Landgravine Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt

Elisabeth Amalie, probably with her eldest daughter Eleonor Magdalene, around 1655.

Born at the New Palace in Gießen, Elisabeth Amalie was the daughter of George II, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and Sophia Eleonore of Saxony. Her siblings included Louis of Hesse-Darmstadt, future Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and Anna Sophia, Abbess of Quedlinburg.

Elisabeth Amalie was brought up strictly by her mother, who was a devout Lutheran. She had an attractive appearance with striking blond hair, a trait she kept until her old age and which was inherited by her daughters Eleonor Magdalene and Dorothea Sophie, the latter being known in particular for her blonde hair.

On 3 September 1653 she was married at Langenschwalbach to Count palatine Philip William of Neuburg, who later became Prince-elector of the Palatinate. Her husband was some twenty years older than her and was the heir to the Electoral Palatinate, which was one of the most important states within the Holy Roman Empire. In the course of her marriage, Elisabeth Amalie was pregnant 23 times in just 24 years.

She converted to Catholicism on 1 November 1653 in the presence of the elector and archbishop of Cologne, Maximilian Henry of Bavaria.

The writer William Nakatenus dedicated his work The Heavenly Palm little garden to her.

She gave birth to nine sons and eight daughters, 14 of whom lived to adulthood.

Issue

Name Portrait Lifespan Notes Eleonor Magdalene Holy Roman Empress 6 January 1655- 19 January 1720 Married in 1676 Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor and had issue; Maria Adelheid Anna 6 January 1656- 22 December 1656 Died in infancy Sophia Elisabeth 25 May 1657- 7 February 1658 Died in infancy Johann Wilhelm Elector Palatine 19 April 1658- 8 June 1716 Married first Archduchess Maria Anna Josepha of Austria and had no surviving issue; married second Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici and had no issue Wolfgang George Frederik Auxiliary Bishop in Köln 5 June 1659- 4 June 1683 Died unmarried Ludwig Anton Bishop of Worms 9 June 1660- 4 May 1694 Died unmarried Charles III Philip Elector Palatine 4 November 1661- 31 December 1742 Married first Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł and had issue; married second Teresa Lubomirska and had issue; married third Violante Theresia of Thurn and Taxis, no issue Alexander Sigismund Bishop of Augsburg 16 April 1663- 24 January 1737 Died unmarried Francis Louis Count Palatine Archbishop of Wrocław 18 July 1664- 6 April 1732 Died unmarried Frederik Wilhelm Imperial General 20 July 1665- 23 July 1689 Died unmarried Maria Sophia Elisabeth Queen of Portugal 6 August 1666- 4 August 1699 Married in 1687 Peter II of Portugal and had issue Maria Anna Queen of Spain 28 October 1667- 16 July 1740 Married in 1690 Charles II of Spain, no issue; Philip William August 19 November 1668- 5 April 1693 Married in 1690 Anna Maria Franziska of Saxe-Lauenburg and had issue Dorothea Sophie Duchess of Parma 5 July 1670- 15 September 1748 Married in 1690 Odoardo Farnese and had issue; Hedwig Elisabeth Amelia Princess Sobieski 18 July 1673- 10 August 1722 Married in 1691 James Louis Sobieski and had issue; Johann 1 February 1675- 2 February 1675 Died in infancy Leopoldine Eleonora Josepha 27 May 1679 - 8 March 1693 Died unmarried

Elisabeth Amalie also suffered six miscarriages:

• A miscarried daughter (16 January 1654)
• A miscarried daughter (28 October 1660)
• A miscarried son (1 February 1662)
• A miscarried daughter (18 July 1671)
• A miscarried daughter (28 October 1676)
• A miscarried son (1 February 1678)

• Choker, Peter, Diseases of the kings of Spain: the Austrians. From Madness to impotence Joan of Charles II the Bewitched (Madrid: The Sphere Books Ltd., 2005).

• Person Page
• Landeshauptstadt Düsseldorf - Elisabeth Amalie Magdalena (1635 - 1709), Landgräfin von Hessen-Darmstadt, Pfalzgräfin bei Rhein zu Neuburg, Herzogin von Jülich-Berg, seit 1685 Kurfürstin von der Pfalz
• Marek, Miroslav. "brabant/brabant13.html". genealogy.euweb.cz.
• Marek, Miroslav. "wittel/wittel4.html#PW". genealogy.euweb.cz.
• Kulturgeschichte der Stadt Schwalbach, p. 39, at Google Books
• Annalen des Historischen Vereins für den Niederrhein, insbesondere die alte Erzdiözese Köln, p. 237, at Google Books