Christiane of Saxe-Merseburg

Christiane of Saxe-Merseburg
Christiane of Saxe-Merseburg, Duchess of Saxe-Eisenberg (probably in the allegorical representation of hunting goddess Diana), painted ca. 1678, now in the Kupferstichkabinett (Collection of Prints, Drawings and Photographs) of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (Dresden State Art Collections).
Born(1659-06-01)1 June 1659
Merseburg
Died13 March 1679(1679-03-13) (aged 19)
Eisenberg
Noble familyHouse of Wettin
Spouse(s)Christian, Duke of Saxe-Eisenberg
IssueChristiane, Duchess of Schleswig-Holstein-Glücksburg
FatherChristian I, Duke of Saxe-Merseburg
MotherChristiana of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg

Christiane of Saxe-Merseburg (1 June 1659 – 13 March 1679), was a German noblewoman member of the House of Wettin and by marriage Duchess of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg.

Born in Merseburg, she was a child of Christian I, Duke of Saxe-Merseburg and his wife Christiana of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg.

Life

In Merseburg on 13 February 1677 Christiane married Duke Christian of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. Both belonged to the House of Wettin: she was a member of the Albertine line while her husband belonged to the Ernestine branch. The couple settled in Eisenberg at the Christianburg Castle.[1]

Two years later, on 4 March 1679, she gave birth to a daughter, named Christiane after her and later wife of Philip Ernst, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Glücksburg;[citation needed] however, nine days later (13 March) she died of childbirth complications aged 19, probably from puerperal fever. She was buried in Merseburg Cathedral.[citation needed] In her honour, her husband build the Castle church of St. Trinity (German: Schlosskirche St. Trinitatis) in the Christianburg Castle.

Notes

  1. ^ Technically, she never became Duchess of Saxe-Eisenberg, because her husband only officially received these land as a ruler in 1680, one year after her death.

References

Christiane of Saxe-Merseburg
Born: 1 June 1659 Died: 13 March 1679
German royalty
New creation Duchess consort of Saxe-Eisenberg (titular)
1677–1679 		Vacant
Title next held by
Sophie Marie of Hesse-Darmstadt