Hedwig of Hesse-Kassel (born 30 June 1569 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 ...

; died: 7 July 1644 in

Hagen Hagen () is the Largest cities in Germany, 41st-largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany. The municipality is located in the States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located on the south eastern edge of the R ...

) was a princess of

Hesse-Kassel The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel (german: Landgrafschaft Hessen-Kassel), spelled Hesse-Cassel during its entire existence, was a state in the Holy Roman Empire that was directly subject to the Emperor. The state was created in 1567 when the Lan ...

by birth and by marriage a Countess of

Schaumburg Schaumburg is a district (''Landkreis'') of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (clockwise from the north) the districts of Nienburg, Hanover and Hamelin-Pyrmont, and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (districts of Lippe and Minden-Lübbe ...

Life

Hedwig was a daughter of Landgrave

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 ...

(1532–1592) from his marriage to

Sabine The Sabines (; lat, Sabini; it, Sabini, all exonyms) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divide ...

(1549–1581), a daughter of Duke Christopher of Württemberg. She married on 11 September 1597 at

Wilhelmsburg Castle The Wilhelmsburg Castle in the city of Schmalkalden was a secondary residence of the Landgraviate of Hesse, Landgraves of Hesse. It is one of the most important Renaissance buildings in central Germany, which has experienced no structural changes ...

Schmalkalden Schmalkalden () is a town in the Schmalkalden-Meiningen district, in the southwest of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is on the southern slope of the Thuringian Forest at the Schmalkalde river, a tributary to the Werra. , the town had a popula ...

with Count

Ernst of Schaumburg Ernst of Schaumburg (September 24, 1569 – January 17, 1622) was the first Count of Schauenburg and Holstein-Pinneberg to earn the title of Prince in 1619. However, he died in 1622 without an heir. Schauenburg-Pinneberg had been a Lutheran ...

(1569–1622). When Hedwig was engaged in 1593, Hedwig's brother

Maurice Maurice may refer to: People * Saint Maurice (died 287), Roman legionary and Christian martyr * Maurice (emperor) or Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (539–602), Byzantine emperor *Maurice (bishop of London) (died 1107), Lord Chancellor and ...

had made it a condition that Ernst would share the government of Schaumburg with his half-brother Adolph. In 1559, Schaumburg was divided by the Treaty of Minden, and Ernst received Lower Schaumburg, consisting of the

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

Sachsenhagen,

Hagenburg Hagenburg is a municipality in the district of Schaumburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russi ...

and Bokeloh. Hedwig and Ernst initially lived at the available castle in Sachsenhagen, and extended it to a palace; Ernst later moved his seat of government to

Bückeburg Bückeburg (Northern Low Saxon: ''Bückeborg'') is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, on the border with North Rhine Westphalia. It is located in the district of Schaumburg close to the northern slopes of the Weserbergland ridge. Population: 21,0 ...

. Ernst died in 1627. Hedwig constructed a Princely Mausoleum in the St.-Martini Church in

Stadthagen Stadthagen () is the capital of the district of Schaumburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 20 km east of Minden and 40 km west of Hanover. The city consists of the districts Brandenburg, Enzen-Hobbensen, Hörkamp-L ...

. Their marriage remained childless. Hedwig received the city and district of Stadthagen as her

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 ...

. She possessed a Hessian bond of without interest. She gave her nephew

William V William V may refer to: *William V, Duke of Aquitaine (969–1030) *William V of Montpellier (1075–1121) *William V, Marquess of Montferrat (1191) *William V, Count of Nevers (before 11751181) *William V, Duke of Jülich (1299–1361) *William V, ...

an annual pension and later bequeathed her bond and all her dower rights to the county of Schaumburg to his widow, Landgravine Amalie Elisabeth, whom she also appointed executrix of her last will and testament. Hedwig died in 1644 and was buried in the Princely Mausoleum in the St.-Martini Church in

, next to her husband. An

epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

above her grave reads: ''There is no other, holier decision of widowhood, than to pass down to the living that which was entrusted by the last will and to guard it, when it is realized''.

References

*Helge bei der Wieden: ''Ein Norddeutscher Renaissancefürst. Ernst Zu Holstein-Schaumburg, 1569-1622'', *Friedrich Rehm
''Handbuch der Geschichte beider Hessen'' p. 442
*Andrea Baresel-Brand
''Grabdenkmäler nordeuropäischer Fürstenhäuser im Zeitalter der Renaissance ...'' p. 235 ff
*Christoph von Rommel
''Geschichte von Hessen'' p. 646

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20120402104820/http://www.renaissance-stadthagen.de/index.html?Mausol.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Hedwig of Hesse-Kassel House of Hesse Landgravines of Hesse-Kassel 1569 births 1644 deaths German countesses 16th-century German people 17th-century German people