Johann IV. (Anhalt-Zerbst)
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Johann IV of Anhalt-Zerbst (born September 4, 1504 in Dessau , † February 4, 1551 in Zerbst ) was a Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst from the Ascanian family .
Life
Johann was the older son of Prince Ernst von Anhalt-Zerbst (1451–1516) from his marriage to Margarethe (1473–1530), daughter of Duke Heinrich I von Münsterberg . After his careful upbringing, Johann went to the court of his guardian Joachim I of Brandenburg until he came of age .
Because of his knowledge and his balanced character, he was often used by various princes to mediate in disputes. So he negotiated on behalf of Emperor Charles V with Martin Luther and on behalf of King Christian II of Denmark with the Brandenburg court.
Initially an avid Catholic , he got into conflict with his relatives who were inclined to the Reformation, but later, under the influence of his brother Georg, he himself adopted the Lutheran faith and from 1535 promoted the Reformation in the country. In the joint government with his brothers, Johann held the actual power of government.
When the country was divided in 1544, Johann received the Zerbst part of the country and the offices and cities on the other side of the Elbe. However, in the same year he suffered a stroke and did not recover from it until his death in 1551. Under Johann the prosperity of the country grew but also the debt burden.
Marriage and offspring
He married on February 15, 1534 in Dessau Margareta (1511–1577), daughter of Elector Joachim I of Brandenburg and widow of Duke Georg I of Pomerania . That is why she received from his successor and son, Philip I , an annual annuity of 1,200 guilders because of the bride's treasure , which the Wolgast land rent master had to pay to Margareta's representative in Pasewalk at Easter . The daughter Georgia, who came from his first marriage to Georg I, had to hand over Johann IV and Margarethe to Philip I in 1543 because she was considered a Pomeranian princess and, according to legal beliefs at the time, had to be brought up there.
The marriage with the much higher-ranking widow from Kurbrandenburg's house was celebrated accordingly pompously. But Johann was ailing a few years after the marriage and finally suffered a stroke in 1544. He fell out with his wife in the following years, which led to their temporary imprisonment in 1550, from which she fled. The following children were born from the marriage:
- Karl (1534–1561), Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
- ⚭ 1557 Princess Anna of Pomerania (1531–1592)
- Joachim Ernst (1536–1586), Prince of Anhalt
- ⚭ 1. 1560 Countess Agnes von Barby (1540–1569)
- ⚭ 2. 1571 Princess Eleonore of Württemberg (1552–1618)
- Marie (1538–1563)
- ⚭ 1559 Count Albrecht X. von Barby and Mühlingen (1534–1586)
- Bernhard VII (1540–1570), Prince of Anhalt-Dessau
- ⚭ 1565 Princess Klara of Braunschweig-Lüneburg (1550–1598)
- Margaret (1541–1547)
- Elisabeth (1545–1574)
- ⚭ 1570 Count Wolfgang II of Barby (1531–1615)
literature
- Ferdinand Siebigk: Das Herzogthum Anhalt , Desbarats, 1867, p. 207 ( digitized version )
- August B. Michaelis, Julius Wilhelm Hamberger: Introduction to a complete history of the Chur and Princely Houses in Germany , Meyer, 1785, p. 594
- Heinrich August Pierer: Universal Lexicon of the Present and the Past , 2nd edition, 1840, p. 99
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Johann IV. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Johann II. |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 4, 1504 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Dessau |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 4, 1551 |
| Place of death | Zerbst |