Mary von Waldersee
German philanthropist
Mary, Countess von Waldersee (born Mary Esther Lee, formerly Princess of Noer; 3 October 1837 – 4 July 1914), was an American-born philanthropist in Germany. She was married in turn to Prince Frederick of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg and to Count Alfred von Waldersee, the successor of Field-Marshal von Moltke.
Early life
She was the youngest daughter of David Lee, a New York merchant, and Anne Duryee Phillips Lee. When David Lee died, he left his widow and five children a large fortune, and they moved to Europe in January 1853. The second daughter, Abby Blanche, married Augustus Charles Murray (a commander in the British Navy who was a grandson of John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore), and the third, Josephine (1833–1930), married Baron August von Wächter, Ambassador of the King of Württemberg to the court of Napoleon III.
Personal life
Mary's elder sister, the Baroness von Waechter, sent for her to live with her in Paris, where she met and later married Prince Frederick of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg on 3 November 1864. Prince Frederick was a son of Princess Louise Auguste of Denmark, who had been driven into exile by the Austro-Prussian army in 1864. Prince Frederick, a widower, had four children with his first wife, Countess Henriette Danneskiold-Samsøe. Frederick's brother was married to Henriette's elder sister.
Mary Lee, not wishing to enter into a morganatic marriage, induced the prince to renounce his rights and titles as a member of the royal house of Denmark. He subsequently accepted from the Emperor of Austria the title of Prince of Noer, from the name of his principal estate, and she was made Princess of Nöer.
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