Elisabeth von Görlitz

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The coat of arms of Johann von Luxemburg and daughter Elisabeth von Görlitz. It combines the coats of arms of Bohemia, Brandenburg, Niederlausitz and Görlitz

Elisabeth von Görlitz (born November 1390 in Hořovice in Bohemia ; † August 3, 1451 in Trier ) was the only daughter of Johann von Görlitz and his wife Richardis (* around 1372; † before 1444), a daughter of Duke Albrecht III. from Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Elisabeth, a granddaughter of Charles IV , was Duchess of Luxembourg from 1411 to 1443 thanks to her inheritance and Duchess of Brabant and Limburg from 1409 to 1415 due to her marriage to Anton von Burgund, and from 1419 to 1419 as a result of her second marriage to Johann von Straubing-Holland 1425 Duchess of Bavaria-Straubing and Countess of Holland, Zealand and Hainaut. She died as the last member of the German line of the House of Luxembourg.

Life

The years 1390 to 1409

Elisabeth von Görlitz was brought up under the tutelage of her uncle Wenzel IV after the early death of her father and was the sole heir to the crowns of Bohemia and Hungary as well as the entire Luxembourg estate until the birth of her cousin Elisabeth , the daughter of Sigismund of Luxembourg on February 28, 1409 . This increased their dynastic importance and resulted in several marriage projects being negotiated during their childhood and adolescence.

In January 1397, Wenzel agreed with the Margrave of Meissen, Balthasar , that his son Friedrich should marry Elisabeth. In March 1398, however, this promise did not prevent Wenzel from betrothing his niece to Charles , the son of the French regent Louis von Orléans . However, these negotiations led with the brother of the French king Charles VI. there was considerable tension between Wenceslaus and his brother Sigismund, who favored Elizabeth's marriage to a Habsburg. Finally, in June 1401 , the Roman King Ruprecht demanded that his son Johann von der Pfalz be married to the Luxembourg heiress. These negotiations remained unsuccessful, and in 1407 the marriage plans of the Meissen Margrave Wilhelm II failed .

After his deposition as Roman king (1400), Wenceslas tried to improve his badly damaged reputation in the empire with the help of new allies. Therefore, on August 20, 1408, in Paris, he concluded an alliance with the influential Burgundian Duke Johann Ohnefurcht and his brother Anton , which was followed by the signing of the marriage contract between Elisabeth von Görlitz and Anton, Duke of Brabant and Limburg, on April 27, 1409 in Prague . Elisabeth's dowry was set at 120,000 guilders, which was not paid. Instead, Anton and Elisabeth were promised lien over the Duchy of Luxembourg and Wenzel agreed to this arrangement after a long hesitation. Although he recognized the danger of Luxembourg slipping into the power of Burgundy, he lacked the political, financial and military means to prevent this. Since both partners were great-grandchildren of the Bohemian royal couple Johann and Elisabeth , the marriage required the ecclesiastical dispensation, which was granted by both Alexander V in Pisa and Benedict XIII. in Perpignan on July 17, 1409. The day before, on July 16, 1409, Anton and Elisabeth were married in Brussels.

The years 1410 to 1415

In April 1410 Elisabeth gave birth to her only son Wilhelm, who died on July 5, 1410.

After Jobst's death, Elisabeth and Anton were transferred from Moravia († 1411) to lien over the Duchy of Luxembourg. They now ruled in a country complex that was already united between 1354 and 1383 under the rule of Wenceslaus of Luxemburg , Elisabeth's great-uncle, and Joan of Brabant , Anton's great-aunt. Against the rule of the Duke of Brabant, the Luxembourg estates rose up in 1411, which succeeded in making alliances with the Armagnacs in France and with Sigismund of Luxembourg.

The House of Burgundy controlled around 1410 in the border area between France and the Holy Roman Empire an almost contiguous territory that to the Vosges stretching from the Channel coast. The duchies of Luxembourg, Limburg and Brabant thus represented an important connection between the "lower" and "upper" countries of Burgundy. After his election as Roman king (1410), Sigismund of Luxembourg recognized that the territorial acquisitions of the House of Burgundy were at the expense of the imperial property and of the Luxembourg family property went. He now took the view (correct under imperial law) that the taking possession of Brabant and Limburg by Anton of Burgundy had not taken place legally. Therefore, on April 8, 1412, Sigismund forbade the residents of Luxembourg to pay homage to the young duke and couple, and in September 1413, Sigismund called for resistance against the usurper Anton.

