The House of Wettin () is a dynasty of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

kings,

prince-electors The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, la, Princeps Elector), or electors for short, were the members of the electoral college that elected the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century onwards, the prince ...

, dukes, and counts that once ruled territories in the present-day German states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The dynasty is one of the oldest in Europe, and its origins can be traced back to the town of

Wettin, Saxony-Anhalt Wettin is a small town belonging to the municipality of Wettin-Löbejün in the Saale District of Saxony-Anhalt (''Saxony- Ascania''), Germany. It is situated on the River Saale, just north of Halle. It is known for Wettin Castle (German: ''Bu ...

. The Wettins gradually rose to power within the Holy Roman Empire. Members of the family became the rulers of several medieval states, starting with the

Saxon Eastern March The Saxon Eastern March (german: Sächsische Ostmark) was a march of the Holy Roman Empire from the 10th until the 12th century. The term "eastern march" stems from the Latin term ''marchia Orientalis'' and originally could refer to either a march ...

in 1030. Other states they gained were

Meissen Meissen (in German orthography: ''Meißen'', ) is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrecht ...

in 1089, Thuringia in 1263, and Saxony in 1423. These areas cover large parts of Central Germany as a cultural area of Germany. The family divided into two ruling branches in 1485 by the Treaty of Leipzig: the Ernestine and Albertine branches. The older Ernestine branch played a key role during the Protestant Reformation. Many ruling monarchs outside Germany were later tied to its cadet branch, the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The

Albertine branch The Albertine branch is a German princely family of the House of Wettin. The name derives from the progenitor of the line, Albert III, Duke of Saxony. The Albertine branch ruled from 1485 to 1918 as dukes, electors and kings in Saxony. History o ...

, while less prominent, ruled most of Saxony and played a part in Polish history. Agnates of the House of Wettin have, at various times, ascended the thrones of the United Kingdom, Portugal, Bulgaria, Poland, Saxony, Mexico and Belgium. Only the Belgian line retains their throne today. All undisputably members, or those without morganatic marriages, are more than 70 years old.

Origins: Wettin of Saxony

The oldest member of the House of Wettin who is known for certain is Theodoric I of Wettin, also known as ''Dietrich'', ''Thiedericus'', and ''Thierry I of Liesgau'' (died c. 982). He was most probably based in the

Liesgau The Liesgau was a shire ('' Gau'') of the Duchy of Saxony in the early medieval period, roughly corresponding to the former Osterode district of Lower Saxony. It was situated on the south-west side of the Harz Mountains in what is now the German s ...

(located at the western edge of the Harz). Around 1000, the family acquired

Wettin Castle Wettin Castle is a former castle that stood near the town of Wettin on the Saale river in Germany, and which is the ancestral home of the House of Wettin, the dynasty that included several royal families, including that of the current ruling famil ...

, which was originally built by the local Slavic tribes (see Sorbs), after which they named themselves. Wettin Castle is located in Wettin in the Hassegau (or Hosgau) on the Saale River. Around 1030, the Wettin family received the Eastern March as a fief. The prominence of the Wettins in the Slavic Saxon Eastern March (or ''Ostmark'') caused

Emperor Henry IV Henry IV (german: Heinrich IV; 11 November 1050 – 7 August 1106) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 to 1105, King of Germany from 1054 to 1105, King of Italy and Burgundy from 1056 to 1105, and Duke of Bavaria from 1052 to 1054. He was the son ...

to invest them with the

March of Meissen The Margravate of Meissen (german: Markgrafschaft Meißen) was a medieval principality in the area of the modern German state of Saxony. It originally was a frontier march of the Holy Roman Empire, created out of the vast ''Marca Geronis'' (Saxon ...

as a fief in 1089. The family advanced over the course of the Middle Ages: in 1263, they inherited the

landgraviate Landgrave (german: Landgraf, nl, landgraaf, sv, lantgreve, french: landgrave; la, comes magnus, ', ', ', ', ') was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), a ...

of Thuringia (although without Hesse) and in 1423, they were invested with the Duchy of Saxony, centred at Wittenberg, thus becoming one of the prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire.

