Landgravine Charlotte of Hesse-Homburg

Charlotte of Hesse-Homburg
Duchess consort of Saxe-Weimar
Reign	1694-1707
Born	17 June 1672 Kassel
Died	29 August 1738 (aged 66) Weimar
Spouse	Johann Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Weimar
Issue	Prince Johann Ernest
Full name Charlotte Dorothea Sophia
Father	Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg
Mother	Louise Elisabeth of Courland

Charlotte of Hesse-Homburg (Charlotte Dorothea Sophia; 17 June 1672 - 29 August 1738), was a German noblewoman member of the House of Hesse and by marriage Duchess of Saxe-Weimar.

Born in Kassel, she was the eldest of twelve children born from the second marriage of Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg with Louise Elisabeth Kettler, Princess of Courland and Semigallia. From her eleven full-siblings, eight survive adulthood: Frederick III Jacob, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg, Karl Christian, Hedwig Louise (by marriage Countess of Schlieben), Philipp, Wilhelmine Maria (by marriage Countess of Aldenburg), Eleonore Margarete, Elisabeth Franziska (by marriage Princess of Nassau-Siegen) and Casimir William (whose son eventually inherited Homburg). In addition, Charlotte had further three half-siblings from her father's third marriage with Sophie Sybille of Leiningen-Westerburg, of whom only one survive: Louis George.^[1]

Life

In Kassel on 4 November 1694 Charlotte married Johann Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Weimar as his second wife. They had four children:^[2][3]

1. Charles Frederick (Weimar, 31 October 1695 - Weimar, 30 March 1696).
2. Johann Ernest (Weimar, 25 December 1696 - Frankfurt, 1 August 1715).
3. Marie Louise (Weimar, 18 December 1697 - Weimar, 29 December 1704).
4. Christiane Sophie (Weimar, 7 April 1700 - Weimar, 18 February 1701).

After her husband's death in 1707, she received as a Wittum (Dower land) the town of Hardisleben. Her main residence was the Yellow Castle (German: Gelbe Schloss) in Weimar, which was built during 1702-1704.

The guardianship of her only surviving child, Johann Ernest, was given to her brother-in-law William Ernest; however, Charlotte devotedly took care of her son during his illness and death aged 18, in 1715.

Charlotte died in Weimar aged 66. She was buried in the Fürstengruft, Weimar.^[4]

Notes

1. Marek, Miroslav. "Genealogy of the House of Hesse". genealogy.euweb.cz. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
2. Charlotte Dorothea Sophia Landgraefin v.Hessen-Homburg in: Genealogy Database by Herbert Stoyan [retrieved 5 October 2014].
3. Marek, Miroslav. "Genealogy of the House of Wettin". genealogy.euweb.cz. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
4. Hesse-Homburg line in: Royaltyguide.nl [retrieved 5 October 2014].

References

• Karl Helmrich: Geschichte des Grossherzogthums Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach für Schule und Haus, p. 106. [retrieved 5 October 2014].
• Johann Samuel Ersch: Allgemeine Encyclopädie der Wissenschaften und Künste in alphabetischer..., p. 260. [retrieved 5 October 2014].