View source for Saxe-Meiningen

{{short description|Saxon duchy held by the Ernestine line of the Wettin dynasty in Thuringia, Germany}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2007}}
{{Infobox Former Country
| native_name            = 
| conventional_long_name = Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen <small>(1680–1918)</small><br /><small>''Herzogtum Sachsen-Meiningen''</small><hr>Free State of Saxe-Meiningen <small>(1918–1920)</small><br /><small>''Freistaat Sachsen-Meiningen''</small>
| common_name            = Saxe-Meiningen
| era                    = [[Early modern period]]
| status                 = Vassal
| empire                 = Holy Roman Empire
| status_text            = [[States of the Holy Roman Empire|State]] of the [[Holy Roman Empire]], <br>[[States of the Confederation of the Rhine|State]] of the [[Confederation of the Rhine]], <br>[[States of the German Confederation|State]] of the [[German Confederation]], <br>[[States of the North German Confederation|State]] of the [[North German Confederation]], <br>[[States of the German Empire|Constituent state]] of the [[German Empire]]
| year_start             = 1680
| year_end               = 1920
| p1                     = Saxe-Gotha
| flag_p1                = Coat of arms of Saxony.svg
| border_p1              = no
| s1                     = Thuringia
| flag_s1                = Flag of Thuringia (state).svg
| event_start            = Partitioned from [[Saxe-Gotha]]
| event1                 = Acquired [[Saxe-Hildburghausen]]
| date_event1            = 1826
| event2                 = [[German Revolution]]
| date_event2            = 1918
| event_end              = Merged into Thuringia
| image_flag             = Flagge Herzogtum Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha (1826-1911).svg
| image_coat             = Coat of Arms of the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen-Hildburghausen.svg
| image_map              = Saxe-Meiningen in the German Reich (1871).svg
| image_map2             = SMEI.png
| image_map_caption      = Saxe-Meiningen within the German Empire
| government_type        = [[Duchy]] (1680–1918)<br/>[[Republic]] (1918–1920)
| title_leader           = Duke
| leader1                = [[Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard I]] {{small|(first)}}
| year_leader1           = 1675–1706
| leader2                = [[Bernhard III Frederick Wilhelm Albrecht Georg, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard III]] {{small|(last)}}
| year_leader2           = 1914–1918
| map_caption2           = Territories of Saxe-Meiningen within the [[Ernestine duchies]] after 1826
| capital                = [[Meiningen]]
| national_anthem        = [[Meiningen Hymn]]<br />(“Brothers sing with a loud sound of joy...”)<br />{{center|[[File:Marsch von Erbprinzessin Charlotte von Sachsen-Meiningen.wav]]}}
}}
'''Saxe-Meiningen''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|s|æ|k|s|_|ˈ|m|aɪ|n|ɪ|ŋ|ən}} {{respell|SAKS|_|MY|ning|ən}}; {{langx|de|Sachsen-Meiningen}} {{IPA|de|ˌzaksn̩ ˈmaɪnɪŋən|}}) was one of the Saxon duchies held by the [[Ernestine duchies|Ernestine]] line of the [[House of Wettin]], located in the southwest of the present-day [[Germany|German]] state of [[Thuringia]].

Established in 1681,<ref>{{CathEncy|wstitle=Saxe-Meiningen}}</ref> by partition of the Ernestine Duchy of [[Saxe-Gotha]] among the seven sons of deceased Duke [[Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha|Ernest the Pious]], the Saxe-Meiningen line of the House of Wettin lasted until the end of the German monarchies in 1918.<ref name=Museum>{{cite web|url=http://www.meiningermuseen.de/pages/schloss/personen/herzogliche-familie.php|title=Die herzogliche Familie (German)|publisher=Meininger Museen|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170818085933/http://www.meiningermuseen.de/pages/schloss/personen/herzogliche-familie.php|archive-date=18 August 2017|access-date=10 May 2019}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:GER-TH-SM-Meiningen (Schloss Elisabethenburg, Blick von Osten) — 2009 uploaded 2011-09-24.jpg|thumb|left|[[Elisabethenburg Palace]], residence of the Duchy since 1682]]
===House of Wettin===
The [[House of Wettin|Wettiner]] had been the rulers of sizeable holdings in today's states of [[Saxony]], [[Saxony-Anhalt]] and [[Thuringia]] since the Middle Ages. In the ''[[Treaty of Leipzig|Leipziger Teilung]]'' of 1485, the Wettiner were split into two branches named after their founding princes [[Albert III, Duke of Saxony|Albrecht]] and [[Ernest, Elector of Saxony|Ernst]] (''albertinisch'' and ''ernestinisch''). Thuringia was part of the Ernestine holdings of ''Kursachsen'' (the [[Electorate of Saxony]]). In 1572, the branches [[Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach]] and [[Saxe-Weimar]] were established there. The senior line again split in 1641/41 into three duchies, including the [[Duchy of Saxe-Gotha]].<ref name="Museum"/>

[[Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha|Duke Ernst I]] who founded this duchy with its seat at [[Gotha]] opposed the system of [[primogeniture]]. As a result, on his death in 1675 all of his sons inherited part of his holdings and were supposed to rule under the leadership of his oldest son. In practice, this proved very complicated and brought on three settlements in 1679, 1680 and 1681 that established the following princedoms: Saxe-Gotha ([[Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg|Friedrich]]), [[Saxe-Coburg]] ([[Albert V, Duke of Saxe-Coburg|Albrecht]]), Saxe-Meiningen (Bernhard), [[Saxe-Eisenberg]] ([[Christian, Duke of Saxe-Eisenberg|Christian]]), [[Saxe-Hildburghausen]] ([[Ernest, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen|Ernst]]) and [[Saxe-Saalfeld]] ([[John Ernest IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|Johann Ernst]]).<ref name="Museum"/>

===Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen===
[[Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard]], Ernst I's third son, received the town of [[Meiningen]] as well as several other holdings ([[Wasungen]] und Salzungen, Maßfeld und Sand, Herrenbreitungen, Herpf, Stepfershausen, Utendorf, Mehlis and the former [[Franconia]]n lands of the extinct [[House of Henneberg]], Henneberg).<ref name="Museum"/>

Bernhard chose the town of Meiningen as his residence and became the first duke of Saxe-Meiningen. From 1682 Duke Bernhard I had the [[Schloss Elisabethenburg]] built and in 1690 established the [[Meiningen Court Orchestra|Court Orchestra]] (''Hofkapelle''), in which [[Johann Ludwig Bach]] later became the ''[[Kapellmeister]]'' (1711).

In the reshuffle of Ernestine territories that occurred following the extinction of the [[Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg]] line upon the death of Duke [[Frederick IV, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg|Frederick IV]] in 1825, Duke [[Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard II of Saxe-Meiningen]] received the lands of the former Duchy of Saxe-Hildburghausen as well as the [[Saalfeld]] territory of the former [[Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld]] duchy.

As Bernhard II had supported [[Austrian Empire|Austria]] in the 1866 [[Austro-Prussian War]], the prime minister of victorious [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]], [[Otto von Bismarck]], enforced his abdication in favour of his son [[George II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|George II]], after which Saxe-Meiningen was admitted to join the [[North German Confederation]].

By 1910, the duchy had grown to {{cvt|2,468|km2}} and 278,762 inhabitants.<ref name="Museum"/> The ducal summer residence was at [[Altenstein Palace|Altenstein]] Castle. Since 1868, the duchy comprised the ''Kreise'' (districts) of [[Hildburghausen]], [[Sonneberg]] and [[Saalfeld]] as well as the northern [[enclave and exclave|exclaves]] of [[Camburg]] and [[Kranichfeld]].

===End of the Duchy===
In the [[German Revolution of 1918–19|German Revolution]] after [[World War I]], Duke [[Bernhard III, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard III]], brother-in-law of Emperor [[Wilhelm II, German Emperor|Wilhelm II]], was forced to abdicate and his brother Ernst on 11/12 November 1918 refused the succession. The succeeding "Free State of Saxe-Meiningen" was merged into the new state of [[Thuringia]] on 1 May 1920.<ref name="Museum"/>

== Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen ==
[[File:Beechey, William - Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen - NPG 1533.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen]] (1792–1849), [[Queen Consort]] of the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]] and of [[Kingdom of Hanover|Hanover]], spouse of [[William IV of the United Kingdom|William IV]]]]
[[File:GeorgIISaxe.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen]] (1866–1914)]]

* [[Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard I]] (1680–1706)
* [[Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Ernst Ludwig I]] (1706–24), son of Bernhard I
* [[Ernst Ludwig II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Ernst Ludwig II]] (1724–29), son of Ernst Ludwig I
* [[Karl Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Karl Friedrich]] (1729–43), son of Ernst Ludwig I
* [[Frederick Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Friedrich Wilhelm]] (1743–46), son of Bernhard I
* [[Anton Ulrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Anton Ulrich]] (1746–63), son of Bernhard I
* [[August Frederick Karl Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Karl Wilhelm]] (1763–82), son of Anton Ulrich
* [[George I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|George I]] (1782–1803), son of Anton Ulrich, father of [[Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen|Queen Adelaide]] 
* [[Bernhard II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard II]] (1803–66), son of Georg I
* [[George II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Georg II]] (1866–1914), son of Bernhard II
* [[Bernhard III, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen|Bernhard III]] (1914–18), son of George II<ref name="Museum"/>

Notes: 
* Friedrich Wilhelm and [[Frederick II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg|Friedrich II of Saxe-Gotha]] reigned as guardians for the minor Karl Friedrich in 1729–1733
* Friedrich Wilhelm and Anton Ulrich reigned jointly in 1743–46
* [[Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Philippsthal|Charlotte Amalie]] reigned as regent/guardian for the minors Karl Wilhelm und Georg I in 1763–82
* [[Luise Eleonore of Hohenlohe-Langenburg|Luise Eleonore]] reigned as regent/guardian for the minor Bernhard II in 1803–1821
* Dukedom abolished in 1918.<ref name="Museum"/>

==See also==
* [[Ernestine duchies]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen}}
*{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Saxe-Meiningen}}

{{Upper Saxon Circle}}
{{Ernestine duchies}}
{{States of the Confederation of the Rhine}}
{{States of the German Confederation}}
{{States of the North German Confederation}}
{{States of the German Empire}}
{{coord missing|Thuringia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Saxe-Meiningen| ]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1918]]
[[Category:States of the Confederation of the Rhine]]
[[Category:States of the German Confederation]]
[[Category:States of the North German Confederation]]
[[Category:States of the German Empire]]
[[Category:States of the Weimar Republic]]
[[Category:Ernestine duchies|Meiningen]]
[[Category:Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen| ]]
[[Category:House of Saxe-Meiningen| ]]
[[Category:House of Wettin]]
[[Category:South Thuringia]]
[[Category:1680 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire]]
[[Category:1918 disestablishments in Germany]]