Christian Albert, Burgrave and Count of Dohna (also known as Christoph Albert, 10 December 162115 December 1621, according to Scharing in Küstrin – 14 December 1677 in

Gartz Gartz is a border town in the Uckermark district in Brandenburg, in north-eastern Germany. It is located on the West bank of the Oder River, on the border with Poland, about south of Szczecin, Poland. It is located within the historic region of W ...

) was a German nobleman from the House of Dohna.

Early life

He was the son of Count Christoph von Dohna and his wife, Countess Ursula of

Solms-Braunfels Solms-Braunfels was a County and later Principality with Imperial immediacy in what is today the federal Land of Hesse in Germany. History Solms-Braunfels was a partition of Solms, ruled by the House of Solms, and was raised to a Princi ...

(24 November 1594 in

Braunfels Braunfels () is a town in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis in Hesse, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road. Geography Location The climatic spa of Braunfels lies at a height of some 100 m above the Lahn valley. It is 9 km southwes ...

– 18 August 1657 in

Turnhout Turnhout () is a Belgium, Belgian Municipalities in Belgium, municipality and city located in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of Antwerp (province), Antwerp. The municipality comprises only the city of Turnhout proper. ...

). His brothers

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...

and Christopher Delphicus also served as army officers. His first cousin Countess Luise Henriette of Nassau was Electress consort of Brandenburg.

Life

He joined the Dutch army, initially serving as

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

. He was educated by Prince Frederick Henry and in 1684, he was promoted to

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 ...

. On 6 October 1656, he became a

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the army of Brandenburg. He also served as privy councillor and

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of Küstrin. On 16 March 1657, he became

stadtholder In the Low Countries, a stadtholder ( ) was a steward, first appointed as a medieval official and ultimately functioning as a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and ...

Halberstadt Halberstadt (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany, the capital of Harz (district), Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town ...

and Captain at

Gröningen Gröningen () is a town in the Börde (district), Börde Districts of Germany, district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It lies approx. 40 km south-west of Magdeburg, and 10 km east of Halberstadt. It has 3.621 inhabitants (December 2015). G ...

. In 1659, he participated in a campaign in Pomerania. He expanded the fortresses of Berlin and Küstrin and on 2 March 1666, he was promoted to

General of the Infantry General of the infantry is a military rank of a General officer in the infantry and refers to: * General of the Infantry (Austria) * General of the Infantry (Bulgaria) * General of the Infantry (Germany) General of the Infantry (, abbr. ) is ...

. In 1671, he became head of a newly formed regiment in Küstrin that was named after him (""). In 1672, he was appointed

Feldzeugmeister General of the Artillery () was a historical military rank in some German and Austro-Hungarian armies, specifically in artillery. It was commonly used in the 16th and 17th centuries, and survived until the beginning of the 20th century in some Euro ...

. From 1675 to 1677, he fought another campaign in Pomerania, where he died in 1677. He served as a

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in the army of

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

Marriage and issue

On 6 April 1644, Christian Albert married Countess Sophie Theodore of Brederode-Vianen (16 March 1620 in

Vianen Vianen () is a city and a former municipality in the central Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. It is located south of the Lek river. Before 2002 it was part of the province of South Holland. Vianen is made up of a historic town centre tha ...

– 23 September 1678 in

). Together, they had six sons, who were also army officers, and four daughters: * Amalia (2 February 1644 – 11 March 1700), married in 1666 to

Simon Henry, Count of Lippe Simon Henry, Count of Lippe (13 March 1649 in Sternberg – 2 May 1697 in Detmold) was a ruling Count of Lippe-Detmold. Life Simon Henry was the eldest son of Herman Adolph, Count of Lippe and his first wife Countess Ernestine of Ysenb ...

(1639-1697) * Frederick Henry (1645-1668), fell before

Toulon Toulon (, , ; , , ) is a city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera and the historical Provence, it is the prefecture of the Var (department), Var department. The Commune of Toulon h ...

* Wolfard (1647 – 8 September 1686),

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the Brandenburg army; died in a duel in Magdeburg * William Albert (d. 1673), Colonel in the Dutch army; fell before

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; ; ; ) is a city and a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital city, capital and largest city of the province of Limburg (Netherlands), Limburg. Maastricht is loca ...

* Christopher (1651 – 27 October 1672 in

Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...

), in the Brandenburg army * Charles Emil (10 September 1658 – 3 July 1686),

in the Brandenburg army; fell before

Buda Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...

* Dietrich Theodor (5 December 1659 – 17 July 1686),

in the Brandenburg army; fell before

* Louise (1646 – 8 November 1687), married in 1670 to Count Louis of Solms-Hohensolms (1646 – 24 August 1707) * Ursula Anna (12 August 1654 – 25 May 1678) * Frederike Marie (28 December 1660 – 22 November 1729), married in 1690 to

Christopher I, Burgrave and Count of Dohna-Schlodien Christopher I, Burgrave and Count of Dohna-Schlodien (2 April 1665 – 11 October 1733) was a Prussian general and diplomat. Life Dohna was born at the Coppet Castle in Coppet near Geneva, one of the sons of Frederick, Burgrave of Dohna, F ...

(1665-1733), a son of her uncle

Footnotes

References

Kurt von Priesdorff Wilhelm Werner Kurt von Priesdorff (19 October 1881 in Berlin – 5 September 1967 in Naumburg) was a Prussian officer, his last rank was Major, as well as a '' Geheimer Regierungsrat'' (executive council), military historian and author. Awards ...

(ed.): ''Soldatisches Führertum'', Hanseatische Verlagsanstalt, Hamburg, 1937, vol. 1, p. 14 *

External links

*
Genealogy of Dohna
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christian Albert of Dohna Prussian generals Counts in Germany 1621 births 1677 deaths 17th-century German military personnel