Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
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Duchess Charlotte Georgine Luise Friederike of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (17 November 1769, Hanover
, Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg – 14 May 1818, Hildburghausen
, Duchy of Saxe-Hildburghausen
) was a member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
and a Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz by birth and a member of the House of Saxe-Hildburghausen
and Duchess consort of Saxe-Hildburghausen through her marriage to Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen (later Duke of Saxe-Altenburg).
Charlotte and her sisters, Queen Louise of Prussia
, Queen Frederica of Hannover
and Princess Therese Mathilde of Thurn und Taxis
, were considered the most beautiful women of their time. Jean Paul Friedrich Richter dedicated his novel "Titan
" to the four beautiful and noble sisters on the throne.
, who lived in London. When Charlotte was twelve years old, her mother died and she was brought up by her mother's sister, Charlotte, who married her father in 1784, and also by Magdalena of Wolzogen. Her sisters were brought by her grandmother, Maria Louise Albertine of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg
in Darmstadt
. Charlotte had then already moved to Hildburghausen
.
. The marriage was not a happy one. Charlotte was mentally superior to Frederick, who began to ignore her. They also had financial problems: Saxe-Hildburghausen had been financially ruined by the disastrous policies of Frederick's predecessors and in 1806 it had been put into Imperial receivership. The receivers allowed the Duke and Duchess only a reduced Civil List
.
Charlotte's father and her two brothers often stayed with Charlotte in Hildburghausen. In 1787, he moved to Hildburghausen permanently, and became president of the credit committee. In 1792, Charlotte's grandmother and her sisters fled before the advancing French army from Darmstadt to Hildburghausen. Her grandmother noticed hat Charlotte's husand .... of all his duties, he only fulfills his marital duties with zeal. Charlotte, who never loved this man, is always pregnant. The family spent several carefree weeks at Hildburghausen. In 1793, Charlotte's grandmother returned from exile and travelled with Charlotte's sisters to Frankfurt am Main, where Louise met her future husband, Frederick William
.
Charlotte had a very intimate and loving relationship with her sister Friederike and relatives in Strelitz. In 1803 and 1805, the Prussian royal couple visited Hildburghausen. For this occasion, the receivers allowed the ducal couple to renew some of their furniture. On 9 October 1806, Charlotte and her sister Therese were visiting their sister Louise at the headquarters in Erfurt of king Frederick William III of Prussia
, when he declared war on Napoléon Bonaparte. Louise had helped draft the declaration of war.
Christian Truchseß von Wetzhausen zu Bettenburg was a friend of the ducal couple and godfather of Charlotte's son Edward
. Ater Charlotte and her daughter Therese
, who was Crown Pricess of Bavaria at the time, to his Bettenburg Castle in Franconia, Christian wrote to Fouqué
: Our Crown Pricess of Bavaria and the Hereditry Princess of Weilburg
were visiting their mother, the Duchess of Hildburghausen; and since I have known these lovely daughters since childhood, and they had always been kindly disposed towards me, they felt the urge to visit the old Truchseß on his castle and they and their brother George and the Hereditary Prince of Weilburg, the brave man of Waterloo and really only a small suite came to me on a Sunday afternoon. Many spectators had come to see the Bavarian Crown Princess. When receiving his guests, Truchseß tried to lead the lower-ranking Charlotte first into his castle, but she refused, referring to her daughter. Truchseß replied: Your Higness will forgive me, but as long as this castle has stood here, mothers have always enjoyed precedence before their daughters. Therese then grabbed the baron's other arm, and the three of them walk through the gate together.
The Duchess gave about half of her annual income to the poor, and persioners, and education and apprenticeships for the lower classes. After her sister's death in 1815, she erected the Louise Memorial in the Hildburghausen City Park.
. ON 27 Oktober 1799, he again wrote to Otto: I knew ahead of time, that the court would stay at their Jagdschloss
at Seidingstadt; I went there today. The Duchess was already there when I arrived and saw my within minutes of my arrival. Apart from a lover, I know of nothing more beautiful than her sweet shape.
Charlotte gave the commoner Jean Paul the title of a Legation Council and the writer was engaged to one of her ladies in waiting. However, the engagement to Caroline Feuchter von Feuchtersleben was later dissolved.
