Frederick Augustus III of Saxony
Encyclopedia
This article is about King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony. For the elector Frederick Augustus III, see Frederick Augustus I of Saxony
.
Frederick Augustus III (25 May 1865, Dresden
– 18 February 1932, Sibyllenort
) was the last King
of Saxony
(1904–1918) and a member of the House of Wettin.
Born in Dresden
, Frederick Augustus was the son of King George of Saxony
(1832–1904) and his wife Maria Anna
, Infanta of Portugal
(1843–1884).
He was an older brother of Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony
. His maternal first cousins included (among others) Carlos I of Portugal
, Infante Afonso, Duke of Porto
, Prince Wilhelm of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Ferdinand I of Romania
.
Frederick Augustus served in the Royal Saxon Army before becoming king, and later was promoted to Generalfeldmarschall
. He abdicated as king on 13 November 1918, after the defeat of the German Empire
in World War I
. He died in Sibyllenort (now Szczodre
) in Lower Silesia
and was buried in Dresden.
, despite being only twelve years old. Given his royal status, he advanced rapidly through the ranks. He served initially with the Royal Saxon 1. (Leib-) Grenadier Regiment Nr. 100. He was promoted to first lieutenant
in 1883, captain in 1887, major
in 1889 and lieutenant colonel
in 1891. By 1891, he was commander of the 1st Battalion of Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Nr. 108. He was promoted to colonel on 22 September 1892 and took command of the Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Nr. 108 on the same day. On 20 September 1894, the 29-year old prince was promoted to Generalmajor and given command of the 1st Royal Saxon Infantry Brigade Nr. 45 (Saxon higher units usually bore two numbers: one their Saxon Army number and the other their number in the Prussian Army order of battle). On 22 May 1898, he was promoted to Generalleutnant and given command of the 1st Royal Saxon Infantry Division Nr. 23
. He commanded this division until 26 August 1902, when he took command of the XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps
. He was promoted to General der Infanterie one month later, on 24 September. He remained in command of the corps until October 1904, when he became king. His formal military career ended with his accession to the throne, but he was promoted subsequently to Generaloberst and then to Generalfeldmarschall (on 9 September 1912).
, in Vienna
on 21 November 1891. They were divorced in 1903 by the royal decree of the King after she ran away while pregnant with her last child. Luise's flight from Dresden was due to her father-in-law threatening to have her interned in Sonnestein Mental Asylum for life. Her brother supported her in her wish to escape Saxony. Emperor Franz-Josef of Austria-Hungary did not recognise the divorce.
They had seven children:
Their two eldest sons, Friedrich August and Friedrich Christian were born in the same year, 1893, but were not twins. Friedrich August was born in January, while Friedrich Christian was born in December.
Frederick Augustus I of Saxony
Frederick Augustus I was King of Saxony from the House of Wettin. He was also Elector Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and Duke Frederick Augustus I of Warsaw...
.
Frederick Augustus III (25 May 1865, Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
– 18 February 1932, Sibyllenort
Szczodre
Szczodre is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Długołęka, within Wrocław County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Prior to 1945 it was in Germany....
) was the last King
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
of Saxony
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...
(1904–1918) and a member of the House of Wettin.
Born in Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, Frederick Augustus was the son of King George of Saxony
George of Saxony
-Life:George was born in the Saxon capital Dresden. He was the second son of King John of Saxony and his wife Princess Amelia of Bavaria , daughter of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria ....
(1832–1904) and his wife Maria Anna
Maria Anna of Portugal
Infanta Maria Ana of Portugal was a Portuguese infanta , the eldest surviving daughter of Queen Maria II of Portugal and her...
, Infanta of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
(1843–1884).
He was an older brother of Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony
Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony
Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony was the mother of Emperor Charles I of Austria and the fifth child of George of Saxony and Infanta Maria Anna of Portugal.-Early life:...
. His maternal first cousins included (among others) Carlos I of Portugal
Carlos I of Portugal
-Assassination:On 1 February 1908 the royal family returned from the palace of Vila Viçosa to Lisbon. They travelled by train to Barreiro and, from there, they took a steamer to cross the Tagus River and disembarked at Cais do Sodré in central Lisbon. On their way to the royal palace, the open...
