Grand Duke Ludwig IV of Hesse and by Rhine (1837-1892) is best known to many as the husband of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom (1843-1878) and the father of daughters who married into the Houses of Romanov and Hohenzollern and into the Battenberg/Mountbatten family. Information about Ludwig IV can be found in memoirs, correspondences, and biographies of his relatives. However, publications specifically on Ludwig IV are rare.

This publication includes the first English translation of the biographical sketch of Grand Duke Ludwig IV which was written by military historian Gebhard Zernin on the occasion of the unveiling of the equestrian statue of Ludwig IV in Darmstadt, Hesse, in 1898. It was published as a Festschrift and focuses on his education and military career, portraying him as a soldier in heart and soul who participated bravely in two wars. However, he was also a humble, kind-hearted, and fair-minded man who cared for his people. Zernin's biographical sketch is supplemented with concise historical background information and an account of the ceremony of the unveiling of the statue.