Speaker 1: Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grim
Speaker 1: and Mild from Aaron Mankey Listener discretion advised. Hi, this
Speaker 1: is Dana. Thank you so much for listening to Noble Blood.
Speaker 1: Just a quick personal note. If you want to support
Speaker 1: the show, you can subscribe on Patreon by some merch
Speaker 1: or buy a copy of my book Anatomy, A Love Story,
Speaker 1: which is a novel about nineteenth century historical surgery. All
Speaker 1: of those have links in the bio, but of course,
Speaker 1: as always, the best possible support is just that you
Speaker 1: listen to the show. So thank you so much, And
Speaker 1: a brief warning before we begin. This episode contains some
Speaker 1: domestic violence, so if that's specifically triggering to you, you
Speaker 1: might want to skip this episode. Seventeenth century princesses had
Speaker 1: childhoods that, as this podcast has shown, have veered at
Speaker 1: best lonely, at worst tragic, but Sophia Dorothea of Cell
Speaker 1: had a remarkably idyllic childhood. As an only child, Sofia
Speaker 1: Dorothea was doated on by her parents, the Duke and
Speaker 1: Duchess of Brunswick Lundberg, who unusually for the time, had
Speaker 1: married for love. Little Sophia Dorothea wanted for nothing. Her parents'
Speaker 1: wealth and affection for her meant that she simply had
Speaker 1: to ask for something and she would receive it. She
Speaker 1: was a happy, vivacious child who inherited her mother's shining
Speaker 1: brown eyes and glossy dark hair. From the windows of
Speaker 1: her bedroom in her family's castle, Sofia Dorothea could look
Speaker 1: out at the lime trees surrounding the moat, or she
Speaker 1: could trace her fingers over the carved cupids that supported
Speaker 1: her mantlepiece. Life was sunny for Sophia Dorothea, but she
Speaker 1: was a seventeenth century prince, and like any other seventeenth
Speaker 1: century princess, Sophia Dorothea's life was not her own. No
Speaker 1: matter the love that her parents had for her, they
Speaker 1: had larger political and familial obligations, and so when an
Speaker 1: opportunity presented itself in the form of a strategic betrothal,
Speaker 1: an opportunity for a year's long feud to be ended
Speaker 1: for the family line to be strengthened, her parents took
Speaker 1: the opportunity, even though the price was their beloved daughter's happiness,
Speaker 1: and like many other political engagements, it would lead to
Speaker 1: great sorrow and not just sorrow but scandal. The marriage
Speaker 1: of Sophia Dorothea and her husband George Lewis would be
Speaker 1: marked by betrayals, punishment, and finally murder. Forty years after
Speaker 1: their marriage, the two spouses would find themselves in vastly
Speaker 1: different positions. One would sit on the throne of England
Speaker 1: while the other would die alone after decades of imprisonment.
Speaker 1: I'm Dana Schwartz, and this is noble blood. The series
Speaker 1: of strange events that would eventually lead to the unhappy
Speaker 1: engagement of Sophia Dorothea to her cousin George Louis, actually
Speaker 1: began with the death of a man named Frederick, Duke
Speaker 1: of Brunswick Lundberg, in sixteen forty eight, nearly twenty years
Speaker 1: before Sophia Dorothea was even born. Now for your brief
Speaker 1: European history geography lesson. At that time, the Duchy of
Speaker 1: Brunswick Lundberg consisted of two principalities situated in the north
Speaker 1: of what is now Germany. Throughout the course of the
Speaker 1: seventeenth and then early eighteenth centuries, these principalities would be
Speaker 1: known by a number of different names, but to keep
Speaker 1: things simple, I'll refer to them as Hanover and Sell,
Speaker 1: as they were commonly known around the end of the
Speaker 1: seventeenth century after their capital cities. When Frederick died, he
Speaker 1: had ruled Cell, the wealthier of the two principalities. Dying childless,
Speaker 1: he bequeathed the title to his nephew, Christian Ludwig, who
Speaker 1: was already ruling the principality of Hanover. Christian Ludwig was
Speaker 1: happy to take the promotion of ruling Cell, and so
Speaker 1: he passed Hanover to his younger brother, Georg Wilhelm. Georg
Speaker 1: Wilhelm is Sophia Dorothea's father, but will get to that later.
Speaker 1: The responsibilities of ruling and the monotony of court life
Speaker 1: chafed against Georg Wilhelm's fun, loving, adventurous spirit. He left
Speaker 1: Hanover as often as possible, traveling around Europe and spending
Speaker 1: time in Italy and France with his younger brother Ernst August.
Speaker 1: His court was not amused, and they wished that their
Speaker 1: dilettante prince would settle down and maybe bar an air
Speaker 1: or two. Eventually, Hanoverian court officials threatened to cut back
Speaker 1: Gaeorg Wilhelm's allowance if he did not marry. They even
Speaker 1: suggested a suitable bride, Princess Sophia of the Palatine. I
Speaker 1: know there are a ton of Georgia's and Gaeorgs and
Speaker 1: Sophia's in this episode. This isn't our Sophia Dorothea yet.
Speaker 1: We're still on backstory, but it is important, I promise.
Speaker 1: Twenty eight year old Princess Sophia of the Palatine came
Speaker 1: from a noble and well connected family. She was a
Speaker 1: granddaughter of King James of England, but her family's fortunes
Speaker 1: had suffered during the Thirty Years War and a number
Speaker 1: of matches for Sophia had fallen through Before Gayorg Wilhelm's
Speaker 1: offer came through. She eagerly accepted, but Gayorg himself was
Speaker 1: having doubts. He had no wish to be tied down
Speaker 1: to a woman he didn't love, nor to be tied
Speaker 1: down to a court he found boring and provincial. Returning
Speaker 1: to Venice for one last pre wedding trip in sixteen
Speaker 1: fifty eight, he thought over his situation and he arrived
Speaker 1: at an unorthodox solution. He would get his younger brother,
Speaker 1: the penniless Ernst August, to be his substitute. After all,
Speaker 1: one brother could provide an air just as well as another.
