Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

For other uses, seeHouse of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Herzogtum Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha(German)
1826–1918
Flag Coat of arms
The Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (red) within theGerman Empire
Capital	Gotha (northern part) Coburg(southern part)
Common languages	German(Central Thuringian&East Franconian)
Government	Constitutional monarchy
Duke
• 1826–1844	Ernest I
• 1844–1893	Ernest II
• 1893–1900	Alfred
• 1900–1918	Charles Edward
History
• Established	1826
•German Revolution	18 November 1918
Currency	Conventionsthaler(to 1837) Saxon thaler(1837–57) SaxonVereinsthaler(1841–76) German gold mark(1873–1914) Papiermark(1914–18)
Preceded by Succeeded by Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg Free State of Coburg Free State of Saxe-Gotha Free State of Gotha

Saxe-Coburg and Gotha(German:Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha), orSaxe-Coburg-Gotha(German:Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha[ˈzaksn̩ˈkoːbʊʁkˈɡoːtaː]), was anErnestineduchy inThuringiaruled by a branch of theHouse of Wettin,consisting of territories in the present-day states ofThuringiaandBavariain Germany.It lasted from 1826 to 1918. InNovember 1918,Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha,was forced to abdicate. In 1920, the northern part of the duchy (since 1918 theFree State of Gotha;culturally andlinguisticallyThuringian) was merged with six otherThuringian free statesto form theFree State of Thuringia:Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach(until 1918 a grand duchy),Saxe-AltenburgandSaxe-Meiningen(until 1918 duchies),Schwarzburg-RudolstadtandSchwarzburg-Sondershausen(until 1918 principalities), as well as thePeople's State of Reuss(until 1918 the principalities ofReuss-GeraandReuss-Greiz). The southern part of the duchy (since 1918 theFree State of Coburg;culturally andlinguisticallyFranconian), as southernmost of the Thuringian states, was the only one which, after a referendum, became part of theFree State of Bavaria.

The nameSaxe-Coburg-Gothaalso refers to the family of the rulingHouse of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha,which played many varied roles in the dynastic and political history of Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries. In the early part of the 20th century, before theFirst World War,it was the family of the sovereigns of theUnited Kingdom,Belgium,Portugal,Bulgaria,and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. In 1910, the Portuguese king was deposed, and the same thing occurred in Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in 1918 and in Bulgaria in 1946. As of 2024,a branch of the family still reigns in Belgium. The formerTsarof Bulgaria,Simeon II(reigned 1943–46), kept his surname while serving as the Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 2001 to 2005.

History

Ducal standard of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

The Duchy was born when the arbitration of the King of Saxony,Frederick Augustus,produced the Treaty of Hildburghausen on 12 November 1826 for theGothaische Teilung(Gothan Division), the extensive rearrangement of theErnestine duchies.After the extinction of theSaxe-Gotha-Altenburgline, the Duke ofSaxe-Hildburghausenexchanged his Duchy for that ofSaxe-Altenburg.TheSaxe-Meiningenline became Saxe-Hildburghausen and got fromSaxe-Coburg-Saalfeldthe Saalfelder territories as well as the District ofThemarand the places ofMupperg,Mogger,LiebauandOerlsdorf.The Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld received for that the Duchy ofSaxe-Coburg,Districts ofKönigsbergandSonnefeldfrom Saxe-Hildburghausen, and the properties ofCallenbergandGauerstadtfrom Saxe-Meiningen.

By then, thePrincipality of Lichtenberg,on theNahe River,had already been a part of the Duchy of Coburg for ten years. Ernest III, the sovereign of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, had received it in 1816 from theCongress of Viennafor providing assistance to the Allies in their war against France. But, because of the great distance from Coburg and of the unrest caused by theHambach Festival,the Duke sold the Principality in 1834 toPrussia.

