Princess Charlotte Frederica of Prussia

Charlotte Frederica of Prussia Hereditary Princess of Saxe-Meiningen Spouse Duke Georg of Saxe-Meiningen Issue Bernhard III, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Prince Georg Albrecht Princess Marie Elisabeth Full name German: Friederike Luise Wilhelmine Marianne Charlotte von Preußen House House of Hohenzollern (by birth) House of Saxe-Meiningen (by marriage) Father Prince Albert of Prussia Mother Princess Marianne of the Netherlands Born 21 June 1831(1831-06-21) Schönhausen Palace, Berlin Died 30 March 1855(1855-03-30) (aged 23) Meiningen Burial English Garden, Meiningen, Thuringia, Germany[1]

Prussian Royalty House of Hohenzollern Descendants of Frederick William III Grandchildren    Prince Friedrich Karl    Louise, Landgravine of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld    Charlotte Frederica, Hereditary Princess of Saxe-Meiningen    Princess Anna    Prince Albert    Princess Elisabeth    Princess Alexandrine

Princess Frederica Louise Wilhelmina Marianne Charlotte of Prussia (21 June 1831 – 30 March 1855) was the eldest daughter of Prince Albert of Prussia and his wife Princess Marianne of the Netherlands.^[1][2] She died before her husband Georg of Saxe-Meiningen could succeed as Duke, making her Hereditary Princess of Saxe-Meiningen.

Family and early life

Charlotte (left) and her younger sister Alexandrine.

Charlotte's father Albert was a younger son of Frederick William III of Prussia and Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Her mother Marianne was a daughter of William I of the Netherlands and Wilhelmine of Prussia. Charlotte was a sister of Prince Albert of Prussia, a Prussian general field marshal and later regent of the Duchy of Brunswick.

Her parents divorced in 1848, and custody of Charlotte and her siblings was given to her father. In actuality, their childless aunt Queen Elisabeth Ludovika (wife of Frederick William IV of Prussia) took care of them.

Music

Charlotte had a talent for music, and was taught by the likes of Wilhelm Taubert, Theodor Kullak, and Julius Stern in her youth.^[2] She wrote a number of military marches, songs, and piano pieces.^[2] Her daughter Princess Marie Elisabeth would inherit these interests.

Marriage

As a young woman, Charlotte was highly eligible, due to her Dutch fortune and Hohenzollern connections. German Crown Princess Victoria tried to marry Charlotte to one of her brothers, though the scheme failed.

In Charlottenburg, Charlotte's chosen husband was Hereditary Prince Georg of Saxe-Meiningen, whom she married on 18 May 1850.^[1][3] He was the only son of Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and Princess Marie Frederica of Hesse-Kassel, and had led a battalion from Meiningen in support of the Prussians in the First Schleswig War in 1849.^[4] After resuming his military career in Berlin, he soon became engaged to Charlotte, whose position as a niece of Frederick William IV of Prussia surely recommended the princess to him.^[3] It was a love match and their marriage occurred after a short engagement. Among the wedding gifts was an opulent old villa on Lake Como from her mother Marianne, as well as a substantial collection of paintings and sculptures.^[3][4] It was renamed the Villa Carlotta in the bride's honor.^[3] Due to their Prussian connections, the couple spent the next five years in Berlin and Potsdam but returned to Meiningen for the birth of their children.^[3]

The two shared many interests, particularly with the theater, as they were both ardent attendees; during their engagement, they had even acted in amateur court theatricals together.^[3]

Death

On 27 January 1855, their second son Georg died. Charlotte would follow him three months later, dying in childbirth.^[1][5] Georg was inconsolable, but would eventually remarry to Princess Feodora of Hohenlohe-Langenburg in order to provide a mother to his remaining children. He succeeded his father as Duke of Saxe-Meiningen in 1866, seven years after Charlotte's death.

Issue

They had four children:

• Bernhard III, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (1 April 1851 - 16 January 1928); married Princess Charlotte of Prussia and had issue.
• Prince Georg Albrecht (12 April 1852 - 27 January 1855); died young.
• Princess Marie Elisabeth (23 September 1853 - 22 February 1923); died unmarried.
• An unnamed son (29 March 1855 - 30 March 1855)

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles

• 21 June 1831 – 18 May 1850: Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte of Prussia
• 18 May 1850 – 30 March 1855: Her Royal Highness The Hereditary Princess of Saxe-Meiningen

Ancestors

Charlotte's ancestors in three generations

Princess Charlotte Frederica of Prussia	Father: Prince Albert of Prussia	Paternal Grandfather: Frederick William III of Prussia	Paternal Great-grandfather: Frederick William II of Prussia
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt
		Paternal Grandmother: Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz	Paternal Great-grandfather: Charles II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Friederike of Hesse-Darmstadt
	Mother: Princess Marianne of the Netherlands	Maternal Grandfather: William I of the Netherlands	Maternal Great-grandfather: William V, Prince of Orange
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Wilhelmina of Prussia, Princess of Orange
		Maternal Grandmother: Wilhelmine of Prussia	Maternal Great-grandfather: Frederick William II of Prussia
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Frederika Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Lundy, Darryl. "The Peerage: Friederike Luise Wilhelmine Marianne Charlotte Prinzessin von Preußen". http://thepeerage.com/p10400.htm#i103993. Retrieved 16 December 2009. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Ebel.
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Koller, p. 50.
4. ^ ^{a b} Osborne, p. 15.
5. ^ Koller, p. 51.

Sources

• Ebel, Otto (1913). Women Composers: A Biographical Handbook of Women's Work in Music. Chandler-Ebel. http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=1BkQAAAAYAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT8&dq=princess+marie+elisabeth+of+saxe-meiningen&ots=_wLip7De1R&sig=5fICgc6CNuuCt_8zQFXbmtybZLY#v=onepage&q=saxe-meiningen&f=false. 
• Koller, Ann Marie (1984). The Theater Duke: George II of Saxe-Meiningen and the German Stage. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0804711968. http://books.google.com/books?id=ug2oAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+theater+duke&hl=en&ei=caPDTOGZCcalngeImOnbCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false. 
• Osborne, John (1988). The Meiningen Court Theatre, 1866-1890. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 052130394X. 

External links

• A picture of Charlotte Frederica

Persondata
Name	Charlotte Frederica Of Prussia
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	21 June 1831
Place of birth	Schönhausen Palace, Berlin
Date of death	30 March 1855
Place of death	Meiningen