Speaker 1: As a younger brother, Ernst August was all too happy
Speaker 1: to take the deal. The brothers drew up a deed
Speaker 1: in exchange for financial compensation, Ernst August would take over
Speaker 1: Gayiorg Wilhelm's princely duties, and he would marry Sophia in
Speaker 1: his stead. Gayorg Wilhelm additionally swore that he would would
Speaker 1: never marry, meaning that he would never have legitimate children
Speaker 1: who could inherit his estates or titles. All of that
Speaker 1: would instead go to Ernst August and Sophia's family. Sophia
Speaker 1: was given no input on the decision, but when the
Speaker 1: new arrangement was presented to her, she agreed no doubt,
Speaker 1: hiding her resentment at being traded like an object for
Speaker 1: the sake of her future children's inheritance. It would not
Speaker 1: be the last time that she would have to make
Speaker 1: such sacrifices. But with this little problem settled, gayor G
Speaker 1: Wilhelm was free to return to his beloved role of
Speaker 1: seventeenth century international playboy. Sophia and Ernst August, conversely, lived
Speaker 1: a simpler life, welcoming their first child, George Louis, in
Speaker 1: sixteen sixty. The couple was actually well matched. Both were
Speaker 1: highly ambitious, cultured, and intelligence, and they quickly began to
Speaker 1: work together to secure a more prestigious position for their
Speaker 1: young family than the somewhat modest principality of Hanover. As
Speaker 1: a note, I know there are many Georges and Gayorg's
Speaker 1: in this story. For the sake of clarity, I'll refer
Speaker 1: to Georg Wilhelm, Sophia Dorothea's father by his German name.
Speaker 1: For Sophia in Ernst Auguste's young son, who was technically
Speaker 1: born Georg Ludwig, I'll use his English name, by which
Speaker 1: he's most well known today, George Lewis. Sometime in the
Speaker 1: sixteen sixties man about town, Georg Wilhelm met a beautiful
Speaker 1: French noblewoman named Eleanor Delbrue. Eleanor's Protestant family had recently
Speaker 1: been expelled from France during the prosecution of the Huguenots,
Speaker 1: and they were now reliant on the generosity of their
Speaker 1: wealthy noble friends abroad. It was in the home of
Speaker 1: one of those wealthy friends that Georg Wilhelm and Eleanor
Speaker 1: first met. For geiorg Gwilhelm. It was love at first sight. Eleanor,
Speaker 1: ware that a good marriage was her only chance to
Speaker 1: regain financial and social security, refused to become his mistress,
Speaker 1: even though she romantically fell for the prince as well.
Speaker 1: But because of the whole no marriage, no legitimate children
Speaker 1: agreements that Geyiorg Wilhelm had signed with his younger brother,
Speaker 1: he legally couldn't marry her. Eleanor was reluctant to accept
Speaker 1: anything less than marriage, but she did love Geiorg Wilhelm,
Speaker 1: and she hoped to create a happy life with him.
Speaker 1: In the fall of sixteen sixty five, the couple returned
Speaker 1: to settle and sell, which Geiorg Wilhelm had inherited that spring,
Speaker 1: and the two signed a document pledging their fidelity to
Speaker 1: one another, a marriage in spirits but not in the
Speaker 1: eyes of the law. Thus, when the couple's first child,
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea, was born on September fifteenth, sixteen sixty six,
Speaker 1: she was technically illegitimate, the child of unwed parents, but
Speaker 1: her parents were determined to ensure that her status didn't
Speaker 1: dictate the course of her life. From the moment of
Speaker 1: her birth, they demanded that she be treated as heiress
Speaker 1: of Cell, even if technically she wasn't. Gaeor. Wilhelm and
Speaker 1: Eleanor adored their daughter, who would be their only child.
Speaker 1: They also began the lengthy, politically delicate process of trying
Speaker 1: to legitimize her. They began with a campaign to the
Speaker 1: Holy Roman Emperor Leopold, the first, sending letters to him
Speaker 1: full of praise and providing troops for his various campaigns
Speaker 1: whenever he needed them, and lo and behold, it worked.
Speaker 1: Leopold became increasingly friendly with the couple, even referring to
Speaker 1: Eleanor by the title Duchess Over in Hanover. Younger brother,
Speaker 1: Ernst August and his wife Sophia, were a little worried
Speaker 1: by these developments. Cell was an enormously wealthy principality, and
Speaker 1: the Hanovers worried that should Sophia Dorothea become legitimate, she
Speaker 1: would inherit Cell and then possibly claim and win control
Speaker 1: over their territory. They grew even more concerned as Georg
Speaker 1: Wilhelm began buying up property and gifting it to his
Speaker 1: quote unquote wife and daughter, giving them status and wealth
Speaker 1: in their own right. Ernst August, always money minded, was
Speaker 1: mad that his brother had begun to channel wealth away
Speaker 1: from him. He was supposed to be his older brother's heir,
Speaker 1: that was the whole point of marrying in his stead. Sophia,
Speaker 1: the wife that Ernst August had married in his stead,
Speaker 1: though a sharply intelligent and cultured woman, was a stickler
Speaker 1: for etiquette, and she found it insulting that the unmarried
Speaker 1: mother of her niece, a nobody, a woman that she
Speaker 1: regularly referred to as a clot of dirt, could possibly
Speaker 1: be gaining power and prestige that Sophia, herself, granddaughter of
Speaker 1: a king, felt she truly deserved. It was the beginning
Speaker 1: of a long period of tension between the two couples,
Speaker 1: a tension that grew alongside the fortune and status of
Speaker 1: little Sophia Dorothea. In July sixteen seventy four, when Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea was eight, the Emperor officially legitimized her and granted
Speaker 1: both her and her mother the title of Countess of
Speaker 1: Harburg and Wilhelmsburg. Following further machinations, Sophia Dorothea was made
Speaker 1: a princess and the formal heir of Cell. The Hanovers,
Speaker 1: realizing the danger that their legacy was in hurried to
Speaker 1: renegotiate the contract that the two brothers had signed in
Speaker 1: sixteen fifty eight. This new contract allowed for the marriage
Speaker 1: of Gayorg, Wilhelm and Eleanor and for the rights of
Speaker 1: inheritance of Sophia Dorothea, though it denied those rights to
Speaker 1: any future children who might be born to Gayorg, Wilhelm
Speaker 1: and Eleanor, a compromise granted for Ernest August and Sophia.
