Frederick Casimir Kettler (

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 ...

: ''Friedrich Casimir Kettler''; 6 July 1650 – 22 January 1698) was

Duke of Courland and Semigallia The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia ( la, Ducatus Curlandiæ et Semigalliæ; german: Herzogtum Kurland und Semgallen; lv, Kurzemes un Zemgales hercogiste; lt, Kuršo ir Žiemgalos kunigaikštystė; pl, Księstwo Kurlandii i Semigalii) was ...

from 1682 to 1698. Frederick Casimir was the son of

Jacob Kettler Jacob Kettler (german: link=no, Jakob von Kettler) (Latvian: Hercogs Jēkabs Ketlers) (28 October 1610 – 1 January 1682) was one of the greatest Baltic German Dukes of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1642–1682). He was intelligent, sp ...

and

Louise Charlotte of Brandenburg Louise Charlotte of Brandenburg (13 September 1617 – 28 August 1676), was a Duchess consort of Courland by marriage to Duke Jacob Kettler of Courland. She was born to George William, Elector of Brandenburg and Elizabeth Charlotte of the P ...

. In his reign the Duchy lost its geopolitical position and became

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

and Russia's territorial subject of interests.

Biography

Frederick Casimir Kettler studied law in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and visited a number of European courts. In 1673 he was in the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

military service and took part with his Courland regiment in the

Franco-Dutch War The Franco-Dutch War, also known as the Dutch War (french: Guerre de Hollande; nl, Hollandse Oorlog), was fought between France and the Dutch Republic, supported by its allies the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Brandenburg-Prussia and Denmark-Nor ...

. On 5 October 1675, in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

, Frederick Casimir married princess Sophie Amalie of Nassau-Siegen and returned home. After his father died Frederick Casimir became the Duke of Courland and Semigallia and vigorously resorted to public affairs. In 1684 the duke's book printer George Radeckis in

Jelgava Jelgava (; german: Mitau, ; see also other names) is a state city in central Latvia about southwest of Riga with 55,972 inhabitants (2019). It is the largest town in the region of Zemgale (Semigalia). Jelgava was the capital of the united Duch ...

became the first person to print books in the

Latvian language Latvian ( ), also known as Lettish, is an Eastern Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family, spoken in the Baltic region. It is the language of Latvians and the official language of Latvia as well as ...

. His efforts to restore the holdings were stopped by the power of Sweden, which at that time prevailed in northern Europe. However, Friedrich Casimir founded splendid

court life A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

according to the best Western models. In 1688 Sophie Amalie died. In 1691 Frederick Casimir celebrated a large-scale wedding with

Elisabeth Sophie of Brandenburg Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

. During the reign of Frederick Casimir, trade and industry of the duchy started to decay. In 1693 the

Tobago Tobago () is an List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, island and Regions and municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago, ward within the Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located northeast of the larger island of Trini ...

colony was sold to England. In the spring of 1697, Friedrich Casimir received a grand delegation from Russia, including the new Tsar

Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...

, on whom the

Jelgava Palace Jelgava Palace ( lv, Jelgavas pils) or historically Mitau Palace ( lv, Mītavas pils, german: Schloss Mitau) is the largest Baroque-style palace in the Baltic states. It was built in the 18th century based on the design of Bartolomeo Rastrelli as ...

and its court left a great impression. The duchy and Russia held diplomatic talks on mutual cooperation against the Swedes, but in the next winter of 1698, Frederick Casimir died at the age of 47. His minor son Frederick Wilhelm became the next duke.

Issue

From 1st marriage: * Frederick Kettler (3 April 1682 – 11 February 1683), Hereditary Prince of Courland. * Marie Dorothea Kettler (2 August 1684 – 17 January 1743), married to Albert Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt. * Eleonore Charlotte Kettler (11 June 1686 – 28 July 1748), married to

Ernest Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Ernest is a given name derived from Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious". Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), son of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor * Ernest, ...

in Bevern. * Amalie Louise Kettler (Mitau, 23 July 1687 – ,

Siegen Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...

, 18 January 1750), married at the in

Bayreuth Bayreuth (, ; bar, Bareid) is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtelgebirge Mountains. The town's roots date back to 1194. In the 21st century, it is the capital of U ...

on 13 April 1708 to

Fürst ' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German word for a ruler and is also a princely title. ' were, since the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ruled over states of ...

Frederick William Adolf of Nassau-Siegen (, Siegen, 20 February 1680 – Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 13 February 1722). * Christina Sophia Kettler (15 November 1688 – 22 April 1694). From 2nd marriage: * Frederick William Kettler, Duke of Courland (19 July 1692 – 21 January 1711), married to Grand Duchess Anna Ioannovna of Russia. * Leopold Charles Kettler (14 December 1693 – 21 July 1697).

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kettler, Frederick Casimir Dukes of Courland 1650 births 1698 deaths 17th-century Latvian people People from Jelgava Burials in the Ducal Crypt of the Jelgava Palace