Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt

Louis VIII
Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt
Portrait of Louis VIII by Johann Christian Fiedler
Born	5 April 1691 Darmstadt
Died	17 October 1768 (aged 77) Darmstadt
Spouse	Countess Charlotte of Hanau-Lichtenberg
Issue	Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt George William of Hesse-Darmstadt Caroline Louise, Grand Duchess of Baden
House	Hesse-Darmstadt
Father	Ernest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt
Mother	Dorothea Charlotte of Brandenburg-Ansbach

Louis VIII (German: Ludwig) (5 April 1691, Darmstadt – 17 October 1768) was the Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt from 1739 to 1768. He was the son of Ernest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt and Margravine Dorothea Charlotte of Brandenburg-Ansbach.

Life

A deer hunt near Darmstadt. Painting by Georg Adam Eger 1755

In 1717, he was married to Countess Charlotte Christine Magdalene Johanna of Hanau and he received Hanau-Lichtenberg as an addition to his dominons. Because of his passion for hunting, he is known as the "Hunting Landgrave" (German: Jagdlandgraf). During the Seven Years' War he stood on the side of the Emperor and received the rank of General Field Marshal.

Like his father, Louis was not a gifted economist and only his good relationship with Empress Maria Theresa and her intervention at the Imperial Court Council kept the Landgraviate from bankruptcy. However, his caring for his country is documented by the establishment of a textile house in 1742 and a state orphanage in the 1746.

Issue

Children:

• Louis IX of Hesse-Darmstadt
• Landgrave George William of Hesse-Darmstadt.
• Caroline Louis, Princess of Hesse, born on 11 July 1723 and died on 8 April 1783; married Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Baden.

Ancestors

Ancestors of Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt

16. Louis V, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt               8. George II, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt                       17. Magdalene of Brandenburg               4. Louis VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt                             18. John George I, Elector of Saxony               9. Sophia Eleonore of Saxony                       19. Duchess Magdalene Sibylle of Prussia               2. Ernest Louis, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt                                   20. John II, Duke of Saxe-Weimar               10. Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha                       21. Dorothea Maria of Anhalt               5. Elisabeth Dorothea of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg                             22. John Philip, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg               11. Princess Elisabeth Sophie of Saxe-Altenburg                       23. Elisabeth of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel               1. Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt                                         24. John George, Elector of Brandenburg               12. Joachim Ernst, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach                       25. Elisabeth of Anhalt-Zerbst               6. Albert II, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach                             26. John George I of Solms-Laubach               13. Sophie of Solms-Laubach                       27. Margarethe of Schönburg-Glauchau               3. Dorothea Charlotte of Brandenburg-Ansbach                                   28. Louis Eberhard, Count of Oettingen-Oettingen               14. Joachim Ernst of Oettingen-Oettingen                       29. Margaret of Erbach               7. Sofie Margarete of Oettingen-Oettingen                             30. Henry William I, Count of Solms-Sonnewalde               15. Anna Sibylle of Solms-Sonnewalde                       31. Sophia Dorothea of Mansfeld-Arnstein

External links

• The Age of Absolutism in Hesse-Darmstadt (German)

Sources

• Die Geschichte Hessens, Gerd Bauer, Heiner Boencke, Hans Sarkowicz; Eichborn, 2002, p. 193-194