Ernst I.

The young duke guided Coburg through the chaos of the Napoleonic Wars and managed to preserve his duchy from dissolution. Ernst first served as a Russian general and then in the Prussian army. In 1813, he took part in the Battle of Leipzig. A year later, he occupied the fortress of Mainz with an allied army corps.

In 1817, he married Luise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (1800–1831), with whom he had two sons. The younger, Albert, would later marry Queen Victoria of England.

In 1826, Ernst exchanged the territory of Saalfeld for the wealthy Duchy of Gotha, forming the double duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (which lasted until 1918). He significantly changed the face of Coburg by establishing the palace square, building the state theater, and modernizing the Ehrenburg.