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Dorothea of Brunswick-Lüneburg

Celle, 11 Jan 1570 – Birkenfeld, 15 Aug 1649

9 facts2 sources

Facts and their sources

A life in time

  1. 11 Jan 1570

    Born in Celle

  2. 1591–1598

    3 children are born

  3. 15 Aug 1649

    Dies in Birkenfeld, aged 79

Family

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Parents

Partner

Children · 3

During her lifetime

She lived through 8 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Celle.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1570s · Dorothea is born in Celle

In the news1575

Smallpox and measles epidemic (1575)

A widespread outbreak of smallpox and measles occurred in Holstein in 1575, severely impacting the lives of local families.

Getting around

Walking as the primary mode of transport

Most ordinary people traveled on foot, often covering 20 to 30 kilometers in a day.

In the news1572

Banking house collapse ruins economy (1572)

The collapse of the major merchant and banking house Loitz in Stettin in 1572 caused widespread economic turmoil throughout the region of Pomerania.

Daily life

Beer was safer than water

Drinking water was often unhygienic and contaminated, so beer was frequently consumed instead because brewing made it safer and provided essential calories.

What people wore

The high value of clothing and tailoring

Clothing was highly valuable, often made to measure by tailors, and could be pawned to raise funds quickly. A typical working man's entire wardrobe might be worth only a few shillings to a pound.

Music

Town pipers performed music from towers

Civic musicians known as Stadtpfeifer regularly performed music from church towers and town hall balconies, often using loud brass and wind instruments like the cornett, sackbut, and shawm.

At the table

Rare Festive Pastries

For ordinary families, sweet pastries fried in fat, known as Nonnenfürzle, were rare festive delicacies served on special occasions like church festivals. They were made from choux pastry and, according to local tradition, were named for the hissing sound they made as steam escaped in the hot fat.