtel (1707-1807, 1814-1857)
Germany, Prussia, Romania, Russia
- Germany and Prussia:
1918: Abdication of Wilhelm II - Romania:
1947: Abdication of Michael I
The Hohenzollern family split into two branches, the Catholic Swabian branch and the Protestant Franconian branch,[6] which ruled the Burgraviate of Nuremberg and later became the Brandenburg-Prussian branch. The Swabian branch ruled the principalities of Hohenzollern-Hechingen and Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen until 1849, and also ruled Romania from 1866 to 1947. Members of the Franconian branch became Margrave of Brandenburg in 1415 and Duke of Prussia in 1525.
The Margraviate of Brandenburg and the Duchy of Prussia were ruled in personal union after 1618 and were called Brandenburg-Prussia. From there, the Kingdom of Prussia was created in 1701, eventually leading to the unification of Germany and the creation of the German Empire in 1871, with the Hohenzollerns as hereditary German Emperors and Kings of Prussia.
Germany's defeat in World War I in 1918 led to the German Revolution. The Hohenzollerns were overthrown and the Weimar Republic was established, thus bringing an end to the German and Prussian monarchy. Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia, is the current head of the formerly royal Prussian line, while Karl Friedrich, Prince of Hohenzollern, is the head of the formerly princely Swabian line.[6]
Property claims[edit]
In mid-2019, it was revealed that Prince Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia, Head of the House of Hohenzollern had filed claims for permanent right of residency for his family in Cecilienhof, or one of two other Hohenzollern palaces in Potsdam, as well as return of the family library, 266 paintings, an imperial crown and sceptre, and the letters of Empress Augusta Victoria.[17]
Central to the argument was that Monbijou Palace, which had been permanently given to the family following the fall of the Kaiser, was demolished by the East German government in 1959. Lawyers for the German state argued that the involvement of members of the family in National Socialism had voided any such rights.[17]
In June 2019, a claim made by Prince Georg Friedrich that Rheinfels Castle be returned to the Hohenzollern family was dismissed by a court. In 1924, the ruined Castle had been given by the state of Rhineland-Palatinate to the town of St Goar, under the provision it was not sold. In 1998, the town leased the ruins to a nearby hotel. His case made the claim that this constituted a breach of the bequest.[18]
Achievement of Counts of Zollern
Burgraves of Nuremberg
Margraves of Brandenburg (1465)
Arms of the Duke of Prussia
Arms of the King of Prussia
Achievement of the King of Prussia
Coat of Arms of the German Emperor (1871-1918)
The greater coat of arms as German Emperor (1871-1918)
