Clyde Kenneth Harris

Clyde Kenneth Harris was an American soldier and interior decorator. He served as one of the so-called "Monuments Men" during World War II and later married a granddaughter of Kaiser Wilhelm II.

Life and career

The son of a banker in Konawa, OK, he graduated from the University of Oklahoma.[1] After earning his BFA, he was offered a scholarship to study in Paris, but instead attended the Parsons School of Design.

After initially enlisting in the United States Army Corps of Engineers, he was later assigned to the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program. While working with the MFAA, he retrieved Holbein's Madonna from the dungeon of Coburg Castle.[2] He was later sent to Wolfsgarten Castle to conduct interviews relating to the theft of the Hessen crown jewels (by, as it turned out, three Americans).[3]

During the course of his investigation, he met Princess Cecilie of Prussia, daughter of Crown Prince Wilhelm of Germany and granddaughter of Kaiser Wilhelm II. The two were married at Hohenzollern Castle in 1949.[4] The pair settled in Amarillo, TX, where Harris worked as an interior designer. He died in 1958, leaving one daughter.

References

  1. ↑ MacLeod, John (August 28, 1949). ""Her Royal Highness, Mrs. Harris"". The Milwaukee Sentinel. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  2. ↑ "Clyde K. Harris". Monuments Men Foundation for the Preservation of Art. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  3. ↑ Petropoulos, Jonathan "Royals and the Reich: The Princes von Hessen in Nazi Germany" pp. 345 - 346
  4. ↑ ""Princess, Texan on Honeymoon"". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 22, 1949. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
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