Category Archives: German Royals

Alexandrine of Baden, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 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. In 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-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Alexandrine of Baden, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Alexandrine of Baden (Alexandrine Luise Amalie Friederike Elisabeth Sophie) was born Karlsruhe, Grand Duchy of Baden, Karlsruhe, Grand Duchy of Baden, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, on December 6, 1820. She was the eldest of the eight children of Leopold I, Grand Duke of Baden and Princess Sophie of Sweden.

Alexandrine had seven siblings:

Alexandrine, standing next to her mother, with four of her siblings; Credit – Wikipedia

Alexandrine was first courted by the future Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia. He visited her in Baden and preliminary marriage negotiations took place. However, on his way home to Russia, Alexander visited Hesse-Darmstadt and met Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine who was eventually his bride. On May 13, 1842, in Karlsruhe, Baden (now in Germany) Alexandrine married the future Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Before the marriage, Ernst was suffering from a venereal disease as a result of his many affairs. He had been warned that continued promiscuity could leave him unable to father children. Ernst had at least three illegitimate children, but his marriage was childless, perhaps due to Ernst passing the venereal disease to Alexandrine causing her to become infertile. Alexandrine was loyal and devoted to her husband despite his infidelities and believed that their lack of children was her fault.

Alexandrine, Painting by Franz Winterhalter, 1842; Credit – Wikipedia

After his marriage, Ernst continued to have affairs that Alexandrine apparently accepted. At one point, Ernst had two mistresses living with him and Alexandrine. Ernst’s sister-in-law Queen Victoria could not understand how Alexandrine accepted this and wrote to one of her children, “Uncle E.’s conduct is perfectly monstrous and I must blame Aunt very much. They have not written to me yet – but when they do I shall have to write very strongly.”

On January 29, 1844, Ernst’s father died and he became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Ernst was not well-loved by his people, but Alexandrine was. She supported many charities including the Ernst Foundation for needy students. During the Franco-German War, Alexandrine worked with the Red Cross dealing with the German wounded soldiers. For her work, she was awarded the Bavarian Order of Theresa and the Prussian Order of Louise. Alexandrine founded the Gymnasium Alexandrinum, an all-girls school that was funded by her school foundation. Upon her death, she left 620,000 marks from her personal assets for the good of the people of Coburg.

Alexandrine (in black) with the family of Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha died after a short illness at the age of 75 at Schloss Reinhardsbrunn in Coburg on August 22, 1893. Alexandrine survived him by eleven years, dying at Schloss Callenberg in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany on December 20, 1904, at the age of 84. She was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery in Coburg.

Ducal Mausoleum in Glockenberg Cemetery; Credit – Wikipedia

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.

Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 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. In 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-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was born on June 21, 1818, at Ehrenburg Palace in Coburg, Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany. He was the elder of the two sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his first wife Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. Ernst had one brother:

Ernst (right) with his younger brother Albert and his mother Louise; Credit – Wikipedia

Since Ernst II and Albert were close in age, they were also close companions during childhood. However, their childhood was marred by their parents’ disastrous marriage, separation, and divorce. Ernst II’s mother and father were very different and drifted apart soon after Albert’s birth. Ernst I was a notorious womanizer, and as a result, his young wife Louise (who was 17 years younger than her husband) sought consolation with Baron Alexander von Hanstein, the Duke’s equerry. Louise was exiled from court in 1824 and divorced in March 1826. Seven months later, Louise secretly married von Hanstein. She died in 1831 at the age of 30 from cancer. After Louise’s exile from the court in 1824, she probably never saw her sons again. In 1831, Ernst I married again to Duchess Marie of Württemberg, his niece, the daughter of his sister Antoinette. Ernst I and Marie had no children but Marie had a good relationship with her two stepsons who were also her first cousins.

