Albrecht II (Saxony-Wittenberg)

Albrecht II of Saxe-Wittenberg

. Albert II, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg , also. Albert II (* 1250, † 25. August 1298 in Aken ) from the family of Askanier was elector and Erzmarschall the Holy Roman Empire and founder of the Duchy of Saxony-Wittenberg . He ruled from 1260 to 1298.

Life

After Albrecht I's death on October 7, 1260 and his burial in Lehnin Monastery , his sons, Dukes Johann I (* around 1247 in Wittenberg; † July 30, 1286 in Wittenberg) and Albrecht II jointly took over the rights of one Archmarschall , as well as the upper feudal right over the Lower Saxony counties. Here Johann I took over the role of government over the later area of Saxony-Lauenburg . The younger Albrecht II took over the business of government over the part that later became the Duchy of Saxony-Wittenberg .

After the acquisition of the Burggrafschaft Magdeburg in 1269, a final division into two duchies of Saxony-Lauenburg under the rule of Johann I and Saxony-Wittenberg under the rule of Albrecht II is proven. Its chamber goods extended to Gommern , Ranis , Elbenau and Gottau. The actual burgrave rights, however, lay solely with Albrecht II.

Marriage to Agnes von Habsburg

In the further course of rule it proved to be an advantage to exercise the right to vote (voting vote) as arch marshal in the election of Rudolf I as king on October 24, 1273. The latter gave Albrecht II the hand of his daughter Agnes on the same day, which in turn provoked a certain political benevolence from the king. So Albrecht Lübeck was assigned as guardian, where he could expand his benefices.

Johann I von Sachsen-Lauenburg resigned the right of government to his sons in 1282 after about 20 years of his unfortunate government and appointed Albrecht II as guardian during their minority period. Johann I joined the Franciscan monastery in Wittenberg after his tenure and became its head ( Guardian ). He died on July 30, 1285 in Wittenberg.

Palatine County of Saxony

In 1288 Albrecht II acquired. For his son I. Rudolf , from his father, the Roman-German King I. Rudolph, the investiture of the County Palatine of Saxony . This aroused the indignation of the Wettins , because they were provided with the right to vote and they felt betrayed, which subsequently led to constant disputes.

When the childless Count Otto IV von Brehna suddenly died at the Diet in Erfurt, this fiefdom reverted to the German king. According to the old law, the Wettins should now have received the remaining part of the extinct county of Brehna , but through the intervention of the king it went to his underage grandson Rudolf I of Saxony-Wittenberg, whose guardian was his father Albrecht. The Sachsen-Lauenburg line no longer had any claim to the possession of Albrecht II. Without a fight, Albrecht II had received an enlargement of his land, which now included Brehna, Bitterfeld , Kemberg and the area up to the middle Elbe and Elster. However, this process does not have to have been completed without funds. Because Albrecht II sold his castle counts rights in the city of Magdeburg to the Wettins, who then passed them on to the Archbishop of Magdeburg . Presumably, however, he did this to calm the heated spirits.

Exercising the electoral dignity

After the death of his father-in-law, Albrecht II intervened again in great imperial politics in 1291 when he did not - as expected - fought on the side of his brother-in-law Albrecht of Austria , but through the efforts and promises of Archbishop Gerhard II of Mainz in the election of a king gave his vote to the Archbishop's relative, Adolf von Nassau . As a Roman king, this prince ruled from 1292 to 1298, then he was deposed not least by his own patron, the Archbishop of Mainz, at a prince assembly in Mainz and fell near Göllheim . Albrecht II had also exercised his spa rights and now elected his brother-in-law Albrecht I of Austria to be Roman King (1298 to 1308). So he took part in his coronation in Aachen. As usual with the election of a king, Albrecht II also weighed and gave the vote to whom he expected the most advantages.

Wittenberg town charter in 1293, issued by Albrecht II of Saxony-Wittenberg

death

To his residence Wittenberg further strengthen, he gave this on June 27, 1293 the town charter and promised them additional benefits. Like his father, Albrecht II did not have to endure heavy battles to maintain the duchy. Nevertheless, there were always armed conflicts, especially with Archbishop Günther I of Magdeburg . This was also the case in 1298 when there was a feud with the Archbishop of Magdeburg. The Duke had previously suffered severe pain from an arrow hit on the head, but in this feud at Aken on the Elbe he was fatally hit by the tip of a lance.

The Duke's body was transferred to Wittenberg and buried in the middle of the choir in the Franciscan monastery church, the burial place of the Ascanians, which has now been completed. When the princes were reburied in 1883, it was evident that the duke had been buried in a coarse linen shirt. A rusty piece of iron was imprinted on the chest of the shirt.

progeny

From his marriage to Agnes von Habsburg (* around 1257 in Rheinfelden; † October 11, 1322 in Wittenberg), daughter of King Rudolf I , on October 24, 1273 in Aachen , the following six children were born:

1. Rudolf I (* around 1284 in Wittenberg; † March 12, 1356 Wittenberg)
2. Otto († 1349) ⚭ Lucie of Dalmatia
3. Albert († May 19, 1342 Passau), Bishop of Passau (1320–1342)
4. Wenzel († March 17, 1327 in Wittenberg), Canon in Halberstadt
5. Elisabeth († March 3, 1341) ⚭ allegedly 1317 Obizzo III. d'Este -Ferrara in Italy
6. Anna († November 22, 1327 in Wismar)
   1. ⚭ August 8, 1308 in Meißen Margrave Friedrich the Lame (* May 9, 1293; † January 13, 1315) son of Friedrich I of Meißen
   2. ⚭ July 6, 1315 with Duke Heinrich II of Mecklenburg , called the Lion (* around 1267 in Riga; † January 21, 1329 in Doberan)

literature

• Johann Franzl: Rudolf I. The first Habsburg on the German throne . Verlag Styria, Graz 1986, ISBN 3-222-11668-7 .
• Helmut Assing : The early Brandenburgers and their women , Kulturstiftung Bernburg 2002, ISBN 978-3-9805532-9-2 .
• AM Meyner: History of the City of Wittenberg . Hermann Neubürger, Dessau 1845.
• Ernst Zitzlaff: The burial places Wittenberg and their monuments . P.Wunschmann, Wittenberg 1896.
• Samuel Schalscheleth : Historical-geographical description of Wittenberg and his university . Frankfurt and Leipzig 1795.
• Richard Erfurth : History of the city of Wittenberg . Ms. Wattrodt Verlag, Wittenberg 1910.
• Heinrich Kühne : The Ascanians . Drei Kastanien Verlag, 1999, ISBN 3-933028-14-0 .
• Georg Hirschfeld: History of the Saxon-Askanischen electors . Julius Sittenfeld, Berlin 1884.
• Gottfried Wentz : The Franciscan monastery in Wittenberg. In: Fritz Bünger , Gottfried Wentz: The dioceses of the church province of Magdeburg. 3rd vol. The Diocese of Brandenburg 2nd part. Walter de Gruyter & Co, Berlin, 1963, (reprint from 1941) p. 372 f.
• Lorenz Friedrich Beck : rule a. Territory of the Dukes of Saxony-Wittenberg (1212–1422). Verlag für Berlin-Brandenburg, Potsdam 2000, ISBN 3-932981-63-4 .

Web links

Commons : Albrecht II of Saxony-Wittenberg  - Collection of images

predecessor	Office	successor
Albrecht I.	Duke of Saxony 1260–1298	Rudolf I.