Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg (German: Ernst I. Friedrich Paul Georg Nikolaus von Sachsen-Altenburg) (16 September 1826 in

Hildburghausen Hildburghausen () is a town in Thuringia in central Germany, capital of the Hildburghausen district. Geography It is situated in the Franconian part of Thuringia south of the Thuringian Forest, in the valley of the Werra River. The town centre ...

– 7 February 1908 in

Altenburg Altenburg () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located south of Leipzig, west of Dresden and east of Erfurt. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district and part of a polycentric old-industrial textile and metal production region betw ...

), was a duke of

Saxe-Altenburg Saxe-Altenburg () was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine branch of the House of Wettin in present-day Thuringia. It was one of the smallest of the German states with an area of 1323 square kilometers and a population of 207,000 (190 ...

. He was the first son of Georg, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg and Marie Luise of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. In 1853, he succeeded his father as Duke of

. He was of a retiring disposition and he took little active part in running the country. After a reign that lasted 55 years, he died without a living direct male heir; because of this, he was succeeded by his nephew, Ernst.

Marriage

He was married in

Dessau Dessau is a district of the independent city of Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the ''States of Germany, Bundesland'' (Federal State) of Saxony-Anhalt. Until 1 July 2007, it was an independent ...

on 28 April 1853 to Agnes of Anhalt-Dessau (1824–1897). Agnes was a sister of Friedrich I, Duke of Anhalt. They had two children: * Marie (b. Eisenberg, 2 August 1854 – d. Camenz, 8 October 1898), married on 19 April 1873 to Albrecht of Prussia. * Georg (b.

, 1 February 1856 – d. Altenburg, 29 February 1856) died in infancy.

Honours and decorations

;German honours''Staatshandbücher für das Herzogtum Sachsen-Altenburg'' (1902), "Genealogie des Herzoglichen Hauses Sachsen-Altenburg
pp. 1-2
/ref> ;Foreign honours * : Grand Cross of St. Stephen, ''1859'' * : Grand Cordon of the Royal Order of Leopold * : Knight of the Elephant, ''28 October 1882'' * : Grand Cross of the Netherlands Lion * :

Order of Osmanieh The Order of Osmanieh (, Modern ) was a civil and military decoration of the Ottoman Empire. History The order was created in January 1862 by Sultan Abdülaziz. With the obsolescence of the Nişan-i Iftikhar, this became the second highest order ...

, 1st Class in Diamonds * : Grand Cross of the Star of Romania * : ** Knight of St. Andrew ** Knight of St. George, 4th Class * : Grand Cross of the Cross of Takovo * Sweden-Norway: Knight of the Seraphim, ''24 February 1864'' *

Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany (; ) was an Italian monarchy located in Central Italy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1860, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In the 19th century the population ...

: Grand Cross of the Military Order of St. Stephen

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ernst 01, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg 1826 births 1908 deaths Colonel generals of Saxony Dukes of Saxe-Altenburg People from Hildburghausen Colonel generals of Prussia 19th-century Prussian military personnel Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Fourth Degree Recipients of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Takovo