Karl August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont

Karl was the second son of Friedrich Anton Ulrich, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont and Countess Palatine Louise of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld, youngest child of Christian II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld. In 1728 his father and his elder brother Christian Philip died, and so he became Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont.

The Waldecks had a tradition of military service in the Dutch Army. Prince Georg Friedrich of Waldeck had already led the Dutch army in the War of the Grand Alliance. In the War of Austrian Succession, Karl was appointed as commander of the Dutch Army by the States-General of the Netherlands, as counterbalance to William IV, Prince of Orange, who relied completely on his brother-in-law the Duke of Cumberland. Waldeck was seen as an energetic and capable commander. Unfortunately, the coöperation between the Allied armies was severely lacking. Waldeck was present at the Battle of Fontenoy, where he led the attacks of the Dutch infantry on the French positions before the Allied commander, the Duke of Cumberland, would launch a massive attack on the French centre. Although having performed rather well at the battle, Waldeck and the infantry commander General baron Cronström were not pleased with the overall state of the troops and launched a series of improvements. He was also present at the Battle of Rocoux and the Battle of Lauffeld, all in which the Allies suffered defeat, although the Dutch troops performed much better. In 1746, Karl became Fieldmarshal of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1747, the French launched an attack on Bergen op Zoom; Waldeck wanted to come to the relief of the Allied garrison, but was severely hampered by the British and Austrians, who were ordered to spare no troops but rather stay in their positions to protect Maastricht. Frustrated, Waldeck left the army immediately and returned to his home without officially resigning his command^[1].

In Zweibrücken, on 19 August 1741, Karl August married his first cousin Countess Palatine Christiane Henriette of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld (1725–1816), daughter of Christian III, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken.

The couple had seven children:

• Prince Charles of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1742–1756)
• Friedrich Karl August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1743–1812)
• Christian August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1744–1798), a Field Marshal in the Portuguese army
• George I, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1747–1813); married Princess Augusta of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
• Princess Caroline of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1748–1782), married Peter von Biron, last Duke of Courland and Semigallia
• Princess Luise of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1751–1816), married Frederick Augustus, Duke of Nassau
• Prince Louis of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1752–1793), killed in action near Kortrijk