Prince Heinrich XXXII Reuss of Köstritz

Who was Prince Heinrich XXXII Reuss of Köstritz?

Prince Heinrich XXXII Reuss of Köstritz was the eldest surviving son of Prince Heinrich VII Reuss of Köstritz and his wife Princess Marie Alexandrine of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach.

As Wilhelmina of the Netherlands was childless for the first eight years of her marriage, Heinrich XXXII was third-in-line to the Dutch throne, after the claims of his cousin William Ernest, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and Princess Marie Alexandrine, who was Wilhelmina's cousin, William Ernest's aunt and Heinrich's mother. William Ernest had made it clear however that he would not give up his title of Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach if that was a requirement for becoming king of the Netherlands. Furthermore, Marie Alexandrine was elderly and prone to sickness. Thus it was assumed that she would give up her claim in favor of her eldest son, Heinrich XXXII. Consequently, Heinrich was for all intents and purposes the heir to the Dutch throne until the birth of Crown Princess Juliana in 1909.