Field Marshal duke of Württemberg
Eberhard Louis was born in Stuttgart the third child of Duke William Louis and his wife, Magdalena Sibylla of Hesse-Darmstadt. After the early and unexpected death of his father in 1677, the royal court decided to give guardianship to his uncle, Frederick Charles, Duke of Württemberg-Winnental.
In 1693, Magdalena Sibylla had the 16-year-old Eberhard Louis prematurely proclaimed Duke of Württemberg by Emperor Leopold I. The young duke showed no excessive interest in governmental affairs Eberhard Louis was described by his contemporaries as superficial and easily influenced. Most importantly, his behavior led to the political fate of the land being greatly decided by his council.
The duke preferred hunting and left the administration of his county in the hands his advisors.
In 1707 he became the field marshal of the Swabian troops in the War of the Spanish Succession. Shortly before 1700, he visited Louis XIV of France at the Palace of Versailles and planned to make an absolutist state out of Württemberg.
He raised taxes, but financing still remained an obstacle. In 1704, he laid the foundation for his Ludwigsburg Palace.
To save money, he allowed the workers to reside tax-free around the palace for 15 years.
Later, the city of Ludwigsburg developed out of these residences. Because of pressure from the emperor, the marriage had to be quickly dissolved, and Grävenitz went into exile. Eberhard Louis followed her to Switzerland, where they stayed until 1710.
Foreign over two decades, Grävenitz had a strong influence on the government of the land, and it was she who, together with Eberhard Ludwig, moved the royal residence and capital of the duchy from Stuttgart to the sparsely populated city of Ludwigsburg.
Duchess Joanna Elisabeth of Baden-Durlach stayed in the royal palace in Stuttgart. Thus Duke Eberhard Louis dissolved his relations with Wilhelmine von Grävenitz and hoped to receive an heir from his legitimate and long ignored wife, Joanna Elisabeth.
However, as he died in Ludwigsburg of a stroke on October 31, 1733, he left no heir behind.
