Emilie of Saxony (27 July 1516 – 9 April 1591) was the third wife of Margrave George the Pious of Brandenburg-Ansbach. Since his two earlier wives died before his accession, she was the only one to hold the title of Margravine.

Life

Emilie was the daughter of the Duke

Henry IV of Saxony Henry IV the Pious, Duke of Saxony (german: Heinrich der Fromme) (16 March 1473, in Dresden – 18 August 1541, in Dresden) was a Duke of Saxony from the House of Wettin. Succeeding his brother George, Duke of Saxony, a fervent Catholic who soug ...

and his wife Catherine of Mecklenburg. She was a member of the

House of Wettin The House of Wettin () is a dynasty of German kings, prince-electors, dukes, and counts that once ruled territories in the present-day German states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The dynasty is one of the oldest in Europe, and its ori ...

. On 25 August 1533 she married the much older George of Brandenburg, the future Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach, who had been recognized as the duke of

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...

. He also administered

Brandenburg-Kulmbach The Principality of Bayreuth (german: Fürstentum Bayreuth) or Margraviate of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (''Markgraftum Brandenburg-Bayreuth'') was an immediate territory of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a Franconian branch of the Hohenzollern dynas ...

on behalf of Albert, the son of his deceased brother

Casimir Casimir is classically an English, French and Latin form of the Polish name Kazimierz. Feminine forms are Casimira and Kazimiera. It means "proclaimer (from ''kazać'' to preach) of peace (''mir'')." List of variations *Belarusian: Казі ...

. The marriage produced the heir he had hoped for: George Frederick, later Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach. After the death of her husband in 1543, Emilie was the legal guardian of her minor son George Frederick until 1556. She provided him with his profound and humanistic education. However, the regency of

Brandenburg-Ansbach The Principality or Margraviate of (Brandenburg-)Ansbach (german: Fürstentum Ansbach or ) was a principality in the Holy Roman Empire centered on the Franconian city of Ansbach. The ruling Hohenzollern princes of the land were known as margrave ...

was administered jointly by the reigning

Electors of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony (German: or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356–1806. It was centered around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. In the Golden Bull of 1356, Emperor Charles ...

Electors of Brandenburg This article lists the Margraves and Electors of Brandenburg during the period of time that Brandenburg was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire. The Mark, or ''March'', of Brandenburg was one of the primary constituent states of the Hol ...

, and the Landgrave of Hesse,

Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) (1 ...

. Emilie was described as wise, virtuous and pious. She was a strict Lutheran and actively opposed Catholicism in the territories of her husband and son.Johann Heinrich Schülin: ''Life and history of the ... Margrave George ...''
p. 170 In later life she retired to her widow seat.

Offspring

Her children with George were the following *

Sophie Sophie is a version of the female given name Sophia, meaning "wise". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Sophie of Thuringia, Duchess o ...

(1535–1587) : married in 1560 Duke

Henry XI of Legnica Henry XI of Legnica ( pl, Henryk XI Legnicki; Schloss Liegnitz, 23 February 1539 – Krakow, 3 March 1588), was thrice Duke of Legnica: 1551-1556 (under regency), 1559–1576 and 1580-1581. He was the eldest son of Frederick III, Duke of Legni ...

(1539–1588) * Barbara (1536–1591) * Dorothy Catherine (1538–1604) : married in 1556

Henry V, Burgrave of Plauen Henry V of Plauen (9 October 1533, Andělská Hora – 24 December 1568, Hof; buried in the Mountain Church in Schleiz) was Burgrave of Meissen and Lord of Plauen and Voigtsberg. Life Henry V was the older of the two sons of Burgrave Hen ...

, Burgrave of Meissen * George Frederick (1539–1603), Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach : married first, in 1558, Princess

Elisabeth of Brandenburg-Küstrin Elizabeth of Brandenburg-Küstrin (29 August 1540 – 8 March 1578), was a princess of Brandenburg-Küstrin and margravine of Brandenburg-Ansbach and Brandenburg-Kulmbach by marriage. Life Elizabeth was the elder of two daughters of Margrav ...

(1540–1578) : second, in 1579, Princess

Sophie of Brunswick-Lüneburg 235px , Show gate of Wülzburg Castle with the coats of arms of Sophie and her husband Sophie of Brunswick-Lüneburg (30 October 1563 – 14 January 1639) was a member of the House of Brunswick-Lüneburg and margravine of Brandenburg-Ansbac ...

(1563–1639)

Ancestors

References

* (mentioned in the article about her son)

External links

* * http://www.guide2womenleaders.com/womeninpower/Womeninpower1540.htm , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Emilie Of Saxony 1516 births 1591 deaths Margravines of Germany House of Wettin Albertine branch Daughters of monarchs