Prince Francis Joseph of Battenberg

Prince Francis Joseph of Battenberg (; 24 September 1861 – 31 July 1924) was the fourth and youngest son and child of Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine and his morganatic wife Julia, Princess of Battenberg.

Biography Named after the Emperor of Austria, he was known as Franzjos to his parents and siblings. At one time, he was considered for the throne of Bulgaria, which eventually went to his brother Alexander; nonetheless, as Alexander was unmarried and without legitimate heirs at the time, Francis Joseph was considered heir presumptive to the throne. He followed his brother to Bulgaria, where he served as a colonel in the Bulgarian cavalry, seeing action during the Serbo-Bulgarian War. During the coup of 1886, he was arrested and expelled from Bulgaria, along with his brother. His cousin, and later sister-in-law, Victoria described him in her memoirs:

From an early age Francis Joseph showed great interest in science, and unlike his brothers – who pursued careers in the military – he pursued a career in academics; in 1891 he published an academic study on Bulgarian economic history, which he dedicated to his brother.

At a family reunion in London in 1894 Franz Joseph met Consuelo Vanderbilt, the daughter of an extremely wealthy American railway tycoon William Kissam Vanderbilt. He made a marriage proposal to Consuelo, but she disliked him and turned him down.

In 1897 he married Princess Ana Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro (1874–1971), the sixth daughter of King Nicholas I of Montenegro; they had no children. He served as a colonel in the Montenegrin Army during the Balkan Wars.

They lived in Prinz Emil Palais, but upon the outbreak of World War I, he and his wife moved to Switzerland, where he lived until his death in 1924. He was a close friend of his brother-in-law King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, whom he visited often; their wives were sisters.

Honours He received the following orders and decorations: Grand Cross of the Merit Order of Philip the Magnanimous, with Swords, 18 August 1878 Military Merit Cross, 27 November 1885 Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order, 17 November 1886 Knight of the Annunciation, 29 November 1904 Grand Cross of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Order of Osmanieh, 1st Class in Diamonds Grand Cross of St. Alexander, with Swords and Collar Order of Bravery, 4th Class Officer of the Military Merit Order Commemorative Medal for the Liberation of Bulgaria Commemorative Medal for the Serbo-Bulgarian War, 1885 Distinguished Service Cross (10 years) Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Danilo I Knight of St. Peter of Cetinje Medal for Bravery Queen Victoria Golden Jubilee Medal, 1887 Honorary Knight Commander of the Bath (civil), 6 February 1896 Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order, 26 April 1897

Ancestry