Frederick Casimir Kettler (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Friedrich Casimir Kettler''; 6 July 1650 – 22 January 1698) was

Duke of Courland and Semigallia The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was a duchy in the Baltic region, then known as Livonia, that existed from 1561 to 1569 as a nominal vassal state of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and subsequently made part of the Crown of the Polish Kingdo ...

from 1682 to 1698. Frederick Casimir was the son of

Jacob Kettler Jacob Kettler (; ; 28 October 1610 – 1 January 1682) was Duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1642 to 1682. Under his rule, Courland and Semigallia became more independent of its Polish suzerain, reached its peak in wealth, and even engage ...

and Louise Charlotte of Brandenburg. In his reign the Duchy lost its geopolitical position and became

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

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, ...

and

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

's territorial subject of interests.

Biography

Frederick Casimir Kettler studied law in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and visited a number of European courts. In 1673 he was in the

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

military service and took part with his Courland regiment in the

Franco-Dutch War The Franco-Dutch War, 1672 to 1678, was primarily fought by Kingdom of France, France and the Dutch Republic, with both sides backed at different times by a variety of allies. Related conflicts include the 1672 to 1674 Third Anglo-Dutch War and ...

. On 5 October 1675, in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, Frederick Casimir married princess

Sophie Amalie of Nassau-Siegen Princess Sophie Amalie of Nassau-Siegen (10 January 1650 Jul. – 15/25 November 1688), , official titles: ''Prinzessin von Nassau, Gräfin zu Katzenelnbogen, Vianden, Diez, Limburg und Bronkhorst, Frau zu Beilstein, Stirum, Wisch, Bor ...

and returned home. After his father died Frederick Casimir became the Duke of Courland and Semigallia and vigorously resorted to public affairs. In 1684 the duke's book printer George Radeckis in

Jelgava Jelgava () is a state city in central Latvia. It is located about southwest of Riga. It is the largest town in the Semigallia region of Latvia. Jelgava was the capital of the united Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1578–1795) and was the ad ...

became the first person to print books in the

Latvian language Latvian (, ), also known as Lettish, is an East Baltic languages, East Baltic language belonging to the Indo-European language family. It is spoken in the Baltic region, and is the language of the Latvians. It is the official language of Latvia ...

. His efforts to restore the holdings were stopped by the power of Sweden, which at that time prevailed in northern Europe. However, Friedrich Casimir founded splendid

court life A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

according to the best Western models. In 1688 Sophie Amalie died. In 1691 Frederick Casimir celebrated a large-scale wedding with

Elisabeth Sophie of Brandenburg Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ( ...

. During the reign of Frederick Casimir, trade and industry of the duchy started to decay. In 1693 the

Tobago Tobago, officially the Ward of Tobago, is an List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, island and Regions and municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago, ward within the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located northeast of the larger islan ...

colony was sold to England. In the spring of 1697, Friedrich Casimir received a grand delegation from Russia, including the new Tsar

Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–68 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholicos ...

, on whom the

Jelgava Palace Jelgava Palace () or historically Mitau Palace (, ) is the largest Baroque-style palace in the Baltic states. It was built in the 18th century based on the design of Bartolomeo Rastrelli as a residence for the Dukes of Courland in their capital o ...

and its court left a great impression. The duchy and Russia held diplomatic talks on mutual cooperation against the Swedes, but in the next winter of 1698, Frederick Casimir died at the age of 47. His minor son Frederick Wilhelm became the next duke.

Issue

From 1st marriage: * Frederick Kettler (3 April 1682 – 11 February 1683), Hereditary Prince of Courland. * Marie Dorothea Kettler (2 August 1684 – 17 January 1743), married to Albert Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt. * Eleonore Charlotte Kettler (11 June 1686 – 28 July 1748), married to

Ernest Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Ernest is a given name derived from the Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious", often shortened to Ernie. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), son of Maximilian ...

in Bevern. * Amalie Louise Kettler (Mitau, 23 July 1687 – ,

Siegen Siegen () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the Arnsberg (region), Arnsberg region. The university town (n ...

, 18 January 1750), married at the in

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

on 13 April 1708 to

Fürst ' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German language, German word for a ruler as well as a princely title. ' were, starting in the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ...

Frederick William Adolf of Nassau-Siegen (, Siegen, 20 February 1680 – Nassauischer Hof, Siegen, 13 February 1722). * Christina Sophia Kettler (15 November 1688 – 22 April 1694). From 2nd marriage: * Frederick William Kettler, Duke of Courland (19 July 1692 – 21 January 1711), married to Grand Duchess Anna Ioannovna of Russia. * Leopold Charles Kettler (14 December 1693 – 21 July 1697).

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kettler, Frederick Casimir Dukes of Courland 1650 births 1698 deaths 17th-century Latvian people People from Jelgava Burials in the Ducal Crypt of the Jelgava Palace