Sophia Charlotte of Hanover (30 October 1668 – 1 February 1705) was the first

Queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

as the wife of King Frederick I. She was the only daughter of Elector Ernest Augustus of Hanover and Sophia of the Palatinate. Her eldest brother, George Louis, succeeded to the British throne in 1714 as King George I.

Early life

Sophia Charlotte was born in Iburg Castle in the Prince-Bishopric of Osnabrück, where her father held the title of a Protestant

prince-bishop A prince-bishop is a bishop who is also the civil ruler of some secular principality and sovereignty, as opposed to '' Prince of the Church'' itself, a title associated with cardinals. Since 1951, the sole extant prince-bishop has been the ...

. In 1672 her family moved to the new episcopal residence in

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; ; archaic English: ''Osnaburg'') is a city in Lower Saxony in western Germany. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population of 168 ...

and finally in 1679 to

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, when Ernest Augustus succeeded his brother Duke John Frederick of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the

Principality of Calenberg The Principality of Calenberg was a dynastic division of the House of Welf, Welf Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg established in 1432. Calenberg was ruled by the House of Hanover (from the Principality of Lüneburg) from 1635 onwards; the princes re ...

During her childhood, Sophia Charlotte visited the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

with her mother in hopes of marrying Louis, Grand Dauphin, heir to the French throne. He later married Duchess Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria instead, but Sophia Charlotte was also proposed as a possible bride for Louis's father, King

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

, after his wife died in 1683. Nothing came of this plan either. A marriage was therefore arranged to Frederick of Hohenzollern, son of Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg, and heir of both the

Margraviate of Brandenburg The Margraviate of Brandenburg () was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 that, having electoral status although being quite poor, grew rapidly in importance after inheriting the Duchy of Prussia in 1618 and then came ...

and the

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (, , ) or Ducal Prussia (; ) was a duchy in the region of Prussia established as a result of secularization of the Monastic Prussia, the territory that remained under the control of the State of the Teutonic Order until t ...

Electress and queen

By marrying Frederick on 8 October 1684, she became Electress of Brandenburg in 1688, and after the elevation of Brandenburg-Prussia to a kingdom in 1701, she became the first Queen in Prussia. Her only child to reach maturity became King

Frederick William I of Prussia Frederick William I (; 14 August 1688 – 31 May 1740), known as the Soldier King (), was King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until his death in 1740, as well as Prince of Neuchâtel. Born in Berlin, he was raised by the Hugu ...

. Her husband was so much in love with her that while he had an official mistress, Catharina Rickert, at his palacein imitation of Louis XIVhe never made use of her services; however, his love for Sophia Charlotte was not reciprocated. Charlottenburg Hohenzollern 2

Initially, Sophia Charlotte interfered in political affairs, pushing the downfall of the Prussian prime minister Eberhard von Danckelman in 1697, but soon retired to private life. In 1695, she had received the estates of Lietzow manor west of

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

from her husband in exchange for further away Caputh. Here she had a

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

summer residence erected by the architects Johann Arnold Nering and Martin Grünberg, in order to live independently from her husband and have her own court. Frederick was only allowed there by invitation, as on 11 July 1699, when she hosted a birthday party for him. From 1700, she regularly lived there in the summer months. Then called Lietzenburg, it was renamed Charlottenburg Palace after her death. Frederick and Sophia Charlotte became king and queen of

in 1701. The Queen was the daughter of Sophia, Dowager Electress of Hanover, and the sister of George, Elector of Hanover. She was renowned for her intelligence and strong character, and her uncensored and liberal court attracted a great many scholars, including philosopher

Gottfried Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (or Leibnitz; – 14 November 1716) was a German polymath active as a mathematician, philosopher, scientist and diplomat who is credited, alongside Isaac Newton, Sir Isaac Newton, with the creation of calculus in ad ...

