Eleonora Catherine of the Palatinate-Zweibrücken (17 May 1626 – 3 March 1692), was a cousin and foster sister of Queen

Christina of Sweden Christina (; 18 December ld Style and New Style dates, O.S. 8 December1626 – 19 April 1689), a member of the House of Vasa, was Monarchy of Sweden, Queen of Sweden from 1632 until her abdication in 1654. Her conversion to Catholicism and ...

and sister of King

Charles X Gustav of Sweden Charles X Gustav, also Carl X Gustav (; 8 November 1622 – 13 February 1660), was King of Sweden from 1654 until his death. He was the son of John Casimir, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg and Catherine of Sweden. After his father's ...

. After her brother's accession to the throne (1654), she and her siblings were all considered royal princesses and princes of Sweden. As the wife of

Frederick, Landgrave of Hesse-Eschwege Landgrave Frederick of Hesse-Eschwege (9 May 1617 – 24 September 1655) was from 1632 until his death Landgrave of the apanage of Hesse-Eschwege, which stood under the suzerainty of Hesse-Kassel. Background Frederick was born in Kassel. As ...

(1617–1655), she was by marriage Landgravine of Hesse-Eschwege, and after her husband's death acted as

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

and administrator of his lands (1655–1692).

Biography

Eleonora was born at

Stegeborg Castle Stegeborg Castle is a ruined castle in St Anna parish, Söderköping, Östergötland, located on an island in a narrow Sound (geography), sound at the bay of Slätbaken, Sweden. Brief history The oldest part of the castle is a square brick tow ...

Östergötland Östergötland (; English exonym: East Gothland) is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish) in the south of Sweden. It borders Småland, Västergötland, Närke, Södermanland and the Baltic Sea. In older English li ...

, Sweden to Princess Catharina of Sweden and Johann Casimir, Count Palatine von Zweibrücken-Kleeburg. Her mother was an elder half-sister of King

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden Gustavus Adolphus (9 December ld Style and New Style dates, N.S 19 December15946 November ld Style and New Style dates, N.S 16 November1632), also known in English as Gustav II Adolf or Gustav II Adolph, was King of Sweden from 1611 t ...

and the firstborn daughter of King Charles IX. Her parents, who were

second cousin A cousin is a relative who is the child of a parent's sibling; this is more specifically referred to as a first cousin. A parent of a first cousin is an aunt or uncle. More generally, in the kinship system used in the English-speaking world, ...

s, had lived in Sweden since 1622, and Eleonora and her siblings, including her sister Maria Eufrosyne, grew up in Sweden as foster siblings of their cousin, Queen

. Eleonora was only about seven months older than Christina and had the same teacher, Johannes Matthiæ. The negotiations concerning her marriage with Landgrave Frederick of Hesse-Eschwege, son of

Maurice, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel Maurice of Hesse-Kassel (; 25 May 1572 – 15 March 1632), also called Maurice the Learned or Moritz, was the Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel) in the Holy Roman Empire from 1592 to 1627. Life Maurice was born in Kassel as the son o ...

, started in 1643. The landgrave was a second cousin of both her parents and nine years her senior. The negotiation process was difficult, but finally completed in June 1646. She was granted a fortune of 20,000 gulden by her father. The marriage took place at Tre Kronor in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

on 6 September 1646. After the wedding, Eleonora confessed before her husband, "on her knees", that she had had an affair with a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck (music), neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lu ...

-player and actor, named Beschon, from the French court theatre of Antoine de Beaulieu, and was pregnant with his child.''Eleonora Catharina'' in Riksarkivet.se
(in Swedish) etrieved 11 June 2014 Frederick decided to act like nothing happened and hide the matter, but it became a known scandal. Beschon wrote a composition to Eleonora which he sent her along with a letter dated 28 February 1647, but she gave it to her brother; this document is now preserved in the Stegeborg collection. In 1648, she referred to the queen's head lady-in-waiting

Margareta Brahe Margareta Abrahamsdotter Brahe (28 June 1603, Rydboholm – 15 May 1669, Weferlingen) was a Swedish aristocrat and court official, Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg by marriage to Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg. She aroused a lot of attentio ...

as her "Dearest Protection", likely because Margareta Brahe had defended her when she gave birth to an illegitimate child.Fabian Persson (1999). Servants of Fortune. The Swedish court between 1598 and 1721. Lund: Wallin & Dalholm. p. 171 The marriage has been described as unhappy. Eleonora was nevertheless constantly pregnant, giving birth to six children in just seven years; only half of them lived to adulthood.

