30 April 2012

Norwegians connected to royalty or nobility and a former Countess von Klot-Trautvetter

Some years ago I posted from time to time a survey of Norwegians married into foreign royal or noble families at the European Royals Message Board. The members of the message board seemed to enjoy the postings and many contributed with more examples as well. I have mentioned some of them in this blog too, for instance Aagot Axell, née Midling (1886-1931), who in 1918 married Count Herman von Ostheim, and Anne Lütken (1959-2001), who from 1982 to 1985 was married to Baron Christian de Massy, a cousin of the current Prince of Monaco.

Other examples are Colonel Lieutenant Ingmar Fridjov Andersen (1860-1942), m. 1891 Baroness Clothilde von Oefele; Peter-Fredrik Behncke (b. 1925), m. 1959 Countess Terez Maria Revay de Szklabinya (1928-2008); Christopher Blom Heimbeck (1885-1967), m. 1933 Princess Karin-Elisabeth of Schoenaich-Carolath (1900-1966), and Grete Kvaal (1915-2009), m. 1937 Prince Georges M. Sturdza. And many, many more.

Then there are examples of Norwegians who "could have" married into royalty or nobility if the relationships had survived - some years ago Pia Haraldsen, whose mother Jasmin was married to Queen Sonja's nephew Karl Otto Haraldsen from 1990 to 2006, dated Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume. The latter got engaged to Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy last week. Another Norwegian woman dated for a few years Prince Rudolf of Liechtenstein (b. 1975), a nephew of Prince Hans-Adam. The woman in question later married a Belgian man of noble ancestry, while Prince Rudolf on Friday 20 April 2012 married Tilsin Tanberk in Istanbul, Turkey.

The other day a correspondent sent me a link to a protocol of civil marriages in Oslo where the names of a German Countess married to a Swedish "godseier" ("estate owner") but apparently residing in Oslo, turned up. So there was a Norwegian connection, even if the man in question was not a Norwegian citizen. But when I read the marriage registration more carefully, it turned out that the woman had only got her (social) comital title from her first marriage.

For the record, the marriage registration informed that godseier Carl Adolf Ragnar Olson, b. Kristianstad, Sweden 10 August 1880, son of ritmester Carl Olson and Sigrid Olson, née Malmsten, got married on 15 December 1933 to grevinne (countess) Irmgard Marie Louise Hedvig Karoline von Klot-Trautvetter, b. Clausdorf [in today's Mecklenburg-Vorpommern], Germany 19 December 1905, daughter of estate owner Peter Heinrich von Hagemeister and Elisabeth Augusta Julia von Zansen.

According to the protocol both had been married once before.

If the registration at GeneAll.net is correct, Irmgard's first husband was Count Herbert Wilhelm Erich von Klot-Trautvetter (1896-1977), and they had two children together. Count Herbert later remarried and got four more children by his second wife.

According to Arreskow.se, Ragnar Olson (the website claims that he went by his third given name) was first married to Mia Kockum, and they had one child. It is difficult to say what happened to Ragnar and Irmgard - I haven't managed to find much information at present, but then there are numerous sources I could check out but which are not available to me at the moment. Arreskow.se suggests that Carl Olson died in Stockholm, without giving any year of death. One should of course take some precautions when Wikipedia is consulted, but according to the online encyclopaedia (English version/Swedish version) Ragnar Olson died on 10 July 1955, and he has got a mention because he in 1928 won a bronze medal in individual dressage competition in the Olympic Games in Amsterdam, as well as a silver medal in the team competition.

When I above say that it is difficult to know what happened to  Ragnard and Irmgard, I mean that it is unknown to me at present if the marriage lasted until Ragnar's death in 1955, or if they got divorced. The latter seems more likely, though, given her age in 1955 (my reasons for saying so come in the next sentence). According to Werelate.org (which claims that she was born as an "East German Baroness), Irmgard was later married twice (and got a daughter in her third marriage) and died on 5 April 2005. The latter is, by the way, confirmed by the Oslo cemetery register and by Aftenposten 11 April 2005 ("Anmeldte dødsfall" ("Reported deaths")). There is a noble family named Hagemeister, by the way, cf. the index of Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Band 17, Adeliche Häuser B III, but is there also a baronial (freiherrliche) family with the same name? If so, then at least Irmgard's fourth husband would qualify for my survey! See also the website Gutshäuser und Schlösser in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Updated on Tuesday 2 April 2013 at 21.00 (minor correction).

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