Under Charlotte, the Court developed to a "little Weimar". The current slogan of the town of Hildburghausen, "Little Classic", refers back to this period. Beside Jean Paul, other contemporaries have also testified to Charlotte's extraordinary singing talent. She was given the nickname "Singlotte" and the reputation of being one of the greatest singers of her dayDie Herzoge von Sachsen-Altenburg, Bolzano, 1917, reprint Altenburg, 1992, p. 158. She was taught singing in Hannover by an Italian named Giuliani and sang in concerts at court and church services. During Holy Week, she regularly sang "Death of Jesus" by Carl Heinrich Graun
at Christ Church of Hildburghausen, in which the entire population was allowed into the church.
Charlotte decreed that she was to be buried in the newly planned cemetery at Backsteinfeld in Hildburghausen. She was provisionally buried in the church of the castle, and reburied at Backsteinfeld in 1819. Her tomb was designed by Heim, the court carpenter, and was completed in 1824. The green bronzed candelabra stands on four black balls with blazing flames in lead in a shell at the top. The inscription was written by Friedrich Carl Ludwig Sickler. The vault has a height of 4 meters and a diameter of about 12 meters. When the church of the castle was converted into a courtroom, the bodies of all the royals were moved from the royal crypt to Charlotte's tomb.
. Charlotte and Frederick had twelve children:
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
, Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg – 14 May 1818, Hildburghausen
Hildburghausen
Hildburghausen is a town in Thuringia in central Germany, capital of the district Hildburghausen. It is situated on the river Werra, 20 km south of Suhl, and 25 km northwest of Coburg....
, Duchy of Saxe-Hildburghausen
Saxe-Hildburghausen
Saxe-Hildburghausen was an Ernestine duchy in what is now southern Thuringia, Germany. Its territory was similar to that of the modern Hildburghausen district.-History:...
) was a member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy and later grand duchy in northern Germany, consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district , and the western exclave of the former Bishopric of Ratzeburg in modern...
and a Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz by birth and a member of the House of Saxe-Hildburghausen
Saxe-Hildburghausen
Saxe-Hildburghausen was an Ernestine duchy in what is now southern Thuringia, Germany. Its territory was similar to that of the modern Hildburghausen district.-History:...
and Duchess consort of Saxe-Hildburghausen through her marriage to Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen (later Duke of Saxe-Altenburg).
Family
Charlotte was the eldest child and daughter of Charles II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg and his first wife Princess Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt.Charlotte and her sisters, Queen Louise of Prussia
Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Duchess Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was Queen consort of Prussia as the wife of King Frederick William III...
, Queen Frederica of Hannover
Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , Duchess of Cumberland and later Queen of Hanover , was the consort of Ernest Augustus I of Hanover, the fifth son and eighth child of George III and Queen Charlotte.She was born in the Altes Palais of Hanover as the fifth...
and Princess Therese Mathilde of Thurn und Taxis
Duchess Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Duchess Therese Mathilde Amalie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and a Duchess of Mecklenburg. Through her marriage to Karl Alexander, 5th Prince of Thurn and Taxis, Therese was also a member of the House of Thurn and Taxis.-Family:Therese Mathilde Amalie...
, were considered the most beautiful women of their time. Jean Paul Friedrich Richter dedicated his novel "Titan
Titan (Jean Paul)
Titan is a novel by the German writer Jean Paul, published in four volumes between 1800 and 1803. It was translated into English by Charles Timothy Brooks in 1862.Jean Paul called Titan his "cardinal and capital" novel...
" to the four beautiful and noble sisters on the throne.
Childhood and Youth
Charlotte grew up in Hanover, where her father served as governor, on behalf of his brother-in-law, King George III of the United KingdomGeorge III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
, who lived in London. When Charlotte was twelve years old, her mother died and she was brought up by her mother's sister, Charlotte, who married her father in 1784, and also by Magdalena of Wolzogen. Her sisters were brought by her grandmother, Maria Louise Albertine of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg
Maria Louise Albertine of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg
Maria Louise Albertine of Leiningen-Falkenburg-Dagsburg ; also known as princess George, was heiress to the barony of Broich and by marriage Princess of Hesse-Darmstadt...
in Darmstadt
Darmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
. Charlotte had then already moved to Hildburghausen
Hildburghausen
Hildburghausen is a town in Thuringia in central Germany, capital of the district Hildburghausen. It is situated on the river Werra, 20 km south of Suhl, and 25 km northwest of Coburg....
