In late 1926, post-WWI Germany was politically volatile and culturally obsessed with its lost monarchical grandeur. Enter Harry Domela, a penniless Baltic German veteran struggling to find steady work. After noticing how deferentially hotel staff treated anyone with aristocratic airs, Domela began dropping subtle hints that he was traveling incognito.
Word quickly spread through elite circles that the mysterious traveler was actually Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, the eldest son of the deposed Crown Prince. Monarchist sympathizers, eager to curry favor with the Hohenzollern dynasty, showered Domela with invitations, expensive wine, luxurious accommodations, and interest-free loans. For months, Domela lived like royalty in Heidelberg and Erfurt without spending a single mark of his own.
Aristocrats vied for the honor of hosting him, terrified of offending a potential future ruler. Domela never explicitly claimed the title at first; he simply allowed the nobility's own snobbery and wishful thinking to fabricate his identity. The charade eventually unraveled when genuine royal associates grew suspicious of his vague family anecdotes, prompting Domela to flee to France.
Arrested shortly thereafter, Domela used his trial to mock the gullible Weimar elite. Rather than ruining him, the scandal made him a folk hero among republicans. He penned a best-selling autobiography while serving a brief prison sentence, turning his fraudulent royal escapade into a lucrative literary success.