Rudolph of Anhalt-Zerbst ( Harzgerode, 28 October 1576 –

Zerbst Zerbst () is a town in the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Until an administrative reform in 2007, Zerbst was the capital of the former Anhalt-Zerbst district. Geography Zerbst is situated in the Anhalt-Wittenberg regi ...

, 30 July 1621), was a German prince of the

House of Ascania The House of Ascania (german: Askanier) was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Anhalt. The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ''Schlos ...

and ruler of the unified

Principality of Anhalt The Principality of Anhalt (german: Fürstentum Anhalt) was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, located in Central Germany, in what is today part of the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt. Under the rule of the House of Ascania, the Anhalt territory ...

. From 1603, he was ruler of the principality of

Anhalt-Zerbst Anhalt-Zerbst was a district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts Potsdam-Mittelmark (Brandenburg) and Wittenberg, the city of Dessau and the districts of Köthen, Schönebeck and Jerichower ...

. Rudolph was the fifth son of

Joachim Ernest, Prince of Anhalt Joachim Ernest of Anhalt (21 October 1536 – 6 December 1586), was a German prince of the House of Ascania, ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst from 1551, and from 1570 sole ruler of all the Anhalt lands. Life Early life Joachim Ernes ...

, but third-born son by his second wife Eleonore, daughter of

Christoph, Duke of Württemberg Christoph of Württemberg (12 May 1515 – 28 December 1568), ruled as Duke of Württemberg from 1550 until his death in 1568. Life In November 1515, only months after his birth, his mother, Sabina of Bavaria, fled to the court of her parent ...

Life

In 1586, after the death of his father, Rudolph inherited the principality of Anhalt jointly with his half- and full brothers, but because he was still a minor, his older brother John George I acted as regent. By the accounts of contemporary witnesses, Rudolph was an eager pupil and student. In 1596 the twenty-year-old prince was invited to the coronation of King

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mona ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...

. 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 ...

began in 1600 when he arrived in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. With his younger brother Louis, Rudolph spent a year in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

. On 21 November 1601 he was admitted to the

University of Siena The University of Siena ( it, Università degli Studi di Siena, abbreviation: UNISI) in Siena, Tuscany, is one of the oldest and first publicly funded universities in Italy. Originally called ''Studium Senese'', the institution was founded in 12 ...

. A year later, in 1602, the prince left

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

(where he had lived for some time) and returned to Dessau. In 1603, a formal division of the principality of Anhalt was agreed upon by Rudolph and his surviving brothers. He received

, where his main residence was, and supported there the renovation of the ''Gymnasium Francisceum'', beginning with the addition of a library. In 1618, Rudolph joined the

Fruitbearing Society The Fruitbearing Society (German Die Fruchtbringende Gesellschaft, lat. ''societas fructifera'') was a German literary society founded in 1617 in Weimar by German scholars and nobility. Its aim was to standardize vernacular German and promote it a ...

Marriages and issue

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 ...

on 29 December 1605 Rudolph married Dorothea Hedwig (born Wolfenbüttel, 3 February 1587 – d. Zerbst, 16 October 1609), daughter of

Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Henry Julius (german: Heinrich Julius; 15 October 1564 – 30 July 1613), a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and ruling Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel from 1589 until his death. He also served as administrator of the ...

. They had four daughters: #Stillborn daughter (Zerbst, October? 1606). #

Dorothea Dorothea (also spelled Dorothée, Dorotea or other variants) is a female given name from Greek (Dōrothéa) meaning "God's Gift". It may refer to: People * Dorothea Binz (1920–1947), German concentration camp officer executed for war cr ...

(born Zerbst, 25 September 1607 – d.

Hitzacker Hitzacker is a town in the Lüchow-Dannenberg district of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Elbe, approx. 8 km north of Dannenberg, and 45 km east of Lüneburg. The 2007 population of Hitzacker was 4,982, and its posta ...

, 26 September 1634), married on 26 October 1623 to Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. # Eleonor (born Zerbst, 10 November 1608 – d.

Osterholm Michael Thomas Osterholm (born March 10, 1953) is an American epidemiologist, Regents Professor, and Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. On November 9, 2020, Osterholm was named to n ...

, 2 November 1681), married on 15 February 1632 to Frederick, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Norburg. #Stillborn daughter (Zerbst, 16 October 1609). The death of his wife caused Rudolph to fall into a deep depression, according to contemporary witnesses. In Oldenburg on 31 August 1612 Rudolph married for a second time to Magdalene (born Oldenburg, 6 October 1585 – d. Coswig, 14 April 1657), heiress of

Jever Jever () is the capital of the district of Friesland in Lower Saxony, Germany. The name Jever is usually associated with a major brand of beer, Jever Pilsener, which is produced there. The city is also a popular holiday resort. Jever was granted c ...

and daughter of John VII, Count of Oldenburg; only when Rudolph met her did he find a way out of his depression. They had two children: #Elisabeth (born Zerbst, 1 December 1617 – d. Oldenburg, 3 June 1639). # John VI, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst (born Zerbst, 24 March 1621 – d. Zerbst, 4 July 1667).

Notes

References

* Franz Kindscher: '' Rudolf''. In:

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Ac ...

(ADB). Band 29, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1889, S. 519–523. *
Genealogical database by Herbert Stoyan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudolph, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst 1576 births 1621 deaths People from Harzgerode Rulers of Anhalt House of Ascania Princes of Anhalt-Zerbst Royal reburials