Johann II. (Opole-Ratibor)

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John II of Opole (also John the Good ; Polish Jan II. Dobry ; Czech Hanuš Opolský ; * around 1460 ; † March 27, 1532 in Ratibor ) was 1476–1532 Duke of Opole and 1521–1532 Duke of Ratibor . He was the last male descendant from the Opole branch of the Silesian Piasts . In 1531 he issued the great state privilege , with which, among other things, membership of the Crown of Bohemia was established and Czech was determined as the official language.

Sarcophagus of John II in the Cathedral Church of the Holy Cross in Opole

Origin and family

Johann's parents were Nikolaus I of Opole (1420–1476) and Magdalena († 1497), daughter of Duke Ludwig II of Brieg from his second marriage to Elisabeth of Brandenburg .

After the death of his father in 1476, Johann and his younger brother Nikolaus II took over the government of the Duchy of Opole. Since Johann's year of birth is not known and the sources do not mention a guardianship, it can be assumed that he had already reached the age of majority at this point in time. Johann's older brother Ludwig (~ 1450–1475 / 75) died shortly before his father. The younger brothers Boleslaw and Bernhard died around 1477 as children. In addition, Johann had four sisters:

Life

Already during the reign of Johann's father there was a power struggle between the Bohemian King Georg von Podiebrad and the Hungarian King Matthias Corvinus . He brought most of Moravia and Silesia under his control and was elected King of Bohemia in Olomouc . Like his father, Johann was initially on the side of Matthias Corvinus' allies, who laid the foundations for the Silesian corporate state and established an effective state administration. Soon after taking office as Duke of Opole, Johann took part in an Italian campaign with the Bishop of Wroclaw Rudolf von Rüdesheim and the Bishop of Oradea Johann Filipec , which was supposed to initiate the marriage between Beatrix , a daughter of Ferdinand I of Naples and Matthias Corvinus. While Johann and his brother Nikolaus were still paying homage to King Matthias in 1479, they turned away from him in the 1480s because they were dissatisfied with his tax policy and the anti-class centralization measures. In April 1487 Johann and his brother asked the Emperor Friedrich III. at the Nuremberg Reichstag for support against Matthias Corvinus. After their return, they were taken prisoner by Johann Bjelik von Kornitz , who was appointed governor of Upper Silesia by King Matthias, during a prince's day in Cosel . After paying homage to the king and paying 30,000 guilders, they were released. Nevertheless, Johann and Nikolaus later joined a Lower Silesian alliance directed against King Matthias, including the dukes Johann II of Sagan and Heinrich the Elder. Ä. von Münsterberg belonged. After the Lower Silesian princes had lost the battle for Glogau against King Matthias Corvinus , Johann and his brother gave up the hostile position against Corvinus in 1489 and accepted his demand for a payment of 15,000 guilders and the pledging of three castles.

Probably in an insane state, Johann's brother Nikolaus carried out an attack in 1497 on Duke Casimir II of Teschen , who held the office of governor. Nikolaus was punished on June 27th. J. beheaded in Neisse . Although Johann initially intended to avenge the tragic death of his brother, he renounced it after he found no support for this plan from King Vladislav II .

During his long reign, Johann succeeded in significantly increasing his father's legacy, which consisted of the partial duchies of Opole, Strehlitz , Falkenberg and Oberglogau , through purchase and inheritance contracts. As early as 1477 he and his brother Nikolaus acquired the area around Neustadt , which had previously belonged to Konrad von Oels . In 1492 the brothers acquired the rule of Gleiwitz from Wilhelm II of Pernstein , and in 1497 Tost . In 1498 Johann managed to acquire the area around Falkenberg and the former Duchy of Bytom , which had been pledged to Johann von Žerotín . Ten years later he acquired the Duchy of Cosel , and later he was given pledge of the Duchy of Münsterberg .

Since Johann feared that the Reformation would spread in his duchy, he wrote to Pope Clement VII in 1524 , asking for help. At the same time he pointed out the activities of the Lutherans in his country and the inability of the local clergy , who only thought of their material resources and not of pastoral care. The Pope's sympathetic reply, however, could not prevent the Reformation from spreading. However, Johann did not join a Catholic alliance initiated by Karl I von Munsterberg , which was directed against the spread of Lutheranism in Silesia.

Johann supported the cities, crafts and mining of his country. In 1528, after ore had previously been found near Tarnowitz , he issued a mountain code in German , which was groundbreaking for Upper Silesian mining. It regulated the mining law in 72 articles and laid down the establishment of mining offices as well as the working hours and remuneration of miners.

