💥 Nachruf: Großherzog Jean von Luxemburg (1921-2019)

+ S.K.H. Großherzog Jean von Luxemburg

Großherzog Jean von Luxemburg (1921–2019) Foto (c) Großherzoglicher Hof/Vic Fischbach

Der Großherzogliche Hof hat bekannt gegeben, dass Großherzog Jean von Luxemburg heute Morgen (Dienstag, 23. April) um 0:25 Uhr an den Folgen einer kürzlich aufgetretenen Krankheit verstorben ist. Er war von seiner Familie umgeben. Großherzog Jean feierte am 5. Januar dieses Jahres seinen 98. Geburtstag. Ein Staatsbegräbnis wird am Samstag, 5. Mai, um 11:00 Uhr in der Kathedrale Notre-Dame de Luxembourg stattfinden.

Großherzog Jean von Luxemburg im Kreise seiner Familie an seinem 98. Geburtstag. Foto (c) Großherzoglicher Hof/C.Piscitelli

Am Samstag, dem 13. April, gab das Großherzogliche Gericht bekannt, dass Großherzog Jean mit einer Lungeninfektion ins Krankenhaus eingeliefert worden sei. Drei Tage später, am Dienstag, dem 16. April, gab das Gericht eine positive Nachricht bekannt: „ Der Gesundheitszustand Seiner Königlichen Hoheit Großherzog Jean ist günstig. Seine Königliche Hoheit bleibt im Krankenhaus unter Beobachtung .“ Am Ostersonntag um 17:30 Uhr gab das Gericht jedoch eine düsterere Erklärung ab: „ Der Gesundheitszustand Seiner Königlichen Hoheit Großherzog Jean hat sich erheblich verschlechtert. Die gesamte großherzogliche Familie ist am Bett von Großherzog Jean versammelt. “ Heute Morgen um 6:00 Uhr gab Großherzog Henri folgende Erklärung ab: „ Mit großer Trauer teile ich Ihnen den Tod meines geliebten Vaters, Seiner Königlichen Hoheit Großherzog Jean, mit, der in Frieden und umgeben von der Zuneigung seiner Familie verstorben ist. “

Mitteilung des großherzoglichen Hofes zum Gesundheitszustand von Großherzog Jean

Born on 5 January 1921 at Schloß Berg, Prince Jean Benoît Guillaume Robert Antoine Louis Marie Adolphe Marc d’Aviano was the eldest child of Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg (1896-1985) and Prince Félix of Bourbon-Parma (1893-1970), who had married in 1919. Jean’s godfather was Pope Benedict XI. He was followed by five siblings, four sisters and one brother: Princess Elisabeth of Luxembourg (1922-2011), who married Duke Franz Ferdinand of Hohenberg (1927-1977) in 1956; Princess Marie Adelaide of Luxembourg (1924-2007), who wed Count Karl Josef Henckel von Donnersmarck (1928-2008); Princess Marie Gabrielle of Luxembourg (b.1925), who married Count Knud Johan Holstein til Ledreborg (1919-2001); Prince Charles of Luxembourg (1927-1977), who married Joan Douglas Dillon (b.1935) in 1967; and Princess Alix of Luxembourg (1929-2019), who married Antoine Prince of Ligne (1925-2005) in 1950.

Grand Duchess Charlotte and Prince Félix of Luxembourg with their children

Most of Jean’s childhood was spent at Schloß Berg. After receiving his primary and secondary education in Luxembourg, Jean studied at Ampleforth College, Yorkshire, from 1934-1938. Between 1938-1940, the hereditary grand duke was privately tutored at the Grand Ducal Palace.

When troops from Nazi Germany invaded the Grand Duchy on 10 May 1940, Grand Duchess Charlotte, her entire family, and her government left Luxembourg for France: they briefly stayed in Paris and then in the South of France. As the Third Reich’s reach became more menacing, the Luxembourg family and government made their way to the United Kingdom by traveling through Spain and Portugal. Grand Duchess Charlotte and her government made their base in London; the rest of the Grand Ducal family, the children and Prince Félix, were sent to Canada. It was there that Hereditary Grand Duke Jean attended the Université Laval at Quebec, where he studied Law and Political Science.

