Prince Louis of Brasland

Prince Louis of Brasland (1889-1980) was the son of King Frederick IV and his second wife, Princess Theodora Capet.

At the age of sixteen, he joined the Royal Navy. He reached the rank of Admiral in 1943, and retired in 1955.

In 1915 he met a nurse, Dorothea Brauger, who worked for the Red Cross. They fell in love, but her commoner status made the marriage impossible. They broke their relationship in 1917 and she subsequently married a Markund physician, Dr Erich Lenswein. Louis became a well-known playboy, having affaires with some of the most beautiful women of Brasland, especially actresses and some aristocrats. In his spare time, he liked to spend time at his beach house in Ostis, where he sailed and painted.

Louis and Dorothea did not see each other for forty years, until 1959, when they met again. Dorothea was by then a widow and the prince was now determined to marry her. He asked his nephew, George III, for permission to marry her. The King gave his consent but, as tradition required Balkronn princes to marry noblewomen or princesses, he declared that the marriage would be morganatic, with Dorothea receiving the personal title Duchess of Ostis with the style Serene Highness. Her three sons (Franz, Oscar and Rüdiger) were ennobled as Barons von Lenswein.

The Prince and the Duchess led a quiet life, dividing their time between their Markund residence and their home in Ostis, where they usually invited many relatives and friends. They eschewed Court social life, except for official events which required their presence.

Prince Louis died in 1980 in Markund.