''Prinzenerlass'' (, "princes' decree", also spelled Prinzenerlaß) was the name of a 1940 decree issued by

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

that prohibited members of Germany's formerly reigning houses from participating in any military operations in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. In May 1940, Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, the grandson of Kaiser

Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until Abdication of Wilhelm II, his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as th ...

, took part in the invasion of France. He was wounded during the fighting in

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

and died in a

field hospital A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities. This term was initially used in military medicine (such as the Mobile ...

Nivelles Nivelles (; ; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. The Nivelles municipality includes the former municipalities of Baulers, Bornival, Thines, and Monstreux. The Nivelles arrondissement ...

on 26 May 1940. His funeral service was held at the Church of Peace, and he was buried in the

Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenburg, Prussia, the German Empire, and Romania. ...

family mausoleum in the

Antique Temple The Antique Temple is a small round temple in the west part of Sanssouci Park in Potsdam. Frederick the Great had the building constructed to house his collection of classical works of art, antique artifacts, coins and antique gems. Carl von ...

Sanssouci Park Sanssouci Park is a large park surrounding Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam, Germany, built under Frederick the Great in the mid-18th century. Following the terracing of the vineyard and the completion of the palace, the surroundings were included in t ...

. The service drew over 50,000 mourners. His death and the ensuing sympathy of the German public toward a member of the

imperial family A royal family is the immediate family of monarch, monarchs and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or emperor, empress, and the term papal family describes the family of ...

greatly bothered Hitler, and he began to see the Hohenzollerns as a threat to his power. Shortly afterwards, the ''Prinzenerlass'' was issued, and all members of the former German royal houses were relieved from combat duties. The decree prohibited members of Germany's formerly reigning families from actively serving in the Wehrmacht, fearing that this would increase the public's sympathy for the deposed dynasties and threaten Hitler's grip on power.

References

{{reflist * ''Queen Victoria's Family: A Century of Photographs.'',

Charlotte Zeepvat Charlotte M. Zeepvat is an author and historian of European royal history. She has written five books published by Sutton Publishing, including biographies of Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany and the Romanov Imperial Family. An avid collector of or ...

. Sutton Publishing, 2003. * ''Royals and the Reich: The Princes von Hessen in Nazi Germany'', Jonathan Petropoulos. Oxford University Press, 2006. 1940 in law Law of Nazi Germany German royalty 1940 in Germany