The Assets of the High Nobility. The Hanover Dynasty, 1913-1953
Final Report Abstract
In November 1918, the monarchy was abolished in Germany, the Kaiser and the other sovereigns had to step down and go into exile with their families. However, the former ruling families did not break up. This seemingly simple statement requires explanation and therefore formed the starting point of the project. In order to find out more about how at least some of the families managed to cope with their sudden loss of status, stabilize themselves, and find new positions in society, the project focused on the Welfs as an example. In particular, the focus was on their material wealth. After all, with their castles, estates and forests, art collections, stocks, and bonds, the aristocratic family remained extraordinarily powerful, which shaped their lives, actions, and self-image to a great extent after 1918. This is the basic assumption of the project. Based on the extensive family archive, the project shed light on the history of the wealthy, formerly ruling family over three generations - from the years of the Weimar Republic, through the Nazi era and into the early Federal Republic. It became clear that the fortune was certainly not the only reason why the Welf family survived the end of the monarchy unscathed, but it was a major factor. The family structures were designed to keep the huge fortune together - conversely, the fortune stabilized the family's social position. Partly through established family structures and partly through fundamental adjustments to the transfer and management of their wealth, large parts of the family fortune were preserved in the long term. The Welfs were still able to maintain a lifestyle befitting their rank. Not least because of this, they were able to maintain their position among the European aristocracy even after their final loss of power. At the same time, the study of the Welfs and their fortune provided revealing insights beyond the primary research objective. On the one hand, the results of the study can contribute to a better understanding of the conspicuous longevity of many of the former ruling families, which continues to the present day. The "Hohenzollern debate" has recently made it impressively clear just how influential some of these families still are. On the other hand, the results shed light on the fundamental conditions of wealth inequality. The case study shows the general societal structures that enabled aristocratic and bourgeois families in the 20th century to protect and increase their wealth and pass it on from generation to generation.
