The Year of Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz – Augusta of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach: “Independence of character” (Part one)

Augusta of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was born on 30 September 1811 at three in the morning as the third, but second surviving child of Charles Frederick, the future Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, and Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia.¹ She was born in the Stadtschloss in Weimar.² She had an elder sister, Princess Marie, and a younger brother, Charles Alexander, who succeeded her father as Grand Duke. Like her sister Marie, Augusta became a daughter-in-law of Queen Louise of Prussia.

In infancy, one observer noted that she “lay as placid and calm in her cradle as if conscious of her future crown.”³ On 6 October, she was baptised with the names Maria Louise Augusta Katharina. Her uncle, Prince Bernhard, was one of her godparents. Augusta was entrusted to the care of Frau Batsch.⁴ At the age of three, one observer noted that she was better looking than Marie, but Marie was “really much more good-natured than the sister, and puts up with a good deal from her.”⁵

By 1817, Augusta and Marie had their own household, which was run by a woman named Caroline von Hopfgarten. She worked together with the girls’ mother to find suitable tutors, but this proved difficult, and they often switched between tutors.⁶ Nevertheless, they underwent a rigorous education with lessons around 39 hours a week. When they complained about fatigue, their mother told them, “Princesses are not permitted to be tired.”⁷

The sisters studied Latin, French, English, mathematics, geography, history and Russian. They practised drawing, played music, learned to dance and rode horses. They also received religious instruction and practised courtly manners. Augusta would later complain about the isolation she experienced as a child. She wrote, “We children were almost exclusively among adults, and almost exclusively among women, since my brother is five years younger than we sisters.”⁸

One of her teachers was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and Augusta later wrote, “Everything that reached us from the world came from Goethe. His visits to the castle, the invitations to his house – those were our greatest joys. We loved the privy councillor like a good uncle. The older we grew, the more tightly his world embraced us.” She added, “My father, the Hereditary Duke, held a much smaller share of my heart than Goethe, for Goethe was the true centre not only of Weimar but also of the court. Around him rallied everything. And the best, dearest friend he was to us children, he remained to us until his death.”⁹ Despite Augusta’s words, Charles Frederick was known to be devoted to his children.¹⁰

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe facilitated the purchase of the Princess’ Little Castle in the Griesbach Garden in Jena. He also arranged contact with scholars and access to the collections of the University of Jena.¹¹ On Augusta’s ninth birthday, he presented her with a poem which he had written for the occasion.¹²

In 1824, Augusta set foot outside Weimar for the first time when her mother took her and her sister to their grandmother, the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, in St Petersburg. The Russian court was very overwhelming for them, and Augusta soon longed to return home. Their tutor later told them that they were “behaving excellently, in spite of unusual indulgence and adulation; they say you look like angels from heaven, that you sing divinely and so on.”¹³  When Alexander von Humboldt met Augusta in 1826, he wrote that she was “said to have already developed considerable strength and independence of character, although she is hardly more than a child. Her eyes sparkle with vitality and intellect.”¹⁴

In November 1826, Prince William and Prince Charles, the younger sons of King Frederick William III of Prussia, travelled to Weimar. Charles proposed to Marie, and her parents reluctantly consented. It was expected that William would show an interest in Augusta, but he did not, and Augusta’s father believed him to be flighty. William had been in love with Elisa Radziwiłł, but they were not allowed to marry.¹⁵ Charles and Marie’s wedding took place on 26 May 1827 in Charlottenburg as William indulged in an affair with Emilie von Brockhausen. As he continued his search for a wife, the affair caused much consternation.¹⁶ In September 1827, the Prussian King sent a message to Augusta’s father promising that William would marry Augusta.¹⁷

In April 1828, Augusta again travelled with her parents to St Petersburg. This time, her brother joined as well, but all four fell ill. Augusta contracted rubella while Charles Alexander had whooping cough. The marriage negotiations did not take priority during this time.¹⁸ While they were in St Petersburg, Augusta’s grandfather, Charles Augustus, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, died at the age of 70. The news arrived nine days after his death, but the Dowager Empress kept the news from them for another day. He left St Petersburg on 1 July, while his wife and children followed three days later.¹⁹  On his way back, Charles Frederick stopped in Berlin to see Marie and his new grandson.²⁰

Augusta was confirmed on 29 August 1828, making her truly “marriagable.” Not much later, William wrote to Augusta and her parents that he wished to place the happiness of his life in the hands of the princess. He wrote, “I beg to be allowed to express my feelings and wishes in writing to Princess Augusta herself. It is a comfort to me to think that I have entrusted my entire destiny to the Princess herself – may the answer then be according to the will of the Almighty! to whom I submit completely at this important moment.”²¹

Part two coming soon.

1. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.128
2. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.13
3. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.13
4. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.128
5. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.14
6. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.169
7. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.14
8. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.169
9. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.169-170
10. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.172
11. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.170
12. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.14
13. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.14
14. The first German Empress by John Van Der Kiste p.15
15. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.189
16. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.189
17. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.189
18. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.190
19. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.191
20. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.192
21. Carl Friedrich by Detlef Jena p.194