Wilhelm, Duke of Oldenburg


Peter Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Oldenburg was a ruling Duke of Oldenburg from 1784 to his death.

Life

Wilhelm was the son of Frederick Augustus I, Duke of Oldenburg and Princess Ulrike Friederike Wilhelmine of Hesse-Kassel.
He succeeded his father, Frederick Augustus I, Duke of Oldenburg as the Duke of Oldenburg in 1785.
Due to mental illness, Wilhelm was duke in name only, with his cousin Peter, Prince-Bishop of Lübeck, acting as regent throughout his entire reign.
In October 1799, his sister the Swedish princess Charlotte med him in Lübeck on her journey back to Sweden. She described the meeting between them in her famous journal:
In a letter to her sister-in-law ett brev till Sophia Albertina of Sweden, she described his condition:
The title became a Grand Duke in 1815, but Wilhelm never used the elevated style. It was not used until 1829 by the son of Wilhelm's cousin and successor, Peter I.