Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2018

Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen: On March 26, 1675, Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died. Initially, his seven sons collectively governed the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, as set out in their father’s will. On February 24, 1680, the seven brothers concluded a treaty of separation, with each brother getting a portion of the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha Altenburg and becoming a Duke. One of the seven new duchies was the Duchy of Saxe-Meinigen and Bernhard, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Meinigen.

On November 9, 1918, Wilhelm II abdicated as German Emperor and King of Prussia in the wake of the November Revolution. Bernhard III, the last Duke of Saxe-Meiningen abdicated the next day due to pressure from the Meininger Workers and Soldiers Council. His half-brother Ernst waived his succession rights on November 12, 1918, officially ending the monarchy of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen. Today the territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen is in the German state of Thuringia.

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Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

Bernhard II was Duke of Saxe-Meiningen from 1803 until his abdication in 1866. He was born on December 17, 1800, in Meiningen, Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen, now in Thuringia, Germany, the youngest child of Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and Princess Luise Eleonore of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. Bernhard had two older sisters:

At just three years old, Bernhard became the reigning Duke of Saxe-Meiningen upon his father’s death in December 1803. Because of his youth, his mother served as Regent until Bernhard reached his majority. During this time, Luise Eleonore steered the duchy successfully through the Napoleonic Wars, the famine that followed, and the alignment with the Allies in 1813. Thanks to her efforts, Bernhard II found the duchy in relatively good financial shape upon assuming his role as Duke in 1821.

Marie Friederike of Hesse-Kassel

On March 23, 1825, Bernhard married Princess Marie Friederike of Hesse-Kassel. She was the daughter of Wilhelm II, Elector of Hesse and Princess Auguste of Prussia. Bernhard and Marie had two children:

Bernhard II saw the expansion of the duchy of Saxe-Meiningen in 1826. The previous year, the childless Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg died with no heirs. As a result, Bernhard and the Dukes of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Saxe-Hildburghausen divided the territories between them. The Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld ceded Saalfeld to Bernhard, and received the Gotha lands, becoming Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen ceded Hildburghausen to Bernhard, and received the Altenburg lands, becoming Duke of Saxe-Altenburg.

Although he had earlier aligned himself with Prussia, in the mid-1860s, Bernhard instead sided with Austria during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. Following Austria’s defeat, the Prussians forced Bernhard to abdicate on September 20, 1866, in favor of his son, Georg II. Now the former Duke, Bernhard took up residence at the Great Palace in Meiningen, previously built as a dower home for his mother. His attempts to be named as an advisor to his son were refused, and he lived out the remainder of his life removed from any aspect of the duchy’s government. His relationship with Georg II was somewhat strained – Bernhard had never allowed Georg access to any government business during his reign, leaving the new duke with little hands-on experience in his new role. Bernhard also later attempted – unsuccessfully – to have the German Emperor depose Georg II upon his morganatic marriage to Ellen Franz in 1873. It would be another five years before he would reconcile with his son, and meet his newest daughter-in-law.

Ducal Crypt Chapel, Meiningen. photo: Von kramer96 – Original uploader was Kramer96 at de.wikipedia.Originaltext: eigene Aufnahme, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19859816

Bernhard II died in Meiningen, Duchy of Saxe-Meinigen, now in Thuringia, Germany, on December 3, 1882. He was buried in the Ducal Crypt Chapel (link in German) in the Meiningen municipal cemetery until 1977 when his remains were removed from the chapel, cremated, and buried elsewhere in the cemetery.

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