Hohenzollern Family's Law of Succession?

Was re-reading an English trans. of that Der Speigel article on Princess Charlotte's sex escapes, and a thought occurred to me.

What was the Hohenzollern's law of succession?

Tried looking it up but couldn't find anything definite. Anyone on here know?

Say what you will about Kaiser Wilhelm II, but one thing he did do right was top up the Hohenzollern family with a nice bumper crop of males, something they were severely lacking in at the turn of the 19/20th centuries.

Had Wilhelm's birth been just a bit more tramatic and he not survived, and had Prince Henry's son Sigismund been born female (one sperm faster than the other), the Hohenzollerns would have been facing a major succession crisis.

In the above scenario, who's next in line?
 
To add to the above,

I know the Prussia/German throne was technically Salic, but in the above scenario I am thinking that the Hohenzollerns would have had to turn to some sort of Semi Salic solution, ala the Hapsburg's Pragmatic Solution.

Thoughts?
 
The Imperial constitution just said the King of Prussia was ex officio "President of the Confederation" with the title "German Emperor" (in the original German, "Das Präsidium des Bundes" and "Deutscher Kaiser" respectively).

The Prussian constitution contains the actual succession law, which specifies "male line" and "agnatic succession".

Since the title of Kaiser is a constitutional office given to whoever happens to be the Prussian King rather than a traditional royal title originating with Kaiser William I, a succession crisis based on a lack of male heirs becomes much harder for two reasons:

  1. If the male line of Kaiser William I were to be extinct, the title of King of Prussia could theoretically revert back up the line to before the creation of the office of Kaiser, at least as far back the adoption of the title "King in Prussia" (Frederick I, in 1701).
  2. The succession law could be changed simply by amending either the Imperial constitution (simple majority of the Reichstag, plus a 3/4 majority in the Federal Council) or the Prussian constitution (two successive votes of each of the two houses of the Prussian legislature, requiring a majority of the full membership in favor, at least 21 days apart), which would make it procedurally fairly easy to switch to a semi-Salic or a male-preference primogeniture system; I don't imagine there would be real difficulty getting the votes through one path or the other if the alternative was the throne either standing vacant or passing to an virtually unknown distant cousin.
 
Assuming that Wilhelm II was still born then his brother Henry becomes Crown Prince and emperor following the death of his father.

Henry had 3 children,

One died in infancy but the succession is secure for that generation.

If you some how blot out both Wilhelm AND Henry then the next in line to the throne is Prince Charles of Prussia I believe.

Two of Henry's sons were hemophiliacs (thanks Victoria). Only Sigismund wasn't, and he is butterflied away in my above scenario. Henry's male line effectively dies with him in 1929 OTL.

All of Prince Charles' male line descendents died young, childless or were killed in WWI OTL.


...plenty of female Hohenzollerns running around though ...
 
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Two of Henry's sons were hemophiliacs (thanks Victoria). Only Sigismund wasn't, and he is butterflied away in my above scenario. Henry's male line effectively dies with him in 1929 OTL.

All of Prince Charles' male line descendents died young, childless or were killed in WWI OTL.


...plenty of female Hohenzollerns running around though ...

Being a hemophiliac isn't a bar to the throne. Sorry really don't see the problem here.

You are incorrect on Prince Charles also.

Son (d 1885)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Frederick_Charles_of_Prussia

Grand Son (d 1931)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Friedrich_Leopold_of_Prussia

Great Grand Son (d 1927) (Assuming not butterflied away)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Friedrich_Sigismund_of_Prussia_(1891–1927)

Had a son, Friedrich Karl Viktor Stefan Christian (1919-2006)

Line is secure till at least 2006.

Again don't see a succession crises here.

In 1888 throne passes from Wilhelm I -> to his son Friedrich -> Henry (if you remove Henry and his issue, then instead throne passes to) -> Friedrich Leopold and down his line.

Michael
 
How far would they have to go before getting a Catholic as King of Prussia, ie one of the Hechingens or Sigmaringens?
 
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