Prince Ludwig Ferdinand of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg

Prinz Ludwig Ferdinand Paul Franz Stanislaus Ulrich Otto Ludolf zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg ^{[Notes 1]} (4 April 1910 – 22 November 1943) was a highly decorated Oberst in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Ludwig-Ferdinand Prinz von Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg was killed on 22 November 1943 near Zhytomyr, Ukraine. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross on 20 January 1944 and was also promoted to Oberst.

Prince Ludwig Ferdinand of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Born	(1910-04-04)4 April 1910 Berleburg Castle, Germany
Died	22 November 1943(1943-11-22) (aged 33) Zhytomyr, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany
Branch	Army
Years of service	1930–43
Rank	Oberst (Posthumously)
Commands	Kavallerie-Regiment Süd
Battles / wars	World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of France Operation Barbarossa Battle of Smolensk (1941) Battle of Moscow Battle of Kursk Battle of Kiev (1943)
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Early life

Ludwig was the son of Richard, 4th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Princess Madeleine of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg. He had two older brothers, Gustav Albrecht who was also killed in 1944, and Christian Heinrich who died in 1983. Gustav's son Richard was married to Princess Benedikte of Denmark, sister of Queen Margrethe II and of former Queen Anne-Marie of Greece.

Personal life

Ludwig Ferdinand married in 1935 Princess Friederike Juliane of Salm-Horstmar, daughter of Otto II, Prince of Salm-Horstmar (1867-1941) and Countess Rosa of Solms-Baruth (1884-1945). They had five children:

• Marita, Princess zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1936-2000), married Count Ulrich Wolf Adolf Grote (b.1940); had issue
• Otto-Ludwig, Prince zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1938-2025), married Baroness Anette von Cramm (b.1944); had issue
• Johann-Stanislaus, Prince zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b.1939), married Almut Leonhards (b.1943); had issue
• Ludwig-Ferdinand, Prince zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b.1942), married Countess Yvonne Wachtmeister af Johannishus (b.1951); had issue
• Ulrike-Christine, Princess zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1944-2021), married Hano von Wulffen (b.1940); had issue

His descendants include Ludwig-Ferdinand's children Princess Anna of Bavaria, Prince August Fredrik zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, and Theodora Sayn-Wittgenstein.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (20 May 1940)
  • 1st Class (10 June 1940)
• Eastern Front Medal
• German Cross in Gold (15 December 1941)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 January 1944 as Oberstleutnant and commander of Kavallerie-Regiment Süd ^[1]

Notes

1. Regarding personal names: Prinz was a title before 1919, but now is regarded as part of the surname. It is translated as Prince. Before the August 1919 abolition of nobility as a legal class, titles preceded the full name when given (Graf Helmuth James von Moltke). Since 1919, these titles, along with any nobiliary prefix (von, zu, etc.), can be used, but are regarded as a dependent part of the surname, and thus come after any given names (Helmuth James Graf von Moltke). Titles and all dependent parts of surnames are ignored in alphabetical sorting. The feminine form is Prinzessin.