Speaker 1: The negotiations over this new document had been contentious, and
Speaker 1: by the time all was resolved in the summer of
Speaker 1: sixteen seventy six, the two couples were barely speaking to
Speaker 1: one another. Things continued that way until sixteen eighty two.
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea grew up in the loving, carefree home created
Speaker 1: by her adoring parents, indulged in all ways a free spirited,
Speaker 1: outdoing young woman, Her parents pursued an alliance with another
Speaker 1: branch of the Brunswick family, the Brunswick Wolfenbuttels, while Ernst
Speaker 1: August and Sophia schemed to regain the inheritance they felt
Speaker 1: they had lost, installing spies in the Court Etsel. It
Speaker 1: was one of these spies in September of sixteen eighty two,
Speaker 1: who delivered the devastating news to the Hanovers. Sophia Dorothea
Speaker 1: was to be betrothed to August Wilhelm, the heir to
Speaker 1: Brunswick Wolfenfuddel. An alliance between those two families would spell
Speaker 1: certain doom for the Hanover's ambitions. It would push them
Speaker 1: completely to the side. The combined wealth and political power
Speaker 1: of the new young couple would mean they would occupy
Speaker 1: the prominent place in German society that Ernst August and
Speaker 1: Sophia felt should be theirs. They had to do something,
Speaker 1: and what could be a more royal solution than a
Speaker 1: strategic betrothal to their own child, George Lewis. George Lewis,
Speaker 1: the Hanover's eldest son, was only six years older than
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea and still single, following a bungled attempt at
Speaker 1: wooing the English Princess Anne. If George Louis and Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea Mary, Ernst August and Sophia could secure their family
Speaker 1: line and all the resources of Cell, there was the
Speaker 1: problem of status. Of course, Sophia had spent nearly twenty
Speaker 1: years disparaging Eleanor and Sophia Dorothea as commoners, but she
Speaker 1: swallowed her pride and traveled to Sell to sell Gayorg
Speaker 1: Wilhelm on the plan. Gaeorg Wilhelm had never been too
Speaker 1: happy with the proposed engagement to August of Brunswick Wolfenbuttel,
Speaker 1: and he had grown increasingly tired of the animosity between
Speaker 1: his wife and sister in law. He hated being estranged
Speaker 1: from his brother, and so it didn't take much on
Speaker 1: Sophia's part to convince him that this engagement was what
Speaker 1: was best for their families. Eleanor, however, was another story.
Speaker 1: She pleaded with Gayorg Wilhelm not to sacrifice their precious
Speaker 1: daughter to the snobbish court of the Hanovers, not to
Speaker 1: bind their beloved child to a young prince who was
Speaker 1: said to be awkward and obtuse. But Gaeorg Wilhelm, who
Speaker 1: had rejected the Hanover court himself and then spent a
Speaker 1: lifetime defying the duties bestowed on him by noble birth,
Speaker 1: finally felt that he must bend to obligation, and he
Speaker 1: insisted resigned. Eleanor went to Sophia Dorothea's room to break
Speaker 1: the news to her daughter. Sophia Dorothea did not take
Speaker 1: it well. She was accustomed to a level of control
Speaker 1: in her life. Now, in one swift move, her independence
Speaker 1: had been taken from her in the worst way imaginable,
Speaker 1: through betrothal to a cousin she had been raised to revile.
Speaker 1: She was inconsolable, sobbing on her bed as Eleanor held her.
Speaker 1: When her father entered, he nervously presented her with a
Speaker 1: birthday present from her estranged aunt. It was a miniature
Speaker 1: of George Louis, framed in jewels. Sophia Dorothea threw the
Speaker 1: portrait against the wall, sending diamonds flying. At her birthday
Speaker 1: banquet that evening, she hid her tear stained face as
Speaker 1: the engagement was formally announced. As courtiers congratulated her, she
Speaker 1: kept her eyes downcast and did all that she could
Speaker 1: to hold sobs at bay. Spending time with her future
Speaker 1: husband did not reassure her. The two heartily could have
Speaker 1: been more different. Sophia Dorothea was vivacious, sharp tongued, pampered
Speaker 1: and affectionate. She was a skilled dancer and sparkling conversationalist,
Speaker 1: prone to flight to fancy. George Louis preferred the battlefield
Speaker 1: to the ball room. He was a courageous soldier with
Speaker 1: a practical mind, but a somewhat unimaginative man, deeply concerned
Speaker 1: with propriety and duty. As the boy's mother, Sophia herself
Speaker 1: put it somewhat hyperbolically that her niece would find in
Speaker 1: George Louis, quote, the most pig headed, stubborn boy who
Speaker 1: ever lived, who has round his brains such a thick
Speaker 1: crust that I defy any man or woman ever to
Speaker 1: discover what is in them nothing like motherly love. Not
Speaker 1: only was the marriage not a love match, it also
Speaker 1: stripped Sophia Dorothea of everything her parents had given her
Speaker 1: over her young life. George Louis would receive one hundred
Speaker 1: thousand dollars a year for her dowry, an enormous son,
Speaker 1: as well as all of Sophia Dorothea's estates. Sophia Dorothea
Speaker 1: would receive an allowance, but it would be controlled by
Speaker 1: her husband and future in laws. She would have nothing
Speaker 1: to call her own, but there was nothing she could do,
Speaker 1: and so Sophia Dorothea and George Louis were married at
Speaker 1: the chapel at the Castle of Cell on November twenty first,
Speaker 1: sixteen eighty two. It was a gloomy, chill morning and
Speaker 1: wind racked the castle walls. It was an inauspicious beginning
Speaker 1: to the marriage, and things would only get worse. The
Speaker 1: early days of Sophia Dorothea and George Louise's marriage were
Speaker 1: the best days. Sophia Dorothea quickly charmed the people of
Speaker 1: Hanover with her personality and beauty, and even her haughty
Speaker 1: mother in law began to feel more kindly about her.
