Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg

This article includes a improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (November 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message )

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in German. (September 2012) Click [show] for important translation instructions. View a machine-translated version of the German article. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 9,094 articles in the main category, and specifying|topic= will aid in categorization. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing German Wikipedia article at [[:de:Friedrich I. (Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg)]]; see its history for attribution. You should also add the template {{Translated|de|Friedrich I. (Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg)}} to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

Frederick I
Lutheran

Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (15 July 1646 – 2 August 1691), was a duke of

.

When Ernst inherited the duchy of Saxe-Altenburg (1672), he made Frederick the regent of that duchy. In 1674 Ernst, who was already ill, made Frederick the regent of his entire lands.

After the death of his father (1675) Frederick assumed the throne of both duchies. However, on the basis of his family's house law, he had to allow his six younger brothers to take part in the government. At first, they agreed to a common household of all seven brothers in the

, though this arrangement endured only until 1676.

Afterwards, negotiations began for the division of the paternal inheritance. This was finally accomplished on 24 February 1680; Frederick kept

and Altenburg, as well as six smaller enclaves.

Frederick continued the work of his father. In order to prevent future disputes between his descendants, he established primogeniture for his house in 1685 (with Imperial assent granted in 1688). Around 1680 he established himself in the Lustschloss Friedrichswerth, near the village of Erffa, approximately 20 km of Gotha, which was renamed in his honour Friedrichswerth.

In 1683 Frederick created the (still in existence today)

against France. He ruined the finances of his small duchy, however, using them to maintain a standing army, which by the time of his death counted over 10,000 men.

Marriage and children

Frederick married firstly in

. They had eight children:

1. Anna Sophie (b. Gotha, 22 December 1670 – d. Rudolstadt, 28 December 1728), married on 15 October 1691 to Louis Frederick I, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
   .
2. Magdalene Sibylle (b. Gotha, 30 September 1671 – d. Altenburg, 2 March 1673).
3. Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen
   .
4. Fredericka (b. Gotha, 24 March 1675 – d. Karlsbad, 28 May 1709), married on 25 May 1702 to Johann August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst.
5. Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (b. Gotha, 28 July 1676 – d. Altenburg, 23 March 1732).
6. Johann Wilhelm (b. Gotha, 4 October 1677 – killed in battle, Toulon, 15 August 1707), General Imperial.
7. Elisabeth (b. Gotha, 7 February 1679 – d. of smallpox, Gotha, 22 June 1680).
8. Johanna (b. Gotha, 1 October 1680 – d. Strelitz, 9 July 1704), married on 20 June 1702 to
   Adolf Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
   .

In Ansbach on 14 August 1681, Frederick married secondly Christine of Baden-Durlach. There were no children from this second marriage. Frederick died in Friedrichswerth, aged 45.

Ancestry

References

• Die Tagebücher 1667-1686 (Publications of the Thuringian State Archives Gotha IV), edited by Roswitha Jacobsen. 3 volumes, Weimar 1998-2003.
• Der alchemistische Nachlaß Friedrichs I. von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg (Quellen und Forschungen zur Alchemie 1), described by Oliver Humberg, Elberfeld 2005.
• August Beck, Friedrich I., Herzog von Sachsen-Gotha und Altenburg. In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). vol VIII. Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1878, p. 2.

Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg House of Wettin Born: 15 July 1646 Died: 2 August 1691
Preceded by Ernest I As Duke of Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Altenburg	Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg 1675–1691	Succeeded by Frederick II