.
Duchess of Saxony-Hildburghausen
Charlotte married on 3 September 1785, at the age of 16, in Hildburghausen, with Duke Frederick of Saxe-Hildburghausen, who stood until 1787 under regency of his great-great uncle Joseph FrederickPrince Joseph of Saxe-Hildburghausen
Joseph Maria Frederick Wilhelm of Saxe-Hildburghausen, Duke in Saxony , was an Austrian General and Field Marshal. He is best known for commanding the Franco-Austrian forces at the Battle of Rossbach.-Early life:He was the third but second surviving son of Ernst, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen and...
. The marriage was not a happy one. Charlotte was mentally superior to Frederick, who began to ignore her. They also had financial problems: Saxe-Hildburghausen had been financially ruined by the disastrous policies of Frederick's predecessors and in 1806 it had been put into Imperial receivership. The receivers allowed the Duke and Duchess only a reduced Civil List
Civil list
-United Kingdom:In the United Kingdom, the Civil List is the name given to the annual grant that covers some expenses associated with the Sovereign performing their official duties, including those for staff salaries, State Visits, public engagements, ceremonial functions and the upkeep of the...
.
Charlotte's father and her two brothers often stayed with Charlotte in Hildburghausen. In 1787, he moved to Hildburghausen permanently, and became president of the credit committee. In 1792, Charlotte's grandmother and her sisters fled before the advancing French army from Darmstadt to Hildburghausen. Her grandmother noticed hat Charlotte's husand .... of all his duties, he only fulfills his marital duties with zeal. Charlotte, who never loved this man, is always pregnant. The family spent several carefree weeks at Hildburghausen. In 1793, Charlotte's grandmother returned from exile and travelled with Charlotte's sisters to Frankfurt am Main, where Louise met her future husband, Frederick William
Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III was king of Prussia from 1797 to 1840. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel .-Early life:...
.
Charlotte had a very intimate and loving relationship with her sister Friederike and relatives in Strelitz. In 1803 and 1805, the Prussian royal couple visited Hildburghausen. For this occasion, the receivers allowed the ducal couple to renew some of their furniture. On 9 October 1806, Charlotte and her sister Therese were visiting their sister Louise at the headquarters in Erfurt of king Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III was king of Prussia from 1797 to 1840. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel .-Early life:...
, when he declared war on Napoléon Bonaparte. Louise had helped draft the declaration of war.
Christian Truchseß von Wetzhausen zu Bettenburg was a friend of the ducal couple and godfather of Charlotte's son Edward
Eduard of Saxe-Altenburg
Eduard Karl Wilhelm Christian of Saxe-Altenburg , was a German prince of the ducal house of Saxe-Hildburghausen .-Family:...
. Ater Charlotte and her daughter Therese
Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen
Therese Charlotte Luise of Saxony-Hildburghausen was a queen of Bavaria.She was a daughter of Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, and Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, eldest daughter of Charles II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.-Biography:In 1809, she was on the list of...
, who was Crown Pricess of Bavaria at the time, to his Bettenburg Castle in Franconia, Christian wrote to Fouqué
Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué
Friedrich Heinrich Karl de la Motte, Baron Fouqué was a German writer of the romantic style.-Biography:He was born at Brandenburg an der Havel, of a family of French Huguenot origin, as evidenced in his family name...
