Frederick II (; 19 August 185621 April 1918) was the

Duke of Anhalt The Duchy of Anhalt (german: Herzogtum Anhalt) was a historical Germany, German duchy. The duchy was located between the Harz Mountains in the west and the river Elbe and beyond to the Fläming Heath in the east. The territory was once ruled by ...

from 1904 until 1918.

Early life

He was born in

Dessau Dessau is a town and former municipality in Germany at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the '' Bundesland'' (Federal State) of Saxony-Anhalt. Since 1 July 2007, it has been part of the newly created municipality of Dessau-Roßlau ...

in 1856, he was the second son of Hereditary Prince Frederick of Anhalt-Dessau and his wife

Princess Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg Princess Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg (17 April 1838 – 13 October 1908) was a princess of Saxe-Altenburg by birth and Duchess of Anhalt by marriage. Biography Antoinette was the second child of Prince Eduard of Saxe-Altenburg (1804-1852) from ...

. His father succeeded as Duke of Anhalt on 22 May 1871 and Frederick became

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

and Hereditary Prince following the death of his elder brother

Leopold Leopold may refer to: People * Leopold (given name) * Leopold (surname) Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Leopold (''The Simpsons''), Superintendent Chalmers' assistant on ''The Simpsons'' * Leopold Bloom, the protagonist o ...

on 2 February 1886.

Marriage

Frederick was married on 2 July 1889 at

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

to Princess Marie of Baden (26 July 186529 November 1939). She was a daughter of

Prince Wilhelm of Baden Margrave Wilhelm of Baden (8 April 1792 in Karlsruhe – 11 October 1859 in Karlsruhe) was the second son of Karl Friedrich, Grand Duke of Baden and his second wife, Luise Karoline, Baroness Geyer von Geyersberg (26 May 1768 – 23 July 1 ...

and his wife Princess Maria of Leuchtenberg, as well as an elder sister of

Prince Maximilian of Baden Maximilian, Margrave of Baden (''Maximilian Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm''; 10 July 1867 – 6 November 1929),Almanach de Gotha. ''Haus Baden (Maison de Bade)''. Justus Perthes (publishing company), Justus Perthes, Gotha, 1944, p. 18, (French). a ...

, 8th Chancellor of Germany. The marriage produced no issue.

Reign

On 24 January 1904, Frederick succeeded his father as Duke of Anhalt. During his reign he was known for his love of music and maintained a Court Theatre which became celebrated throughout Europe. He was Grand Master of the

Order of Albert the Bear The House Order of Albert the Bear (German: ''Hausorden Albrechts des Bären'' or ''Der Herzoglich Anhaltische Hausorden Albrechts des Bären'') was founded in 1836 as a joint House Order by three dukes of Anhalt from separate branches of the fa ...

and a Knight of the

Order of the Black Eagle The Order of the Black Eagle (german: Hoher Orden vom Schwarzen Adler) 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, King ...

. In 1914, during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he instituted the Friedrich Cross as a decoration for merit in time of war. He died at

Ballenstedt Ballenstedt is a town in the Harz district, in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Geography It is situated at the northern rim of the Harz mountain range, about 10 km (6 mi) southeast of Quedlinburg. The municipal area comprises the vi ...

Castle on 22 April 1918. As his marriage to Marie of Baden was without issue, he was succeeded as Duke by his younger brother

Eduard Eduard Model Accessories is a Czech manufacturer of plastic models and finescale model accessories. Formed in 1989 in the city of Most, Eduard began in a rented cellar as a manufacturer of photoetched brass model components. Following the succ ...

Honours and arms

Royal Monogram of Friedrich II, Duke of Anhalt

; German orders and decorations''Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Herzogtum Anhalt'' (1894) "Genealogie des Herzoglichen Hauses" pp. 3-4 ; Foreign orders and decorations

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Friedrich 02, Duke of Anhalt 1856 births 1918 deaths House of Ascania Princes of Anhalt Dukes of Anhalt Corps students German people of French descent Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Takovo Royal reburials