Ursula Katharina of Altenbockum, divorced Princess
Lubomirska, married Duchess von
Württemberg-Winnental
Württemberg-Winnental was a branch of the House of Württemberg. It only existed from 1677 to 1733 and was based at the Schloss Winnental in Winnenden.
Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg
Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (16 December 1614, i ...
( pl, Urszula Katarzyna Lubomirska z domu Bokum;
25 November 1680 – 4 May 1743), later Imperial Princess of Teschen (german:
Reichsfürst
Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor.
Definition
Originally, possessors o ...
in von
Teschen), was a Polish-German noblewoman and
mistress
Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to:
Romance and relationships
* Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...
of
Augustus II the Strong
Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as Ki ...
, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, in 1700-1705. In 1722 she married Prince
Frederick Louis of Württemberg-Winnental
Frederick Louis of Württemberg-Winnental (5 November 1690, in Stuttgart – 19 September 1734, in Guastalla) was a German army commander of the eighteenth century.
He was the third son of Frederick Charles of Württemberg-Winnental and Margravi ...
.
Early life
She was the youngest daughter of the ''
Truchsess
The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...
'' (Seneschal) of Lithuania, Johann Heinrich von
Altenbockum by his wife, Konstancja Tekla
Branicka, who had emigrated from
Westphalia
Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants.
The territory of the regio ...
.
First marriage
In 1695, fifteen-year-old Ursula married the Polish ''Kronoberkaemmerer'' Prince
Jerzy Dominik Lubomirski
Prince Jerzy Dominik Lubomirski ( en, George Dominic; 1654–1727) was a Polish noble (szlachcic).
He was the son of Grand Marshal and Hetman Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski and Barbara Tarło. In 1695 he married Ursula Katharina of Altenbockum, U ...
. He was the son of
Grand Marshal
Grand marshal is a ceremonial, military rank, military, or political office of very high rank. The term has its origins with the word "marshal" with the first usage of the term "grand marshal" as a ceremonial title for certain religious orders. ...
and
Hetman
( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders.
Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...
Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski
Prince Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski (20 January 1616 – 31 December 1667) was a Polish noble (szlachcic), magnate, politician and military commander, and Prince of the Holy Roman Empire. He was the initiator of the Lubomirski Rebellion of 1665 ...
and Barbara
Tarło. At that time, the
Lubomirski family
The House of Lubomirski is a Polish princely family. The Lubomirski family's coat of arms is the Drużyna coat of arms, which is similar to the Szreniawa coat of arms but without a cross.
Origin and the coat of arms
The Lubomirski fam ...
ranked among Poland's most influential princely families. They maintained relations with Primate-Cardinal
Michał Stefan Radziejowski
Augustyn Michał Stefan Radziejowski (3 December 1645 – 13 October 1705) was an archbishop of Gniezno and cardinal primate of the Roman Catholic Church in Poland, son of Hieronim Radziejowski. After the death of the Polish king John III Sobiesk ...
, archbishop of
Gniezno
Gniezno (; german: Gnesen; la, Gnesna) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. One of the Piast dynasty's chief cities, ...
, who, after the death of the Polish king
John III Sobieski
John III Sobieski ( pl, Jan III Sobieski; lt, Jonas III Sobieskis; la, Ioannes III Sobiscius; 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696.
Born into Polish nobility, Sobie ...
, was chosen by the new king as his representative. Nevertheless, the Pope soon took the highly unusual step of
dissolving this "lucky little marriage".
Official mistress
Around the end of the century,
August the Strong
Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as K ...
, Elector of Saxony and since 1697 King of Poland, had met the vivacious and beautiful Princess Lubomirska, and after the dissolution of her marriage, he used Ursula's relations with the Cardinal-Primate to meet her.
In 1700 she became Augustus's official
mistress
Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to:
Romance and relationships
* Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...
(''Mätresse''), replacing
Countess Anna Aloysia Maximiliane von Lamberg, known to history as ''Countess Esterle''. Augustus the Strong sent Ursula to
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...
and presented her to the
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
court. The
courtier
A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official r ...
s were impressed by the beautiful, charming and high-spirited princess. On 21 August 1704 she gave birth a son,
Johann Georg
The German given name Johann Georg, or its variant spellings, may refer to:
John George
*John George, Elector of Brandenburg (1525–1598)
*John George I, Elector of Saxony (1585–1656)
*John George II, Elector of Saxony (1613–1680)
*John Geor ...
, later the ''Chevalier de Saxe'', who was named for
the king-elector's father.
