Adolf Frederick I, Duke of Mecklenburg
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Adolf Frederick I (15 December 1588 - 27 February 1658) was the reigning Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from his father's death in 1592 until 1628.
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[edit] Early life
He was a son of Johann VII of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1558 - 1592) and Sophia of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp (1569 - 1634), daughter of Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp (1526-1586) and his wife Christine of Hesse (1543-1604).
At first Adolf Frederick and his brother Johann Albrecht II reigned under the guardianship of Duke Ulrich III of Mecklenburg-Güstrow and Karl I of Mecklenburg (his father’s uncles). The two brothers took over governance of Mecklenburg-Schwerin beginning on 16 April 1608, and after the death of Karl I on 22 July 1610 they also governed in Mecklenburg-Güstrow.
[edit] Division of Mecklenburg and Thirty Years' War
In 1621 the duchy of Mecklenburg was formally divided between the two brothers, with Adolf Frederick ruling in Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Johann Albrecht ruling in Mecklenburg-Güstrow. During the Thirty Years' War, Albrecht von Wallenstein ousted the dukes and ruled from 1627 until 1631 because they had secretly sided with Christian IV of Denmark. The dukes were restored by the Swedes.
[edit] Marriage and children
Adolf Friedrich I had 19 children in total.
He was married for the first time on 4 September 1622 to Anna Maria (1601 - 1634), daughter of Count Enno III of East Frisia (1563 - 1625) and Anna of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp (1575 - 1615) and they had the following children:
- Christian Ludwig I (1623 - 1692), Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
- Sophie Agnes (1625 - 1694)
- Karl (1626 - 1670), Duke of Mecklenburg-Mirow
- Anna Maria Dorothea (1627 - 1669), married in 1647 to Duke August, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels (1614-1680)
- Johann Georg (1629 - 1675)
- Hedwig (1630 - 1631)
- Gustav Rudolf (1632 - 1670)
- Juliane (1633 - 1634)
Adolf Frederick married for the second time in 1635 to Marie Katharina (1616 - 1665), daughter of Duke Julius Ernest, Duke of Brunswick-Dannenberg (1571 - 1636) and Maria of East Frisia (1582 - 1616) and they had the following children:
- Juliane Sibylla (1636 - 1701)
- Friedrich I (1638 - 1688), Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow
- Christina (1639 - 1693)
- Bernhard Sigismund (1641 - 1641)
- Augusta (1643 - 1644)
- Maria Elisabeth (1646 - 1713)
- Anna Sophia (1647 - 1723), married in 1677 to Duke Julius Sigismund of Wuerttemberg-Juliusburg (1653-1684)
- Adolf Ernest (1650 - 1651)
- Philipp Ludwig (1652 - 1655)
- Heinrich Wilhelm (1653 - 1653)
- Adolf Frederick II (1658 - 1708), Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
