http://www.eurohistory.com/thurn.html
The history of an enterprising family
By Art Be�che
Very few princely families have been able to play such an important role in
Europe without ever appearing as actors in the main stage of history. The
dynasty of the Princes of Thurn und Taxis is such a family. The family's
fortunes prospered along those of the imperial court at Vienna. For more
than 300 years, the Thurn und Taxis held the monopoly over imperial
communications and post between Vienna and the far flung Habsburg
possessions that formed the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation.
The Thurn und Taxis had humble beginnings in the XVth century. Emperor
Frederick III celebrated half a century on the throne in 1490, then decided
to strengthen the communications system within his empire. The Habsburgs had
recently acquired Tyrol, and in the coming years would also incorporate
Burgundy and the Low Countries to their expanding empire. Frederick III knew
that without effective communication it would be impossible to govern the
expanding Habsburg lands. With this task in mind, the emperor offered a
communications monopoly to the Thurn und Taxis family, which had already
proved its efficiency in providing support to the empire's communications.
It was then that Franz von Thurn und Taxis obtained the mail monopoly over
all the Habsburg lands. For the next three centuries the name Thurn und
Taxis was synonymous with transportation and communications. It was also
synonymous with wealth as the Thurn und Taxis prospered greatly from their
services to the Habsburgs.
The Thurn und Taxis originated from the region of Bergamo in Italy. Their
letters of nobility were granted by Emperor Maximilian I in 1512 in
recognition for services given to the Habsburg family. Emperor Charles V
confirmed his grandfather's granting in 1534. According to the Almanac de
Gotha, the Thurn und Taxis family were made Barons of the Empire in 1608.
Almost two decades later, Emperor Ferdinand II elevated the family to Counts
of the Empire in 1624. They were made princes by the Spanish Court in 1681
in recognition for their services. Finally, the Thurn und Taxis received
their princely title in the Holy Roman Empire in the 1695 from Emperor
Leopold I of Habsburg.
No other enterprise could guarantee transportation and communications with
the reliability provided by the Thurn und Taxis. By the end of the XVIIIth
century it took five days for a letter to travel from Brussels to Innsbruck,
while it took forty hours to travel from Brussels to Paris. It was a
performance record that only the Thurn und Taxis system could match. The
family used a horse relay system that allowed for uninterrupted travel from
one European capital to another. It was Napoleon Bonaparte who first
attacked the Thurn und Taxis monopoly. And as the XIXth century progressed,
the family gradually lost it completely. The loss of the mail monopoly did
little to affect the power of the Thurn und Taxis for by then, the family
had diversified into a myriad other enterprises from foodstuffs to banking
to railroads. Their wealth was vast and very few other European families
could match it.
The Thurn und Taxis not only profited in their many enterprises. Their
matrimonial alliances were also a source of great pride and achievement.
>From their origin in Bergamo to becoming the couriers of the imperial court
in Vienna, the family also expanded its relations through the palaces of the
German nobility. One of the first prominent matrimonial alliances of the
family was that of Eugene-Alexander, I Prince of Thurn and Taxis, to
Princess Anna of F�rstenberg. His successor, Anselm-Franz, married into
another renowned princely family when he wed Princess Maria of Lobkowicz at
the beginning of the XVIIIth century. The Third Prince of Thurn and Taxis,
Alexander-Ferdinand, continued these successful matrimonial alliances by
marrying Sophia Chistianne of Brandenburg. His heir, the Fourth Prince
married Duchess Augusta of Wurttemberg. Karl-Alexander, the Fifth Prince of
Thurn und Taxis was married to Duchess Theresa of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, a
relative of Queen Charlotte, wife of George III of Great Britain. The family
reached the pinnacle in 1858 when Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Thurn und
Taxis, married Duchess Helene in Bavaria, sister of Empress Elisabeth of
Austria. Helene in fact, was initially chosen as Emperor Franz Joseph's
bride, yet her vivacious and lovely younger sister attracted the young
emperor's eye and conquered his heart. Nonetheless, Maximilian of Thurn und
Taxis could count the Austrian emperor as a brother-in-law.
Prince Johannes and Princess Gloria von Thurn und Taxis (1982)
The marriage of Maximilian and Helene was a success as the couple found
satisfaction with each other. Unfortunately for Helene, her husband died
unexpectedly in 1867 leaving her with four young children: Louisa,
Elisabeth, Maximilian and Albert. The children were raised primarily at the
family's gigantic St. Emmeran Palace in Regensburg. And as first cousin's of
the future emperor of Austria, the Thurn und Taxis were destined to make
notable marriages. Louisa von Thurn und Taxis married Prince Friedrich of
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen a brother of King Carol I of Romania. Princess
Elisabeth married Prince Miguel, Duke of Braganza in 1877. Maximilian, VIIth
Prince of Thurn und Taxis died without any issue in 1885. He was succeeded
by his only brother, Albert who married Archduchess Margarethe of Habsburg,
a daughter of Archduke Joseph and Princess Clotilde of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha,
sister of Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria.
