The House of Hohenzollern is a formerly royal German dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenburg, Prussia, the German Empire, and Romania. The family came from the area around the town of Hechingen in Swabia during the late 11th century and took their name from Hohenzollern Castle. The first ancestors of the Hohenzollerns were mentioned in 1061.
Wilhelm II was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as the Hohenzollern dynasty's 300-year rule of Prussia.
Crown jewels are the objects of metalwork and jewellery in the regalia of a current or former monarchy. They are often used for the coronation of a monarch and a few other ceremonial occasions. A monarch may often be shown wearing them in portraits, as they symbolize the power and continuity of the monarchy. Additions to them may be made, but, since medieval times, the existing items have been typically passed down unchanged, symbolizing the continuity of a monarchy.
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, particularly in Commonwealth countries, as an abstract name for the monarchy itself as distinct from the individual who inhabits it. A specific type of crown is employed in heraldry under strict rules. Indeed, some monarchies never had a physical crown, just a heraldic representation, as in the constitutional kingdom of Belgium.
The Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom, originally the Crown Jewels of England, are a collection of royal ceremonial objects kept in the Jewel House at the Tower of London, which include the coronation regalia and vestments worn by British monarchs.
St Edward's Crown is the coronation crown of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. Named after Saint Edward the Confessor, versions of it have traditionally been used to crown English and British monarchs at their coronations since the 13th century. It is normally on public display in the Jewel House at the Tower of London.
Wilhelm, German Crown Prince, Crown Prince of Prussia was the eldest child of the last Kaiser, Wilhelm II, German Emperor, and his consort Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein, and thus a great-grandson of Queen Victoria, and distant cousin to many British royals, such as Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III. As Emperor Wilhelm's heir, he was the last Crown Prince of the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia, until the abolition of the monarchy.
Danish Crown Regalia are the symbols of the Danish monarchy. They consist of three crowns, a sceptre, globus cruciger, the sword of state and an ampulla . The Danish Royal Regalia are kept in the treasury at Rosenborg Castle. The oldest of these is Christian III's sword of state from 1551. They further include King Christian IV's diamond; pearl- and gold-embroidered saddles; objects carved from ivory and rock-crystal; lapidary pieces of precious stones, and brooches in the form of fantastic animals.
The Order of the Black Eagle was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg. In his Dutch exile after World War I, deposed Emperor Wilhelm II continued to award the order to his family. He made his second wife, Princess Hermine Reuss of Greiz, a Lady in the Order of the Black Eagle.
The Imperial crown of Russia, also known as the Great Imperial Crown of Russian Empire, was used for the coronation of the monarchs of Russia from 1762 until the Russian monarchy's abolition in 1917. The great imperial crown was first used in the coronation by Catherine the Great, and it was last worn at the coronation of Nicholas II. It was displayed prominently next to Nicholas II on a cushion at the State Opening of the Russian Duma inside the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1906. It survived the 1917 revolution and ensuing civil war and is currently on display in Moscow at the Kremlin Armoury's State Diamond Fund.
Cecilienhof Palace is a palace in Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany, built from 1914 to 1917 in the layout of an English Tudor manor house. Cecilienhof was the last palace built by the House of Hohenzollern that ruled the Kingdom of Prussia and the German Empire, until the end of World War I. It is famous for having been the location of the Potsdam Conference in 1945, in which the leaders of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States made important decisions affecting the shape of post-World War II Europe and Asia. Cecilienhof has been part of the Palaces and Parks of Potsdam and Berlin UNESCO World Heritage Site, since 1990.
Hohenzollern Castle is the ancestral seat of the imperial House of Hohenzollern. The third of three hilltop castles built on the site, it is located atop Mount Hohenzollern, above and south of Hechingen, on the edge of the Swabian Jura of central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The name derives from Söller (terrace) from Latin solarium.
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 Gontard created the building in 1768/69 near the New Palace north of the Central Alley, as a complement to the Temple of Friendship situated south of the Alley. Since 1921 the Antique Temple has been used as a mausoleum for members of the House of Hohenzollern and is not open to the public.
Duchess Cecilie Auguste Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was the last German Crown Princess and Crown Princess of Prussia as the wife of Wilhelm, German Crown Prince, the son of Wilhelm II, German Emperor.
The Hohenzollern Bridge is a bridge crossing the river Rhine in the German city of Cologne. It crosses the Rhine at kilometre 688.5. Originally, the bridge was both a railway and road bridge. However, after its destruction in 1945 and subsequent reconstruction, the bridge has been only accessible to rail and pedestrian traffic.
Sweden's regalia are kept deep in the vaults of the Royal Treasury, underneath the Royal Palace in Stockholm, in a museum that is open to the public. The crowns and coronets have not been worn by Swedish royalty since 1907, but they are still displayed at weddings, christenings and funerals.
The Crown Jewels of Württemberg are a historical jewel collection belonging to the Kings and Queens of Württemberg.
The Beau Sancy is a 34.98-carat (6.996 g) diamond originally mined in India, which is cut in a modified pear double rose-cut shape. Since appearing in Europe in the 16th century, the Beau Sancy has been owned by a number of European royal houses, among them the House of Medici and the kings of England and Prussia. After more than 300 years in the possession of the House of Hohenzollern, the diamond was sold in 2012 at Sotheby's auction in Geneva for $9.57 million to an anonymous buyer.
Crown of Baden, also known as the Grand Ducal Crown of Baden is a crown formerly used by the Grand Duke of Baden and part of the Crown Jewels of Baden. The crown is 26 cm high and has a diameter of 13,8 cm. Today the crown is kept at the Baden State Museum, which itself was built within the old walls of the former Karlsruhe Palace.
The Tiara of Maria II is a jewelled, ornamental crown made for Queen Maria II of Portugal in the 1830s-40s, set in sapphires and diamonds. It is the oldest extant tiara that can be linked to a Portuguese sovereign.
