Few figures in German history are as controversial as the last German Emperor, Wilhelm II, who abdicated after the 1918 November Revolution and ended his days exiled in the Netherlands. In recent years, restitution disputes and debates about their political responsibility for the rise of National Socialism have brought Hohenzollern history, especially after losing the throne, back into focus. The five-volume diary of Dr. Alfred Haehner (1880–1949) from Cologne, who served as personal physician to Wilhelm II and his two wives Auguste Victoria (until 1921) and Hermine von Schoenaich-Carolath (from 1922) in Amerongen and Doorn from 1919 to 1924, serves as an indispensable source of this period. From an unusual perspective, it offers insights into the structures of the Dutch exile court as well as the former emperor’s unbroken political ambitions and personal reflections. Haehner was primarily responsible for the seriously ill empress’s medical care along with the ex-monarch’s physical and psychological well-being. However, as a newcomer to the entourage, he recorded – as carefully as Goethe’s faithful Eckermann – by no means medical details only, but his very personal, increasingly disillusioned impression of Wilhelm II and his surroundings, too. Haehner‘s notes document intimacies and private matters, yet most importantly, how the historical and political ruptures surrounding the milestones of 1914 and 1918, the questions of war guilt and a possible return of the Hohenzollerns to the German throne were permanently negotiated at the exile court. In a three-year DFG-funded project, the original diary, previously known only to specialists and stored at the Historical Archive of the City of Cologne, has now been completely and critically edited and annotated. Based at the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities under the direction of modern historian Prof. Dr. Ute Planert, editor apl. Prof. Sabine Mangold-Will has completed a printed version of the diaries and laid the groundwork for a yet to be developed web edition, which shall make this central testimony to the German monarchy’s history “post-monarchy” accessible to a world-wide audience and enrich the classic book edition with digital content. The project is embedded in an international scientific landscape promoting the role of monarchy in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. It has been linked to the University of Cologne and the Cologne Historical Archive via student workshops and cooperation with the Research Post for the History of Cologne. Initial results were presented in 2023 at an international conference on European monarchies between the world wars in Munich. A volume of essays on the matter will be published by the end of 2024. The beginning of this year saw the final stages of the project being completed. The Haehner diaries’ publication in print is to be expected in the early summer of 2024.

Contact: Sabine.Mangold-Will(at)hk.badw.de