Christine of Saxony (25 December 1505 – 15 April 1549) was a German noble, landgravine consort of Hesse by marriage to Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse.Eckhart G. Franz (Hrsg.): Haus Hessen. Biografisches Lexikon. (= Arbeiten der Hessischen Historischen Kommission N.F., Bd. 34) Hessische Historische Kommission, Darmstadt 2012, ISBN 978-3-88443-411-6 She was the regent of Hesse during the absence of her spouse in 1547–1549. She was the daughter of George the Bearded, Duke of Saxony and

Barbara Jagiellon Barbara Jagiellon (15 July 1478 – 15 February 1534) was a Polish princess, member of the Jagiellonian dynasty and by marriage Duchess of Saxony. Born in Sandomierz, she was the sixth daughter of King Casimir IV of Poland and Archduchess Eli ...

. On 11 December 1523 in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

, she married Landgrave Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. The marriage was arranged to forge an alliance between Hesse and Saxony and was unhappy; Philip claimed to be disgusted by her and only shared her bed by duty. They had ten children. Whilst married to Christine, Philip practised

bigamy In cultures where monogamy is mandated, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. A legal or de facto separation of the couple does not alter their marital status as married persons. I ...

and had another nine children with his other (

morganatic Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...

) wife,

Margarethe von der Saale Margarethe von der Saale (1522 – 6 July 1566) was a German noblewoman, lady-in-waiting and morganatic spouse by bigamy to Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. Marriage Born as daughter of Hans von der Saale and his wife, Anna von Miltitz. When she ca ...

; in 1540, Christine gave her consent to her husband's bigamy with his lover because of her view upon him as her sovereign. Margarethe von der Saale, however, was never seen at court. During Philip's absence and captivity during 1547–1549, Christine was regent jointly with her oldest son. She died before Philip's release in 1552.

Children with Philip of Hesse

# Agnes (31 May 1527 – 4 November 1555), married: ## in

Marburg Marburg ( or ) is a university town in the German federal state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district (''Landkreis''). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has a population of approximate ...

on 9 January 1541 to

Maurice, Elector of Saxony Maurice (21 March 1521 – 9 July 1553) was Duke (1541–47) and later Elector (1547–53) of Saxony. His clever manipulation of alliances and disputes gained the Albertine branch of the Wettin dynasty extensive lands and the electoral dignity. ...

; ## in

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...

on 26 May 1555 to John Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha. #

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 12 ...

(26 October 1529 – 10 July 1591), married on 24 February 1544 to

Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken Count Palatine Wolfgang of Zweibrücken (german: Pfalzgraf Wolfgang von Zweibrücken; 26 September 1526 – 11 June 1569) was member of the Wittelsbach family of the Counts Palatine and Duke of Zweibrücken from 1532. With the support of his r ...

. #

William IV of Hesse-Kassel William IV of Hesse-Kassel (24 June 153225 August 1592), also called ''William the Wise'', was the first Landgrave of the Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel). He was the founder of the oldest line, which survives to this day. Life Lan ...

(or Hesse-Cassel) (24 June 1532 – 25 August 1592). # Philipp Ludwig (29 June 1534 – 31 August 1535). # Barbara (8 April 1536 – 8 June 1597), married: ## in

Reichenweier Riquewihr (; Alsatian: ; german: Reichenweier ) is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. A popular tourist attraction for its historical architecture, Riquewihr is also known for the Riesling and other win ...

on 10 September 1555 to Duke

George I of Württemberg-Mömpelgard George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

; ## in

on 11 November 1568 to Count

Daniel of Waldeck Daniel of Waldeck (1 August 1530 – 7 June 1577 in Waldeck) was a ruling count of Waldeck- Wildungen. He was the third, but eldest surviving son of the Count Philip IV (1493-1574) and his first wife, Margaret of East Frisia (1500-1537). A ...

. #

Louis IV of Hesse-Marburg Landgrave Louis IV of Hesse-Marburg (27 May 1537 – 9 October 1604) was the son of Landgrave Philip I of Hesse and his wife Christine of Saxony. After the death of his father in 1567, Hesse was divided among his sons and Louis received Hesse-Mar ...

(27 May 1537 – 9 October 1604). # Elisabeth (13 February 1539 – 14 March 1582), married on 8 July 1560 to

Louis VI, Elector Palatine Louis VI, Elector Palatine (4 July 1539 in Simmern – 22 October 1583 in Heidelberg), was an Elector from the Palatinate-Simmern branch of the house of Wittelsbach. He was the first-born son of Frederick III, Elector Palatine and Marie of ...

. # Philip II of Hesse-Rheinfels (22 April 1541 – 20 November 1583). #

Christine Christine may refer to: People * Christine (name), a female given name Film * ''Christine'' (1958 film), based on Schnitzler's play ''Liebelei'' * ''Christine'' (1983 film), based on King's novel of the same name * ''Christine'' (1987 fil ...

(29 June 1543 – 13 May 1604), married in

Gottorp Gottorf Castle (german: Schloss Gottorf, da, Gottorp Slot, Low German: ''Gottorp'') is a castle and estate in the city of Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is one of the most important secular buildings in Schleswig-Holstein, and ha ...

on 17 December 1564 to Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp. # Georg I of Hesse-Darmstadt (10 September 1547 – 7 February 1596).

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christine of Saxony 1505 births 1549 deaths House of Wettin Landgravines of Hesse Nobility from Dresden 16th-century women rulers Regents of Germany Albertine branch