Princess Wilhelmina Caroline of Denmark
| Wilhelmina Caroline of Denmark | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Portrait by August von der Embde, 1818 | |||||
| Landgravine consort of Hesse-Kassel Electress consort of Hesse | |||||
| Tenure | 1785 – 1820 | ||||
| Born | 10 July 1747 Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark | ||||
| Died | 14 January 1820 (aged 72) Kassel, Germany | ||||
| Spouse | William I, Elector of Hesse | ||||
| Issue | Maria Frederica, Duchess of Anhalt-Bernburg Caroline Amalie, Duchess of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg Frederick William II, Elector of Hesse | ||||
| |||||
| House | Oldenburg | ||||
| Father | Frederick V of Denmark | ||||
| Mother | Louise of Great Britain | ||||
Princess Wilhelmina Caroline of Denmark (Template:Lang-da, Template:Lang-de) (10 July 1747 in Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen – 14 January 1820 in Kassel), was the Electress of Hesse-Kassel.
Biography
She was one of the daughters of King Frederick V of Denmark (1723–1766), and his first wife Louise (1724–1751), daughter of King George II of Great Britain.
At Christiansborg Palace on 1 September 1764 she married Prince William of Hesse, Count of Hanau, one of the wealthiest rulers of the period. Wilhelmina Caroline and William had grown up together and played together as children, as William had been evacuated to the Danish court during the Seven Years' War (1755–63), and it was decided early on that they should marry when they became adults. The couple settled in Hanau.
William succeeded in 1785 as Landgrave William IX of Hesse and in 1803 was raised to the rank of Elector of Hesse-Kassel as William I. The marriage was unhappy: her spouse was unfaithful and had many lovers, notably Karoline von Schlotheim, whom he had appointed Countess of Hessenstein. Wilhelmina Caroline herself was described as beautiful, distant, kind and sympathetic; in 1804, she still spoke Danish without accent and had a strong attachment to her birth country.
In 1806, Hesse was occupied by France. Her spouse and son fled to her brother-in-law Charles of Hesse in Schleswig, but she remained until a French governor was installed, after which she moved to her daughter Amalie in Gotha.[1] She spent the duration of the Kingdom of Westphalia (1806–13) in exile, among other places in Schleswig and in Prague. In 1813, the spouses returned to Kassel.
Issue
- Landgravine Maria Frederica (1768–1839), married Alexius Frederick Christian, Duke of Anhalt-Bernburg
- Landgravine Karoline Amalie (1771–1848), married Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg
- Frederick (1772–1784)
- William II (1777–1847)
Ancestry
References
Notes
- ^
Charlottas, Hedvig Elisabeth (1936) [1800–1806]. af Klercker, Cecilia (ed.). Hedvig Elisabeth Charlottas dagbok (in Swedish). Vol. VII 1800-1806. Translated by Cecilia af Klercker. Stockholm: P.A. Norstedt & Söners förlag. p. 476. OCLC 14111333.
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1 Also princess of Norway 2 Also princess of Greece 3 Also princess of Iceland 4 Not Danish princess by birth, but created princess of Denmark Princesses that lost their title are shown in italics | ||
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