The tragedies that have marked the life of Hans Adam of Liechtenstein, the richest and most discreet prince in Europe

Very difficult times for the princely family of Liechtenstein after the youngest son of the prince Hans Adam, head of state and housedied at the age of 51. Prince Constantine died suddenly on December 6 and the causes surrounding their death are unknown, something understandable if we take into account the discretion with which they always conduct their affairs. It was in the summer of 2021 when Hans Adam II lost his wife, Princess Marie, at the age of 81 due to a cardiovascular accident, and now, two and a half years later, he has had to say goodbye to the youngest of he.

As we mentioned, The Liechtensteiners have lived in voluntary secrecy for decades. They are not very interested in being talked about, which is why they do not have social networks and their actions are barely covered by the media. It is true that it is a small country, but so are Monaco and Luxembourg and their royals have much more international projection, so it is their own decision that little is known.

His boss, Prince Hans Adam, who is now facing the death of one of his sons, owns the LGT Banking Group and a personal fortune of 3.5 billion dollars, According to ‘Forbes’ magazine, he is the richest royal in all of Europe.

Hans Adam was born as Crown Prince of Liechtenstein, the result of the marriage between Franz Josef and Countess Gina Norberte de Wilczek. Graduated in Economics and Business Sciences in Switzerland, he has always dedicated his life to the world of banking, hence his great fortune. The prince is a beloved sovereign, although he has experienced his crisis. In 2003, for example, the small principality held a referendum to find out whether it was necessary for Hans Adam to have more power. He himself publicly threatened to leave the country. and that of his family if he did not obtain the approval of his citizens, who finally gave them all their support.

Hans Adama is 78 years old and He has been retired since 2014 although he has not abdicated. Therefore, it is his heir, Alois, who acts as regent to prepare the transition of power.

On a personal level, Hans Adam married the Czech countess Marie-Aglaé Kinsky, his distant cousin, with whom he had four children and fifteen grandchildren. Marie was the fourth of seven children of Count Ferdinand Carl Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau and his wife, Countess Henriette von Ledebur-Wicheln. Her family had to leave Czechoslovakia in 1945 and settled in Germany. After completing her studies there, she went to the United Kingdom with the fundamental purpose of improving her English and later she joined the Academy of Applied Arts at the University of Munich, where she graduated.

Marie subsequently settled in Paris and later worked as an industrial designer in a printing company in Dachau before the love of her life crossed her path. As we mentioned, he died in August 2021 at the age of 81.

​The eldest of Hans Adam’s children is Alois, the heir and future head of state of Liechtenstein. He is married to Sophie from Bavaria, with whom he forms a very discreet couple. So much so that the illness that the princess suffered in 2003 almost went unnoticed by the press. Sophie was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor from which she recovered perfectly.

Alois and Sophie have four children, but unlike what happens with other European ‘mini-royals’, the majority of the general public does not know them. Not even to Joseph Wenzel, who is called to be the head of the Royal House of Liechtenstein. The last thing that is known about him is that he attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, in the United Kingdom, where he graduated in August 2017.

At 28 years old, he is not known to have a girlfriend or if he has any plans to get married. Joseph Wenzel’s younger brothers are also not known. They are Marie Caroline, the only girl, George and Nikolaus.

The second of Hans Adam and Marie-Aglaé’s children is Maximilian, who is CEO of the family business LGT Group. Just as discreet as his brothers, his name made some headlines a few years ago, when Meghan Markle appeared on the scene. And the prince is also married to a woman of color, the Panamanian Ángela Gisela Brown. The now princess graduated from the Parsons School of Design, where she received the Oscar de la Renta Award. She worked as a stylist for three years until she created her own clothing company, called A Brown.

In January 2000, Angela and Maximilian said ‘I do’ at the San Vicente Ferrer Church in New York. From that moment on, she became princess of Liechtenstein. They reside between the principality and London with her only son, Prince Alfons, sixth in line to the throne.

Perhaps the best known of the family, at least in Spain, is the princess Tatiana, since she was romantically related to Don Felipe. It is true that the daughter of Hans Adam and Marie-Aglaé and the King of Spain met and established a beautiful friendship when she was studying in Madrid, but there was never the slightest indication that there was anything more between them. However, that was enough for the press, anxious at the time for Felipe to find her girlfriend, to designate her as her ideal candidate.

Time passed and so did the fury over linking the prince and princess, who continued with their lives separately. In 1997 she began dating a young man also named Philip, Baron Philipp von Lattorff. It didn’t take long for them to pass through the altar. On June 5, 1999 they were married in the Cathedral of Saint Florian in Vaduz. Seven children were born from the union of Tatiana and Phillip, two boys and five girls..

The first of them to come into the world was Lukas, in 2000; later, Elisabeth, in 2002; She is followed by Maria Teresa, born in 2004; then comes Camilla, from 2005; Anna Pia is the fifth and was born in 2007; Sophie arrived in 2009; and the youngest of the family, Maximilian, in 2011. Tatiana and her large family reside in Austria, in the city of Goldgeben, and are rarely seen publicly.

The last of Hans Adam’s children is now making headlines after his sudden death. Constantino worked as general director of the Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation, who manages the properties of the royal family, and a member of the Austrian Council for Sustainable Development. Born on March 15, 1972 in St. Gallen, he graduated in 1991 from Liechtenstein High School and later studied law in Salzburg.

Constantine was married to Countess Marie Gabriele Franziska Kálnok, whom he leaves a widow with three children: Moritz, Gina, and Benedikt. The prince and Marie, sixth daughter of Count Alois Hugo Alexander Georg Guntram and Baroness Sieglinde Von Oer, They celebrated their wedding in 1999 in Číčov, Slovakia. The princess works in one of the family businesses, specifically as a sommelier at the family winery, The Prince of Liechtenstein’s Winery Cellars. Now she must face this complicated situation, always supported by her in-laws.