Edward, Count Palatine of Simmern
Encyclopedia
Sir Edward, Count Palatine of Simmern KG
(5 October 1625 – 10 March 1663) was the sixth son of Frederick V, Elector Palatine
, of the House of Wittelsbach, the "Winter King" of Bohemia
, and Elizabeth Stuart
.
Edward was born in The Hague
, where his parents were in exile after being defeated at the Battle of White Mountain
. His father, a Calvinist, died on November 29, 1632, when Edward was seven years old.
On April 24, 1645, Edward married Anna Gonzaga
(1616–1684). She was a daughter of Carlo I, Duke of Mantua and Catherine of Lorraine. Under her influence he converted to Catholicism
, despite his mother's threats that she would disown any of her children who became Catholic. (Elizabeth forgave her son surprisingly quickly.)
Edward and Anna Gonzaga were parents of three daughters:
Edward died in Paris
aged 37.
Forty years after Edward's death, his younger sister Sophia of the Palatinate
, commonly referred to as Sophia of Hanover after her marriage, was declared the heiress presumptive
to their first cousin once removed, Queen Anne of England and Ireland
(later Queen of Great Britain and Ireland). Sophia was never declared heiress presumptive to Scotland. She would have acceded to Anne's crown, had she not died a few weeks before Anne did. Upon Sophia's death, her son George Louis, Elector
of Hanover
and Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
, became heir presumptive. Upon Queen Anne's death, he became George I
, the first of the Hanoverian
line of kings.
If Sophia's elder brother Edward had not converted to Catholicism, it is possible that the English throne would have been held by his descendants.
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
(5 October 1625 – 10 March 1663) was the sixth son of Frederick V, Elector Palatine
Frederick V, Elector Palatine
Frederick V was Elector Palatine , and, as Frederick I , King of Bohemia ....
, of the House of Wittelsbach, the "Winter King" of Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, and Elizabeth Stuart
Elizabeth of Bohemia
Elizabeth of Bohemia was the eldest daughter of King James VI and I, King of Scotland, England, Ireland, and Anne of Denmark. As the wife of Frederick V, Elector Palatine, she was Electress Palatine and briefly Queen of Bohemia...
.
Edward was born in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, where his parents were in exile after being defeated at the Battle of White Mountain
Battle of White Mountain
The Battle of White Mountain, 8 November 1620 was an early battle in the Thirty Years' War in which an army of 30,000 Bohemians and mercenaries under Christian of Anhalt were routed by 27,000 men of the combined armies of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor under Charles Bonaventure de Longueval,...
. His father, a Calvinist, died on November 29, 1632, when Edward was seven years old.
On April 24, 1645, Edward married Anna Gonzaga
Anna Gonzaga
Anne Gonzaga was a French noblewoman and political hostess of Italian descent. She was by marriage Countess Palatine of Simmern, called "Princess Palatine", as the wife of Edward of the Palatinate, a grandson of King James I of England and an uncle of King George I of Great Britain. She bore...
(1616–1684). She was a daughter of Carlo I, Duke of Mantua and Catherine of Lorraine. Under her influence he converted to Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
, despite his mother's threats that she would disown any of her children who became Catholic. (Elizabeth forgave her son surprisingly quickly.)
Edward and Anna Gonzaga were parents of three daughters:
- Louisa Maria (23 July 1647 – 11 March 1679). Married Charles Theodore, Prince of SalmCharles Theodore, Prince of SalmCharles Theodore Otto, Prince of Salm , became Count of Salm-Salm in 1663.He was the son of Leopold Philip Charles, fuerst of Salm, and his wife, Maria Anna of Bronckhorst-Batenburg, a Dutch noblewoman from Gelderland. His paternal grandmother, Christina of Croÿ-Havré, was herself a granddaughter...
; - Anne Henriette JulieAnne Henriette of BavariaAnne Henriette of Palatinate-Simmern, in France known as Anne Henriette of Bavaria was a Princess of Palatinate-Simmern by birth and by her marriage in 1663, the Duchess of Enghien and then the Princess of Condé...
, Princess of CondéPrincess of Condé- Princess of Condé :-See also:*Duchess of Bourbon*Duchess of Guise*Duchess of Enghien*Duchess of Montmorency...
(23 July 1648 – 23 February 1723). Married Henri Jules, Prince of Condé, had issue; - Benedicta HenriettaBenedicta Henrietta of the PalatinateBenedicta Henrietta of the Palatinate was a German princess, the third and youngest daughter of Edward of the Palatinate and his French wife, the political hostess Anna Gonzaga...
(14 March 1652 – 12 August 1730). Married John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-LüneburgJohn Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-LüneburgJohn Frederick was duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and ruled over the Principality of Calenberg, a subdivision of the duchy, from 1665 until his death....
.
Edward died in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
aged 37.
Forty years after Edward's death, his younger sister Sophia of the Palatinate
Sophia of Hanover
Sophia of the Palatinate was an heiress to the crowns of England and Ireland and later the crown of Great Britain. She was declared heiress presumptive by the Act of Settlement 1701...
, commonly referred to as Sophia of Hanover after her marriage, was declared the heiress presumptive
Heir Presumptive
An heir presumptive or heiress presumptive is the person provisionally scheduled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir or heiress apparent or of a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question...
to their first cousin once removed, Queen Anne of England and Ireland
Anne of Great Britain
Anne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
(later Queen of Great Britain and Ireland). Sophia was never declared heiress presumptive to Scotland. She would have acceded to Anne's crown, had she not died a few weeks before Anne did. Upon Sophia's death, her son George Louis, Elector
Prince-elector
The Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire were the members of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Roman king or, from the middle of the 16th century onwards, directly the Holy Roman Emperor.The heir-apparent to a prince-elector was known as an...
of Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
and Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Brunswick-Lüneburg
The Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg , or more properly Duchy of Brunswick and Lüneburg, was an historical ducal state from the late Middle Ages until the late Early Modern era within the North-Western domains of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, in what is now northern Germany...
, became heir presumptive. Upon Queen Anne's death, he became George I
George I of Great Britain
George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 until his death, and ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1698....
, the first of the Hanoverian
House of Hanover
The House of Hanover is a deposed German royal dynasty which has ruled the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg , the Kingdom of Hanover, the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
line of kings.
If Sophia's elder brother Edward had not converted to Catholicism, it is possible that the English throne would have been held by his descendants.