Sophia Dorothea of Celle

Born to George William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, and Éléonore Desmier d’Olbreuse, Sophia Dorothea of Celle grew up in a carefree and loving environment. Her father’s transfer of assets and elevation of her status by imperial order enhanced her prospects for marriage. Initially betrothed to the Hereditary Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, she later married her first cousin, George Louis, the future King George I of Great Britain, in a politically arranged marriage. The marriage was deeply unhappy, and she is most famously remembered for her alleged affair with Count Philip Christoph von Königsmarck, which resulted in her being imprisoned for the last thirty years of her life at the Castle of Ahlden.

Despite the failure of her marriage and the subsequent scandal, Sophia Dorothea bore two children, George Augustus and Sophia Dorothea, who would become important figures in British and Prussian royalty, respectively. Her life was marked by a series of significant events, from her elevation to royalty to her tragic imprisonment, which ended only with her death. Her portrait from the 1690s is displayed at the Residence Museum in Celle Castle.