| Frederick Augustus II | |
|---|---|
 Frederick Augustus II in 1902 | |
| Grand Duke of Oldenburg | |
| Reign | 13 June 1900 – 11 November 1918 |
| Predecessor | Peter II |
| Successor | Monarchy abolished |
| Head of House of Oldenburg | |
| Reign | 11 November 1918 – 24 February 1931 |
| Successor | Nikolaus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Oldenburg |
| Born | (1852-11-16)16 November 1852 Oldenburg,Grand Duchy of Oldenburg,German Confederation |
| Died | 24 February 1931(1931-02-24) (aged 78) Rastede Palace,Rastede,Free State of Oldenburg,Weimar Republic |
| Burial | Ducal (Herzogliches) Mausoleum, Gertrudenfriedhof, Oldenburg |
| Spouse | |
| Issue |
|
| House | House of Holstein-Gottorp |
| Father | Peter II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg |
| Mother | Princess Elisabeth of Saxe-Altenburg |
| Religion | Lutheranism |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  German Empire |
| Rank | Admiral |
Frederick Augustus II (16 November 1852 inOldenburg – 24 February 1931 inRastede) was the lastruling Grand Duke ofOldenburg.
Frederick Augustus was the eldest son ofPeter II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg. He grew up with an interest in the navy and studied at multiple German universities, before serving in the navy. In 1878, he marriedPrincess Elisabeth Anna of Prussia, daughter ofPrincess Maria Anna of Anhalt-Dessau andPrince Frederick Charles of Prussia. After her death in 1895, he marriedElisabeth Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 1896.
He ascended to the Oldenburg throne in 1900 as Frederick Augustus II and funded multiple infrastructure projects, including the development of ports and waterways. TheFirst World War broke out during his reign which saw the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg fight with theGerman Empire underKaiser Wilhelm II on the side of theCentral Powers. TheGerman Revolution at the end of the war forced Frederick Augustus to abdicate and led to the collapse of all German monarchies. After living in exile for two decades, Frederick Augustus died at the age of 78 years old.
Frederick Augustus was born on 16 November 1852 in theGrand Duchy of Oldenburg as the eldest son ofPeter II, the reigningGrand Duke of Oldenburg, andPrincess Elisabeth of Saxe-Altenburg. From 1861, Frederick Augustus and his younger brother, Georg Ludwig, were tutored by Bavarian general Otto von Parseval, the son-in-law of former Oldenburg court marshal Alexander von Rennenkampff.[1] Frederick Augustus studied at theUniversity of Bonn,University of Strasbourg andUniversity of Leipzig. His education was completed following a seven-month-long exchange toAsia Minor,Palestine, Egypt and Italy. Following this, he joined the military and achieved the rank of lieutenant.[2]
Frederick Augustus acquired a captain's licence at a nautical school inElsfleth and began to regularly skipper yachts.[3] In 1888, he rescued a shipwrecked Danish sailor onHeligoland and was awarded with the Golden Rescue Medal by the Italian government for his actions. For this, he was the only German monarch appointedAdmiral of theGerman Imperial Navy, which was ordered byKaiser Wilhelm II.[4] Frederick Augustus personally captained the luxury yachtLensahn on family trips through the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas.[5]
In 1899, the Shipbuilding Technical Society was founded and Frederick Augustus served as its honorary chairman until 1930. Additionally, he was one of the founders of the German School Ship Association, which campaigned for the expansion of seamanship training capacities for the German merchant navy, in January 1900.[6]
