Albert II, Margrave of Brandenburg
Encyclopedia
Albert II, Margrave of Brandenburg (born: in or after 1150; died: 25 February 1220) was a member of the House of Ascania. He was Margrave
of Brandenburg
from 1205 until his death in 1220.
and his wife Judith of Poland and a grandson of Albert the Bear, founder of the Margraviate of Brandenburg
in 1157.
Albert II inherited the Margraviate in 1205, after the death of his eldest brother Otto II
.
Albert II was, from 1184 onwards, Count
of Arneburg
in the Altmark
. The Altmark belonged to Brandenburg
, and Otto II claimed that this implied that the Ascanians owned Arneburg. Otto temporarily imprisoned Albert in 1194, for unknown reasons.
Since 1184 was Albert II Count
by Arneburg
in the of Otto II and claimed belonging to Brandenburg
Altmark
. Albert participated in the Third Crusade
(1189-1192). After his return, he was imprisoned in 1194 by Otto for unexplained reasons. In 1198, he was present at the inaugural meeting of the Teutonic Knights
in 1198 in Acre
.
In the dispute about the imperial crown between the Houses of Hohenstaufen
and Guelph in the early 13th century, Albert initially supported the Hohenstaun King Philip of Swabia
, like Otto before him. After Philip's assasination in 1208, however, he changed sides, because Emperor Otto IV
had assisted him in securing the Margraviate against the Danes, and had confirmed Ascanian ownership of Brandenburg in a deed in 1212.
During this period, Albert II had a lengthy dispute with Archbishop Albert I
of Magdeburg
. He also played an important rôle in the Brandenburg tithe dispute.
Albert II definitively secured the regions of Teltow, Prignitz
and parts of the Uckermark
for the Margraviate of Brandenburg, but lost Pomerania
to the House of Griffins.
His grandfather Albert the Bear is consider the founder of the Margraviate of Brandenburg. His father Otto I promoted and directed the foundation of German settlement in the area, which had been predominantly Slavic until the 12th century. Stephan Warnatsch describes Otto I's children as follows:
[They] drove off the territorialization initiated and, from the end of the 12th Century, when in the influx of settlers
grew stronger, and, consequently, more people were available to develop the territory, started to expand into the areas of Ruppin, and especially Barnim and Teltow. Moreover, the Oder
region and the southern Uckermark were also targets of the Ascanian expansion. In all these areas, the Ascanians ran into opposition from competing local princes.
Albert II died in 1220. At the time, his two sons were still minors. Initially, archbishop Albert I of Magdeburg acted as regent. In 1221, however, Albert's widow, Countess Matilda, took up the regency. After her death in 1225, the brothers were declared legal adults and began ruling the Margraviate jointly.
. They had four children:
Margrave
A margrave or margravine was a medieval hereditary nobleman with military responsibilities in a border province of a kingdom. Border provinces usually had more exposure to military incursions from the outside, compared to interior provinces, and thus a margrave usually had larger and more active...
of Brandenburg
Margraviate of Brandenburg
The Margraviate of Brandenburg was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806. Also known as the March of Brandenburg , it played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe....
from 1205 until his death in 1220.
Life
Albert II was the youngest son of Otto IOtto I, Margrave of Brandenburg
Otto I was the second Margrave of Brandenburg, from 1170 until his death.-Life:Otto I was born into the House of Ascania as the eldest son of Albert I , who founded the Margraviate of Brandenburg in 1157, and his wife Sophie von Winzenburg...
and his wife Judith of Poland and a grandson of Albert the Bear, founder of the Margraviate of Brandenburg
Margraviate of Brandenburg
The Margraviate of Brandenburg was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806. Also known as the March of Brandenburg , it played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe....
in 1157.
Albert II inherited the Margraviate in 1205, after the death of his eldest brother Otto II
Otto II, Margrave of Brandenburg
Otto II , called The Generous , was the third Margrave of Brandenburg from 1184 until his death.-Life:Otto II was born into the House of Ascania as the eldest son of Otto I and Judith, a daughter of the Piast Duke of Poland Bolesław III Wrymouth.After succeeding his father, he improved the defense...
.
Albert II was, from 1184 onwards, Count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
of Arneburg
Arneburg
Arneburg is a town in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Elbe, approx. 12 km northeast of Stendal. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde Arneburg-Goldbeck.-History:...
in the Altmark
Altmark
The Altmark is a historic region in Germany, comprising the northern third of Saxony-Anhalt. As the initial territory of the Brandenburg margraves, it is sometimes referred to as the "Cradle of Prussia", as by Otto von Bismarck, a native from Schönhausen near Stendal.- Geography :The Altmark is...
. The Altmark belonged to Brandenburg
Margraviate of Brandenburg
The Margraviate of Brandenburg was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806. Also known as the March of Brandenburg , it played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe....
, and Otto II claimed that this implied that the Ascanians owned Arneburg. Otto temporarily imprisoned Albert in 1194, for unknown reasons.
Since 1184 was Albert II Count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
by Arneburg
Arneburg
Arneburg is a town in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Elbe, approx. 12 km northeast of Stendal. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde Arneburg-Goldbeck.-History:...
in the of Otto II and claimed belonging to Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
Altmark
Altmark
The Altmark is a historic region in Germany, comprising the northern third of Saxony-Anhalt. As the initial territory of the Brandenburg margraves, it is sometimes referred to as the "Cradle of Prussia", as by Otto von Bismarck, a native from Schönhausen near Stendal.- Geography :The Altmark is...
