Albrecht IV (Saxony-Lauenburg)

Albrecht IV of Saxony-Lauenburg (* 1315 ; † 1344 ) was Duke of Saxony-Lauenburg from 1338 to 1344 in the line of Mölln and Bergedorf.

Life

After the death of his father, Duke Johann II of Saxony-Lauenburg , Albrecht continued to run the Bergedorf Castle as a residence and residence, such as the documents issued there from 1335, 1342 and 1359 (i.e. during the reigns of his father, himself and his son Albrecht V.) prove. The costs of keeping the court befitting the rank were almost unbearable for the small duchy, so that the debts, which had already led to pledging of parts of the duchy to Albrecht's uncle Gerhard von Holstein several times under Albrecht's father , forced further pledging. The Holsteiners' influence on Albrecht's politics was therefore great.

Together with Lübeck , Hamburg and the Holsteiners, Albrecht tried to restore order in his duchy after his cousin Erich II had fallen into disrepute due to attacks on merchant trains. That is why Albrecht invaded Erich's lands in the winter of 1343/1344 and razed several permanent houses. But Albrecht died before the end of this campaign.

family

His three sons took over the affairs of state one after the other, but died without male descendants:

• Johann III. (* around 1335; † 1356), Duke from 1344.
• Albrecht V (around 1335, † 1370), Duke from 1356.
• Eric III. († 1401), originally canon , from 1370 duke. With him, the Mölln-Bergedorf line of the Ascan dynasty died out.

Albrecht himself married Sophie von Ziegenhain, daughter of Count Johann I von Ziegenhain , in 1341 .

literature

• Olaf Matthes and Bardo Metzger (eds.): Bergedorfer Personenlexikon . 2nd Edition. Museum for Bergedorf and the Vierlande, Hamburg 2003, ISBN 3-935987-03-X .
• Harald Richert: Between Bille and Elbe . Verlag Otto Heinevetter, Hamburg 1987, ISBN 3-87474-966-5 .

predecessor	Office	successor
Johann II.	Duke of Saxony-Lauenburg (Bergedorf-Mölln line) 1338–1344	Johann III.