Princess Ernestine Charlotte of Nassau-Schaumburg (20 May 1662Jul. – 21 February 1732), German: Ernestine Charlotte Prinzessin von Nassau-Schaumburg, official titles: Prinzessin von Nassau, Gräfin zu Katzenelnbogen, Vianden, Diez und Holzappel, Frau zu Beilstein, Laurenburg und Schaumburg, was a princess from the House of Nassau-Schaumburg, a cadet branch of the Ottonian Line of the House of Nassau and through marriage Fürstin of Nassau-Siegen. She was regent of the Principality of Nassau-Siegen (part of the County of Nassau) for her son Frederick William Adolf in the period 1691–1701.
Ernestine Charlotte of Nassau-Schaumburg | |
|---|---|
| Fürstin of Nassau-Siegen | |
 Fürstin Ernestine Charlotte of Nassau-Siegen, nee Princess of Nassau-Schaumburg, Fürst William Maurice of Nassau-Siegen and their sons Frederick William Adolf and Charles Louis Henry. Anonymous portrait, ca. 1690. Siegerlandmuseum, Siegen. | |
| Fürstin-Regent of Nassau-Siegen | |
| Coat of arms |  |
| Reign | 1691–1701 |
| Full name | Ernestine Charlotte Princess of Nassau-Schaumburg |
| Native name | Ernestine Charlotte Prinzessin von Nassau-Schaumburg |
| Born | Ernestine Charlotte Prinzessin von Nassau, Gräfin zu Katzenelnbogen, Vianden, Diez und Holzappel, Frau zu Beilstein, Laurenburg und Schaumburg 20 May 1662Jul. Schaumburg Castle |
| Died | 21 February 1732 Nassauischer Hof, Siegen |
| Buried | 15 March 1732 Fürstengruft, Siegen |
| Noble family | House of Nassau-Schaumburg |
| Spouse(s) |
|
| Issue Detail | |
| Father | Adolf of Nassau-Schaumburg |
| Mother | Elisabeth Charlotte Melander, Countess of Holzappel |
Biography
edit
Ernestine Charlotte was born at Schaumburg Castle[1] on 20 May 1662Jul.[2][note 1] as the second daughter of Prince Adolf of Nassau-Schaumburg and his wife Elisabeth Charlotte Melander, Countess of Holzappel.[4]
Ernestine Charlotte married at Schaumburg Castle[5] on 6 February 1678Jul.[6][note 2] to Fürst William Maurice of Nassau-Siegen (Wisch Castle, Terborg,[8] 18/28 January 1649[6][note 3] – Nassauischer Hof, Siegen,[8] 23 January 1691Jul.[6][note 4]), the eldest son of Count Henry of Nassau-Siegen and Countess Mary Magdalene of Limburg-Stirum.[4] Ernestine Charlotte's great-grandfather Count George 'the Elder' of Nassau-Dillenburg was a younger brother of William Maurice's grandfather Count John VII 'the Middle' of Nassau-Siegen.[9][10][11]
William Maurice succeeded his maternal grandfather in September 1661 as count of Bronkhorst, lord of Wisch, Borculo, Lichtenvoorde and Wildenborch, and hereditary knight banneret of the Duchy of Guelders and the County of Zutphen.[12][13][14] And on 20 December 1679 he succeeded his uncle and adoptive father Fürst John Maurice of Nassau-Siegen as Fürst of Nassau-Siegen.[5][6][12] William Maurice died in 1691 and was buried in the Fürstengruft in Siegen on 12 March.[8] He was succeeded by his son Frederick William Adolf[15][16] who was under the custody and regency of his mother Ernestine Charlotte until 1701.[15]
During her regency, in 1695, a major city fire destroyed a large part of the city of Siegen, including the Nassauischer Hof, the princely Residenz, and the nearby church.[12][17] Both buildings were built in 1488 by Count John V of Nassau-Siegen as a Franciscan monastery.[18] The Nassauischer Hof housed, among others, the collection of paintings of the Fürsten of Nassau-Siegen. Numerous valuable paintings by famous artists, including Rembrandt, Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck, fell victim to the flames.[12] The nearby Fürstengruft was spared in the fire. The burnt down residence building was not rebuilt. Under the old name, a new three-winged palace was built on the site, and the Fürstengruft was completely incorporated into the corps de logis. The construction of the new palace, which has been called Untere Schloss since the middle of the 18th century, took place between 1695 and 1720.[17][19]
