Louis Frederick, Duke of Württemberg-Montbéliard

Louis Frederick, Duke of Württemberg-Montbéliard
Louis Frederick, Duke of Württemberg-Montbéliard
Born	(1586-01-29)29 January 1586 Montbéliard
Died	26 January 1631(1631-01-26) (aged 44) Montbéliard
Noble family	House of Württemberg
Spouse(s)	Elisabeth Magdalena of Hesse-Darmstadt Anna Eleonora of Nassau-Weilburg-Saarbrücken
Father	Frederick I, Duke of Württemberg
Mother	Sibylla of Anhalt

Louis Frederick of Württemberg-Montbéliard (29 January 1586 in Montbéliard – 26 January 1631 in Montbéliard) was the founder of a side line of the House of Württemberg known as the Dukes of Württemberg-Montbéliard.

Louis Frederick of Württemberg was born at Montbéliard Castle as the fifth child and second son of Duke Frederick I of Württemberg, and princess Sibylla of Anhalt.

Life

On 28 May 1617 Louis Frederick agreed with older brother Duke John Frederick to divide the Württemberg possessions. Louis Frederick received the possessions on the left bank of the Rhine (Montbéliard, Riquewihr and Horburg) with full sovereignty. Thus, Louis Frederick became the founder of the younger Württemberg-Montbéliard line.

During the Thirty Years' War, his territory suffered badly from starvation and the plague. After his brother John Frederick died on 28 July 1628, Louis Frederick moved to Stuttgart, to act as guardian and regent for his our-year-old cousin Eberhard III. His tenure as regent was dominated by conflicts with Emperor Ferdinand II, after Württemberg lost about a third of its territory due to the Edict of Restitution. In November 1630, Louis Frederick returned to Montbéliard, where he died on 26 January 1631.

Marriage and issue

Louis Frederick married on 14 July 1617 with Elisabeth Magdalena of Hesse-Darmstadt. The marriage produced three children:

• Christopher (24 December 1620 – 1 January 1621)
• Henriette Louise (20 June 1623 – 24 August 1650) married on 21 August 1642 with Margrave Albert II of Brandenburg-Ansbach
• Leopold Frederick (30 May 1624 – 15 June 1662), his successor

After Elisabeth Magdalena's death on 9 June 1624, Louis Frederick married on 15 May 1625 with Anna Eleonora of Nassau-Weilburg-Saarbrücken. This marriage also produced three children:

• George II (5 October 1626 – 1 June 1699)
• Henry (19 December 1627 – January 1628)
• Georgia Ludovica (1 February 1630 – 11 April 1630)

External links

• Publications by or about Louis Frederick, Duke of Württemberg-Montbéliard at VD 17