Speaker 1: The court of Hanover was modeled after Versailles buildings, and
Speaker 1: courtiers alike dripped with diamonds, bowls lasted until the wee hours,
Speaker 1: and women dressed in the latest most fashionable styles. Sofia Dorothea,
Speaker 1: with her love for fashion and her natural exuberance, shone.
Speaker 1: But like the real Versailles, it was also a highly
Speaker 1: regimented environment steeped in protocol, and Sofia Dorothea, raised in
Speaker 1: the much more casual environment itself, frequently stumbled over the
Speaker 1: seemingly meaningless rules of court etiquette, prompting mockery behind her back.
Speaker 1: But the greatest struggles in these early days were loneliness
Speaker 1: and boredom. Each day followed the same routine. Mornings spent
Speaker 1: in bed, writing letters or in the garden, taking a walk,
Speaker 1: dress for lunch a very formal affair, a nap, a
Speaker 1: visit with other ladies of the court, dress for supper, eat,
Speaker 1: then play cards or perhaps dance, and retire to bed,
Speaker 1: day after day after day. At most hours, the vibrant
Speaker 1: young princess, trapped by the rituals of court, could be
Speaker 1: found cloistered in her apartments, with only one true friend
Speaker 1: by her side, the one lady in waiting who had
Speaker 1: accompanied her from cell. On October thirtieth, sixteen eighty three,
Speaker 1: seventeen year old Sophia Dorothea gave birth to a son,
Speaker 1: George Augustus. The family was overjoyed. Their line was secure.
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea too was delighted. She adored her baby, and
Speaker 1: his birth meant that she had fulfilled her wifely duties.
Speaker 1: Slowly she began to gain some freedom. Finally she was
Speaker 1: allowed to travel to Sell. She began spending more time
Speaker 1: with her own beloved parents. Her in law softened even
Speaker 1: further toward her, as did George Louis. Their son gave
Speaker 1: them for once a common interest and something to talk about,
Speaker 1: but their connection would not have time to develop. George
Speaker 1: Louis was keen to continue his military success and win
Speaker 1: acclaim for Hanover, and so he spent most of sixteen
Speaker 1: eighty four and sixteen eighty five on military campaigns. When
Speaker 1: he returned to Hanover, the couple bickered frequently. George Louis
Speaker 1: admonished his wife for being disrespectful of the court's customs,
Speaker 1: while Sophia Dorothea accused her husband of being a priggish
Speaker 1: stick in the mud. She felt neglected, he felt haraigned.
Speaker 1: The arguments worsened, became louder and more public, but the
Speaker 1: couple still managed to conceive another child, a daughter they
Speaker 1: named Sophia Dorothea, who was born in March sixteen eighty seven.
Speaker 1: Sorry again for the confusing name repetition. The older mother,
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea, adored her children, finding in them an escape
Speaker 1: from the dramatic intrigues of the court that bored her
Speaker 1: so much. Throughout his marriage, George Louis had had affairs,
Speaker 1: but never anything particularly serious, but that changed when he
Speaker 1: met Melissine van der Schlewenberg, the woman he would spend
Speaker 1: the rest of his life with However, unofficially, though Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea didn't love her husband, she was devastated by how
Speaker 1: public the affair was. George Louis began to take Melosine
Speaker 1: to dinner as his companion, or she would show off
Speaker 1: the luxurious dresses and radiant jewels that her lover had
Speaker 1: gifted her. Humiliated, Sophia Dorothea wrote letters to her parents
Speaker 1: about the situation. Her mother was sympathetic, her father was
Speaker 1: less so, writing that she must simply accept her lot
Speaker 1: with a brave face. The young princess, now only twenty four,
Speaker 1: felt more alone than ever, and that's when she met
Speaker 1: Count Philip von Koenigsmark, or rather she re met him. Koenigsmark,
Speaker 1: a dapper, dashing Swedish nobleman, had in fact come into
Speaker 1: her life once before, when he had gone to Sell
Speaker 1: as a preteen to receive military training. The two had
Speaker 1: actually been friends then, and years later, seeing him at
Speaker 1: a festival in Handover, Sofia Dorothea was delighted to reminisce
Speaker 1: about the happy days of their childhood. But that reunion
Speaker 1: was brief and relatively uneventful, and they did not see
Speaker 1: much of one another. For the next year, as Koenigsmark
Speaker 1: tried to establish himself at court and while Sofia Dorothea
Speaker 1: tried to repair her marriage. In those two missions, Koenigsmark
Speaker 1: was more successful than she was. While Koenigsmark dazzled the
Speaker 1: nobility with stories of his travels, Sophia Dorothea's attempts to
Speaker 1: win back George Louis just seemed to drive the two
Speaker 1: further apart. The married couple would sometimes not see each
Speaker 1: other for weeks. He practically lived with his mistress Melasine.
