Philip of Nassau or Filips of Nassau (born:, 1 December 1566 in Dillenburg

Dillenburg

Dillenburg is a town in Hesse's Gießen region in Germany. The town was formerly the seat of the old Dillkreis district, which is now part of the Lahn-Dill-Kreis....

; died:, 3 September 1595 in Rheinberg

Rheinberg

Rheinberg is a town in the district of Wesel, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Rhine, approx. north of Moers and south of Wesel....

) was a Count of Nassau

House of Nassau

The House of Nassau is a diversified aristocratic dynasty in Europe. It is named after the lordship associated with Nassau Castle, located in present-day Nassau, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The lords of Nassau were originally titled Count of Nassau, then elevated to the princely class as...

, Katzenelbogen

County of Katzenelnbogen

The County of Katzenelnbogen was an immediate state of the Holy Roman Empire. It existed between 1095 and 1479, when it was inherited by the Landgraves of Hesse.The estate comprised two separate territories...

, Vianden

Vianden

Vianden is a commune with city status in the Oesling, north-eastern Luxembourg, with over 1,500 inhabitants. It is the capital of the canton of Vianden, which is part of the district of Diekirch. Vianden lies on the Our river, near the border between Luxembourg and Germany., the town of Vianden,...

 and Dietz

Dietz

Dietz is a surname, and may refer to:* August Dietz , a philatelist, editor and publisher* Cyrus E. Dietz , Illinois Supreme Court Justice* Danny Dietz , United States Navy SEAL and recipient of the Navy Cross...

, fought for the United Provinces

Dutch Republic

The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...

 during the Eighty Years' War. He was the son of John VI and Countess Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg

Countess Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg

Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg was the daughter of Landgrave George III of Leuchtenberg and Margravine Barbara of Brandenburg-Ansbach.-Marriage and issue:...

.

Philip studied with his brother William Louis

William Louis, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg

William Louis of Nassau-Dillenburg was Count of Nassau-Dillenburg from 1606 to 1620, and stadtholder of Friesland, Groningen, and Drenthe. He was the eldest son of John VI, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg.William Louis served as a cavalry officer under William the Silent...

 and his cousin Maurice

Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange

Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange was sovereign Prince of Orange from 1618, on the death of his eldest half brother, Philip William, Prince of Orange,...

 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...

, and later with his cousin Maurice in Leiden. He then spent some time in the retinue of his uncle William the Silent

William the Silent

William I, Prince of Orange , also widely known as William the Silent , or simply William of Orange , was the main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish that set off the Eighty Years' War and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. He was born in the House of...

, who called him Flipchen ("Flippy"). Later, he enlisted in the Dutch States Army

Dutch States Army

The Dutch States Army was the army of the Dutch Republic. It was usually called this, because it was formally the army of the States-General of the Netherlands, the sovereign power of that federal republic...

 and in 1585 he became Colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

 of the infantry

Infantry

Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...

.

From 1586 to 1587, Philip was governor of Gorinchem

Gorinchem

Gorinchem , also called Gorkum , is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 21.99 km² of which 3.03 km² is water...

, then in 1591, after the Siege of Nijmegen, he was governor of Nijmegen. From Nijmegen Philip started a campaign in Luxembourg, where he engaged the Spanish enemy. In 1594, he participated in the Reduction of Groningen. Then, on 2 September 1595, he commanded more than 500 cavalry

Cavalry

Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...

, in the battle on the Lippe, along with his brothers Louis Gunther and Ernst Casimir

Ernst Casimir

Ernst Casimir I of Nassau-Dietz was count of Nassau-Dietz and Stadtholder of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe.-Biography:...

. During the battle, Philip got seriously injured. The next day he died.

He was buried on 22 October 1595 in the St Eusebius' Church in Arnhem

Arnhem

Arnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...

.