She was a leader in the Dessau of the Deutscher Krieger-Hilfsbund (German War Auxiliary Corps).

She was the third child of the marriage of Prince Frederick Augustus of Anhalt-Dessau and Princess Marie Luise Charlotte of Hesse-Kassel.

Her father was the son of Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Anhalt-Dessau and Princess Amalie of Hesse-Homburg, and her mother was the daughter of Prince William of Hesse-Kassel and his wife, Princess Charlotte of Denmark.

For example, in 1884, Hilda, her mother and Bathildis, went to Florence where they met with the family of her cousin the Duchess of Teck, including her daughter Princess Victoria Mary of Teck, who would be later be queen consort of the United Kingdom.

This organization was dedicated to providing aid to German soldiers returning from the front in a precarious situation.