Speaker 1: In sixteen eighty eight, George and Sophia Dorothea had a
Speaker 1: vicious argument. It's alleged that George Louis was physically abusive
Speaker 1: towards her. The situation was so bad that even Sophia,
Speaker 1: who had never been Sophia Dorothea's champion, intervened on her
Speaker 1: daughter in law's behalf, taking her and her children to
Speaker 1: their family's country residents to restore her spirits while reprimanding
Speaker 1: her own son George Louis so forcefully that he reluctantly
Speaker 1: began to spend more time with his wife. It was
Speaker 1: then that Koenigsmark re entered Sophia Dorothea's life. He had
Speaker 1: been in and out of Hanover over the past year,
Speaker 1: but he had decided to purchase a large estate nearby
Speaker 1: and settle for a time in the region. His wealth
Speaker 1: and charisma had won him acclaim, and he had quickly
Speaker 1: been accepted into the highest echalons of Hanoverian society. Some
Speaker 1: of his closest friends were Sophia Dorothea's brothers in law,
Speaker 1: the young Princes, and it was through them that Koenigsmark
Speaker 1: came back into the present of the Princess. They were
Speaker 1: only friends at first, brought together by their inherent similarities.
Speaker 1: In Koenig's Mark, Sophia Dorothea found the opposite of her
Speaker 1: staid husband. She discovered a man who matched her in liveliness, humor,
Speaker 1: and impulsivity. The two shared a love for life and
Speaker 1: a disregard for rules that made their time together exhilarating
Speaker 1: but also dangerous. Once they ran into one another in
Speaker 1: the palace gardens, where Sophia Dorothea was playing with her daughter,
Speaker 1: The little girl was tired and refused to climb the
Speaker 1: steps back up to their apartment. Instead of having a
Speaker 1: servant carry her daughter, Sophia Dorothea picked up her own
Speaker 1: daughter and began to walk up the stairs. It sounds normal,
Speaker 1: but in a court as etiquette obsessed as Hanover, this
Speaker 1: was a grave impropriety. Surely a princess should not be
Speaker 1: carrying a child as a servant might. But things only
Speaker 1: escalated when Koenigsmark teased her about the weight of her burden,
Speaker 1: and he took the tired child into his own arms,
Speaker 1: delivering her to the top of the stairs. For Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea and Koenigsmark, the act was natural as well, a
Speaker 1: mother caring for her child. But for court observers, who
Speaker 1: watched the couple laugh at the entrance to the royal apartments,
Speaker 1: it was the first sign that something was not quite right,
Speaker 1: and though their reasoning in this instance might have been
Speaker 1: jumping the gun a little, their larger point was correct.
Speaker 1: By the end of sixteen ninety one, Koenigsmark and Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea were engaged in a full fledged affair. Miraculously, a
Speaker 1: number of letters between the two have survived, letters that
Speaker 1: were sent to relatives for safekeeping, so now three hundred
Speaker 1: years later, we can witness their love firsthand. Koenigsmark sealed
Speaker 1: his letters with a wax stamp bearing the image of
Speaker 1: a small heart inside of a larger one and the
Speaker 1: motto quote so is yours within mine. The two wrote
Speaker 1: in French, using codes and nicknames, hastily scrawling passionate letters
Speaker 1: to one another whenever they had a moment alone. Koenigsmark's
Speaker 1: letters read like the template for romance novel speeches. Quote.
Speaker 1: I shall embrace tonight, the loveliest of women. I shall
Speaker 1: kiss her charming mouth. I shall worship her eyes, those
Speaker 1: eyes that enslave me. I shall hear from her very
Speaker 1: lips that she loves me. I shall have the joy
Speaker 1: of embracing her knees. My tears will chase down her
Speaker 1: incomparable cheeks. I will hold in my arms the most
Speaker 1: beautiful body in the world. Verily, Madam, I shall die
Speaker 1: of joy. Sophia Dorothea's letters back are no more restrained.
Speaker 1: If you but knew how intense is my love, she wrote,
Speaker 1: you would pity me. It increases every moment. Absence does
Speaker 1: not lessen it, without change or swerving. I love you
Speaker 1: and everything that touches you so tenderly, so perfectly, so delicately,
Speaker 1: that imagination fails to tell. Their letters were full of
Speaker 1: such declarations, alternating with heart's reproaches if they felt the
Speaker 1: other had gone too long without writing or had flirted
Speaker 1: with another. All of that was sprinkled in with observations
Speaker 1: about daily life, But mostly they wrote of each other,
Speaker 1: the devotion they had to one another, the pain they
Speaker 1: felt in the other's absence, the burning desire with which
Speaker 1: they yearned to be together. For the next two years,
Speaker 1: they wrote frequently, as Koenigsmark fought for handover abroad and
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea traveled between Hanover and cell. The two saw
Speaker 1: each other whenever they could. Unlike George Louis's affair with Melasine,
Speaker 1: they were not public about it. They knew they had
Speaker 1: to operate in secrecy, that the consequences of discovery might
Speaker 1: be harsh, but they didn't know just how deadly those
Speaker 1: consequences would be. If Ernest August and Sophia the ever
Speaker 1: proper in laws, had been paying closer attention to matters
Speaker 1: of the court, they might have seen earlier what was
Speaker 1: going on between the Swedish count and the princess, but
Speaker 1: they were occupied with enormous political developments, ones which would
Speaker 1: dramatically raise the Hanoverian profile. For years, the couple had
Speaker 1: been campaigning for their family to become members of the
Speaker 1: Electoral College of the Holy Roman Empire. The Electoral College,
Speaker 1: made up of prince electors, were in charge of electing
Speaker 1: the new Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire upon the
Speaker 1: death of the old one. It was an extraordinarily powerful
Speaker 1: and exclusive group, and Ernst August and Sophia yearned it
Speaker 1: to join. In sixteen ninety two, their wish came true,
Speaker 1: and Peror Leopold the First made Hanover an elector in
Speaker 1: thanks for Ernst August's assistance during the Nine Years War.
Speaker 1: From that point on, Ernst August would be known as
Speaker 1: the Elector of Hanover, Sofia would be the Electress, George
Speaker 1: Louis the electoral Prince, and Sophia Dorothea was the electoral Princess.
