Frederick IV, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp

Frederick IV, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
Frederick IV, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
Spouse(s)	Hedwig Sophia of Sweden
Noble family	House of Holstein-Gottorp
Father	Christian Albrecht of Holstein-Gottorp
Mother	Frederika Amalia of Denmark
Born	18 October 1671(1671-10-18) Gottorf Castle
Died	19 July 1702(1702-07-19) (aged 30) Battle of Kliszów

Duke Frederick IV of Holstein-Gottorp (18 October 1671 – 19 July 1702) was Duke of Schleswig.

He was born in Gottorp as the elder son of Duke Christian Albrecht of Holstein-Gottorp and Princess Frederika Amalia of Denmark. He was married on 12 May 1698 to Princess Hedwig Sophia of Sweden and they had a son, Charles Frederick, their only child, who eventually fathered the future Tsar Peter III of Russia..

He took part in the Great Northern War and was killed by artillery fire in the Battle of Kliszów in Poland.

According to Robert Massie's Peter the Great: His Life and World, Duke Frederick quickly befriended his brother-in-law and first cousin, King Charles XII of Sweden upon arriving in Stockholm to marry his cousin Princess Hedwig Sophia. His visit made such an impression on Swedish society that the excesses surrounding him and the King earned him "the Gottorp Fury" as a nickname. Duke Frederick and King Charles regularly participated in wild festivities, drinking binges, and outlandish pranks. Generally, Duke Frederick's influence was the blame for the King's "reckless" lifestyle. There were even rumors at the time that the Duke sought to kill the King and usurp the throne. As it happened, according to Massie in the aforementioned book, the 17-year-old King Charles, in the summer of 1699, pushed himself to an unbearable point of excess and vowed never to touch another drop of liquor again. Apparently, writes Massie, the King stuck to beer thereafter, and even just drank beer when he was either wounded or post-battle. As for his relationship with his cousin Frederick, they remained on good terms, so much that King Charles gave him military assistance to defend Holstein-Gottorp from Danish invasion.

Ancestors

Frederick's ancestors in three generations

Frederick IV, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp	Father: Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp	Paternal Grandfather: Frederick III, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp	Paternal Great-grandfather: John Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Augusta of Denmark
		Paternal Grandmother: Marie Elisabeth of Saxony	Paternal Great-grandfather: John George I, Elector of Saxony
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Magdalene Sibylle of Prussia
	Mother: Frederikke Amalie of Denmark	Maternal Grandfather: Frederick III of Denmark	Maternal Great-grandfather: Christian IV of Denmark
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Anne Catherine of Brandenburg
		Maternal Grandmother: Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg	Maternal Great-grandfather: George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Anne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt

Frederick of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp House of Holstein-Gottorp Cadet branch of the House of Oldenburg Born: 18 October 1671 Died: 19 July 1702
Regnal titles
Preceded by Christian Albert	— TITULAR — Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp 1695-1702	Succeeded by Charles Frederick
Preceded by Christian Albert and his brother-in-law Christian V (in condominial rule)	Duke of Holstein and Duke of Schleswig condominial rule with his maternal uncle Christian V (till 1699) and thereafter with the latter's son Frederick IV 1695–1702	Succeeded by Charles Frederick and Frederick IV (in condominial rule)

See also

• History of Schleswig-Holstein
• House of Holstein-Gottorp