Prince Albert of Prussia (8 May 1837 – 13 September 1906) was a Prussian general field marshal, Herrenmeister (Grand Master) of the Order of Saint John from 1883 until his death, and regent of the Duchy of Brunswick from 1885, also until his death.

Biography

Albert was born in Berlin, the son of Prince Albert of Prussia and his wife Princess Marianne, daughter of King William I of the Netherlands. His father was a brother of King Frederick William IV of Prussia and of William I, German Emperor. Albrecht entered the Prussian army in 1847, serving in the First Schleswig War and participating in the battles of Skalitz, Schweinschädel and Königgrätz in the Austro-Prussian War in 1866. In the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 he commanded a guard cavalry brigade at Gravelotte and Sedan. After the fall of the Second Empire, he was subordinated to Edwin von Manteuffel in the fighting around Bapaume and St. Quentin. In 1874 he became commander of the X Corps stationed in Hannover. In 1883 he succeeded his uncle Prince Charles as Herrenmeister of the Order of Saint John (Bailiwick of Brandenburg). In 1885, Albert was chosen as Regent for the Duchy of Brunswick, as German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck had removed Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, from office. In 1913 Ernst August's son Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick became Duke of Brunswick who only reigned for 5 years and 6 days. After accepting the regency, Albert and Marie resided chiefly in Brunswick, Berlin, and Kamenz. Prince Albrecht died at Schloss Kamenz in 1906. He was buried in the Mausoleum auf dem Hutberge in the park of Schloss Kamenz. After World War II, the mausoleum was plundered and the bodies of Albert and his wife were reburied in the park.

Marriage and issue

Albert's parents had been unhappily married to each other and were later divorced. The unhappiness of that marriage had been a formative influence on Albert during his growing years. His decision to wait until he was 36 before marrying is thought to have been a reflection of his parents' marital situation. On 9 April 1873 in Berlin he married Princess Marie of Saxe-Altenburg. They had the following children:

Honours and awards

• Prussia: • * Knight of the Black Eagle, 8 May 1847; with Collar, 1856 • * Grand Commander's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, 23 August 1851; with Swords, 1871 • * Grand Cross of the Red Eagle, with Oak Leaves, 18 October 1861; with Swords, 1864; with Crown, 12 June 1892 • * Knight of the Crown Order, 1st Class, 18 October 1861 • * Iron Cross (1870), 1st Class • * Pour le Mérite (military), 19 September 1866; with Oak Leaves, 10 March 1871 • * Commander of Honour of the Johanniter Order, 1868; Master of Knights, 1883-1906 • * Knight of Merit of the Prussian Crown, 18 January 1901 • Hohenzollern: Cross of Honour of the Princely House Order of Hohenzollern, 1st Class with Swords • Ascanian duchies: Grand Cross of the Order of Albert the Bear, 29 November 1854; with Swords, 5 December 1864 • Baden: • * Knight of the House Order of Fidelity, 1856 • * Grand Cross of the Zähringer Lion, 1856 • * Commander of the Military Karl-Friedrich Merit Order, 1871 • undefined: Knight of St. Hubert, 1853 • Brunswick: Grand Cross of the Order of Henry the Lion, 1871; Grand Master (as Regent), 1885-1906 • Ernestine duchies: Grand Cross of the Saxe-Ernestine House Order, January 1855 • Hesse-Kassel: Knight of the Golden Lion, 16 April 1853 • Hesse-Darmstadt: Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order, 6 May 1870 • Lippe-Detmold: Grand Cross of the House Order of Lippe • Mecklenburg: • * Grand Cross of the Wendish Crown, with Crown in Ore • * Military Merit Cross, 1st Class (Mecklenburg-Schwerin) • Oldenburg: Grand Cross of the Order of Duke Peter Friedrich Ludwig, with Golden Crown, 5 September 1850 • Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach: Grand Cross of the White Falcon, 1869 • undefined: Knight of the Rue Crown, 1854 • Württemberg: Grand Cross of the Württemberg Crown, 1885 • Austrian Empire: Grand Cross of the Royal Hungarian Order of St. Stephen, 1852 • 🇧🇪 Belgium: Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold (military), 25 April 1867 • Kingdom of Italy: Knight of the Annunciation, 1889 • * Two Sicilian Royal family: Grand Cross of St. Ferdinand and Merit • 🇳🇱 Netherlands: • * Commander of the Military William Order, 25 August 1878 • * Grand Cross of the Netherlands Lion • Kingdom of Portugal: Grand Cross of the Tower and Sword • Kingdom of Romania: Grand Cross of the Star of Romania • Russian Empire: • * Knight of St. Andrew • * Knight of St. Alexander Nevsky • * Knight of the White Eagle • * Knight of St. Anna, 1st Class • * Knight of St. Stanislaus, 1st Class • * Knight of St. George, 4th Class • undefined: • * Knight of the Golden Fleece, 15 December 1891 • * Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III, with Collar, 15 May 1902 • 🇸🇪 🇳🇴 Sweden-Norway: Grand Cross of St. Olav, 3 September 1856 • undefined: • * Honorary Grand Cross of the Bath (military) • * Honorary Knight of Justice of St. John

Ancestry