Sophie Hedwig of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (13 June 1592, in

Wolfenbüttel Wolfenbüttel (; nds, Wulfenbüddel) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District. It is best known as the location of the internationally renowned Herzog August Library and for having the largest c ...

– 13 January 1642, in

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...

), was Countess of Nassau-Dietz by marriage to

Ernest Casimir I, Count of Nassau-Dietz Ernest Casimir I (22 December 1573 – 2 June 1632) was a Count of Nassau-Dietz and Stadtholder of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe. Biography He was the 11th child of John VI, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg, and Countess Elisabeth of Leuch ...

, and regent of the County of Nassau-Dietz during the absence of her sons between 1632 and 1642.

Life

Sophia was the daughter of Duke Henry Julius of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1564–1613) and his second wife

Princess Elisabeth of Denmark Princess Elisabeth of Denmark, (''Elisabeth Caroline-Mathilde Alexandrine Helena Olga Thyra Feodora Estrid Margrethe Désirée''; 8 May 1935 – 19 June 2018) was a member of the Danish royal family. She was the only daughter and eldest child o ...

(1573–1625), the eldest daughter of King

Frederick II of Denmark Frederick II (1 July 1534 – 4 April 1588) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1559 until his death. A member of the House of Oldenburg, Frederick began his personal rule of Denmark-Norway at the age of ...

. On 8 June 1607, Sophie Hedwig married Count Ernest Casimir I of Nassau-Dietz (1573–1632).

Regency

When she was widowed, Sophia took up residence at widow seat, the Countly Castle at Diez. Nassau-Dietz had been inherited by her eldest son, who was twenty and old enough to rule on his own. He was however appointed governor of Friesland, and appointed his mother as his regent to rule in his absence. She and managed to minimize damage caused during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

. She prevented looting and quartering in the city and county during the

by skillfully negotiating with army commanders. Sophia made a name for herself outside the county when she turned to

Axel Oxenstierna Axel Gustafsson Oxenstierna af Södermöre (; 1583–1654), Count of Södermöre, was a Swedish statesman. He became a member of the Swedish Privy Council in 1609 and served as Lord High Chancellor of Sweden from 1612 until his death. He was a c ...

in 1633 and demanded compensation for the damage his troops had done to her territory. Domestically, she cared for the rural population and made sure there was a sufficient supply of food and water. When Diez was affected by a

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

epidemic in 1635, she was ready to help. Sophia was a

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

, but this did not prevent her from benefitting from a cooperation with her brother-in-law John Louis of Nassau-Hadamar, who had reverted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. When her eldest son died and was succeeded by her youngest son in 1640, she was confirmed in her position as regent and continued to rule.

Issue

Only two of her children reached adulthood: * Henry Casimir I (1612–1640), fell in battle during the Siege of Hulst * William Frederick (1613–1664) The English representative at the baptism of Henry Casimir in March 1612 at Arnhem was

Sir Edward Cecil Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon (29 February 1572 – 16 November 1638) was an English military commander and a politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1601 and 1624. Life Cecil was the third son of Thomas Ceci ...

. Cecil brought gifts of a cupboard of gilt plate, a diamond necklace with a locket, two horses, and an embroidered petticoat for Sophia Hedwig, who was a niece of

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional fo ...

. The

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

gave a gift of an annual pension.A. B. Hinds, ''HMC Downshire'', vol. 3 (London, 1938), p. 275.

Legacy

In the mid-1990s, the gymnasium in Diez was named after her: Sophie-Hedwig-Gymnasium. A street in Diez was named after her.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sophie Hedwig of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel Middle House of Brunswick Duchesses of Brunswick-Lüneburg 1592 births 1642 deaths 17th-century German politicians 17th-century women rulers