Armin, Prince of Lippe

Armin
Prince of Lippe
Tenure	30 December 1949 – 20 August 2015
Predecessor	Leopold IV
Successor	Stephan, Prince of Lippe
Born	18 August 1924 (1924-08-18) Detmold, Weimar Republic
Died	20 August 2015 (2015-08-21) (aged 91) Detmold, Germany
Spouse	Traute Becker
Issue	Stephan, Prince of Lippe
House	Lippe
Father	Leopold IV
Mother	Princess Anna of Ysenburg and Büdingen

Armin, Prince of Lippe (Armin Leopold Ernst Bruno Heinrich Willa August Fürst zur Lippe; 18 August 1924 – 20 August 2015, also in Detmold) was the fourth son of Leopold IV, Prince of Lippe, from his second wife, Princess Anna of Ysenburg and Büdingen.

Head of the House of Lippe

Armin succeeded his father as head of the House of Lippe following the latter's death on 30 December 1949. On 22 March 1953, he renounced his position in favour of his older half brother, Prince Leopold. This move proved controversial within the house, and several princes started legal proceedings. Prince Leopold later in 1958 renounced the headship in favour of his older brother, Hereditary Prince Ernst. Later in that year, the Hereditary Prince called a family council, where it was agreed by the princes in attendance that the oldest prince living in Germany would be head of the house. So the position went to Prince Simon Casimir (1900–1980).

Although agreeing at the time, Prince Ernst August of Lippe, the son of Prince Julius Ernst of Lippe-Biesterfeld and Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg, later changed his mind, believing that all princes of house, not just those living in Germany, should be considered. He ultimately assumed the headship of the house. Ernst August died in 1990 and his son Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Lippe (b. 1947) has continued his claim. Prince Armin, who said he did not think his decision in 1953 was irrevocable, also claimed to be head of the house, given the fact that he inherited the family fortune, including farming land, forests and the princely castle at Detmold, where he was living.

He was a first cousin of Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld, consort of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, and was a child attendant at their 1937 wedding.

Marriage and children

Prince Armin married Traute Becker (16 February 1925 – 25 February 2023), daughter of Gustav Becker and Charlotte Meyer, on 27 March 1953, in Göttingen, Germany, in a civil marriage followed by a religious ceremony on 29 March 1953, in Celle, Lower Saxony, Germany. They had a son:

• Stephan, Prince of Lippe, born on 24 May 1959.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Armin, Prince of Lippe

8. Julius, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld 4. Ernest, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld 9. Countess Adelheid of Castell-Castell 2. Leopold IV, Prince of Lippe 10. Count Leopold of Wartensleben 5. Countess Karoline of Wartensleben 11. Mathilde Halbach 1. Armin, Prince of Lippe 12. Ernst Casimir II, Prince of Ysenburg and Büdingen 6. Bruno, Prince of Ysenburg and Büdingen 13. Countess Thekla of Erbach-Fürstenau 3. Princess Anna of Ysenburg and Büdingen 14. Adolf, Hereditary Count of Castell-Rüdenhausen 7. Countess Bertha of Castell-Rüdenhausen 15. Baroness Friederike Marie Christiane von Thüngen

References

• Beéche, Arturo E. (October 2006). "A Headless House? The Dynastic Dispute of the House of Lippe". European Royal History Journal (LIII): 13–17.

External links

• Schloss Detmold (in German)