The House of Ligne is one of the oldest

Belgian noble families Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct langua ...

, dating back to the eleventh century.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' XIV. "Ligne". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1991, pp. 495-500. . The family's name comes from the village of where it originated, between Ath and

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Eurome ...

in what is now the

Hainaut province Hainaut (, also , , ; nl, Henegouwen ; wa, Hinnot; pcd, Hénau), historically also known as Heynowes in English, is a province of Wallonia and Belgium. To its south lies the French department of Nord, while within Belgium it borders (clockwi ...

of Belgium.

History

Their progressive rise in the nobility began as

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or kn ...

s in the twelfth century, counts of Fauquemberg and princes of

Épinoy Épinoy (; pcd, Spineu) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography A farming village situated southeast of Arras at the junction of the N43 and D21 roads. Population Places of interest * ...

in the sixteenth century, then princes of Amblise in 1608. The family became Imperial counts on 18 December 1544, then Lamoral I received from Emperor Rudolf II the title of

Prince of the Holy Roman Empire Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors o ...

as ''Prince de Ligne'' on 20 March 1601, for all of his

agnatic Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritanc ...

descendants, both male and female. Compensation for loss of the Imperial County of Ligne (Fagnolles, since that barony had become seat of the county in 1789) as a result of the Peace of Lunéville consisted of substitution of the secularized

Imperial abbey Princely abbeys (german: Fürstabtei, ''Fürststift'') and Imperial abbeys (german: Reichsabtei, ''Reichskloster'', ''Reichsstift'', ''Reichsgotthaus'') were religious establishments within the Holy Roman Empire which enjoyed the status of impe ...

of Edelstetten, with an individual vote guaranteed in the Imperial College of Princes in 1803. That principality was, however, sold to Prince Nikolaus Esterházy on 22 May 1804, before the abolition of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

, of which Edelstetten had been a constituent

Imperial state An Imperial State or Imperial Estate ( la, Status Imperii; german: Reichsstand, plural: ') was a part of the Holy Roman Empire with representation and the right to vote in the Imperial Diet ('). Rulers of these Estates were able to exercise si ...

, in 1806. The style of ''

Highness Highness (abbreviation HH, oral address Your Highness) is a formal style used to address (in second person) or refer to (in third person) certain members of a reigning or formerly reigning dynasty. It is typically used with a possessive adje ...

'' was confirmed for all members of extant branches of the family on 31 May 1923, and the titles of ''Prince d'Amblise'' and ''Prince d'Epinoy'' recognized for the head of the house on 22 October of the same year by the Belgian Crown. There have been

cadet branch In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, t ...

es of this house: Barbançon, Barbançon-Arenberg, Moÿ, Ham and Arenberg,

La Trémoïlle LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

Abbots and abbesses

Within this family, there were the following abbots and abbesses: * Gérard de Ligne (†1270) Abbot de

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the ...

* Mahaut de Ligne (c. 1275) Abbess d' Epinlieu * Marie de Ligne (c. 1500) Abbess de

Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...

* Marie de Ligne (c. 1550) Abbess de

* Catherine de Ligne (†1581) Abbess de

Thorn Thorn(s) or The Thorn(s) may refer to: Botany * Thorns, spines, and prickles, sharp structures on plants * ''Crataegus monogyna'', or common hawthorn, a plant species Comics and literature * Rose and Thorn, the two personalities of two DC Comic ...

(La Thure)

Princes de Ligne

* Lamoral, 1st Prince de Ligne (of the Holy Roman Empire) 1601-1624 (1563-1624) ** ''Florent de Ligne, 1st Prince d'Amblise 1608-1622 (1588-1622)'' *** Albert Henri, 2nd Prince 1624-1641 (1615-1641) *** Claude Lamoral, 3rd Prince 1641-1679 (1618-1679) **** Henri Louis Ernest, 4th Prince 1679-1702 (1644-1702) ***** Antoine Joseph Ghislain, 5th Prince 1702-1750 (1682-1750) ***** Claude Lamoral, 6th Prince 1750-1766 (1685-1766) ****** Charles-Joseph, 7th Prince 1766-1814 (1735-1814) ******* ''Prince Louis-Eugene de Ligne (1766-1813)'' ******** Eugène, 8th Prince 1814-1880 (1804-1880) ********* ''Prince Henri Maximilien de Ligne (1824-1871)'' ********** Louis, 9th Prince 1880-1918 (1854-1918) **********

Ernest Ernest is a given name derived from Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious". Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), son of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor * Ernest, ...