Speaker 1: The family was overjoyed and the entire court celebrated. Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea was happy to but she was also aware of
Speaker 1: the eyes of the empire turning toward Hanover. It was
Speaker 1: a new level of public scrutiny that didn't sit well
Speaker 1: with a princess with something to hide. At least two
Speaker 1: people within the royal circle were aware of the princess's affair.
Speaker 1: By autumn of sixteen ninety two. Sophia Dorothea's mother, Eleanor
Speaker 1: had caught on quickly and frequently tried to persuade her
Speaker 1: daughter to end the relationship, knowing that it could only
Speaker 1: spell ruin. But more ominously, the couple had also caught
Speaker 1: the attention of Countess Clara von Platten, Ernst August's longtime mistress.
Speaker 1: Von Platten, a proud, striking woman who ruled over a
Speaker 1: hedonistic circle of Hanoverian nobles, was alleged to have once
Speaker 1: had an affair with Koenigsmark herself. News of the princess's
Speaker 1: affair slowly began to make its rounds at court, and
Speaker 1: the royal family felt compelled to try to put an
Speaker 1: end to it. Ernst August made it known to Koenigsmark
Speaker 1: that his military service might be better appreciated in another state,
Speaker 1: and then he sent him back to the battlefield. Koenigsmarck's
Speaker 1: sister Aurora, who had sometimes helped facilitate message between the couple,
Speaker 1: was told politely but firmly that she ought to stay
Speaker 1: away from Hanover for the time being. Koenigs Mark and
Speaker 1: Sofia Dorothea were heartbroken at being forced apart. If grief
Speaker 1: could kill Sofia Dorothea wrote Koenigsmark in early October, I
Speaker 1: should surely be dead. Convinced that his maybe ex lover
Speaker 1: von Platten was behind Ernest August's interference, which she very
Speaker 1: possibly was, koenigs Mark wrote furious screeds against the countess,
Speaker 1: like this one from mid October quote. If I were
Speaker 1: lord of creation, I would offer a sacrifice of her
Speaker 1: and give her to the bears to eat. The lions
Speaker 1: should suck her devil's blood, the tigers tear her cowardly
Speaker 1: heart out. I would spend day and night seeking new
Speaker 1: torments to punish her for her black infamy in separating
Speaker 1: a man who loves to distraction from the object of
Speaker 1: his love. As sixteen ninety three, Dawn and the couple
Speaker 1: increasingly began to feel threats on all sides, and yet
Speaker 1: despite the warnings they received from friend and foe alike,
Speaker 1: they would not seemingly could not break things off, even
Speaker 1: as they were sent far from one another, even as
Speaker 1: they were closely watched, they carried on, even arranging a
Speaker 1: brief tryst in June at Brockhausen, the country house of
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea's parents. By July, Sophia Dorothea had come to
Speaker 1: a decision. She could no longer bear to be without
Speaker 1: her love. She could no longer pretend to be a
Speaker 1: dutiful princess, could no longer stomach the sideways glances of
Speaker 1: courtiers and the heavy handed advice from her family. She
Speaker 1: had to get away. To run away, and she would
Speaker 1: take Koenig's Mark with her. She began to petition her father,
Speaker 1: the Duke of Cell, for an allowance independent of that
Speaker 1: which the Hanovers gave her. In many anyways, this was
Speaker 1: only fair. All of her money and property had been
Speaker 1: taken away from her as part of her marriage settlement. Unfortunately,
Speaker 1: though her father's finances were tight at the moment, Hanover
Speaker 1: and Zell were on the precipice of war with Denmark
Speaker 1: and Sweden, and the price of raising troops had left
Speaker 1: Gayorg Wilhelm with little to give his daughter. Koenigsmark, too
Speaker 1: was struggling. Though he came from an enormously wealthy family,
Speaker 1: he had lost much of his personal wealth to gambling,
Speaker 1: and the King of Sweden was threatening to confiscate his
Speaker 1: estates because of the military service he was doing in Hanover,
Speaker 1: an enemy state. The love birds were increasingly determined to
Speaker 1: run off together, but without the money to do so,
Speaker 1: they were stuck, and all around them the whispers were
Speaker 1: growing louder. Events reached a boiling point in May of
Speaker 1: sixteen ninety four, mainly due to Koenigsmark's reckless behavior. In April,
Speaker 1: a longtime friend became elector of Saxony. The elector owed
Speaker 1: Koenigsmark a debt, and now as an elector, he could
Speaker 1: afford to pay it. Koenigsmark traveled to Saxony. His friend
Speaker 1: didn't have the money on hand, but gave him a
Speaker 1: post in the military and bid him to stay awhile
Speaker 1: and celebrate his coronation. Koenigsmark was happy to, as the
Speaker 1: historian W. H. Wilkins writes, quote, while the princess was
Speaker 1: eating her heart out in the palace at Hanover, weeping
Speaker 1: and wailing, quarreling with her husband, importuning her parents, moving
Speaker 1: heaven and earth to advance her pet scheme, Koenigsmark was
Speaker 1: reveling in the wanton halls of Saxony, drunk and happy
Speaker 1: to be free from the pressures of Hanover. Koenigsmark forgot himself,
Speaker 1: and he began to regale the Saxon court with his
Speaker 1: salacious Hanoverian gossip. No one was spared. He spoke of
Speaker 1: Countess by Plattin, the Elector and Electress, George Louis, and Melosine,
Speaker 1: even Sophia Dorothea, he said to have openly bragged of
Speaker 1: the affair. Word of what Koenigsmark had said quickly got
Speaker 1: back to Hanover, and the court was furious. George Louis,
Speaker 1: particularly incensed, burst into Sophia Dorothea's chambers and began to
Speaker 1: beerate her for her now very public affair. Sophia Dorothea
Speaker 1: retorted that George Louis had behaved just as flagrantly with
Speaker 1: his own mistress. The argument escalated until suddenly, furious George
Speaker 1: Louis allegedly sprang at his wife, grabbing her by the
Speaker 1: throat and threatening to strangle her. Attendant quickly rushed in,
Speaker 1: and George Louis threw the half conscious Sophia Dorothea to
Speaker 1: the ground, swearing that he would never see her again.
