Louise Elisabeth of Courland

Louise Elisabeth of Courland
Portrait from the National Portrait Gallery of Sweden
Born	(1646-08-23)23 August 1646 Jelgava
Died	16 December 1690(1690-12-16) (aged 44) Weferlingen
Noble family	Ketteler
Spouse(s)	Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg
Issue Detail	Charlotte Frederick III James Elisabeth Juliana Francisca Casimir William
Father	Jacob Kettler
Mother	Louise Charlotte of Brandenburg

Louise Elisabeth of Courland (12 August 1646 in Jelgava – 16 December 1690 in Weferlingen) was Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg by marriage to Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg.

Life

Louise Elisabeth was a daughter of Duke Jacob of Courland (1610-1662) from his marriage to Charlotte Louise (1617-1676), eldest daughter of Elector George William of Brandenburg.

On 23 October 1670 in Cölln, she married the later Landgrave Frederick II of Hesse-Homburg, the famous Prince of Homburg. Frederick had converted to the Calvinist faith for the sake of their marriage. This conversion brought him into closer relations with the princely houses in Brandenburg and Hesse-Kassel, who were also Calvinist. Louise Elisabeth's sister Maria Amalia married Landgrave Charles of Hesse-Kassel in 1673. Louise Elizabeth was a niece of Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg. This relationship allowed Frederick to join the Prussian army and become commander of all the troops of the Electorate only two years later, in 1672.

The Calvinist Louise Elisabeth played a significant role in the settlement of displaced Huguenots and Waldenses in Friedrichsdorf and Dornholzhausen in as well as in the formation of Calvinist congregations in Weferlingen and Bad Homburg.

Issue

• Charlotte Dorothea Sophia (1672–1738)

married 1694 Johann Ernst III, Duke of Saxe-Weimar (1664–1707)

• Frederick III Jacob (1673–1746), Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg

married 1. 1700 Princess Elisabeth Dorothea of Hesse-Darmstadt (1676–1721)

married 2. 1728 Princess Christiane Charlotte of Nassau-Ottweiler (1685–1761)

• Karl Christian (1674–1695), fell at the Siege of Namur
• Hedwig Luise (1675–1760)

married 1718 Count Adam Friedrich von Schlieben (1677–1752)

• Philipp (1676–1706), fell at the Battle of Speyerbach in the War of the Spanish Succession
• Wilhelmine Maria (1678–1770)

married 1711 Count Anton II of Aldenburg (1681–1738)

• Eleonore Margarete (1679–1763)
• Elisabeth Juliana Francisca (1681–1707)

married 1702 Prince Frederick William Adolf, Prince of Nassau-Siegen (1680–1722)

• Johanna Ernestine (1682–1698)
• Ferdinand (born and died 1683)
• Karl Ferdinand (1684–1688)
• Casimir William (1690–1726)

References

• Hugo Aust et al.: Fontane, Kleist und Hölderlin p. 12 ff
• Konstanze Grutschnig-Kieser: Der Geistliche Würtz, p. 224
• Jürgen Rainer Wolf: Die kurländische Erbschaft. Landgräfin Louise Elisabeth und die gescheiterten Hoffnungen des Hauses Hessen-Homburg, Bad Homburg vor der Höhe, 1988
• Ulrich Schoenborn (2010), Mit Herz und Verstand: Biographie und Lebenswelt der Töchter Herzog Jakobs von Kurland in Hessen-Homburg, Herford und Hessen-Kassel, Hamburg: Kovač, ISBN 978-3-8300-4667-7