John IV of Arkel

John IV of Arkel (left Jan van Arkel ) († July 1, 1378 ) was twice Prince-Bishop , from 1342 to 1364 the 47th Bishop of Utrecht and from 1364 to 1378 Bishop of Liège .

Life

He came from one of the most important noble families from Holland. He entered the clergy and became a canon in Utrecht . At times he lived at the papal court. For his predecessor Johann III. von Diest he officiated as governor in the Niederstift of the Hochstift Utrecht . In 1342 Clement VI appointed him . to the bishop of Utrecht. As early as 1340 he had been a candidate for Wilhelm IV of Holland for the office of bishop. At that time he could not stand against Pope Benedict XII. push through. In 1342 von Arkel was ordained bishop and moved into Utrecht at the beginning of 1343.

From an ecclesiastical point of view, he held regular diocesan synods and carried out a centralization of spiritual power. He directed the main focus of his secular politics in the bishopric to restore its former independence. For this he also accepted conflicts with Wilhelm von Holland. In order to reduce the pen's debts, he dismissed his entire court.

Johann von Arkel went to Grenoble and left the reign in the bishopric to his brother Robert. When he returned he found the country at war with Holland. The city of Utrecht was besieged and he had to accept a humiliating treaty in 1345 to regain his capital. The treaty also included a three-year ceasefire. Thereupon the nobles who had sided with the Dutch were punished and driven out. As a result, it was possible to redeem a large part of the properties pledged by the predecessors. Some dominions were acquired and fortifications laid out.

The bishop returned to France. After the end of the treaty with Holland, he attacked this country in 1348. After initial success, however, he suffered a heavy defeat. The noble Giesbert von Bronkhorst used this weakness to attack the upper monastery of Utrecht. To counter this, Johann von Arkel concluded a temporary armistice with Holland. Bronkhorst allied with the Duchy of Geldern . After all, the bishop faced Holland and Geldern at the same time. Johann von Arken was supported in this war by the largely independent city of Utrecht. The war was waged with varying degrees of success on both sides. It ended in an armistice in 1349.

The war costs again forced the bishop to mortgage properties. In the following years, Johann von Arkel devoted above all to the internal development of his country. He also used violence against rebellious vassals. Johann von Arkel went on a pilgrimage to Rome and returned in 1351 to put down civil unrest. Various castles were destroyed. Pledges were redeemed. The bishop managed to bring almost the entire area of ​​the bishopric back under his direct control and to reduce the debt. But unrest continued and the bishop had to use force against vassals. In 1356 von Arkel made peace with Holland. But he was still forced to make military campaigns.

In 1364, at the instigation of Urban V , he had to swap his office in Utrecht with the bishopric in Liège.

Arkel is buried in the cathedral of Utrecht .

literature

• Heinrich Leo : The territories of the German Empire in the Middle Ages since the 13th century . Volume 2. Halle 1867, ( lectures on the history of the German people and empire 5), 396ff.
• Karl Theodor Wenzelburger:  Johann IV. Van Arkel . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 14, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1881, p. 431 f.

predecessor	Office	successor
Nicola Capocci	Bishop of Utrecht 1342–1364	Johann von Virneburg
Engelbert von der Mark	Bishop of Liège 1364-1378	Arnold II of Hoorn