: Our Crown Pricess of Bavaria and the Hereditry Princess of Weilburg
Princess Louise of Saxe-Hildburghausen
Princess Charlotte Luise Friederike Amalie Alexandrine of Saxe-Hildburghausen, full German name: Charlotte Luise Friederike Amalie Alexandrine, Prinzessin von Sachsen-Hildburghausen was a member of the House of Saxe-Hildburghausen and a Princess of Saxe-Hildburghausen Princess Charlotte Luise...
were visiting their mother, the Duchess of Hildburghausen; and since I have known these lovely daughters since childhood, and they had always been kindly disposed towards me, they felt the urge to visit the old Truchseß on his castle and they and their brother George and the Hereditary Prince of Weilburg, the brave man of Waterloo and really only a small suite came to me on a Sunday afternoon. Many spectators had come to see the Bavarian Crown Princess. When receiving his guests, Truchseß tried to lead the lower-ranking Charlotte first into his castle, but she refused, referring to her daughter. Truchseß replied: Your Higness will forgive me, but as long as this castle has stood here, mothers have always enjoyed precedence before their daughters. Therese then grabbed the baron's other arm, and the three of them walk through the gate together.
The Duchess gave about half of her annual income to the poor, and persioners, and education and apprenticeships for the lower classes. After her sister's death in 1815, she erected the Louise Memorial in the Hildburghausen City Park.
Court of the Muse
Charlotte was interested in literature and avidly promoted the arts at court. She relaxed the rules and etiquette and brought musicians, painters and poets to the court, among them the writer Jean Paul Friedrich Richter, who arrived in May 1799. On 25 May 1799, he wrote to his friend Otto: I've been here a week now, and I'm quite weak. For starters, imagine the heavenly Duchess, with beautiful child-like eyes, her face full of love and attraction and youth, a glottis like a nightingale and a mother's heart [...] they love and read me [...]. They ask me in the afternoon and in the evening [...]. Yesterday, I improvised for the court on the grand piano. Besides, there's a decent parish of brothers and sisters here, and I can be ZinzendorfNicolaus Ludwig Zinzendorf
Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf und Pottendorf, Imperial Count of Zinzendorf and Pottendorf, , German religious and social reformer and bishop of the Moravian Church, was born at Dresden....
. ON 27 Oktober 1799, he again wrote to Otto: I knew ahead of time, that the court would stay at their Jagdschloss
Jagdschloss
A Jagdschloss is a palace or a castle in a zoo or a hunting zone such as a forest, field or lake and served primarily as the accommodation for a ruler, and the court, on the occasion of the hunt in the area....
at Seidingstadt; I went there today. The Duchess was already there when I arrived and saw my within minutes of my arrival. Apart from a lover, I know of nothing more beautiful than her sweet shape.
Charlotte gave the commoner Jean Paul the title of a Legation Council and the writer was engaged to one of her ladies in waiting. However, the engagement to Caroline Feuchter von Feuchtersleben was later dissolved.
Under Charlotte, the Court developed to a "little Weimar". The current slogan of the town of Hildburghausen, "Little Classic", refers back to this period. Beside Jean Paul, other contemporaries have also testified to Charlotte's extraordinary singing talent. She was given the nickname "Singlotte" and the reputation of being one of the greatest singers of her day
Carl Heinrich Graun
Carl Heinrich Graun was a German composer and tenor singer. Along with Johann Adolf Hasse, he is considered to be the most important German composer of Italian opera of his time.-Biography:...
at Christ Church of Hildburghausen, in which the entire population was allowed into the church.
Death
Charlotte died on 14 May 1818 after a long illness. Her daughter Therese reported to her sister Louisa, "Eight or ten days ago, during an anxious night, in which the end seemed near, she said us all a farewell and blessed all you far away loved ones - that's the best a good loving mother can give to her children [...] That night, when she bade us farewell in the most touching manner, I knelt down beside her bed of pain and asked for her blessing. When her hand rested on my head, I spoke for us all, dear mother - and she answered [...]. We all have received a (ring) from her dear hands. Looking at it, my intent to always live a life worthy of my mother, grew ever more steadfast in my heart.Charlotte decreed that she was to be buried in the newly planned cemetery at Backsteinfeld in Hildburghausen. She was provisionally buried in the church of the castle, and reburied at Backsteinfeld in 1819. Her tomb was designed by Heim, the court carpenter, and was completed in 1824. The green bronzed candelabra stands on four black balls with blazing flames in lead in a shell at the top. The inscription was written by Friedrich Carl Ludwig Sickler. The vault has a height of 4 meters and a diameter of about 12 meters. When the church of the castle was converted into a courtroom, the bodies of all the royals were moved from the royal crypt to Charlotte's tomb.
