Clara von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel

Clara of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (* 16th November 1532 in Wolfenbüttel ; † 23. November 1595 in Herzberg Castle ) was a princess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel , abbess of the Imperial free secular realm pin of Gandersheim and by marriage Duchess of Brunswick-Grubenhagen .

Life

Clara was the youngest daughter of Duke Heinrich II of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1489–1568) from his first marriage to Maria (1496–1541), daughter of Count Heinrich von Württemberg .

Abbess of Gandersheim

At the instigation of her father, Clara was elected abbess of the Gandersheim monastery in 1539 after the death of her sister Maria . Since Clara was only 6 years old at the time, her father, represented by officials, acted as guardian and administrator in the monastery. It is unknown whether Clara ever received papal confirmation as abbess, but she never performed the function.

In 1542 Gandersheim was occupied by troops of the Schmalkaldic League and the Reformation was enforced by force, but the chapter exerted passive resistance and remained Catholic. In 1543 there was an iconoclasm in the monastery. In 1547, Clara's father declared that she was giving up the office of abbess. Clara returned to the worldly state.

Duchess of Braunschweig-Grubenhagen

Clara married her cousin Duke Philip II of Braunschweig-Grubenhagen (1533–1596) on July 1, 1560 in Wolfenbüttel . As a bride's treasure , she had received 20,000 guilders as well as half the court and Westerhof Castle from her father . The marriage remained childless. After their marriage, the couple moved into the Katlenburg , which was converted into a Renaissance castle. Clara took care of the installation of numerous pharmacies and distilleries. In Rotenkirchen , Clara designed the interior of the newly built church.

Clara's brother Julius seized Westerhof again after he took office in 1568. In 1580, complaints to the Reichshofrat confirmed Philip's possession. Shortly afterwards, Clara again filed a lawsuit against her brother because of her sister Margarete's estate . An imperial commission was formed, but Julius rejected it and complained to the Reichstag in Augsburg in 1582 about his sister's illegal conduct.

Clara died after the farm had moved from Katlenburg to Schloss Herzberg after a long sick bed. The funeral sermon, which also appeared in print, was given by the court preacher and superintendent Andreas Leopold. Clara was buried in the Aegidien Church in Osterode .

See also

• List of the abbesses of Gandersheim

literature

• Hans Goetting : The Diocese of Hildesheim. Volume 1: The imperial canonical monastery Gandersheim (= Germania sacra. The dioceses of the ecclesiastical province of Mainz. NF 7). de Gruyter, Berlin et al. 1973, ISBN 3-11-004219-3 , p. 121 ff.
• JSversch , JG Gruber (ed.): General Encyclopedia of Sciences and Arts . Section 3: O - Z. Edited by MHE Meier. Volume 23: Philipp (Secular Electors) - Philosophiana. Brockhaus, Leipzig 1847, p. 43 f.

Web links

• Clara von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel on thepeerage.com , accessed on August 20, 2015.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Pierre Hélyot: Detailed history of all spiritual and secular monastic and knightly orders for beyderley sex. Volume 6. Arkstee and Merkus et al., Leipzig 1755, p. 519 .
2. ^ Wilhelm Havemann: History of the Lands Braunschweig and Lüneburg. Volume 2. Dieterich, Göttingen 1855, p. 377.
3. ^ Georg Max: History of the Principality of Grubenhagen. Theil 2. Schmorl & Seefeld, Hannover 1863, p. 269.