Duke George of Oldenburg

On 3 August 1809, George married Grand Duchess Catherine Pavlovna of Russia, the fourth daughter of Paul I of Russia and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg and favorite sister of the Emperor Alexander I of Russia.^[3] The events behind their marriage began when Napoleon Bonaparte, hoping to secure a Russian alliance as well as a male heir, hinted his desire to marry Catherine after finalizing his divorce with Empress Joséphine.^[3] This so horrified the Russian imperial family that Catherine's mother immediately arranged her marriage to her cousin, Duke George. The day the marriage occurred, Duke George received the style Imperial Highness and was appointed the governor-general of the three central provinces of Tver, Yaroslavl and Novgorod.^[3]


Though their marriage was arranged, it was happy. Catherine was considered beautiful and vivacious and was devoted to her husband. As George was a younger son with little prospects of inheriting the Grand Dukedom of Oldenburg, he and Catherine lived in Tver, Russia. Their family adopted the use of Russian patronyms and were known as the Oldenburgsky.


They had two sons:

Later life[edit]

On 22 January 1811, Oldenburg was annexed by Napoleon. As George was married to Tsar Alexander I's sister, the Russians considered Napoleon's move a great insult, and it was one of many grievances Alexander would bring up in their correspondence.^[4] The Oldenburg family was later given back their duchy after Napoleon's defeat.


He was appointed governor on the Volga but died from typhoid fever in 1812. His death was a great blow to his wife, but she would go on to marry the future William I of Württemberg in 1816.


After her death in 1819, their children were raised by George's brother Grand Duke Augustus in Oldenburg.^[5]