Alexander, Prince of Orange
| Alexander | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prince of Orange | |||||
 A drawing by F.A. Tilly | |||||
| Born | 25 August 1851 The Hague, Netherlands | ||||
| Died | 21 June 1884 (aged 32) The Hague, Netherlands | ||||
| Burial | |||||
| |||||
| House | House of Orange-Nassau | ||||
| Father | William III of the Netherlands | ||||
| Mother | Sophie of Württemberg | ||||
Alexander, Prince of Orange (Willem Alexander Karel Hendrik Frederik; 25 August 1851 – 21 June 1884), was heir apparent to his father King William III of the Netherlands from 11 June 1879 until his death.
For a span of 116 years, from the birth of Alexander (1851) until the birth of Willem-Alexander, the present heir-apparent to the Dutch throne (1967), no male heirs were born into the ruling House of Orange.
Life
Prince Alexander of the Netherlands was born in The Hague on 25 August 1851.[1] He was the third child of King William III and Queen Sophie.[2] Unlike his brother William, the crown prince, he was disciplined, intellectual and well-read. After the death of his brother Prince William on 11 June 1879, he became heir apparent to the Dutch throne and as such the Prince of Orange.
Alexander held the position of heir apparent until his own death, age 32, on 21 June 1884 in The Hague from typhus.[1] Although he never married, negotiations were being held for him firstly to marry princess Thyra of Denmark and supposedly to Infanta Marie Anne of Portugal. He was buried in the new royal burial vault in the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft on 17 July 1884.[3] After his death, his half-sister, the future Queen Wilhelmina, became heiress presumptive to the Dutch throne.[4] Alexander's death meant that the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg came into the hands of duke Adolphus from the Walram-line of the House of Nassau on death of William III, as under the terms of the house-treaty of the House of Nassau a princess could not succeed into that title.
Titles and styles
- His Royal Highness Prince Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau (1851–1879)
- His Royal Highness The Prince of Orange (1879–1884)
Ancestry
References
- ^ a b Template:Nl icon Prins Alexander (1851 -1884). Retrieved on 2008-07-28.
- ^ Template:Nl icon Stamboom Koninklijk Huis. Retrieved on 2008-07-28.
- ^ The royal burial vaults. Retrieved on 2008-07-28.
- ^ Genealogy of the Royal Family of the Netherlands
External links
