Anton Günther II, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen

by Susan Flantzer

Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen: The County of Schwarzburg was a state of the Holy Roman Empire from 1195 to 1595, when it was partitioned into Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. The new counties remained in the Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution. In 1697, the County of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was elevated to the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. The County of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt was elevated to the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt in 1710.

The death of Karl Günther, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen without an heir in 1909 caused the Principalities of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen to be united under Günther Victor, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt in a personal union. Following his succession in Sondershausen, Prince Günther Victor dropped the name Rudolstadt from his title and assumed the title Prince of Schwarzburg.

At the end of World War I, Prince Günther Victor was the last German prince to renounce his throne, abdicating on November 22, 1918. He made an agreement with the government that awarded him an annual pension and the right to use several of the family residences. The territory that encompassed the Principalities of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen is now located in the German state of Thuringia.

*********************

Credit – geni.com

Anton Günther II, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen II was born on October 10, 1653, in Sondershausen, County of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen, now in the German state of Thuringia. He was the second of the five sons and the fifth of the ten children of Anton Günther I, Count of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and Mary Magdalene of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld.

Anton Günther had nine siblings:

  • Anna Dorothea (1645 – 1716), married Heinrich IV of Reuss-Greiz, had eight children
  • Christian Wilhelm I, Count and from 1697, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen (1647 – 1721), married (1) Antonie Sybille of Barby-Mühlingen, had seven children (2) Wilhelmine Christiane of Saxe-Weimar, had eight children
  • Klare Juliane (1648- 1739), unmarried
  • Eleonore Sofie (1650 – 1718), unmarried, nun at the Protestant Quedlinburg Abbey
  • Mary Magdalene (1655 -1727), unmarried
  • Georg Friedrich (born and died 1657), died in infancy
  • George Ernest (1658 – 1659), died in infancy
  • Ludwig Günther (born and died 1660), died in infancy
  • Johanne Elisabeth (1662 – 1720), unmarried

Augusta Dorothea of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Princess of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen; Credit – Wikipedia

On August 7, 1684, in Wolfenbüttel, Duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, now in the German state of Lower Saxony, Anton Günther married Auguste Dorothea of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, daughter of Anton Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and Juliane von Holstein-Norburg. Their marriage was childless.

Christian Wilhelm, Anton Günther’s brother; Credit – Wikipedia

Upon the death of their father Anton Günther I, Count of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen on August 19, 1666, Anton Gunther II and his elder brother Christian Wilhelm jointly inherited the County of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. The two brothers ruled jointly until 1681 when they split the county into two parts. In 1697, the County of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was elevated to the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and both brothers became princes.

City of Arnstadt; Credit – Wikipedia

The city of Arnstadt developed into an important cultural center under the reign of Anton Günther. He was considered a great patron of music and was an avid collector of antiques and art objects. In 1703, 18-year-old composer Johann Sebastian Bach, already with a superior reputation as a keyboardist, was invited to inspect the new organ and give the inaugural recital at the New Church (now the Bach Church) in Arnstadt. Anton Günther was so impressed that he hired the young Bach as the court organist.

On July 20, 1716, Anton Günther II, aged 62, died in Arnstadt and his elder brother Christian Wilhelm became the sole ruler of the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. His burial site is unknown. His wife Auguste Dorothea survived him by 35 years, dying on July 11, 1751, aged 84, at Augustenburg Castle in Arnstadt. Auguste Dorothea had converted to Roman Catholicism and was buried at the Ursuline Convent (link in German) in Erfurt, Electorate of Mainz, now in the German state of Thuringia.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Schwarzburg-Sondershausen Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Anton Günther II. (Schwarzburg). [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_G%C3%BCnther_II._(Schwarzburg)> [Accessed 9 November 2020].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Auguste Dorothea Von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1666–1751). [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auguste_Dorothea_von_Braunschweig-Wolfenb%C3%BCttel_(1666%E2%80%931751)> [Accessed 9 November 2020].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2020. Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwarzburg-Sondershausen> [Accessed 9 November 2020].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Anton Günther II, Count Of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen-Arnstadt. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_G%C3%BCnther_II,_Count_of_Schwarzburg-Sondershausen-Arnstadt> [Accessed 9 November 2020].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2020. Royal Burial Sites Of The Principality Of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/royal-burial-sites/german-royal-burial-sites/royal-burial-sites-of-the-principality-of-schwarzburg-sondershausen/> [Accessed 9 November 2020].