William II (28July 1777 – 20November 1847) was the penultimate Elector of Hesse.

Early life

William was the eldest surviving son of William I, Elector of Hesse and Wilhelmina Caroline of Denmark and Norway. With the Hessian troops, he was involved in the War of the Sixth Coalition against Napoleon in 1813. He succeeded as Elector of Hesse (a title that was moribund after the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806) after his father's death in 1821. Upon succeeding his father as Elector, he halted the construction of the Chattenburg palace. Instead, he focused on expanding the Residenzpalais in Kassel.

Personal life

On 13 February 1797 in Berlin, William married Princess Augusta of Prussia, fourth daughter of King Frederick William II of Prussia. They had six children:

Second marriage

William also had eight children with his second wife, Emilie Ortlöpp (1791–1843), daughter of Johann Christian Ortlöpp and Agnese Wiessenberg, created in 1821 Countess of Reichenbach-Lessonitz. The children bore the title Count/Countess of Reichenbach-Lessonitz:

Third marriage

Several months after Augusta's death on 19 February 1841, William morganatically married his mistress and their children were legitimated. Emilie Ortlöpp died less than two years after the marriage in 1843. Again, months after his second wife's death, William married (morganatically) Caroline, Baroness of Berlepsch (1820–1877), daughter of Ludwig Hermann, Baron of Berlepsch and Melusine Jul. Chr. von Kruse. William created the title of Countess of Bergen for Caroline in 1846. This marriage was childless. After his death, she married on 28 October 1851 Karl Adolf Graf von Hohenthal (1811–1875), by whom she had two sons: Karl Adolf (b. 1853) and Karl Ludwig (b. 1857). William died on 20 November 1847 and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son, Frederick William, the last Elector of Hesse.

Descendants

Princess Tatiana of Greece and Denmark, the wife of Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark, is a descendant of William II, through her mother's side.

Honours

• Electorate of Hesse: • * Knight of the House Order of the Golden Lion, 11 May 1783; Grand Cross, 29 May 1785 • * Knight of the Pour la Vertu Militaire, 29 May 1785 • * Knight of the Order of the Iron Helmet, 22 September 1814 • Grand Duchy of Hesse: Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order • Kingdom of Prussia: • * Knight of the Order of the Black Eagle, 26 November 1794 • * Knight of the Order of the Red Eagle, 1st Class, 26 November 1794 • Kingdom of Hanover: Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order, 1818 • 🇩🇰 Denmark: Knight of the Order of the Elephant, 16 April 1821 • Austrian Empire: Grand Cross of the Order of St. Stephen, 1821 • Ernestine duchies: Grand Cross of the Saxe-Ernestine House Order, April 1834

Ancestry

Footnotes

Sources