Speaker 1: Once she recovered, Sophia Dorothea fled to Sell, announcing that
Speaker 1: she was seeking her parents' protection and that she would never,
Speaker 1: never return to Hanover. But when she arrived in Cell,
Speaker 1: she was met with a mixed reception. Eleanor was horrified
Speaker 1: and vowed to protect her daughter. Gayorg Wilhelm, concerned about
Speaker 1: what this could do with his relationship with his brother
Speaker 1: in Hanover, was less sympathetic, but even he could not
Speaker 1: deny the pain his daughter was in, and so he
Speaker 1: allowed her to spend some months at Cell. By June,
Speaker 1: he and the Hanovers hoped tempers had cooled enough for
Speaker 1: a reconciliation between the prince and princess, and Gayorg Wilhelm
Speaker 1: told his daughter that she had to return to her husband.
Speaker 1: She was devastated, and the two argued so grievously that
Speaker 1: they would not reconcile for the rest of their lives.
Speaker 1: By the time Sophia Dorothea returned to Hanover later that month,
Speaker 1: she was a shell of herself, rung dry by the
Speaker 1: ordeals of the past few months, alienated from her parents
Speaker 1: and in laws alike, and separated even from Koenigsmark, who
Speaker 1: was still in Saxony. She had to leave, she thought,
Speaker 1: and she had to leave soon. Her only option, given
Speaker 1: her lack of resources, was to flee to the court
Speaker 1: of Wolfenbudel, whose heir she had once been engaged to.
Speaker 1: Anthony Ulrich, the Duke of Wolfenbudele, was happy to assist.
Speaker 1: He had long been a close friend of Eleanor's and
Speaker 1: saw in Sophia Dorothea's request for help a chance to
Speaker 1: both support his friend's daughter and also to strike at
Speaker 1: the Hanovers, long time rivals. It was a dangerous plan.
Speaker 1: It would be seen as treason on Sophia Dorothea's part
Speaker 1: and might even lead to consequences for her parents, but
Speaker 1: her resolve was strengthened when Koenigsmark returned from Saxony in
Speaker 1: late June to help make preparations to flee. On July first,
Speaker 1: Koenigsmark snuck out from his house and made his way
Speaker 1: towards Leinschlass, the Hanover Castle, where he was set to
Speaker 1: meet the princess. He was in disguise, dressed in the
Speaker 1: shabby clothes of a laborer, and he kept to the
Speaker 1: shadows until he reached the palace. It's not known whether
Speaker 1: he ever made it to Sofia Dorothea's chambers. Unbeknownst to Koenigsmark,
Speaker 1: he had been followed. Spies sent by Countess von Platten
Speaker 1: had tracked him to Leinschlass before reporting back to her,
Speaker 1: and she quickly ran to Ernst August telling him what
Speaker 1: was happening. Ernst August was furious. He had warned the
Speaker 1: couple time and time again, welcomed Sophia Dorothea back into
Speaker 1: the fold over and over, even as the courts of
Speaker 1: Europe whispered about the cuckold at George Louis, and now
Speaker 1: still the couple was still brazenly meeting. Something had to
Speaker 1: be done. It's not clear exactly what happened in the
Speaker 1: hallways of Leinschloss on that balmy summer night, whether the
Speaker 1: assailants who gathered there and only to arrest Koenigsmark or
Speaker 1: to scare him, or whether they did in fact planned
Speaker 1: to kill him, and if so, on whose orders. But
Speaker 1: in any case, the end result was the same. Koenigsmark
Speaker 1: was ambushed by the men, A bloody fight ensued, and
Speaker 1: at its end Koenigsmark lay dead. Whether it was planned
Speaker 1: or not. Once Koenigsmark was dead, the mechanisms of royal
Speaker 1: scandal suppression were quickly put into action. Sophia Dorothea was
Speaker 1: kept in her chambers. Her rooms and those of Koenigsmark
Speaker 1: were searched, and any evidence of their affair was quickly
Speaker 1: gathered up and brought to Ernst August and Sophia. Sophia Dorothea,
Speaker 1: still ignorant of Koenigsmark's fate, was sent to Alden Castle
Speaker 1: and sell. Ernstadt and Gaeorg Wilhelm met to privately confer.
