Adolf Frederick I (15 December 1588 – 27 February 1658) was the reigning Duke of

Mecklenburg-Schwerin The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1701, when Frederick William and Adolphus Frederick II divided the Duchy of Mecklenburg between Schwerin and Strelitz. Ruled by the successors of the Nikloting Hou ...

from his father's death in 1592 until 1628 and again from 1631 to 1658. Between 1634 and 1648 Adolf Frederick also ruled the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin as its

administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

Early life

He was a son of John VII, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Sophia, daughter of

Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp Adolf of Denmark or Adolf of Holstein-Gottorp (25 January 1526 –1 October 1586) was the first Duke of Holstein-Gottorp from the line of Holstein-Gottorp of the House of Oldenburg. He was the third son of King Frederick I of Denmark and h ...

, and his wife

Christine of Hesse Christine of Hesse (29 June 1543 – 13 May 1604) was Duchess consort of Holstein-Gottorp as the spouse of Duke Adolf of Holstein-Gottorp. She exerted some political influence as a widow after 1586. Biography Christine was born in Kassel a ...

. At first, Adolf Frederick and his brother John Albert II reigned under the guardianship of Duke

Ulrich III of Mecklenburg-Güstrow Ulrich III, Duke of Mecklenburg or Ulrich III of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (5 March 1527 – 14 March 1603) was Duke of Mecklenburg ( -Güstrow) from 1555-56 to 1603. Early life Ulrich was the third son of Duke Albrecht VII and Anna of Brandenburg. ...

and Charles I of Mecklenburg (his father's uncles). The two brothers Adolf Frederick and John Albert, took over governance of Mecklenburg-Schwerin beginning on 16 April 1608. After the death of Charles on 22 July 1610 they also governed in Mecklenburg-Güstrow.

Division of Mecklenburg and Thirty Years' War

In 1621 the duchy of Mecklenburg was formally divided between the two brothers, Adolf Frederick ruling in Mecklenburg-Schwerin and John Albert ruling in Mecklenburg-Güstrow. During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...

, Albrecht von Wallenstein ousted the dukes after they secretly sided with King

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mona ...

against

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

Ferdinand II. Wallenstein ruled the duchies from 1627 until 1631, when the Swedes restored the under King

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. In 1634 Adolf Frederick succeeded Ulrik of Denmark as the last Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin before its secularisation.

Marriages and children

Adolf Frederick I fathered 19 children in all. He was married for the first time on 4 September 1622 to Anna Maria of East Frisia (1601–1634), daughter of Count Enno III of

East Frisia East Frisia or East Friesland (german: Ostfriesland; ; stq, Aastfräislound) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia ...

and

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...

Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp Holstein-Gottorp or Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp () is the historiographical name, as well as contemporary shorthand name, for the parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, that were ruled by the dukes of Schl ...

. They had the following children: * Christian Louis I (Schwerin, 11 December 1623 – Den Haag, 21 June 1692), Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. *Sophie Agnes (Schwerin, 11 January 1625 – Rühn, 26 December 1694), Abbess of Rühn (1654). *Charles (Schwerin, 8 March 1626 – Mirow, 20 August 1670), Duke of Mecklenburg-Mirow. * Anna Maria (Schwerin, 1 July 1627 – Halle a.d.Saale, 11 December 1669), married in 1647 to

August, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels Augustus of Saxe-Weissenfels ( Dresden, 13 August 1614 – 4 June 1680, Halle), was a Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt of the House of Wettin and administrator of the Archbishopric of Magdeburg. He was the fourth (but second surviving) son of ...

. *John George (Lichtenburg, 5 May 1629 – Mirow, 9 July 1675), Duke of Mecklenburg-Mirow. *Hedwig (Lübeck, 11 August 1630 – Lübz, 17 May 1631). *Gustav Rudolph (Schwerin, 26 February 1632 – Tempzin, 14 May 1670), married Erdmuthe Sophie (1644–1689), daughter of

Duke Francis Henry of Saxe-Lauenburg Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

. *Juliane (Schwerin, 8 November 1633 – Schwerin, 3 February 1634). Adolf Frederick married for a second time in 1635 to Marie Katharina (1616–1665), daughter of Duke Julius Ernest, Duke of Brunswick-Dannenberg, and Maria of East Frisia (1582–1616). They had the following children: *Juliane Sibylla (Schwerin, 16 February 1636 – Rühn, 2 October 1701), Abbess of Rühn (9 March 1695). * Frederick I (Schwerin, 13 February 1638 – Schloss Grabow, 28 April 1688), Duke of Mecklenburg-Grabow. * Christina (Schwerin, 8 August 1639 – Gandersheim, 30 June 1693), Abbess of Gandersheim (1681). *Bernhard Sigismund (Schwerin, 21 January 1641 – Schwerin, 15 November 1641). *Augusta (Schwerin, 24 September 1643 – Schwerin, 5 May 1644). * Maria Elisabeth (Schwerin, 24 March 1646 – Gandersheim, 27 April 1713), Abbess of Rühn (1705), Abbess of Gandersheim (1712). *Anna Sophia (Schwerin, 24 November 1647 – Juliusburg, 13 August 1723), married in 1677 to Julius Siegmund, Duke of Württemberg-Juliusburg. *Adolph Ernest (Schwerin, 22 November 1650 – Schwerin, 13 January 1651). *Philipp Louis (Schwerin, 30 May 1652 – Schwerin, 20 October 1655). *Henry William (Schwerin, 6 June 1653 – Schwerin, 2 December 1653). * Adolf Frederick II (posthumously Grabow, 19 October 1658 – 12 May 1708), Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Adolf Frederick 01 of Mecklenburg, Duke Dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin House of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Lutheran Prince-Bishops of Schwerin 1588 births 1658 deaths