Johann Georg I, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach (

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

, 12 July 1634 – hunting accident, Eckhartshausen,

Marksuhl Marksuhl is a village and a former municipality in the Wartburgkreis district of Thuringia, Germany. Since July 2018, it is part of the municipality Gerstungen. Geography Marksuhl is situated in the center of the Wartburgkreis district, approxi ...

, 19 September 1686) was the fifth but third surviving son of

William, Duke of Saxe-Weimar Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar (Altenburg, 11 April 1598 – Weimar, 17 May 1662), was a duke of Saxe-Weimar. Wilhelm was the fifth (but third surviving) son of Johann, Duke of Saxe-Weimar, and Dorothea Maria of Anhalt. He was brother to Bernard o ...

and

Eleonore Dorothea of Anhalt-Dessau Eleonore Dorothea of Anhalt-Dessau (born 16 February 1602 in Dessau – died 26 December 1664 in Weimar), was a princess of Anhalt-Dessau by birth and by marriage Duchess of Saxe-Weimar. Life Eleonore Dorothea was a daughter of the prince John ...

. After the death of his father (1662), his older brother Johann Ernst II inherited

, and his second brother Adolf Wilhelm received

Eisenach Eisenach () is a Town#Germany, town in Thuringia, Germany with 42,000 inhabitants, west of Erfurt, southeast of Kassel and northeast of Frankfurt. It is the main urban centre of western Thuringia, and bordering northeastern Hesse, Hessian re ...

. Johann Georg received an income from the new duchy of Saxe-Eisenach and took his residence in the small town of

. In 1668 his brother Adolf Wilhelm died. His fifth and only surviving son, Wilhelm August, was born eight days after his father's death and became duke from the moment of his birth; Johann George became the regent of the duchy and also the guardian of the new duke. Wilhelm August died in 1671 at only two years of age, and Johann Georg inherited the duchy. The next year (1672) the death without heirs of the Duke Frederick Wilhelm III 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 ...

forced a new treaty of division of the family lands between Johann Georg, his surviving brothers and his cousin. Johann Georg was confirmed in his possession of Eisenach and took some towns, and his younger brother,

Bernhard Bernhard is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar (1604–1639), Duke of Saxe-Weimar *Bernhard, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen (1901–1984), head of the House of Saxe-Meiningen 1946 ...

, inherited

Jena Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...

. In the spring of 1672, when Johann Georg officially moved his residence from Marksuhl to Eisenach, the occasion was marked by a special Easter church service with music composed by Ambrosius Bach. His move reestablished Eisenach's status as the capital of the principality. Johann Georg thus became the founder of the most recent line of the dukes of Saxe-Eisenach, who became extinct in 1741. He was ruler in 1685 when

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

was born in the duchy.

Marriage and issue

Wallau The Coat of Arms of Wallau Wallau in Taunus is a quarter of Hofheim in Main-Taunus-Kreis in Hesse, Germany, and has a population of 4,442 (as of 31 December 2019). An archaeological testament to the prehistoric occupation of the area was made w ...

on 29 May 1661, Johann Georg married the Countess Johannetta of Sayn-Wittgenstein, heiress of

Sayn-Altenkirchen Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn-Altenkirchen (sometimes called Sayn-Altenkirchen) was a German county located in what is now Rhineland-Palatinate, near the river Sieg. When Count William III of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn died in 1623 without clear heirs, the ...

. They had eight children: # Eleonore Erdmuthe Luise (b. Friedewald, 13 April 1662 - d. Schloss Pretzsch, 19 September 1696), married firstly on 4 November 1681 to

Johann Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach John Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (18 October 1654 – 22 March 1686) succeeded his father Albert II as margrave of Ansbach in 1667. He married his second wife Princess Eleonore Erdmuthe of Saxe-Eisenach on 4 November 1681. Their da ...

, and secondly on 17 April 1692 to Johann Georg IV, Elector of Saxony. By her first marriage, Eleonore was the mother of the Queen Caroline of Brandeburg-Ansbach, wife of the King

George II of Great Britain George II (George Augustus; ; 30 October / 9 November 1683 – 25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Electorate of Hanover, Hanover) and a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Em ...

. #Frederick August, Hereditary Duke of Saxe-Eisenach (b. Friedewald, 30 October 1663 - killed in battle, Pressburg, 19 September 1684). # Johann Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach (b. Friedewald, 24 July 1665 - d. of smallpox, Eisenach, 10 November 1698). #

Johann Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach John William III, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach (17 October 1666 – 14 January 1729), was a duke of Saxe-Eisenach, and came from the Ernestine line of the House of Wettin. Life John William III was born in Friedewald, the third son of John George ...

(b. Friedewald, 17 October 1666 - d. Eisenach, 14 January 1729). #Maximilian Heinrich (b. Friedewald, 17 October 1666 - d. Altenkirchen, 23 July 1668), twin of Johann Wilhelm. #Louise (b. Friedewald, 18 April 1668 - d. Altenkirchen, 26 June 1669). # Fredericka Elisabeth (b. Altenkirchen, 5 May 1669 - d. Langensalza, 12 November 1730), married on 7 January 1698 to

Johann Georg, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels Johann Georg (25 June 16775 March 1712, Weissenfels), was Saxe-Weissenfels, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels from 1697 until his death. Biography Johann Georg was born in Halle (Saale), Halle on 25 June 1677 to Johann Adolf I, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels, J ...

. #Ernst Gustav (b. Friedewald, 28 August 1672 - d. Altenkirchen, 16 November 1672).

References

Bibliography

Anton Balthasar König Anton Balthasar König was a German historian and genealogist Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their Lineage (anthropology), lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, geneti ...

: ''Biographisches Lexikon aller Helden und Militärpersonen.'' Band 3, 1790, S. 33
Digitalisat
*

Ernst Wülcker Ernst Wülcker (24 August 1843, in Frankfurt am Main – 16 September 1895, in Weimar) was a German archivist and lexicographer. He was an older brother of philologist Richard Paul Wülker (1845–1910). He studied classical philology and G ...

: '' Johann Georg I. (Herzog von Sachsen-Eisenach)''. In:

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB; ) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences between 1875 and 1912 in 56 volumes, printed in Lei ...

(ADB). Band 14, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1881, S. 365 f. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:John George 01 Of Saxe-Eisenach, Duke House of Wettin 1634 births 1686 deaths Nobility from Weimar Dukes of Saxe-Eisenach Dukes of Saxe-Marksuhl Generals of the Holy Roman Empire Hunting accident deaths Accidental deaths in Germany