Only five days after her son's birth, on 26 August 1704, Ursula was created ''
Reichsfürstin'' (“Princess of the Empire” or “Imperial Princess”) of
Teschen by Emperor
Leopold I. This title was only
honorific
An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an honorary academic title. It ...
, because only national Princes had seats and votes in the
Reichstag.
Life after Augustus
However, later that year, Ursula's relationship with the King ended. In 1705, the
Countess Anna Constantia of Hoym, later Countess of Cosel, replaced her as official mistress. Humiliated by the King and outlawed from the Dresden ''Hof'' (court), Ursula retired to a countryseat in
Hoyerswerda
Hoyerswerda () or Wojerecy () is a major district town in the district of Bautzen in the German state of Saxony. It is located in the Sorbian settlement area of Upper Lusatia, a region where some people speak the Sorbian language in addition to G ...
. Augustus the Strong loaned her 250,000 Imperial talers (''
Reichstaler
The ''Reichsthaler'' (; modern spelling Reichstaler), or more specifically the ''Reichsthaler specie'', was a standard thaler silver coin introduced by the Holy Roman Empire in 1566 for use in all German states, minted in various versions for the ...
'') for the land, and later he gave her the complete property rights. Then, Ursula moved to her
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
n residence in
Breslau.
Years later, after the King had banished the Countess of Cosel, Ursula returned to Dresden, where she occupied a respected position in the ''Hof''. The fall of Augustus II's Lord Chancellor and Lord Chamberlain (''Großkanzler'') Wolf Dietrich von Beichlingen was at that time attributed to her.
Second marriage
Meanwhile, she was courted by
Frederick Louis of Württemberg-Winnental
Frederick Louis of Württemberg-Winnental (5 November 1690, in Stuttgart – 19 September 1734, in Guastalla) was a German army commander of the eighteenth century.
He was the third son of Frederick Charles of Württemberg-Winnental and Margravi ...
, third son of
Frederick Charles of Württemberg-Winnental Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Nobility
Anhalt-Harzgerode
*Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
Austria
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198
* Frederick ...
and
Margravine Eleonore Juliane of Brandenburg-Ansbach
Eleonore Juliane of Brandenburg-Ansbach (23 October 1663 – 4 March 1724) was a princess of Brandenburg-Ansbach and through her marriage duchess of Württemberg-Winnental.
Life
Eleonore Juliane was a daughter of Albert II, Margrave of Bran ...
, who was ten years her junior. After long persuasion she finally accepted him, and they
married secretly on 22 October 1722. On 19 September 1734, after twelve years of marriage, Frederick Louis was killed during the
Battle of Guastalla
The Battle of Guastalla or Battle of Luzzara was a battle fought on 19 September 1734 between Franco-Sardinian and Austrian (Habsburg) troops as part of the War of the Polish Succession.
Background
Following the death in February 1733 of Ki ...
. In accordance with the marriage agreement and despite the
House of Württemberg
The House of Württemberg is a German dynasty and former royal family from Württemberg.
History County
The House probably originated in the vicinity of the Salian dynasty. Around 1080 the ancestors of modern Württemberg, which was then called ...
's unsuccessful opposition, the Imperial Princess used the name and coat of arms of her deceased husband until her own death.
Later life
When the King-Elector died in 1733, Ursula was banished from the ''Hof''. Her rule over Hoyerswerda ended in 1737; for compensation, the new Saxon elector and king,
August III
Augustus III ( pl, August III Sas, lt, Augustas III; 17 October 1696 5 October 1763) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1733 until 1763, as well as Elector of Saxony in the Holy Roman Empire where he was known as Frederick Augu ...
, gave her an annuity of 18,000 ''Reichstalern'' until her death and 6,000 for her son, the Chevalier de Saxe.
Death
Ursula died on 4 May 1743 in
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
, aged 62. Her mortal remains were buried in the Jesuit Church (''Jesuitenkirche'') to
Leitmeritz (Böhmen).
See also
*
Copper-Roof Palace
The Copper-Roof Palace ( pl, pałac Pod Blachą) is an 18th-century palace in Warsaw, Poland. It takes its name (which is less precisely phrased in the original Polish) from the copper roof, a rarity in the first half of the 18th century. Since 19 ...
Notes
References
Heinrich Theodor Flathe
Lubomirska, Ursula Katharina Fürstin von.In: ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB)''. Vol XIX, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1884, p. 333.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Altenbockum, Ursula Katharina of
1680 births
1743 deaths
Nobility from Warsaw
Ursula
Lubomirski family
Mistresses of Augustus the Strong
18th-century Polish nobility