, Infante Afonso, Duke of Porto
Infante Afonso, Duke of Porto
Afonso Henriques, Prince Royal of Portugal was a Portuguese prince of the House of Braganza, the son of King Luis I of Portugal and his wife, Maria Pia of Savoy.-Biography:...
, Prince Wilhelm of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Ferdinand I of Romania
Ferdinand I of Romania
Ferdinand was the King of Romania from 10 October 1914 until his death.-Early life:Born in Sigmaringen in southwestern Germany, the Roman Catholic Prince Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, later simply of Hohenzollern, was a son of Leopold, Prince of...
.
Frederick Augustus served in the Royal Saxon Army before becoming king, and later was promoted to Generalfeldmarschall
Generalfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
. He abdicated as king on 13 November 1918, after the defeat of the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He died in Sibyllenort (now Szczodre
Szczodre
Szczodre is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Długołęka, within Wrocław County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Prior to 1945 it was in Germany....
) in Lower Silesia
Province of Lower Silesia
The Province of Lower Silesia was a province of the Free State of Prussia from 1919 to 1945. Between 1938 and 1941 it was reunited with Upper Silesia as the Silesia Province. The capital of Lower Silesia was Breslau...
and was buried in Dresden.
Military career
Frederick Augustus entered the Royal Saxon Army in 1877 as a second lieutenantSecond Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
, despite being only twelve years old. Given his royal status, he advanced rapidly through the ranks. He served initially with the Royal Saxon 1. (Leib-) Grenadier Regiment Nr. 100. He was promoted to first lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
in 1883, captain in 1887, major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in 1889 and lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
in 1891. By 1891, he was commander of the 1st Battalion of Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Nr. 108. He was promoted to colonel on 22 September 1892 and took command of the Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Nr. 108 on the same day. On 20 September 1894, the 29-year old prince was promoted to Generalmajor and given command of the 1st Royal Saxon Infantry Brigade Nr. 45 (Saxon higher units usually bore two numbers: one their Saxon Army number and the other their number in the Prussian Army order of battle). On 22 May 1898, he was promoted to Generalleutnant and given command of the 1st Royal Saxon Infantry Division Nr. 23
23rd Division (German Empire)
The 23rd Division , also known as the 1st Division No. 23 was a unit of the Saxon and then Imperial German Army. The division was headquartered in Dresden. The division was subordinated in peacetime to the XII Army Corps .The 1st Division No...
. He commanded this division until 26 August 1902, when he took command of the XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps
XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps
The XII Army Corps was a Saxon corps of the Imperial German Army. It was formed on April 1, 1867 and was headquartered in Dresden, Saxony....
. He was promoted to General der Infanterie one month later, on 24 September. He remained in command of the corps until October 1904, when he became king. His formal military career ended with his accession to the throne, but he was promoted subsequently to Generaloberst and then to Generalfeldmarschall (on 9 September 1912).
Family
Frederick Augustus married Archduchess Luise, Princess of TuscanyArchduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany
Luise of Tuscany was a daughter of Ferdinand IV of Tuscany and his second wife, Alice of Bourbon-Parma, daughter of Duke Charles III and Louise...
, in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
on 21 November 1891. They were divorced in 1903 by the royal decree of the King after she ran away while pregnant with her last child. Luise's flight from Dresden was due to her father-in-law threatening to have her interned in Sonnestein Mental Asylum for life. Her brother supported her in her wish to escape Saxony. Emperor Franz-Josef of Austria-Hungary did not recognise the divorce.
They had seven children:
- Friedrich August Georg, Crown Prince of SaxonyGeorg, Crown Prince of SaxonyGeorg, Crown Prince of Saxony, , the last Crown Prince of Saxony, was the heir to the King of Saxony, Frederick Augustus III, at the time of the monarchy's abolition on 13 November 1918.-Life:The prince was born on 15 January 1893 in Dresden, Saxony, Germany...
