Gustav Albrecht, 5th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg

Prince Gustav Albrecht
Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
5th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Born	28 February 1907
Died	29 November 1969 (aged 62)
Spouse	Margareta Fouché d'Otrante
Issue	Prince Richard Princess Madeleine Prince Robin Princess Tatiana Princess Pia
House	Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Father	Richard 4th Fürst zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Mother	Princess Madeleine zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg

Gustav Albrecht, 5th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Gustav Albrecht Alfred Franz Friedrich Otto Emil Ernst, 28 February 1907 – 1944 (declared legally dead 29 November 1969) was Prince and Head of the House of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. He was the son of Richard 4th Fürst zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg.

Personal life

Gustav Albrecht, 5th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Gustav Albrecht Alfred Franz Friedrich Otto Emil Ernst as born on 28 February 1907 at Berleburg, Germany. He married Margareta Fouché d'Otrante (28 March 1909 – 25 August 2005) on 26 January 1934 at Björnlunda, Södermanland Län, Sweden.

In June 1944, he was serving as an officer in the German army during the campaign against the Soviet Union. After disappearing during a mission near the Belarusian city of Orsha, Gustav Albrecht was declared missing in action. His family did not seek to have him declared dead until 29 November 1969, after the birth of Gustav, Hereditary Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg on 12 January 1969; 29 November 1969 is listed as the official date of death for Gustav Albrecht.

He is alternately known as Gustav Albrecht Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg.

Military service honors

Prince Gustav Albrecht served in the German Army in the rank of field officer/field-grade officer (Ic-Stabsoffizier)^[1][2] with the title of Rittmeister der Reserve in the 23rd Panzer-Division. Nearly two months after his disappearance during Operation Bagration in June 1944, he was awarded the German Cross in Silver (Kriegsorden des Deutschen Kreuzes in Silber) on 18 August 1944. Additionally, he was awarded the War Merit Cross 1st. class with swords (Kriegsverdienstkreuz 1. Klasse mit Schwertern), also known as the KVK 1, which was instituted on 18 October 1939 by Hitler; the date of this honor is not known.

Children

• Richard-Casimir Karl August Robert Konstantin, Current Head of the House of, and Prince of, Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
• Princess Madeleine Olga Dora Edle Benedicte of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b 22 April 1936) married Otto, The Count of Solms-Laubach and had issue
• Robin Alexander Wolfgang Udo Eugen Wilhelm Gottfried of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b 29 January 1938) married (and divorced in 1979) Birgitta af Klercker (1942–2007) with whom he had issue; married secondly Marie-Christine Heftler-Louiche and had issue
• Princess Tatiana Louise Ursula Therese Elsa of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b 31 July 1940) married Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse (m 1 June 1964 d. October 1974) and had issue
• Princess Pia Margarete of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b 8 December 1942)

Notes

1. Intelligence Officer at Department Ic (Abteilung Ic): "In the German military structure, the department was responsible for a range of tasks encompassing intelligence and signals analysis, counter-espionage, interrogation of prisoners-of-war, post control, outward enemy propaganda as well as inward propaganda and political cultivation within the German army." in: A Friend and a Foe? Interpreters in WWII in Finland and Norway Embodying Frontiers, by Pekka Kujamäki, p.4
2. The Combat History of the 23rd Panzer Division in World War II, by Ernst Rebentisch, p.506.

References