Otto Henry, Elector Palatine
Encyclopedia
Amberg
Amberg is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the Upper Palatinate, roughly halfway between Regensburg and Bayreuth. Population: 44,756 .- History :...
– 12 February 1559, Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
) a member of the Wittelsbach
Wittelsbach
The Wittelsbach family is a European royal family and a German dynasty from Bavaria.Members of the family served as Dukes, Electors and Kings of Bavaria , Counts Palatine of the Rhine , Margraves of Brandenburg , Counts of Holland, Hainaut and Zeeland , Elector-Archbishops of Cologne , Dukes of...
dynasty was Count Palatine
Count palatine
Count palatine is a high noble title, used to render several comital styles, in some cases also shortened to Palatine, which can have other meanings as well.-Comes palatinus:...
of Palatinate-Neuburg
Palatinate-Neuburg
Palatinate-Neuburg is a former territory of the Holy Roman Empire, founded in 1505. Its capital was Neuburg an der Donau. Its area was about 2,750 km², with a population of some 100,000.-History:...
from 1505 to 1559 and prince elector of the Palatinate from 1556 to 1559. He was a son of Rupert, Count Palatine, third son of Philip, Elector Palatine
Philip, Elector Palatine
Philip the Upright, Elector Palatine of the Rhine was an Elector Palatine of the Rhine from the house of Wittelsbach from 1476 to 1508....
; and of Elizabeth of Bavaria-Landshut, daughter of George of Bavaria
George of Bavaria
George of Bavaria referred to as the Rich , was the last Duke of Bavaria-Landshut...
.
Life
As grandson of George of BavariaGeorge of Bavaria
George of Bavaria referred to as the Rich , was the last Duke of Bavaria-Landshut...
, the young Otto Henry became regent of the new duchy of Palatinate-Neuburg
Palatinate-Neuburg
Palatinate-Neuburg is a former territory of the Holy Roman Empire, founded in 1505. Its capital was Neuburg an der Donau. Its area was about 2,750 km², with a population of some 100,000.-History:...
after the Palatinate had lost the Landshut War of Succession
Landshut War of Succession
The Landshut War of Succession resulted from an agreement between the duchies of Bavaria-Munich and Bavaria-Landshut . The agreement concerned the law of succession when one of the two Dukes should die without a male heir...
against Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria
Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria
Duke Albert IV of Bavaria-Munich , , from 1467 Duke of Bavaria-Munich, from 1503 Duke of the reunited Bavaria.-Biography:...
. Otto Henry patronised the arts and was involved in several conflicts, due to his expensive holding of court a huge burden of debts caused his bankruptcy until he inherited the Electoral Palatinate in 1556. He then re-introduced the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
.
Otto Henry married Susanna of Bavaria
Susanna of Bavaria
Susanna of Bavaria was a German noblewoman. Born in Munich, she was the daughter of Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria, and Kunigunde of Austria, herself the daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III and Eleanor of Portugal...
(1502–43), daughter of Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria
Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria
Duke Albert IV of Bavaria-Munich , , from 1467 Duke of Bavaria-Munich, from 1503 Duke of the reunited Bavaria.-Biography:...
, on October 16, 1529 in Neuburg an der Donau. He was her second husband after Casimir, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth
Casimir, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth
Casimir of Brandenburg-Bayreuth was Margrave of Bayreuth from 1515 to 1527.- Family background :...
. They had no children, but Susanna brought five of her eleven children to the marriage. She left him a widower 14 years later in 1543.
Otto Henry died in Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
in 1559. He is buried in the Heiliggeistkirche in Heidelberg.