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Prince John August of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg

Gotha, 17 Feb 1704 – Stadtroda, 8 May 1767

8 facts3 sources

Facts and their sources

A life in time

  1. 17 Feb 1704

    Born in Gotha

  2. 9 Mar 1756

    A daughter is born

  3. 8 May 1767

    Dies in Stadtroda, aged 63

Family

See the tree

Parents

Partner

Children · 1

During his lifetime

He lived through 7 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Gotha.

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

The 1700s · Prince is born in Gotha

In the news1709

Great famine after the 1709 winter

A severe winter caused the Bodensee to freeze completely, leading to widespread crop failures and famine across Europe.

Getting around

River Travel by Ordinari Boats

Water transport was often more cost-effective; for example, the Ordinari boat from Regensburg to Vienna took at least a week to cover about 450 kilometers. Passengers often spent their nights on land during these boat journeys.

At the table

Simple meals of porridge, soup, and stew

Ordinary families commonly consumed grain-based porridges and soups for breakfast and dinner, while a hearty stew served as the main midday meal. Meat was expensive, so many households reserved it for special occasions like a Sunday roast.

War of the Spanish Succession. Europe’s powers fought for thirteen years over who would inherit the Spanish throne; a Bourbon kept it, and Britain gained Gibraltar.In Europe · 1701–1714

War of the Spanish Succession. Europe’s powers fought for thirteen years over who would inherit the Spanish throne; a Bourbon kept it, and Britain gained Gibraltar.

DavidDijkgraaf · CC0

What people wore

Limited Wardrobes and Sunday Best

For ordinary people, clothing was strictly divided into everyday wear and Sunday best, as a person's wardrobe was very limited three hundred years ago.

Music

The cornett was a popular civic instrument

Town musicians used the versatile cornett, a wooden instrument with finger holes, for both church services and celebratory civic events.

Daily life

Limited Schooling for Children

Children often attended only winter schools because their labor was required for farming and tending livestock the rest of the year. Teachers were frequently untrained, such as former soldiers or craftsmen, and religious instruction was the main priority.