Another Marriage for the Princess of Ahlden

Sophie Dorothea of Brünswick-Lüneburg, the ill-fated wife that King George I divorced before he went to England, had been the object of several interesting marriage possibilities before wedding George. Although the Electress Sophia had frustrated her engagement to the duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, other candidates had tried before him. These included King Carl XI of Sweden, Duke Friedrich Karl of Württemberg-Winnental, Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, as well as the aforementioned Duke August Wilhelm of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Could she have had a happier marriage (i.e. no imprisonment) with one of these men? (Well, except the duke of Brunswick, he was reportedly gay and in love with Liselotte's half-brother, the Raugraf Karl Ludwig., but perhaps he can pull a Monsieur). What would the results have been of such a marriage?

Discuss.
 
So, I've been wondering about this marriage again. More as to who might Georg I marry in this scenario - OTL Queen Anne was proposed for him, but he turned her down on the grounds of her mother's low birth (history's funny like that), and it ensured that Anne hated the Hannoverians till she died. But I also wonder how Sophie would've fared elsewhere.
 
So, I've been wondering about this marriage again. More as to who might Georg I marry in this scenario - OTL Queen Anne was proposed for him, but he turned her down on the grounds of her mother's low birth (history's funny like that), and it ensured that Anne hated the Hannoverians till she died. But I also wonder how Sophie would've fared elsewhere.

Sophie Dorothea of Brünswick-Lüneburg was also the product of an unequal marriage, far more scandalous than that of Anne's parents but she had the advantage of being accepted as her father's heiress.

In contrast at the time that George was contemplated for the future Queen Anne, it seemed unlikely she would become Queen. George would have gotten over the issues of her mother's background if the chances of Anne becoming Queen had seemed greater.

Of course it was a bit of a non starter as Anne hated George on first sight and begged her uncle Charles II not to force her to marry him and he agreed.
 
What about Frederick I of Prussia?

King Carl XI of Sweden, was being proposed by women in 1675, when Sophia is only 9. A king can not wait for ever when he needs to produce an heir.

Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, is not a bad match, apart from the religion, which for a wife, should be ok. And would his son, still be able to be elected Emperor of Holy Roman Empire, with a protestant mother and no close links to the Habsburg descendants.

Frederick Charles, Duke of Württemberg-Winnental, did not marry until 31 October 1682, which is a good for Sophia who is 16, but they will only be married for 15 years before he died of Syphilis, and at 31 she would have be a catch, for any other royal, if not for the fear of catching Syphilis.

As for Augustus William, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, they are mere rumours that he had been introduced to the "art" of same-sex attraction in Venice; later falling in love with Charles Louis of the Palatinate. Sophia might be able to produce at least one son, have Augustus killed due to his lack of interested in politics, get rid of the corrupt ministers, he left the decisions to and crown her son, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, acting as regent? .... Its not that ASB :D.

What about George marrying:
- Princess Eleonore Erdmuthe of Saxe-Eisenach, firstborn daughter of John George I, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach, older sister of the future John William III, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach. In OTL, her daughter Caroline of Ansbach married King George II.
- Duchess Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, who was seen as a 'pathetic' figure at the court of France, isolated and unappreciated due to the perception that she was dull, unattractive and sickly, may fair well in Hanover and then Britain.
- Dorothea Louise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, daughter of Duke Ernest Günther. In OTL, she became Abbess of Itzehoe in 1686, until her death in 1721.
- Ulrika Eleonora of Denmark, if you have King Carl XI of Sweden, marry some one else.

Sophie Dorothea of Brünswick-Lüneburg was also the product of an unequal marriage, far more scandalous than that of Anne's parents but she had the advantage of being accepted as her father's heiress.

In contrast at the time that George was contemplated for the future Queen Anne, it seemed unlikely she would become Queen. George would have gotten over the issues of her mother's background if the chances of Anne becoming Queen had seemed greater.

Of course it was a bit of a non starter as Anne hated George on first sight and begged her uncle Charles II not to force her to marry him and he agreed.

So, what if Charles II, did not agree and forced Anne to marry her cousin? Would George I as Prince Consort of Britain and his heir being groomed in Britain at the age of 19, help Britain accept the Hanover royal family and obviously how does politics fair without King George appointing a Prime Minister?
 
What about Frederick I of Prussia?

King Carl XI of Sweden, was being proposed by women in 1675, when Sophia is only 9. A king can not wait for ever when he needs to produce an heir.

Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, is not a bad match, apart from the religion, which for a wife, should be ok. And would his son, still be able to be elected Emperor of Holy Roman Empire, with a protestant mother and no close links to the Habsburg descendants.

Frederick Charles, Duke of Württemberg-Winnental, did not marry until 31 October 1682, which is a good for Sophia who is 16, but they will only be married for 15 years before he died of Syphilis, and at 31 she would have be a catch, for any other royal, if not for the fear of catching Syphilis.

As for Augustus William, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, they are mere rumours that he had been introduced to the "art" of same-sex attraction in Venice; later falling in love with Charles Louis of the Palatinate. Sophia might be able to produce at least one son, have Augustus killed due to his lack of interested in politics, get rid of the corrupt ministers, he left the decisions to and crown her son, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, acting as regent? .... Its not that ASB :D.

