Christian I, Elector of Saxony


Christian I of Saxony was Elector of Saxony from 1586 to 1591. He belonged to the Albertine line of the House of Wettin.
He was the sixth but second surviving son of Elector Augustus of Saxony and Anna of Denmark. The death of his older brother, Alexander, made him the new heir apparent to the Electorate of Saxony.
Christian succeeded his father when he died, in 1586. His chancellor was Nikolaus Krell. During his reign, the first measurement was made of the Electorate of Saxony by Matthias Oeder. Later, the work of Oeder was continued by Balthasar Zimmermann until 1633 and completed as far as possible.

Family

In Dresden on 25 April 1582, Christian married Sophie, daughter of John George, Elector of Brandenburg. They had seven children:
  1. Christian II, successor of his father as Elector.
  2. John George I, successor of his brother as Elector.
  3. Anna Sabine.
  4. Sophie, married on 26 August 1610 to Duke Francis I of Pomerania.
  5. Elisabeth.
  6. Augustus, married on 1 January 1612 to Elisabeth of Brünswick-Wolfenbüttel. This marriage was childless.
  7. Dorothea, Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg.

    Ancestry

Literature