Ernestine Charlotte remarried[1][2][20][note 5] (secretly) in 1696 (in The Hague?) to Friedrich Philipp Reichsfreiherr von Geuder genannt Rabensteiner (1650–1727), lord of Heroldsberg and Stein, since 1691 Geheimrat and Hofmeister of the Principality of Nassau-Siegen, later also imperial Geheimrat.[1]
Ernestine Charlotte died at the Nassauischer Hof in Siegen[1] on 21 February 1732[21][note 6] and was buried on 15 March in the Fürstengruft there.[1]
Issue
editFrom the marriage of Ernestine Charlotte and William Maurice the following children were born:[2][14][22]
- Fürst Frederick William Adolf[note 7] (Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 20 February 1680 – Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 13 February 1722), succeeded his father in 1691. Married:
- at Homburg Castle on 7 January 1702[note 8] to Landgravine Elisabeth Juliana Francisca of Hesse-Homburg (Homburg Castle, 6 January 1681[note 9] – Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 12 November 1707).
- at the Old Castle in Bayreuth on 13 April 1708[note 10] to Duchess Amalie Louise of Courland (Mitau, 23 July 1687[note 11] – Untere Schloss, Siegen, 18 January 1750).
- Charles Louis Henry (Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 17 March 1682Jul.[note 12] – Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 18 October 1694Jul.[note 13]), was hopman of the company of Swiss soldiers in the Dutch States Army, that had been his father's, since 1691.
Ancestors
edit| Ancestors of Ernestine Charlotte of Nassau-Schaumburg[9][10][11][26][27][28][29][30][31] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great-great-grandparents | John VI 'the Elder' of Nassau-Siegen (1536–1606) ⚭ 1559 Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg (1537–1579) |
Philip IV of Nassau-Saarbrücken (1542–1602) ⚭ 1563 Erica of Manderscheid (1545–1581) |
William I of Sayn-Wittgenstein (1488–1570) ⚭ 1522 Johannetta of Isenburg-Grenzau (1500–1563) |
Frederick Magnus I of Solms-Laubach (1521–1561) ⚭ 1545 Agnes of Wied (1524–1588) |
? (?–?) ⚭ ? (?–?) |
? (?–?) ⚭ ? (?–?) |
? (?–?) ⚭ ? (?–?) |
? (?–?) ⚭ ? (?–?) |
| Great-grandparents | George 'the Elder' of Nassau-Dillenburg (1562–1623) ⚭ 1584 Anne Amelie of Nassau-Saarbrücken (1565–1605) |
Louis I of Sayn-Wittgenstein (1532–1605) ⚭ 1567 Elisabeth of Solms-Laubach (1549–1599) |
Wilhelm Eppelmann (ca. 1564–1592) ⚭ 1576 Anna Lange (?–1636) |
Johann Wilhelm von Efferen genannt Hall (?–?) ⚭ Margarethe von der Baalen genannt Bleck (?–?) | ||||
| Grandparents | Louis Henry of Nassau-Dillenburg (1594–1662) ⚭ 1615 Catharine of Sayn-Wittgenstein (1588–1651) |
Peter Melander (1589–1648) ⚭ 1638 Agnes von Efferen genannt Hall (?–1656) | ||||||
| Parents | Adolf of Nassau-Schaumburg (1629–1676) ⚭ 1653 Elisabeth Charlotte Melander (1640–1707) | |||||||
Notes
edit- ^ "See State Archives Wiesbaden (170III) several birth notifications dated Schaumburg 21/31 May 1662: «gestern den 20/30ten diesses, des Abends zwischen 8 und 9 Uhren»."[3]
- ^ "In the parish records of Terborg it is stated that the marriage took place in Schaumburg («in arce Schaumburgenei»). See the marriage announcement (State Archives Marburg 4f, Nassau-Siegen, 203) at Schaumburg 10‑2 old style: «den 6 dieses … das fürstl. Beylager gehalten». Dek (1962) and Europäische Stammtafeln mention 6‑1‑1678; that is the engagement date (see the notification in State Archives Marburg 4f, Nassau-Siegen 203). Dek (1970) no longer gives a place and date of marriage, but only mentions that the announcement was made in Lichtenvoorde on 3‑2‑1678."[7]
- ^ "See the baptismal register of Terborg: the 18th, at three o'clock in the afternoon."[7] Menk (2004), p. 195 mentions the date 6 May 1649.