When in 1529 a defense order to avert the Turkish threat was resolved and Silesia was divided into four districts, the Bohemian King and later Emperor Ferdinand I appointed Johann captain of one of these districts. He should take over the defense of the Upper Silesian areas. The withdrawal of the Turks made it superfluous.

Johann is said to have been a prudent and far-sighted country father who pursued a class-friendly policy. He died in Racibórz at the age of 80. According to his wishes, he was buried in the parish church of the Holy Cross in Opole .

Great state privilege

On September 8, 1531, Duke Johann issued the Great State Privilege , written in Czech for the Duchy of Opole-Ratibor , which is also known as the "Hanusian Privilege". It was supposed to protect Johanns Landeskinder against alien arbitrariness after the Opole branch of the Silesian Piasts died out. The applicable legal norms were recorded in around 30 chapters. At the same time, the affiliation of the duchies of Opole and Ratibor, inseparably united for eternity, to the Crown of Bohemia was established and the official language was Czech. A golden crowned eagle in a blue field was set as the common coat of arms of Opole and Ratibor. The residents were obliged to defend their country in the event of an external threat. The estates were granted the right to pay homage to the sovereign only in Opole or Ratibor. After Duke John's death, the king or the Silesian governor , who acted as the king's governor , should convene a state parliament to exercise the highest authority in the country. In 1558, the state privilege of Emperor Ferdinand I was confirmed in his capacity as King of Bohemia. In 1562 it was included in the state regulations for the principalities of Opole and Ratibor, and in 1757 it was translated into German.

Inheritance agreements and succession

Several princes were interested in the inheritance of Johann, who was not married and had no children. As early as 1478, King Matthias Corvinus confirmed a contract of inheritance between Opole and Ratibor. Although King Vladislav II had also confirmed the inheritance contract of 1478 after Corvin's death, he approved further inheritance agreements with:

With the aforementioned inheritance contract of 1478, Johann concluded an inheritance agreement with the Přemyslid John V of Ratibor, who was married to John's sister Magdalena. After Johann was given the right to freely choose his successor from the Bohemian King Vladislav II in 1511, a new inheritance contract was concluded with the last Přemyslid , Duke Valentin of Ratibor , in 1512 , which was also confirmed by the king. After that, in the case of Johann's childless death, the Duchy of Opole was to be divided between Valentin von Ratibor and Georg von Brandenburg. With Valentin's childless death, a transfer of the Duchy of Ratibor to Johann was planned. This case occurred in 1521 with the death of Duke Valentine, so that the Duchy of Ratibor came to Johann, who combined the two duchies to form the Duchy of Opole-Ratibor . In the same year Johann acquired the town of Oderberg with some neighboring villages. Thus, he was able to unite almost all Upper Silesian territories that had been created through repeated partitions in his hand. Opole-Ratibor was one of the largest duchies in Silesia.

In 1522, Johann and the other applicants came to a settlement regarding Johann's inheritance: Margrave Georg von Brandenburg-Ansbach was designated the sole heir, while the three others were to be compensated with 40,000 guilders after Johann's death. During Johann's lifetime, Georg von Brandenburg-Ansbach received the rule of Oderberg with the title of Duke of Ratibor.

After the Habsburg Ferdinand I ascended the Bohemian royal throne in 1526 , there was a fundamental political change. In order to prevent the spread of the Hohenzollern and thus Protestantism in Silesia, Ferdinand intended to withdraw the Duchy of Opole-Ratibor as a settled fief after Johann's death and thereby make it an hereditary principality. Therefore he invited Johann von Oppeln to Prague in 1528. There he intimidated Johann by pointing out Bohemian legal claims to such an extent that the latter renounced the inheritance contract with Georg von Brandenburg-Ansbach. In order to be able to hold Opole for the Habsburgs in the event of death, Ferdinand instructed the governor of Schweidnitz-Jauer, Caspar von Schaffgotsch, to move his troops there. Ferdinand's defeat in the fight against the Turks and the associated need for money as well as strong resistance from the Protestant princes in the empire forced Ferdinand to give in. In the Prague Treaty of June 17, 1531, Georg von Brandenburg-Ansbach was guaranteed the pledge of Opole-Ratibor against a payment of 183,333 guilders and the Bytom rule was promised to two heirs and the Oderberg rule to three heirs.

According to a special provision of the contract of 1531, Georg von Brandenburg-Ansbach could only take up the position of pawnbroker of Opole one year after Johann's death. Before that, most of Johann's personal estate was brought to Vienna.

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personal data
SURNAME Johann II.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Johann the good
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Duke of Opole and Ratibor, Lord of Klein Glogau
DATE OF BIRTH around 1460
DATE OF DEATH March 27, 1532
Place of death Ratibor