Prince Konstantin of Bavaria

Infobox_Prince| name = Prince Konstantin of Bavaria


caption =Prince Konstantin of Bavaria with his great-grandmother Archduchess Gisela of Austria in 1920
consort =Princess Maria Adelgunde von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Countess Helene von Khevenhüller-Metsch
royal house =House of Wittelsbach
father =Prince Adalbert of Bavaria
mother =Countess Auguste von Seefried auf Buttenheim
date of birth =birth date|1920|8|15|mf=y
place of birth =Munich, Bavaria
date of death =death date and age|1969|7|30|1920|8|15|mf=y
place of death =plane crash near Hechingen, Baden-Württemberg
place of burial=Andechs Abbey cemetery, Andechs, Bavaria|

Prince Konstantin of Bavaria ( _de. Konstantin Leopold Ludwig Adalbert Georg Thadeus Josef Petrus Johannes Antonius Franz von Assisi Assumption et omnes sancti Prinz von Bayern) (August 15, 1920 - July 30, 1969) was a member of the Bavarian Royal House of Wittelsbach, journalist, author and a German politician.

Early life

Konstantin was born in Munich, Bavaria. He was the eldest son of Prince Adalbert of Bavaria and his wife Countess Auguste von Seefried auf Buttenheim.

In 1939, as most young German men of his age, the Prince was drafted to the military. However, his career in the German Army was short lived. In 1941, Prince Konstantin was relieved from all combat duties as a result of the so called "Prinzenerlass" and a year later started studying law at Albert-Ludwigs-Universität in Freiburg im Breisgau. After his graduation in 1944, he worked at the Higher Regional Court of Karlsruhe, but was arrested, as most of his relatives, after the failed attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler and remained imprissoned for the rest of World war II.

Post WWII

After the war Prince Konstantin began working as a journalist at the "Neu Revue" magazine,"Süddeutsche Zeitung" and later on for the popular German magazine "Bunte". In addition, in 1958 he published a biography of Pope Pius XII entitled "Der Papst" and three years later a historical reference book "Ohne Macht und Herrlichkeit". He also became a member of the Christlich-Soziale Union in Bayern, one of the biggest political parties in Bavaria and was elected to the Bavarian state parliament in 1962 and in 1965 to the Bundestag.

Marriage

On August 26, 1942 Prince Konstantin married Princess Maria ("Medi") Adelgunde von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, the daughter of Prince Friedrich von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Princess Margarete Carola of Saxony. The wedding took place in Sigmaringen in the state of Baden-Württemberg. The couple had two sons, but the marriage ended in divorce on July 14, 1948 and was annulled on March 24, 1950.

* Prince Leopold of Bavaria (b. 1943)
* Prince Adalbert of Bavaria (b. 1944)

On August 14, 1953 Prince Konstantin married again, Countess Helene ("Hella") von Khevenhüller-Metsch, the daughter of Count Franz von Khevenhüller-Metsch and Princess Anna von Fürstenberg. The civil ceremony took place at Sankt Georgen am Lingsee in Carinthia and the religious wedding followed a day later at Hohenosterwitz. The couple had a daughter together.

* Princess Ysabel of Bavaria (b. 1954)

Death

Prince Konstantin of Bavaria lost his life on July 30, 1969 in a plane crash near Hechingen, Baden-Württemberg and is buried at the Andechs Abbey cemetery in Bavaria.

Published Works

* "Nach der Sintflut". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - Bergisch Gladbach : Lübbe, 1988
* "Nach der Sintflut". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - München : Süddeutscher Verlag, 1986
* "Papst Pius XII". [der Zwölfte] , Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - Stein am Rhein : Christiana-Verlag, 1980, 38. - 42. Tsd.
* "Des Königs schönste Damen". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - München : Süddeutscher Verlag, 1980
* "Prinz und Demokrat. Konstantin von Bayern". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - München : Langen/Müller, 1970
* "Die Zukunft sichern". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - Stuttgart-Degerloch : Seewald, 1969
* "Ohne Macht und Herrlichkeit". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - München : List, 1961
* "Der Papst". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - [Gütersloh] : Bertelsmann Lesering, 1959
* "Der Papst". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - München : Kindler, 1958, 27. - 29. Tsd.
* "Der Papst". Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern - Frankfurt/M. : Ullstein Taschenbücher-Verl., 1958

References

* "Die Wittelsbacher. Geschichte unserer Familie". Adalbert, Prinz von Bayern. Prestel Verlag, München, 1979
* "Prinz und Demokrat. Konstantin von Bayern: Ein Gedenkbuch." Konstantin, Prinz von Bayern and Arens, Hanns. München; Wien : Langen/Müller, 1970