Wilhelm II of Bavaria

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Wilhelm von Bayern , Freiherr von Höllinghofen (since 1650 Wilhelm II , Prince Abbot of the Imperial Abbey of Stablo-Malmedy ) (*?; † February 10, 1657 at Castle Höllinghofen ) was initially Landdrost of the Duchy of Westphalia and from 1650 Prince Abbot of Stablo and Malmedy.

Life

Wilhelm was a son from the relationship between Elector Ernst von Bayern and Gertrud von Plettenberg . In 1601 he was awarded the fallen fiefdom Höllinghofen. But even before that, he stayed in the immediate vicinity of the elector.

Between 1618 and 1624 he officiated as Landdrost in the Duchy of Westphalia. He was the deputy of the new elector, his cousin, Ferdinand of Bavaria . During his term of office, the first burdens of the duchy fell through the Thirty Years' War . The Landdrost himself was absent for a long time and was on trips to Spain and Italy . After his return in 1623 he was able to settle a dispute between the Wedinghausen monastery and the city of Arnsberg . A year later he was replaced in the office of Landdrosten in favor of Friedrich von Fürstenberg and traveled again to Italy.

From 1636 he was first coadjutor of the Stablo monastery. In order to be able to take over the office as abbot , the layman Wilhelm was ordained a priest at the age of about 60 years. From 1650 he was abbot of Stablo and Malmedy. In contrast to his relatives as predecessors and successors, he resided in the abbey area mostly in the Stablo monastery and made a contribution to the administration. During his time, in 1650, French troops invaded the area of ​​the abbey. A year later, the Spaniards invaded and occupied several places. In contrast, Wilhelm mobilized 1,200 farmers. These initially had success against the occupiers, but were defeated and 300 men were killed. Malmedy was pillaged and sacked. Unrest spread among the residents and Emperor Ferdinand III. In 1653, felt compelled to ask the subjects to obey Wilhelm. In the following years the area of ​​the abbey was crossed by foreign troops and the inhabitants were heavily burdened. In 1654, the people of Malmedy, together with some allies, successfully took action against troops from Lorraine .

Because Wilhelm was powerless against the intruders, he accepted Elector Maximilian Heinrich of Bavaria as coadjutor in 1654 . He was buried in the Abbey of Stablo.

literature

  • Karl Feaux de Lacroix: History of Arnsberg. Arnsberg, 1895. Reprint Werl, 1983, pp. 259f., Pp. 334-336.
  • Ursmer Berlière: Monasticon Belge 2: Province de Liège , Lüttich 1962 (reprint of the Maredsous 1928/29 edition), p. 97 f.
  • Baersch: News about the Stablo and Malmedy Abbeys. In: Annals of the historical association for the Lower Rhine. Cologne 1859, pp. 62-64

Web links

predecessor Office successor
Ferdinand of Bavaria Abbot of Malmedy and Stablo
1650–1657
Maximilian Heinrich of Bavaria