Prince Harald of Denmark

Prince Harald of Denmark (Harald Christian Frederik; 8 October 1876 – 30 March 1949) was a member of the Danish Royal Family. He was the third son and fourth child of Frederick VIII of Denmark and his wife, Lovisa of Sweden, and thus brother to Christian X of Denmark and Haakon VII of Norway.

Prince Harald
Born(1876-10-08)8 October 1876
Charlottenlund Palace, Gentofte, Denmark
Died30 March 1949(1949-03-30) (aged 72)
Copenhagen, Denmark
Spouse
Issue
Full name
Danish: Harald Christian Frederik
HouseGlücksburg
FatherFrederick VIII of Denmark
MotherLouise of Sweden
Danish Royalty
House of Oldenburg
(Glücksburg branch)
Christian IX
Children
Frederick VIII
Alexandra, Queen of the United Kingdom
George I of the Hellenes
Maria Feodorovna, Empress of Russia
Thyra, Crown Princess of Hanover
Prince Valdemar
Frederick VIII
Children
Christian X
Haakon VII of Norway
Louise, Princess Friederich of Schaumburg-Lippe
Prince Harald
Princess Ingeborg, Duchess of Västergötland
Princess Thyra
Prince Gustav
Princess Dagmar, Mrs. Castenskiold
Grandchildren
Feodora, Princess Christian of Schaumburg-Lippe
Hereditary Princess Caroline-Mathilde
Alexandrine-Louise, Countess Luitpold of Castell-Castell
Prince Gorm
Prince Oluf, Count of Rosenborg
Christian X
Children
Frederick IX
Hereditary Prince Knud
Frederick IX
Children
Margrethe II
Benedikte, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Anne-Marie, Queen of the Hellenes
Margrethe II
Children (paternally Laborde of Monpezat)
Crown Prince Frederik
Prince Joachim

The prince served in the Royal Danish Army for most of his life, and reached the rank of Lieutenant General.

Early life
Prince Harald's birthplace, Charlottenlund Palace, photographed in 2006

Prince Harald was born on 8 October 1876 at Charlottenlund Palace north of Copenhagen. His father was Crown Prince Frederick of Denmark (later King Frederick VIII), the eldest son of Christian IX of Denmark and Princess Louise of Hesse-Kassel. His mother was Crown Princess Louise, the only daughter of Charles XV of Sweden and Princess Louise of the Netherlands.

At the age of 17, Prince Harald entered a military career as was customary for princes at the time. He later served with the Guard Hussar Regiment.[1]

Marriage
Prince Harald and Princess Helena in 1909

At the age of 33, on 28 April 1909 at Glücksburg Castle in Schleswig-Holstein, Prince Harald married his second cousin Princess Helena of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, daughter of Frederick Ferdinand, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and Princess Karoline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg.

After their marriage, Prince Harald and Princess Helena lived at the Jægersborghus country house north of Copenhagen which Prince Harald had purchased in 1907.[1] Here their five children were born between 1910 and 1923.

Later life

Like other members of the Danish royal family, his economic situation was influenced by the failure of Den Danske Landmandsbank in 1923. Until 1935, however, he and his family were able to stay at Jægersborghus but then moved to a villa in the northern part of Copenhagen.[1]

At the age of 50, Prince Harald retired from active service with the rank of Major General. In 1933, however, his brother King Christian X appointed him Lieutenant General.

During World War II, Princess Helena became very unpopular because of her sympathy for the German occupation of Denmark and the Nazi party. Because of this, she was reportedly not on speaking terms with her sons.[2]

After the war, Princess Helena was not brought to trial, being a member of the royal family who did not wish any publicity on the matter, but was exiled from Denmark 30 May 1945 and placed under house arrest at the Glücksburg Castle in Germany. She was allowed to return to Denmark in 1947, when Prince Harald fell gravely ill. She stayed with her spouse until his death two years later.[1]

Prince Harald died on 30 March 1949 in Copenhagen. He was buried at Roskilde Cathedral. Princess Helena survived her husband by 13 years and died on 30 June 1962.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles
  • 4 March 1887 – 30 March 1949: His Royal Highness Prince Harald of Denmark

Honours

National decorations[3]

  • RE – Knight of the Elephant, 28 July 1894
  • DM – Cross of Honour of the Order of the Dannebrog, 28 July 1894
  • SK – Grand Cross of the Dannebrog, 8 October 1917
  • GbET – Commemorative Medal for the Golden Wedding of King Christian IX and Queen Louise
  • MM 8 April 1918 – King Christian IX Centenary Medal

Foreign decorations[3]

Issue

Harald and Helena had five children:

NameBirthDeathNotes
Princess Feodora3 July 191017 March 1975married her first cousin, Prince Christian of Schaumburg-Lippe and had issue.
Princess Caroline-Mathilde27 April 191212 December 1995married her first cousin Prince Knud of Denmark and had issue.
Princess Alexandrine-Louise12 December 191426 April 1962married Count Luitpold of Castell-Castell and had issue.
Prince Gorm24 February 191926 December 1991Unmarried and without issue.
Prince Oluf10 March 192319 December 1990Lost his title and became HE Count Oluf of Rosenborg after marrying without consent to Annie Helene Dorrit Puggard-Müller and to Lis Wulff-Juergensen. He has issue.

Ancestry

References
  1. Bo Bramsen (1992). Huset Glücksborg, 2nd ed (in Danish). Forum. ISBN 87-553-1843-6.
  2. Tore Pryser (2009). Kvinnliga spioner (Female spies) (in Swedish). ISBN 978-91-27-11741-9.
  3. Bille-Hansen, A. C.; Holck, Harald, eds. (1943) [1st pub.:1801]. Statshaandbog for Kongeriget Danmark for Aaret 1943 [State Manual of the Kingdom of Denmark for the Year 1943] (PDF). Kongelig Dansk Hof- og Statskalender (in Danish). Copenhagen: J.H. Schultz A.-S. Universitetsbogtrykkeri. pp. 77, 89. Retrieved 30 April 2020 – via da:DIS Danmark.
  4. Sveriges Statskalender (in Swedish), 2, 1925, p. 813, retrieved 2018-01-06 – via runeberg.org
  5. Sveriges Statskalender (in Swedish), 2, 1940, p. 345, retrieved 2018-01-06 – via runeberg.org
  6. "No. 27364". The London Gazette. 11 October 1901. p. 6640.
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