Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (

Gotha Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine Wettins from 1640 until the ...

, 10 September 1649 –

Meiningen Meiningen () is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 25,000 (2021).

, 27 April 1706) was a duke of

Saxe-Meiningen Saxe-Meiningen (; german: Sachsen-Meiningen ) was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine line of the Wettin dynasty, located in the southwest of the present-day German state of Thuringia. Established in 1681, by partition of the Ernestin ...

. He was the sixth but third surviving son of

Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg Ernest I, called "Ernest the Pious" (25 December 1601 – 26 March 1675), was a duke of Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Altenburg. The duchies were later merged into Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. He was the ninth but sixth surviving son of Johann II, Duke of Saxe- ...

and

Elisabeth Sophie of Saxe-Altenburg Elisabeth Sophie of Saxe-Altenburg (10 October 1619 – 20 December 1680), was a princess of Saxe-Altenburg and, by marriage, duchess of Saxe-Gotha. She was born in Halle, the only daughter of Johann Philipp, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg, and his ...

. After the death of his father, in 1675, the duchy was jointly governed by him and his brothers; but the duchy was divided five years later (in 1680); as a result of this divisionary treaty, Bernhard received

Meiningen Meiningen () is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 25,000 (2021).

Wasungen Wasungen () is a town in the Schmalkalden-Meiningen district, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated on the river Werra The Werra (), a river in central Germany, is the right-bank headwater of the Weser. "Weser" is a synonym in an old dialec ...

Salzungen Bad Salzungen () is a town in Thuringia, Germany. It is the capital of the Wartburgkreis district. Geography Location Bad Salzungen is situated on the river Werra, east of Tiefenort and south of Eisenach. Divisions In July 2018 the former m ...

, Untermassfeld, Frauenbreitungen and

Ichtershausen Ichtershausen is a village and a former municipality in the district Ilm-Kreis, in Thuringia, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Euro ...

. Bernhard became the founder of the Saxe-Meiningen line. The building of an official residence in Meiningen began immediately. The residence was finished in 1692 and was called

Schloss Elisabethenburg Elisabethenburg Palace (german: Schloss Elisabethenburg) is a Baroque palace located on the northwestern edge of Meiningen in Germany. Until 1918 it was the residence of the Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen. The castle now houses the Meininger Museum as we ...

, in honor of Bernhard's second wife. Like his brother Ernst, Bernhard's financial stability in his duchy was remarkable. The sales of chamber goods and the additional charge of taxes to the population were the result. Bernhard's will ordered the indivisibility of the duchy, but not ''

Primogeniture Primogeniture ( ) is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn legitimate child to inherit the parent's entire or main estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some children, any illegitimate child or any collateral relativ ...

''. This allowed his sons to govern the duchy jointly after his death.

Issue

He married in ''

Schloss Friedenstein Friedenstein Palace (german: Schloss Friedenstein) is an early Baroque palace built in the mid-17th century by Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha at Gotha, Thuringia, Germany. In Germany, ''Friedenstein'' was one of the largest palaces of its time and o ...

'',

, on 20 November 1671

Marie Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt Marie Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt (26 November 1647 in Giessen – 19 April 1680 in Ichtershausen) was a landgravine of Hesse-Darmstadt by birth and by marriage Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen. Life She was the youngest daughter of landgrave George ...

. They had seven children: #

Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (7 October 1672 – 24 November 1724) was a German (Saxon) nobleman. Biography He was born in Gotha, the eldest son of Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, and his first wife, Marie Hedwig of Hesse-Darmsta ...

(b. Gotha, 7 October 1672 – d. Meiningen, 24 November 1724). # Bernhard (b. Gotha, 28 October 1673 – d. Brussels, 25 October 1694). # Johann Ernst (b. Gotha, 29 December 1674 – d. Gotha, 8 February 1675). # Marie Elisabeth (b. Ichtershausen, 11 August 1676 – d. Ichtershausen, 22 December 1676). # Johann Georg (b. Ichtershausen, 3 October 1677 – d. Ichtershausen, 10 October 1678). #

Frederick Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (16 February 1679 in Ichtershausen – 10 March 1746 in Meiningen), was a duke of Saxe-Meiningen. Life He was the fifth son of Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and his first wife, Marie Hedwig of ...

(b. Ichtershausen, 16 February 1679 – d. Meiningen, 10 March 1746). # Georg Ernst (b. Ichtershausen, 26 March 1680 – d. of smallpox, Meiningen, 1 January 1699). He married secondly in

Schöningen Schöningen is a town of about 11,000 inhabitants in the district of Helmstedt, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Geography The town is located on the southeastern rim of the Elm hill range, near the border with the state of Saxony-Anhalt. In its curren ...

on 25 January 1681

Elisabeth Eleonore of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Elisabeth Eleonore of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (30 September 1658, in Wolfenbüttel – 15 March 1729, in Meiningen) was the eldest daughter of Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and his wife Elisabeth Juliane of Schleswig-Holstein-So ...

daughter of

Anthony Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Anthony Ulrich (German: ''Anton Ulrich''; 4 October 1633 – 27 March 1714), a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and ruling Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, ...

. They had five children: # Elisabeth Ernestine (b. Meiningen, 3 December 1681 – d. Gandersheim, 24 December 1766), Abbess of

Gandersheim Abbey Gandersheim Abbey (german: Stift Gandersheim) is a former house of secular canonesses ( Frauenstift) in the present town of Bad Gandersheim in Lower Saxony, Germany. It was founded in 852 by Duke Liudolf of Saxony, progenitor of the Liudolfing or ...

(1713–1766). # Eleonore Frederika (b. Meiningen, 2 March 1683 – d. Meiningen, 13 May 1739), a nun at Gandersheim. # Anton August (b. Meiningen, 20 June 1684 – d. Meiningen, 7 December 1684). # Wilhelmine Luise (b. Meiningen, 19 January 1686 – d. Bernstadt, 5 October 1753), married on 20 December 1703 to

Charles, Duke of Württemberg-Bernstadt Duke Charles of Württemberg-Bernstadt (11 March 1682 in Dobroszyce – 8 February 1745 in Bierutów) was Duke of Württemberg-Duchy of Bernstadt, Bernstadt. Life Karl was the only surviving child of the Duke Julius Siegmund, Duke of Württembe ...

. #

Anton Ulrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Anton Ulrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (Meiningen, 22 October 1687 – Frankfurt, 27 January 1763), was Duke of Saxe-Meiningen from 1746 to 1763. Life Anton Ulrich was born on 22 October 1687 at Meiningen. He was the second but first surviving son ...

(b. Meiningen, 22 October 1687 – d. Frankfurt, 27 January 1763).

Ancestry

References

* Hannelore Schneider, ''Das Herzogtum Sachsen-Meiningen unter seinen ersten Herzögen. In: 300 Jahre Schloss Elisabethenburg''. Südthüringer Research, vol. 27, Meiningen 1994. * L. Hertel, ''Meiningische Geschichte von 1680 bis zur Gegenwart''. In: ''Schriften des Vereins für Sachsen-Meiningische Geschichte und Landeskunde'', vol. 47, Hildburghausen 1904. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bernhard 01 Of Saxe-Meiningen, Duke 1649 births 1706 deaths House of Saxe-Meiningen Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen People from Gotha (town)