William, Margrave of Meissen
Encyclopedia
William IV was the count of Weimar
and Orlamünde
after the death of his father, William III. In 1046, Eckard II, Margrave of Meissen
, died and willed his margraviate to the Emperor Henry III. The emperor received it and promptly granted it to William, who, through the second marriage of his mother Oda, inherited also the Ostmark
from the Margrave Dedi. With the loss of the Thuringia
n march, William had the same territory as the old Margrave Eckard II
.
On the death of the Emperor in 1056, he was a loyal follower of the regent
, the Empress Agnes of Poitou. He was highly in favour with the empress, who gave him command alongside Eppo, Bishop of Naumburg, of the army in the campaign in support of Andrew I of Hungary against his brother Bela, Duke of Nitra. The German army was soon in retreat and, at the Theben Pass near Wieselburg
, William and Eppo were captured. However, Bela's son Geza
, impressed by William's courage, induced his father to not only release him, but give him his daughter Sophia in marriage. Before the two could be wed, however, William fell ill and died on his homeward journey in 1062.
Weimar
Weimar is a city in Germany famous for its cultural heritage. It is located in the federal state of Thuringia , north of the Thüringer Wald, east of Erfurt, and southwest of Halle and Leipzig. Its current population is approximately 65,000. The oldest record of the city dates from the year 899...
and Orlamünde
Orlamünde
Orlamünde is a town in the Saale-Holzland district, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Saale and Orla, 17 km south of Jena. It was the centre of a county, often united to Weimar, in the Early Middle Ages....
after the death of his father, William III. In 1046, Eckard II, Margrave of Meissen
Eckard II, Margrave of Meissen
Eckard II was the margrave of Meissen from 1038 until his death, succeeding his brother, Herman I. His line was descended from Eckard I...
, died and willed his margraviate to the Emperor Henry III. The emperor received it and promptly granted it to William, who, through the second marriage of his mother Oda, inherited also the Ostmark
Saxon Eastern March
The Saxon Eastern March or Ostmark was a march of the Holy Roman Empire from the 10th until the 12th century. The term "eastern march" or "ostmark" comes from the Latin term marchia Orientalis and originally could refer to either a march created on the eastern frontier of the Duchy of Saxony or...
from the Margrave Dedi. With the loss of the Thuringia
Thuringia
The 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....
n march, William had the same territory as the old Margrave Eckard II
Eckard II, Margrave of Meissen
Eckard II was the margrave of Meissen from 1038 until his death, succeeding his brother, Herman I. His line was descended from Eckard I...
.
On the death of the Emperor in 1056, he was a loyal follower of the regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
, the Empress Agnes of Poitou. He was highly in favour with the empress, who gave him command alongside Eppo, Bishop of Naumburg, of the army in the campaign in support of Andrew I of Hungary against his brother Bela, Duke of Nitra. The German army was soon in retreat and, at the Theben Pass near Wieselburg
Wieselburg
Wieselburg is a town in Lower Austria, Austria, located near the River Erlauf. Its name roughly translates to castle where two rivers meet, as there are two rivers that run together to create the Erlauf...
, William and Eppo were captured. However, Bela's son Geza
Géza I of Hungary
Géza I was King of Hungary from 1074 until his death. During King Solomon's rule he governed, as Duke, one third of the Kingdom of Hungary. Afterwards, Géza rebelled against his cousin's reign and his followers proclaimed him king...
, impressed by William's courage, induced his father to not only release him, but give him his daughter Sophia in marriage. Before the two could be wed, however, William fell ill and died on his homeward journey in 1062.
Sources
- ADB:Wilhelm (Graf von Weimar-Orlamünde) at German WikisourceWikisourceWikisource is an online digital library of free content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Its aims are to host all forms of free text, in many languages, and translations. Originally conceived as an archive to store useful or important historical texts, it has...
.