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Catherine Amalie of Solms-Laubach

Laubach, 26 Sep 1654 – Scheveningen, 26 Apr 1736

9 facts2 sources

Facts and their sources

A life in time

  1. 26 Sep 1654

    Born in Laubach

  2. 23 Sep 1682

    A son is born

  3. 26 Apr 1736

    Dies in Scheveningen, aged 81

Family

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Parents

Partner

Children · 1

During her lifetime

She lived through 9 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Laubach.

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

The 1650s · Catherine is born in Laubach

In the news1654

Legally binding serfdom in Mecklenburg

The Servants Law of 1654 legally anchored serfdom in Mecklenburg, divesting serfs of personal freedoms and allowing them to be sold with property.

Getting around

Travel speeds for foot passengers

Most travelers were foot passengers who could expect to cover about 100 kilometers in a week, accounting for rest days and potential travel obstacles like bad weather or floods.

In the news1651

England enacts restrictive Navigation Act

England enacted the Navigation Act, which restricted Dutch trade and maritime shipping, serving as a primary catalyst for the Anglo-Dutch wars.

Daily life

Limited and seasonal schooling

Schooling was not compulsory, and rural children often only attended in winter because they had to work on farms during the summer. Instruction focused primarily on memorizing the Bible to learn how to pray and read scripture.

What people wore

Wedding shirts as burial shrouds

The funeral custom was so precise that couples carefully preserved the shirts worn on their wedding day to be used as their burial garments. Additionally, deceased women were often buried with one of their caps, such as the communion cap.

Music

Musical Cradle Devotions and Festive Processions

During Christmas, Jesuits organized cradle devotions, where a constructed cradle containing a figure of the Christ child was rocked to the sound of music. Music was also used in processions, often involving bells, trumpets, military drums, and even the discharge of muskets and cannons.

At the table

Daily Porridge Habits

Because meat was expensive and rarely eaten, families often relied on a thick, long-cooking grain porridge as their primary warm meal. To stretch the food, they frequently reheated it, resulting in a thick, semi-solid consistency.