The House of La Marck, original German name von der Mar(c)k, was an important family in the history of Europe, which from about 1200 appeared as the Counts of Mark.

History

The family history started with Count Adolf I, scion of a cadet branch of the Rhenish Berg

Berg (state)

Berg was a state – originally a county, later a duchy – in the Rhineland of Germany. Its capital was Düsseldorf. It existed from the early 12th to the 19th centuries.-Ascent:...

 dynasty residing at Altena

Altena

Altena is a town in the district of Märkischer Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town's castle is the origin for the later Dukes of Berg. Altena is situated on the Lenne river valley, in the northern streches of the Sauerland.-History:...

 Castle in Westphalia

Westphalia

Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...

. In the early 13th century Adolf took his residence at his family's estates around Mark, a settlement in present-day Hamm

Hamm

Hamm is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany. It is located in the northeastern part of the Ruhr area. As of December 2003 its population was 180,849. The city is situated between the A1 motorway and A2 motorway...

-Uentrop. Adolf had inherited the Mark fortress from his father Count Frederick I of Berg-Altena (d. 1198) together with the older county around Altena and began to call himself Count de La Mark.

Originally liensmen of the Archbishops of Cologne in the Duchy of Westphalia

Duchy of Westphalia

The Duchy of Westphalia was a historic territory in the greater region of Westphalia, located in the east of modern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Originally, Westphalia formed with Angria and Eastphalia one of the three main regions of Saxony...

, the family reigned the County of Mark, an immediate state of the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...

, and, at the height of their powers, the four duchies of Julich

Duchy of Jülich

The Duchy of Jülich comprised a state within the Holy Roman Empire from the 11th to the 18th centuries. The duchy lay left of the Rhine river between the Electorate of Cologne in the east and the Duchy of Limburg in the west. It had territories on both sides of the river Rur, around its capital...

, Cleves

Duchy of Cleves

The Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...

, Berg

Berg (state)

Berg was a state – originally a county, later a duchy – in the Rhineland of Germany. Its capital was Düsseldorf. It existed from the early 12th to the 19th centuries.-Ascent:...

 and Guelders

Guelders

Guelders or Gueldres is the name of a historical county, later duchy of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries.-Geography:...

 as well as the County of Ravensberg. Members of the family became Bishops in the Prince-Bishoprics of Liège, Münster

Münster

Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...

 and Osnabrück

Osnabrück

Osnabrück is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, some 80 km NNE of Dortmund, 45 km NE of Münster, and some 100 km due west of Hanover. It lies in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest...

, and Archbishop

Archbishop

An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...

s in Cologne

Cologne

Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...

. Later collateral lines became Dukes of Bouillon, a title which was later inherited by the House of La Tour d'Auvergne, Princes of Sedan

Prince of Sedan

The Prince of Sedan was the ruler of the independent Principality of Sedan , a Renaissance state centered on modern Sedan, Ardennes.-History:...

, Dukes of Nevers, Counts of Rethel and so forth.
Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves was a German noblewoman and the fourth wife of Henry VIII of England and as such she was Queen of England from 6 January 1540 to 9 July 1540. The marriage was never consummated, and she was not crowned queen consort...

 is one of the most renowned figures in history descending from the main line of the House of La Mark.

Notable members

• Adolph de la Marck (1288-1344) was Prince-Bishop of Liège from 1313 until 1344
• Adolph II of the Marck
  Adolph II of the Marck
  Adolph II of the Marck was Count of the Marck.He was the eldest son of Engelbert II of the Marck and Mechtild of Arenberg....
  
   the son of Engelbert I of the Marck and Mechtild of Arberg
• Engelbert III of the Mark
  Engelbert III of the Mark
  Engelbert III of the Mark was the Count of Mark from 1347 until 1391.Adolph was the eldest son of Count Adolph II of the Marck and Margaret of Cleves. After his father died in 1347, Engelbert III ruled the County of Mark, mainly from Burg Blankenstein in 1393.In his time, he was the leading...
  
