Heinrich II of Borsselen

Heinrich II. Von Borsselen (Hendrik II van Borselen; † March 15, 1474 at Zandenburg Castle ) from the House of Borsselen was Lord of Veere and Zandenburg, Vlissingen (1453), Westkapelle , Domburg and Brouwershaven (1472) and from 1467 Count von Grandpré . He was called "Monsieur De La Vère". He was a son of Wolfart V. von Borsselen († 1409) and Hedwig von Borsselen. After the Delft Treaty of Reconciliation of 1428 he became a member of the Raad van 9 edelen , the council of Holland , Zeeland (and West Friesland ).

Life

After the death of his father in 1409 Borsselen was only under guardianship (1409–1414 he is referred to as a minor). In 1423 he became a Dutch councilor and three years later a Burgundian captain. From 1433 Duke Philip the Good of Burgundy was officially Count of Holland and Zeeland, but actually had to take Henry II into consideration, who not only operated his own merchant fleet, but also carried out pirate trips and also held a strong position on land in Walcheren . In 1436 he appointed Heinrich von Borsselen general rent master of Zeeland.

His reputation extended far beyond Zeeland. In 1444 he married his son Wolfhart VI. von Borsselen with Mary Stuart, daughter of King James I of Scotland . His daughter Margarethe was married to Ludwig von Bruges , Herr von Gruuthuse .

In 1445 he was accepted into the Order of the Golden Fleece . King Charles VII of France appointed him lieutenant general sur le fait de la guerre de la mer in 1446 . In 1453, Duke Philipp, who needed money to suppress the Ghent uprising , pledged Vlissingen, Westkapelle and Domburg to Heinrich for 17 years. This enabled him with his family estate in Veere to keep Middelburg away from the sea on three sides and to control both the roadstead of Walcheren and the ports of Middelburg and Arnemuiden .

In 1467 he bought the county of Grandpré in Champagne and assumed the title that went with it. He was buried in Vere.

marine

In 1436 he delivered three ships to Philip the Good to contribute to the siege of Calais . During the Hanseatic-Dutch War (1438–1441) he sailed up the Elbe and Weser rivers in 1441 and took away several Hanse cogs near Hamburg and Bremen .

After breaking with Edward IV of England during the Wars of the Roses in 1470 , Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick , known as the Kingmaker , fled England and captured several Dutch ships with him. As a result, Charles the Bold pulled together a fleet of 23 ships. Heinrich von Borsselen was appointed commander of this fleet due to his extensive experience and was thus also authorized to give instructions to the Admiral of Flanders, Josse de Lalaing . Warwick fled back to England via Normandy , where he managed to depose Edward and Henry VI. to bring to the throne. Now Charles the Bold put together a fleet with which Eduard was able to transport Heinrich VI. discontinue. Heinrich von Borsselen was appointed chamberlain by Eduard for his help and Veere received new trading privileges. From Charles in turn he received the Fallais rule in the Principality of Liège , and in 1472 he bought part of Brouwershaven from him .

independence

Heinrich was in the service of the Burgundian dukes, but had not given up his independent position when he took over the office of admiral. Although his position as admiral in the French service was raised by Charles on the chapter of the Order of the Golden Fleece, he did not give up this office. During his lifetime, his son Wolfhart VI. appointed in 1466 to succeed John of Luxembourg as general admiral de la mer d'Artois, Boulonnais, Hollande, Zélande et Frize . But only after the death of his father did Wolfhart act as commander in chief of the fleet.

family

On December 26, 1429 Heinrich von Borsselen married Johanna von Halewyn († March 18, 1467), daughter of Olivier von Halewijn, lord of Heemsrode , and Marguerite de la Clyte at Zanderburg Castle . The couple had (at least) three children:

• Wolf species VI. , Comte de Grandpré, Earl of Buchan , Marshal of France , Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, † April 29, 1487
• Margaretha, † August 29, 1510; ∞ around 1455 Ludwig von Bruges , Lord von Gruuthuse, 1st Earl of Winchester , Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, † November 26, 1492
• Anna; ∞ Gillis von Arnemuiden, 1458 attested

literature

• Louis Sicking: Zeemacht en onmacht. Maritieme politiek in the Nederlanden, 1488-1558. (1998), ISBN 90-6707-465-9
• Detlev Schwennicke : European family tables . Volume XVIII (1998), plate 37