The states of Berlin and Brandenburg argued that Prince Georg was ineligible for compensation because of his ancestor's alleged support of Nazism. The prince said he hoped to spark an open debate on his family's history.
Prince Georg of Prussia has announced his family is dropping a bid to secure compensation for properties and artworks seized by Soviet authoritiesImage: Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa/picture alliance
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Prince Georg Friedrich Ferdinand on Thursday said that he had abandoned attempts to secure compensation from the state that date back to 2014.
The court hearing the case in Potsdam did not immediately confirm the prince's claim on Thursday.
What are the arguments against compensation?
The case hinged on whether Crown Prince Wilhelm, son of Kaiser Wilhelm II and great-grandfather of Prince George, provided "substantive" support to Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime. Under German law, proof of such support is grounds for refusing compensation.
Wilhelm II went into exile in the Netherlands at the end of World War I in 1918.
"Even if I am not an historian or lawyer myself, it cannot be shown in my view that my great-grandfather offered the regime substantive abetment, even if he perhaps wanted to," Prince George said.
Historians from German universities are divided on whether Crown Prince Wihlelm significantly aided the Nazi regime, though most concur that he wanted to.
"The former crown prince was politically incapable of providing substantive abetment to the Nazis, although he wanted to do so at times," Professor Lothar Machtan said.
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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Although there is little debate over Wilhelm's desire to help the National Socialists, some like Peter Brandt do allege that he maintained more influence in inter-war Germany than historians like Machtan and Christopher Clark believe, at the very least as a "symbolic figure." Often they cite comments from the prince himself playing up his own role in Hitler's rise in letters and correspondence.
But, as Clark put it in an interview with Der Spiegel, after being hired by the Hohenzollern family to write an expert testimony on the issue: "The crown prince suffered from overconfidence bordering on the delusional. If one were to list Hitler's most important supporters, he would not be among the first 300."
Clark also portrayed Wilhelm as having been used by the Nazis, saying that the prince was "stupid enough to believe" Hitler when he raised the prospect of reestablishing the monarchy when an opposition leader in the 1920s.
What did the prince say about his decision?
"We will give our best possible support to a critical review of our family history," the prince said.
He said that he hoped that the focus of the debate would move away from Crown Prince Wilhelm, looking at the Hohenzollern family history in its diversity.
The prince said that in dropping the claim he hoped to "open the way for an unencumbered historical debate on the role of my family in the 20th Century following the end of the monarchy."
Prince Georg said that while he believed it could not be clearly proven that Crown Prince Wilhelm actively promoted Nazism, it was clear that his great-grandfather had sought close ties with the regime.
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