Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst (29 November 1690, in Dornburg – 16 March 1747, in

Zerbst Zerbst () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, 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 sit ...

) was a German prince of the

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

, and the father of

Catherine the Great Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. He was a ruler of the Principality of Anhalt-Dornburg. From 1742, he was a ruler of the entire

Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst Anhalt-Zerbst was a Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, principality of the Holy Roman Empire ruled by the House of Ascania, with its residence at Zerbst in present-day Saxony-Anhalt. It emerged as a subdivision of the Principality of Anhalt from 1 ...

. He was also a

Prussian Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, the House of Hohenzoll ...

Generalfeldmarschall ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (; from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire, (''Reichsgeneralfeldmarsch ...

''.

Life

Christian August was the third son of John Louis I, Prince of Anhalt-Dornburg and Christine Eleonore of Zeutsch (1666–1699). After the death of his father in 1704, Christian August inherited Anhalt-Dornburg jointly with his brothers John Louis II, John Augustus (died 1709), Christian Louis (died 1710) and John Frederick (died 1742). After possibly six months as a captain in the regiment guard in 1708, on 11 February 1709 he joined the Regiment on foot in Anhalt-Zerbst (No. 8) which later changed its name to the Grenadier's Regiment King

Frederick William IV of Prussia Frederick William IV (; 15 October 1795 – 2 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, was King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 until his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to as the "romanticist on the th ...

. It was stationed in

Stettin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major seaport, the largest city of northwestern Poland, and se ...

. In 1711, Christian August was awarded the Order '' De la Générosité'', later renamed in ''

Pour le Mérite The (; , ), also informally known as the ''Blue Max'' () after German WWI flying ace Max Immelmann, is an order of merit established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. Separated into two classes, each with their own designs, the was ...

'', and on 1 March 1713 was elevated to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. After he took part in several military campaigns during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

in the

Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...

, in 1714 Christian August was appointed Chief of the Regiment; two years later, on 4 January 1716 he was named colonel and on 14 August 1721 became major-general. On 22 January 1729 he became commander of

, after having been chosen there on 24 May 1725 as a knight of

Order of the Black Eagle The Order of the Black Eagle () was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg (who became Friedrich I of Prussia, Friedrich I, King in Prussia, the ...

. Christian August was designated on 28 May 1732 lieutenant-general and on 8 April 1741 infantry general. On 5 June of that year he was designated Governor of Stettin. On 16 May 1742 Prussian King

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

awarded him the highest military dignity, the rank of ''

''. Six months later, the death of his cousin John Augustus, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst, without any issue made him and his older and only surviving brother, John Louis II, the heirs of Anhalt-Zerbst as co-rulers. Christian August remained in Stettin and his brother took full charge of the government, but he died only four years later, unmarried and childless. For this reason, Christian August had to leave Stettin and return to Zerbst, but he only reigned four months until his own death.

Marriage and issue

On 8 November 1727 in Vechelde, Christian August married Johanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp (24 October 1712 – 30 May 1760), daughter of Prince Christian August of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin and sister of King

Adolf Frederick of Sweden Adolf (or Adolph) Frederick (; ; 14 May 171012 February 1771) was List of Swedish monarchs, King of Sweden from 1751 until his death in 1771. He was the son of Christian August of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince of Eutin, and Albertina Frederica of B ...

. They had five children: * Sophie Auguste Fredericka (2 May 1729 – 17 November 1796), who later became Catherine II the Great, Empress of Russia. * William Christian Frederick (17 November 1730 – 27 August 1742). * Frederick Augustus (8 August 1734 – 3 March 1793). * Auguste Christine Charlotte (10 November 1736 – 24 November 1736). * Elisabeth Ulrike (17 December 1742 – 5 March 1745).

Ancestors

References

* Ferdinand Siebigk: '' Christian August (Fürst von Anhalt-Zerbst)''. In:

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB; ) 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 Academy of Sciences between 1875 and 1912 in 56 volumes, printed in Lei ...

(ADB). Band 4, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1876, S. 157–159. {{DEFAULTSORT:August, Christian, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst 1690 births 1747 deaths People from Gommern People from the Principality of Anhalt-Dornburg

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 ...

Catherine the Great Field marshals of Prussia Military personnel from Saxony-Anhalt Royal reburials