Erdmuthe Dorothea of Saxe-Zeitz (13 November 1661 – 29 April 1720) was the wife of Duke Christian II of Saxe-Merseburg, whom she married on 14 October 1679 at Moritzburg Palace in

Zeitz Zeitz ( hsb, Žič) is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river White Elster, in the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Saxony. History Zeitz was first recorded und ...

Regent of the duchy of Saxe-Merseburg

After her husband's death on 20 October 1694, she took up the guardianship of her eldest son Christian III Maurice, and after his death twenty-five days later (14 November 1694), on behalf of his youngest son and next heir Maurice William, nicknamed ("the violinist duke"), until he reached the age of 24 in 1712. She led the government and initiated the construction of a

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneothe ...

Bad Lauchstädt (until 1925 ''Lauchstädt''), officially Goethestadt Bad Lauchstädt, is a town in the district Saalekreis, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, 13 km southwest of Halle. Population 8,781 (2020). Lauchstädt was a popular watering-place in the 18th cent ...

. In 1710, she built a wooden well house in Bad Lauchstädt and planted

lime tree ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Britain and Ireland they ...

s, which formed a green arch.

Death

She died in 1720 on her widow seat Bündorf Castle and was buried in the ducal crypt in

Merseburg Cathedral Merseburg Cathedral (german: Merseburger Dom) is the proto-cathedral of the former Bishopric of Merseburg in Merseburg, Germany. The mostly Gothic church is considered an artistic and historical highlight in southern Saxony-Anhalt. History Bac ...

. On the occasion of her death a gold ducat coin was minted. One of the four obelisks in the garden of Merseburg Castle is dedicated to her memory.

External links

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Article in the Saxon Biography
Erdmuthe 1661 births 1720 deaths Erdmuthe Erdmuthe Albertine branch {{Germany-duchess-stub