Frederick Louis, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (; 6 April 1653 – 7 March 1728) was a Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck and

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

of the Prussian Army.

Early life

Frederick Louis was born in Haus Beck (now part of

Löhne Löhne (; , ) is a town in the district of Herford, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Löhne is situated on the river Werre, approx. 8 km north of Herford and 20 km south-west of Minden Minden () is a middle-sized to ...

), near Ulenburg,

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

Margraviate of Brandenburg The Margraviate of Brandenburg () was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 that, having electoral status although being quite poor, grew rapidly in importance after inheriting the Duchy of Prussia in 1618 and then came ...

, as the son of August Philipp, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck and his wife, Countess Marie Sibylle of Nassau-Saarbrücken (1628-1699).

Biography

He was only the ''titular'' duke, because he did not inherit the domain of Beck. It had been inherited by Duke Frederick William I, the son of his elder brother, 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 ...

, in 1689.Huberty Duke Frederick William I was killed in the

Battle of Francavilla The Battle of Francavilla was fought on 20 June 1719 near the city of Francavilla di Sicilia in Sicily, Italy between Spain and Austria as part of the War of the Quadruple Alliance. Prelude After the destruction of the Spanish fleet in the Bat ...

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

in 1719, leaving a widow, ''née'' Maria Antonia called Antoinette Josepha Isnardi di Castello, Contessa di Sanfré (1692–1762), and two minor daughters. Maria Antonia shared administration of Beck with her mother-in-law, Duchess Hedwig Louisa of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (''née'' Countess of Lippe-Bückeburg-Schaumburg). In 1671 Frederick Louis became a cornet in the cavalry regiment von Eller in the army of Brandenburg-Prussia.Albinus, p. 131 In 1675 he participated in the Battle of Fehrbellin as a

Rittmeister Rittmaster () is usually a commissioned officer military rank used in a few armies, usually equivalent to Captain. Historically it has been used in Germany, Austria-Hungary, Scandinavia, and some other countries. A is typically in charge of a s ...

. The following year he was a colonel in the Holstein dragoons. Frederick Louis was named lieutenant general and Governor of

Wesel Wesel () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany. It is the capital of the Wesel (district), Wesel district. Geography Wesel is situated at the confluence of the Lippe River and the Rhine. Division of the city Suburbs of Wesel i ...

in 1690. Three years later he was appointed commanding general of the

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (, , ) or Ducal Prussia (; ) was a duchy in the region of Prussia established as a result of secularization of the Monastic Prussia, the territory that remained under the control of the State of the Teutonic Order until t ...

. On 17 January 1701 Frederick Louis received the

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 ...

from the new King

Frederick I of Prussia Frederick I (; 11 July 1657 – 25 February 1713), of the Hohenzollern dynasty, was (as Frederick III) List of margraves and electors of Brandenburg, Elector of Brandenburg (1688–1713) and Duke of Prussia in personal union (Brandenburg–Pr ...

and shortly afterward was named

Statthalter 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 ...

of the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

and Governor of

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

.ADB 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 ...

, he participated in the

Battle of Oudenarde The Battle of Oudenarde, also known as the Battle of Oudenaarde, was a major engagement of the War of the Spanish Succession, pitting an Anglo-Dutch force consisting of eighty thousand men under the command of the Duke of Marlborough, Lord Ove ...

in 1708, the Battle of Malplaquet in 1709, and the sieges of

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

Mons Mons commonly refers to: * Mons, Belgium, a city in Belgium * Mons pubis (mons Venus or mons veneris), in mammalian anatomy, the adipose tissue lying above the pubic bone * Mons (planetary nomenclature), a sizable extraterrestrial mountain * Batt ...

, and

Tournai Tournai ( , ; ; ; , sometimes Anglicisation (linguistics), anglicised in older sources as "Tournay") is a city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Hainaut Province, Province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies by ...

. Frederick Louis was promoted to field marshal in 1713. The duke also secured neutrality for Prussia during much of the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

. He died in Königsberg and was buried alongside his wife in

Königsberg Cathedral Königsberg Cathedral (; ) is a Brick Gothic-style monument in Kaliningrad, Russia, located on Kneiphof island in the Pregolya river. It is the most significant preserved building of the former city of Königsberg, which was largely destroyed in ...

Marriage and issue

On 1 January 1685 in Augustenburg, Frederick Louis married his cousin, Princess Louise Charlotte of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg (1658-1740), daughter of Ernest Günther, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg and his wife, Princess Auguste of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. They had several children: *

Princess Dorothea of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck Dorothea of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck, known also as ''Dorothea von Holstein-Beck'' and ''Dorothea von Ziedewitz'', (24 November 1685 – 25 December 1761), was a German princess of the House of Oldenburg and by marriage Margravine o ...

(24 November 1685 - 25 December 1761) * Frederick William II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (18 June 1687 - 11 November 1749) * Prince Frederick Louis of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (25 August 1688 - 5 November 1688) * Princess Sophie Charlotte of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (15 August 1689 - 8 October 1693) * Charles Louis, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (18 September 1690 - 22 September 1774) * Princess Amelie Auguste of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (22 September 1691 - 11 August 1693) * Prince Philip William of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (10 June 1693 - c. November 1729 * Princess Louise Albertine of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (27 August 1694 - 10 January 1773) *

Peter August, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck Peter August Friedrich, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (7 December 1697 – 22 March 1775) was a Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck. Early life Born in Königsberg, Duchy of Prussia, as the fifth and youngest son of Frederic ...

(7 December 1697 - 22 May 1775) * Princess Sophie Henriette of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (18 December 1698 - 9 January 1768). Married to Albrecht Christoph, Count of Dohna-Leistenau (1698-1752) ** Countess Charlotte of Dohna-Leistenau (3 July 1738 – 21 April 1786), married to Prince Karl Anton August of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck. * Princess Charlotte of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck (15 March 1700 - 19 July 1785) Frederick Louis was succeeded as duke by his eldest son, Frederick William II (1687–1749) (whose only son, Duke Frederick William III, died in the Battle of Prague in 1757), and eventually by his younger sons, Charles Louis (1690–1774), and Peter August (1697–1775). In 1732, Frederick William II would purchase

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...

from Maria Antonia, re-uniting the ducal title and ducal lands. But the latter only remained in the family until sold again in 1745.

Ancestry

Notes and references

Bibliography

* * *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frederick Louis of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck, Duke 1653 births 1728 deaths Dukes of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck Military personnel from North Rhine-Westphalia Field marshals of Prussia Prussian military personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession People from Herford (district)