Ernestine and Albertine Wettins

The family split into two ruling branches in 1485 when the sons of Frederick II, Elector of Saxony divided the territories hitherto ruled jointly. The elder son Ernest, who had succeeded his father as Prince-elector, received the territories assigned to the Elector (''

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony (German: or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356–1806. It was centered around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. In the Golden Bull of 1356, Emperor Charles ...

'') and Thuringia, while his younger brother Albert obtained the

, which he ruled from Dresden. As Albert ruled under the title of "Duke of Saxony", his possessions were also known as

Ducal Saxony The Duchy of Saxony ( nds, Hartogdom Sassen, german: Herzogtum Sachsen) was originally the area settled by the Saxons in the late Early Middle Ages, when they were subdued by Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 772 and incorporated into the Ca ...

. File:Ernst Kurfürst von Sachsen, 1441-1486 (AT KHM GG4795).jpg,

Ernest, Elector of Saxony Ernest (24 March 144126 August 1486) was Elector of Saxony from 1464 to 1486. Ernst was the founder and progenitor of the ''Ernestine line'' of Saxon princes. Biography Ernst was born in Meissen, the second son (but fourth in order of birth) ...

(1441–1486) File:Albrecht der Beherzte, 1443-1500 (AT KHM GG4796).jpg, Albert, Duke of Saxony (1443–1500)

Ernestines

The older Ernestine branch remained predominant until 1547 and played an important role in the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation. Frederick III (''Friedrich der Weise'') appointed Martin Luther (1512) and

Philipp Melanchthon Philip Melanchthon. (born Philipp Schwartzerdt; 16 February 1497 – 19 April 1560) was a German Lutheran reformer, collaborator with Martin Luther, the first systematic theologian of the Protestant Reformation, intellectual leader of the Lu ...

(1518) to the University of Wittenberg, which he had established in 1502. The Ernestine predominance ended in the Schmalkaldic War (1546/7), which pitted the Protestant Schmalkaldic League against the

Emperor Charles V Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) ...

. Although itself Lutheran, the Albertine branch rallied to the Emperor's cause. Charles V had promised Moritz the rights to the electorship. After the Battle of Mühlberg, Johann Friedrich der Großmütige, had to cede territory (including Wittenberg) and the electorship to his cousin Moritz. Although imprisoned, Johann Friedrich was able to plan a new university. It was established by his three sons on 19 March 1548 as the ''Höhere Landesschule'' at Jena. On 15 August 1557, Emperor Ferdinand I awarded it the status of university. The Ernestine line was thereafter restricted to Thuringia and its dynastic unity swiftly crumbled, dividing into a number of smaller states, the Ernestine duchies. Nevertheless, with Ernst der Fromme, Duke of Saxe-Gotha (1601–1675), the house gave rise to an important early-modern ruler who was ahead of his time in supporting the education of his people and in improving administration. In the 18th century, Karl August, Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, established what was to become known as Weimar Classicism at his court in Weimar, notably by bringing Johann Wolfgang von Goethe there. It was only in the 19th century that one of the many Ernestine branches, the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, regained importance through marriages as the "stud of Europe", by ascending the thrones of Belgium (in 1831), Portugal (1853–1910), Bulgaria (1908–1946) and the United Kingdom (1901-present, though the relevant marriage had taken place in 1840) and also providing a consort to the future

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

Emperor of Mexico (1857).

Residences of Ernestine branches

File:Schloss Altenburg 02.JPG,

Altenburg Altenburg () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located south of Leipzig, west of Dresden and east of Erfurt. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district and part of a polycentric old-industrial textile and metal production region betw ...