Ernst II and his brother Albert were first educated at home by a caring tutor, Johann Christoph Florschütz. Florschütz supervised the brothers over the next 15 years and was their primary caregiver. The brothers had lessons in German, Latin, English, French, history, science, philosophy, and geography. Their father often took lunch with his sons and occasionally took them hunting, but played only a minor role in their education. From June 1836 – April 1837, Ernst II studied mathematics, philosophy, foreign languages, and public and constitutional doctrine with private tutors in Brussels, Belgium, where his paternal uncle was King Leopold I of the Belgians. He then studied at the University of Bonn, which many German princes attended. While at the University of Bonn, Ernst II studied law and philosophy. In Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, Ernst II received a military education with the Royal Saxon Guards Cavalry.

Ernst II in 1842; Credit – Wikipedia

At the urging of his brother Albert, who had married Queen Victoria in 1840, Ernst II began his search for a bride. He was suffering from a venereal disease as a result of his many affairs and had been warned that continued promiscuity could leave him unable to father children.  However, he did not have an affair with Harriet Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland as depicted in the television series Victoria. The real Harriet was twelve years older than Ernst II and her husband George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 2nd Duke of Sutherland did not die until 1861. Harriet and her husband had a successful, loving marriage and had eleven children.

On May 13, 1842, in Karlsruhe, Grand Duchy of Baden, now in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, Ernst II married Princess Alexandrine of Baden, the daughter of Leopold I, Grand Duke of Baden and Princess Sophie of Sweden.  Ernst II had at least three illegitimate children, but his marriage was childless, perhaps due to his passing the venereal disease to Alexandrine causing her to become infertile. Alexandrine was loyal and devoted to her husband despite his infidelities and believed their lack of children was her fault.

Alexandrine in 1842, painted by Franz Winterhalter; Credit – Wikipedia

On January 29, 1844, Ernst II’s father died and he became Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Ernst II had financial difficulties throughout his reign due to his extravagance. In 1852, the constitutions of Coburg and Gotha merged into one constitution, converting the personal union of the two duchies into a real union. Ernst II was against his nephew Edward, Prince of Wales (Bertie) marrying Princess Alexandra of Denmark due to the Schleswig-Holstein Question, the relation of two duchies, Schleswig and Holstein to the Danish crown and the German Confederation. He had a reputation for being a strong friend of the United States. However, Ernst II was the only European sovereign to appoint an ambassador to the Confederate States of America. In 1862, after Otto of Bavaria, King of Greece was deposed, Ernst II was considered as Otto’s replacement. Eventually, the Princess of Wales’ younger brother Prince William of Denmark would become King George I of Greece. Ernst II was in favor of a German unified, federal state and supported Prussia in the Austro-Prussian and Franco-Prussian Wars. In 1871, he was on the podium in the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles when King Wilhelm I of Prussia was proclaimed German Emperor.

The Proclamation of the German Emperor by Anton von Werner, Ernst II in the white uniform on the podium on the far left; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst II was an excellent musician, an amateur composer, and a great patron of the arts and sciences in Coburg. He was the friend and patron of the German writer Gustav Freytag and the “Waltz King” Johann Strauss. From February to May 1862, Ernst II took a trip to Africa with travel writer Friedrich Gerstäcker and the zoologist Alfred Brehm and described his experiences in a book. Ernst II enriched the art collection at the Veste Coburg and Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha and the collection became part of the Ducal Museum in Gotha.

Although Queen Victoria loved Ernst II because he was her dear Albert’s brother, he annoyed her. In 1891, when Victoria and Ernst II met in France, one of the Queen’s ladies-in-waiting wrote “…the old Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha has been here today with his wife. He is the Prince Consort’s only brother and an awful looking man, the Queen dislikes him particularly. He is always writing anonymous pamphlets against the Queen and Empress Frederick, which naturally creates a great deal of annoyance in the family…” Queen Marie of Romania, born Princess Marie of Edinburgh, said of her great uncle, he is “… an old beau, squeezed into a frock-coat too tight for his bulk and uncomfortably pinched in at the waist’, sporting a top hat, lemon coloured gloves, and a rosebud in his lapel.”

The Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1893; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha died after a short illness at the age of 75 at Schloss Reinhardsbrunn in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany, on August 22, 1893. Thousands of people came to view the funeral procession. He was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery in Coburg. Ernst was succeeded by his nephew Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh.