Frederick Augustus' reign began on 13 June 1900, when his father died. Considered conservative by the German media, Frederick Augustus was a supporter ofWilhelminism and became interested in the development of technology,seafaring and the navy. He also invested in the development of waterways, including theHunte Canal, which expanded Oldenburg ports on theWeser and promoted the construction of new industrial factories.[2] German historian August Geerkens wrote of Frederick Augustus: "He was popular with the population; everyone smiled when his car drove through the streets with all the fanfare. But he was also headstrong. The old soldiers in the country still suspected him because, as a lieutenant, he had been a trooper."[7]
In 1904, Frederick Augustus designed the "Niki Propeller", a ship propeller which he asked to be built by a Hamburg manufacturing company, however they refused as they believed it would produce a financial loss. Nonetheless, for his nautical achievements, Frederick Augustus was awarded a Doctorate at theLeibniz University Hannover in 1910. During his reign, Frederick Augustus also ordered the building of theElisabeth-Anna-Palais, named after his first wife, who died during its construction. On 1 December 1906, a law introducing administrative jurisdiction came into effect per a decree signed by Frederick Augustus. The law had previously been drafted by lawyer Karl Dugend, but was defeated in the legislature.[6] Moreover, on 14 January 1914, the construction of a training ship was completed byJoh. C. Tecklenborg. It was christened in 1918 in Frederick Augustus' name, and the ship is still in use today by Norway, which uses the nameStatsraad Lehmkuhl for the vessel.[8]
Being a state of theGerman Empire, the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg took part inWorld War I, under Frederick Augustus' rule. He personally commanded the Grand Ducal Oldenburg Cavalry Regiment during the war, in which he adhered to a group ofannexationists, who wanted to secure Germany's position of power by acquiring foreign territories. He supported the invasion of Belgium and believed that France should be made avassal state of Germany and be divided into a northern republic and southernBourbon Kingdom.[7] On 24 September 1914, he created theFriedrich-August-Kreuz, an Oldenburg military order.[9] According to Geerkens, Frederick Augustus was pushed byGrand AdmiralAlfred von Tirpitz to approach theKing of Bavaria,Ludwig III, and suggest that the German monarchs demand that Wilhelm dismiss theChancellor of Germany,Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, who was accused of acting too weak and slowing German victory. Many German monarchs, including Frederick Augustus, were also disappointed with Bethmann Hollweg's rejection of theReichstag Peace Resolution in 1917.[7]
Frederick Augustus was forced to abdicate, along with all other German monarchs in the course of theGerman Revolution. The11 November 1918 was soon signed, ending World War I, and the monarchy was officially abolished on 28 November 1918. Frederick Augustus' Grand Duchy was then assumed by the newly establishedWeimar Republic.[10]
Frederick Augustus and his family took up residence atRastede Castle, where he took up farming and local industrial interests.[11] A year after his abdication, he asked the Oldenburg Diet for a yearly allowance of 150,000marks, stating that his financial condition was "extremely precarious".[11] To further finance himself, Frederick Augustus sold part of his art collection which had been left to him as his own private property, instead of being given to the state. In total, a third of his former Grand Duchy's art was sold. He exported paintings, such as those ofRembrandt, to the Netherlands in 1919 with the help of industrialist Georg Bölts. Part of the proceeds was donated to the meat processing factory Bölts AG.[12] PhilosopherKarl Jaspers, who grew up in Oldenburg, wrote in his memoirs of this endeavour: "The Grand Duke used some of the money from the sale of the pictures to help found a sausage factory, which subsequently collapsed."[13] Frederick Augustus' sale of arts helped to later influence the Cultural Property Protection Act 2019.
