Henry III. from Schauenburg-Holstein

Seal of Heinrich III. from around 1402

Henry III. von Schauenburg-Holstein (* around 1372, † February 1421 in Bordesholm ) was Bishop of Osnabrück (1403-1404) and ruling Count of Holstein-Rendsburg .

He was the youngest son of Heinrich II and his second wife Ingeborg von Mecklenburg-Schwerin. He remained unmarried as a clergyman.

Life

As the youngest son, he was earmarked for a church career and became a deacon in Osnabrück. After the bishop's death he was appointed his successor on February 2, 1402. But his older brothers died early in a feud against Dithmarschen . Albrecht was killed in a horse fall in 1403. Gerhard fell in 1404 in the battle of the Hamme. On August 18, 1402, Heinrich received a papal promise of a cathedral priest from Münster . Heinrich saw himself as their heir, renounced the office of bishop in 1410 and demanded guardianship over the descendants of his older brother and thus rule not only over Holstein but also over the Duchy of Schleswig , which Gerhard had been given as a hereditary fiefdom in 1386. At the same time, the Danish ruler Margarethe and King Erik wanted that too . They saw an opportunity to bind Schleswig more closely to Denmark again.

So the Danish king invited the count and the nobility to Kolding and lured Henry III. to Hindsgavl on Funen . Heinrich was arrested there and was supposed to pay 11,000 marks. In addition, there was the assignment of Flensburg as a pledge for one year. The assignment happened; but the king refused to accept the money. Thus began the war between the Counts of Holstein and Denmark. On July 13, 1409, Erik made an alliance with the Dithmarschern. On August 12, 1410 there was the battle on the Sollerup Heide in the Eggebek district . There the counts remained victorious, the Danish general knight Mogens Pedersen Munk was killed in the battle. So on March 26, 1411 a settlement was made at Kolding.

Margarethe died in October 1412 and the Holstein nobility no longer wanted to return the conquered estates, as the settlement had intended. King Erik now sued them before the feudal court (Danehof, i.e. the assembly of estates) in Nyborg and on July 29, 1413, they declared the feudal loss. Danish troops now occupied Schleswig. Count Heinrich then allied himself with the Hamburgers , who did not want such a powerful neighbor. In 1419 the Danes conquered Fehmarn and plundered it. But they were defeated by the Holsteiners in the battle of Immerwad near Hadersleben . An armistice was concluded on November 26th, 1420. In 1421 Count Heinrich was the next bishop of Schleswig under discussion. Bishop Johann III. However, Skondelev died after him on August 17, 1421.

Seal (inscription): S (IGILLUM) HINRICI * COMIT (IS) * HOLTZAT (IA) * STORMA (RIA) * SCHOVE (N) B (URG) / Seal of Heinrichs Graf von Holstein Stormarn Schauenburg

literature

• G. Hassel / AG Hoffmann (eds.): Second Section. H – N, fourth part, in: Johann Samuelansch / Johann Gottfried Gruber (ed.): General Encyclopedia of Sciences and Arts Leipzig 1828, Art. Heinrich, Counts of Holstein, p. 324 .

predecessor	Office	successor
Dietrich von Horne	Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück 1403–1404	Otto von Hoya
Gerhard VI.	Count of Holstein-Rendsburg 1404–1421	Henry IV.