Heinrich XIII, Prince Reuss of Greiz

Heinrich XIII
Prince Reuss of Greiz
Prince Heinrich XIII ca. 1780
Born	16 February 1747 Greiz, Reuss
Died	29 January 1817 (aged 69) Greiz, Reuss Elder Line
Spouse	Princess Wilhelmine Louise of Nassau-Weilburg
Issue	Prince Heinrich XVIII Heinrich XIX, Prince Reuss of Greiz Heinrich XX, Prince Reuss of Greiz
Full name German: Heinrich
House	House Reuss of Greiz
Father	Heinrich XI, Prince Reuss of Greiz
Mother	Countess Conradine Reuss of Köstritz

Heinrich XIII, Prince Reuss of Greiz (German: Heinrich XIII Fürst Reuß zu Greiz; 16 February 1747 – 29 January 1817) was Prince Reuss of Greiz from 1800 to 1817.

Early life

Heinrich XIII was born at Greiz, Reuss, third child of Heinrich XI, Prince Reuss of Greiz (1722–1800), (son of Count Heinrich II Reuss of Obergreiz and Countess Sophie Charlotte of Bothmer) and his wife, Countess Conradine Reuss of Köstritz (1719–1770), (daughter of Heinrich XXIV, Count Reuss of Köstritz and Baroness Marie Eleonore Emma of Promnitz-Dittersbach).

Prince Reuss of Greiz

At the death of his father on 28 June 1800, he succeeded as the Prince Reuss of Greiz.

After the devastation of Greiz by a fire in 1802, he orderded to rebuilt the city in a neoclassical style, and he moved his residence from the Oberes Schloss (Upper Castle) to the Unteres Schloss (Lower Castle), to be more in contact with the people and social life of the Principality.

Henry also distinguished himself in his military service to Austria as a field marshal, to the point of being considered one of the best friends of the Emperor Joseph II .

Henry XIII joined the Confederation of the Rhine in 1807 and later was a member of the German Confederation. At the Congress of Vienna he was involved in a territorial dispute with the Kingdom of Saxony, from which emerged victorious and won the domain of the cities of Altgommla and Kühdorf.

Marriage

Heinrich XIII married on 9 January 1786 in Kirchheimbolanden to Princess Wilhelmine Louise of Nassau-Weilburg (1765–1837), fourth child and second daughter of Charles Christian, Prince of Nassau-Weilburg, and his wife, Princess Carolina of Orange-Nassau.

They had three children:

• Prince Heinrich XVIII Reuss of Greiz (31 March 1787 – 31 March 1787)
• Heinrich XIX, Prince Reuss of Greiz (1 March 1790 – 31 October 1836), married in 1822 to Princess Gasparine of Rohan-Rochefort, had issue.
• Heinrich XX, Prince Reuss of Greiz (29 June 1794 – 8 November 1859), married firstly in 1834 to Princess Sophie of Löwenstein-Wertheim- Rosenberg, no issue, Princess Sophie died in 1838; Married secondly in 1839 to Landgravine Karoline of Hesse-Homburg, had issue.

Titles and styles

• 16 February 1747 – 17 March 1768: His Serene Highness Count Heinrich XIII Reuss of Obergreiz
• 17 March 1768 – 12 May 1778: His Serene Highness Count Heinrich XIII Reuss of Greiz
• 12 May 1778 – 28 June 1800: His Serene Highness Prince Heinrich XIII Reuss of Greiz
• 28 June 1800 – 29 January 1817: His Serene Highness The Prince Reuss of Greiz

Ancestry

Ancestors of Heinrich XIII, Prince Reuss of Greiz

16. Heinrich I, Count Reuss of Greiz               8. Heinrich VI, Count Reuss of Greiz                       17. Burgravine Sibylle Magdalene of Kirchberg               4. Count Heinrich II Reuss of Obergreiz                             18. Baroness Heinrich of Friesen               9. Baroness Henriette Amalie of Friesen                       19. Maria Margaretha of Lützelburg               2. Heinrich XI, Prince Reuss of Greiz                                   20. Baron Julius August of Bothmer               10. Count Johann Kaspar of Bothmer                       21. Margarethe Eleonore of Petersdorff               5. Countess Sophie Charlotte of Bothmer                             22. Baron Ludwig Gebhard of Hoym               11. Gisela Erdmuth of Hoym                       23. Sophie Katharina of Schönfeld               1. Heinrich XIII, Prince Reuss of Greiz                                         24. Heinrich III Reuss of Saalberg               12. Heinrich I, Count Reuss of Schleiz                       25. Countess Juliane Elisabeth of Salm, Wild- and Rheingräfin zu Neufville               6. Heinrich XXIV, Count Reuss of Köstritz                             26. Rudolf, Count of Sinzendorf-Rheineck               13. Countess Anna Elisabeth of Sinzendorf                       27. Baroness Eva Susanna of Zinzendorf               3. Countess Conradine Reuss of Köstritz                                   28. Baron Freiherr Johann of Promnitz               14. Baron Hans Christoph of Promnitz                       29. Eleonore of Schertz               7. Baroness Marie Eleonore Emma of Promnitz-Dittersbach                             30. Baron Wolf Albrecht von Saurma of Jeltsc               15. Baroness Anna Elisabeth Saurma of Jeltsch                       31. Johanna Maria of Prittwitz and Gaffron

Notes and sources

• Genealogics - Leo van de Pas - Heinrich XIII, Fürst Reuss
• L'Allemagne dynastique, Huberty, Giraud, Magdelaine, Reference: I 321
• Gehrlein Thomas, The House of Reuss - Older and Younger line Börde Verlag 2006, ISBN 978-3-9810315-3-9