Frederick Augustus died on 24 February 1931 inRastede. He was subsequently buried in the Grand Ducal Mausoleum of the Gertrudenfriedhof cemetery in Oldenburg.[10]
On 18 February 1878, Frederick Augustus marriedPrincess Elisabeth Anna of Prussia, a daughter ofPrince Frederick Charles of Prussia.[citation needed] It was a double wedding, in whichPrincess Charlotte of Prussia (daughter of theCrown Prince andCrown Princess ofPrussia) marriedBernhard, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Meiningen on the same day as Elisabeth Anna in Berlin.[14] The marriages were the first such occasions performed since Prussia had become theGerman Empire in 1870. Due to this increased status, the weddings were attended by many important personages, includingLeopold II of Belgium and his wife,Queen Marie Henriette.[15] ThePrince of Wales also attended, as Charlotte, one of the brides, was his niece.[16]
Frederick Augustus and Elisabeth Anna had two children:
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duchess Sophia Charlotte | 2 February 1879 | 29 March 1964 | marriedPrince Eitel Friedrich of Prussia, a younger son ofWilhelm II of Germany.[11] |
| Duchess Margaret | 13 October 1881 | 20 February 1882 | died in infancy. |
Elisabeth died on 28 August 1895, before he succeeded as Grand Duke.[17] Before her death, her husband had been building a new residential palace; once she died, Frederick named the new building theElisabeth-Anna-Palais in her honor.
On 24 October 1896, Frederick Augustus marriedDuchess Elisabeth Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, a daughter ofFrederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg.[11] He succeeded as Grand Duke of Oldenburg in 1900.
Frederick Augustus and Elisabeth had five children:
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicolas Frederick William, Hereditary Grand Duke of Oldenburg | 10 August 1897 | 3 April 1970 | MarriedPrincess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont. |
| Duke Frederick Augustus | 25 March 1900 | 26 March 1900 | Twin with Alexandrine, died in infancy. |
| Duchess Alexandrine | 25 March 1900 | 26 March 1900 | Twin with Frederick Augustus, died in infancy. |
| Duchess Ingeborg Alix | 20 July 1901 | 10 January 1996 | Married Prince Stephan Alexander of Schaumburg-Lippe, a younger son ofGeorg, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe. |
| Duchess Altburg Marie Mathilde Olga | 19 May 1903 | 16 June 2001 | MarriedJosias, Hereditary Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont. |
Oldenburg:Grand Cross of the Order of Duke Peter Friedrich Ludwig,16 November 1852;[18] Grand Prior,ca. 1853[19]
Brunswick:Grand Cross of Henry the Lion,1871[20]
Württemberg:Grand Cross of the Württemberg Crown,1873[21]
Ernestine duchies: Grand Cross of theSaxe-Ernestine House Order,1874[22]
Kingdom of Prussia:Knight of the Black Eagle, with Collar,1 January 1878[23]
Grand Duchy of Hesse: Grand Cross of theLudwig Order,18 February 1878[24]
Belgium: Grand Cordon of theOrder of Leopold (military),25 February 1878[25]
Duchy of Anhalt:Grand Cross of Albert the Bear,1885[26]
Kingdom of Bavaria:Knight of St. Hubert,1888[27]
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach:Grand Cross of the White Falcon,1890[28]
Baden: Knight of theHouse Order of Fidelity,1900[29]
Kingdom of Saxony:Knight of the Rue Crown,1898[30]
Kingdom of Italy:Knight of the Annunciation,16 July 1902[31]
United Kingdom: Honorary Grand Cross of theRoyal Victorian Order,10 June 1907[32]
Austria-Hungary:Grand Cross of St. Stephen,1908[33]
Denmark:Knight of the Elephant,28 April 1909[34]
Sweden:Knight of the Seraphim,12 July 1912[35]{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link){{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Frederick Augustus II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg Born: 16 November 1852 Died: 24 February 1931 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Grand Duke of Oldenburg 13 June 1900 – 11 November 1918 | Monarchy abolished |
| Titles in pretence | ||
| Loss of title | — TITULAR — Grand Duke of Oldenburg 11 November 1918 – 24 February 1931 Reason for succession failure: Grand Duchy abolished in 1918 | Succeeded by |
Heads of theHouse of Oldenburg since1918 | ||
|---|---|---|
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Final hereditary rulers of thestates of the German Empire | |
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| Emperor | |
| Kings | |
| Grand dukes | |
| Dukes | |
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| International | |
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| Other | |
