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Augustus III of Poland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Augustus III | |
|---|---|
| King of Poland | |
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| Augustus III of Poland. | |
| Reign | 1734 – 5 October 1763 |
| Coronation | 17 January 1734 Wawel Cathedral, Cracow |
| Titles | Elector of Saxony |
| Born | 7 October 1696 |
| Dresden, Saxony, Germany | |
| Died | 5 October 1763 |
| Dresden, Saxony, Germany | |
| Buried | Dresden, family vault of Hofkirche |
| Predecessor | Stanisław Leszczyński |
| Successor | Stanisław August Poniatowski |
| Consort | Maria Josepha of Austria |
| Issue | Frederick Christian |
| Royal House | Wettin |
| Father | August II the Strong |
| Mother | Christiane v. Brandenburg-Bayreuth |
Augustus III (Augustus III the Saxon or the Corpulent; German: August III. von Polen; Polish: August III Sas, August III Gruby; b. Dresden, 17 October 1696 - d. Dresden, 5 October 1763) was the Elector of Saxony in 1733-1763 (as Frederick Augustus II (German: Kurfürst Friedrich August II.) and also King of Poland in 1734-1763.
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- Royal titles in Latin: Augustus III, Dei Gratia rex Poloniae, magnus dux Lithuaniae, Russie, Prussiae, Masoviae, Samogitiae, Kijoviae, Volhyniae, Podoliae, Podlachiae, Livoniae, Smolensciae, Severiae, Czerniechoviae, nec non haereditarius dux Saxoniae princeps et elector etc.
- English translation: August III, by the grace of God, King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania, Ruthenia (i.e. Galicia), Prussia, Masovia, Samogitia, Kyiv, Volhynia, Podolia, Podlachia, Livonia, Smolensk, Severia, Chernihiv, and also hereditary Duke of Saxony, prince and Elector, etc.
Augustus was the only legitimate son of Augustus II the Strong, Imperial Prince-Elector of Saxony and King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, by his wife, Christiane Eberhardine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. He was groomed to succeed his father as King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and thus in 1721 converted to Catholicism.
After his father's death, he inherited Saxony and was elected King of Poland with the support of Russian and Austrian military forces in the War of the Polish Succession (1733-1738).
As King, August III was uninterested in the affairs of his Polish-Lithuanian dominion, focussing on interests like hunting, opera, and collecting paintings (see Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister). During his 30-year reign, he spent less than a total of three years in Poland, where the struggle between the Czartoryski and the Potocki paralysed the Sejm (Liberum Veto), fostering internal political anarchy and further weakening the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. August delegated most of his powers and responsibilities to Heinrich, Count von Brühl, who became quasi-dictator of Poland.
The thirty years of August III's reign saw the Seven Years' War (1754 and 1756–1763), and neighboring Prussia, Austria, and Russia refined their plans to partition the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth among them.
His eldest surviving son, Frederick Christian, eventually succeeded his father as Elector of Saxony, but not as King of Poland. It was Stanisław August Poniatowski who was elected King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth after a coup d'état by the Czartoryski Familia — supported by Russian troops — on September 7, 1764.
In Dresden on 20 August 1719, Augustus married with the Archduchess Maria Josepha of Austria, daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I. They had fifteen children:
- Frederick Augustus Franz Xavier (b. Dresden, 18 November 1720 - d. Dresden, 22 January 1721).
- Joseph Augustus Wilhelm Frederick Franz Xavier Johann Nepomuk (b. Pillnitz, 24 October 1721 - d. Dresden, 14 March 1728).
- Frederick Christian Leopold Johann Georg Franz Xaver (b. Dresden, 5 September 1722 - d. Dresden, 17 December 1763), succesor of his father as Elector of Saxony.
- Stillborn daughter (Dresden, 23 June 1723).
- Maria Amalia Christina Franziska Xaveria Flora Walburga (b. Dresden, 24 November 1724 - d. Buen Retiro, 27 September 1760); married on 19 June 1738 to Charles VII, King of Naples, later King Charles III of Spain.
- Maria Margaretha Franziska Xaveria (b. Dresden, 13 September 1727 - d. Dresden, 1 February 1734).
- Maria Anna Sophie Sabina Angela Franziska Xaveria (b. Dresden, 29 August 1728 - d. Munich, 17 February 1797); married on 9 August 1747 to Maximilian III, Elector of Bavaria.
- Franz Xavier Albert August Ludwig Benno (b. Dresden, 25 August 1730 - d. Dresden, 21 June 1806), Regent of Saxony (1763-1768).
- Maria Josepha Karolina Eleonore Franziska Xaveria (b. Dresden, 4 November 1731 - d. Versailles, 13 March 1767); married on 9 February 1747 to the Dauphin Louis, son of King Louis XV of France (she was the mother of King Louis XVI of France).
- Karl Christian Joseph Ignaz Eugen Franz Xaver (b. Dresden, 13 July 1733 - d. Dresden, 16 June 1796), Duke of Courland and Semigallia (1758-1763).
- Maria Christina Anna Teresia Salomea Eulalia Franziska Xaveria (b. Warsaw, 12 February 1735 - d. Brumath, 19 November 1782), Princess-Abbess of Remiremont. [1]
- Maria Elisabeth Apollonia Casimira Francisca Xaveria (b. Warsaw, 9 February 1736 - d. Dresden, 24 December 1818). [2]
- Albert Kasimir Augustus Ignaz Pius Franz Xavier (b. Moritzburg, near Dresden, 11 July 1738 - d. Vienna, 10 February 1822), Duke of Teschen and Governor of the Austrian Netherlands (1781-1793).
- Clemens Wenceslaus August Hubertum Franz Xavier (b. Schloss Hubertusburg, Wermsdorf, 28 September 1739 - d. Marktoberdorf, Allgäu, 27 July 1812), Archbishop-Elector of Trier.
- Maria Kunigunde Dorothea Hedwig Franziska Xaveria Florentina (b. Warsaw, 10 November 1740 - d. Dresden, 8 April 1826), Princess-Abbess of Thorn and Essen.
![[1]](http://www.royaltyguide.nl/images-families/wettin/saxonyalbert3/1735%20Christine.jpg){kind=link}
![[2]](http://www.royaltyguide.nl/images-families/wettin/saxonyalbert3/1736%20M.Elisabeth.jpg){kind=link}
- Schloss Hubertusburg
- Catholic Court Church, Dresden
- Saxon Palace, Warsaw (destroyed 1944)
- Brühl Palace, Warsaw (destroyed 1944)
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Augustus III of Poland
Born: 17 October 1696 Died: 5 October 1763 |
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| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Stanisław Leszczyński |
King of Poland 1733-1763 |
Succeeded by Stanisław August Poniatowski |
| Preceded by Frederick Augustus I |
Elector of Saxony as Frederick Augustus II 1733-1763 |
Succeeded by Frederick Christian |
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| Early Grand Dukes | Mindaugas (House) · Treniota · Vaišvilkas · Shvarn · Traidenis · Daumantas |
| Gediminids | Butigeidis · Butvydas · Vytenis · Gediminas (House) · Jaunutis · Algirdas · Jogaila · Kęstutis · Skirgaila · Vytautas · Švitrigaila · Sygismund Kestutian · Casimir Jagellon · Alexander · Sigismund I the Old · Sigismund II Augustus |
| Elected | Henry III of Valois · Stefan Batory · Sigismund III Vasa · Ladislaus IV Vasa · John II Casimir Vasa · Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki · John III Sobieski · Augustus II the Strong · Stanisław Leszczyński · August III the Saxon · Stanisław August Poniatowski |