Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Princess of Wales

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Augusta of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg, the second youngest of the sixteen children of Friedrich II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and Magdalene Auguste of Anhalt-Zerbst, was born on November 30, 1719, in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, now in Thuringia, Germany.

Augusta had fifteen siblings:

  • Sophie (1697 – 1703), died in childhood from smallpox
  • Friedrich III, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (1699 – 1772), married Luise Dorothea of Saxe-Meiningen, had nine children
  • Wilhelm (1701 – 1771), married Anna of Holstein-Gottorp, no children
  • Karl Frederick (1702 – 1703), died in infancy from smallpox
  • Johann August (1704 – 1767), married Luise Reuss of Schleiz, widow of his brother Christian Wilhelm, had two children
  • Christian (born and died 1705), died in infancy from smallpox
  • Christian Wilhelm (1706 – 1748), married Luise Reuss of Schleiz, no children
  • Ludwig Ernst (1707 – 1763), Munster Lieutenant General
  • Emanuel (1709 – 1710), died in early childhood
  • Moritz (1711 – 1777), regent in Saxony-Eisenach, Hesse-Kassel Lieutenant General
  • Sophie (born and died 1712), died in infancy
  • Karl (1714 – 1715), died in infancy
  • Fredericka (1715 – 1775), married Johann Adolf II, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels, had five children
  • Magdalena Sibylle (born and died 1718), died in infancy
  • Johann Adolf (1721 – 1799), married morganatically Marie Maximiliane Elisabeth Schauer, had three children

In 1736, at the age of 16, and still very young for her age, clutching a doll, and knowing no English, Augusta arrived in England for her marriage to Frederick, Prince of Wales, the son of King George II of Great Britain.  On May 8, 1736, after having dinner with Frederick and his siblings, Augusta was led up the aisle of the Chapel Royal at St. James’ Palace by her future brother-in-law William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, to marry her 29-year-old groom.

The newlyweds were strictly controlled by Frederick’s parents who did not allow them to set up their own household.  Augusta only spoke German and a little French, so a tutor was arranged to teach her English.  Because she was so lonely, her old governess was brought to England to keep her company.  Having been brought up as a Lutheran, Augusta had misgivings about receiving communion in the Church of England.  She was only persuaded to do so when her mother-in-law threatened to annul her marriage and send her back home.

Frederick and Augusta had nine children including King George III who succeeded his grandfather King George II and Caroline Matilda, Queen Consort of Denmark whose marriage was a tragic story.

Family of Frederick, Prince of Wales painted in 1751 after the prince’s death; Photo Credit – Wikipedia Front row: Henry, William, Frederick; Back row: Edward, George, Augusta, Dowager Princess of Wales holding Caroline Matilda, Elizabeth, Louisa

During Augusta’s first pregnancy in 1737, King George II and Queen Caroline demanded to be present at the birth, but Frederick would not hear of it.  Augusta and Frederick were at Hampton Court Palace having dinner with Frederick’s parents when Augusta went into labor.  They took a bumpy carriage ride to St. James’ Palace to prevent the grandparents from being present at the birth.  Afterward, the king ordered them to leave St. James’ Palace and they moved to Kew Palace.  The queen paid a visit to Frederick and Augusta before they left St. James’ Palace and expressed a wish that she never see them again.  Queen Caroline got her wish as she died several months later without reconciling with her son and daughter-in-law.

After Queen Caroline’s death, the couple’s life was somewhat less tense and despite several fleeting affairs, Frederick was a good husband and father.  In early 1751, Frederick’s health began to be a concern and on March 31, 1751, he died at the age of 44.  His death was attributed to a burst abscess in his lung, but a ruptured aneurysm seems more likely.

At the time of Frederick’s death, his 32-year-old widow was pregnant with her ninth child.  Augusta spent her years as a widow raising her nine children and improving the gardens at Kew Palace, which today are a world-class botanical garden.  Her eldest son George succeeded his grandfather as king in 1760.  Augusta died of cancer of the throat on February 8, 1772, at the age of 52, and was buried at Westminster Abbey.

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