Alexander, Count of Schönburg-Glauchau (born August 15, 1969), known professionally as Alexander von Schönburg, is a German journalist and writer. He is, after his older brother Carl's abdication, the current head of the

comital Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

branch of the princely

House of Schönburg A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

Early life and family

Alexander was born in 1969 in

Mogadishu Mogadishu (, also ; so, Muqdisho or ; ar, مقديشو ; it, Mogadiscio ), locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Oc ...

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

, to Joachim, Count von Schönburg-Glauchau, and his first wife, Countess Beatrix Széchenyi de Sárvár et Felsővidék (b. 1930). He is the youngest of four children from this marriage, after siblings

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popul ...

(b. 1958), Gloria (b. 1960), and Carl-Alban (b. 1966). Their parents divorced in 1986. Afterwards, Alexander's father married Ursula Zwicker, and their union produced a daughter, Anabel Maya-Felicitas. During the second half of the 1960s, Alexander's father's profession as a foreign correspondent took the family to

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

. They later moved to Somalia, returning to Germany to live in 1970. The family thereafter resided in

Meckenheim Meckenheim (; ksh, Meckem) is a town in the Rhein-Sieg district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated approximately 15 km south-west of Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in t ...

, in the

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

. Following the reunification of Germany in 1990, Alexander's father reclaimed the family's possessions in

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

which had been taken from them after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. In later years, he was elected to the ''

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...

''. Alexander's sisters, Maya and Gloria, famously wed wealthy trend setters: Maya was married to art patron Mick Flick until their divorce in 1993, while Gloria's husband was

Johannes, 11th Prince of Thurn and Taxis , father = Karl August, 10th Prince of Thurn and Taxis , mother = Infanta Maria Anna of Portugal , birth_date = , birth_place = Schloss Höfling, Regensburg, Bavaria, Weimar Republic , death_date = , death_place = Munich, Germany , pla ...

, until his death in 1990. His father's younger brother, Count Rudolf ("Rudi", born 1932), wed Princess Marie Louise of Prussia (born 1945) in 1971, and succeeded

Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg Prince Alfonso Maximiliano Victorio Eugenio Alejandro María Pablo de la Santísima Trinidad y Todos los Santos zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg (28 May 1924 – 21 December 2003) was a Spanish businessman known for his promotion of the Spanish resorts of ...

as director of the

Marbella Club Hotel The Marbella Club Hotel is a hotel in Marbella, Spain. The hotel is located on the southern Spanish Costa del Sol, on the " Golden Mile" near Old Town Marbella and Puerto Banús. The Marbella Club Hotel was built in 1954 by Prince Alfonso of ...

, an aristocratic resort.

Activities as journalist and writer

By 1999, Alexander von Schönburg was widely known as a member of one of the so-called popular culture quintuplets, with

Christian Kracht Christian Kracht (; born 29 December 1966) is a Swiss author. His books have been translated into more than 30 languages. Personal life Kracht was born in Saanen in the Canton of Bern, Switzerland. He attended Schule Schloss Salem in Baden-Wür ...

, Eckhart Nickel, Benjamin von Stuckrad-Barre and Joachim Bessing. He worked as a freelance journalist and was featured in such publications as '' Esquire'', '' Die Zeit'', the Swiss periodical '' Die Weltwoche'', and ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

''. He was editor in chief of lifestyle magazine ''Park Avenue'' in 2005. In 2006, he left this position, being replaced by Andreas Petzold. He continues to write as a columnist and German correspondent for '' Vanity Fair'' and the ''

Bild-Zeitung ''Bild'' (or ''Bild-Zeitung'', ; ) is a German tabloid newspaper published by Axel Springer SE. The paper is published from Monday to Saturday; on Sundays, its sister paper '' Bild am Sonntag'' ("''Bild on Sunday''") is published instead, which ...

'', among others. He has authored several books in German, including the 2005 best seller ''Die Kunst des stilvollen Verarmens'' ("The Art of Growing Poor Stylishly"), in which he discussed the lessons of dearth after years of decadence.''Die Kunst des stilvollen Verarmens''
Werbetext des

Rowohlt Verlag Rowohlt Verlag is a German publishing house based in Hamburg, with offices in Reinbek and Berlin. It has been part of the Georg von Holtzbrinck Group since 1982. The company was created in 1908 in Leipzig by Ernst Rowohlt. Divisions * Kinder * ...

s Some of his other book titles read in English are "Encyclopedia of Superfluous Things" and "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Kings, But Were Afraid to Ask".

Dynastic activities

In 1995, his older brother, Carl-Alban, married a commoner and formally renounced his rights of dynastic succession.Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser XV. "Schönburg". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1997, pp. 390, 412-415. (German). . Alexander thereby became the recognized successor to his father's familial headship. Upon the death of their father in 1998, he became head of the comital branch of the formerly sovereign House of Schönburg. As a member of the comital branch of the House of Schönburg, Alexander is historically entitled to the style of address '' Illustrious Highness''. Although

German law The law of Germany (german: das Recht Deutschlands), that being the modern German legal system (german: Deutsches Rechtssystem), is a system of civil law which is founded on the principles laid out by the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of G ...

ceased recognition of the status or styles of noble houses in 1919, historical titles henceforth became their legal surnames.

Almanach de Gotha The ''Almanach de Gotha'' (german: Gothaischer Hofkalender) is a directory of Europe's royalty and higher nobility, also including the major governmental, military and diplomatic corps, as well as statistical data by country. First publish ...

, ''Deuxième Partie'', (Gotha:

Justus Perthes Johann Georg Justus Perthes (11 September 1749, Rudolstadt, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt – 2 May 1816, Gotha, Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg) was a German publisher and founder of the publishing house that bears his name. Life He was born in the Thuringian t ...

