Figure 1.--Wilhelm II's younger children were photographed here about 1895. The children are from the left: Oskar, Joachim, and Victoria Luise--the only daughter. The boys wear the same Highland outfits worn by their English cousins. Image courtesy of the MD collection.

Prince Joachim held the title Prince of Prussia. He was apparently not as strong as the other boys and his mother worried about him. We do not know a lot about his childhood. Some family portraits do show us how he was dressed. Joachim appears to have been an impatient boy. The Prince served in World War I as a calvary officer. He was wounded in the battle in the Masurian Lake District of East Prussia. He married Marie of Anhalt in 1916. They had one child. After the Armistace in 1918, Joachim visited his father at Doorn. It was not a happy reunion. The former Kaiser was unhappy with his sons' behavior, including Joachim's gambling. Joachim eventually returned to Germany. He found it difficult adjusting to his reduced circumstances. His wife left him. He shot himself in 1920 at a hunting lodge near Potsdam.

Parents

Joaquim was the youngest son of Kaiser Wilhelm II and the Kaiserina Augusta-Victoria.

Siblings

Joaquim grew up as the youngest boy in a large family. Wilhelm and Auguste-Victoria had seven children, six boys and a girl. Joaquim was the youngest boy. Here we see joaquim with his older brother Oskar and his younger sister Victoria (figure 1). The younger children were often photographedf together.

Childhood

He was apparently not as strong as the other boys and his mother worried about him. Joachim appears to have been an impatient boy. When Victoria Louise took up photography a Miss Topham helped her take and develop them. When Joachim expressed an interest, she offered to help him as well. Unfortunately he was so impatient while developing his photographs that he knocked over a kerosene lamp. Miss Topham managed to catch it in time, but received a painful burn.

Childhood Clothing

Prince Joachim held the title Prince of Prussia. As a little boy he wire dresses. We note one family portait of him wearing a white dress with a plaid sash. Here we see him wearing a Highland kilt with his older brother Oskar about 1895 (figure 1). German boys did not commonly wear kilts. Wilhelm was a grandchild of Queen Victoria and as a result there was a family connection with the British royal family. Thus thedy sometimes wore British clothes, especially on trips to Britaoin. A portrait taken the follwing year in 1896 shows Joaquim wearing a Little Lord Fauntleroy suit with a lace collar and his hair has been cut short. The royal children were never dressed entirely alike as a comolete group. We do notice the oplder boys all dressed alike. We do note that the children closest in age were commonlly dressed in identical outfits. As a youth, we note him wearing an Eton suit.

Childhood Hairstyles

He also has long ringlet curls. We are not sure if any of his brothers wore ringlets. We do not have a lot of portraits of Wilhelm's children, but we do not note any of the younger boys, or Princess Victoria, with such elaborate ringlets. We see some of te other boys with long hair, but not with ringlets like the ones Joaquim wears here. A portait of the royal family taken within a year of this portrait shows Joaquim wearing a Fauntleroy suit with short hair.

Education

World War I

The Prince served in World War I as a calvary officer. He was wounded in the battle in the Masurian Lake District of East Prussia.

Marriage

He married Marie Auguste of Anhalt in 1916 at Schloss Bellevue, Berlin. Her father was Eduard Georg Wilhelm, Duke of Anhalt (1861- ). Her mother was Marie Agnes Luise von Anhalt, Duchess of Saxony (1873- ).

Child

They had one child, Prince Charles Francis Joseph, Prince of Prussia (1916- ). Charles married Princeess Henrietta of Schönaich-Carolath (1940). The ceremony was held at Doorn in the Netherlands where his grand father lived in exile after the World War I. The NAZIs occupied the Netherlands (1940), but his grandfather declined to return to Germany. Charles and Henrietta had three children, all born during World War II: Franz Wilhelm, (1943- ) and his twin Franz Joseph Frederick (1943- ). and Franz Frederick Christian (1944- ). Charles and Henrietta divorced after the War (1946). Charles married again to Luise Dora Hartmann (1946. They divored in 1959 without producing any children. Charle's third marriage was to Eva Maria Herrera-Valdeavellano (1959). The ceremony was held in Lima, Peru. They had two children: Alexandra (1960- ) and Desiree (1961- ).

After the War

After his father's abdigation and the Armistace in 1918, Joachim visited his father who had sought asylum in the Netherlands. He visited his father at his residence in Doorn. It was not a happy reunion. The former Kaiser was unhappy with his sons' behavior, including Joachim's gambling. Joachim eventually returned to Germany. He found it difficult adjusting to his reduced circumstances. His wife left him. He shot himself at a hunting lodge near Potsdam (1920).

Created: April 30, 2003
Last updated: 12:17 AM 4/1/2006