Saxe-Eisenach

Duchy of Saxe-Eisenach Herzogtum Sachsen-Eisenach
1596 – 1638 1640 – 1644 1672 – 1809
Saxe-Eisenach, shown amongst the other 18th-century Ernestine duchies
Status	State of the Holy Roman Empire State of the Confederation of the Rhine
Capital	Eisenach
Government	Principality
Historical era	Middle Ages
• Division of Erfurt	1572
• Partitioned from     Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach	1596 1596
• Partitioned into Altenburg     and Weimar	1638
• Partitioned from Weimar	1640
• Partitioned into Gotha and     Weimar	1644
• Partitioned from Weimar	1662
• United with Weimar	1741 1809
• Merged to form     Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach	1809
Preceded by Succeeded by Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach Saxe-Weimar Saxe-Altenburg Saxe-Gotha Saxe-Weimar Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

Saxe-Eisenach (German: Sachsen-Eisenach) was the name of three different duchies that existed at different times in the German province of Thuringia. The chief town and capital of all three duchies was Eisenach.

History

In the 15th century, much of what is now Thuringia, including the area around Eisenach, was in the hands of the Wettin dynasty, the Electors of Saxony. In 1485, the Wettin lands were divided, with the lands in Thuringia going to the Ernestine branch of the family. The Ernestines also retained the title of Elector. When John Frederick the Magnanimous was defeated and captured by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V in 1547 and deprived of the electorate, he was allowed to retain the lands in Thuringia. The Ernestine lands were divided by his sons in 1572 into the duchies of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach.

For the next three centuries the lands were divided whenever dukes had more than one son to provide for, and re-combined when dukes died without direct heirs, but all of the lands stayed in the Ernestine branch of the Wettin family. All descendants of John Frederick the Magnanimous in the male line bore the title "Duke of Saxony", whether or not they actually ruled any territory. Brothers sometimes ruled jointly, but usually there was a division of territory if there was more than one son to inherit. As a result, the Duchy of Saxe-Eisenach was separated from and subsumed into other Ernestine duchies several times. The actual territories included in the duchy changed with each creation, but always with the town of Eisenach as the core.

Saxe-Eisenach Arms

The first Duchy of Saxe-Eisenach was created in 1596, on the death of Johann Frederick II of Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach, for his younger son, Johann Ernst. In 1633, the Wettin line in Saxe-Coburg died out, and Johann Ernst inherited it. He died heirless in 1638, and the territories of Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Eisenach were split between Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Altenburg (which had itself been separated from Saxe-Weimar in 1603). In 1640 Saxe-Eisenach was again separated off from Saxe-Weimar for Albert, son of John II of Saxe-Weimar. He died without an heir in 1644, and Saxe-Eisenach was then divided between Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Weimar, ruled by his brothers Ernst and Wilhelm.

For nearly 20 years Saxe-Eisenach was part of Saxe-Weimar. However, in 1662 Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar died, leaving four children: Johann Ernst, Adolf Wilhelm, Johann Georg and Bernhard. The second eldest, Adolf Wilhelm, received Eisenach. He had to share this, however, with his younger brother Johann Georg, who finally accepted the receipt of an income from the duchy of Saxe-Eisenach and made his residence in the small town of Marksuhl. Adolf William had five sons, but the first four died soon after birth. In 1668 he died, just before of the birth of his fifth son, Wilhelm August, who became the new Duke of Saxe-Eisenach from his birth, under the guardianship of his uncle Johann Georg. A sickly boy, he died in 1671 at only two years old, and Johann Georg I became the duke of Saxe-Eisenach.

Saxe-Eisenach assumed its final shape in 1672, following the death of Frederick William III of Saxe-Altenburg and the partition of his lands. The line of Johann Georg I ruled Saxe-Eisenach for 69 years, until Duke Wilhelm Heinrich died heirless in 1741. Ernst August I of Saxe-Weimar, Wilhelm's second cousin, inherited Saxe-Eisenach; he and his successors ruled Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach in a personal union until 1809, when the duchies were formally merged into the Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach.

Dukes of Saxe-Eisenach

First creation

Created in 1572 as Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach
1596 divided into Saxe-Coburg and Saxe-Eisenach

• Johann Casimir (1572–1633, ruled Saxe-Coburg)
• Johann Ernst (1572–1638, retained Saxe-Eisenach)

Divided between Saxe-Altenburg and Saxe-Weimar

Second creation

• Albrecht (1640–44)

Divided between Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Weimar

Third creation

• Adolf Wilhelm (1662–68)
• Wilhelm August (1668–71)
• Johann Georg I (1671–86)
• Johann Georg II (1686–98)
• Johann Wilhelm (1698–1729)
• Wilhelm Heinrich (1729–41)

Line extinct

Personal union with Saxe-Weimar

• Ernst August I (1741-1748)
• Ernst August II (1748-1758)
• Karl August (1758-1809)

Merged with Saxe-Weimar into Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

See also

• Ernestine duchies

References

• Much of the content of this article comes from Sachsen-Eisenach on the German Wikipedia and Ducado de Sajonia-Eisenach on the Spanish Wikipedia, both retrieved November 10 2005.

External links

• German genealogies