[2] A member of one of the wealthiest European noble families, he was the owner of large estates and coal mines in Silesia (Poland) which brought him enormous fortune and his extravagant lifestyle coupled with disastrous events and political and family scandals were tasty morsels for the international press.

In 1886, Hans Heinrich XV was moved to a diplomatic post in Brussels, and a year later he became an attaché at the embassy in Paris.

As a wedding gift from Hans Heinrich XI, the senior head of the house, the young couple received Schloss Fürstenstein near Waldenburg, where they hosted the finest European aristocracy throughout their entire marriage.

In November 1902 he travelled to the United States as a diplomatic representative of Kaiser Wilhelm II and took part in the inauguration of the German Chamber of Commerce, visited several industrial plants (including the one in Pennsylvania), and the highlight of the trip was a visit to the White House and a conversation with President Theodore Roosevelt.

These assets systematically decreased due to debt caused by the profligate lifestyle of the family and huge architectural investments (including the reconstruction of the Książ Castle).

He financially supported the German nationalist organisations (e.g. Deutscher Flottenverein), however, opposed the activities Ostmarkenverein in his Upper Silesian estates.

They had two children:[a] This marriage also ended in a divorce in 1934 because of the family scandal – the seduction of the youngest son of Hans Heinrich XV – Bolko – by his stepmother.

As a result of the global economic crisis, the Lower Silesian estates belonging to the Hochbergs fell into debt.

[citation needed] During World War II his surviving sons both fought against the Nazis, Hans Heinrich XVII as John Henry Pless in the British RAF and Alexander Hochberg under the name of Aleksander Pszczyński as the shooter in the Polish Army under the command of General Władysław Anders.