. Albert participated in the Third Crusade
Third Crusade
The Third Crusade , also known as the Kings' Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin...
(1189-1192). After his return, he was imprisoned in 1194 by Otto for unexplained reasons. In 1198, he was present at the inaugural meeting of the Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
in 1198 in Acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
.
In the dispute about the imperial crown between the Houses of Hohenstaufen
Hohenstaufen
The House of Hohenstaufen was a dynasty of German kings in the High Middle Ages, lasting from 1138 to 1254. Three of these kings were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In 1194 the Hohenstaufens also became Kings of Sicily...
and Guelph in the early 13th century, Albert initially supported the Hohenstaun King Philip of Swabia
Philip of Swabia
Philip of Swabia was king of Germany and duke of Swabia, the rival of the emperor Otto IV.-Biography:Philip was the fifth and youngest son of Emperor Frederick I and Beatrice I, Countess of Burgundy, daughter of Renaud III, count of Burgundy, and brother of the emperor Henry VI...
, like Otto before him. After Philip's assasination in 1208, however, he changed sides, because Emperor Otto IV
Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto IV of Brunswick was one of two rival kings of the Holy Roman Empire from 1198 on, sole king from 1208 on, and emperor from 1209 on. The only king of the Welf dynasty, he incurred the wrath of Pope Innocent III and was excommunicated in 1215.-Early life:Otto was the third son of Henry the...
had assisted him in securing the Margraviate against the Danes, and had confirmed Ascanian ownership of Brandenburg in a deed in 1212.
During this period, Albert II had a lengthy dispute with Archbishop Albert I
Albert I of Käfernburg
Albert I of Käfernburg was the eighteenth Archbishop of Magdeburg.He was the son of Gunther III, Count of Käfernburg, and began his studies at Hildesheim, completing them later at Paris and Bologna. At an early age he was made a prebendary of the Magdeburg cathedral, and in 1200 was appointed...
of Magdeburg
Diocese of Magdeburg
The Diocese of Magdeburg is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church located in the Germany. Its seat is Magdeburg; it is suffragan to the Archdiocese of Paderborn....
. He also played an important rôle in the Brandenburg tithe dispute.
Albert II definitively secured the regions of Teltow, Prignitz
Prignitz
Prignitz is a Kreis in the northwestern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring are the district Ludwigslust-Parchim in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the district Ostprignitz-Ruppin in Brandenburg, the district Stendal in Saxony-Anhalt and the district Lüchow-Dannenberg in Lower...
and parts of the Uckermark
Uckermark
Uckermark is a Kreis in the northeastern part of Brandenburg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Barnim and Oberhavel, the districts Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Vorpommern-Greifswald in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and to the east Poland . It is the largest district of Germany areawise...
for the Margraviate of Brandenburg, but lost Pomerania
Pomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
to the House of Griffins.
His grandfather Albert the Bear is consider the founder of the Margraviate of Brandenburg. His father Otto I promoted and directed the foundation of German settlement in the area, which had been predominantly Slavic until the 12th century. Stephan Warnatsch describes Otto I's children as follows:
[They] drove off the territorialization initiated and, from the end of the 12th Century, when in the influx of settlers
Ostsiedlung
Ostsiedlung , also called German eastward expansion, was the medieval eastward migration and settlement of Germans from modern day western and central Germany into less-populated regions and countries of eastern Central Europe and Eastern Europe. The affected area roughly stretched from Slovenia...
grew stronger, and, consequently, more people were available to develop the territory, started to expand into the areas of Ruppin, and especially Barnim and Teltow. Moreover, the Oder
Oder
The Oder is a river in Central Europe. It rises in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...
region and the southern Uckermark were also targets of the Ascanian expansion. In all these areas, the Ascanians ran into opposition from competing local princes.
Albert II died in 1220. At the time, his two sons were still minors. Initially, archbishop Albert I of Magdeburg acted as regent. In 1221, however, Albert's widow, Countess Matilda, took up the regency. After her death in 1225, the brothers were declared legal adults and began ruling the Margraviate jointly.
Marriage and issue
In 1205, Albert married Matilda of Groitzsch (1185-1225), daughter of the Count Conrad II of Lausitz, a member of the House of Wettin, and wife Elizabeth, from the Polish Piast dynastyPiast dynasty
The Piast dynasty was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. It began with the semi-legendary Piast Kołodziej . The first historical ruler was Duke Mieszko I . The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir the Great...
. They had four children:
- John I (born: ; died: 4 April 1266)
- Otto III "the Pious" (born: 1215; died: 9 October 1267)
- Matilda (died: 10 June 1261), married in 1228 Duke Otto I "the Child"Otto I, Duke of Brunswick-LüneburgOtto I of Brunswick-Lüneburg was the first duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg from 1235 until his death. He is called Otto the Child to distinguish him from his uncle, Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor.-Early years:...
of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1204-1252), a member of the House of Guelph - Elizabeth (born: 1207; died: 19 November 1231), married in 1228 Landgrave Henry Raspe of ThuringiaThuringiaThe Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
(1201-1247)