, 10th Prince 1918-1937 (1857-1937) *********** Eugène, 11th Prince 1937-1960 (1893-1960) ************ Baudouin, 12th Prince 1960-1985 (1918-1985) ************

Antoine Antoine is a French given name (from the Latin '' Antonius'' meaning 'highly praise-worthy') that is a variant of Danton, Titouan, D'Anton and Antonin. The name is used in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada, West Greenland, Haiti, French Guia ...

, 13th Prince 1985-2005 (1925-2005) ************* Michel, 14th Prince 2005–present (born 1951) ************** Hereditary Prince Henri Antoine (born 1989) ************* Prince Wauthier de Ligne (1952–2022) ************** Prince Philippe de Ligne (born 1977) ************* Prince Antoine de Ligne (born 1959) ************** Prince Louis de Ligne (born 2003) ********* ''Prince Charles-Joseph de Ligne (1837-1914)'' ********** '' Prince Henri Florent Lamoral of Ligne (1881-1967)'' *********** '' Jean Charles, Prince de Ligne de La Trémoïlle (1911-2005)'' ************ Charles-Antoine, Prince de Ligne de La Trémoïlle (born 1946), ''see below''

Other members of the family

Claimants to the kingdoms of

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...

, and

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...

: * Charles-Antoine, Prince de Ligne de La Trémoïlle (1946-),

third cousin once removed 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 Michel, 14th Prince de Ligne, ''see above'' ** Prince Edouard Lamoral de Ligne de La Trémoïlle (1976-), heir *** Prince Antoine de Ligne-la Tremoille (born 2019) ** Prince Charles Joseph de Ligne-La Trémoïlle (born 1980) *** Prince Amadeo Joseph de Ligne-La Trémoïlle (born 2012) Princess Sophie de Ligne (born 1957), of the House of Ligne, married Philippe de Nicolaÿ (born 1955) a director of the Rothschild group, great-grandson of Salomon James de Rothschild and member of the Nicolaÿ family. Archduchess Yolande of Austria (b.1923), daughter of the 11th Prince of Ligne, was the daughter-in-law of Emperor

Charles I of Austria Charles I or Karl I (german: Karl Franz Josef Ludwig Hubert Georg Otto Maria, hu, Károly Ferenc József Lajos Hubert György Ottó Mária; 17 August 18871 April 1922) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary (as Charles IV, ), King of Croati ...

. Alix, Princess of Ligne (1929-2019), wife of the 13th Prince of Ligne was born Princess of Luxembourg as daughter of

Charlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg Charlotte (Charlotte Adelgonde Elisabeth Marie Wilhelmine; 23 January 1896 – 9 July 1985) reigned as Grand Duchess of Luxembourg from 14 January 1919 until her abdication on 12 November 1964. She acceded to the throne on 14 January 1919 fol ...

and Felix of Bourbon-Parma. Her daughter is Princess Yolande de Ligne (b.1963), daughter-in-law of Peter Townsend (RAF officer), linked romantically with

Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, (Margaret Rose; 21 August 1930 – 9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and the younger sister and only sibling of Queen Elizabeth ...

, sister of

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom 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 ...

. The current (14th) Prince of Ligne is husband of a Princess of the

Imperial Family of Brazil The Brazilian Imperial Family ( Brazilian Portuguese: ''Família Imperial Brasileira'') is a Brazilian Dynasty of Portuguese origin that ruled the Empire of Brazil from 1822 to 1889, after the proclamation of independence by Prince Pedro of Bra ...

Arms of the House of Ligne

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

of the family is

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The ...

ed as ''Or a bend gules''. File:Blason Beloeil.svg, Heraldic shield of the House of Ligne File:Armoiries de la Maison de Ligne.png, Armorial achievement with princely hat and mantle File:Blason fam be Ligne-Barbançon.svg, Arms of the branch of Barbançon File:Blason fam be Ligne-Ham.svg, Arms of the branch of Ham File:Blason fam be Ligne-Moÿ.svg, Arms of the branch of Moÿ File:House of La Trémoille arms.svg, Arms of the branch of

Notes

External links

European Heraldry page

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