- ^ "See notification of death (State Archives Marburg 115, Waldeck, 2, Nassau, 339) from Siegen 24‑1‑1691: «gestern Freytag den 23. dieses (therefore old style) abendts zwischen 5 und 6 Uhren»."[7] Menk (2004), p. 195 mentions the date 18/28 January 1691.
- ^ Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 135 does not mention the second marriage.
- ^ "See State Archives Wiesbaden (170III) notification of death dated Siegen 23‑2‑1732: «vorgestern Mittag zwischen 11 und 12 Uhren in dem 70ten Jahres ihres Alters». See also the parish records of Siegen. Europäische Stammtafeln I, 117 and 118 states the fantasised dates 21‑2‑1714 and 19‑10‑1714 respectively."[3]
- ^ "In almost all official documents he is mentioned with these three given names, but sometimes only Frederick William (see for instance Menk (1971), p. 89). Dek (1970) names him Frederik Willem I Adolf; Europäische Stammtafeln on the other hand, mentions him as Adolf in its table Nassau-Siegen (band I, 117), while in other places he mentions him under the double given name Friedrich Wilhelm, which causes some confusion among readers."[23]
- ^ "Although the marriage announcement (State Archives Marburg 4f, Nassau-Siegen, Nr. 241), dated Siegen 12‑1‑1702 says that it was «den 6 hujus mittelst christgewöhnlicher Einsegnung und Beilager vollzogen» (without mentioning the place), we have taken the 7th, just like Knetsch (1931), according to the register of the reformed parish of Homburg: «Ao 1702 den 7 Januarii ist der Durchlachtigste Fürst Friedrich Wilhelm Adolph zu Nassau-Siegen mit der Durchl. Princesse Elisabetha Juliana Francisca Landgräfin zu Hessen Homburg alhier zu Homburg auf dem festen Schloss ehelich vermählet worden». Likewise, the personal details in the printed funeral sermon: «und darauff noch den 7 Januarii zu Homburg in der Hochfürstl. Schloss Kirche nach erfolgter Priestlichen Copulation Dero Hochfürstl. … Beylager gehalten» and the personalia preserved in the Royal House Archive of the Netherlands (IV/1561): «den 7 Januar 1702 zu Homburg a.d.H. vermittelst Priestlicher Copulation». We found 6‑1 in Dek (1962), Europäische Stammtafeln I, 117, Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), and 7‑1 in Europäische Stammtafeln I, 106 and Knetsch (1931)."[24]
- ^ "Europäische Stammtafeln I, 117 states, incorrectly, 6‑2‑1681. The actual date is 6‑1‑1681 (see Europäische Stammtafeln I, 106, Knetsch (1931), Dek (1962), Dek (1970) and zu Stolberg-Stolberg & von Arnswaldt), confirmed by the parish records of Homburg, which state that she was born on 6‑1, between eight and nine o'clock in the evening and was baptised on 13‑1."[25]
- ^ "Although Dek (1962) and Dek (1970) place the marriage in Bayreuth on 20‑4‑1708 (date confirmed by Europäische Stammtafeln I, 117, Europäische Stammtafeln II, 88 and Knetsch (1931)), we find in the marriage contract that was signed in Siegen on 6‑8‑1708: «solches durch das Fürstliche Beylager mit öffentlichen und gewöhnlichen Christfürstlichen Ceremonien den 13. April des noch laufenden 1708 Jahres in der Fürstlichen Residenz zu Bayreuth vollzogen». The date 13 April is confirmed by the notification of the marriage (see State Archives Marburg 4f, Nassau-Siegen N. 241), dated Bayreuth 18‑4‑1708: «den 13. Aprilis allhier zu Bayreuth … durch würklich gehaltenes Beylager». See also in the Royal House Archive of the Netherlands (IV/1561), personalia: «den 13. April 1708 dero christfürstl. Beylager in Bayreuth». The registers of the Hofkirche in Bayreuth have disappeared."[25]
