Henry I (Brabant)

Heinrich, Duke of Brabant, depiction around 1600

Heinrich I , called the Brave (* around 1165 ; † September 5, 1235 in Cologne ) had been Count of Brussels since 1179 , Duke of Brabant since 1183 and Count of Leuven , Margrave of Antwerp and Duke of Lower Lorraine since 1190 . He was the son of Gottfried III. , Count of Leuven and Brussels, Landgrave of Brabant, Margrave of Antwerp and Duke of Lower Lorraine, and Margaret of Limburg .

Live and act

Heinrich's father took part in the government business of the duchy early on, and as early as 1172 he was referred to as Duke - at his side. In 1179 he married Mathilde von Boulogne , a niece of Philip of Alsace , Count of Flanders , and received the county of Brussels from his father on the occasion . He had several military conflicts with the Counts of Hainaut and represented his father when he was in the Holy Land from 1182 to 1184 . The emperor made Brabant a duchy in 1183. In 1185 he founded 's-Hertogenbosch . When his father died in 1190, he succeeded him.

He quickly found himself in contrast to Emperor Heinrich VI. , first on the occasion of the election of his brother Albrecht as Bishop of Liège (the dispute led to the assassination of the bishop in 1192, after which Brabant and Hainaut opposed the choice of a successor for four years), then because of the English King Richard the Lionheart , Duke Leopold V. of Austria captured and handed over to the emperor: Heinrich VI. wanted to pass it on to Philip II August of France , since he saw the Lorraine princes as pro-English. Richard the Lionheart was eventually released for a huge ransom.

He too went with the crusade of Henry VI. to the Holy Land, where he conquered the cities of Sidon and Beirut for the Christians, but had to return to Europe after Emperor Heinrich died in 1197. He and his wife supported the question of succession - like most of the north German barons - the election of the Guelph Otto IV (who was engaged to Heinrich's daughter Maria), while the barons of southern Germany were mostly in favor of the Staufer Philipp von Schwaben , the brother of the deceased Kaisers, pronounced.

In 1204 Heinrich von Brabant changed sides and allied himself with Philip II of France and Philip of Swabia against the Guelphs. After the murder of Philip in 1208, he found reconciliation with Otto IV, at whose side he fought in the Battle of Bouvines on July 27, 1214 , where he was almost taken prisoner. A little later he concluded an alliance with Emperor Friedrich II , after which his government resulted in a more peaceful policy.

In the years 1217 to 1218 Heinrich took part in the crusade from Damiette to Egypt .

In April 1235 Heinrich traveled together with Archbishop Heinrich I of Cologne on behalf of Frederick II to England to bring the emperor's fiancée, Isabella , daughter of King Johann Ohneland , to Germany. On the way back, the Duke of Brabant fell ill in Cologne and died. His grave is in St. Pieters Church in Leuven .

progeny

In his first marriage, Heinrich was married to Mathilde von Boulogne (* 1170, † 1210), the youngest daughter of Matthew of Alsace and Maria von Blois , Count and Countess of Boulogne , from 1179 ; Children of Heinrich and Mathilde were:

• Adelheid (* 1190, † 1265), Countess of Boulogne, ⚭
  1. 1206 Arnold III. († 1223), Count of Looz
  2. 1225 William X of Clermont (* 1195, † 1247), Count of Auvergne
  3. Arnold von Wesemaele
• Maria (* 1190, † 1260), ⚭
  1. Otto IV. (* 1177, † 1218), emperor
  2. 1220 Wilhelm I (* 1167, † 1223), Count of Holland
• Margarete (* 1192, † 1231), ⚭ 1206 Gerhard IV. († 1229), Count of Geldern
• Mathilde (* 1200, † 1267), ⚭
  1. 1212 Heinrich II. († 1214), 1212 Count Palatine near the Rhine
  2. 1224 Florens IV (* 1210, † 1234), Count of Holland
• Henry II (* 1207, † 1248), Duke of Brabant
• Gottfried (* 1209 † 1254), Lord of Gaasbeek

After Mathilde's death, in 1213 he married Maria of France (* 1198 † 1224), daughter of King Philip II. August and Agnes-Maria von Andechs-Meranien . Heinrich and Maria's children were:

• Elisabeth († 1272), ⚭
  1. 1233 Dietrich von Kleve (* 1214 † 1244), Lord of Dinslaken
  2. 1246 Gerhard II of Wassenberg († 1255)
• Maria, † young

literature

• Karl Theodor Wenzelburger:  Heinrich I, Duke of Brabant . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 11, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1880, p. 480 f.
• Heinrich Neu :  Heinrich I, Duke of Brabant. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 8, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1969, ISBN 3-428-00189-3 , pp. 346-348 ( digitized version ).

Web links

Commons : Heinrich I.  - Collection of Images

predecessor	Office	successor
Gottfried III.	Duke of Brabant 1190–1235	Henry II