Princess Hermine
Hermine Reuß (17 December 1887 - 7 August 1947) was Kaiser Wilhelm’s second wife. She married the former emperor in 1922, whose first wife Auguste Viktoria, had died only recently (in 1921).
Never to be empress
Officially, Hermine was never empress, but she still liked to be addressed as such. From Von Ilsemann's notes, one gets the idea that Hermine would very much like for Wilhelm to return to the throne so that she herself could gain a powerful position.
Founder emergency fund
Hermine was the founder of an emergency fund for poor German families, the so-called Herminen Hilfswerk. She regularly organised bazaars in Doorn and the proceeds from the sales went to this relief fund.
Poor conditions
After Wilhelm II's death, Hermine moved back to her estate in Saabor. She died after World War II in impoverished conditions, interned in Frankfurt on the Oder, which was then part of the Russian occupation zone.
She was buried in Potsdam, in the same Antikentempel where Auguste Victoria was also interred.
