Tragic Facts About Sophia Of Celle, The Prisoner Bride
Sophia Dorothea of Celle was the wife of the future King George I of England, yet this fairy-tale existence turned to tragedy early on. From a horrific betrayal to a 300-year-old murder mystery that is unsolved to this day, Sophia's life is not one you want to miss.
1. Her Life Was Like A Shakespeare Tragedy
Sophia of Celle's problems started even before her birth. For one, her father Duke Georg Wilhelm was supposed to make an advantageous match with the royally-connected Princess Sophia of Hanover. But there was a big problem. He was in love another woman, Eleanor. So Georg made a rash deal that would affect Sophia for the rest of her tragic life.
He passed all his claims onto his younger brother Ernest, and Ernest married the princess instead. Romantic? Sure. But it wouldn't last.
2. Her Parents Spoiled Her
A short time later, Georg happily wed Eleanor in a morganatic union—meaning it wasn't valid in the Church—and soon had our little Sophia nipping at his heels.
She was technically illegitimate, sure, but her loving parents treated her like royalty all the same. A relative even complained that “
if the infant had been a princess instead of the mere daughter of his brother's madame, they could not have made more fuss about it”.
Sophia may have been too young to understand how good she had it, but it was going to unravel soon anyway.
3. She Was Beautiful And Charming
Sophia was a beauty, with big dark eyes, curly brown hair, and porcelain skin. She was proud of her tiny hands and feet, and she had all the feminine accomplishments valued in a young woman of the era. She moved especially gracefully, all the better to show off those perfect hands and feet. But this was a double-edged sword.
Before long, Sophia began to catch the eye of many an admirer, and her father realized he had a gold mine on his hands.
More specifically, he was regretting his rash decision to marry for love, and realized he could use his daughter as a pawn to regain the status he'd just lost.
4. Her Father Wanted Her To Marry Her Cousin
As it happened, Sophia's father had a very cunning plan for his daughter. He desperately wanted her to marry his brother Ernest's son and heir, George Louis. Why?
Well, that way, he could put all the wealth he renounced right back into his own nuclear family. Cunning, right? But Sophia was never going to have it that easy.