TheThuringian statesand their capitals until 1918
Free states 1918-1920; united asThuringiasince 1920
Ernestine duchies
(Ernestines→House of Wettin)

Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Gotha,Coburg)

Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach(Weimar)

Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg(Altenburg)

Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen(Meiningen)

Reussian principalities
(House of Reuss→Vögte(advocates) ofWeida, Gera and Plauen)

Principality of Reuss-Gera(Gera)

Principality of Reuss-Greiz(Greiz)

United asPeople's State of Reuss(Gera) 1919-1920
Schwarzburgian principalities
(House of Schwarzburg)

Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt(Rudolstadt)

Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen(Sondershausen)

Surrounding states and their capitals

Kingdom of Prussia(Berlin),Province of Saxony(Magdeburg),Regionof Erfurt (Erfurt)

Kingdom of Prussia,Province of Hesse-Nassau(Kassel),Region of Kassel(Kassel)

Kingdom of Prussia, Province of Saxony, Region of Merseburg (Merseburg)

Kingdom of Bavaria(Munich)

Kingdom of Saxony(Dresden)

Not in theGerman Empire

Austria-Hungary(Vienna),Cisleithania(Vienna),Kingdom of Bohemia(Prague)

The newly created Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was initially a double duchy, ruled by Ernest III as Duke Ernest I in apersonal union,but with only one vote in theBundesrat.The opportunity to unify the two duchies in 1826 was missed. After theStaatsgrundgesetz(House laws) of 1852, the duchies were bound in a political andreal union.They were then a quasi-federal unitary state.Later attempts to merge the duchies failed in 1867 because theLandtagof Gotha did not want to assume the higher state debts of Coburg and in 1872 because of the questions about the administration of the whole union.

The Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha received on 3 May 1852 a national constitution, which had taken substantial parts of the fundamental rights from theConstitutionof theNational Assemblyin Frankfurt. It also joined the GermanZollvereinin 1834, theNorth German Confederationin 1866 and theGerman Empirein 1871. At theBundesratinBerlin,where it had a seat, it kept its agents but, since 1913, like most of the otherThuringian states,it had to defer to the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen for the representation.

Ernest I died in 1844. His elder son and successor, Ernest II, ruled until his own death in 1893. Because he had died childless, the throne of the two duchies would have passed to his late brotherPrince Albert's male descendants. But Prince Albert was the husband ofQueen Victoriaof the United Kingdom and his eldest son,Edward, the Prince of Wales,was already herheir apparent.Besides, he was prohibited by the Constitutions of both duchies from inheriting the throne if there were other eligible male heirs.But he had already renounced his claim in favour of his next brother,Prince Alfred,Duke of Edinburgh. So Alfred became the next Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

Republic of Saxe-Gotha then Free State of Saxe-Gotha

Free State of Coburg

Enclave of the Free State of Saxe-Coburg,Königsberg in Bavaria

ThePrincipality of Lichtenberg,(1816–1834)

Alfred's only son, also namedAlfred,died in 1899, so when Duke Alfred died in 1900 he was succeeded by his nephew theDuke of Albany,the 16-year-old son of Queen Victoria's youngest son,Leopold,as Duke Alfred's next brotherPrince Arthur, Duke of Connaughtand his sonPrince Arthur of Connaughthad renounced their own claims to the succession. Reigning as Duke Carl Eduard,Charles Edward,because of his age, began under the Regency ofPrince Ernst von Hohenlohe-Langenburguntil he came of age in 1905. The new Duke also continued to use his British title, the Duke of Albany. But, because he chose to side with the Germans against the British in theFirst World War,he was stripped of his British titles in 1919.

After theNovember Revolutionended the monarchy in 1918, the two duchies became two different and independent states, theFree State of Coburg,and the Republic of Gotha, later renamed theFree State of Gotha.Their leaders believed, however, that their new countries were not economically viable, so they began to search for possible mergers. Eventually, a referendum was held on 30 November 1919 and the decision was made. On 1 May 1920, the Free State of Gotha merged with the new State ofThuringia,and the Free State of Coburg followed two months later, on 1 July 1920, by uniting with theFree State of Bavaria.

Politics

In the German Empire, the Duchy had only one vote in theBundesratand two votes (for the two Duchies of Coburg and Gotha) in theReichstag.

Each Duchy had its ownLandtag,elected every four years by male taxpayers over 25 years of age. Only males 30 years or older were eligible to stand for the elections. The Coburger assembly had 11 members and its twin in Gotha had 19. The assemblies met every year but, every two years, they would combine, alternatively in Gotha and Coburg, for the matters and questions that involve both Duchies.

