Crown Prince Georg Von Sachsen
King Friedrich August III and family. Crown Prince Georg standing in middle
If circumstances had been different, Crown Prince Georg Von Sachsen could have become the next King of Saxony. He had been serving in his regiment in the First World War, initially on the Western front, and later as a Representative of the King with the Saxon troops, The Saxon Landeswehr, before becoming commander of the regiment as Crown Prince. Returning to Dresden he realized history was changing rapidly , and there was now no assurance of the continuance of the House of Wettin in Saxony. He now thought of devoting himself entirely to the Church, and the inspiration came to him to consider the priesthood. It was a big decision for a Crown Prince, as it was leaving a royal family which had 800 years of history in Saxony.
Crown Prince Georg Von Sachsen
Georg Von Sachsen had come from a long line of devoted Catholics, including 15 Bishops, priests and monks and 20 nuns. His father was very devout who held that ‘in church we are all the same’. Georg went to confession in the Cathedral like all the faithful, never asking for the Confessor to hear his confession privately in the Castle. He attributed his faith to his father’s direction, and said that ‘with simple piety and an unaffected nature, his pure way of life and his deep faithfulness gave me the direction for life'. In the army he had made quite an impression with his faith and he tried to attend Mass both on Sundays and weekdays wherever possible. As the Catholic Prince and Commander of a Protestant regiment in France, he made quite an impression to the French people.
Fr Georg Von Sachsen S.J. with Von Sachsen family siblings.
-The pending loss of the Crown to Saxony made Georg decide to follow the Christian life more intently, and to devote himself entirely to the Church. It was a difficult decision - whether to wait to see if the Monarchy would be restored or to consider the priesthood. Always pressured to seek a royal role, his aunt, Princess Immaculata, wrote. ‘The Priesthood stands high above Kingship: I have thought and prayed much in this matter. I am sure God wants Georg to be a priest ’. Georg decided to follow his heart, entered the seminary and was ordained with lower ordination in 1923 and a little while later joined the Jesuit Order, renouncing forever the possibility of a comfortable and respectful life as the head of the House of Wettin. He took his vows of obedience, willing to do whatever the order might assign him; the Will of God was his highest calling, and this meant total renunciation of this world and all its grandeur to make a complete sacrifice of his life. This meant that, instead of serving in Saxony he sought to leave his homeland to be completely integrated into the work of the Society and dependent on his superiors. He made his three solemn vows in Berlin on February 2 1936 and subsequently was involved in giving retreats, participated with Fr Max Josef Metzger in the Una Sancta Brotherhood.
UNA SANCTA MEETING in BERLIN
Frau Kracker Von Schwarzenfels
The Berlin Una Sancta group included Hans Lilje, who was later to become the Lutheran Bishop of Hannover and who was very influential in ecumenism, and Hans Asmussen, a leader in the Confessing Church, one of the authors of the Barmen Declaration and later one of the founders of Die Sammlung movement. A description of his work in the Berlin Una Sancta was given by writer August Winning. Just at the beginning of World War II August met Fr Georg who introduced him to a circle of thirty Catholic and Protestant laymen who had been meeting every month at the house of a Frau Kracker Von Schwarzenfels. The Circle had been started by Father Georg together with the Protestant Superintendent Ungnad. The group also included Dr Max Josef Metzger, the Founder of the Una Sancta Brotherhood.
MEMBERS OF THE berlin UNA SANCTA GROUP
Hans Asmussen , Joint author of Barmen Declaration and Member of Die Sammlung
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Hans Lilje, future Bishop of Hannover
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Dr Max Josef Metzger Founder of Una Sancta Brotherhood
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Describing the work of the circle, Fr Georg received a letter from Freiherr von Peckmann saying ... |
‘If it depended on just the two of us and our close minded colleagues, the overcoming of the division of the Church of our Lord would come within a reachable distance, and I could hope to see yet the day on which we would sing together with the joy of worship: Praise the Lord O My soul.’
- Freiherr von Peckmann, Member of Confessing Church |
The Bombing of German Cities WWII
Dr Max Josef Metzger was a regular visitor to this influential circle which met all through the allied bombardment of Berlin. It is amazing that such a meeting of minds and hearts that would have such influence beyond the time of the war took place under such conditions and under the constant surveillance of the Gestapo. The Una Sancta circle only ceased meeting after the death of Fr Georg and after the house of meeting was itself destroyed in an air raid in 1943. [1]
[1] Leonard Swidler. Blood Witness for Peace and Unity Ecumenical Press Philadelphia 1977 p.83
[1] Leonard Swidler. Blood Witness for Peace and Unity Ecumenical Press Philadelphia 1977 p.83
Fr Georg von Sachsen S.J.
Fr Georg' s character was described as very selfless and unassuming, even given his royal background. When once he was asked by a policeman, “What is your father’s job?” In response he said ‘the former King of Saxony’. Hearing this reply the office jumped up and exclaimed ‘ Your Majesty!’ Father Georg ignored this act of homage and told the officer to sit saying, ‘Sit down good man, I’ll keep dictating’.
Fr Georg died tragically in a drowning accident in 1943. His eulogy was given by his close friend Fr Max Josef who said
‘He would have offered his life for his Catholic faith which he carried deep within his heart…How he suffered over the tragic divisions of the Church of Jesus Christ which he so wished to see united as a living testimony of the unifying Holy Ghost’. The sermon was delivered just days before Metzger himself was arrested and executed by the Gestapo.
Fr Georg died tragically in a drowning accident in 1943. His eulogy was given by his close friend Fr Max Josef who said
‘He would have offered his life for his Catholic faith which he carried deep within his heart…How he suffered over the tragic divisions of the Church of Jesus Christ which he so wished to see united as a living testimony of the unifying Holy Ghost’. The sermon was delivered just days before Metzger himself was arrested and executed by the Gestapo.
The Wettin Family Crypt, Catholic Cathedral of Dresden
His funeral took place in the Wettin Memorial Crypt at the Catholic Cathedral in Dresden where all his Royal ancestors were buried. Symbolic of their royal role, it was the custom for a silver royal crown to be deposited on a pillow at the foot of his grave. The royal crown on Fr Georg’s grave however was removed on June 18th by order of the National Socialist Government. Fr Georg had renounced everything for the love of God. Symbolically the removal of his crown at his death expressed this poignantly.
Catholic Cathedral Dresden
Material gathered from P.Alfred Rother S.J and from 'The Ecumenical Vanguard' by Professor Leonard Swidler. Pictures from Google.
Picture Credits: Catholic Cathedral Pictures Dresden de.wikipedia Wettin family Crypt Wikimedia Commons Other historical photos public domain Picture of Fr Georg von Sachsen Courtesy of Prince. Alexander von Sachsen