After long battles, some of which were attributed to the civil war of the Armagnacs and Burgundians , Anton and Elisabeth were only able to consolidate their rule in Luxembourg at the beginning of 1415. On October 25, 1415, Anton of Burgundy fell in the Battle of Azincourt . Soon afterwards, the widowed Elisabeth placed herself under the protection of her uncle Sigismund. This now tried to renew the sovereignty of the empire in Brabant and Limburg and denied the House of Burgundy the right of inheritance for these territories. Since the estates of Brabant and Limburg were satisfied with the rule of the Burgundians, they opposed Sigismund's plans and confirmed John IV , the eldest son from Anton's first marriage to Joan of Luxembourg, as their new duke. However, Elisabeth does not renounce her inheritance claims in Brabant and Limburg, which she asserted as Johann's stepmother. Her sovereign rights in the Duchy of Luxembourg were confirmed by Sigismund, who, however, designated his daughter Elisabeth to be the heir of Elisabeth von Görlitz.

The years 1416 to 1425

Sigismund of Luxemburg succeeded Johann III. von Straubing-Holland , Fürstelekt von Lüttich and brother-in-law Johann Unafurchts to win as allies. With the conclusion of the marriage contract between Johann and Elisabeth von Görlitz on September 16, 1417, the new political alliance was announced. Thereupon Johann Ohnefurcht married his nephew and Elisabeth's stepson Johann IV on March 10, 1418 with Jakobäa , the heiress of Wilhelm II of Straubing-Holland. Her uncle Johann von Straubing-Holland abdicated a little later as Bishop of Liège and married Elisabeth von Görlitz in May 1419.

The Roman King Sigismund was unwilling to accept the occupation of Brabant and Limburg by John IV and the rule of Jacobea in Holland, Zealand and Hainaut. This led to armed conflicts between the two camps and the Dutch civil war between the "hooks" and the "cod" escalated to a war between the Duke of Burgundy and imperial violence. But already in 1420 Johann von Straubing was able to assert himself as ruler in Holland, Zealand and Hainaut.

The marriage of Johann and Elisabeth remained childless. After Johann's murder on January 6, 1425, Elisabeth received her widow's estate in Holland. However, she remained Duchess of Luxembourg and kept the bailiwick over Alsace.

The years 1425 to 1451

Since she was now heavily in debt, Elisabeth had to sell her widow's estate in Holland on March 14, 1427 to the Burgundian Duke Philip the Good . Furthermore, Elisabeth was ready to transfer her inheritance rights to the pledge in the Duchy of Luxembourg to Philip. This led to fierce arguments between Elisabeth von Görlitz and her uncle Sigismund, who took the view that his own daughter Elisabeth and her husband Albrecht were the presumptive heirs of Luxembourg. Likewise, the Luxembourg estates prevented the sale of their duchy to Philip. In 1435 there were renewed sales negotiations between Philipp the Good and Elisabeth von Görlitz, which however remained unsuccessful.

In 1436, Elisabeth hosted a young woman at Arlon Castle who claimed to be Joan of Arc (see: Jeanne des Armoises ). She generously helped the stranger and in October 1436 arranged her wedding to the nobleman Robert des Armoises. This led to a falling out with Philip of Burgundy, who rightly viewed this as an affront to his politics.

Elisabeth von Görlitz lived lavishly, she could not handle money and her debts rose rapidly. For this reason, in 1441 she was willing to sell her liens on the Duchy of Luxembourg to the Archbishop of Trier, Jakob von Sierck .

Philip the Good, however, managed to reconcile himself with Elisabeth in good time and so she appointed him as a universal heir on January 10, 1442. However, Elisabeth von Görlitz had only liens and no property rights on the Duchy of Luxembourg. With her inheritance regulation, she deliberately passed over the inheritance claims of her eponymous cousin. Elisabeth of Luxemburg could not assert her claims to the Duchy of Luxemburg in 1442 because she had to fight for the inheritance of her son Ladislaus in Bohemia and Hungary and Wilhelm III. , Duke of Saxony, tried in vain to enforce the inheritance claims of his wife Anna, the eldest daughter of Elisabeth and Albrecht II, in Luxembourg militarily.

Philip the Good granted Elisabeth von Görlitz a handsome annuity, and in 1443 he marched into Luxembourg with his troops and took over the government there.

Elisabeth von Görlitz died on August 3, 1451 as the last woman from Luxembourg in Trier. She was buried in the Franciscan Minorite Church (today the Trinity Church) in Trier. With her death, the Duchy of Luxembourg officially became part of the Burgundian state.

literature

predecessor Office successor
Jobst from Moravia Duchess of Luxembourg
1411–1433 		Philip the good
personal data
SURNAME Elisabeth von Görlitz
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Elisabeth of Luxembourg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Duchess of Luxembourg, Brabant and Limburg
DATE OF BIRTH November 1390
PLACE OF BIRTH Hořovice , Czech Republic
DATE OF DEATH August 3, 1451
Place of death trier