   (1333–1391) was a son of Count Adolph II of Mark.
• Adolf III de la Marck (1334–1394) was a son of Count Adolph II. He was bishop of Münster and later archbishop of Cologne
  Cologne
  Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
  
  . In 1364 he left his position as bishop of Cologne to his cousin Engelbert III, to become Count of Cleves. {See Duchy of Cleves
  Duchy of Cleves
  The Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...
  
  .}
• Engelbert de la Marck
  Engelbert III of the Marck, Archbishop of Cologne
  Engelbert III von der Mark was the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne from 1364 until 1368 and the Prince-Bishop of Liège from 1345 until 1364....
  
   (1304–1368) was prince-bishop of Liège from 1345 until 1364. He was also archbishop of Cologne from 1364 until 1369.

• William I de la Marck was the younger brother of Erard III de la Marck. He was nicknamed Le Sanglier des Ardennes ("The Wild Boar of the Ardennes").
• Erard de la Marck
  Erard de la Marck
  Erard de la Marck was prince-bishop of Liège from 1506 till 1538. He was the third son of Robert I de la Marck, lord of Sedan and Bouillon....
  
   (1472–1538), nephew of William I, was prince-bishop from 1506 till 1538.
• Robert II de la Marck, nephew of William I, was Duke of Bouillon
  Bouillon
  Bouillon is a municipality in Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Luxembourg Province.The municipality, which covers 149.09 km², had 5,477 inhabitants, giving a population density of 36.7 inhabitants per km².- History :...
  
  , seigneur of Sedan
  Sedan, France
  Sedan is a commune in France, a sub-prefecture of the Ardennes department in northern France.-Geography:The historic centre is built on a peninsula formed by an arc of the Meuse River. It is around from the Belgian border.-History:...
  
   and Fleuranges.
• Robert III de la Marck
  Robert Fleuranges III de la Marck
  Robert III de La Marck , Seigneur of Fleuranges, Marshal of France and historian, was the son of Robert II de La Marck; Duke of Bouillon, Seigneur of Sedan and Fleuranges, whose uncle was the celebrated William de La Marck, The Wild Boar of the Ardennes...
  
   (1491-1537), son of Robert II, was Marshal of France
  Marshal of France
  The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
  
   in 1526 and historian
  Historian
  A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
  
  .
• Robert IV de la Marck (1520–1556) was Duke of Bouillon and Prince of Sedan, and Marshal of France in 1547.
• William II de la Marck (1542–1578) was admiral of the Gueux de mer, the so-called 'sea beggars' who fought in the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648). He was the great-grandson of William I de la Marck.

In 1591 the heiress of one of the collateral lines of the family, Charlotte de la Marck

Charlotte de La Marck

Charlotte de La Marck was a member of the House of La Marck and Duchess of Bouillon in her own right. She married into the House of La Tour d'Auvergne but died without issue.-Biography:...

, was married to Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne

Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, vicomte de Turenne, duc de Bouillon

Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne was a member of the powerful, House of La Tour d'Auvergne, Prince of Sedan and a marshal of France.-Biography:The vicomte de Turenne was born at the castle of...

, Marshal of France. In 1594 Charlotte died without issue, and her claims to Bouillon passed to her husband.

• Louis Pierre Engelbert, Comte de la Marck (1674–1750)
• Louis Engelbert, Compte de la Marck (1701–1773) He was the last male descendant of the Counts de la Marck, so his title Compte de la Marck was passed on to his grandson through his daughter, Louise-Marguerite, who married Charles Marie Raymond of Arenberg
  Charles Marie Raymond of Arenberg
  Charles Marie Raymond d'Arenberg was the fifth Duke of Arenberg, 11th Duke of Aarschot and an Austrian Field Marshal.-Biography:...
  
  .
• Auguste Marie Raymond, Comte de la Marck
  Auguste Marie Raymond, Comte de la Marck
  Auguste Marie Raymond d'Arenberg, Prince of Arenberg, Count of La Marck Auguste-Marie-Raymond, Count de la Marck was the second son and fourth child of Charles, 5th Duke of Arenberg, the head of the House of Arenberg, and who still held the rank of sovereign princes, was born on the 30 August,...
  