(1893–1943). After becoming a JesuitSociety of JesusThe Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
priestPriestA priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
, he renounced his rights in 1923. He was allegedly assassinated by the SS or GestapoGestapoThe Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
in 1943. - Friedrich Christian, Margrave of Meissen, Duke of SaxonyFriedrich Christian, Margrave of MeissenFriedrich Christian, Margrave of Meissen was the head of the Royal House of Saxony.-Life:He was born at Dresden, the second son of King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and his wife Archduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany...
(1893–1968). Married Princess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn and TaxisPrincess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn and TaxisPrincess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn and Taxis was a Princess of Thurn and Taxis by birth and a Princess and Duchess of Saxony, Margravine of Meissen, and titular Queen consort of Saxony through her marriage to Friedrich...
(1903–1976) and had issue. - Ernst HeinrichPrince Ernst Heinrich of SaxonyPrince Ernst Heinrich of Saxony, Duke of Saxony was a member of the Saxon Royal Family. Ernst Heinrich was the youngest son of the last Saxon monarch Frederick Augustus III and his wife Archduchess Luise of Austria, Princess of Tuscany...
(1896–1971). Married first Princess Sophie of LuxembourgPrincess Sophie of LuxembourgPrincess Sophie of Luxembourg was a Princess of Luxembourg by birth and a Princess of Saxony by marriage. Sophie was the sixth and youngest daughter of William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg and his wife Infanta Marie Anne of Portugal...
(1902–1941), daughter of Guillaume IV, Grand Duke of LuxembourgGuillaume IV, Grand Duke of LuxembourgWilliam IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg reigned as the sovereign Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 17 November 1905 until his death. He succeeded his father, Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He also held the titular title of Duke of Nassau.William IV was a Protestant, the religion of the House of Nassau...
, in 1921 and second Virginia Dulon (1910–2002) in 1947 (morganatically). Had issue with Sophie. - Maria Alix Carola, stillborn 22 August 1898
- Margarete Carola WilhelminePrincess Margarete Karola of SaxonyPrincess Margarete Karola Wilhelmine Viktoria Adelheid Albertine Petrusa Bertram Paula of Saxony, Duchess of Saxony was the fifth...
(1900–1962). Married Prince Friedrich of HohenzollernFriedrich, Prince of HohenzollernFrederick, Prince of Hohenzollern He was the eldest son of William, Prince of Hohenzollern and Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies...
(1891–1965). - Maria Alix LuitpoldaPrincess Maria Alix of SaxonyPrincess Maria Alix Luitpolda Anna Henriette Germana Agnes Damiana Michaela of Saxony, Duchess of Saxony was the sixth child and third-eldest...
(1901–1990). Married Franz Joseph, Prince of Hohenzollern-EmdenFranz Joseph, Prince of Hohenzollern-EmdenFranz Joseph Prinz von Hohenzollern-Emden was a member of the Roman Catholic branch of the House of Hohenzollern...
(1891–1964). - Anna Monika PiaPrincess Anna of Saxony (1903–1976)Princess Anna Monika Pia of Saxony, Duchess of Saxony was the seventh and youngest child of Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and his wife Archduchess Luise of Austria, Princess of Tuscany and a younger sister of Georg,...
(1903–1976). Married firstly Archduke Joseph Franz of AustriaArchduke Joseph Francis of AustriaJoseph Franz Leopold Anton Ignatius Maria, Archduke of Austria, Prince of Hungary He was the eldest son of Archduke Joseph August of Austria and Princess Auguste Maria of Bavaria...
(1895–1957) and secondly Reginald Kazanjian (1905–1990).
Their two eldest sons, Friedrich August and Friedrich Christian were born in the same year, 1893, but were not twins. Friedrich August was born in January, while Friedrich Christian was born in December.
Quotes
- When standing in uniform on a station platform, a lady asked him to move her trunk. He is reported to have replied, "Madam, I am not a porter; I only look like one."
- When the German Republic was proclaimed in 1918, he was asked by telephone whether he would abdicate willingly. He said: "Oh, well, I suppose I'd better."
- Upon abdicating, he is supposed to have said "Machd doch eiern Drägg alleene!", but there is no documentation of this.
- When cheered by a crowd in a railroad station several years after his abdication, he stuck his head out of the train's window and shouted, "You're a fine lot of republicans, I'll say!"