Karl II, 8th Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg

Karl II (1962)

Karl II, 8th Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (German: Karl Fürst zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg^[1][2] (8 February 1904, Kleinheubach - 23 August 1990, Kleinheubach) was a German Roman Catholic nobleman. From 1948 to 1967 he was president of the Central Committee of German Catholics. Born as Prinz zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg, he inherited the title of 'Erbrpinz' on his father's death in 1952 and later became Fürst zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg.^[3]

Life

The noble family Loewenstein-Wertheim goes back to the Wittelsbach Friedrich I., the Victorious, Elector of the Palatinate (1425-1476) and his son Ludwig . Karl comes from the marriage of Aloys Fürst zu Loewenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (1871-1952) and Karl was the third of the nine children of Aloys, 7th Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg and Josephine Countess Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau (1874-1946) and was the third of nine children. The House of Loewenstein-Wertheim is descended from Frederick I, Elector Palatine and his son Louis I, Count of Lowenstein. Karl studied at the Jesuit college of Stella Matutina in Feldkirch and later studied philosophy and jurisprudence in Innsbruck, Munich and Wurzburg. He graduated with a 'Dr. jur.' from Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg in 1928 with a doctoral thesis on Erbverzicht und Abfindungsvertrag. He served as speaker for Catholic Youth and from 1933 to 1938 chairman of the 'Verband der Wissenschaftlichen Katholischen Studentenvereine Unitas' (the Unitas Association of Catholic Scientific Student Societies), until it was disbanded in 1938 by the Nazi regime.

Marriage and issue

In Rome in 1935 Karl Prinz zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg married Carolina dei Conti Rignon (1904–1975), with whom he had seven children:

• Maria, Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1935)
• Josephine Aloisia, Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1937), married Prinz Alexander von und zu Liechtenstein (1929–2012), one of their children, Stefan von und zu Liechtenstein, is Liechtenstein's current ambassador to Germany
• Monika Maria, Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1938)
• Christina, Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1940)
• Alois Konstantin, 9th Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1941)
• Elizabeth-Alexandra, Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1944)
• Lioba Ernestine, Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (* 1946)

Orders and decorations

• 1955 Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
• 1955 Bavarian Order of Merit
• 1955 Grand Cross of the Order of St Gregory

References

1. Gerhard Heinrichs: „Ich und mein Haus gehören dem Herrn.“ Dr. Karl Fürst zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg im Alter von 86 Jahren gestorben. In: Würzburger katholisches Sonntagsblatt 35 (2. September 1990)
2. Hildegard Preis: Zum Tode von Karl Fürst zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. Träger höchster Auszeichnungen – Initiator großer Hilfsunternehmen für notleidende Völker. In: Heimatbote für die Kreise Tachau und Bischofteinitz (7. September 1990)
3. His full birth name according to Online-Gotha was Karl Friedrich Franz Xaver Joseph Aloysius Antonius Ignatius Expeditus Maria Scholastica Prinz zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. Article 109 of the Weimar Constitution of 11 August 1919 repealed all public prerogatives of birth, with noble titles merely forming part of the name rather than titles to be awarded - in the case of Karl's family, 'Prince' or 'Princess of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg' became part of their family name.

Bibliography

• Marie-Emmanuelle Reytier: Die Fürsten Löwenstein an der Spitze der deutschen Katholikentage: Aufstieg und Untergang einer Dynastie (1868 - 1968). In: Günther Schulz und Markus A. Denzel (Hrsg.): Deutscher Adel im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert. Büdinger Forschungen zur Sozialgeschichte 2002 und 2003. Reihe: Deutsche Führungsschichten in der Neuzeit, Band 26. Scripta Mercaturae Verlag, St. Katharinen 2004, ISBN 3-89590-145-8
• Nicolai Hannig: Die Affäre Waltermann. Formen der Skandalisierung im Kirchenfunk, in: Rundfunk und Geschichte 34 (2008), S. 5–17.

External links

• Karl Fürst zu Lowenstein on the Munzinger-Archiv
• Homepage of the House of Löwenstein
• Coat of arms of the house of Löwenstein
• The Princes of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg and the Kloster Neustadt am Main