   (1753–1833)

Counts of Mark

1. Adolf I (d. 1249), first documented as comes de Marca in 1202
   1. Engelbert I (d. 1277)
      1. Eberhard (d. 1308)
         1. Engelbert II
            Engelbert II of the Mark
            Engelbert II of the Mark was Count of the Mark and through marriage, Count of Arenberg.- Family :He was the son and heir of Count Eberhard II and his wife, Irmgard of Berg. On January 25, 1299, he married Mechtilde von Arenberg , daughter of Johann of Arenberg and Katharina of Jülich...
            
             (d. 1328)
            1. Adolf II
               Adolph II of the Marck
               Adolph II of the Marck was Count of the Marck.He was the eldest son of Engelbert II of the Marck and Mechtild of Arenberg....
               
                (d. 1346), married Margaret of Cleves
               Duchy of Cleves
               The Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...
               
                in 1332
               1. Engelbert III
                  Engelbert III of the Mark
                  Engelbert III of the Mark was the Count of Mark from 1347 until 1391.Adolph was the eldest son of Count Adolph II of the Marck and Margaret of Cleves. After his father died in 1347, Engelbert III ruled the County of Mark, mainly from Burg Blankenstein in 1393.In his time, he was the leading...
                  
                   (d. 1391)
               2. Adolf III
                  Adolf III of the Marck
                  Adolph III of the Marck was the Bishop of Münster from 1357 until 1363, the Archbishop of Cologne in 1363, the Count of Cleves from 1368 until 1394, and the Count of Mark from 1391 until 1393.Adolph was the second son of Count Adolph II of the Marck...
                  
                   (1334-1394), Count of Cleves from 1368 → see below
            2. Engelbert
               Engelbert III of the Marck, Archbishop of Cologne
               Engelbert III von der Mark was the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne from 1364 until 1368 and the Prince-Bishop of Liège from 1345 until 1364....
               
                (1304-1368), Prince-Bishop of Liège 1345-1364, Archbishop of Cologne 1364-68
            3. Eberhard I (d. about 1378), Count of Arenberg → see below
         2. Adolf (1288-1344), Prince-Bishop of Liège 1313-1344

Dukes of Cleves—Mark

1. Adolf III
   Adolf III of the Marck
   Adolph III of the Marck was the Bishop of Münster from 1357 until 1363, the Archbishop of Cologne in 1363, the Count of Cleves from 1368 until 1394, and the Count of Mark from 1391 until 1393.Adolph was the second son of Count Adolph II of the Marck...
   
    (1334-1394), second son of Adolf II with Margaret of Cleves, Prince-bishop of Münster 1357-1363 and Archbishop of Cologne in 1363, inherited the County of Cleves
   Duchy of Cleves
   The Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...
   
    upon the death of his maternal uncle Count Johann
   Johann, Count of Cleves
   Johann was last Count of Cleves, from 1347 through 1368. Upon his death in 1368, the counties of Cleves and Count of Mark were united.The County of Cleves was a comital polity of the Holy Roman Empire in present Germany and the Netherlands...
   
    in 1368 and became Count of Mark upon the death of his elder brother Engelbert III in 1391
   1. Adolph I
      Adolph I, Duke of Cleves
      Adolph I of Cleves was 2nd. Count of Cleves and 4th. Count of Mark.- Life :He was the son of Adolph III, Count of Mark, and Margaret of Julich ....
      
       (1373–1448), Duke of Cleves from 1417
      1. Margaret of Cleves, Duchess of Bavaria-Munich (1416-144)
      2. John I
         John I, Duke of Cleves
         John I, Duke of Cleves, Count of Mark was Duke of Cleves and Count of Mark.- Life :He was the son of Adolph I, Duke of Cleves and Mary of Burgundy...
         
