Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken
Encyclopedia
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:...
and Duke of Zweibrücken
Zweibrücken
Zweibrücken is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach river.- Name :Zweibrücken appears in Latin texts as Geminus Pons and Bipontum, in French texts as Deux-Ponts. The name derives from Middle High German Zweinbrücken...
1532–1559.
Biography
He was the only son of Louis II, Count Palatine of ZweibrückenLouis II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken
Louis II of Zweibrücken was Count Palatine and Duke of Zweibrücken from 1514 to 1532.He was the son of Alexander, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken and his wife Margarete of Hohenlohe-Neuenstein. He was married in 1525 to Elisabeth of Hesse, daughter of William I, Landgrave of Lower Hesse, and they...
and his wife Elisabeth of Hesse
Elisabeth of Hesse (1503–1563)
Elisabeth of Hesse was a Landgravine of Hesse by birth and by marriage Countess Palatine of Zweibrücken and later Countess Palatine of Simmern.- Life :...
, daughter of William I, Landgrave of Hesse
William I, Landgrave of Hesse
William I of Hesse was the Landgrave of Hesse from 1471 to 1493.His parents were Louis the Frank and Mechthild, daughter of Count Louis I of Württemberg...
. His father died in 1532, so the regency of Palatinate-Zweibrücken passed to Louis' younger brother Rupert
Rupert, Count Palatine of Veldenz
Rupert was the Duke of Veldenz from 1543 until 1544.-Life:Rupert was born in Zweibrücken in 1506 as the youngest son of Alexander, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken. As a younger son, Rupert was designated by his father into a church career. In 1517 he became a member of the Cathedral of Strasbourg,...
until 1543. In 1557 Wolfgang received the territory 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:...
in accordance with the Contract of 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 1548 the Holy Roman Emperor
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...
Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
occupied his Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
territories and reintroduced Catholic practices. This imposition ended in 1552. The Peace of Augsburg
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg, also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V and the forces of the Schmalkaldic League, an alliance of Lutheran princes, on September 25, 1555, at the imperial city of Augsburg, now in present-day Bavaria, Germany.It officially ended the religious...
of 1555 ended the religious conflict, and in 1557 several ecclesiastical states in Germany were secularised, a few of which Wolfgang obtained. In 1566 he served as a cavalry officer in the Turkish Wars
Ottoman wars in Europe
The wars of the Ottoman Empire in Europe are also sometimes referred to as the Ottoman Wars or as Turkish Wars, particularly in older, European texts.- Rise :...
.
In 1569 he came to the aid of French Huguenots with 14,000 mercenaries during the "Third War" of the French Wars of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
(his intervention was financed by Queen Elizabeth I of England). He invaded Burgundy, but was killed in the conflict.
He was buried in Meisenheim
Meisenheim
Meisenheim is a town in the district of Bad Kreuznach, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Glan, approx. 25 km south-west of Bad Kreuznach.Meisenheim is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde Meisenheim....
.
Succession
After his death Wolfgangs land was split for his five sons who then created three branches:Philip Louis (House 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:...
), John (House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken
Palatinate-Zweibrücken
Palatinate-Zweibrücken is a former state of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Zweibrücken.-Overview:→ History before 1394 see main article County of Zweibrücken→ History before 1444 see main article County of Veldenz...
) and Charles (House of Palatinate-Birkenfeld
House of Palatinate-Birkenfeld
Palatinate-Birkenfeld , later Palatinate-Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld, was the name of a collateral line of the Palatine Wittelsbachs. The Counts Palatine from this line initially ruled over only a relatively unimportant territory, namely the Palatine share of the Rear County of Sponheim; however, their...
). Otto Henry and Frederick had no surviving sons.
The House of Palatinate-Neuburg inherited the Electoral Palatinate in 1685 and by its cadet branch Palatinate-Sulzbach
Palatinate-Sulzbach
Palatinate-Sulzbach was the name of two separate states of the Holy Roman Empire located in modern Amberg-Sulzbach, Bavaria, Germany.-Palatinate-Sulzbach :...
also Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
in 1777.