Castle File:Schloss Saalfeld.jpg, Saalfeld Castle File:Schloss Weimar - Panorama.jpg,

Schloss Weimar Schloss Weimar is a ''Schloss'' (palace) in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany. It is now called ''Stadtschloss'' to distinguish it from other palaces in and around Weimar. It was the residence of the dukes of Saxe-Weimar and Eisenach, and has also been ...

File:City palace - Stadtschloss - Eisenach - Thuringia - Germany.jpg, Eisenach Palace File:Schloss01.jpg,

Elisabethenburg Palace 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 Meiningen File:Schloss Hildburghausen.JPG, Hildburghausen Castle

Albertines

Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Saxony 1806-1918

The junior

maintained most of the territorial integrity of Saxony, preserving it as a significant power in the region, and used small appanage fiefs for its cadet branches, few of which survived for significant lengths of time. The Ernestine Wettins, on the other hand, repeatedly subdivided their territory, creating an intricate patchwork of small duchies and counties in Thuringia. The Albertine Wettins ruled as Electors (1547–1806) and

Kings of Saxony The Kingdom of Saxony (german: Königreich Sachsen), lasting from 1806 to 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. The kingdom was formed from the Electorate of Saxon ...

(1806–1918), and also played a role in Polish history – two Wettins were Kings of Poland (between 1697–1763) and a third ruled the Duchy of Warsaw (1807–1814) as a satellite of

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. After the Napoleonic Wars, the Albertine branch lost about 40% of its lands (the economically less-developed northern parts of the old Electorate of Saxony) to Prussia, restricting it to a territory coextensive with the modern Saxony (see

Final Act of the Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...

Act IV: Treaty between Prussia and Saxony 18 May 1815). Frederick Augustus III lost his throne in the

German Revolution German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

of 1918. The role of current head of the Albertine "House of Saxony" is claimed by his great-grandson

Prince Rüdiger of Saxony A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

, Duke of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen (born 23 December 1953). However, the headship of Prince Rüdiger is contested by his second cousin, Alexander (born 1954), son of Roberto Afif (later by change of name Mr Gessaphe) and Princess Maria Anna of Saxony, a sister of the childless former head of the Albertines, Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen (died 2012), who had adopted his nephew and granted him the name Prince of Saxony, contrary to the rules of male descent under the

Salic Law The Salic law ( or ; la, Lex salica), also called the was the ancient Frankish civil law code compiled around AD 500 by the first Frankish King, Clovis. The written text is in Latin and contains some of the earliest known instances of Old Du ...

. Both are however not recognized by the Nobility Archive in Marburg, nor by the Conference of the Formerly Ruling Houses in Germany – Prince Rüdiger because his father Timo was expelled from the House of Wettin, and Prince Alexander because he is not of

agnatic Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritanc ...

noble descent (his father was Roberto Afif from Lebanon). Consequently, the Albertine branch of the House of Wettin is officially treated by the German nobility as extinct in its legal succession-line.

Albertine Electors and Kings of Saxony

Residences of the Albertine branch

File:DD-Schloss-gp.jpg, Dresden Royal Palace File:Meißen Burgberg mit Albrechtsburg und Dom.jpg,

(near Dresden) File:Moritzburg bei Dresden (tone-mapping).jpg,

Moritzburg Castle Moritzburg Castle (german: Schloss Moritzburg) or Moritzburg Palace is a Baroque palace in Moritzburg, in the German state of Saxony, about northwest of the Saxon capital, Dresden. The castle has four round towers and lies on a symmetrical art ...

(near Dresden) File:Pillnitz-Wasseransicht.jpg,

Pillnitz Palace Pillnitz Palace (german: Schloss Pillnitz) is a restored Baroque schloss at the eastern end of the city of Dresden in the German state of Saxony. It is located on the bank of the River Elbe in the former village of Pillnitz. It was the summer res ...