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 ...

took part in the

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

of his brother-in-law in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, where he was shot in 1655. Eleonora never remarried. It is said she was too embarrassed by the scandal with Beschon to return to the Swedish court, so she preferred to live in her fief

Osterholz Osterholz is a district (''Landkreis'') in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the districts of Wesermarsch, Cuxhaven, Rotenburg and Verden, and by the city of Bremen. History Originally the prince-archbishop ...

, where she founded a pharmacy and hired the first teacher and doctor of the town.''Eleonora Catharine'' in heimatverein-lilienthal.de
(in German) etrieved 5 January 2015 Eleonora was the administrator and regent of her husband's possessions in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. Eleonora sent her daughter Juliana to be brought up at the Swedish royal court, where she was regarded as a prospective bride for Charles XI until she became pregnant in 1672. Eleonora did in fact visit Sweden a couple of times: in 1661, in 1674 and in 1681. During her 1674 visit,

Lorenzo Magalotti Lorenzo Magalotti (24 October 1637 – 2 March 1712) was an Italian philosopher, author, diplomat and poet. Magalotti was born in Rome into an aristocratic family, the son of Ottavio Magalotti, Prefect of the Pontifical Mail: his uncle Lorenz ...

described her as "a wicked, vain, strange, proud and melancholic woman" who spent most of her time in pious devotions. Eleonora died in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

(today's Germany) and is buried at the ''Altstädter Kirche'' ("Old City church") in Eschwege where now stands the ''Marktkirche'' ("Market Church"). Some of her notable descendants are

Wilhelm II, German Emperor Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as the Hohenzollern dynasty ...

;

Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until Abdication of Nicholas II, hi ...

; Queen

Victoria of the United Kingdom Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

; and the present kings of Sweden and the United Kingdom,

Carl XVI Gustaf Carl XVI Gustaf (Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus; born 30 April 1946) is King of Sweden. Having reigned since 1973, he is the longest-reigning monarch in Swedish history. Carl Gustaf was born during the reign of his paternal great-grandfather, K ...

and

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

Children

* Margarete (b. Erfurt, 31 March 1647 – d. Erfurt, 19 October 1647). *

Christine Christine may refer to: People * Christine (name), a female given name Film * ''Christine'' (1958 film), based on Schnitzler's play ''Liebelei'' * ''Christine'' (1983 film), based on Stephen King's novel of the same name * ''Christine'' ( ...

(b. Kassel, 30 October 1648 – d. Bevern, 18 March 1702), married in 1667 to

Ferdinand Albert I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

-Bevern. * Elizabeth (b. Eschwege, 7 April 1650 – d. Eschwege, 27 April 1651). *

Juliana Juliana (variants Julianna, Giuliana, Iuliana, Yuliana, etc) is a feminine given name which is the feminine version of the Roman name Julianus. Juliana or Giuliana was the name of a number of early saints, notably Saint Julian the Hospitaller, whi ...

(b. Eschwege, 14 May 1652 – d.

IJsselstein IJsselstein () is a municipality and city in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. IJsselstein received city rights in 1331. IJsselstein owes its name to the river Hollandse IJssel which flows through the city. It is a major commuting su ...

, 20 June 1693), prospective bride of

Charles XI of Sweden Charles XI or Carl (; ) was List of Swedish monarchs, King of Sweden from 1660 until his death, in a period of History of Sweden, Swedish history known as the Swedish Empire (1611–1721). He was the only son of King Charles X Gustav of Sweden ...

; married in 1680 Johann Jakob Marchand, Baron of Lilienburg. * Charlotte (b. Eschwege, 3 September 1653 – d. Bremen, 7 February 1708), married firstly in 1673 with Prince August of Saxe-Weissenfels (son of Duke

August August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Southern Hemisphere, August is the seasonal equivalent of February in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, August ...

) and secondly in 1679 with John Adolph, Count of Bentheim-Tecklenburg (divorced 1693). * Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Hesse-Eschwege (b. Eschwege, 30 November 1654 – d. Eschwege, 27 July 1655).

Ancestry

Notes

References

External links

Eleonora Katarina av Pfalz
på

Projekt Runeberg Project Runeberg () is a digital cultural archive initiative that publishes free electronic versions of books significant to the culture and history of the Nordic countries. Patterned after Project Gutenberg, it was founded by Lars Aronsson and ...

* http://www.guide2womenleaders.com/womeninpower/Womeninpower1640.htm

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Eleonora Catherine Of Zweibrucken, Countess Palatine 1626 births 1692 deaths House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken Countesses Palatine of Zweibrücken Eleanor 1626 People from Söderköping Municipality