SOLMS-BRAUNFELS, PRINCE CARL OF (1812-1875). Friedrich Wilhelm Carl Ludwig Georg Alfred Alexander, Prince of Solms, Lord of Braunfels, Grafenstein, Münzenberg, Wildenfels, and Sonnenwalde, the first commissioner-general of the Adelsverein and imperial field marshal, was born at Neustrelitz on July 27, 1812, the youngest son of Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Solms-Braunfels and Princess Friederike of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Prince Carl's illustrious connections included Prince Frederick of Prussia, Queen Victoria, Czar Alexander I of Russia, King Leopold I of Belgium, and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Not only well connected, but also handsome, highly spirited, and romantic, the trilingual Carl was educated both as soldier and courtier. Because of his connections, he secured prestigious military assignments, awards, and knightships, even though in 1839 he was sentenced by a Prussian court martial to four months in prison as a result of having absented himself from his command without leave. An early morganatic marriage, which had commenced in secret in 1834, dimmed his prospects after it became known, until, under duress from all sides, Carl consented in 1841 to the putting away of his wife, pensioned as the Baroness Luise "von Schönau," and his three children by that marriage. That same year Carl became a captain of cavalry in the imperial army of Austria, progressing though prominent assignments in the Balkans, Bohemia, and the Rhineland. While stationed at the imperial garrison at Biebrich, he read Charles Sealsfield's novel about Texas (see POSTL, CARL ANTON), William Kennedyqv's geography of Texas, and G. A. Scherpf's guide to immigrants to Texas. As one of the twenty-five members of the Adelsverein, organized initially in 1842 and reorganized in 1844, Carl worked tirelessly to promote the growth, finances, administration, and political acceptance of the society. He lobbied his many relatives, traveled incognito through France and Belgium to the Isle of Wight, where he may have met with Prince Albert, and, along with other members, secured the covert support of England, France, and Belgium for the Texas colonial project, which was at once philanthropic, mercantile, and political.
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