Marriage and issue
Charlotte married Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen (later Duke of Saxe-Altenburg), youngest child of Ernest Frederick III, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen and his third wife Princess Ernestine of Saxe-Weimar, on 3 September 1785 in HildburghausenHildburghausen
Hildburghausen is a town in Thuringia in central Germany, capital of the district Hildburghausen. It is situated on the river Werra, 20 km south of Suhl, and 25 km northwest of Coburg....
. Charlotte and Frederick had twelve children:
- Joseph Georg Karl Frederick (b. Hildburghausen, 12 June 1786 - d. Hildburghausen, 30 July 1786).
- Princess Katharina Charlotte of Saxe-HildburghausenPrincess Katharina Charlotte of Saxe-HildburghausenPrincess Charlotte of Saxe-Hildburghausen was the child of Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg and his wife, Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.-Early life:...
(b. Hildburghausen, 17 June 1787 - d. Bamberg, 12 December 1847), married on 28 September 1805 to Prince Paul of WürttembergPrince Paul of WürttembergPrince Paul of Württemberg was a German prince and the fourth child and second son of Frederick I of Württemberg and Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.-Early life:...
. - Charlotte Auguste (b. and d. Hildburghausen, 29 July 1788).
- Joseph Georg Friedrich Ernst Karl, Duke of Saxe-AltenburgJoseph Georg Friedrich Ernst Karl, Duke of Saxe-AltenburgJoseph Georg Friedrich Ernst Karl, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg , was a duke of Saxe-Altenburg....
(b. Hildburghausen, 27 August 1789 - d. Altenburg, 25 November 1868). - Luise Fredericka Marie Caroline Auguste Christiane (b. Hildburghausen, 18 January 1791 - d. Hildburghausen, 25 March 1791).
- Therese Charlotte Luise Friederike AmalieTherese of Saxe-HildburghausenTherese Charlotte Luise of Saxony-Hildburghausen was a queen of Bavaria.She was a daughter of Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, and Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, eldest daughter of Charles II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.-Biography:In 1809, she was on the list of...
(b. Hildburghausen, 8 July 1792 - d. Munich, 26 October 1854), married on 12 October 1810 to King Ludwig I of BavariaLudwig I of BavariaLudwig I was a German king of Bavaria from 1825 until the 1848 revolutions in the German states.-Crown prince:...
. - Charlotte Luise Fredericka Amalie AlexandrinePrincess Louise of Saxe-HildburghausenPrincess Charlotte Luise Friederike Amalie Alexandrine of Saxe-Hildburghausen, full German name: Charlotte Luise Friederike Amalie Alexandrine, Prinzessin von Sachsen-Hildburghausen was a member of the House of Saxe-Hildburghausen and a Princess of Saxe-Hildburghausen Princess Charlotte Luise...
(b. Hildburghausen, 28 January 1794 - d. Biebrich, 6 April 1825), married on 24 June 1814 to Wilhelm, Duke of Nassau. - Franz Frederick Karl Ludwig Georg Heinrich (b. Hildburghausen, 13 April 1795 - d. Hildburghausen, 28 May 1800).
- Georg, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg (b. Hildburghausen, 24 July 1796 - d. Hummelshain, 3 August 1853).
- Frederick Wilhelm Karl Joseph Ludwig Georg (b. Hildburghausen, 4 October 1801 - d. Altenburg, 1 July 1870).
- Maximilian Karl Adolf Heinrich (b. Hildburghausen, 19 February 1803 - d. Hildburghausen, 29 March 1803).
- Eduard Karl Wilhelm ChristianEduard of Saxe-AltenburgEduard Karl Wilhelm Christian of Saxe-Altenburg , was a German prince of the ducal house of Saxe-Hildburghausen .-Family:...
(b. Hildburghausen, 3 July 1804 - d. Munich, 16 May 1852).
Titles and styles
- 17 November 1769 – 3 September 1785: Her Serene Highness Duchess Charlotte Georgine of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
- 3 September 1785 – 14 May 1818: Her Highness The Duchess of Saxe-Hildburghausen