Princess Catharina Frederica of Württemberg, A Life in Exile

Princess Catharina Frederica of Württemberg (Catharina Frederica Sophie Dorothea von Württemberg; Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire, 21st February 1783 – Lausanne, Switzerland, 29th November 1835)

Wedding portrait of Catharina of Württemberg by Johann Baptist Seele, 1807

A whistle-stop return to Russia today to meet a noble lady, Princess Catharina Frederica of Württemberg. Raised by her stepmother, she would end her days in exile.

Catharina was born in Saint Petersburg to the man who would become King Frederick I of Württemberg and his wife, Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. When the little girl was just five her mother passed away and her father married  Charlotte, Princess Royal, eldest daughter of George III. Catharina and her siblings enjoyed a close relationship with their stepmother, who raised them as her own and supervised their education closely..

Frederick allied with Napoleon and hit on a surefire way to strengthen the bond between nations, offering his daughter's hand in marriage to Napoleon's brother, Jérôme Bonaparte. She was 24 when she became his second wife in a lavish ceremony at Fontainebleau, France, held on 22nd August 1807 and eventually they would have three children, all of whom survived into adulthood. 

The King and Queen of Westphalia, 1810

Catharina became queen consort of the Kingdom of Westphalia and, when the kingdom fell after the Battle of Leipzig, the couple were forced into exile together. They spent time travelling in Europe and Catharina rejected her father's efforts to convince her to leave her husband and return home to Württemberg  Instead she accompanied him to Austria and only returned to her childhood home when her father offered the family a home in the castle at Göppingen.

However, life at Göppingen proved far from ideal as King Frederick exercised a tight control over the couple's lives and they eventually returned to Austria and took the title of Count and Countess de Montfort. Never quite able to settle, the family spent time in Italy and Switzerland and it was here, in Lausanne, where Catharine died. She was laid to rest in Ludwigsburg Palace Church, Germany, her wanderings finally at an end.

Life in the Georgian Court, true tales of 18th century royalty, is available at the links below.

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Cynicism and Success: Frederick I of Württemberg

Frederick I William Charles of Württemberg (Friedrich I Wilhelm Karl von Württemberg; Treptow an der Rega, Poland, 6th November 1754 – Stuttgart, Germany, 30th October 1816)

Frederick I of Württemberg by Johann Baptist Seele

Not so long ago we met Charlotte, Princess Royal, and briefly encountered her husband, Frederick I of Württemberg. A few salon visitors sent me a missive to ask about Frederick so I thought now was the time to reinforce the chaise longue and meet the last Duke of Württemberg, the man whom Napoleon elevated to king. Noted for his enormous bulk, Frederick stood at 6'11" with a weight of approximately 440lbs, so he was certainly not an easy man to miss!

Long before he became the giant of his portraits, Frederick was born the son of Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg, and Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt. He was nephew to the ruler of Württemberg, Charles Eugene, and since Charles had no heir, Frederick was prepared from childhood to rule the Duchy. The marriage of Frederick's sister, Sophie Dorothea, and Tsesarevich Paul of Russia strengthened ties between Württemberg and Russia and Empress Catherine II appointed Frederick as Governor-General of Eastern Finland, a valuable grounding for his future role.

Frederick I of Württemberg by Georg Friedrich Erhardt 

At the age of 25, Frederick married Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Though the couple had four children their marriage was deeply troubled and during a visit to Russia in 1786, Augusta fled from her husband, requesting sanctuary from the Empress. Amid allegations of domestic abuse and rumours that her husband indulged in affairs with young gentlemen at court, Augusta's request for protection was granted by the Empress and Frederick was told to leave Russia. Within two years Augusta would be dead and it was almost a decade before Frederick remarried, taking as his second wife Charlotte, Princess Royal.

In 1797 Frederick became Duke of Württemberg, a role he enjoyed until 1800 when the French army marched in the Duchy and Frederick and Charlotte escaped to Vienna, where they began territorial negotiation with the Duke eventually awarded the title of Elector of Württemberg. Although he and Napoleon were far from fond of one another, Frederick recognised that the Emperor would be a valuable ally and supplied him with troops in return for territory and the title of King of Württemberg, his coronation taking place on 1 January 1806. To further ensure the commitment of both sides, Frederik's daughter married Napoleon's son and the newly-crowned king became a valuable asset to the French, able to broker negotiations with his father-in-law, George III, and an assortment of European leaders.

