Catharina of Württemberg

Catharina of Württemberg
A portrait of Queen Catharina in 1807
Queen consort of Westphalia
Tenure	22 August 1807 - 26 October 1813
Born	21 February 1783 Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire
Died	29 November 1835(1835-11-29) (aged 52) Lausanne, Switzerland
Burial	Ludwigsburg Palace Church
Spouse	Jérôme Bonaparte
Issue	Jérôme Napoléon Charles Bonaparte Mathilde Bonaparte Prince Napoléon Bonaparte
House	Württemberg
Father	Frederick I of Württemberg
Mother	Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

Princess Catharina Frederica of Württemberg (21 February 1783 – 29 November 1835) was the second wife of Jérôme Bonaparte, who reigned as King of Westphalia between 1807 and 1813.

Early life

Catharina was born in Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire, to the later King Frederick I of Württemberg and Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. When she was five years old, her mother died and her father married her mother's first cousin Charlotte, Princess Royal.

Marriage and subsequent life

Catharina became Jérôme Bonaparte's second wife when they married on 22 August 1807 at the Royal Palace of Fontainebleau in France. Upon marriage, she became queen consort of the Kingdom of Westphalia. When the kingdom was dissolved after the downfall of the Napoleonic Empire, she followed her husband into exile.

She and her husband had the following children:

• Jérôme Napoléon Charles Bonaparte (1814–1847), served in the army of his maternal uncle, King William I of Württemberg.
• Princess Mathilde Bonaparte (1820–1904), was prominent during and after the Second Empire as a hostess to men of arts and letters.
• Napoléon Joseph Charles Paul Bonaparte (1822–1891), was a close advisor to his cousin Napoleon III and, in particular, was seen as a leading advocate of French intervention in Italy and of the Italian nationalists.

In November 1835, Catharina died in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Titles and styles

• 21 February 1783 - 26 December 1805: Her Serene Highness Duchess Catharina of Württemberg
• 26 December 1805 - 22 August 1807: Her Royal Highness Princess Catharina of Württemberg
• 22 August 1807 - 26 October 1813: Her Majesty The Queen of Westphalia
• 26 October 1813 - 11 April 1814: Her Imperial Highness French Princess Catharina Napoléon
• 11 April 1814 - July 1816: Cathérine Bonaparte
• July 1816 - 29 November 1835: Her Royal Highness The Princess von Montfort

Ancestry

Family of Catharina of Württemberg

16. Frederick Charles, Duke of Württemberg-Winnental 8. Charles Alexander, Duke of Württemberg 17. Margravine Eleonore Juliane of Brandenburg-Ansbach 4. Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg 18. Anselm Franz, 2nd Prince of Thurn and Taxis 9. Princess Marie Auguste of Thurn and Taxis 19. Princess Maria Ludovika Anna Franziska of Lobkowicz 2. Frederick I, King of Württemberg 20. Philip William, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt 10. Frederick William, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt 21. Princess Johanna Charlotte of Anhalt-Dessau 4. Margravine Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt 22. Frederick William I, King of Prussia 11. Princess Sophia Dorothea of Prussia 23. Princess Sophia Dorothea of Hanover 1. Catharina of Württemberg 24. Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 12. Charles I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg 25. Duchess Antoinette Amalie of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 6. Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 26. Frederick William I, King of Prussia (= 22) 13. Princess Philippine Charlotte of Prussia 27. Princess Sophia Dorothea of Hanover (= 23) 3. Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 28. George II, King of Great Britain 14. Frederick, Prince of Wales 29. Margravine Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach 7. Princess Augusta of Great Britain 30. Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg 15. Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha 31. Princess Magdalena Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst

External links

Media related to Catharina of Württemberg at Wikimedia Commons