Ducal Mausoleum in Glockenberg Cemetery; Credit – Wikipedia

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.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Marie of Württemberg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 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. In 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-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Marie of Württemberg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Marie of Württemberg (Antoinette Friederike Auguste Marie Ann) was the second wife and the niece of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Born on September 17, 1799, in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany, she was the eldest child and the only daughter of Duke Alexander of Württemberg and Antoinette of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.  Marie had four brothers, but only two survived childhood. Marie and her brothers were first cousins of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

  • Paul of Württemberg (1800–1801)
  • Alexander of Württemberg (1804-1881), married (1) Marie d’Orléans, daughter of Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, had one son; (2) Katharine Amalie Pfennigkaüfer, no issue
  • Ernest of Württemberg (1807–1868), married Nathalie Eschborn, had one daughter
  • Friedrich Wilhelm Ferdinand of Württemberg (1810 – 1815)

Marie’s first three years were spent at Schloss Fantaisie in Bayreuth, Bavaria (Germany). Her paternal aunt Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg (known as Maria Feodorovna after her marriage) was the second wife of Paul I, Emperor of All Russia. After serving in the Württemberg and Austrian armies, Marie’s father joined the Imperial Russian Army as a Lieutenant General and commander of the Riga Cuirassier Regiment. As a result, Marie lived on an estate at Mitau in present-day Latvia and in a palace in St. Petersburg, Russia from 1802-1832.

On December 23, 1832, Marie married her uncle Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha at Schloss Ehrenburg in Coburg. The groom was 48 and the bride was 33. Ernst had been anxious to find a new bride after the death of his first, estranged wife, Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. However, Ernst’s age and his negative reputation left him with limited choices for a bride. His mother Augusta, Dowager Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha arranged the marriage between her son and her granddaughter. After her marriage, Marie was not only the first cousin but also the stepmother of her husband’s sons from his first marriage, Ernst (later Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) and Albert (later husband of Queen Victoria). Marie and Ernst had no children, but Marie had a good relationship with her stepsons and maintained a correspondence with Albert throughout their lives.

Marie was interested in literature, music, theater, art, and education. The newly built Landestheater Coburg opened on her 41st birthday. The composer Franz Liszt frequently visited her. In 1836, Marie took over the management of the Gothaer Marien-Institut, a private school for girls. The Marienschulstiftung (Marie School Foundation) opened in 1842 and still runs the kindergarten and nursery school that Marie started.

After Ernst died in 1844, Marie lived in her three dower castles in Gotha, Schloss Reinhardsbrunn, Schloss Friedrichsthal, and Schloss Friedenstein. She returned to Coburg whenever her English relatives visited. Marie died at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany on September 24, 1860, at the age of 61 and was buried in the Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany.

The Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery. photo: by Störfix – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4010189

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.

Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; Credit – Wikipedia

The mother of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband, Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (Luise Pauline Charlotte Friederike Auguste) was born on December 21, 1800, at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha, Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, now in Thuringia, Germany. Louise was the only child of Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and his first wife Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Louise’s mother never recovered from childbirth and died eleven days later at the age of 21.

Louise’s father Augustus married again in 1802 to Princess Karoline Amalie of Hesse-Kassel.  The marriage was childless, but Karoline Amalie was a devoted stepmother to Louise. Karoline Amalie and Augustus became estranged after a few years of marriage and Karoline Amalie withdrew from court life.

On December 20, 1816, the engagement of Louise and Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (later Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) was announced. The couple married on July 3, 1817, at Louise’s birthplace Schloss Friedenstein. The bride was 16 and the groom was 33. There is some indication that Louise had heard about Ernst’s womanizing before her marriage and his several illegitimate children, but she was optimistic about a happy life with him.

The couple had two sons:

Albert (left) and Ernst (right) with their mother Louise; Credit – Wikipedia

Although the marriage was initially happy, the couple soon grew apart due to Ernst’s infidelities. In 1823, Louise had an affair with Gottfried von Bülow, the court chamberlain. The following year, she had an affair with Alexander von Hanstein, one of her husband’s equerries. At midnight on September 2, 1824, Louise was forced into exile and permanently cut off from her children. She was given a home in St. Wendel in the Principality of Lichtenberg, now in the German state of Saarland, which Ernst had received as a reward for his participation in the Napoleonic Wars. Louise suffered greatly due to her separation from her two sons. Images of her sons and visitation rights were denied to her. Ernst and Louise were divorced on March 31, 1826.