For both duchies, however, there was a Ministry of State in Gotha but Coburg and Gotha had their own subordinate and almost independent ministries. The Minister of State directed Gotha's Ducal ministry but, for both Duchies, he was responsible for the state affairs, the economical and commercials policies, the judiciary and the conduct of Imperial laws. In Coburg, for state matters as such as community services, police duties, support of the state church, and education, as well as management of assets and finances, and also, until 1891, court matters, the local authorities could not interfere with the decisions from Gotha.

The finances of both Duchies remained basically disconnected. But, in their management, a distinction was always made between the Crown revenue from the domains and the State revenue from taxes and duties. Every four years, a common budget, especially in the financial dealings with theGerman Empire,was made, even if it interfered with the local and national operations of the two Duchies. Grants from the state budgets of both Duchies were made in the ratio of 7 to 3 between Gotha and Coburg.

Because of its size and finances, the Duchy did not have ambassadors but it did have trade consuls. They were for trade withAustria-Hungary,Belgium,Brazil,Chile,Cuba,Ecuador,France, Great Britain, Italy,Mexico,Peru,Portugal,Prussia, Russia, Spain,Switzerland,andTurkey.The United States had its own consul in Coburg from 1897 to 1918.

During theAmerican Civil War,Ernst Ravenwas assigned to the position of consul in the state of Texas. He applied to the Confederate Government for a diplomaticexequaturon 30 July 1861 and was accepted.

Military

Coburg Fortress

Before 1867, the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had its own Army. But, on 26 June 1867, because of a treaty signed in 1866 with Prussia, its Army was added, for defending and recruiting purposes, to the 6th Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 95 of the22nd Divisionof theXIth Army Corps.Three battalions of the 6th Thuringian were assigned to Gotha (No. 1),Hildburghausen(No. 2) and Coburg (No. 3) but the Corps headquarters was inKassel.Unlike Prussia, where military service was mandatory, Saxe-Coburg and Gotha filled its quota in theImperial Armywith the draft.

Miscellaneous

The capitals of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha wereCoburgandGotha.By 1914 the area and populations of the two duchies were:

Duchy	Area		Population
	km2	sq mi
Saxe-Coburg	562	217	74,818
Saxe-Gotha	1,415	546	182,359
Total	1,977	763	257,177

There are tworesidencesin Gotha and Coburg. Therefore, the whole ducal court, including the Court Theater, had to move twice a year: from Gotha to Coburg for the summer, from Coburg to Gotha for the winter.For the Court Theater, two almost identical buildings had to be built in 1840 in Gotha (destroyed in the Second World War) and Coburg (now theCoburg State Theater) and thereafter maintained at the same time. In addition to the residential castles,Friedensteinin Gotha andEhrenburgin Coburg, the Ducal family also used theSchlossReinhardsbrunnin Gotha as well as theRosenauandCallenbergcastles in Coburg and the hunting lodge Greinburg Castle,Grein, Austria(the latter two still today owned by the ducal branch of theHouse of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha).

• 
  Veste Coburg
• 
  Ehrenburg Palace,Coburg
• 
  Friedenstein Palace,Gotha
• 
  ReinhardsbrunnCastle, Gotha
• 
  Callenberg Castle,Coburg
• 
  RosenauCastle, Coburg

Only the Duchy of Gotha, along with nearby Duchies of Saxe-Meiningen and Saxe-Altenburg and especially the Grand Duchy ofSaxe-Weimar-Eisenach– was able to be one of the sponsoring states of theUniversity of Jena.Coburg did not have its own university. It did not have its court of law, either. Gotha had its own court of law while Coburg had to go toMeiningenfor the legal administration.

Ruler

The children of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1917: PrincessSibylleand PrinceHubertus

Main article:House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Titles and styles of the Sovereign of the House

According to theStaatsgrundgesetz(House laws) of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the full title of the Duke was:

Wir, Ernst, Herzog zu Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha, Jülich, Cleve und Berg, auch Engern und Westphalen, Landgraf in Thüringen, Markgraf zu Meißen, gefürsteter Graf zu Henneberg, Graf zu der Mark und Ravensberg, Herr zu Ravenstein und Tonna usw.

