Rudolph Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
| Rudolph Augustus | |
|---|---|
| Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg | |
Portrait by Hans Hinrich Rundt, c. 1700
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| Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel | |
| Reign | September 17, 1666 – January 26, 1704 |
| Spouse(s) | Christine Elizabeth of Barby-Mühlingen |
| Noble family | House of Welf |
| Father | Augustus the Younger, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg |
| Mother | Dorothea of Anhalt-Zerbst |
| Born |
May 16, 1627 Hitzacker, Principality of Lüneburg |
| Died | January 26, 1704 (aged 76) Hedwigsburg (now part of Kissenbrück), Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel |
Rudolph Augustus (May 16, 1627 – January 26, 1704), a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and ruled as Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel from 1666 until his death. In 1685 he made his younger brother Anthony Ulrich co-ruler.
He was born in Hitzacker, then the residence of his father Duke Augustus the Younger of Brunswick-Lüneburg and his second wife Princess Dorothea of Anhalt-Zerbst. His father assumed the rule in the Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, after his Welf cousin Duke Frederick Ulrich had died childless in 1634.
Rudolph Augustus succeeded his father as ruling Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in 1666. More interested in his studies and hunting, he soon after appointed his politically astute younger brother Anthony Ulrich governor. In 1671 both besieged and finally occupied the city of Braunschweig, ending about 250 years of local autonomy.
During his reign, Rudolph Augustus concentrated on the Baroque expansion of his ducal residence, including the Alter Weg ("Old Way"), a road connecting the cities of Brunswick and Wolfenbüttel. He died in 1704 at the Hedwigsburg hunting lodge.
In 1650 Rudolph Augustus married Christine Elizabeth (1634–1681), daughter of Count Albert Frederick of Barby and Mühlingen. They had two daughters that reached adulthood:
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