(near Dresden) File:Schloss Weesenstein (14-2).jpg, Weesenstein Castle (near Dresden) File:Schloss Freudenstein Freiberg.jpg,

Freudenstein Castle Freudenstein Castle (german: Schloss Freudenstein) is located on the ''Schloßplatz'' ("Castle Square") on the edge of the town centre of Freiberg in the German state of Saxony. Its history is closely linked to the House of Wettin. After several c ...

at Freiberg File:Schloss Augustusburg Südseite.jpg,

Augustusburg Hunting Lodge The hunting lodge of Augustusburg (german: Jagdschloss Augustusburg) was built from 1568 to 1572 above the town of the same name on a hill called the ''Schellenberg'' () on the northern edge of the Ore Mountains of Germany. The castle, which i ...

(near

Chemnitz Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the 28th largest city of Germany as well as the fourth largest city in the area of former East Germany a ...

) File:Schloss Hubertusburg, Wermsdorf, Sachsen, Deutschland.JPG,

Hubertusburg Hubertusburg is a Rococo palace in Saxony, Germany. It was built from 1721 onwards at the behest of Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland, and after his death served as a residence of his son Augustus III. The 'Saxon Versailles ...

Castle (near Leipzig)

The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Coat of Arms of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

The senior (Ernestine) branch of the House of Wettin lost the electorship to the Albertine line in 1547, but retained its holdings in Thuringia, dividing the area into a number of smaller states. One of the resulting Ernestine houses, known as Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld until 1826 and as Saxe-Coburg and Gotha after that, went on to contribute

kings of Belgium This is a list of Belgian monarchs from 1831 when the first Belgian king, Leopold I, ascended the throne, after Belgium seceded from the Kingdom of the Netherlands during the Belgian Revolution of 1830. Under the Belgian Constitution, the Belg ...

(from 1831) and Bulgaria (1908–1946), as well as furnishing consorts to

queens regnant A queen regnant (plural: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank and title to a king, who reigns ''suo jure'' (in her own right) over a realm known as a "kingdom"; as opposed to a queen consort, who is the wife of a reigning ...

of Portugal ( Prince Ferdinand) and the United Kingdom (

Prince Albert Prince Albert most commonly refers to: *Albert, Prince Consort (1819–1861), consort of Queen Victoria *Albert II, Prince of Monaco (born 1958), present head of state of Monaco Prince Albert may also refer to: Royalty * Albert I of Belgium ...

), and the Emperor of Mexico ( Carlota of Mexico) Thus, the British and Portuguese thrones became possessions of persons who belonged to the House of Wettin for a time. From King George I to Queen Victoria, the British Royal family was called the House of Hanover, being a junior branch of the House of Brunswick-Lüneburg and thus part of the dynasty of the Guelphs. In the late 19th century, Queen Victoria charged the College of Arms in England to determine the correct personal surname of her late husband,

of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha—and, thus, the proper surname of the royal family upon the accession of her son. After extensive research, they concluded that it was Wettin, but this name was never used, either by the Queen or by her son ( King Edward VII) or by her grandson ( King George V); they were simply Kings of the House of "Saxe-Coburg-Gotha". Severe anti-German sentiment during World War I (1914-1918) led some influential members of the British public (especially radical Republicans such as H. G. Wells) to question the loyalty of the royal family. Advisors to King George V searched for an acceptable surname for the British royal family, but ''Wettin'' was rejected as "unsuitably comic"."Since the Saxe-Coburg family belonged to the House of Wettin in the District of Wipper, ''Wettin'' or ''Wipper'' might be more appropriate. Either one could have passed for an English name, but both were considered 'unsuitably comic.'" Anne Edwards, ''Matriarch: Queen Mary and the House of Windsor'' (2014)
p. 302
An Order in Council legally changed the name of the British royal family to "Windsor" (originally suggested by

Lord Stamfordham Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur John Bigge, 1st Baron Stamfordham, (18 June 1849 – 31 March 1931) was a British Army officer and courtier. He was Private Secretary to Queen Victoria during the last few years of her reign, and to George V during mos ...