Louise’s lover, Freiherr (Baron) Alexander von Hanstein followed her to St. Wendel, and the couple planned to marry. In preparation for the marriage, Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg created Alexander Graf (Count) von Pölzig and Beiersdorf on July 19, 1826. On October 18, 1826, Alexander and Louise were married in St. Wendel. They resided in the Schlösschen (Little Palace) there and spent some happy years, but the marriage was childless. Louise had a great interest in the social life of the Principality of Lichtenberg and was revered as its Landesmutter (mother of the country).

Bronze statue of Louise at the St. Wendel town hall; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

On February 16, 1831, Louise traveled with her husband to see doctors in Paris, France because of the deterioration of her health. Unfortunately, incurable cervical cancer was diagnosed. Louise died on August 30, 1831, in Paris at the age of 30. Louise’s embalmed body had been kept at the Schlösschen (Little Palace) in St. Wendel, but then, as a result of intrigues within the House of Saxe-Coburg, it somehow disappeared. First, the coffin found its way to a legal assistant’s house, and then in 1833 to the church in the village of Pfeffelbach in the Principality of Lichtenberg, where it lay in a simple crypt under the pulpit and was almost forgotten. On June 9, 1846, Louise’s coffin was taken to Coburg, where it stayed at the Church of St. Moritz, before being moved to the Ducal Mausoleum in Glockenberg Cemetery in 1860.

Louise’s widower Alexander remarried and had three children. In 1845, Alexander contacted his stepson Prince Albert, who in the meantime had married Queen Victoria, and Albert granted him a pension.

The Ducal Mausoleum in the Glockenberg Cemetery. photo: by Störfix – Selbst fotografiert, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4010189

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.

Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 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. In 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-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Ernst Anton Karl Ludwig) was born January 2, 1784, in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany. He was the eldest son of Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Augusta of Reuss-Ebersdorf.

Ernst had eight siblings:

Because his sister had married into the Russian Imperial Family, Ernst received commissions as colonel and general of Russian army regiments. On May 10, 1803, Ernst was legally declared an adult so he could participate in the duchy’s government as his father was seriously ill. In October of 1806, Ernst fought on the Prussian side in the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt which pitted the forces of Emperor Napoleon I of France and King Frederick William III of Prussia against each other. The loss suffered by the Prussian army subjugated the Kingdom of Prussia to the French Empire for six years.

Ernst’s father died on December 9, 1806, and Ernst succeeded him as Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. However, as Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was occupied by Napoleon’s troops and under French administration, Ernst could not gain control of the government. In 1807, with the help of Russia, the Treaties of Tilsit restored control of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld to Ernst.

Ernst served as a general in the Prussian Army and participated in campaigns against Napoleon. After the Napoleonic Wars, Ernst worked on rebuilding the duchy. In 1821, he gave the country a new constitution. He promoted science and the arts and built theaters in Coburg and Gotha. Ernst oversaw romantic neo-Gothic renovations to the castles Rosenau, Ehrenburg, Callenberg, and Reinhardsbrunn and established the English-style landscape park at the castles.

Ernst was long content with bachelorhood until his mother insisted he marry to provide the duchy with heirs. Ernst considered several candidates for marriage, including some of the daughters of Paul, Emperor of All Russia, but settled on Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, the only child and heiress of Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and Louise Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. She was a lively, romantic, and well-educated girl who was excited at the prospect of marrying Ernst, whom she thought was handsome and kind. There is some indication that Louise had heard about Ernst’s womanizing (and his several illegitimate children) before her marriage, she was optimistic about a happy life with him.

Ernst was her distant cousin and 33 years old to Louise’s 16 at the time of the wedding. The match was arranged by Ernst’s mother to bring Louise’s territory of Gotha to the duchy. Due to the Salic Law in force in the duchy, Louise could not rule the territories herself, but a husband or son could claim them on her behalf. Louise also brought a healthy dowry to the marriage, which could be used to restore Saxe-Coburg’s long-faltering finances.