Translation: We, Ernest, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha,Jülich, Cleves and Berg,alsoAngriaandWestphalia,Landgravein Thuringia,MargraveofMeissen,Princely CountofHenneberg,Count of the MarkandRavensberg,Lord ofRavensteinandTonna,et cetera.

Titles and styles of other members of the House

The use of Ducal and Princely titles may be restricted if the marriage conflicts with the requirements of theStaatsgrundgesetzor if a member of the House renounces his claims for himself and his descendants.

Dukes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1826–1918)

Coat of armsof Saxe-Coburg
and Gotha

Heraldic shieldof Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

• Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha(1784–1844)reigned 1826–1844
  • Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha(1818–1893)reigned 1844–1893
  • Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha(1819–1861), Prince Consort of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1840–1861
    • King Edward VIIof the United Kingdom (1841–1910), reigned as king 1901-1910;
    • Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duke of Edinburgh(1844–1900),reigned 1893–1900
      • Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha(1874–1899), predeceased father
    • Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn(1850–1942)
      • Prince Arthur of Connaught(1883–1938)
        • Alastair Windsor, 2nd Duke of Connaught and Strathearn(1914–1943)
    • Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany(1853–1884)
      • Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha(1884–1954),reigned 1900–1918,abdicated 1918

State Ministers of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1824–1919)

• 1824–1840 Christoph Anton Ferdinand von Carlowitz
• 1840–1840 Dietrich [Carl August]Freiherrvon Stein (first time)
• 1840–1846 Georg Ferdinand von Lepel
• 1846–1849 Dietrich [Carl August]Freiherrvon Stein (second time)
• 1849–1888 CamilloFreiherrvon Seebach
• 1888–1891 Gisbert von Bonin
• 1891–1900 Office Vacant
• 1900–1905 [Philipp Hermann] Otto von Hentig
• 1905–1914 Ernst [Friedrich Hermann] von Richter
• 1914–1919 Hans Barthold von Bassewitz

See also

• Ernestine duchies
• Palais Coburgin Vienna

Bibliography

• Dressel, Carl-Christian H.,Die Entwicklung von Verfassung und Verwaltung in Sachsen-Coburg 1800–1826 im Vergleich(The Development and Comparison of the Constitution and Administration of Saxe-Coburg 1880 – 1826) (Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 2007),ISBN978-3-428-12003-1,Subscription required.(in German)
• Erdmann, Jürgen,Coburg, Bayern und das Reich 1918–1923(Coburg, Bavaria and the Empire 1918–1923), Coburg, Druckhaus und Vesteverlag A. Rossteutscher, 1969, (Coburger Heimatkunde und Landesgeschichte Reihe 2, 22(Coburger Studies of State and Local History Series 2, Nr 22), ZDB-ID 1151614-8) (simultaneously:University of Würzburg,Dissertation, 1969:Coburg in den Anfangsjahren der Weimarer Republik 1918–1923(Coburg in the Beginning of the Weimar Republic Years 1918–1923))(in German)
• Homann, Johann B[aptist].,Die Herzogtümer Gotha, Coburg und Altenburg 1729. Historische Karte(The Duchies of Gotha, Coburg and Altenburg 1729. Historical Maps),Tabula Geographica Principatus Gotha, Coburg, Altenburg(Geographical Maps of the Principalities of Gotha, Coburg and Altenburg 1729), Bad Langensalza, Verlag Rockstuhl, 1999, (reprint),ISBN3-929000-78-4.(in German)
• Niclas, Thomas,Das Haus Sachsen-Coburg – Europas späte Dynastie(The House of Saxe-Coburg – Europe's Last Dynasty), Stuttgart,Kohlhammer Verlag,2003,ISBN3-17-017243-3.(in German)
• Sandner, Harold,Das Haus von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha 1826 bis 2001(The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha 1826 to 2001), Coburg, Neue Presse GmbH, 2004.ISBN3-00-008525-4.(in German)

External links

• The Ducal House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha– the official website of the house(in German and English)
• The Catholic Encyclopedia: Saxe-Coburg and Gotha– article about the Duchy, written in 1910, with details about the religious issues(in English)
• Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911)."Saxe-Coburg-Gotha".Encyclopædia Britannica(11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.(in English)