- ^ "Although Dek (1970) and Europäische Stammtafeln I, 117 and II, 88 say that she was born on 27‑7‑1687, we could establish that the birth took place in Mitau on the 23rd. Indeed, the notification that the Duke of Courland sent from Mitau on 24‑7‑1687 announces the birth of a daughter «gestern morgens» (see State Archives Wiesbaden 170III)."[25]
- ^ "See the registers of the Reformed Church of Siegen 1682: «getauft Domin. Lætare», without mentioning the date of birth. See State Archives Marburg (4f. Nassau-Siegen Nr. 203), notification dated 21‑3‑1682 «den 17 dieses», invitation for baptism «nächstkünftigen Sonntag». See Royal House Archive of the Netherlands (IV/1527), Personalia: «geb. den 17. März 1682, getauft 26 März» (which was indeed a Sunday in the old calendar). See State Archives Marburg (115, Waldeck 2, Nr. 338), notification dated Siegen 21‑3‑1682: «den 17. dieses nachts zw. 1 u. 2 Uhren», from which we can deduce without the risk of error that the birth took place in Siegen on 17‑3‑1682, old style."[25]
- ^ "See State Archives Wiesbaden (130II 2380III e), notification from Siegen on 20‑10‑1694: «Donnerstag den 18. dieses Monaths», therefore old style."[25]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e Menk (2004), p. 199.
- ^ a b c Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 312.
- ^ a b Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 344.
- ^ a b All sources that mention both parents, name these parents.
- ^ a b Menk (2004), p. 196.
- ^ a b c d Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 273.
- ^ a b c Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 290.
- ^ a b c Menk (2004), p. 195.
- ^ a b Dek (1970).
- ^ a b Dek (1968).
- ^ a b Vorsterman van Oyen (1882).
- ^ a b c d Lück (1981), p. 116.
- ^ Lück & Wunderlich (1956), p. 34.
- ^ a b Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 127.
- ^ a b Menk (2004), pp. 198, 199.
- ^ Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 311.
- ^ a b Aβmann & Menk (1996).
- ^ Joachim, Ernst (1881). "Johann V. von Nassau-Dillenburg". Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (in German). Vol. Band 14. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot. p. 253.
- ^ Menk (2004), p. 184.
- ^ Dek (1970), p. 107.
- ^ All sources that mention a full date of death, state this date.
- ^ Dek (1970), pp. 96–97.
- ^ Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 340.
- ^ Huberty, et al. (1981), pp. 340–341.
- ^ a b c d e Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 341.
- ^ Huberty, et al. (1981).
- ^ Dek (1962).
- ^ von Ehrenkrook, et al. (1928).
- ^ Behr (1854).
- ^ Textor von Haiger (1617).
- ^ Europäische Stammtafeln.