Mindful of the way the wind was blowing as the years rolled on, in 1813 Frederick abandoned his alliance with Napoleon and joined the allies. At the Congress of Vienna he was confirmed as king and allowed to keep the territories he had gained throughout his years as Napoleon's ally despite the fact that he was far from a popular ruler in many of these lands. His position secure, he remained on the throne until his death the following year, a cynical and successful leader to the end.

Life in the Georgian Court, true tales of 18th century royalty, is available at the links below.

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A Regal Disagreement: Charlotte, Princess Royal

The Princess Charlotte, Princess Royal (Charlotte Augusta Matilda; London, England, 29th September 1766 – Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, 5th October 1828) 

Of late we've met composers, politicians and even murderers but it seems like a long time since we shared the salon with a member of the Hanoverian dynasty. Previously I wrote of the tragic Princess Amelia and today it's time to meet her sister, Charlotte, Princess Royal. Whilst Amelia lived a short life blighted by an unfulfilled romantic attachment, Charlotte would travel far from her Buckingham House birthplace and become a queen, though none of this would be achieved with a certain amount of royal drama!

When Charlotte was born she was the fourth child and first daughter of King George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, her status as eldest daughter meaning that she was destined from birth to be one of the key players in a suitably grand dynastic marriage. Her parents were ecstatic to have a girl join their growing family and before she was two years old, Charlotte's education began. As a child she had a love of language and stories that never left her, though she disliked the study of music and the more public side of being a royal princess, expected to perform dances and theatrical tableaux as was the German way.

Charlotte particularly excelled in artistic pursuits under the tuition of Mary Moser and as an adult turned her talents to porcelain, decorating pieces that she would fire in a purpose-built kiln in the grounds of her marital home.

The three eldest daughers of George III (Charlotte, Augusta and Elizabeth) by Gainsborough Dupont

With her childhood spent under the watchful eye of Queen Charlotte, the little princess threw herself into her studies. She was an intelligent and studious child and though her looks were compared unfavourably to her pretty younger sisters, Charlotte refused to be cowed and set her mind to the future. Keen to be married, she found the field of possible husbands massively reduced by her father's decision that she would not marry into a Catholic family under any circumstances. However, the suitor most favoured by Charlotte was not only the son of a Catholic, he was also a man with scandal in his past.

The Hereditary Prince Frederick of Württemberg was a widower and father of three, who had been accused of violence by his late wife, Duchess Augusta of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, who had fled her husband and taken refuge in Russia. Charlotte's cousin, Augusta was also the sister to Caroline of Brunswick, later estranged wife of Charlotte's brother, George. Mindful of these allegations as well as his Catholic ties, the King and Queen refused permission for the marriage to go ahead but Charlotte would not back down and petitioned tirelessly, eventually winning the blessing of her father.

The wedding took place on 18th May 1797 at the Chapel Royal of St. James's Palace with celebrations going on for days and the newlyweds set off for their new home in Stuttgart the following month. Despite Frederick's fearsome reputation he and Charlotte appear to have enjoyed a peaceful marriage; though their only child was stillborn on 27th April 1798, Charlotte's stepchildren adored her and she was devoted to them in turn. Free from her mother's somewhat dominant influence, Charlotte blossomed in Stuttgart and enjoyed her new life immensely. 

Frederick I of Württemberg by Johann Baptist Seele

The settled life of the Stuttgart court was to suffer a serious shake-up in 1800 when French troops marched into Württemberg and sent the Duke and Duchess fleeing to Vienna. To the horror of Charlotte's parents, Frederick allied with Napoleon, making territorial exchanges and taking the title Elector of Württemberg on 25th February 1803. He later provided troops to France and on 1st January the Elector and Electress became King and Queen after a coronation held in Stuttgart, ruling from their home at the Ludwigsburg Palace.

Although Frederick switched sides in 1813, Charlotte's parents must have found it hard to reconcile the behaviour of their daughter and son-in-law and George flatly refused to address her as Queen of Württemberg, even after the title was confirmed by the Congress of Vienna. 

The Bridal Night by James Gillray, 1797

Frederick died in 1816 and the Dowager Queen remained at the palace they had shared, receiving noble visitors from across Europe including her own illustrious siblings. 30 years after she left England in 1797, she returned to her native land to undergo surgery for dropsy, returning to Germany to convalesce. Dowager Queen Charlotte died at home in 1828 having lived an eventful life, a long way from the shy little girl who had been born in Buckingham House.

Life in the Georgian Court, true tales of 18th century royalty, is available at the links below.

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