Prince Heinrich of Bavaria (24 June 1884 – 8 November 1916) was a member of the

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

n Royal House of

Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate ...

and a highly decorated Army officer in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Early life

Heinrich was born in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

. He was the only child of

Prince Arnulf of Bavaria Prince Arnulf of Bavaria (german: Franz Joseph Arnulf Adalbert Maria Prinz von Bayern; 6 July 1852 – 12 November 1907) was a member of the Bavarian Royal House of Wittelsbach and a General of Infantry. Early life Arnulf was born in Munich, Bava ...

and his wife

Princess Therese of Liechtenstein , house = Liechtenstein , father = Aloys II, Prince of Liechtenstein , mother = Franziska Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau , birth_date = , birth_place = Schloss Liechtenstein , death_date = , death_place = Munich, ...

. Heinrich was brought up in Munich, where one of his tutors was Joseph Gebhard Himmler, the father of

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

. The elder Himmler was an ardent royalist who, following the birth of his second son, petitioned the prince to allow him to be named after him - ''Heinrich''. The prince agreed and also became Heinrich Himmler's godfather. "e took a lively interest in the progress of his godson and in how the Himmlers were faring. It was a warm relationship, as is shown by the preserved correspondence between Gebhard and the prince; at Christmas the Himmlers regularly received a visit from the prince and his mother..."

Military career and death

At the age of 17, following his Abitur, Heinrich joined the Bavarian army with the rank of

Leutnant () is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") from Middle High Ge ...

. Initially, he served with the Royal Bavarian Infanterie-Leib-Regiment, but later was reassigned the 1st Royal Bavarian Heavy Cavalry “Prince Charles of Bavaria”. After the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the regiment saw action on the Western front, where Prince Heinrich was badly wounded. Upon recovering, he returned to his old infantry regiment and in June 1915, was promoted to Major. At the same time, he was put in charge of the III. Battalion of the newly established Deutsches Alpenkorps stationed in the

Carnic Alps The Carnic Alps ( it, Alpi Carniche; german: Karnische Alpen; sl, Karnijske Alpe; fur, Alps Cjargnelis) are a range of the Southern Limestone Alps in Austria and northeastern Italy. They are within Austrian East Tyrol and Carinthia, and Itali ...

. In late 1916, the battalion was transferred to

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

where it fought at Turnu Roşu Pass. On 7 November 1916, during operations in the area near Poiana Spinului, while conducting a personal reconnaissance of the front line, he was shot and killed by Romanian soldiers. His last words reportedly were, "''

Noblesse oblige ''Noblesse oblige'' (; ; literally “nobility obliges”) is a French expression from a time when French (more specifically, Anglo-Norman) was the language of the English nobility, and retains in English the meaning that nobility extends beyo ...

''. I do not mean that with respect to my family but rather my duty as an officer."Barrett 2013, p. 160 Heinrich's body was transported back to Munich, where he was buried by his father’s side at the Theatinerkirche. On 6 March 1917, for his exceptional bravery, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the

Military Order of Max Joseph The Military Order of Max Joseph (german: Militär-Max-Joseph-Orden) was the highest military order of the Kingdom of Bavaria. It was founded on 1 January 1806 by Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria, the first king of Bavaria. The order came in th ...

. He had previously been awarded the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

, 1st class for actions in June 1916.

Honours

He received the following orders and decorations:
Hof- und - Staatshandbuch des Königreichs Bayern
' (1908), "Landtag des Königreiches: Mitglieder der Kammer der Reichsräte"
p. 157
/ref> * : ** Knight of St. Hubert ** Jubilee Medal for the Bavarian Army ** Knight of the

, ''6 March 1917'' *

Ernestine duchies The Ernestine duchies (), also known as the Saxon duchies (, although the Albertine appanage duchies of Weissenfels, Merseburg and Zeitz were also "Saxon duchies" and adjacent to several Ernestine ones), were a group of small states whose num ...

: Grand Cross of the

Saxe-Ernestine House Order The Saxe-Ernestine House Order (german: link=yes, Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden)Hausorden
Herz ...

* : Grand Cross of the Royal Military Order of Our Lord Jesus Christ * : ** Knight of the Black Eagle **

(1914), 1st and 2nd Classes, ''June 1916'' * : ** Grand Cross of the

Order of Charles III The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III ( es, Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III, originally es, Real y Muy Distinguida Orden de Carlos III) was establ ...

** Novice Knight of the

Order of Montesa The Order of Montesa ( va, Ordre de Montesa, Aragonese and es, Orden de Montesa) is a Christian military order, territorially limited to the old Crown of Aragon. It was named after the castle of Montesa, its headquarters. Templar background ...

Ancestry

References

* * * Jirí Louda and Michael MacLagan, Lines of Succession: Heraldry of the Royal Families of Europe, 2nd edition (London, U.K.: Little, Brown and Company, 1999) *

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heinrich Of Bavaria, Prince 1884 births 1916 deaths Princes of Bavaria House of Wittelsbach Members of the Bavarian Reichsrat Knights of the Military Order of Max Joseph Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class German military personnel killed in World War I People from the Kingdom of Bavaria Military personnel of Bavaria Burials at the Theatine Church, Munich Knights of the Order of Montesa Deaths by firearm in Romania Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Grand Crosses of the Order of Christ (Portugal) German Army personnel of World War I