The House of Palatinate-Birkenfeld then inherited the Electoral Palatinate and Bavaria in 1799.
The House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken contributed to the monarchy in Sweden from 1654 onwards through its cadet branch Palatinate-Zweibrücken-Kleeburg
House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken
The House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was the Royal House of Sweden from 1654 to 1720.By this point it had splintered into several different houses...
.
Family and children
He was married in 1545 to Anna of HesseAnna of Hesse
Anna of Hesse was a princess of Hesse by birth and marriage Countess Palatine of Zweibrücken.- Life :...
, daughter of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse
Philip I of Hesse, , nicknamed der Großmütige was a leading champion of the Protestant Reformation and one of the most important of the early Protestant rulers in Germany....
. They had the following children:
- Christine (1546 – 1619).
- Philip Louis (1547–1614), married Anna (1552–1632), daughter of William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-BergWilhelm, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-BergWilliam of Jülich-Cleves-Berg was a Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg .William was born in and died in Düsseldorf. He was the only son of John III, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, and Maria, Duchess of Jülich-Berg. William took over rule of his father's estates upon his death in 1539...
. - John IJohn I, Count Palatine of ZweibrückenJohn I of Zweibrücken was Count Palatine and Duke of Zweibrücken during 1569-1604.He was born in Meisenheim as the second son of Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken and his wife Anna of Hesse. In 1588 he changed the state religion from Lutheranism to Calvinism...
(1550–1604), married MagdaleneMagdalene of Jülich-Cleves-BergDuchess Magdalene of Jülich-Cleves-Berg was the fifth child of Duke William "the rich" of Jülich-Cleves-Berg and Maria of Austria, a daughter of Emperor Ferdinand I....
(1553–1633), daughter of William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-BergWilhelm, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-BergWilliam of Jülich-Cleves-Berg was a Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg .William was born in and died in Düsseldorf. He was the only son of John III, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, and Maria, Duchess of Jülich-Berg. William took over rule of his father's estates upon his death in 1539...
, ancestor of e.g. Charles X Gustav of SwedenCharles X Gustav of SwedenCharles X Gustav also Carl Gustav, was King of Sweden from 1654 until his death. He was the son of John Casimir, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg and Catherine of Sweden. After his father's death he also succeeded him as Pfalzgraf. He was married to Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein-Gottorp, who...
. - Dorothea Agnes (1551–1552).
- Elisabeth (1553–1554).
- Anna (1554–1576).
- Elisabeth (1555–1625).
- Otto HenryOtto Henry, Count Palatine of SulzbachOtto Henry of Sulzbach was the Count Palatine of Sulzbach from 1569 until 1604.-Life:Otto Henry was born in Amberg in 1556 as one of five sons of Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken. After his father's death in 1569, his lands were partitioned between Otto Henry and his four brothers - Otto...
(1556–1604). - FrederickFrederick, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Vohenstrauss-ParksteinFrederick of Zweibrücken-Vohenstrauss-Parkstein was the Duke of Vohenstrauss-Parkstein from 1569 until 1597.-Life:...
(1557–1597). - Barbara (1559 – 1618), married on 7 November 1591 Count Gottfried of Oettingen-Oettingen.
- Charles ICharles I, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-BirkenfeldCharles I of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld , Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke in Bavaria, Count to Veldenz and Sponheim was the Duke of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld from 1569 until 1600.-Life:...
(1560–1600), married Dorothea of Brunswick-LüneburgBrunswick-LüneburgThe Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg , or more properly Duchy of Brunswick and Lüneburg, was an historical ducal state from the late Middle Ages until the late Early Modern era within the North-Western domains of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, in what is now northern Germany...
and became ancestor to the line of Palatinate-Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld and the Dukes in BavariaDuke in BavariaDuke in Bavaria was a title used among others since 1506, when primogeniture was established, by all members of the House of Wittelsbach, with the exception of the Duke of Bavaria which began to be a unique position...
. - Maria Elisabeth (1561–1629), married in 1585 Count Emich XII of Leiningen-Dagsburg-Hardenburg.
- Susanna (1564–1565).