by Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2019
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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The great-grandfather of Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert, Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, was born on March 8, 1724, in Saalfeld, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Thuringia, Germany. Ernst Friedrich was the eldest of the eight children and the eldest of the four sons of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Anna Sophie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt.
Ernst Friedrich had seven siblings:
- Johann Wilhelm (1726 – 1745), unmarried, missing in action during the Battle of Hohenfriedberg
- Anna Sophie (1727 – 1728), died in infancy
- Christian Franz (1730 – 1797), unmarried
- Charlotte Sophie (1731 – 1810), married Ludwig of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, had one son Friedrich Franz I, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and one daughter Sophie Friederike who married Frederik, Hereditary Prince of Denmark – their son was King Christian VIII of Denmark
- Friederike Magdalene (1733 – 1734), died in infancy
- Friederike Caroline (1735 – 1791), married Margrave Karl Alexander of Brandenburg-Ansbach and Bayreuth, no children
- Friedrich Josias (1737 – 1 815), married morganatically his housekeeper Therese Stroffeck, had one son
On April 23, 1749, Ernst Friedrich married Sophia Antonia of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, daughter of Ferdinand Albrecht II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and his first cousin once removed Antoinette Amalie of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.
Ernst Friedrich and Sophia Antonia had seven children but only three survived childhood:
- Franz Friedrich Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1750-1806), married (1) Sophie of Saxe-Hildburghausen, no children (2) Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf, had nine children; parents of Leopold I, King of the Belgians, and grandparents of King Consort Ferdinand of Portugal, Leopold II, King of the Belgians, Empress Carlota of Mexico, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
- Karl (1751-1757), died in childhood
- Friederike Juliane (born and died 1752), died in infancy
- Caroline Ulrike Amalie (1753-1829), a nun at Gandersheim Abbey
- Ludwig Karl Friedrich (1755-1806), unmarried, had an illegitimate son
- Ferdinand August Heinrich (1756-1758), died in childhood
- Friedrich (born and died 1758), died in infancy
Ernst Friedrich nearly became Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. Prince Heinrich XXXV of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a controversial and extravagant ruler who was emotionally distanced from his family, his principality, and his subjects. Since he had a tense relationship with his family, he decided to bequeath his assets to Ernst Friedrich. However, when Heinrich died unmarried in 1758, he was succeeded by his nephew Christian Günther III.
In 1764, Ernst Friedrich succeeded his father as Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and transferred the official residence of the duchy from Saalfeld to Coburg. Because the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was heavily in debt, Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II appointed a debit commission headed by Prince Joseph of Saxe-Hildburghausen and then Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, to prevent the bankruptcy of the duchy. The work of the debt commission lasted over thirty years and during that time period, Ernst Friedrich was given a strict annual allowance.
Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld died on September 8, 1800, in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld at the age of 76. He was buried in the ducal crypt at the Morizkirche (or Stadtkirche St. Moriz) in Coburg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, now in Bavaria, Germany. His wife Sophia Antonia survived him by almost two years, dying on May 17, 1802, at the age of 78. She was buried with her husband.
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Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Resources at Unofficial Royalty
- Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Index
- Profiles: Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Rulers and Consorts
- Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Royal Dates
- Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Royal Burial Sites
Works Cited
- De.wikipedia.org. (2019). Ernst Friedrich (Sachsen-Coburg-Saalfeld). [online] Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_Friedrich_(Sachsen-Coburg-Saalfeld) [Accessed 7 Feb. 2019].
- En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Ernest Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Frederick,_Duke_of_Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld [Accessed 7 Feb. 2019].