Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (''Jefferson-Friedrich Volker Benjamin Graf von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth''; born 12 July 1967) is a German nobleman and a banker.

Early life and ancestry

Jefferson is born as the younger son and the youngest child of German

Count 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: ...

Friedrich-August Rüdiger Albrecht von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (b. 1930) and his wife, Astrid Maria Andres (b. 1930). By birth he is a member of an ancient House of Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth, which can trace their noble ancestry back to the beginning of the 12th century.

Marriage and family

He married Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg on 6 June 1998, becoming the husband of a member of the

Danish royal family The Danish royal family is the dynastic family of the monarch of Denmark. While some members of the Danish royal family hold the title of ''Prince(ss) of Denmark'', descendants of Margrethe II additionally bear the title '' Count(ess) of Monpe ...

. Jefferson and Alexandra are distantly related, as both have descended from

Leopold III, Duke of Anhalt-Dessau Leopold III Frederick Franz, Duke of Anhalt-Dessau (10 August 1740 – 9 August 1817), known as "Prince Franz" or "Father Franz", was a German prince of the House of Ascania. From 1751 until 1807 he was reigning prince of the Principality of Anha ...

. Princess Alexandra is the daughter of

Princess Benedikte of Denmark Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Benedikte Astrid Ingeborg Ingrid, born 29 April 1944) is a member of the Danish royal family. She is the second daughter and child of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid o ...

, whose elder sister is

Queen Margrethe II Margrethe II (; Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid, born 16 April 1940) is a member of the Danish royal family who reigned as Queen of Denmark from 14 January 1972 until her abdication on 14 January 2024. Having reigned for exactly 5 ...

. The couple were married in Graasten Palace Chapel, a part of the

's summer residence in southern

Jutland Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...

. According to an article in the

Copenhagen Post ''The Copenhagen Post'', also stylized ''CPH Post'', is a newspaper providing Danish news in English both nationally and internationally; it is the only English-language newspaper printed regularly in Denmark. History and profile Founded by S ...

, Princess Alexandra was granted Danish citizenship just prior to her marriage. The couple were sweethearts during their childhood years at Louisenlund school, in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. The couple resided in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, where Count Jefferson was a managing director of the Swiss bank Sal. Oppenheim. Since 2013 they lived in Heidesheim Castle, Germany, near Mainz. They were always among the

for the summer holidays at

Gråsten Palace Gråsten Palace () is located at Gråsten in the Jutland region of southern Denmark. It is best known for being the summer residence of the Danish royal family. The main house has a modern, all-white facade, with Venetian doors opening onto swe ...

. They have two children: *Count Friedrich ''Richard'' Oscar Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (born 14 September 1999 at the

Rigshospitalet Rigshospitalet (meaning ''the National'', ''State'', ''Kingdom'' or ''Hospital of the Realm'', but not usually translated) is the largest public and teaching hospital in Copenhagen and the most highly specialised hospital in Denmark. The hospital ...

). Count Richard was christened in the chapel of Schloss Berleburg, Berleburg,

, on 18 December 1999. His godparents are

Gustav, Hereditary Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Gustav, 7th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-BerleburgIn 1919 royalty and nobility were mandated to lose their privileges in Germany, hereditary titles were to be legally borne thereafter only as part of the surname, according tArticle 109of the Weimar ...

(maternal uncle), Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark (mother's maternal first cousin), Prince Philipp of Hesse (mother's paternal cousin),

Princess Märtha Louise of Norway Princess Märtha Louise of Norway (born 22 September 1971) is a Norwegian self-described clairvoyant, businesswoman and a member of the Norwegian royal family, although she is not a member of the royal house and has no public role. She is marri ...

, Countess Andrea of Pfeil-Haag, and Nadine Kettaneh-Farah (father's cousin). He is named after his grandfather Prince Richard von Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. *Countess ''Ingrid'' Alexandra Irma Astrid Benedikte von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (born 16 August 2003, at

the Copenhagen University Hospital). Countess Ingrid was christened at the chapel, Schloss Berleburg, Berleburg,

. Her godparents are Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (maternal aunt), Countess Bettina von Pfeil and Klein-Ellguth (paternal aunt),

Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark Frederick, Crown Prince of Denmark may refer to: *Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Denmark (1753–1805), heir presumptive from 1766 to 1768 *Frederick IV of Denmark (1671–1730), King of Denmark and Norway, Crown Prince from 1671 to 1699 *Frederick ...

(mother's maternal first cousin),

Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark (; born 10 July 1965) is the eldest child of Constantine II and Anne-Marie, who were King and Queen of Greece from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1973. She was heiress presumptive to the Greek ...

(mother's maternal first cousin) and Prince Georg of

Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein was a county and later principality between Hesse-Darmstadt and Westphalia. History The county with imperial immediacy was formed by the 1657 partition of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Wittgenstein and raised from a county t ...

, Martin Bleyer. She is named after her great-grandmother

Ingrid of Sweden Ingrid of Sweden (Ingrid Victoria Sofia Louisa Margareta; 28 March 1910 – 7 November 2000) was List of Danish consorts, Queen of Denmark from 20 April 1947 to 14 January 1972 as the wife of King Frederik IX. Ingrid was born into the Hous ...

. The couple announced their intention to divorce in May 2017. On 18 May 2019 Princess Alexandra married Count Michael Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille (b. 26 February 1965), a member of the ancient House of Ahlefeldt.(In French
"Mariage royal : La princesse Alexandra a dit oui au comte Michael", PurePeople
( PureMédias), 24 May 2019.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth, Jefferson von 1967 births Living people Counts