) in 1917.

Residences of the family

File:Coburg-Veste4.jpg, Veste Coburg, ancestral seat of the House of Saxe-Coburg File:Coburg-Ehrenburg1.jpg, Ehrenburg Palace, Coburg (summer residence) File:Gotha Schloss 1900.jpg, Friedenstein Castle, Gotha (winter residence) File:Reinhardsbrunn Schloss Winter.JPG, Reinhardsbrunn Castle, Gotha File:CO Schloss Rosenau1.jpg, Rosenau Castle, Coburg Schloss Callenberg 2.jpg,

Callenberg Castle Callenberg Castle (''Schloss Callenberg'') is a castle on a wooded hill in Beiersdorf, an ''Ortsteil'' of Coburg, from the town centre. It was a hunting lodge and summer residence and has long been the principal residence of the House of Saxe-Cob ...

Branches and titles of the House of Wettin and its agnatic descent

Early Wettins

* Counts of Wettin * Margraves of Landsberg * Margraves of

* Margraves of Lusatia * Dukes of Saxony, Landgraves of Thuringia * Electors of Saxony and

Arch-Marshal The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, la, Princeps Elector), or electors for short, were the members of the electoral college that elected the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century onwards, the prince ...

s of the Holy Roman Empire File:Wartburg von Brücke.jpg, Wartburg near Eisenach (1250–1406: residence of the Wettins)

Ernestines

* Electors of Saxony and

s of the Holy Roman Empire (1464–1547) File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-16879-0019, Wittenberg, Schloss, Schlosskirche.jpg,

Wittenberg Castle Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the River Elbe, north of ...

, residence of Frederick III, "the Wise", built 1490–96 File:SchlossHartenfels.JPG, Hartenfels Castle in Torgau, main residence of the Ernestine Electors since Frederick III, "the Wise", built 1533–40

Existing Ernestine branches

Branch of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach * Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, extant lines all shared last common ancestor in the person of William Ernest, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. However there are only two members of this line left, Michael, Prince of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and Prince Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. Both were born in 1946. Since Prince Michael has no sons, and Prince Wilhelm Ernst, whose only son Prince Georg-Constantin (13 April 1977 – 9 June 2018), a banker who was married but without issue, was killed in a horse riding accident on 9 June 2018 while riding with Jean Christophe Iseux von Pfetten. Therefore, the Grand Ducal House of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach will most likely become extinct in the male line. These two represent the last non-morganatic descendants of

William, Duke of Saxe-Weimar Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar ( Altenburg, 11 April 1598 – Weimar, 17 May 1662), was a duke of Saxe-Weimar. Wilhelm was the fifth (but third surviving) son of Johann, Duke of Saxe-Weimar, and Dorothea Maria of Anhalt. He was brother to Be ...

** Illegitimate line of Barons of Heygendorff, four males left Branch of Saxe-Meiningen * Saxe-Meiningen lines all shared common descent from

Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (2 April 1826 – 25 June 1914), was the penultimate Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, reigning from 1866 to 1914. For his support for his successful court theatre he was also known as the ''Theaterherzog'' (theatre duk ...

** Morganatic lines from

Ernst, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen Ernst, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen (Ernst, Prinz von Sachsen-Meiningen; 27 September 1859 – 29 December 1941) was the head of the house of Saxe-Meiningen from 1928 until his death. Biography He was born in Meiningen, the eldest son of the heir ...

** Morganatic line from

Bernhard, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen Bernhard, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen (german: link=no, Bernhard, Prinz von Sachsen-Meiningen; 30 June 1901 – 4 October 1984) was the head of the House of Saxe-Meiningen from 1946 until his death. Prince of Saxe-Meiningen Bernhard was born in K� ...

