Hedwig of Denmark

Hedwig of Denmark
Hedwig of Denmark
	Freiberg, Saxony
Spouse	Christian II, Elector of Saxony
House	Oldenburg
Father	Frederick II of Denmark
Mother	Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow
Religion	Lutheranism

Princess Hedwig of Denmark (5 August 1581 – 26 November 1641) was the youngest daughter of King

Electress of Saxony from 1602 to 1611 as the wife of Christian II. The marriage was childless, and her husband was succeeded by his brother John George

. After Christian's death in 1611, the Dowager Electress Hedwig held a powerful position in Saxony. [1]

Early life and marriage

Hedwig was born on 5 August 1581 at

Frederiksborg Palace in Denmark, the seventh child and fourth daughter of King Frederick II of Denmark and Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow. One of her three sisters was Princess Anne of Denmark, future queen of England and Scotland, and one of her brothers became Christian IV of Denmark

. Like her siblings, she spent most of her childhood away from Denmark: in her case with her mother's relative in Mecklenburg.

She was married on 12 September 1602 to

first cousin once removed, in Dresden

. The nine-year marriage was childless. Christian died in Dresden on 23 June 1611.

Life as Dowager Electress

When her husband died in 1611, Hedwig became Dowager Electress in charge of the police and courts. She shared her authority with the new Elector, but her subjects considered her their sovereign. She was able to maintain her independence from her brother-in-law when it came to trade and commerce. She acted independently, granting letters of free passage etc., something that was normally the prerogative of the Elector. She founded churches and aided the poor, sick, and disabled.

In May 1612 she was a godparent to Christian Albert, the short-lived eldest son of John George, Elector of Saxony, and

Duchess Magdalene Sibylle of Prussia.^[2]

As sister of the Danish King

James I of England, she cultivated important connections for her brother-in-law, Elector John George I, and was involved in arranging the marriages of five of his seven children. Because of her position and connections, her territories were hardly attacked during the Thirty Years' War

.

As a widow, she mainly lived in Lichtenburg, but she visited Denmark on her mother's funeral in 1631 and at the wedding of her nephew Christian, Prince-Elect of Denmark in 1634. ^[3]

She died on 26 November 1641 at Schloss Lichtenburg in Prettin.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Hedwig of Denmark

16.

Elizabeth of Denmark

3. Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow

28. Christian I of Denmark (=#16)

14. Frederick I of Denmark (=#8)

29. Dorothea of Brandenburg (=#17)

7. Elizabeth of Denmark

30. Bogislaw X, Duke of Pomerania

15. Sophie of Pomerania

31. Anna of Poland

References

^ Carl Frederik Bricka. "Hedevig, Kurfyrstinde af Sachsen, 1581-1641". Dansk biografisk Lexikon. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
^ A. B. Hinds, HMC Downshire, vol. 3 (London, 1938), p. 285.
^ Carl Frederik Bricka. "Christian, 1603-47, udvalgt Prins". Dansk biografisk Lexikon. Retrieved June 1, 2018.

External links

Royal titles
Preceded by Sophie of Brandenburg	Electress consort of Saxony 1602–1611	Succeeded by Magdalene Sibylle of Prussia

[1] Carl Frederik Bricka. "Hedevig, Kurfyrstinde af Sachsen, 1581-1641". Dansk biografisk Lexikon. Retrieved June 1, 2018.

[2] A. B. Hinds, HMC Downshire, vol. 3 (London, 1938), p. 285.

[3] Carl Frederik Bricka. "Christian, 1603-47, udvalgt Prins". Dansk biografisk Lexikon. Retrieved June 1, 2018.

[2]

[3]