Marie of Prussia
|This article relies largely or entirely upon a single source. (February 2014)|
|Queen consort of Bavaria|
|Tenure||28 March 1848 – 10 March 1864|
|Spouse||Maximilian II of Bavaria|
|House||House of Hohenzollern (by birth)
House of Wittelsbach (by marriage)
|Father||Prince Wilhelm of Prussia|
|Mother||Princess Marie Anna of Hesse-Homburg|
15 October 1825|
Berlin City Palace, Prussia
|Died||17 May 1889
Hohenschwangau Castle, Bavaria
|Religion||Evangelical Christian Church, later Roman Catholicism|
Born and raised in Berlin, she was the daughter of Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, a younger brother of King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia, and his wife Landgravine Marie Anna of Hesse-Homburg. As a young woman, Marie was seriously considered as a wife for Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, until her engagement to Maximilian was announced.
Marie was loved equally by both the Protestants and Roman Catholic populations. (At that time, Prussia was mostly Evangelical, whilst Bavaria was mostly Roman Catholic.) A specific emphasis of her "great social engagement" was a reactivation of the Bavarian Women's Association, which took place on 18 December 1869 with the aid of her son, Ludwig II. Its aim was "Pflege und Unterstützung der im Felde verwundeten und erkrankten Krieger" (Care and support of soldiers wounded and injured in the field). The Bavarian Red Cross was officially founded as a result of the Bavarian Women's Association. The Red Cross eventually took over for the Queen.
With the sudden death of Maximilian II on 10 March 1864, Marie became a widow. On 12 October 1874, she converted to Roman Catholicism.
In later years, she lived a secluded existence at her country estate in Elbigenalp in the Lechtal Alps and at Schloss Hohenschwangau near Füssen. Marie outlived her elder son, Ludwig II, by several years. He died on 13 June 1886. Marie died in 1889 in Hohenschwangau.
- HRH Prince Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm of Bavaria (25 August 1845 - 13 June 1886); succeeded as King of Bavaria as Ludwig II. Declared mentally incompetent without examination and deposed in a coup in favour of his uncle, Prince Luitpold, on 10 June 1886;died under disputed circumstances.
- HRH Prince Otto Wilhelm Luitpold Adalbert Waldemar of Bavaria (27 April 1848 - 11 October 1916); succeeded as King of Bavaria as Otto I, but never reigned due to the regentship of his uncle, Prince Luitpold. Declared mentally incompetent and deposed on 5 November 1913 by his cousin Prince Ludwig, later King Ludwig III of Bavaria.
Titles, styles, honours, and arms
Titles and styles
- 15 October 1825 - 12 October 1842: Her Royal Highness Princess Marie of Prussia
- 12 October 1842 - 10 March 1864: Her Majesty The Queen of Bavaria
- 10 March 1864 - 17 May 1889: Her Majesty The Dowager Queen of Bavaria
- Kingdom of Prussia : Dame of the Order of Louise (feminine order)
- Spain : Dame of the Order of Queen Maria Luisa (feminine order) 
This article was translated from the article on the German Wikipedia on December 21, 2005.
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Marie of PrussiaBorn: 15 October 1825 Died: 17 May 1889
Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen
|Queen consort of Bavaria
28 March 1848 – 10 March 1864
Title next held byMaria Theresa of Austria-Este