LUTHERAN THEOLOGICAL REVIEW - Concordia Lutheran Seminary

64 LUTHERAN THEOLOGICAL REVIEW XII
shambles since both George Louis and Sophia Dorothea lived immoral lives
amidst the gaiety of the court parties. Sophia Dorothea was ultimately tried
for adultery and found guilty with Count von Platen conducting the case.
Meanwhile, Countess von Platen, seeing Sophia Dorothea as a threat to her
own future position, had encouraged George Louis to accept her daughter,
Frau von Kielmannsegge, as his mistress. Then, when George Louis returned
from war in Italy, he had taken another mistress, Melusina von Schulenburg.
(Later, when George Louis became King of England, he brought both
mistresses along to London.) In 1694 George Louis divorced Sophia
Dorothea and had her imprisoned for the rest of her life. Then, in 1698,
Elector Ernest August died and George Louis became the new Elector. The
new appointments and changes which followed included the removal of the
von Platens from the court and a lessening of their influence. 25
No longer directly involved in the Electoral Court of Hanover, the von
Platens appear to have retired to Linden near Hanover. The first Count von
Platen apparently died some time before Ziegenhagen came on the scene and
specified in his will that his heirs were to engage a preacher for the castle.
Failure to do so would result in a loss of their inheritance. 26 The succession
of a new Count von Platen provided the occasion for Ziegenhagen to be
called to Linden. 27
Why would the new Count von Platen chose the Pietist Ziegenhagen to
fill this position rather than someone with the orthodox Lutheran orientation
dominant in Hanover? The answer is that a churchly Pietism centring in
Wernigerode had developed among the nobility of the Hanover region. The
Stolberg family, which formed the centre of this awakened circle, promoted
a conscious and deeper piety by encouraging their friends to call Pietist
clergymen. Particularly favoured were students from Jena who had studied
under Buddeus and therefore represented a milder form of Pietism from
those whose only theological orientation had been Halle. 28 The Count von
Platen likely had personal contact with Count von Stolberg and turned to
him for assistance in finding a suitable preacher. 29 Stolberg, in turn, would
have contacted Francke. Since Ziegenhagen fit the profile and would shortly
be available for service, Francke approached him with the call to serve as
25 Redman, 32.
26 Letter of Ziegenhagen to A. H. Francke, Linden, 26 0ctober 1720.
27 Although Count von Platen provided financial support for Francke’s projects, his
contributions always seemed to be tied in with some special favour which the Count asked of
Francke. I would not, therefore, agree when Brunner, 57, calls Count von Platen “one of
Francke’s few Hanoverian friends”.
28 Rudolf Ruprecht, Der Pietismus des 18. Jahrhunderts in den Hannoverschen
Stammlaender (Goettingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1919) 111.
29 From the letters of Ziegenhagen to Francke, it is apparent that the new Count von Platen
did not follow the practice of dealing directly with Francke.