          (1419–1481)
         1. John II
            John II, Duke of Cleves
            John II, "The Pious" or "The Babymaker", Duke of Cleves, Count of Mark, was a son of John I, Duke of Cleves and Elizabeth of Nevers. He ruled Cleves from 1481 to his death in 1521...
            
             (1458–1521)
            1. John III
               John III, Duke of Cleves
               John III the Peaceful, Duke of Cleves and Count of Mark was a son of John II, Duke of Cleves and Matilda of Hesse, daughter of Henry III, Landgrave of Upper Hesse.John III became Regent of the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg in 1521, and Lord of Ravensberg in 1528.John represented...
               
                (1490–1539), married Maria of Jülich-Berg
               Maria of Jülich-Berg
               Maria of Jülich-Berg was born in Jülich, the daughter of Wilhelm IV, Duke of Jülich-Berg and Sibylle of Brandenburg....
               
                in 1509, inherited the duchies of Jülich
               Duchy of Jülich
               The Duchy of Jülich comprised a state within the Holy Roman Empire from the 11th to the 18th centuries. The duchy lay left of the Rhine river between the Electorate of Cologne in the east and the Duchy of Limburg in the west. It had territories on both sides of the river Rur, around its capital...
               
                and Berg
               Berg (state)
               Berg was a state – originally a county, later a duchy – in the Rhineland of Germany. Its capital was Düsseldorf. It existed from the early 12th to the 19th centuries.-Ascent:...
               
                and the County of Ravensberg upon the death of his father-in-law Duke William IV of Jülich-Berg
               William IV, Duke of Jülich-Berg
               William IV of Jülich-Berg was the last ruler of the Duchy of Jülich-Berg.- Life :William was the son of Gerhard VII, Duke of Jülich-Berg and Sophie of Saxe-Lauenburg. When his father died in 1475, William became Duke of Jülich-Berg.He married the rich Countess Elisabeth of Nassau-Saarbrücken in...
               
               , ruled the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg upon the death of his father in 1521
               1. Sybille
                  Sybille of Cleves
                  Sybille of Cleves was Electress consort of Saxony.She was the eldest daughter of John III, Duke of Cleves, and a sister of Anne of Cleves and Amalia of Cleves. Sybille's mother was Maria of Jülich-Berg .In September, 1526 Sybille married John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony...
                  
                   (1512–1554), married to Elector John Frederick of Saxony
                  John Frederick, Elector of Saxony
                  John Frederick I of Saxony , called John the Magnanimous, was Elector of Saxony and Head of the Protestant Confederation of Germany , "Champion of the Reformation".-Early years:...
                  
                  
               2. Anne
                  Anne of Cleves
                  Anne of Cleves was a German noblewoman and the fourth wife of Henry VIII of England and as such she was Queen of England from 6 January 1540 to 9 July 1540. The marriage was never consummated, and she was not crowned queen consort...
                  
                   (1515–1557), married to King Henry VIII of England
                  Henry VIII of England
                  Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
                  
                  
               3. William the Rich (1516–1592), married Maria of Habsburg, Archduchess of Austria and daughter of Emperor Ferdinand I
                  Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
                  Ferdinand I was Holy Roman Emperor from 1558 and king of Bohemia and Hungary from 1526 until his death. Before his accession, he ruled the Austrian hereditary lands of the Habsburgs in the name of his elder brother, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.The key events during his reign were the contest...
                  
                  , claimed the Duchy of Guelders
                  Guelders
                  Guelders or Gueldres is the name of a historical county, later duchy of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries.-Geography:...
                  
                   upon the death of Duke Charles
                  Charles, Duke of Guelders
                  Charles of Egmond was Duke of Guelders, Count of Zutphen between 1492 and his death. He was the son of Adolf of Egmond and Catharine of Bourbon...
                  
                   in 1538
                  1. Marie Eleonore
                     Marie Eleonore of Cleves
                     Marie Eleonore of Cleves was a Duchess consort of Prussia as the wife of Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia. She was the eldest child of Wilhelm, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg and Maria of Austria.- Family :...
                     
