John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Calenberg

John Frederick (German: Johann Friedrich; 25 April 1625 in Herzberg am Harz – 18 December 1679 in Augsburg) was duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. He ruled over the Principality of Calenberg, a subdivision of the duchy, from 1665 until his death.

John Frederick
Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Prince of Calenberg
John Frederick, c. 1675, by Johann Hulsman
Born(1625-04-25)25 April 1625
Herzberg am Harz
Died18 December 1679(1679-12-18) (aged 54)
Augsburg
Noble familyHanover
Spouse(s)Benedicta Henrietta of the Palatinate
Issue
Anne Sophie
Charlotte Felicitas
Henriette Marie
Wilhelmina Amalia
FatherGeorge, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
MotherAnne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt

The third son of George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, John converted to the Roman Catholic Church, the only member of his family to do so, in 1651. He received Calenberg when his elder brother George William inherited the Principality of Lüneburg. In 1666, he had a palace built in Herrenhausen near Hanover that was inspired by the Palace of Versailles and is famous for its gardens, the Herrenhausen Gardens.

In 1667, he employed as his master builder the Venetian architect Girolamo Sartorio, who designed many buildings in the town, including the Neustädter Kirche, and was instrumental in the expansion of the Herrenhausen Gardens.

In 1676, John Frederick employed Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz as Privy Councillor and librarian of the important ducal library. Thus began Leibniz's 40-year association with the House of Hanover, which resulted in three generations of Hanovers being patrons to one of the most eminent philosophers and mathematicians of Europe.

Funeral thaler for John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1679)
John Frederick, ca. 1670, after Jean Michelin

Children

Charlotte Felicitas, his middle daughter

John Frederick married Benedicta Henrietta of the Palatinate (14 March 1652 – 12 August 1730), daughter of Edward, Count Palatine of Simmern and Anna Gonzaga, on 30 November 1668. They had four daughters:

  • Anne Sophie (10 February 1670 – 24 March 1672)
  • Charlotte Felicitas (8 March 1671 – 29 September 1710), married Rinaldo III, Duke of Modena
  • Henriette Marie (9 March 1672 – 4 September 1757)
  • Wilhelmina Amalia (1673 – 10 April 1742), married Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor

Ancestry

gollark: Or, well, "multitask".
gollark: You can run Linux or something on a Turing machine if you emulate x86. Linux can multitask. QED.
gollark: yes it can.
gollark: Only if it's impossible to simulate a brain on a ridiculously powerful computer, which... well, we don't know, but it seems unlikely.
gollark: I suppose the physical processes they run on might not be Turing-computable?

References

John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Calenberg
Cadet branch of the House of Welf
Born: 25 April 1625 Died: 18 December 1679
German nobility
Preceded by
George William
Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Prince of Calenberg

1665–1679
Succeeded by
Ernest Augustus


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