George August Samuel of Nassau-Idstein (26 February 1665, in Idstein – 26 October 1721, in Biebrich) was

Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...

from 1677, and Prince from 1688 until his death, of Nassau-Idstein. He worked mainly in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

Life

Georg August was just 12 years old when his father

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

died in 1677. Two regents took up government: Count John Caspar of Leiningen-Dagsburg and Count John August of Solms. George August studied in

Giessen Giessen, spelled Gießen in German (), is a town in the German state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of both the district of Giessen and the administrative region of Giessen. The population is approximately 90,000, with roughly 37,000 univer ...

, Strasbourg and

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, and later in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...

. During his

Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tut ...

, he visited several European courts; he was particularly impressed by the Palace of Versailles. In 1683, he participated in the defense of

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

during the siege and battle of Vienna. One year later, he became the reigning count on his 18th birthday. On 4 August 1688, Emperor Leopold I raised him to Prince as a reward for his services at Vienna, and also because he had paid a large sum of money. On 22 November, he married Princess Henriette Dorothea of Oettingen (born: 14 November 1672 in

Oettingen in Bayern Oettingen in Bayern (Swabian: ''Eadi'') is a town in the Donau-Ries district, in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is situated northwest of Donauwörth, and northeast of Nördlingen. Geography The town is located on the river Wörnitz, a tributary ...

; died: 23 May 1728 in

) a daughter of Prince Albert Ernest I of Oettingen and Christiane Friederike of Württemberg. They had twelve children, three boys and nine girls. However, two of the girls and all three boys died in early childhood.http://tempo.ifrance.com/nidstein1.htm The city of

and the whole county of Nassau-Idstein had suffered badly during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

and again during the

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in 1675. Only a few dozen of the original 1800 inhabitants were still alive. Under George August both experienced an enormous upswing. He initiated a number of construction projects. He completed the residential palace in Idstein, he constructed the ''Herrengarten'' park and the Pheasants Park in Wiesbaden, he constructed a

French formal garden The French formal garden, also called the (), is a style of garden based on symmetry and the principle of imposing order on nature. Its epitome is generally considered to be the Gardens of Versailles designed during the 17th century by the ...

on thebanks of the Rhine at Biebrich and he remodeled the City Palace at Wiesbaden. A garden house was the only part of the future Biebrich Palace completed during his lifetime. George died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

in August 1721, as did his two youngest daughters.Gottfried Kiesow: ''Architekturführer Wiesbaden. Die Stadt des Historismus'', 2006, , p. 303

Legacy

The ''Georgenthal'' manor was named after him; the ''Henriettenthaler Hof'' manor was named after his wife.

Issue

* Frederick Ernest (born: 27 August 1689 in Idstein; died: 21 March 1690 in Idstein), Hereditary Prince of Nassau-Idstein, died in infancy * Christine Louise (born: 31 March 1691 in Idstein; died: 13 April 1723 in

Aurich Aurich (; East Frisian Low Saxon: ''Auerk'', West Frisian: ''Auwerk'', stq, Aurk) is a town in the East Frisian region of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Aurich and is the second largest City in East Frisia, both i ...

), married on 23 September 1709 with Prince George Albert of East Frisia (1689 – 1734) * Charlotte Eberhardine (born: 16 July 1692 in Idstein; died: 6 February 1693 in Idstein), died in infancy * Henriette Charlotte (born: 9 November 1693 in Idstein; died: 8 April 1734 in Delitzsch), married on 4 November 1711 with Duke Maurice Wilhelm of Saxe-Merseburg (1688 – 1731) * Eleanor Charlotte (born: 28 November 1696 in Idstein; died: 8 December 1696 in Idstein), died in infancy * Albertine Juliane (born: 29 March 1698 in Idstein; died: 9 October 1722 in

Marksuhl Marksuhl is a village and a former municipality in the Wartburgkreis district of Thuringia, Germany. Since July 2018, it is part of the municipality Gerstungen. Geography Marksuhl is located in the center of the Wartburgkreis district, approximat ...

), married on 14 February 1713 with Duke Wilhelm Heinrich of Saxe-Eisenach (1691 – 1741) * Auguste Friederike (born: 17 August 1699 in Idstein; died: 8 June 1750 in

Kirchheim unter Teck Kirchheim unter Teck (Swabian: ''Kircha'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in the district of Esslingen. It is located on the small river Lauter, a tributary of the Neckar. It is 10 km (6 miles) near the Teck castle, approximately ...

), married on 17 August 1723 with Prince Charles August of Nassau-Weilburg (1685 – 1753) * Johannette Wilhelmine (born: 14 September 1700 in Idstein; died: 2 June 1756 in

Lemgo Lemgo (; nds, Lemge, Lemje) is a small university town in the Lippe district of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated between the Teutoburg Forest and the Weser Uplands, 25 km east of Bielefeld and 70 km west of Hannover. T ...

), married on 16 October 1719 with Count Simon Henry Adolph of Lippe-Detmold (1694 – 1734) * Frederick August (born: 30 April 1702 in Idstein, died: 30 January 1703 in Idstein), Hereditary Prince of Nassau-Idstein, died in infancy * William Samuel (born: 14 February 1704 in Idstein; died: 4 May 1704 in Idstein), Hereditary Prince of Nassau-Idstein, died in infancy * Elisabeth Francisca (born: 17 September 1708 in Idstein; died: 7 November 1721 in Idstein), died young * Charlotte Louise (born: 17 March 1710 in Idstein; died: 4 November 1721 in Biebrich), died young

References

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:George August, Count of Nassau Idstein Counts of Nassau House of Nassau People from Wiesbaden 1665 births 1721 deaths