At the age of 17, following his
Abitur, Heinrich joined the Bavarian army with the rank of
Leutnant. Initially, he served with the Royal Bavarian
Infanterie-Leib-Regiment, but later was reassigned the
1st Royal Bavarian Heavy Cavalry “Prince Charles of Bavaria”. After the outbreak of
World War I, the regiment saw action on the Western front, where Prince Heinrich was badly wounded. Upon recovering, he returned to his old infantry regiment and in June 1915, was promoted to
major. At the same time, he was put in charge of the III. Battalion of the newly established
Deutsches Alpenkorps stationed in the
Carnic Alps. In late 1916, the battalion was transferred to
Romania where it fought at
Turnu Roșu Pass. On 7 November 1916, during operations in the area near
Poiana Spinului, while conducting a personal reconnaissance of the front line, he was shot and killed by Romanian soldiers. His last words reportedly were, "
Noblesse oblige. I do not mean that with respect to my family but rather my duty as an officer." Heinrich's body was transported back to Munich, where he was buried by his father's side at the
Theatinerkirche. On 6 March 1917, for his exceptional bravery, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the
Military Order of Max Joseph, Bavaria's highest military honour. ==Honours==