Georg Herbert Münster
Prince of Münster
Count of Münster-Ledenburg
German Ambassador to France
In office
1885–1900
Preceded byChlodwig, Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst
Succeeded byHugo von Radolin
German Ambassador to the Court of St. James
In office
1873–1885
Appointed byOtto von Bismarck
Preceded byAlbrecht von Bernstorff
Succeeded byPaul von Hatzfeldt
Hanoverian Minister in Saint Petersburg
In office
1857–1865
Preceded byAlexander Thal
Succeeded byVictor von Alten
Personal details
Born
Georg Herbert zu Münster

(1820-12-23)23 December 1820
London, England
Died28 March 1902(1902-03-28) (aged 81)
Hanover
Spouse(s)
Alexandra, Princess Dolgorukova
​
​
(after 1847)​

Lady Elizabeth St Clair-Erskine
​
​
(after 1865)​
ChildrenAlexander Münster
Parent(s)Ernst zu Münster
Wilhelmine Charlotte von Lippe-Alverdissen
Alma materUniversity of Bonn
University of Heidelberg
University of Göttingen
AwardsOrder of the Black Eagle

Georg Herbert Fürst[1][2] zu Münster von Derneburg (23 December 1820 – 28 March 1902),[3][4] also known by his earlier title of Count of Münster-Ledenburg, was a Hanoverian and later German diplomat and politician. He served as ambassador to London 1873–1885[2] and Paris (1885–1900).

Early life and education

Münster was born in London, where his father, Count Ernst zu Münster, was the Hanoverian Minister at the Court of King George IV. His mother was Countess Wilhelmine Charlotte von Lippe-Alverdissen, Countess zu Münster (a daughter of Philip II, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe and Landgravine Juliane of Hesse-Philippsthal). Among his maternal family was uncle George William, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe (and his wife Princess Ida of Waldeck and Pyrmont). His paternal grandparents were Count Georg von Münster zu Surenburg and Eleonore von Grothaus (the eldest daughter of the general Ernst Philipp von Grothaus). His grandfather was known for collecting fossils in the Muschelkalk around the town of Bayreuth in Bavaria for more than 25 years.[5]

He studied law at the universities of Bonn, Heidelberg, and Göttingen. At 18, he inherited the family's considerable estate and hereditary seat in the Hanoverian parliament, the Estates Assembly of the Kingdom of Hanover.[3] He also followed his father into the Hanoverian diplomatic service.[4]

Career

From his father, Münster inherited strong Guelph sympathies and conservative viewpoints.[3][4] During the German revolutions of 1848–49, he opposed reforms and the abolition of privileges for the nobility, and he voted against giving the Hanoverian National Assembly to right to pass laws for Hanover.[3] During the early years of his own career, these family traditions kept him closely attached to the Hanoverian dynasty. Prom 1856–64, he was the Hanoverian Minister in Saint Petersburg, the same post his father had held 50 years prior.[4] In 1866, Münster tried and failed via diplomatic channels to bring understanding between Hanover and Prussia, and the latter annexed the former as a result of the Austro-Prussian War.[4]

His subsequent rise in the Prussian diplomatic service was met with reproach by the Guelphs, but Münster was convinced that Germany could only be saved by strong Prussian leadership. "My conception of a true Hanoverian," he wrote, "is that he must be first of all a German." Münster represented the town of Goslar in the Reichstag from 1867–73, when he was appointed by Otto von Bismarck to succeed Albrecht von Bernstorff at the Court of St James's.[4]

Münster spent the next 28 years in London and Paris, and Münster contributed substantially to smoothing over many minor conflicts between France and Germany. He represented the German Empire at the 1889 Hague Convention, after which he received the title of Prince.[6] In 1900, he was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle. In December 1901, he retired to his villa in Hanover.[4]

Personal life

Münster was twice married.[4] In 1847, he married Alexandra, Dowager Princess Dolgorukova (1823–1864), widow of Dmitry Nikolaevich Dolgorukov; née Princess Golitsyn, daughter of Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn (1793–1856) and Princess Maria Arkadievna Souvorov-Rimnisky. They were the parents of:[3]

On 22 August 1865, he married secondly to Lady Elizabeth St Clair-Erskine at Dysart House. Lady Elizabeth was the only daughter of James St Clair-Erskine, 3rd Earl of Rosslyn and his wife, the former Frances Wemyss.[7]

Prince Münster died on 28 March 1902 in Hanover.[4]

Honours and awards

He received the following orders and decorations:[8]

References

  1. ↑ Regarding personal names: Fürst is a title, translated as Prince, not a first or middle name. The feminine form is Fürstin.{{efn|Regarding personal names: Until 1919, Graf was a title, translated as Count, not a first or middle name. The female form is Gräfin. In Germany, it has formed part of family names since 1919.. His title was given as "The Count Munster" in the official British Government translations from the French of the treaties he signed at the Congress of Vienna (see for example Treaty between Prussia and Hanover, 29 May 1815).}
  2. 1 2 "Prince von Munster". Kalgoorlie Miner, 9 October 1899, p. 2. Retrieved from Trove, 2 September 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Münster von Derneburg, Georg Fürst". Neue Deutsche Biographie (in German). 18: 535–537. 1997. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Death of Prince Münster". The Times. 31 March 1902. p. 8.
  5. ↑ Rieppel, Olivier (2019). Mesozoic Sea Dragons: Triassic Marine Life from the Ancient Tropical Lagoon of Monte San Giorgio. Indiana University Press. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-253-04013-8. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  6. ↑ "PRINCE MUENSTER RESIGNS.; Gives Up German Ambassadorship at Paris on Account of His Great Age". The New York Times. 29 November 1900. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  7. ↑ "Rosslyn, Earl of (UK, 1801)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  8. ↑ Handbuch über den Königlich Preußischen Hof und Staat fur das jahr 1899, p. 69
  9. 1 2 "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), Berlin, 1: 554, 936, 1877 – via hathitrust.org
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