Katharina von Altenbockum
Ursula Katharina von Altenbockum (* 25. November 1680 in Warsaw (); † 4. May 1743 in Dresden ) was a mistress of the Polish King and Saxon Elector Augustus II, at whose request they to Empire Princess as. Princess of Teschen was raised .
Life
Katharina von Altenbockum was the younger daughter of the Lithuanian traditional diner Johann Heinrich von Altenbockum and his wife Konstantia Tekla Branicka, who had immigrated to Poland from Westphalia .
When she reached the age considered marriageable at the time, she was married to the Polish Crown Chamberlain, Prince Jerzy Dominik Lubomirski . The Lubomirskis were among the most influential families in the elected kingdom at the time. They were related to the Cardinal Primate Michael Stephan Radziejowski , the Archbishop of Gniezno, who after the death of the Polish King John III. Sobieski , was the so-called king's representative until a new king was elected. The Pope divorced this "unhappy marriage", which was a very unusual event in Catholic Poland at the time. Even before the turn of the century, August II, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, became aware of Katharina and is said to have made use of her relationship with the Cardinal Primate.
In 1700 she finally became the official mistress of the king and thus the successor of Countess Maximiliane Hiserle von Chodau , who also went down in history as Countess Esterle. August II took Katharina with him to Electoral Saxony and introduced her to the Saxon court . Dresden society was impressed by the beautiful, charming and witty princess. On August 21, 1704 she gave birth to a son, Johann Georg Chevalier de Saxe , named after the elector's father.
Only five days after the birth, on August 26, 1704, Ursula Katharina was elevated to the rank of prince by Emperor Leopold I as Imperial Duchess of Teschen .
But as the year went on, the king's favor faded. As early as 1705, Ursula Katharina von Teschen was ousted by the greatest affair of August the Strong: Anna Constantia von Hoym, who later became Countess Cosel , now took her place. Humiliated by the king and ostracized by the Dresden court, the princess initially retired to her country estate in Hoyerswerda , which August the Strong loaned to her in 1704 for 250,000 Reichstaler borrowed and for which she had later received all rights. There she promoted the town's trade and handicrafts and had Hoyerswerda Castle rebuilt in the Baroque style. Later she went to her Silesian residence in Breslau .
Years later, after Ursula Katharina von Teschen had reconciled with the king and her rival had been banished, she returned to Dresden. She had conquered her pride and now occupied a respected position at August's court, not least because she was credited with participating in the overthrow of Grand Chancellor Wolf Dietrich von Beichlingen at the time.
Prince Friedrich Ludwig von Württemberg-Winnental, who was ten years his junior, campaigned for the affection of the still beautiful princess. As a present from the bride, he bought the baroque Neschwitz Palace in 1721 and had it rebuilt. Finally Katharina gave in to his wooing. They married in secret on October 22, 1722 and moved into the baroque Neschwitz Castle the following year, which became their summer and hunting residence. Twelve years after the marriage, on September 19, 1734, Friedrich Ludwig died in the battle of Guastalla . According to the marriage agreement and against the resistance of the House of Württemberg , Katharina adopted the name and coat of arms of her deceased husband, which she continued to use until her death.
She entered the rule of Hoyerswerda in 1737 against an annual pension of 18,000 thalers a year for herself and, after her death, of 6,000 thalers for her son to the electoral chamber and thus to August III. , the only legitimate son of Augustus the Strong. In the same year she sold her possessions in Neschwitz to Aleksander Józef Sułkowski , the King's Saxon-Polish Foreign Minister.
The imperial princess Ursula Katharina von Teschen had completely withdrawn from court events after the death of Elector August II in 1733. She died on May 4, 1743 at the age of 62 in Dresden. Her remains were buried in the Jesuit church in Leitmeritz, Bohemia .
literature
- Heinrich Theodor Flathe : Lubomirska, Ursula Katharina Fürstin von . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 19, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1884, p. 333 f.
- Klaus Merten: Ursula Catharina. In: Sönke Lorenz , Dieter Mertens , Volker Press (eds.): Das Haus Württemberg. A biographical lexicon. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 1997, ISBN 3-17-013605-4 , p. 240 f.
- Gerhard Raff : Hie good Wirtemberg all the way. Volume 4: The House of Württemberg from Duke Eberhard Ludwig to Duke Carl Alexander. With the Stuttgart and Winnental lines. Landhege, Schwaigern 2015, ISBN 978-3-943066-39-5 , pp. 641-679.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Altenbockum, Katharina von |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Altenbockum, Ursula Katharina von; Imperial Princess of Teschen; Princess Lubomirska; Princess of Württemberg-Winnental |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Mistress of the Polish King August II. |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 25, 1680 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | unsure: Warsaw |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 4, 1743 |
| Place of death | Dresden |