Prince Albert of Thurn und Taxis was famous throughout Europe for the size
of his fortune. From his vast palace of more than 500 rooms, Albert ruled
over a large business empire. By the time of his accession, the family had
collected more than a dozen palaces and castles around Regensburg and within
the Habsburg lands. The Thurn and Taxis were also among the largest
landowners in Central Europe. Prince Albert maintained a very artistic court
at Regensburg, an environment in which he allowed some the Wittelsbach
strains inherited from his mother's family show. His court balls were
legendary and the family's art collection was considerably enlarged.
Albert and Margarethe had eight children, one of which did not survive
infancy. The two eldest boys, Franz-Joseph and Karl-August, married two
sisters, the Infantas Elisabeth and Maria-Anna of Braganza, daughters of
Miguel, Duke of Braganza. Franz-Joseph and Elisabeth had four children who
survived infancy. Their only son and heir to the princely title, Gabriel,
died during the siege of Stalingrad in 1942. Karl-August and Maria-Anna were
the parents of four children. Their eldest son, Prince Johannes of Thurn und
Taxis, was born in 1926 and became the heir-presumptive to the princely
title after his cousin Gabriel's death.
Two Generations: from left to right, Prince Johannes; F�rst Albrecht von
Thurn und Taxis; Prince Anselm ( who died during the Second World War)
Prince Albert of Thurn und Taxis was deeply opposed to the advent of Adolph
Hitler. As the Nazi regime strengthened its hold over Germany, the Thurn und
Taxis increased their opposition to everything that National Socialism
represented. Hitler was very suspicious of these very powerful German noble
family. The Second World War did not treat the family lightly, not only did
Prince Gabriel die in 1942, but two years later Prince Anselm-Albert,
another grandson of Prince Albert, was killed in action. At the end of the
war, the Thurn und Taxis lost vast properties located behind the Iron
Curtain.
Prince Albert of Thurn und Taxis died at the age of eighty-four years in
1952. Administration of the family fortune fell on the shoulders of Prince
Johannes, who was in his mid-twenties. Johannes continued to play an
important role in handling the family's business until he inherited the
princely title from his father in 1982. At the time of his grandfather's
death in 1952, the family had over 30,000 hectares of land in Germany.
Johannes sold a sizable piece of this real estate and invested in land in
North America and Brazil. He also invested heavily in industrial
conglomerates. By the 1990's the family fortune had expanded to include five
banks and several entertainment businesses. It was also during this time
that Johannes became involved in efforts to have some of the property lost
during the war restored to the family.
The charmed life of His Serene Highness Johannes, XIth Prince of Thurn und
Taxis, came to an abrupt end on December 14, 1991. The prince had remained a
bachelor until his mid-fifties, when the absence of a male heir played an
important role in his finding a wife. Johannes, always very capable of
surprising most people by his eclectic choices, married an impoverished
German countess, Gloria von Sch�nburg-Glauchau, who was thirty four years
his junior. The Sch�nburg-Glauchau's were members of the Saxon aristocracy
and had lost most of their properties after 1945. During most of the 1980's
the couple led prominent lives as members of the international jet set, a
constant partying that in no small measure weakened Johannes' health. By the
beginning of the 1990's, the couple had three children, including Prince
Albert, the long-awaited heir born in 1983.
After Prince Johannes' death, the Thurn und Taxis empire almost collapsed
under the weight of death duties and adventurous financial speculation. The
princely couple's extravagance also contributed to their mounting debts.
Princess Gloria was forced to open the doors of her husband's castles and
hold auctions. She also sold off most of the enterprises that were in deep
financial straits, while reducing the family's expenditures. The Princess'
actions to safeguard the future of her son's inheritance has raised the ire
of many members of the family, yet she did not have other options. Johannes'
death did not allow him time to prepare his affairs and thus reduced the
amount of tax levied on the Thurn und Taxis empire by the German government.
Princess Gloria's activities in favor of her son's future seem thus far to
have saved a large portion of the family's patrimony
Long-gone are the endless parties, the constant thundering of nightclubs and
the nasty encounters with paparazzi. These days, princess Gloria spends most
of her time dedicated to the upbringing of her children and the
restructuring of the Thurn und Taxis legacy.