What about George marrying:
- Princess Eleonore Erdmuthe of Saxe-Eisenach, firstborn daughter of John George I, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach, older sister of the future John William III, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach. In OTL, her daughter Caroline of Ansbach married King George II.
- Duchess Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, who was seen as a 'pathetic' figure at the court of France, isolated and unappreciated due to the perception that she was dull, unattractive and sickly, may fair well in Hanover and then Britain.
- Dorothea Louise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg, daughter of Duke Ernest Günther. In OTL, she became Abbess of Itzehoe in 1686, until her death in 1721.
- Ulrika Eleonora of Denmark, if you have King Carl XI of Sweden, marry some one else.

I agree with you on Carl XI, it's a bit of a long wait, although his first kid was only born in 1681 OTL (so Sophie Dorothea would be 15yo), it's not entirely implausible. Don't know how she'll get along with her mother-in-law though. I mean, if she fainted at being presented to the Electress Sophia, one can only imagine her reaction on being presented to the grand old dame, Queen Hedwig Eleonore herself.

Max II Emanuel - his son, OTL was elected due to his marriage to the Emperor Josef's daughter, not due to who his mother was; and in the 1690s/early 1700s the Habsburgs were reasonably chummy with the Lüneburg branch of the Welfs. But once Empress Wilhelmine could no longer have children, the relationship went sideways.

Being married for 15 years to the duke of Württemberg-Winnental doesn't sound too bad. Sure, he's syphilitic - but so were a bunch of rulers in those days (Johann Wilhelm of the Palatinate, Josef I (supposedly), Ferdinandino de Medici, etc). If she can squeeze out one kid before it renders her barren it's a good trade. If we could avoid the syphilis entirely, still better.

- A Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel - TBH, my favourite idea. The Luneburg and the Wolfenbüttel branch were at sixes-and-sevens for a long while (they only made up their quarrel in the mid-18th century when George III's sister married the duke of Brunswick), so I could see the bad blood being perpetuated between them in this scenario. OTOH, said duke of Wolfenbüttel has several sisters, so we might see a double marriage (and a (temporary) reconciliation) between the two lines of the house of Welf.

I don't see Sophia allowing her son to marry Maria Anna Viktoria for two reasons: her Catholicism - Sophia had nothing against it, even postponing her daughter's confirmation in case a speedy conversion was necessary to secure Figuelotte's marriage as second wife to Louis le Grand - and the fact that she's been betrothed to the dauphin since they were children.

I'm not sure if the king of Denmark will see a match between Ulrika Eleonora and her Hannoverian cousin as either necessary or desireable. Most likely if Carl XI is married elsewhere, he'll find a more useful connection for her. Maybe even dispatching the beautiful Ulrika to the Palatinate instead of her half-cripple sister, Vilhelmina (who might be persuaded to take the veil). Otherwise, I'm sure he can find a suitor for her - @JedediahStott I think, proposed a match between her and William III of Orange.

As to Dorothea Luise, she might be considered a bit unconnected for Georg Ludwig. Her mother's likewise an Schleswig-Holstein-something, two of her brothers have contracted morganatic marriages, and her only married sister is wed to another prince of Schleswig-Holstein-something. If he's willing to wait a bit, he might get Sophie Amalie of Holstein (b.1670) (OTL wife of the prince of Brunswick who proposed to Sophie Dorothea).

Eleonore Erdmuthe is an interesting option, if only for how intelligent her daughter turned out OTL. And more than that, if we can spare her the sorrow of her second marriage to a husband who tried to rid himself of her so that he could wed his (purported) half-sister (which in itself sounds like an episode of Game of Thrones), I'm for it. What was the relationship like between Hannover and Saxony, does anyone know?
 
So, what if Charles II, did not agree and forced Anne to marry her cousin? Would George I as Prince Consort of Britain and his heir being groomed in Britain at the age of 19, help Britain accept the Hanover royal family and obviously how does politics fair without King George appointing a Prime Minister?
More importantly if Anne is as unsuccessful in producing an heir with a man she dislikes as she was OTL with one she did, who's next in succession?
 
More importantly if Anne is as unsuccessful in producing an heir with a man she dislikes as she was OTL with one she did, who's next in succession?

If Georg can't father a living heir, his brothers probably follow him. Maximilian (OTL a Catholic, but who may or may not convert if the prospect of succeeding in Hannover is better) or Ernst August ( who had a possibly homosexual relationship with the future Countess of Yarmouth, Amalie von Wallmoden's dad)), assuming that his other brothers don't survive their OTL deaths (one at Pristina, one at St.-Georgen and I think a third somewhere else).
 
Siblings for the Princess of Ahlden
Just came across this and found it extraordinarily interesting. I always laboured under the impression that Sophie Dorothea was an only child (TBF, I've never actually come across anything that suggested otherwise until now. I just assumed either that her dad was syphilitic and thus mom was unable to have more kids after her, or that the birth was complicated and thus rendered Eleonore d'Esmier d'Olbreuse barren).

Apparently, Sophie wasn't an only child. Her mom was pregnant twice more (once in 1671 and again in 1676), but both ended in stillborn daughters. If there had been two more girls to claim a share of her inheritance (which IIRC was the only reason that the Electress Sophia/George I consented to the marriage in the first place), how would this affect things? Would George-Sophie Dorothea still marry (makes sense, but the financial incentive isn't exactly there, since it'd be a three-way split between the girls), maybe force the other two girls to become nuns? Or would both George and Sophie Dorothea marry elsewhere (him, presumably to Anne of York and her to her Brunswick cousin; maybe one of her sisters to a Danish prince)? @Kynan? @Valena? @VVD0D95 @Emperor Constantine @isabella @Jonathan anyone?
 
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