The wedding was held in Gotha on July 3, 1817. The couple had two sons:

Albert (left) and Ernst (right) with their mother Louise; Credit – Wikipedia

Although the marriage was initially happy, the couple soon grew apart due to Ernst’s infidelities. After discovering Louise’s affair with her chamberlain in 1824, Ernst forced Louise out of the duchy. She was exiled and permanently cut off from her children. The couple was officially divorced on March 31, 1826. Louise died of cancer in 1831 at the age of 30.

In 1825, while Ernst and Louise’s divorce proceedings were occurring, Friedrich IV, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Louise’s uncle, died without an heir. This necessitated a rearrangement of the Ernestine duchies. Ernst received Gotha and ceded Saalfeld to Saxe-Meiningen. He subsequently became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

On December 23, 1832, Ernst married his niece Marie of Württemberg, the daughter of his sister Antoinette. The couple had no children and had little in common, but Marie had a loving relationship with her stepsons.

Marie of Württemberg; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst died on January 29, 1844, at Schloss Friedenstein in Gotha, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Thuringia, Germany. He was initially buried in the crypt of the Church of St. Moritz in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany. In 1860, his remains were re-interred in the Ducal Mausoleum in Glockenberg Cemetery in Coburg

Ducal Mausoleum in Glockenberg Cemetery; Credit – Wikipedia

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.

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 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. In 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-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; Credit – Wikipedia

The grandmother of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Augusta Caroline Sophie was born a Countess Reuss of Ebersdorf on January 19, 1757, in Ebersdorf Castle, in Ebersdorf, County of  Reuss-Ebersdorf, now in Thuringia, Germany. She was the second of the seven children of Heinrich XXIV, Count Reuss of Ebersdorf and Karoline Ernestine of Erbach-Schönberg.

Ebersdorf Castle, Augusta’s birthplace; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Only three of Augusta’s six siblings survived childhood:

Ebersdorf was a center of Pietism in Germany. Pietism was a form of Lutheranism that stressed practicing individual piety and living a strict Christian life, and Augusta’s grandparents were considered ardent admirers of their religion. As a result, Augusta developed a deep religious belief.

Little is known of Augusta’s upbringing, but a portrait exists of Augusta in her youth as Artemisia II of Caria (died 350 BCE), the sister, the wife, and the successor of Mausolus, ruler of Caria. Augusta is the picture of serenity in the portrait with a peaceful smile on her face and her hands and eyes resting on an urn and an accompanying goblet. The painter, German artist Johann Heinrich Tischbein, made his living from painting German nobility and minor royalty. Augusta’s father had the portrait exhibited at the Perpetual Diet of Regensburg, the general assembly of Imperial Estates of the Holy Roman Empire, so potential marriage candidates were aware of his beautiful daughter.

Augusta Reuss of Erbersdorf as Artemisia; Credit – Wikipedia

Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld had fallen in love with the beautiful Augusta and had purchased the Artemisia painting for four times the original price. However, he had to marry a relative, Princess Sophie of Saxe-Hildburghausen, but Sophie died seven months after the wedding. On June 13, 1777, in the bride’s hometown of Ebersdorf, Franz married Augusta.

Franz and Augusta had nine children:

Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; Credit – Wikipedia

Like her famous granddaughter Queen Victoria, Augusta kept a detailed journal of her adult life, outlining much of her rather astonishing accomplishments. Her great-granddaughter Princess Beatrice, the youngest child of Queen Victoria, translated and edited the memoirs of her great-grandmother which were published under the title In Napoleonic Times.

At the time of his marriage to Augusta, Franz was an avid collector of art (particularly engravings) and books. When he inherited the dukedom from his father in 1800, Franz inherited the legacy of his father’s poor administration and huge debts. Furthermore, Franz had little aptitude for or interest in running the duchy himself. Franz’s art-buying days were over as the family began a life of aristocratic poverty. Victoria, the future Duchess of Kent, remembered her mother once scolding her for tearing her dress, as there was no money for another.