** Legitimate line from

of whom only Prince Frederick Konrad of Saxe-Meiningen (Born on 14 April 1952) is still alive today. In the very likely event of the extinction of these two senior branches, the sole represantation of the Ernestine Wettins will pass to the descendants of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, who are the present Saxe-Coburg-Gothas led by

Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Prince Andreas of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duke of Saxony (''Andreas Michael Friedrich Hans Armin Siegfried Hubertus Prinz von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha Herzog von Sachsen''; born 21 March 1943) is a German landowner and nobleman who has been the hea ...

(b. 21 March 1943), the House of Windsor, the Royal Family of Belgium and the Royal Family of Bulgaria. Francis and his nephew Ludwig Frederick Emil von Coburg are also ancestors to morganatic lines. * Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, last common descent from

Francis Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Francis Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (25 September 1697, in Saalfeld – 16 September 1764, in Rodach) was a duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. Biography He was the fourth living son of Johann Ernest IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, the thi ...

, further divided into: **

Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha), or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, links=no ), was an Ernestine, Thuringian duchy ruled by a branch of the House of Wettin, consisting of territories in the present-d ...

, last common descent from Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, further divided into: *** House of Windsor, last common descent from

Albert, Prince Consort Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the consort of Queen Victoria from their marriage on 10 February 1840 until his death in 1861. Albert was born in the Saxon duch ...

of the United Kingdom, as in 1863 Edward VII and his son, the future George V renounced his succession rights to the duchy Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the succession fell into the line of the Duke of Albany. **** Gloucester line Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester **** Kentian Line, from Prince George, Duke of Kent *** Mainline (Albany) Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, from Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha who until 1919 was the Duke of Albany *** House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry, last common descent from

Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha August Victor Louis of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (german: August Viktor Ludwig; 13 June 1818 – 26 July 1881), was a German prince of the Catholic House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry. He was a General Major in the Royal Saxon Army and the own ...

**** Morganatic descendants from

Prince Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1901–1985) Prince Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Philipp Josias Maria Joseph Ignatius Michael Gabriel Raphael Gonzaga; 18 August 1901 – 18 October 1985) was a Dynasty#Dynasts, dynast of the House of Wettin, belonging to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Goth ...

****

Bulgarian royal family The last Bulgarian royal family ( bg, Българско царско семейство, Balgarsko tsarsko semeystvo) is a line of the Koháry branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, which ruled Bulgaria from 1887 to 1946. The last tsar, ...

, all living members are descended from

Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Simeon Borisov von Saxe-Coburg-Gotha ( bg, Симеон Борисов Сакскобургготски, translit=Simeon Borisov Sakskoburggotski, ; born 16 June 1937) is a Bulgarian politician who reigned as the last tsar of the Kingdom of Bul ...

*** House of Belgium, all living members share common descent from Albert II of Belgium. However as absolute primogeniture is in effect in Belgium, if and on the ascencion of Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant to the throne, the ruling house of Belgium will no longer considered agnates to the House of Wettin ****Eppinghoven, illegitimate agnatic branch to the House of Belgium from Leopold I of Belgium and Arcadie Claret ** Morganatic line of Rohmann, from Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld marriage to a commoner, Therese Stroffeck File:Coat of Arms of the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach.svg,

Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (german: Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) was a historical German state, created as a duchy in 1809 by the merger of the Ernestine duchies of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach, which had been in personal union since 1741. It was raised ...

File:Coat of Arms of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen-Hildburghausen.svg,

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 ...

File:Coat of Arms of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.svg, Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha File:Coat of Arms of the King of the Belgians.svg,

King of the Belgians Belgium is a constitutional, hereditary, and popular monarchy. The monarch is titled king or queen of the Belgians ( nl, Koning(in) der Belgen, french: Roi / Reine des Belges}, german: König(in) der Belgier) and serves as the country's h ...