Speaker 1: Both felt deeply betrayed and humiliated by the Princess's actions
Speaker 1: and by the contents of the letters that were seized
Speaker 1: from her and Koenigsmark's chambers, which had revealed their plans
Speaker 1: to ally with Wolfenbutele. The letters also made fun of
Speaker 1: the Hanover's and Gayorg Wilhelm. The Hanoverians decided that a
Speaker 1: divorce was the best course of action. Sophia Dorothea quickly agreed,
Speaker 1: in part, it's alleged because she believed that Koenigsmark was
Speaker 1: still alive and that the divorce would free her to
Speaker 1: marry him. The divorce was finalized in December of sixteen
Speaker 1: ninety four. Outside of the personal considerations of the proud royals,
Speaker 1: there were important political stakes to the affair. Though Leopold
Speaker 1: had declared hanover An electorate in sixteen ninety four. This
Speaker 1: position wouldn't be official until seventeen oh eight. In the meantime,
Speaker 1: those who had opposed the state looked for anything they
Speaker 1: could use to discredit it. An embittered, estranged princess was
Speaker 1: a good source of ammunition, so the families needed to
Speaker 1: keep her quiet. It was decided that Sophia Dorothea would
Speaker 1: be kept on house arrest at Alden, with little to
Speaker 1: no contact with the outside world. We don't have letters
Speaker 1: from Sophia Dorothea from this period, so it's hard to
Speaker 1: know what exactly was going through her mind, but she
Speaker 1: most certainly was devastated. In one night, she had lost
Speaker 1: not only her beloved Koenigsmark, but also her freedom. Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea spent the rest of her life imprisoned at Alden
Speaker 1: Castle and cell. She was kept comfortable by an allowance
Speaker 1: provided in equal parts by her former husband and her father,
Speaker 1: neither of whom she would ever see again. Her children, too,
Speaker 1: were kept away. Besides her small court of attendance chosen
Speaker 1: for their loyalty to Hanover, her only visitor was her
Speaker 1: beloved mother, Eleanor mounted A tireless but ultimately unsuccessful campaign
Speaker 1: to free her daughter. After Eleanor's death in seventeen twenty two,
Speaker 1: Sophia Dorothea was deeply lonely, and she began to care
Speaker 1: less about those things that had kept her happy even
Speaker 1: in her darkest days. Her pride in her appearance melted away,
Speaker 1: her love for fine clothes and extravagant hair styles faded,
Speaker 1: and she grew reclusive and unhealthy. In early seventeen twenty six,
Speaker 1: she had a stroke, and though in ill health from
Speaker 1: that point on, she refused all care. She died November thirteenth,
Speaker 1: seventeen twenty six, at the age of sixty, and she
Speaker 1: was buried at night with no ceremony, in a small
Speaker 1: grave near her parents in cell As. For George Louis,
Speaker 1: fate had a very different path for him. In seventeen
Speaker 1: o one, the British Parliament passed the Act of Settlement,
Speaker 1: which declared that no Roman Catholic could inherit the throne
Speaker 1: of England. The same act named the closest Protestant successor
Speaker 1: to the throne as Sophia, Electress of Hanover, granddaughter of
Speaker 1: King James the First of England. Sophia however, had died
Speaker 1: shortly before the British Queen Anne in the summer of
Speaker 1: seventeen fourteen, meaning that the next King of England would
Speaker 1: be her oldest son, George Louis. Despite speaking little English,
Speaker 1: George became the King of England on August first, seventeen fourteen.
Speaker 1: King George the First. Sophia Dorothea's son would become King
Speaker 1: George the Second. Though George Louis could have remarried, he didn't.
Speaker 1: Though he did maintain a relationship with Melissine von Schullenberg
Speaker 1: for the rest of his life, the divorce was a
Speaker 1: forbidden subject in his presence. It was long supposed that
Speaker 1: George himself was responsible for Koenigsmark's death and for Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea's imprisonment, but that's not really correct. He most definitely
Speaker 1: was not involved in Koenigsmark's death, having been absent from
Speaker 1: Hanover at the time, and as for Sophia Dorothea, though
Speaker 1: his behavior to her was certainly cold and occasionally absolutely reprehensible,
Speaker 1: he was in fact not actually involved in the initial
Speaker 1: decision to keep her prisoner, and he even advocated for
Speaker 1: fewer restrictions on her movements during the later years. That
Speaker 1: didn't keep the English people from composing body songs and
Speaker 1: poems about their foreign king, his mistress, and his imprisoned
Speaker 1: ex wife. Those taunts would haunt George for his entire reign.
Speaker 1: When Sophia Dorothea died in seventeen twenty six, George forbade
Speaker 1: mourning in the courts of England and Hanover. George spent
Speaker 1: nearly a fifth of his thirteen year reign as King
Speaker 1: of England back in Hanover, which served as his royal retreat.
Speaker 1: It was on a visit there in June seventeen twenty
Speaker 1: seven that he suffered a stroke, dying on the eleventh
Speaker 1: of June in Lanschloss, the exact same castle where thirteen
Speaker 1: years earlier Koenigsmark had been killed, the castle where Sophia
Speaker 1: Dorothea's life, as she had known it had also ended.
Speaker 1: That's the tragic life of Sophia Dorothea. But keep listening
Speaker 1: after a brief sponsor break to hear how archaeology may
Speaker 1: bee or baby didn't solve one of the mysteries of
Speaker 1: the story. In August twenty sixteen, workers on a construction
Speaker 1: project at Lanschloss, now the seat of state government for
Speaker 1: the state of Lower Saxony made a startling discovery on
Speaker 1: castle grounds, a buried jumble of human bones. Analysis by
Speaker 1: researchers at Hannover's medical school determined that the bones were
Speaker 1: likely hundreds of years old human bones buried under the
Speaker 1: palace hundreds of years old. To many, it added up
Speaker 1: to one conclusion, surely these were the remains of Count
Speaker 1: Philip von Koenigsmark. Historical sources had always been shaky on
Speaker 1: what exactly happened to Koenigsmark's body after his death. Some
Speaker 1: say his body was thrown in the Line River, others
Speaker 1: that his body was covered in quick climb and buried
Speaker 1: underneath the palace. But with this new discovery, it was
Speaker 1: hoped that the mystery could finally be solved. Unfortunately, it
Speaker 1: was not to be. Further research eventually revealed that the
Speaker 1: bones came from at least five human skeletons, as well
Speaker 1: as some animals, and they were not, after all the
Speaker 1: right age to be those of Koenig's Mark, So the
Speaker 1: mystery continues. The final resting place of Sophia Dorothea's lover
Speaker 1: is lost to time, just as he was lost to
Speaker 1: her on that Fateful July evening more than three hundred
Speaker 1: years ago. Noble Blood is a production of iHeartRadio and
Speaker 1: Grim and Mild from Aaron Manky. Noble Blood is hosted
Speaker 1: by me Danish Worts. Additional writing and researching done by
Speaker 1: Hannah Johnston, Hannah'swick, Mira Hayward, Courtney Sender, and Laurie Goodman.
Speaker 1: The show is produced by rima il Kyali, with supervising
Speaker 1: producer Josh Thane and executive producers Aaron Manky, Alex Williams,
Speaker 1: and Matt Frederick. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the
Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your
Speaker 1: favorite shows.