, 1942), p. 171, (French).

Marriage and children

On April 30, 1999 Alexander married Princess Irina of

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are Dar ...

(b. 1971, Munich, Bavaria), in a civil ceremony in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

. They were married religiously in

Heusenstamm Heusenstamm () is a town of over 18,000 people in the Offenbach district in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Heusenstamm is one of 13 towns and communities in the Offenbach district. The town li ...

, Hesse on May 29, 1999. The new Countess of

Schönburg-Glauchau Glauchau (; hsb, Hłuchow) is a town in the German federal state of Saxony, on the right bank of the Mulde, 7 miles north of Zwickau and 17 miles west of Chemnitz by rail ( its train station is on the Dresden–Werdau line). It is part of the ...

was born Princess Irina, the second child of Prince Karl Adolf Andreas of Hesse (b. 1937, Berlin) and his Hungarian wife, Countess Yvonne Szapáry von Muraszombath, Széchysziget und Szapár (b. 1944,

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

). Irina's grandparents were

Prince Christoph of Hesse Prince Christoph Ernst August of Hesse (14 May 1901 – 7 October 1943) was a nephew of Kaiser Wilhelm II. He was an SS-Oberführer in the Allgemeine SS and an officer in the Luftwaffe Reserve, killed on active duty in a plane crash during World ...

and his wife

Princess Sophie of Greece and Denmark Princess Sophie of Greece and Denmark ( el, Σοφία, translit=Sofía; 26 June 1914 – 24 November 2001) was by birth a List of princesses of Greece, Greek and List of princesses of Denmark, Danish princess, as well as Electorate of Hesse, Pri ...

, elder sister of

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

, consort of

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

. She is a

second cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...

of Donatus, Landgrave of Hesse. The couple have three children: * Countess Maria-Letitia Jolanta (b. 2001) * Count Maximus Carolus Joachim Maria (b. 2003, Berlin) * Count Valentin Polykarp Josef Maria (b. 2005, Berlin) Though descended from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

through her granddaughter

Princess Margaret of Prussia English: Margaret Beatrice Feodora , house = Hohenzollern , father = Frederick III, German Emperor , mother = Victoria, Princess Royal , birth_date = , birth_place = New Palace, Potsdam, Prussia, German Empire , d ...

Landgravine Landgrave (german: Landgraf, nl, landgraaf, sv, lantgreve, french: landgrave; la, comes magnus, ', ', ', ', ') was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), ...

Hesse-Kassel The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel (german: Landgrafschaft Hessen-Kassel), spelled Hesse-Cassel during its entire existence, was a state in the Holy Roman Empire that was directly subject to the Emperor. The state was created in 1567 when the Lan ...

, Irina and her children are excluded from succession to the British throne because they are Roman Catholic.

Notable published works

*''Das Beste vom Besten. Ein Almanach der feinen Lebensart'' (mit Reinhard Haas und Axel Thorer). Econ, Düsseldorf 1989, *''No. 1. Die besten Seiten des Lebens von A–Z'' (mit Reinhard Haas und Axel Thorer). Econ, Düsseldorf *''In Bruckners Reich''. Erzählung. In:

(Hrsg.): ''Mesopotamia. Ernste Geschichten am Ende des Jahrtausends''. DVA, Stuttgart 1999, *''Tristesse Royale: Das popkulturelle Quintett mit Joachim Bessing, Christian Kracht, Eckhart Nickel, Alexander v. Schönburg und Benjamin v. Stuckrad-Barre'', hrsg. von Joachim Bessing. Ullstein, Berlin 1999, *''Karriere''. Theaterstück. Hannover, 2001 *''Der fröhliche Nichtraucher. Wie man gut gelaunt mit dem Rauchen aufhört''. Rowohlt Taschenbuch, Reinbek 2003, *''Die Kunst des stilvollen Verarmens. Wie man ohne Geld reich wird''. Rowohlt Berlin, Berlin 2005, *''Lexikon der überflüssigen Dinge''. Rowohlt Berlin, Berlin 2006, *''Alles was Sie schon immer über Könige wissen wollten aber nie zu fragen wagten''. Rowohlt Berlin, Berlin 2008,

Ancestry

References and notes

Sources

''Die Kunst des stilvollen Verarmens''
Werbetext des

s
Andreas Petzold übernimmt Chefredaktion von Park Avenue
Pressemitteilung des Verlagshauses

Gruner + Jahr Gruner may refer to: People * Dov Gruner (1912–1947), Jewish Zionist leader * Eduard Gruner, Swiss engineer * Elioth Gruner (1882–1939), Australian painter * Gottlieb Sigmund Gruner (1717–1778), Swiss cartographer and geologist * K ...

vom 22. August 2006
''Weniger ist mehr''
Alexander von Schönburg erläutert seine Philosophie in der ''

Welt am Sonntag Welt, welts or variants may refer to: Media * ''Die Welt'' (''The World''), a German national newspaper ** '' Welt am Sonntag'' (''World on Sunday''), the Sunday edition of ''Die Welt'' * ''Die Welt'', former weekly newspaper in Vienna, Austria ...

'' vom 13. März 2005

External links

Official Blog of Alexander von Schönburg
*

Alexander von Schönburg erläutert seine Philosophie in der ''

'' vom 13. März 2005
Rezension zu ''Die Kunst des stilvollen Verarmens''
auf schoenerlesen.de
Webpräsenz Alexanders von Schönburg
(in Bearbeitung) {{DEFAULTSORT:Schonburg, Alexander Von German journalists German male journalists Counts of Germany 1969 births Living people Alexander of Schonburg-Glauchau

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

People from Mogadishu Somali people of German descent German male writers German people of Austrian descent German people of Belarusian descent German people of Hungarian descent German people of Polish descent German people of Russian descent