Duchess Christine of Mecklenburg-Güstrow


Christine of Mecklenburg-Güstrow was a German noblewoman of the House of Mecklenburg and by marriage a Countess of Stolberg-Gedern.

Early life and ancestry

Born in Güstrow into the Güstrow line of the ancient House of Mecklenburg, she was the sixth of eleven children born from the marriage of Gustav Adolph, Duke of Mecklenburg-Güstrow and Magdalene Sibylle of Holstein-Gottorp.
Of her ten older and younger siblings, eight survived to mature adulthood: Marie, Magdalene, Sophie, Charles, Hereditary Prince of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Hedwig, Louise, Elisabeth and Augusta.

Life

In Güstrow on 14 May 1683, Christine married Louis Christian, Count of Stolberg-Gedern as his second wife. Between 1684 and 1705, she had 19 pregnancies and gave birth to 23 children, of which only 11 survived to adulthood:
  1. Gustav Adolph, Hereditary Prince of Stolberg-Gedern.
  2. A daughter, twin of Gustav Adolph.
  3. Gustav Ernest, Hereditary Prince of Stolberg-Gedern, died in early childhood.
  4. Fredericka Charlotte, married on 8 December 1709 to Frederick Ernest, Count of Solms-Laubach.
  5. Emilie Auguste, married on 1 October 1709 to Jost Christian, Count of Stolberg-Rossla.
  6. Christiana Louise, died in early childhood.
  7. Albertine Antonie, died in early childhood.
  8. Charles Louis, Hereditary Prince of Stolberg-Gedern, twin of Albertine Antonie, died in early childhood.
  9. Gustave Magdalene, died in infancy.
  10. Christian Ernest, Count of Stolberg-Wernigerode.
  11. Christine Eleonore, married on 8 August 1708 to Ernest Casimir I, Count of Isenburg-Büdingen zu Büdingen.
  12. Frederick Charles, Prince of Stolberg-Gedern.
  13. Ernestine Wilhelmine, married on 7 December 1725 to Ferdinand Maximilian, Count of Isenburg und Büdingen zu Wächtersbach.
  14. Fredericka Louise, died in early childhood.
  15. Louis Adolph, died in infancy.
  16. Henry August, Count of Stolberg-Schwarza, twin of Louis Adolph.
  17. Sophie Christiane, died unmarried.
  18. Ferdinande Henriette, married on 15 December 1719 to George August, Count of Erbach-Schönberg. Through her, Christine was a great-great-great-grandmother of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
  19. Rudolph Lebrecht, died in infancy.
  20. Louis Christian, twin of Rudolph Lebrecht, died in infancy.
  21. Auguste Marie, a nun in Herford, created a princess in 1742.
  22. Caroline Adolphine, died in early childhood.
  23. Philippina Louise, married on 2 April 1725 to William Maurice II, Count of Isenburg-Philippseich.
Only six of Christine's children were still alive at the time of her death.