Christian, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (30 January 1581 in

Cölln Cölln () was the Twin cities, twin city of Old Berlin (Alt-Berlin) from the 13th century to the 18th century. Cölln was located on the Fischerinsel, Fisher Island section of Spree Island, opposite Altberlin on the western bank of the River ...

– 30 May 1655 in

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

) was a member of the

House of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern Castle, Hohenzollern, Margraviate of Bran ...

and

Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach The Principality of 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 dynasty. Since Burgrave Frederic ...

(later renamed ''Brandenburg-Bayreuth''). He was the eldest of eleven children born to

John George, Elector of Brandenburg John George of Brandenburg (; 11 September 1525 – 8 January 1598) was a prince-elector of the Margraviate of Brandenburg (1571–1598). Early life Born as a member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the son of Joachim II Hector, Elector ...

by his third wife Princess

Elisabeth of Anhalt-Zerbst Elisabeth of Anhalt-Zerbst (15 September 1563 – 8 November 1607) was Electress of Brandenburg by marriage to John George, Elector of Brandenburg. Early life Elizabeth was a daughter of Joachim Ernest, Prince of Anhalt (1536–1585), from ...

Life

The death of the childless George Frederick the Elder in 1603 marked the extinction of the original Franconian line of the Margraves of Brandenburg-Ansbach-Kulmbach. Christian inherited

Kulmbach Kulmbach () is the capital of the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. The town, once a stronghold of the Principality of Bayreuth, is renowned for its University of Life Sciences, a branch of the University of Bayreuth, the massive Plasse ...

and his younger brother Joachim Ernst received

Ansbach Ansbach ( , ; ) is a city in the Germany, German state of Bavaria. It is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk, administrative region of Mittelfranken, Middle Franconia. Ansbach is southwest of Nuremberg and north of Munich, on the river Fränk ...

. This land partition had already been legitimized in 1598 by the

House Treaty of Gera The House Treaty of Gera was a house law of the House of Hohenzollern on the succession in Brandenburg and in the Franconian territories at the end of the sixteenth century binding rules. The Treaty and came about because Elector John George of ...

, which was prepared for this purpose. Christian's assumption of the government of Kulmbach took place at the same time as that of Joachim Ernst in Ansbach. In 1604 Christian moved the seat of power from Kulmbach to

and

Plassenburg Plassenburg is a castle in the city of Kulmbach in Bavaria. It is one of the most impressive castles in Germany and a symbol of the city. It was first mentioned in 1135. The Plassenberg family were Ministerialis, ministerial of the counts of And ...

, however Kulmbach was retained as a regional fortress. From that moment, the principality changed its name from Brandenburg-Kulmbach to Brandenburg-Bayreuth. In 1606 Christian was elected

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

(German: ''Kreisobrist'') of the

Franconian Circle The Franconian Circle () was an Imperial Circle established in 1500 in the centre of the Holy Roman Empire. It comprised the eastern part of the former Franconian stem duchy—roughly corresponding with the present-day Bavarian ''Regierungsbez ...

. He was also one of the founders of the

Protestant Union The Protestant Union (), also known as the Evangelical Union, Union of Auhausen, German Union or the Protestant Action Party, was a coalition of Protestant German states. It was formed on 14 May 1608 by Frederick IV, Elector Palatine in order t ...

and formed an alliance during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

with Sweden.

Emperor Ferdinand II Ferdinand II (9 July 1578 – 15 February 1637) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary, Hungary, and List of Croatian monarchs, Croatia from 1619 until his death in 1637. He was the son of Archduke Charles II, Archduke of Austr ...

tried to depose him as ruler of Bayreuth in 1635; however, he continued in office.

Family and children

on 29 April 1604, Christian married

Marie Marie may refer to the following. People Given name * Marie (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** List of people named Marie * Marie (Japanese given name) Surname * Jean Gabriel-Marie, French compo ...

, daughter of

Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia Albert Frederick (; ; 7 May 1553 – 27 August 1618) was the Duke of Prussia, from 1568 until his death. He was a son of Albert of Prussia and Anna Marie of Brunswick-Lüneburg. He was the second and last Prussian duke of the Ansbach bran ...

. They had nine children: # Elisabeth Eleonore (b. Plassenburg, 19 October 1606 – d. Plassenburg, 20 October 1606) died in infancy. # Georg Frederick (b. and d. Kulmbach, 23 March 1608) died at birth. # Anna Maria (b. Bayreuth, 30 December 1609 – d. Ödenburg, 8 May 1680); married on 23 October 1639 to Prince Johann Anton I von Eggenberg. # Agnes Sophie (b. Bayreuth, 19 July 1611 – d. Bayreuth, 1 December 1611) died in infancy. # Magdalene Sibylle (b. Bayreuth, 27 October 1612 – d. Dresden, 20 March 1687); married on 13 November 1638 to Elector

John George II of Saxony Johann George II (31 May 1613 – 22 August 1680) was the Elector of Saxony from 1656 to 1680. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the House of Wettin. Biography He was the third but eldest surviving son of John George I, Elector of Saxony an ...

. # Christian Ernst (b. Bayreuth, 18 November 1613 – d. Bayreuth, 4 February 1614) died in infancy. # Erdmann August (b. Bayreuth, 8 October 1615 – d. Hof, 6 February 1651), Hereditary Margrave (German: ''Erbmarkgraf'') of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. # Georg Albrecht (b. Bayreuth, 20 March 1619 – d. Schretz, 27 September 1666), inherited Kulmbach but never reigned. # Frederick Wilhelm (b. Bayreuth, 11 May 1620 – d. Bayreuth, 12 May 1620) died in infancy.

Ancestors

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christian, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth Bayreuth, Christian, Margrave of Bayreuth, Christian, Margrave of

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

Sons of prince-electors Margraves of the Holy Roman Empire

Life

Family and children

See also

Ancestors

References