"Royals and the Reich: Princes von Hessen in Nazi Germany" Jonathan Petropoulos 2006

[Ruhije]

European Royals Murdered.

Princess Mafalda of Savoy ( 1902-44 ) Second daughter of King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy. On the surrender of Italy to the allies, in 1943, Mafalda, wife of Prince Phillip of Hesse, was arrested by the Gestapo and interned in the Buchenwald concentration camp. Mafalda died there, as a result of injuries she received during an allied bombing raid on the camp, in August 1944. Not technically murder, however, if she had not been interned there by the Nazi regime.....As a side point, Mafalda`s husband had been named as a potential King of Finland, when that nation declared it`s independence from Russia, in December 1917. This ambition was never realised, but if it had happened, and Mafalda had still married Phillip in 1925, she would have become Queen consort of Finland.

Thats an interesting, and very tragic, case of recent murdered/killed Royals.
Ive just finished an interesting book on her husbands family during this period of history - Royals and The Reich - by Jonathan Petropoulos.
Which links to another relative of Princess Mafalda of Savoy, her brother-in-law, King (Tsar) Boris III of Bulgaria, who died in extremely suspicious circumstances in 1943 shortly after returning to Bulgaria after a visit to Adolf Hitler at the Berghof in Germany.
This had been a very angry exchange and difficult meeting between King Boris and Hitler, with arguments and disagreements over King Boris and Bulgaria's situation and involvement in the war, particularly concerning King Boris's resistance and refusal to involve Bulgarian troops on the Eastern Front fighting the Russians, and the deportation of Bulgarian Jews.
It is widely believed King Boris was poisoned by the Nazis before he left Germany, although some theories suggest the Soviets as a possibility.
King Boris was married to Princess Mafalda of Savoy's sister, Princess Giovanna of Savoy (Queen/Tsarina of Bulgaria).
They are the parents of King Simeon II of Bulgaria.

 

[SirGyamfi1]

Hereditary Prince Alfred Ernst Lowenstein-Werthheim-Freudenberg born 19 Sep 1924 joined on 27 Sep 1942. I believe he's still alive. There are 10 pages of High Nobility in the Nazi Party so I would have to search the names and dates of birth to see if they are still among the living. But there are plenty of princely/noble houses listed. Here are just a few:

Hohenlohe-Langenburg
Leiningen
Lippe
Coburg-Gotha-Sachsen
Lippe-Schaumburg
Schonberg
Thurn und Taxis
Wied

Most were born in the late 1800s but there are some born as late as 1923-24. A lot of princesses and countesses listed, too.

Which member of the Thurn und Taxis family because I don’t recall hearing that anyone from that family ever was part?

 

[Curryong]

In the appendix of my copy of Royals and the Reich two members of the Thurn und Taxis family are listed as members of the Party.

Prince Hans born June 1908. Joined Nazi Party Dec 1938

Prince Georg born April 1910. Joined Nazi Party Nov 1938.

Now, of course just being a Party Member doesn’t mean that member was particularly active, and late in 1938 is not an early date to join, but their names are there all the same.