                      (1550–1608), married to Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia
                     Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia
                     Albert Frederick was duke of Prussia from 1568 until his death. He was a son of Albert of Prussia and Anna Marie of Brunswick-Lüneburg. He was the second and last Prussian duke of the Ansbach branch of the Hohenzollern family.-Duke of Prussia:...
                     
                     
                  2. John Frederick (1555-1575)
                  3. John William
                     John William, Duke of Julich-Cleves-Berg
                     John William of Jülich-Cleves-Berg was a Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg.His parents were William the Rich, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg and Maria of Austria , a daughter of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor and Anna of Bohemia and Hungary. He grew up and was educated in Xanten. John William became...
                     
                      (1562-1609), extinction of the line, followed by the War of the Jülich succession
                     War of the Jülich Succession
                     The War of the Jülich Succession was a conflict that began in 1609 and ended in 1614 with the signing of the Treaty of Xanten.-Background:...
                     
                     
               4. Amalia
                  Amalia of Cleves
                  Amalia of Cleves was a princess from the house of Von der Mark...
                  
                   (1517–1586)
         2. Engelbert, Count of Nevers
            Engelbert, Count of Nevers
            Engelbert of Cleves, Count of Nevers was the younger son of John I, Duke of Cleves and Elizabeth of Nevers, only surviving child of John II, Count of Nevers....
            
             (1462–1506)
      3. Elisabeth (1420–1488), Countess of Schwarzburg
      4. Agnes
         Agnes of Cleves
         Agnes of Cleves was a daughter of Adolph I, Duke of Cleves and his second wife Mary of Burgundy.Agnes married in 1439 to Charles, Prince of Viana, who was titular King of Navarre. However the couple had no children and Agnes died on April 6 1448, aged only twenty three or twenty four...
         
          (1422–1446), Queen of Navarre
      5. Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein
         Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein
         Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein was the youngest son of Adolph I, Duke of Cleves and of his wife Marie of Burgundy, a sister of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy....
         
          (1425–1492)
      6. Mary (1426–1487), Duchess of Orléans
   2. Dietrich II (1374-1398)

Counts of Marck—Arenberg

1. Eberhard I (d. about 1378)
   1. Erard II von der Mark, Lord of Sedan & Arenberg
      1. Johann II von der Mark, Lord of Sedan & Arenberg
         1. Erard III von der Mark (+ 1496), Lord of Arenberg whose issue will die into the house of Ligne
         2. Robert I de la Marck (+ 1487), Lord of Sedan, chatellain de Bouillon
            1. Robert II de la Marck (1460-1536), Lord of Sedan, Duke of Bouillon
               1. Robert III de la Marck (1491-1537), Lord of Sedan, Duke of Bouillon
                  1. Robert IV de la Marck (1520–1556), Duke of Bouillon, Earl of Braine & Maulevrier, Lord of Sedan.
                     1. Henri Robert de la Marck (1539-1574), Duke of Bouillon, sovereign Prince de Sedan,
                        1. Guillaume Robert de la Marck (1563-1588), Pr of Sedan, Dke de Bouillon, Marquess of Cotron
                           1. Charlotte de la Marck (1574-1594), Dss of Bouillon, Pss de Sedan oo Henri de La Tour D'Auvergne
            2. Erard de la Marck
               Erard de la Marck
               Erard de la Marck was prince-bishop of Liège from 1506 till 1538. He was the third son of Robert I de la Marck, lord of Sedan and Bouillon....
               
                (1472-1538), Prince-bishop of Liège 1506-1538
         3. William von der Marck Le Sanglier des Ardennes
            1. Johann I von der Marck, Baron of Lummen
               1. Johann II von der Marck, Baron of Lummen (1500-1552)
                  1. William II de la Marck, Baron of Lummen, admiral of the Gueux de mer(1542–1578)

External links

Genealogy de la Marck on genealogy.euweb.cz :

• dukes of Cleves
• Arenberg, dukes of Bouillon, William the Wild Boar, Erard de la Mark