ABSTRACT
The succession to the dukedom in Hannover was not obvious, even to an astute insider. Leibniz knew that the recently deceased Duke Johann Friedrich and his wife had four daughters with no direct male heir. This meant that the duchy would not be ruled by Johann Friedrich’s own offspring. Leibniz soon learned it was necessary to look to the late Duke’s brothers, in this case his younger brother Ernst August (1629-1698, husband of his charming and intelligent new acquaintance Sophie), for a proper heir.
