electress

[ih-lek-tris]

noun

1. the wife or widow of an Elector of the Holy Roman Empire.

Word History and Origins

Origin of electress¹

First recorded in 1610–20; elect(o)r + -ess

Example Sentences

Sophia, the spirited octogenarian Electress of Hanover, was felled by a heart attack in 1714, two months before the death of the monarch she had been expecting to succeed.

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The ancestor that the royal baby has to thank for its place in the line of succession is Sophia, Electress of Hanover.

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Chief among these are the letters of the Elector Charles Louis, and the letters and memoirs of Sophie, Electress of Hanover, all published from the Preussischen Staats-Archieven; also the letters of the Elector's daughter, the Duchess of Orl�ans, published from the same source.

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Return to their happy home in the Palatinate was impossible, for Frederick lay under the ban of the Empire, and his hereditary dominions were forfeited in consequence of his rebellious conduct; therefore when, six weeks after the birth of her child, George William informed Elizabeth that he dared no longer shelter her, she entrusted the infant to the care of the Electress Catharine, and taking with her the little Rupert, began her journey towards Holland.

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Maurice, Prince of Orange and Stadtholder of Holland, was the eldest son of William the Silent, and brother of Frederick's mother, the Electress Juliana.

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