He was the eldest child of Prince Christian Günther III and the former Charlotte Wilhelmine of Anhalt-Bernburg (1737-1777).

[1] His paternal grandparents were August I of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and the former Princess Charlotte Sophie (a daughter of Prince Charles Frederick of Anhalt-Bernburg).

[2] During his reign, the Holy Roman Empire, which delicately held the German monarchies together, collapsed in 1806.

[3] A deeply unpopular figure, Günther Frederick Charles I ruled as an absolute monarch despite the increasing desire by his subjects for a say in government.

[4] His refusal to make any concessions led to a palace revolt spearheaded by his son, Günther Frederick Charles II and known as the Ebeleben Revolution,[5] which resulted in his abdication on 19 August 1835.