Ernest Augustus, Elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg

Ernest Augustus
Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Elector-designate of Hanover
Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Elector of Hanover
Reign	19 December 1692 – 23 January 1698
Successor	Georg Ludwig
Prince of Calenberg Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Reign	18 December 1679 – 23 January 1698
Predecessor	John Frederick
Successor	Georg Ludwig
Born	(1629-11-20)20 November 1629 Herzberg am Harz, Göttingen, Germany.
Died	23 January 1698(1698-01-23) (aged 68) Herrenhausen Palace, Hanover, Germany.
Burial	18 March 1698 Hanover, Germany.
Spouse	Sophia of the Palatinate
Issue more...	George I, King of Great Britain Prince Frederick Augustus Prince Maximilian William Sophia Charlotte, Queen in Prussia Prince Charles Philip Prince Christian Henry Prince Ernest Augustus, Duke of York and Albany
House	Hanover
Father	George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Mother	Anne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt

Ernest Augustus (German: Ernst August; 20 November 1629 – 23 January 1698) was a Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and ruled over the Principality of Calenberg (with its capital Hanover) subdivision of the duchy. He was appointed Prince-elector, but died before the appointment became effective. He was also the Prince-Bishop of the Prince-Bishopric of Osnabrück.

Biography

Ernest Augustus was born at Herzberg am Harz in Göttingen, as the son of George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Anne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt (Ernest Augustus was descended from the Albertinian line of the Habsburg family, and also the House of Hohenzollern). In 1658, he married Sophia of the Palatinate in Heidelberg. She was the daughter of Frederick V, Elector Palatine and Elizabeth Stuart of England, and granddaughter of King James I of England. As the fourth son, Ernest Augustus had little chance of succeeding his father as ruler, and so in 1662, his relatives appointed him Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück; according to the Peace of Westphalia, every second holder of the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Osnabrück was to be appointed by the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg. However, after two of his elder brothers had died without sons, Ernest Augustus inherited part of his father's territories in 1679, Calenberg, with the Principality of Göttingen included; thus, he succeeded to the title of Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg.

In 1683, against the protestations of his five younger sons, Ernest Augustus instituted primogeniture, so that his territory would not be further subdivided after his death, and also as a pre-condition for obtaining the coveted electorship. He participated in the Great Turkish War on the side of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor. In 1692, he was appointed Prince-elector by Emperor Leopold I, thus raising the House of Hanover to electoral dignity; however, the electorship did not come into effect until 1708. He was nonetheless recognized as Elector of Hanover, the very first. Ernest Augustus died in 1698 at Herrenhausen Palace, Hanover. He was succeeded as duke by his eldest son, George Louis, who would later succeed to the British throne as "King George I of Great Britain".

The main residences of the Dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg, that ruled the Principality of Calenburg, were: the Leineschloss; Calenberg Castle; and Herrenhausen Palace.

Arms of Ernest as Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg 1661–1692

Arms of Ernest August as Elector-designate 1692–1698

Ancestry

Issue

References

External links

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