Frederick Francis III

Frederick Francis III (German: Friedrich Franz Paul Nikolaus Ernst Heinrich; 19 March 1851 – 10 April 1897) was the penultimate Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.

Frederick Francis III
Frederick Francis III, c.1883–1897
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Reign	15 April 1883 – 10 April 1897
Predecessor	Frederick Francis II
Successor	Frederick Francis IV
Born	19 March 1851 (1851-03-19) Ludwigslust Palace, Ludwigslust, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, German Confederation
Died	10 April 1897 (1897-04-11) (aged 46) Cannes, France
Spouse	Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia ​ ​ (m. 1879)​
Issue	Alexandrine, Queen of Denmark Frederick Francis IV, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Cecilie, German Crown Princess
House	Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Father	Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mother	Princess Augusta Reuss of Köstritz
Religion	Lutheranism

Biography

He was born in Schloss Ludwigslust as the son of Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his first wife Princess Augusta Reuss of Köstritz. He succeeded his father as Grand Duke on 15 April 1883.

From an early age Frederick Francis suffered from asthma and severe breathing difficulties. He could not live in the north of Europe and lived instead on the shores of the Mediterranean, where the mild climate agreed with him. His homosexuality was an open secret.^[1]

Frederick Francis' death in Cannes on 10 April 1897 is shrouded in mystery, as he was originally reported to have committed suicide by throwing himself off a parapet of a bridge.^[2] According to the official account of his death, however, he was in his garden when he experienced breathing difficulties and staggered around before falling over a low wall.^[3] Barones Louise von Reibnitz-Maltzan, a lady-in-waiting who was in Cannes with the family at the time of his death, described the incident as "the Grand Duke's suicide".^[4]

He was succeeded by his son Frederick Francis IV, who would be the last Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.

Marriage and children

Frederick Francis married Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia, his second cousin once removed, he being the great-great-grandson and she great-granddaughter of Paul I of Russia. They also second cousin because they were great-grandchildren of Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. They married in Saint Petersburg on 24 January 1879. They had three children:

• Duchess Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (24 December 1879 – 28 December 1952) she married King Christian X of Denmark on 26 April 1898. They had two sons.
• Frederick Francis IV, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (9 April 1882 – 17 November 1945) he married Princess Alexandra of Hanover and Cumberland on 7 June 1904. They had five children.
• Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (20 September 1886 – 6 May 1954) she married Wilhelm, German Crown Prince on 6 June 1905. They had six children.

Legacy

He was described by his daughter Cecilie in her 1952 memoirs:

"His whole soul was bound up with his country of Mecklenburg, and it was infinitely painful for him, as its ruling prince, to have to spend several months each year away from his country on account of his health. [...] When I call to mind what my father looked like, I see before me the most lovable and kindly being that has ever existed. He was tall and slim in build, with beautiful gleaming eyes whom which his warm heart shone forth- that is my unforgettable impression of my father. Nothing could bring me greater pleasure later on than when people who had known him well have told me that I look like him. He had to suffer infinitely much, but never did a word of complaint pass his lips."^[5]

Honours

He received the following orders and decorations:^[6][7]

German honours

• Mecklenburg:
  • Grand Cross of the Wendish Crown, with Crown in Ore and Collar
  • Founder of the Order of the Griffon, 15 September 1884^[8]
  • Memorial Medal for Grand Duke Frederick Francis II
  • Cross for Distinction in War (Strelitz)
• Baden:^[9]
  • Knight of the House Order of Fidelity, 1879
  • Knight of the Order of Berthold the First, 1879
• Ernestine duchies: Grand Cross of the Saxe-Ernestine House Order, with Swords and Collar
• Oldenburg: Grand Cross of the Order of Duke Peter Friedrich Ludwig, with Collar and Golden Crown, 19 September 1872^[10]
• Prussia:
  • Knight of the Black Eagle, 26 September 1869; with Collar, 1873^[11]
  • Grand Cross of the Red Eagle
  • Iron Cross (1870), 2nd Class
  • Knight of Honour of the Johanniter Order, 1873; Knight of Justice, 1874^[11]
• Hohenzollern: Cross of Honour of the Princely House Order of Hohenzollern, 1st Class
• Hesse-Darmstadt: Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order, 12 October 1864^[12]
• Reuss: Cross of Honour
• Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach: Grand Cross of the White Falcon, 1874^[13]
•  Saxony: Knight of the Rue Crown
• Württemberg: Grand Cross of the Württemberg Crown, 1877^[14]

Foreign honours

• Austria-Hungary: Grand Cross of the Royal Hungarian Order of St. Stephen, 1894^[15]
• Principality of Bulgaria: Grand Cross of St. Alexander
• Denmark: Knight of the Elephant, 17 July 1894^[16]
• Kingdom of Greece: Grand Cross of the Redeemer
• Kingdom of Italy:
  • Knight of the Annunciation, 18 May 1894^[17]
  • Grand Cross of Saints Maurice and Lazarus
• Empire of Japan: Grand Cordon of the Order of the Chrysanthemum, 5 June 1885^[18]
• Ottoman Empire:
  • Order of Osmanieh, 1st Class in Diamonds
  • Gold and Silver Imtiyaz Medals
• Beylik of Tunis: Grand Cordon of the Order of Glory
• Kingdom of Portugal: Grand Cross of the Tower and Sword, with Collar
• Siam: Grand Cross of the White Elephant
• Kingdom of Serbia: Grand Cross of the White Eagle
• Sweden-Norway: Knight of the Seraphim, 22 April 1896^[19]
• Russian Empire:
  • Knight of St. Andrew
  • Knight of St. Alexander Nevsky
  • Knight of the White Eagle
  • Knight of St. Anna, 1st Class
  • Knight of St. George, 4th Class

Ancestry

Ancestors of Frederick Francis III

8. Frederick Louis, Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin 4. Paul Frederick, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin 9. Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna of Russia 2. Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin 10. Frederick William III of Prussia 5. Princess Alexandrine of Prussia 11. Duchess Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz 1. Frederick Francis III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin 12. Heinrich XLIV, Prince Reuss of Köstritz 6. Heinrich LXIII, Prince Reuss of Köstritz 13. Baroness Wilhelmine von Geuder genannt Rabensteiner 3. Princess Augusta Reuss of Köstritz 14. Count Heinrich of Stolberg-Wernigerode 7. Countess Eleonore of Stolberg-Wernigerode 15. Princess Johanna of Schönburg-Waldenburg

Literature

• Bernd-Ulrich Hergemöller, Mann für Mann, pages 253
• Hans von Tresckow, Von Fürsten und anderen Sterblichen, Erinnerungen eines Kriminalkommisars, 1922, Berlin, page 89