Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel

Frederick II (German: Friedrich II. (Hessen-Kassel)) (14 August 1720 – 31 October 1785) was Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel from 1760 to 1785.

He was born at Kassel in Hesse, the son of William VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel and his wife Dorothea Wilhelmine of Saxe-Zeitz. In 1760, he succeeded his father as Landgrave. Despite his Catholicism, Kassel remained Calvinist.

Statue of Frederick II in Kassel

Family and children

On 8 May 1740, by proxy at London, and on 28 June 1740 in person at Cassel, he married Princess Mary, daughter of King George II of Great Britain. They had four sons:

1. William, died young in 1742
2. William I, Elector of Hesse (3 June 1743 – 27 February 1821)
3. Charles (19 December 1744 – 17 August 1836)
4. Frederick (11 September 1747 – 20 May 1837). Father of Prince William of Hesse-Kassel.

In 1747, he left his family. In 1749, Frederick converted from Calvinism to Catholicism. The couple formally separated in 1755, and Friedrich entered service in the Prussian military.

After Mary died in 1772, he married on 10 January 1773 with Margravine Philippine of Brandenburg-Schwedt (1745-1800) at Berlin.

His three sons were fostered by Protestant relatives since 1747 and with Landgravine Mary moved to Denmark, to the care of her sister Louise, queen of Denmark and Norway who however died in 1751. Two elder boys married Danish princesses, their first cousins, in 1763 and 1766 respectively. They remained in Denmark, becoming its important lords and royal functionaries. Only the eldest returned to Hesse, in 1785 when ascending the landgraviate.

Frederick II died in 1785 at Castle Weißenstein, Kassel.