Paul Alfons Maria Clemens Lothar Philippus Neri Felix Nicomedes Prinz von Metternich-Winneburg (26 May 1917 – 21 September 1992) was a German-Austrian racing driver and President of the Commission Sportive Internationale (CSI), before becoming President of the

Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA; en, International Automobile Federation) is an association established on 20 June 1904 to represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users. It is the governing body for ...

(FIA) in 1975.

Biography

Prince Paul Alfons von Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein, known informally as Paul Metternich, was born in Vienna in the noble diplomatic family of Metternich and was a great-grandson of the Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich. He attended the

Institut Le Rosey Institut Le Rosey (), commonly referred to as Le Rosey or simply Rosey, is a private boarding school in Rolle, Switzerland. Founded in 1880 by Paul-Émile Carnal on the site of the 14th-century Château du Rosey in the town of Rolle in the can ...

in Switzerland. In 1940 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 ...

, where he belonged to a circle of opponents of the Nazi regime, he met his future wife Tatiana Vassiltschikov, who had a position in the foreign office. They were married in Berlin-Grunewald on 6 September 1941 and lived initially at

Kynžvart Castle Kynžvart Castle (German: Schloss Königswart) is a historic château located near Lázně Kynžvart in the Cheb District of the Czech Republic. The building's architecture is in the neoclassical style. After extensive renovations, the castle w ...

(Schloss Königswart) in

Egerland The Egerland ( cs, Chebsko; german: Egerland; Egerland German dialect: ''Eghalånd'') is a historical region in the far north west of Bohemia in what is today the Czech Republic, at the border with Germany. It is named after the German name ''Eg ...

(now in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

). In 1945 he was expelled from Czechoslovakia and lost his property there. He moved to another family estate (from 1816), the winery

Schloss Johannisberg Schloss Johannisberg is a castle and winery in the village of Johannisberg to the west of Wiesbaden, Hesse, in the Rheingau wine-growing region of Germany. It has been making wine for over 900 years. The winery is most noted for its claim to ...

in the Rheingau, which had been destroyed in the war. He later rebuilt it and ran the winery with his wife. He also became a racing car driver. Among other contests, he participated in the Monte Carlo Rally and the 1956 24 Hours of Le Mans. From 1960 he was President of the Automobilclub von Deutschland. From 1975 until 1985 he was President of the worldwide automobile club FIA. He was further engaged in the

Order of Saint Lazarus The Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem, also known as the Leper Brothers of Jerusalem or simply as Lazarists, was a Catholic military order founded by crusaders around 1119 at a leper hospital in Jerusalem, Kingdom of Jerusalem, whose care beca ...

charity organisation and was Grand bailiff for the German Balliwick. In 1979 he was awarded the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

. His wife Tatiana was a well known art patron. With his death in

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

, the main line of the Metternich family became extinct. His widow was the last representative of the House of Metternich-Winneburg.

Trivia

* The sparkling wine "Fürst von Metternich" was issued by the firm Henkell & Co. Sektkellerei. * He was editor of the book ''Fürstlicher Begleiter für Feinschmecker. Restaurants in Deutschland'' (Ducal Companion for Gourmets. Restaurants in Germany). * The concert hall in Schloss Johannisberg is called Fürst-von-Metternich-Saal in his memory.

Le-Mans Results

Titles and honors

* : **

Commander of the

Order of Grimaldi The Order of Grimaldi (usually called ''Ordre de Grimaldi'' but officially ''Ordre des Grimaldi'' according to the Ordonnance) is an Order established in Monaco on 18 November 1954. Award It is awarded to people who have contributed to the pre ...

(29 January 1972)Sovereign Ordonnance n° 4.855 of 29 January 1972

Literature

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Metternichwinneburg, Paul Alfons Von World Sportscar Championship drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Auto racing executives German racing drivers German princes House of Metternich Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile presidents Formula One people 1917 births 1992 deaths People from the Rheingau