KING ERNST I FREDERIK

Ernst I Frederik (Johan Ernst Frederik Edward René van Habsburg-Lotharingen, born 16 November 1979 in Alexanderstad) has been king of Kronenburg since 24 September 2010.

Early life
Prince Johan Ernst, as he was called before his accession to the throne, was born in 1979 as the second son of then crown prince Alexander Lodewijk and crown princess Livia (the later king Alexander IV Lodewijk and queen Livia). He didn't consider becoming king in the future, being second in line after his elder brother, former crown prince Alexander Casimir, the present duke of Westerland. Everything changed however in 1999, when the Kronenburg parliament didn't gave permission for Alexander Casimir's wedding. The crown prince married anyway, so he had to give up his rights on the Kronenburgish throne for himself and his descendants. This meant that prince Johan Ernst became crown prince.

Education, marriage and family
Due to the sudden dynastic changes, crown prince Johan Ernst was pushed to study history and law next to his efforts to become a professional painter. He finished all his studies however and started a rather succesful career as a painter. In Canada he met Isabel van Oosterland-Engelbert, a Kronenburgish girl and granddaughter of duchess Annemarie van Oosterland-Engelbert, whom he married in 2007. They have four children: princess Sofie Charlotte, born 26 July 2008, princess Carolina Hedwig, born 26 June 2010, prince Ernst Michael, born 3 March 2013, and princess Maria Laura, born 19 December 2019. Prince Ernst Michael is first in the line of succession to the throne of Kronenburg, followed by his three sisters.

Succession to the throne
In December 2009, king Alexander IV Lodewijk suffered a severe brain haemorrhage, which made him incapable to further perform his tasks as head of state. It was therefore decided that the crown prince would succeed his father, which happened on 24 September 2010. Because of the controversial reputations of particularly king Jan II, he decided that as king, he would not be known as Jan III Ernst, but he simply skipped his first name and took the regal name of Ernst I Frederik.