Prince Aribert of Anhalt

Prince Aribert Joseph Alexander of Anhalt (18 June 1866 – 24 December 1933) was regent of Anhalt from September to November 1918 on behalf of his underage nephew Joachim Ernst, Duke of Anhalt. As regent, following the German revolution, he abdicated in the name of his nephew on 12 November 1918, thus ending the rule of the House of Ascania in Anhalt.

Early life Prince Aribert was born in Wörlitz in the Duchy of Anhalt, then part of the German Confederation. He was the fourth son of Frederick I, Duke of Anhalt, and Princess Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg. Anhalt was a sovereign duchy, from 1871 part of the German Empire.

Marriage

On 6 July 1891, he married Princess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle. Princess Marie Louise was the daughter of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein and Princess Helena of the United Kingdom, making her a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. The bride's first cousin, the German Emperor Wilhelm II, had been instrumental in arranging the match.

In December 1900, the Duke of Anhalt used his prerogative as reigning Duke to annul the marriage. Princess Marie Louise, on an official visit to Canada at the time, immediately returned to England. According to her memoirs, she regarded her marriage vows as binding, so she never remarried. Her memoirs do, however, indicate rage over her marital experience and an obvious dislike of her former husband.

Though contemporary sources did not directly suggest it was a cause of his marriage dissolution, a number of contemporaries and subsequent historical accounts suggest Aribert was bisexual or homosexual, and some have suggested an indiscretion with a male attendant was the catalyst for the dissolution and that the marriage had never been consummated. However, other sources later suggested he was planning to remarry.

Military career Prince Aribert entered the Prussian Army on 21 September 1882 as a Secondelieutenant à la suite of the Anhaltisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 93. On 3 November 1885, while remaining à la suite of Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 93, he was assigned to the 1st Guards Dragoon Regiment (1. Garde-Dragoner-Regiment), where he was promoted to supernumary Premierlieutenant on 27 January 1891 and given a patent on 29 February 1892. In October 1917, he took command of the 16th Infantry Brigade. On 22 March 1918, he was promoted to Generalmajor à la suite of the army.

Regent

When his nephew, Joachim Ernst, succeeded his father as Duke of Anhalt on 13 September 1918, Aribert was appointed regent due to the young age of Joachim Ernst. Aribert's brief regency came to an end on 12 November 1918 when he abdicated in the name of his nephew following the German revolution. The duchy subsequently became the Free State of Anhalt.

Later life Prince Aribert died in Munich aged 67 on 24 December 1933.

Honours Prince Aribert received the following orders and decorations:

Ancestry

References and notes