Augusta may have been the first person to suggest a marriage between two of her grandchildren. In 1821, in a letter to her daughter Victoria, Duchess of Kent, she suggested the possibility of marriage between Victoria’s daughter, the future Queen Victoria, and Albert, the second son of her son Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Victoria and Albert were only two years old at the time.

Augusta did not live long enough to see the marriage of her grandchildren Victoria and Albert. She died in Coburg at the age of 74 on November 16, 1831, five months after the election of her son Leopold as King of the Belgians, and was buried with her husband in a mausoleum in the Coburg Court Garden.

Mausoleum of Franz Friedrich Anton and Augusta; Credit – “Coburg-Hofgarten-Mausoleum” von Störfix. Lizenziert unter CC BY-SA 3.0 über Wikimedia Commons – http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Coburg-Hofgarten-Mausoleum.jpg#/media/File:Coburg-Hofgarten-Mausoleum.jpg

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Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha: In 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. In 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-Saalfeld and Johann Ernst, one of the seven sons of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg became the first Duke of Saxe-Saalfeld.  When two of his brothers died without male heirs, Johann Ernst took possession of Coburg (in 1699) and Römhild (in 1714). In 1699, Johann Ernst’s title changed to Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.

In 1825, 145 years after the initial split, another line became extinct and there was another split between three surviving duchies. Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld became Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. For more information on the switch, see Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index.

On November 9, 1918, after the German Empire lost World War I, the Workers’ and Soldiers Council of Gotha, deposed the last Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Charles Edward, a grandson of Queen Victoria.  Five days later, he signed a declaration relinquishing his rights to the throne. The territory that encompassed the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is now in the German states of Bavaria and Thuringia.

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Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; Credit – Wikipedia

On July 15, 1750, Franz Frederick Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, the grandfather of both Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert, was born in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now a town in Bavaria, Germany. He was the eldest of the seven children of Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and his wife Sophia Antonia of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Out of the seven children, only Franz Frederick Anton, a sister, and a brother survived childhood.

  • Karl (1751-1757), died in childhood
  • Friederike Juliane (born and died 1752), died in infancy
  • Caroline Ulrike Amalie (1753-1829), an abbess at the secular Lutheran abbey, Gandersheim Abbey
  • Ludwig Karl Friedrich (1755-1806), had an illegitimate son Ludwig Frederick Emil of Coburg (1779 – 1827) whose five children were created Freiherren (Barons) von Coburg
  • Ferdinand August Heinrich (1756-1758), died in childhood
  • Friedrich (born and died 1758), died in infancy

On March 6, 1775, Franz married Princess Sophie of Saxe-Hildburghausen, a daughter of Ernst Friedrich III Karl, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen and his third wife Princess Ernestine of Saxe-Weimar.  At the time, Franz was already in love with his future wife, Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf, but he was unable to break off his engagement with Sophie. The bride was only 16 years old and died of influenza just six months after the wedding which allowed Franz to marry his beloved Augusta.

Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf; Credit – Wikipedia

On June 13, 1777, in the bride’s hometown of Ebersdorf, County of Reuss-Ebersdrof, now in Thuingia, Germany, Franz married Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf, the eldest daughter of Heinrich XXIV, Count Reuss of Ebersdorf and Karoline Ernestine of Erbach-Schönberg.

Franz and Augusta had nine children:

Franz Friedrich Anton; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1800, Franz succeeded his father as Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, but he ruled only for six years before his death in 1806. In 1805, due to the ailing finances, Franz was forced by his Prime Minister Theodor Konrad von Kretschmann to make a contract between the two duchies, Coburg and Saalfeld, for a uniform system of government. In 1806, with the end of the Holy Roman Empire, the Duchy regained its independence and joined the Confederation of the Rhine.

Franz was a great lover of art and books. In 1775, he began a print collection that ultimately consisted of 300,000 prints. The collection can be visited at the Veste Coburg. Because of Franz, the family’s library had an extensive collection of books. Franz conducted an extensive renovation of the family castles. Walls, ditches, and towers were demolished and replaced by gardens and other green areas. In 1805, Franz bought back Schloss Rosenau which the family had been forced to sell in 1704 due to debts.

Franz Frederick Anton died, aged 56, on December 9, 1806, in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany. He was buried in a mausoleum in the Coburg Court Garden in Coburg. Twenty-five years later, his second wife Augusta was buried next to him.

