Germany's palaces are major tourist attractions, but where did all the kings and queens go? Here's why you might hear about German royals today, even though the country's monarchy was abolished a century ago.
Image: Harald Richter/Bildagentur-online/McPHOTO/picture alliance
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The remains of nobility in Germany
The last Emperor of Germany abdicated, and monarchy was abolished in the country a century ago, but there are still traces of nobility. Here's what it means.
Image: picture-alliance/imagebroker/D. Plewka
The Kaiser and his court
If you know the different German ranks of royalty, you're probably a medieval history buff: Kaiser (emperor), König (king), Erzherzog (archduke), Grossherzog (grand duke), Kurfürst (elector), Herzog (duke), Landgraf (landgrave), Pfalzgraf (count palatine), Markgraf (margrave), Fürst (prince), Freiherr (baron), Ritter (knight), Junker (squire)… But are there any kings and queens left in Germany?
Image: Harald Richter/Bildagentur-online/McPHOTO/picture alliance
The abolition of monarchy
Following the German Empire's defeat in World War I, civil unrest across Germany led to the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II (portrayed above). A parliamentary democracy was proclaimed on November 9, 1918, and the Prussian monarchy and Germany's 22 constituent monarchies were abolished.
Image: Ralf Hirschberger/dpa/picture alliance
Symbols of nobility
Traces of nobility can still be found in people's names. The particles "von" (which means "descending from") or "zu" ("resident at") preceding a German surname indicate that the person belongs to a family with a former heredity title — which is estimated to be the case for around 80,000 people in Germany. The titles only have a symbolic value today.
Image: picture-alliance/imagebroker/D. Plewka
Austria's abolition of nobility titles
The last Emperor of Austria, Karl I (picture), didn't officially abdicate, so the laws abolishing the monarchy were stricter in the Austrian Republic. Germany's Weimar Republic allowed aristocrats to keep their family's nobiliary particles, but Austria determined in 1919 that such markers of identity were to be removed from names. Some politicians say a similar law should apply in Germany too.
Image: imago images
An extra boost
Belonging to the nobility does not provide any legal advantages in Germany, but studies have found that people with a nobiliary particle in their name had more chances of landing a job interview than those without one. Nobility associations also provide networking opportunities that can contribute to gaining access to influential circles.
Image: Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP/picture alliance
Joining a noble family
Proof that some people still believe that nobility has its perks, it is possible to acquire a genuine title through marriage or adoption. It's not cheap, however: Consultants offering such services mention fees "in the five to six-digit range." You'll also need to convince the family court that you're not getting adopted only to obtain the noble name — in that case, the name change can be refused.
Image: picture-alliance/Chromorange/H. Richter
A prince's title
It's actually really cheap to buy a German nobility title from a feudal line whose family members are all deceased. The companies selling those titles compare it to choosing your own artist's pseudonym, a right that's protected in Germany. But it's not a title that can be added to your identity card — unless you manage to prove that everyone knows you as "Prince."
Image: Keystone/dpa/picture alliance
Is that a real one?
Picking up a title for fun is one thing, but that doesn't mean you suddenly belong to nobility. Pretending you do can damage your credibility. For instance, the media investigated the title of a politician from the far-right AfD party, Doris Fürstin von Sayn-Wittgenstein. It turned out to be one that "has been sold at a high cost for a certain time already," according to the "Süddeutsche Zeitung."
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Scholz
A touch of irony
Additionally, not everyone is impressed by nobiliary particles. The expression "Herr von und zu" or "Frau von und zu" — without referring to an actual family name — is sometimes used to mock a man or a woman who takes on pretentious airs. Haughty Ladies and Sirs should try kissing a frog; it might remind them that they're just mortal humans — and no noble title will ever change that.
Image: M. Weber/Chromorange/picture alliance
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It's a bit confusing. When the Weimar Constitution entered into force on August 14, 1919, the legal privileges and titles of German nobility were abolished. Therefore, officially, there are no princes and princesses in Germany. Yet you can still encounter a few "royals" in the country. German aristocrats didn't all disappear on that day.
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No longer a real prince
Take for instance Albert, Prince of Thurn and Taxis, born in 1983. As the "head" of the former German princely house, his full title would have been His Highness the 12th Prince of Thurn and Taxis, Prince of Buchau and Prince of Krotoszyn, Duke of Wörth and Donaustauf, Count of Friedberg-Scheer, Count of Valle-Sassina, Marchtal, Neresheim, etc — note that even the etcetera is an official part of the title.
But a century ago, the Weimar Constitution determined that all those hereditary titles should be abolished, allowing members of the former nobility to only keep traces of it in their surnames. Therefore, to be exact, since his family name is Prinz von Thurn und Taxis, we shouldn't even be translating the word "prince" — just like anyone else's family name isn't translated into other languages.
Whether he's a real prince or not doesn't matter for the tabloid press in Germany, and even worldwide; for instance, the relationship status of the 39-year-old unmarried "royal" makes for great gossip articles. His wealth obviously contributes to the fascination: When his father died in 1990, Albert von Thurn und Taxis landed on the Forbes list as one of the world's youngest billionaires. His family is one of the largest owners of private forest lands in Germany. (Readers of Vogue magazine are probably familiar with the name through his sister, socialite and style editor Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis).
The Thurn und Taxis' official website shows a very serious young man, who has been studying his entire life in the world's top institutions. But beyond writing thesis papers on John Stuart Mill or Thomas Aquinas, Albert's passion is unrelated to classical thinkers: The businessman is rather into car racing.
Albert von Thurn und Taxis at a car raceImage: Gregory Lenormand/DPPI Media/picture alliance
Still a current topic
Beyond gossip magazines listing the "hottest eligible royal bachelors," other heads of former dynasties have been making headlines in Germany's national press in recent years.
Georg Friedrich von Preussen, the great-great-grandson of Kaiser Wilhelm II, who was the last German Emperor, has claimed a compensation of over €1 million from Germany. The House of Hohenzollern's attempt to obtain compensation for expropriated land and palaces in Berlin and the surrounding state of Brandenburg was launched in 1991 by Georg Friedrich's grandfather, Louis Ferdinand von Preussen.
So even if Germany has abolished its nobility, the remaining fortune and status of different aristocratic families in the country is still significant today.
Certain politicians have been lobbying to eliminate former hereditary titles from names completely. Trying to get rid of the "von" and "zu" particles from family names is a contentious topic most political parties prefer to avoid. Going one step further, by demanding that former noble families redistribute their wealth to the state, is presumably not a process they'll be engaging in anytime soon.
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This is an updated version of an article first published in 2019.