Exiled: Grand Duchess Charlotte and Prince Félix in London, 1941

On 29 November 1942, Prince Jean volunteered for service in the British Army. He initially trained with the Irish Guards at Coulsdon Common. Jean completed his officer’s training at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst; by 1944, Prince Jean was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant in the Irish Guards. On 10 September 1944, Jean arrived in Luxembourg City, which his father had already reached with the American 5th Armoured Division earlier that morning. On that day, the balcony appearance at the Grand Ducal Palace of the Hereditary Grand Duke and Prince Félix was greeted with immense enthusiasm by their countryman. On 14 April 1945, Grand Duchess Charlotte returned to her country. Prince Jean was released from the Irish Guards on 26 June 1947. His service was recognised by receipt of the 1939-1945 War Medal, the 1939-1945 Star, and the French Croix de guerre.

Prince Jean in his uniform as a 1st Lieutenant in the Irish Guards

At the Cathedral of Luxembourg, Hereditary Grand Duke Jean married Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium (b.11 October 1927) on 9 April 1953. Joséphine-Charlotte was the only daughter of King Léopold III of the Belgians (1901-1983) and his first wife Queen Astrid (1905-1935; née Sweden). The couple were second cousins once removed, both being descendants of King Miguel I of Portugal (1802-1866) and his wife Princess Adelheid of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg (1831-1909). The godmother of the Belgian princess was her mother-in-law, Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg. Jean and Joséphine-Charlotte’s union was not a love match at the start, but their marital bonds stood the test of time. Both of Joséphine-Charlotte’s brothers, Baudouin (1930-1993) and Albert (b.1934), eventually reigned as King of the Belgians.

Jean of Luxembourg and Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium on the occasion of their wedding

On 28 April 1961, Grand Duchess Charlotte appointed her eldest son as her “Lieutenant-Representant.” The Lieutenancy is an institution unique to Luxembourg, wherein the Grand Ducal powers are delegated to the Lieutenant. Hereditary Grand Duke Jean took his oath as Lieutenant-Representant on 4 May 1961. On 12 November 1964, Jean became the Grand Duke of Luxembourg when his mother Charlotte abdicated the throne after a reign of forty-five years. In their new roles as Grand Duke and Grand Duchess, Jean and Joséphine-Charlotte visited the main towns of the districts of the Grand Duchy in 1965.

After a reign of thirty-six years, Grand Duke Jean abdicated on 7 October 2000. He was succeeded by his eldest son and heir Henri as Grand Duke of Luxembourg. After the abdication, Grand Duke Jean and Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte made their home at Schloß Fischbach.

In their nearly fifty-two years of marriage, Jean and Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg became the parents of five children. First came Princess Marie Astrid (b.1954), who wed Archduke Carl Christian of Austria (1954) in 1982. Then arrived the current Grand Duke Henri (b.1955), who married María Teresa Mestre y Batista (b.1956) in 1981. Twins Prince Jean and Princess Margaretha (b.1957) were the next to arrive. Jean firstly married Hélène Vestur (b.1958) in 1987, and after their divorce he remarried Diane de Guerre (b.1962) in 2009. Princess Margaretha wed Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein (b.1947) in 1982. The benjamin of the family, Prince Guillaume, was born in 1963; he married Sibilla Weiller (b.1968) in 1994.

The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess with their children Photograph (c) Granger.com

Großherzogin Joséphine-Charlotte von Luxemburg starb am 10. Januar 2005 in Fischbach, nachdem sie an Lungenkrebs erkrankt war. Die Großherzogin wurde 77 Jahre alt. Jean war seitdem der Mittelpunkt der großherzoglichen Familie. Der Großherzog ist nun wieder mit der Großherzogin vereint.

Großherzogin Joséphine-Charlotte von Luxemburg Foto (c) Großherzoglicher Hof

Jean und Joséphine-Charlotte bei der Feier zum 50. Geburtstag von König Carl XVI. Gustaf von Schweden im Jahr 1996. Foto (c) Raymond Reuter

Großherzog Jean bei der Beerdigung von Großherzogin Joséphine-Charlotte am 15. Januar 2005

Eurohistory spricht der großherzoglichen Familie und dem luxemburgischen Volk sein Beileid aus. Der Großherzog hinterlässt seine fünf Kinder, einundzwanzig Enkel, fünfzehn Urenkel und seine Schwester Marie Gabrielle. Möge Seine Königliche Hoheit in Frieden ruhen.