Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse

Prince Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse (Georg Donatus Wilhelm Nikolaus Eduard Heinrich Karl, 8 November 1906 – 16 November 1937) was the first child of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and his second wife, Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich. He was a nephew of Empress Alexandra, wife of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia.

Marriage and children

On 2 February 1931 at Darmstadt Georg, a great-grandson of Queen Victoria, married his first cousin once-removed, Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, daughter of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg (and thus a sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh), a great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. They had four children:

On 1 May 1937 Georg Donatus and Princess Cecile both joined the Nazi Party.

Death

In October 1937, Georg Donatus' father, Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig of Hesse died. A few weeks after the funeral, his younger brother, Prince Louis was due to be married to the Hon. Margaret Geddes, daughter of Lord Geddes. On 16 November 1937, Georg Donatus, Cecilie, their two young sons, Georg's mother Grand Duchess Eleonore, the children's nurse, a family friend, a pilot and two crewmen, flew from Darmstadt bound for the United Kingdom, where Prince Louis was due to be married. The aeroplane hit a factory chimney near Ostend and crashed into flames, killing all those on board. Cecilie was heavily pregnant with her fourth child at the time of the crash, and the remains of the newborn baby were found in the wreckage, indicating that Cecilie had gone into labour during the flight; the Belgian inquiry into the crash suggested that the pilot was attempting to land in Ostend despite the poor weather conditions because of the birth.

Aftermath

Prince Louis' wedding had been scheduled for the 20th, but, following discussions with his future father-in-law Sir Auckland Geddes, was brought forward to the day following the accident (17 November), as a small and quiet ceremony with the guests dressed in mourning.

Immediately afterward, he set off with his new wife Margaret to Belgium to visit the crash site. The funeral and burial of Georg Donatus and his family took place at the Rosenhöhe, Darmstadt, Hesse a few days later. Attending were Prince Philip, Prince Christoph of Hesse, Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Prince Philipp of Hesse, Berthold, Margrave of Baden, Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia and Lord Louis Mountbatten, among others. A photograph of the funeral procession, showing Prince Louis as chief mourner, shows crowds saluting the mourners with the Hitler salute. World War II began less than two years later.

The Hereditary Grand Duke and Duchess' fourteen-month-old daughter, Johanna, was the only one of the family who was not on board the aircraft. She was adopted by her uncle Prince Louis and aunt Princess Margaret in early 1938. Johanna died of meningitis in 1939.

With the death of the childless Prince Louis in 1968, the male line of the Hesse and by Rhine became extinct.

In popular culture

The crash figures in the plot of A Matter of Honour by Jeffrey Archer, in which Grand Duke Georg has in his possession the jewels of his aunt, the last Tsaritsa of Russia, which the KGB are looking for. There is no evidence in reality that this was the case.

He is depicted in the Netflix series The Crown portrayed by German actor August Wittgenstein.

Titles

• His Royal Highness The Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine

Georg Donatus never acceded to the grand ducal throne as it had been abolished at the end of the First World War. Titles became surnames after that point; and it was rare for the head of a royal, grand ducal or ducal family to change his title upon accession as head of a house.

Ancestry

Patrilineal descent

1. Gilbert I, Count of the Maasgau, d. 842
2. Gilbert II, Count of the Maasgau, 825–875
3. Reginar, Duke of Lorraine, 850–915
4. Reginar II, Count of Hainaut, 890–932
5. Reginar III, Count of Hainaut, 920–973
6. Lambert I, Count of Leuven, 950–1015
7. Lambert II, Count of Leuven, d. 1054
8. Henry II, Count of Leuven, 1020–1078
9. Godfrey I, Count of Leuven, 1060–1139
10. Godfrey II, Count of Leuven, 1187–1226
11. Godfrey III, Count of Leuven, 1140–1190
12. Henry I, Duke of Brabant, 1165–1235
13. Henry II, Duke of Brabant, 1207–1248
14. Henry I, Landgrave of Hesse, 1244–1308
15. Otto I, Landgrave of Hesse, 1272–1328
16. Louis the Junker of Hesse, 1305–1345
17. Hermann II, Landgrave of Hesse, 1341–1413
18. Louis I, Landgrave of Hesse, 1402–1458
19. Louis II, Landgrave of Hesse, 1438–1471
20. William II, Landgrave of Hesse, 1469–1509
21. Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, 1504–1567
22. George I, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1547–1596
23. Louis V, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1577–1626
24. George II, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1605–1661
25. Louis VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1630–1678
26. Ernest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1667–1739
27. Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1691–1768
28. Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt, 1719–1790
29. Louis I, Grand Duke of Hesse, 1753–1830
30. Louis II, Grand Duke of Hesse, 1777–1848
31. Prince Charles of Hesse and by Rhine, 1809–1877
32. Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse, 1868–1937
33. Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse, 1906–1937