Countess Caroline Amalie of Erbach-Fürstenau (29 September 1700 at Fürstenau Castle,

Michelstadt Michelstadt () in the Odenwald is a town in the Odenwaldkreis (district) in southern Hesse, Germany between Darmstadt and Heidelberg. It has a population of 28,629 people. Geography Location Michelstadt is the biggest town in the Odenwaldkre ...

– 7 May 1758 in

Hildburghausen Hildburghausen (IPA adapted from: ) is a town in Thuringia in central Germany, capital of the district Hildburghausen. Geography It is situated in the Franconian part of Thuringia south of the Thuringian Forest, in the valley of the Werra river ...

), was a countess of Erbach-Furstenau and by marriage Duchess of

Saxe-Hildburghausen Saxe-Hildburghausen () was an Ernestine duchy in the southern side of the present State of Thuringia in Germany. It existed from 1680 to 1826 but its name and borders are currently used by the District of Hildburghausen. History After the Duk ...

. From 1745 to 1748, she was also Regent of Saxe-Hildburghausen.

Life

Caroline was born 29 September 1700. She was a daughter of Count Philipp Charles of Erbach-Fürstenau and Michelstadt (1677–1736), who was also Lord of

Breuberg Breuberg is a town in the Odenwaldkreis district of Hesse, Germany. It is 28 km east of Darmstadt and 20 km southwest of Aschaffenburg. Geography Location Breuberg lies in the northern Odenwald. Neighbouring communities Breuberg ...

, and his first wife Countess Charlotte Amalie of Kunowitz (1677–1722). Caroline married on 19 June 1726 at Fürstenau Castle Duke Ernest Frederick II of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The couple lived first in Königsberg in Bayern where the Hereditary Prince Charles Frederick Ernest was born. In 1730 Ernest Frederick built a pleasure palace for his wife, which he called Caroline Castle. In 1744 he also expanded

Eisfeld Eisfeld is a town and a municipality in the Hildburghausen (district), district of Hildburghausen, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated on the river Werra, 12 km east of Hildburghausen, and 19 km north of Coburg. The former municipalit ...

castle, which had been reserved as a

Wittum Wittum (), Widum or Witthum is a medieval Latin legal term, known in marital and ecclesiastical law. Provide for a widow at the wedding The term referred initially to steps taken by a husband to provide for his wife if she became a widow. The wi ...

for Caroline. After the death of Caroline's husband in 1745 she ruled as regent for her minor son Charles Frederick Ernest. In a decree of 1746, she took measures against the "wandering gypsies and begging people", in which even the death penalty was possible.Heinrich Ferdinand Schöppl: ''The Dukes of Saxe-Altenburg'', Bolzano 1917, reprint Altenburg , 1992 p. 63 She restructured the Code of Criminal Procedure and banned the sale of a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...

allodial title Allodial title constitutes ownership of real property (land, buildings, and fixtures) that is independent of any superior landlord. Allodial title is related to the concept of land held "in allodium", or land ownership by occupancy and defens ...

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

without authorization by the sovereign. In a case before the High Court in which the Duchy 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 ...

demanded the district of

Sonnefeld Sonnefeld is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the Districts of Germany, district of Coburg (district), Coburg in States of Germany, Bavaria in Germany. Geographical Location Sonnefeld lies on Bundesstraße 303 between Coburg and Krona ...

, which lasted from 1743 to 1752, she was represented by the secret Privy Councillor Johann Sebastian Kobe von Koppenfels, who helped her win the case.

Issues

* Ernest Frederick III Charles (1727–1780), Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen * Albert Frederick August (1728–1735) * Frederick William Eugene (1730–1795) : married in 1778 Caroline of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1761-1790) * Sophie Amalie Caroline (1732–1799) : married in 1749 Prince Louis of Hohenlohe-Neuenstein zu Öhringen (1723-1805)

Notes

References

* Heinrich Ferdinand Schöppl: ''The Dukes of Saxe-Altenburg'', Bolzano 1917, reprint Altenburg, 1992 * Dr. Rudolf Armin Human: ''History of the City of Hildburghausen'', Hildburghausen, 1886 {{DEFAULTSORT:Erbach-Furstenau, Caroline Of Caroline 1700 births 1758 deaths German countesses Caroline Mothers of monarchs