Dorothea von Medem

Dorothea von Medem
Duchess consort of Courland
Tenure6 November 1779 – 28 March 1795
Born(1761-02-03)3 February 1761
Died20 August 1821(1821-08-20) (aged 60)
SpousePeter von Biron
IssuePrincess Wilhelmine, Duchess of Sagan
Princess Pauline, Duchess of Sagan
Princess Joanna, Duchess of Acerenza
Prince Peter
Princess Dorothea
FatherFriedrich von Medem
MotherLouise Charlotte von Manteuffel
ReligionLutheranism

Countess Anna Charlotte Dorothea von Medem (3 February 1761 – 20 August 1821) was born a Gräfin (Countess) of the noble Baltic German Medem family and later became Duchess of Courland. Popularly known as Dorothea of Courland after her marriage to Peter von Biron, the last Duke of Courland, she hosted an aristocratic salon in Berlin and performed various diplomatic duties on behalf of her estranged husband. She would spend the rest of her life in her estate in Löbichgau, where she would invite and host many important political and cultural figures of the time and make many acquaintances, ranging from Goethe over Napoleon I of France to Talleyrand, the latter of whom she was reportedly very close.