Prince Oskar of Prussia: A Hohenzollern caught between imperial duty and Nazi resistance

Wars & Conflicts · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Born into the final year of the three emperors, Prince Oskar of Prussia lived a life defined by the collapse of the German monarchy. From frontline combat in the First World War to his secret struggle to preserve an ancient religious order against Nazi purges, his legacy remains complex.

Born in 1888, the fifth son of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Prince Oskar was raised in the rigid traditions of the Prussian royal house. His early life followed the expected path of a royal cadet, but the outbreak of the First World War thrust him into the brutal reality of the trenches. Serving as a colonel commanding the 2. Westpreussisches Grenadierregiment, he gained a reputation for bravery, notably leading an assault at Virton in August 1914. His service was marked by both distinction and physical toll; he earned the Iron Cross, First and Second Class, but was repeatedly sidelined by health crises, including a heart condition that forced him from the field.

The post-war era brought significant upheaval for the Hohenzollerns. Oskar faced public scrutiny and accusations of war crimes in the 1920s, while his personal life saw the elevation of his marriage to Countess Ina-Marie von Bassewitz from a morganatic union to a dynastic one. As the 1930s progressed, the family’s relationship with the rising Nazi regime became increasingly fraught. While some royals initially sought a path to restoration through the Nazis, these hopes were dashed as the regime grew hostile toward the former monarchy. By 1940, Oskar was commissioned as a brigadier general, but the deaths of his son and nephew in combat shifted public sentiment, leading the Nazis to cancel the commissions of most royal family members.

Oskar’s most enduring contribution was his leadership of the Johanniterorden, or the Order of Saint John. Serving as the thirty-fifth Master of Knights from 1926 until his death in 1958, he is credited by historians with protecting the ancient Protestant order from total dissolution during the Nazi regime's cultural purges. This defensive stance against the state fostered his private anti-Nazi sentiments. He died in 1958, the last surviving son of Wilhelm II, leaving behind a legacy as a guardian of tradition in an era that sought to erase it.

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