Prince Henry of Prussia (1900–1904)

Prince Henry Victor Louis Frederick of Prussia (German: Heinrich Viktor Ludwig Friedrich; 9 January 1900 – 26 February 1904), was the third son and youngest child of Prince Henry of Prussia and Princess Irene of Hesse and by Rhine. He was a grandson of Frederick III, German Emperor, through his father and a great-grandson of Queen Victoria. He died at the age of four after his hemophilia exacerbated a head injury.

Prince Henry of Prussia
Prince Henry c. 1903
Born(1900-01-09)9 January 1900
Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, German Empire
Died26 February 1904(1904-02-26) (aged 4)
Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, German Empire
Burial29 February 1904
Schloss Hemmelmark, Barkelsby, Schleswig-Holstein, German Empire
Names
English: Henry Victor Louis Frederick
German: Heinrich Viktor Ludwig Friedrich
HouseHohenzollern
FatherPrince Henry of Prussia
MotherPrincess Irene of Hesse and by Rhine
ReligionEvangelical Christian
Prince Heinrich with his family in 1900.

Life

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Prince Heinrich was born on 9 January 1900, in Kiel. His father was pleased by the birth of yet another son, especially such a handsome one, as the Prince had blonde hair.[citation needed] The newborn Prince immediately received the title Prince of Prussia with the style Royal Highness, and was baptised Heinrich Viktor Ludwig Friedrich in Kiel Castle on 15 March 1900.[1] His older brothers were Prince Waldemar, a namesake of his uncle, and Prince Sigismund, a namesake of his other deceased uncle. Heinrich was named in honour of his father. The Prince was diagnosed with haemophilia as a young child, but, despite this, was a very cheerful and lively boy who liked to play a lot. As Henry grew older he became more aware of his condition.

Death

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On 25 February, Princess Irene left Heinrich unsupervised for a few minutes while she went to fetch something. The playful Prince climbed a chair, and then he climbed onto the table. As he heard his mother approaching, he attempted to quickly come down but stumbled while attempting to climb down the chair and fell on the floor headfirst. He started to scream, which immediately attracted the Princess' attention. By the time she reached him, the child was almost unconscious. The doctor said the fall had not been that bad and the child would have survived had he not been a haemophiliac. However, experiencing this condition, it was certain the young Prince would die. He was experiencing a brain haemorrhage. He lingered for a couple of hours, but died the following day, on 26 February. He was four years old.

Aftermath

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Prince Heinrich's premature death would later very much affect the Princess, who would withdraw into herself. One of his older brothers, Prince Waldemar, also had haemophilia. He lived up to the age of 56 and was married, without children. The middle sibling, Prince Sigismund, was unaffected by the disease.

Ancestry

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Notes

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  1. ^ "Court Circular". The Times. No. 36091. London. 16 March 1900. p. 6.
Queen Victoria
Xx
Albert
XY
Victoria
X?
Edward VII
XY
Alice
Xx
Louis IV
XY
Alfred
XY
Helena
X?
Louise
X?
Arthur
XY
Leopold
xY
Helen
XX
Beatrice
Xx
Henry
XY
Victoria
X?
Elisabeth
X?
Irene
Xx
Henry
XY
Ernest Louis
XY
Frederick
xY
Alix
Xx
Nicholas II
XY
Alice
Xx
Alexander
XY
Waldemar
xY
Sigismund
XY
Henry
xY
Olga
XX?
Tatiana
XX?
Maria
Xx?
Anastasia
XX?
Alexei
xY
May
X?
Rupert
xY
Maurice
XY
Alexander
XY
Victoria Eugenie
Xx
Alfonso XIII
XY
Leopold
xY
Maurice
XY
Alfonso
xY
Jaime
XY
Beatriz
X?
Maria Cristina
X?
Juan
XY
Gonzalo
xY

Legend: X – unaffected X chromosome; x – affected X chromosome; Y – Y chromosome; ? - unknown carrier status
Source: Aronova-Tiuntseva, Yelena; Herreid, Clyde Freeman (20 September 2003). "Hemophilia: 'The Royal Disease'" (PDF). SciLinks. National Science Teachers Association. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 January 2018.