Mausoleum of Franz Friedrich Anton and Augusta; Credit – “Coburg-Hofgarten-Mausoleum” von Störfix. Lizenziert unter CC BY-SA 3.0 über Wikimedia Commons – http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Coburg-Hofgarten-Mausoleum.jpg#/media/File:Coburg-Hofgarten-Mausoleum.jpg

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Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Beatrice of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duchess of Galliera

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Beatrice of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duchess of Galliera; Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Beatrice (Beatrice Leopoldine Victoria) was the youngest child of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (the second son of Queen Victoria) and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (the daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia). She was born Beatrice Leopoldine Victoria on April 20, 1884, at Eastwell Park in Kent, England, her parents leased country home.

Beatrice was christened at Eastwell House on May 17, 1884. Her godparents were:

Beatrice had four siblings:

Beatrice (on her mother’s lap), with her mother and siblings. source: Wikipedia

Due to her father’s military career, as well as his future role in Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Beatrice grew up in England, Malta and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The youngest child in the family, she was perhaps more doted upon than her elder sisters and was known as ‘Baby’ or ‘Baby-Bee’. In July 1893, Beatrice was one of the bridesmaids at the wedding of her first cousin The Duke of York, to Princess Victoria Mary of Teck (later King George V and Queen Mary). The following month, her father became the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha upon the death of his uncle. The family moved permanently to Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Bavaria, taking up residence at Schloss Ehrenburg in Coburg. During their years in Coburg, Beatrice’s sisters were all married, and her brother survived an attempted suicide but died in a sanitorium a month later.

Following her father’s death in 1900, Beatrice remained with her mother in Coburg, living at the Palais Edinburg (which her father had purchased in the mid-1880s) and Schloss Rosenau. In 1902, she became involved in a relationship with her first cousin, Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia. However, the Russian Orthodox Church forbade marriages between first cousins, and Michael’s brother Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia refused to allow an exception. Michael ended the relationship the following year.

In 1906, Beatrice’s cousin, Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, married King Alfonso XIII of Spain in Madrid. It was at the wedding that Beatrice met her future husband, Alfonso XIII’s first cousin Infante Alfonso of Spain, son of Infante Antonio, Duke of Galliera, and Infanta Eulalia of Spain.

The couple was married on July 15, 1909, in Coburg. A civil ceremony was held at Schloss Rosenau, followed by a Catholic Ceremony at St. Augustine’s Church, and a Lutheran ceremony at Schloss Callenberg. Unlike her cousin, Victoria Eugenie, Beatrice chose not to convert to Catholicism before her marriage. She did later convert in 1913.

Because of the difference in religion, there was dissent within the Spanish government. While King Alfonso XIII of Spain personally encouraged and supported the marriage, the government would not allow him to give formal consent. Therefore, upon marriage, the couple was banished from Spain, and Alfonso was stripped of his honors and titles, including that of Infante of Spain. They settled in Coburg until 1912 when they were permitted to return to Spain, and Alfonso’s titles and honors were restored. Beatrice and Alfonso had three sons:

  • Infante Alvaro (1910-1997) – married Carla Parodi-Delfino, had issue
  • Infante Alonso (1912-1936) – killed in action during the Spanish Civil War, unmarried, no issue
  • Infante Ataúlfo (1913-1974) – unmarried, no issue

Beatrice with her three sons, c. 1913. source: Wikipedia

In 1916, the couple was sent to Switzerland. Under the guise of an official mission, rumors quickly spread that it was due to either Beatrice’s influence on Queen Victoria Eugenie or because she had rebuffed the romantic advances of King Alfonso XIII, a notorious womanizer. After some time in Switzerland, the couple moved to England where their sons were educated at Winchester College. Eight years later, they were finally permitted to return to Spain.

In the following years, the Spanish monarchy was overthrown and the country was thrown into Civil War. Beatrice’s second son Alonso was killed in action, and the family lost their properties. Initially exiled to England, they eventually returned to Spain in 1937, and settled at a new estate, El Botánico, in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, where they would live for the rest of their lives. Beatrice died on July 13, 1966, at El Botánico. She is buried with her husband at the Convent of Capuchin Fathers in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain.