.Hichens, p. 19. Sophia Charlotte took in Caroline of Ansbach, the daughter of her friend Princess Eleonore Erdmuthe of Saxe-Eisenach. In Sophia Charlotte's sphere, Caroline was exposed to a lively and liberal intellectual environment quite different from anything she had experienced previously. Before she began her education under Sophia Charlotte's care, Caroline had received little formal education; her handwriting remained poor throughout her life.Van der Kiste, p. 13. With her lively mind, Caroline developed into a scholar of considerable ability. She and Sophia Charlotte developed a strong relationship in which Caroline was treated as a surrogate daughter; the Queen once declared Berlin was "a desert" without Caroline whenever she left temporarily for Ansbach. An intelligent and attractive woman, Caroline was much sought-after as a bride. Dowager Electress Sophia called her "the most agreeable Princess in Germany". She was considered for the hand of Archduke Charles of Austria, who was a candidate for the throne of Spain and later became Holy Roman Emperor. Charles made official overtures to her in 1703, and the match was encouraged by King Frederick of Prussia. After some consideration, Caroline refused in 1704, as she would not convert from

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. Early in the following year, Queen Sophia Charlotte died on a visit to her native Hanover.Van der Kiste, p. 14. Caroline was devastated, writing to Leibniz, "The calamity has overwhelmed me with grief and sickness, and it is only the hope that I may soon follow her that consoles me." Sophia Charlotte forever changed Caroline's life, and her liberal views continued to influence Caroline all her life. Sophia Charlotte is mainly remembered for her friendship and correspondence with her mother's good friend and tutor

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (or Leibnitz; – 14 November 1716) was a German polymath active as a mathematician, philosopher, scientist and diplomat who is credited, alongside Sir Isaac Newton, with the creation of calculus in addition to ...

, whose avowed disciple she became. Leibniz's philosophical work ''

Théodicée (from French: ''Essays of Theodicy on the Goodness of God, the Freedom of Man and the Origin of Evil''), more simply known as , is a book of philosophy by the German polymath Gottfried Leibniz. The book, published in 1710, introduced the te ...

'' is based on his conversation with her. In addition to German, she spoke French, Italian and English fluently. Following the example set by her mother, she surrounded herself with philosophers and theologians like Isaac de Beausobre,

Daniel Ernst Jablonski Daniel Ernst Jablonski (20 November 1660, Mokry Dwór (Nassenhuben), Royal Prussia, Crown of Poland25 May 1741, Berlin) was a German theologian and reformer of Czech origin, known for his efforts to bring about a union between Lutheran and C ...

and

John Toland John Toland (30 November 167011 March 1722) was an Irish rationalist philosopher and freethinker, and occasional satirist, who wrote numerous books and pamphlets on political philosophy and philosophy of religion, which are early expressions ...

and inspired the foundation of the

Prussian Academy of Sciences The Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences () was an academy established in Berlin, Germany on 11 July 1700, four years after the Prussian Academy of Arts, or "Arts Academy," to which "Berlin Academy" may also refer. In the 18th century, when Frenc ...

. She was interested in music, sang and played the

harpsichord A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. Depressing a key raises its back end within the instrument, which in turn raises a mechanism with a small plectrum made from quill or plastic that plucks one ...

, had an Italian opera theater constructed, and employed the musicians Attilio Ariosti and

Giovanni Bononcini Giovanni Bononcini (or Buononcini) (18 July 1670 – 9 July 1747) (sometimes cited also as Giovanni Battista Bononcini) was an Italian Baroque composer, cellist, singer and teacher, one of a family of string players and composers. He was a rival ...

. The composer

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , ; ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an List of Italian composers, Italian composer and violinist of the middle Baroque music, Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of Sonata a ...

dedicated his Op. 5

sonata In music a sonata (; pl. ''sonate'') literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cantare'', "to sing"), a piece ''sung''. The term evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms until th ...

s for solo

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

(Rome, 1700) to her. By some reports she disliked her husband's elaborate ceremonies so much that during their

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

she took pinches of snuff to provide herself with "some pleasant distraction". Sophia Charlotte was such a formidable personage that when Tsar

Peter the Great Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

first met her and her mother on his Grand Embassy in 1697, he was so overwhelmed and intimidated that he could not speak. Both women put him at ease, and he reciprocated with his natural humour and trunks full of brocade and furs. While on a visit to her mother in Hanover, Sophia Charlotte died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

on , when she was 36 years of age.

Legacy

Charlottenburg, today a district of Berlin, the Charlottensee lake in Bad Iburg, as well as the Sophie-Charlotte-Gymnasium in Berlin are named after her.

Issue

# Frederick August of Brandenburg (6 October 1685 – 31 January 1686) died in infancy. #

(14 August 1688 – 31 May 1740) married Sophia Dorothea of Hanover and had issue.

Early life

Electress and queen

Legacy

Issue

Ancestors

References

Further reading