Sources
edit- Aßmann, Helmut & Menk, Friedhelm (1996). Auf den Spuren von Nassau und Oranien in Siegen (in German). Siegen: Gesellschaft für Stadtmarketing Siegen e.V.
- Behr, Kamill (1854). Genealogie der in Europa regierenden Fürstenhäuser (in German). Leipzig: Verlag von Bernhard Tauchnitz.
- Blok, P.J. (1911). "Willem Maurits, Wilhelm Moritz". In Molhuysen, P.C. & Blok, P.J. (eds.). Nieuw Nederlandsch Biografisch Woordenboek (in Dutch). Vol. Eerste deel. Leiden: A.W. Sijthoff. p. 1578.
- Dek, A.W.E. (1962). Graf Johann der Mittlere von Nassau-Siegen und seine 25 Kinder (in German). Rijswijk: Krips Repro.
- Dek, A.W.E. (1968). "De afstammelingen van Juliana van Stolberg tot aan het jaar van de Vrede van Münster". Spiegel der Historie. Maandblad voor de geschiedenis der Nederlanden (in Dutch). 1968 (7/8): 228–303.
- Dek, A.W.E. (1970). Genealogie van het Vorstenhuis Nassau (in Dutch). Zaltbommel: Europese Bibliotheek.
- von Ehrenkrook, Hans Friedrich; Förster, Karl & Marchtaler, Kurt Erhard (1928). Ahnenreihen aus allen deutschen Gauen. Beilage zum Archiv für Sippenforschung und allen verwandten Gebieten (in German). Görlitz: Verlag für Sippenforschung und Wappenkunde C.A. Starke.
- Huberty, Michel; Giraud, Alain & Magdelaine, F. & B. (1981). l'Allemagne Dynastique (in French). Vol. Tome III: Brunswick-Nassau-Schwarzbourg. Le Perreux: Alain Giraud.
- Knetsch, Carl (1931). Das Haus Brabant. Genealogie der Herzoge von Brabant und der Landgrafen von Hessen (in German). Vol. II. Teil: Die Nachkommen Philipps des Grossmütigen. Darmstadt: Historischer Verein für das Großherzogtum Hessen.
- Lück, Alfred (1981) [1967]. Siegerland und Nederland (in German) (2nd ed.). Siegen: Siegerländer Heimatverein e.V.
- Lück, Alfred & Wunderlich, Hermann (1956) [1952]. Die Fürstengruft zu Siegen (in German). Siegen: Verkehrsverein Siegen e.V.
- Menk, Friedhelm (1971). Quellen zur Geschichte des Siegerlandes im niederländischen königlichen Hausarchiv (in German). Siegen: Stadt Siegen/Forschungsstelle Siegerland.
- Menk, Friedhelm (2004). "Die Fürstengruft zu Siegen und die darin von 1669 bis 1781 erfolgten Beisetzungen". In Burwitz, Ludwig; Menk, Friedhelm; Opfermann, Ulrich Friedrich; Pfau, Dieter & Plaum, Bernd D. (eds.). Siegener Beiträge. Jahrbuch für regionale Geschichte (in German). Vol. 9. Siegen: Geschichtswerkstatt Siegen – Arbeitskreis für Regionalgeschichte e.V. pp. 183–202. ISSN 1431-6684.
- Gräfin zu Stolberg-Stolberg, Sophie Eleonore & von Arnswaldt, Werner Konstantin (1927–1935). Katalog der fürstlich Stolberg-Stolberg'schen Leichenpredigten-Sammlung (in German). Leipzig: Verlag Degener & Co.
- Textor von Haiger, Johann (1617). Nassauische Chronik (in German). Herborn: Christoph Raab.
- Vorsterman van Oyen, A.A. (1882). Het vorstenhuis Oranje-Nassau. Van de vroegste tijden tot heden (in Dutch). Leiden/Utrecht: A.W. Sijthoff/J.L. Beijers.