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.

Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg; Credit – Wikipedia

Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (Ernst Wilhelm Friedrich Carl Maximilian) was the husband of Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. He was born on September 13, 1863, in Langenburg, Principality of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. He was the eldest child of Hermann, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Princess Leopoldine of Baden. Ernst had two younger sisters:

He was educated in Karlsruhe and then studied law in Paris, Bonn, Tübingen, and Leipzig, graduating in 1885. Following his military training, he was appointed Secretary of the Imperial German Embassy in St Petersburg and London. He also worked for his father when he served as Imperial Governor of Alsace-Lorraine.

source: Wikipedia

On April 20, 1896, Ernst married Princess Alexandra at Schloss Ehrenburg in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Bavaria. She was the daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (a son of Queen Victoria), and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (a daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia). The couple was second cousins – their grandmothers Queen Victoria and Princess Feodora of Leiningen were half-sisters. Ernst and Alexandra had five children:

In 1900, his father-in-law died, and the ducal throne of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha passed to Alexandra’s cousin Charles Edward, Duke of Albany. Because Charles Edward was just sixteen years old, Ernst was appointed as Regent until the new Duke reached his majority in 1905.

Enst later tried to get into politics in the German Empire. He served as Head of the Colonial Department of the Foreign Office, and Deputy and later Vice President of the Reichstag. Following his father’s death in 1913, Ernst became the Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and took his seat in the Kammer der Standesherren (House of Lords) in Württemberg. During World War I, he served as General Delegate to the Eastern Front and as a special envoy to Constantinople and the Balkans in 1915.

In 1936, Ernst joined the Nazi Party. Following World War II, Ernst retired from official service and lived a quiet and more private life. He spent his remaining years working with charities and organizations in Württemberg, including the Order of Saint John and the Red Cross.

Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, died on December 11, 1950, in Langenburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. He is buried alongside his wife in the family cemetery at Schloss Langenburg.

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Princess Alexandra of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Princess Alexandra of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg; source: Wikipedia

Princess Alexandra (Alexandra Louise Olga Victoria) was the third daughter of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (son of Queen Victoria), and Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (daughter of Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia). She was born on September 1, 1878, at Schloss Rosenau near Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Bavaria. Her christening took place a month later at Palais Edinburg in Coburg. Among her godparents was her maternal uncle Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia.

Alexandra had four siblings:

 

As the family moved around often due to her father’s naval career, Alexandra grew up in the United Kingdom, Cyprus, Malta, and Coburg. From the mid-1880s, the family spent significant  time in Coburg, as her father was the heir-presumptive to his childless uncle Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. When Alfred succeeded to the ducal throne in August 1893, the family took up permanent residence in Coburg. Alexandra was then styled HRH Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

Alexandra and her husband Prince Ernst of Hohenlohe-Langenburg; source: Wikipedia

It was at Schloss Ehrenburg in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in Bavaria, Germany on April 20, 1896, that Alexandra married Prince Ernst of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. He was the eldest son of Hermann, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Princess Leopoldine of Baden. Alexandra and Ernst were second cousins. Their grandmothers, Queen Victoria and Princess Feodora of Leiningen, were half-sisters.  The couple had five children:

When Alexandra’s father died in 1900, her husband Ernst served as Regent for the new Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Alexandrta’s first cousin Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Albany until he reached his maturity in 1905. As her husband pursued his ambitions elsewhere, Alexandra often spent time with her mother in Coburg and visited her sisters. In 1913, her father-in-law died, and she and her husband became the Prince and Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, taking up residence as Schloss Langenburg. Living a relatively quiet life, Alexandra worked during World War I as a nurse with the Red Cross. After her mother died in 1920, Alexandra and her sisters inherited Palais Edinburg in Coburg, and, along with her sisters, leased Schloss Rosenau from the state until the late 1930s. In 1937, Alexandra joined her husband, and some of her children, as a member of the Nazi Party.

Princess Alexandra died on April 16, 1942, in Schwäbisch Hall, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. She is buried in the family cemetery at Schloss Langenburg.

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