Duke Karl Friedrich of Saxe-Weimar was a German nobleman born on September 24, 1757. He was a member of the House of Wettin and ruled the duchy of Saxe-Weimar from 1758 until his death in 1828. His reign was marked by efforts to modernize the duchy and promote education and culture. Karl Friedrich is known for his patronage of the arts and support of notable figures such as the writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and the philosopher Friedrich Schiller. His contributions helped to establish Weimar as a center of German literature and thought during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.