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When Ernst inherited the duchy of Saxe-Altenburg (1672), he made Frederick the regent of that duchy. In 1674 Ernst, who was already ill, made Frederick the regent of his entire lands.
After the death of his father (1675) Frederick assumed the throne of both duchies. However, on the basis of his family's house law, he had to allow his six younger brothers to take part in the government. At first, they agreed to a common household of all seven brothers in the Schloss Friedenstein, though this arrangement endured only until 1676.
Frederick continued the work of his father. In order to prevent future disputes between his descendants, he established primogeniture for his house in 1685 (with Imperial assent granted in 1688). Around 1680 he established himself in the Lustschloss Friedrichswerth, near the village of Erffa, approximately 20 km of Gotha, which was renamed in his honour Friedrichswerth.
In 1683 Frederick created the (still in existence today) Theatre of Gotha (Gothaer Schloßtheater). He was also an eager diary writer; these diaries became one of the most important sources of his time. Frederick took part in the Great Turkish War against the Turks, and in the War of the Grand Alliance against France. He ruined the finances of his small duchy, however, using them to maintain a standing army, which by the time of his death counted over 10,000 men.
Die Tagebücher 1667-1686 (Publications of the Thuringian State Archives Gotha IV), edited by Roswitha Jacobsen. 3 volumes, Weimar 1998-2003.
Der alchemistische Nachlaß Friedrichs I. von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg (Quellen und Forschungen zur Alchemie 1), described by Oliver Humberg, Elberfeld 2005.
August Beck, Friedrich I., Herzog von Sachsen-Gotha und Altenburg. In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). vol VIII. Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1878, p. 2.
