[1] A life-long champion of the Waldeck region's cultural and environmental heritage, he served as president of the Hessian Forest Owners Association from 1978 to 1999.

[2] Born in Arolsen (now Bad Arolsen) in Hesse, Germany, Wittekind was the only son of Josias Georg Wilhelm Adolf, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1896−1967), an SS officer later found guilty of war crimes, and Duchess Altburg Marie Mathilde von Oldenburg (1903–2001), daughter of Frederick Augustus II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg.

[7] In a statement, the Minister-President of Hesse, Boris Rhein, paid tribute to Wittekind's achievements in promoting the region's cultural heritage.

[8] On 19 May 1988, in Frohnleiten, Wittekind married Countess Cecilia von Goëss-Saurau (born 1956), with whom he had three sons, including Carl-Anton, who succeeded him as Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

On 9 August 2001, Wittekind was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit by Roland Koch, Minister-President of Hesse, in recognition of his decades of work with the Hessian Forest Owners Association.