Adolphus Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Adolf Friedrich II
Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Reign 1701 - 12 May 1708
Predecessor Friedrich Wilhelm
Successor Adolf Friedrich III
Spouse Maria of Mecklenburg-Gustrow
Johanna of Saxe-Gotha
Christiane Emilie of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
House House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Father Adolf Frederick
Mother Maria Katharina of Brunswick-Dannenberg
Born October 19, 1658(1658-10-19)
Grabow
Died May 12, 1708(1708-05-12) (aged 49)
Religion Lutheranism

Adolphus Frederick II (19 October 1658 – 12 May 1708), Duke of Mecklenburg, was the first Duke in the part Mecklenburg-Strelitz, reigning from 1701 until his death. His state was a part of the Holy Roman Empire.

Contents

Biography

He was born in Grabow as the posthumous son of Duke Adolf Frederick I of Mecklenburg and his second wife Maria Katharina of Brunswick-Dannenberg (1616–1665).[1]

In 1695, the Mecklenburg-Güstrow branch of the House of Mecklenburg became extinct and Adolphus Frederick's nephew [[Frederick William, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, laid claim to the inheritance, a move which Adolphus Frederick opposed.[2]

The dispute was settled in 1701, when Adolphus Frederick reached an agreement with his nephew Duke Friedrich Wilhelm to take as his inheritance the Principality of Ratzeburg and the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.[3]

Following his death, Adolphus Frederick he was succeeded as Duke by his son Adolphus Frederick III.

Marriages and children

Adolphus Frederick II was first married to Princess Maria of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (19 July 1659 - 16 January 1701). They were parents to five children:[1]

On 20 June 1702, Adolphus Frederick II married for a second time to Princess Johanna of Saxe-Gotha (1680–1704). Johanna was a daughter of Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, and Magdalena Sybille of Saxe-Weissenfels. There were no children from this marriage.[1]

Adolphus Frederick was married on 10 June 1705 at Neustrelitz for a third and last time to Princess Christiane Emilie of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen (1681-1751]. She was a daughter of Christian William I, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and Countess Antonie Sybille of Barby-Muhlingen (1641–1684). They were parents to two children:[1]

Ancestry

Adolphus Frederick was a fourth-generation descendant of Gustav Vasa, King of Sweden, and his second Queen consort Margareta Leijonhufvud through their second child and first daughter Katharina of Sweden. Katharina was consort to Edzard II, Count of East Frisia. East Frisia played a prominent role at the spreading of Protestant Reformation in the Holy Roman Empire of the 16th century and was thus a natural ally for Protestant Sweden.

Their daughter Maria, Princess of East Frisia (1582–1616), became consort to Julius-Ernst, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1571–1636). They were the maternal grandparents of Adolf Friedrich II. He is a distant relative of Lord Mountbatten of Burma, the last Viceroy of India.

References

  1. ^ a b c d House of Mecklenburg genealogy
  2. ^ Moore, John (1803). View of Society and Manners in France, Switzerland and Germany. A. Strahan and T. Cadell. p. 191. 
  3. ^ Ungewitter, Franz Heinrich (1850). Europe, Past and Present. Putnam. p. 411. 
Adolphus Frederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Cadet branch of the House of Mecklenburg
Born: 19 October 1658 Died: 12 May 1708
Regnal titles
New title Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
1701–1708		 Succeeded by
Adolf Friedrich III