Princess Helena of Nassau

Princess Helena of Nassau (; 18 August 1831 – 27 October 1888) was the daughter of William, Duke of Nassau, and the wife of George Victor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

Early life

Helena was born at Wiesbaden, Duchy of Nassau. She was the ninth child of William, Duke of Nassau (1792–1839), by his second wife Princess Pauline of Württemberg (1810–1856), daughter of Prince Paul of Württemberg. She was the half-sister of Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (then Hereditary Prince of Nassau), and full-sister to Sophia, Queen of Sweden and Norway. She was related to the Dutch royal family and also, distantly, to the British royal family through her father and mother, both were descendants of King George II of Great Britain.

Marriage and family

Princess Helena married on 26 September 1853 in Wiesbaden to George Victor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, son of George II, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

Children

Helena and George Victor had seven children:

• Princess Sophie Nikoline (27 July 1854 – 5 August 1869); died of tuberculosis at 15.
• Princess Pauline (19 October 1855 – 3 July 1925) who married Alexis, Prince of Bentheim and Steinfurt, on 7 May 1881. They had eight children.
• Princess Marie (23 May 1857 – 30 April 1882) who married Prince William, later King William II of Württemberg, on 15 February 1877. They had three children.
• Princess Emma (2 August 1858 – 20 March 1934) who married King William III of the Netherlands on 7 January 1879. They had one daughter, Wilhelmina. Via this marriage, Emma is an ancestress of the Dutch royal family.
• Princess Helen (17 February 1861 – 1 September 1922) who married Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, on 27 April 1882. Via this marriage, Helen is an ancestress of the Swedish royal family.
• Prince Friedrich (20 January 1865 – 26 May 1946), last reigning prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, married Princess Bathildis of Schaumburg-Lippe on 9 August 1895. They had four children.
• Princess Elisabeth (6 September 1873 – 23 November 1961) married Alexander, Prince of Erbach-Schönberg, on 3 May 1900. They had four children.

Grandchildren

Among her grandchildren were:

• Pauline, Princess of Wied (1877–1965), the last senior member of the House of Württemberg.
• Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (1880–1962), queen regnant of the Netherlands.
• Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (1883–1981), vice-regal consort of Canada.
• Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1884–1954), the last reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
• Josias, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1896–1967)
• George Louis, Prince of Erbach-Schönberg (1903–1971)

Ancestry

Notes and sources

• The Royal House of Stuart, London, 1969, 1971, 1976, Addington, A. C., Reference: vol II page 337/347
• For My Grandchildren London, 1966, Athlone, HRH Princess Alice, Countess of, Reference: Page 41 part of biographical notes

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