File:Coat of Arms of the Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg.svg, Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg

Extinct Ernestine branches

* Dukes of Saxe-Coburg * Dukes of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld * Dukes of Saxe-Altenburg (first line of Altenburg) * Dukes of

Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg () was a duchy ruled by the Ernestine branch of the House of Wettin in today's Thuringia, Germany. The extinction of the line in 1825 led to a major re-organisation of the Thuringian states. History In 1640 the sons of the l ...

(second line of Altenburg) * Dukes of Saxe-Hildburghausen, then Dukes of Saxe-Altenburg (third line of Altenburg) * Dukes of

Saxe-Weimar Saxe-Weimar (german: Sachsen-Weimar) was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine branch of the Wettin dynasty in present-day Thuringia. The chief town and capital was Weimar. The Weimar branch was the most genealogically senior extant bra ...

* Dukes of Saxe-Eisenach * Dukes of Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach * Dukes of Saxe-Jena * Dukes of Saxe-Gotha * Dukes of

Saxe-Eisenberg The Duchy of Saxe-Eisenberg was one of the Saxon Duchies held by the Ernestine line of the Wettin Dynasty. History Established in 1680 for Christian, fifth son of Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha, the Duchy consisted of Eisenberg and the towns ...

* Dukes of

Saxe-Marksuhl The Duchy of Saxe-Marksuhl was one of the Saxon Duchies held by the Ernestine line of the Wettin Dynasty. Established in 1662 for John George I, third son of Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar. Originally John George was supposed to share Saxe-Eisen ...

* Dukes of Saxe-Römhild * Kings of Portugal and the Algarves ( House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg and Gotha)

Albertines

* Margraves of

* Grand Master of the Teutonic Order (1498–1510) * Electors of Saxony and

s of the Holy Roman Empire (1547–1806) * Kings of Poland and Grand Dukes of Lithuania (1697-1763) * Duke of Courland and Semigallia (1758–1763) * Duke of Teschen (1766-1822) *

(1806–1918), currently ''Prince/Princess of Saxony'' and ''Duke/Duchess of Saxony'', with the head of the family also '' Margrave of Meissen'' * Duke of Warsaw (1807–1815)

Extinct Albertine branches

* Dukes of Saxe-Zeitz * Dukes of Saxe-Merseburg * Dukes of Saxe-Weissenfels File:Zeitz Schloss1.jpg, Moritzburg Palace in Zeitz File:Merseburger Schloss 2006.jpg, Merseburg Castle File:Schloss Neu-Augustusburg Ostseite.JPG, Neu-Augustusburg Castle, Weissenfels

Family tree of the House of Wettin

Coats of arms

File:Wappen Mark Landsberg.svg, Counts of Wettin, Margraves of Landsberg File:Wappen Landkreis Meissen.svg, Margraves of

File:Blason Thuringe-Misnie.svg, Margraves of

and Landgraves of Thuringia File:Blason Jean-Georges IV de Saxe.svg, Elector of Saxony and

of the Holy Roman Empire File:Coat of arms of Saxony.svg, King of Saxony (standard arms) For an extensive treatment of the coats of arms, see: Coat of arms of Saxony or in French: Armorial de la maison de Wettin

References

External links

House of Wettin – European Heraldry page

Website of Rüdiger, Margrave of Meissen

Website of Albert Prinz von Sachsen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wettin, House of * German noble families 10th-century establishments in the Holy Roman Empire

Origins: Wettin of Saxony

Ernestine and Albertine Wettins

Ernestines

Residences of Ernestine branches

Albertines

Albertine Electors and Kings of Saxony

Residences of the Albertine branch

The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Residences of the family

Branches and titles of the House of Wettin and its agnatic descent

Early Wettins

Ernestines

Existing Ernestine branches

Extinct Ernestine branches

Albertines

Extinct Albertine branches

Family tree of the House of Wettin

Coats of arms

See also

References

External links