Jump to content

Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Yakikaki (talk | contribs) at 23:21, 22 December 2012 (→‎Marriage: added link to Koluvere castle page). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
Princess of Württemberg
Born(1764-12-03)3 December 1764
Brunswick
Died27 September 1788(1788-09-27) (aged 23)
Koluvere castle, Lohde
SpousePrince Frederick of Württemberg
IssueWilliam I of Württemberg
Catherine, Queen of Westphalia
Princess Sophia Dorothea
Prince Paul
Names
Augusta Caroline Friederika Luise
HouseHouse of Brunswick-Bevern
House of Württemberg
FatherCharles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick
MotherAugusta of Great Britain

Princess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (Augusta Caroline Friederika Luise; 3 December 1764 – 27 September 1788)[1] was a German princess, and first wife of Frederick of Württemberg. She was the mother of William I of Württemberg.

Infancy

Princess Augusta was born in Brunswick, the eldest child of Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick and Princess Augusta of Great Britain, a granddaughter of Frederick, Prince of Wales. Her younger sister Princess Caroline, wife of George IV of the United Kingdom. She was named in honour of her mother. In the family, she was generally called "Zelmira".

Marriage

On 15 October 1780 in Brunswick, at the age of 15, she married Prince Frederick of Württemberg, eldest son of Frederick Eugene, youngest brother of the reigning Charles Eugene, Duke of Württemberg, and thus heir presumptive to the duchy, neither of his uncles having any sons. The princess was thus known simply as the Princess of Württemberg and would have four children with her husband.

Frederick's sister Sophie was married to Tsesarevich Paul, future Emperor of Russia. In 1782, Frederick followed Sophie to Russia, where Empress Catherine II appointed him governor of eastern Finland. The marriage was not a happy one. Frederick may have been bisexual, and had a coterie of young noblemen. He was also reportedly violent towards his wife. As he was at 2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) tall and weighed about 200 kg (440 lb), this would have been terrifying.

During a visit to Saint Petersburg in December 1786, Augusta fled to the apartments of Empress Catherine to ask for protection. Catherine offered Augusta asylum and ordered Frederick to leave Russia. When Sophie protested at the treatment of her brother, Catherine replied curtly "It is not I who cover the Prince of Württemberg with opprobrium: on the contrary, it is I who try to bury abominations and it is my duty to suppress any further ones."

Augusta's father was less sympathetic, and refused his daughter's plea for divorce. In response, Catherine offered Augusta the use of one of her Imperial estates: Lohde castle,[2] in Lohde (now Koluvere) in Kullamaa Parish to the south-west of Tallinn, Estonia.[3] She was put in the custody of former huntmaster Wilhelm von Pohlmann (9 April 1727–22 January 1796), who took advantage of his office and began a sexual relationship with her; it is unknown whether she was willing or was forced. She soon became pregnant by him.[4]

On 27 September 1788, at the age of 23, Augusta went into premature labour with a stillborn child, followed by hemorrhaging. Fearful of both the illegitimate birth and his relationship to her being found out, von Pohlmann refused to send for a doctor or any other medical help, and Augusta died of blood loss. She was hurriedly buried in an unmarked grave in the church at Koluvere, and her death was announced to Catherine and her parents in a brief missive with the cause given as the breaking of a blood vessel. Sightings of her were reported for several years, but none proved to be true. The facts of her death only came to light many years later, when her eldest son had the matter investigated and her body was exhumed.[5] The castle and lands of Koluvere were afterwards granted to Count Frederik Vilhelm Buxhoevden.

Issue

  1. William I of Württemberg (1781–1864) who succeeded his father as King of Württemberg.
  2. Princess Catherine (1783–1835) married Jérôme Bonaparte.
  3. Princess Sophia Dorothea (1783–1784) died young.
  4. Prince Paul (1785–1852).

Ancestry

Family of Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
16. Ferdinand Albert I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
8. Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
17. Landgravine Christina Wilhelmina of Hesse-Eschwege
4. Charles I, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
18. Louis Rudolph, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
9. Duchess Antoinette Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg
19. Princess Christine Louise of Oettingen-Oettingen
2. Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick
20. Frederick I of Prussia
10. Frederick William I of Prussia
21. Sophia Charlotte of Hanover
5. Princess Philippine Charlotte of Prussia
22. George I of Great Britain
11. Sophia Dorothea of Hanover
23. Sophia Dorothea of Celle
1. Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
24. George I of Great Britain (= 22)
12. George II of Great Britain
25. Sophia Dorothea of Celle (= 23)
6. Frederick, Prince of Wales
26. Johann Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach
13. Caroline of Ansbach
27. Princess Eleonore of Saxe-Eisenach
3. Princess Augusta of Great Britain
28. Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
14. Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
29. Princess Magdalena Sibylle of Saxe-Weissenfels
7. Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha
30. Karl, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
15. Princess Magdalena Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst
31. Princess Sophie of Saxe-Weissenfels

Titles and styles

  • 3 December 1764 – 15 October 1780 Her Serene Highness Princess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
  • 15 October 1780 - 27 September 1788 Her Serene Highness The Princess [Augusta] of Württemberg

See also

References

  1. ^ "Genealogy Index: Welf 6". Retrieved 2007-09-16.[self-published source][better source needed]
  2. ^ Lohde castle
  3. ^ Rounding, Virginia (2007). Catherine the Great. London: Arrow. pp. 419–421. ISBN 978-0-09-946234-7.
  4. ^ Thomsen, Sabine. Die württembergischen Königinnen. Charlotte Mathilde, Katharina, Pauline, Olga, Charlotte – ihr Leben und Wirken (The Queens of Wuerttemberg: Charlotte Matilde, Katharina, Pauline, Olga, Charlotte – Their Lives and Legacies). Silberburg-Verlag, 2006.
  5. ^ Thomsen, ibid.

Elisabeth E. Kwan und Anna E. Röhring, Frauen vom Hof der Welfen, 2. Auflage, München, 2008

Media related to Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel at Wikimedia Commons

Template:Persondata

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Duchess_Augusta_of_Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel&oldid=529357609"