Moritz Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Zeitz

Moritz Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Zeitz
Moritz Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Zeitz
Spouse(s)	Marie Amalie of Brandenburg
Noble family	House of Wettin
Father	Maurice, Duke of Saxe-Zeitz
Mother	Dorothea Maria of Saxe-Weimar
Born	12 March 1664 Schloss Moritzburg
Died	15 November 1718 (aged 54) Osterburg in Weida

Moritz Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Zeitz (12 March 1664 – 15 November 1718) was a duke of Saxe-Zeitz and member of the House of Wettin.

He was born at Moritzburg Castle in Zeitz, the eldest son of Maurice, Duke of Saxe-Zeitz, and his second wife, Dorothea Maria, a daughter of Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar. His father had two sons from his first marriage, but both died in infancy long before his birth.

Life

He succeeded his father as duke of Saxe-Zeitz when his father died on 4 December 1681. In 1699 Maurice William gave the towns of Pegau and Neustadt to his younger brother Frederick Henry as appanages.

In 1717 the duke converted from Calvinism to Catholicism in order to please his brother who was a Prince of that Church. He shifted the seat of his government to Weida. Later, he made his residence in Osterburg, Weida until his death.

Marriage and issue

In Potsdam on 25 June 1689, Maurice Wilhelm married Marie Amalie of Brandenburg. They had five children:

1. Frederick William (b. Moritzburg, 26 March 1690 - d. Moritzburg, 15 May 1690).
2. Dorothea Wilhelmine (b. Moritzburg, 20 March 1691 - d. Kassel, 17 March 1743), married on 27 September 1717 to Landgrave William VIII of Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel).
3. Karoline Amalie (b. Moritzburg, 24 May 1693 - d. Moritzburg, 5 September 1694).
4. Sophie Charlotte (b. Moritzburg, 25 April 1695 - d. Moritzburg, 18 June 1696).
5. Frederick Augustus (b. Moritzburg, 12 August 1700 - d. Halle, 17 February 1710).

Moritz Wilhelm's monogram

He died at Weida without surviving male issue. Because his two remaining heirs, his brother Christian August and his cousin Maurice Adolf, were ordained priests, Zeitz was merged back to the Electorate of Saxony.