Henry IV, Duke of Saxony

Duke of Saxony from 1539 to 1541

This article is about the Duke of Saxony. For other uses, see Henry IV.

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Henry IV

Duke of Saxony
Margrave of Meissen
Lord of Friesland

Portrait of Henry IV by Lucas Cranach the Elder.

Duke of Saxony
Margrave of Meissen
Reign| 17 April 1539 - 18 August 1541
Predecessor| George
Successor| Maurice

Born| 16 March 1473
Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, Holy Roman Empire
Died| 18 August 1541(1541-08-18) (aged 68)
Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, Holy Roman Empire
Burial|

Freiberg Cathedral

Spouse| Catherine of Mecklenburg
Issue| Sybille, Duchess of Saxe-Lauenburg
Emilie, Margravine of Brandenburg-Ansbach
Sidonie, Duchess of Brunswick-Kalenberg
Maurice, Elector of Saxony
Prince Severinus
Augustus, Elector of Saxony
| Names

Heinrich der Fromme
House| House of Wettin
Albertine Line
Father| Albert III, Duke of Saxony
Mother| Sidonie of Poděbrady
Religion| Lutheran (1536-1541)
Roman Catholic (1473-1536)

Henry IV the Pious, Duke of Saxony (German: Heinrich der Fromme) (16 March 1473, in Dresden – 18 August 1541, in Dresden) was a Duke of Saxony from the House of Wettin. Succeeding his brother George, Duke of Saxony, a fervent Catholic who sought to extinguish Lutheranism by any means possible, Henry established the Lutheran church as the state religion in his domains.[1]

## Biography

[edit]

Henry was the second son of Albert, Duke of Saxony, and his wife Sidonie Podiebrad, princess of Bohemia.[2] When Albert died in 1500, his eldest son George succeeded to the Duchy of Saxony, and Henry became Lord of Friesland.

Saxon rule of Friesland was disturbed by constant revolts. Consequently, Henry, who was of a rather inert disposition, gave up his title there. In 1505 Henry ceded Friesland to George, in return for an annuity and the districts of Wolkenstein and Freiberg, where Henry made his residence.

In 1517, Martin Luther posted the Ninety-five Theses which sparked the Reformation in Germany, and a few years later Henry adopted the Evangelical faith. George remained a devout Catholic. Only two of George's sons survived to adulthood, John and Frederick, but they both predeceased him without issue. When Frederick died in 1539, the Lutheran Henry became heir presumptive to the duchy under the Act of Settlement of 1499. To prevent a Protestant succession, George tried to override his father's will, disinherit Henry, and bequeath the duchy to Ferdinand, brother of Charles V. However, George died only two months later, and Henry succeeded to the duchy aged 66. He made Lutheranism the state religion of the Duchy of Saxony but reigned for only two years.

## Marriage and children

[edit]

In Freiberg, on 6 July 1512, Heinrich married Catherine of Mecklenburg, daughter of Duke Magnus II of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. They had six children:

* Sybille (b. Freiberg, 2 May 1515 – d. Buxtehude, 18 July 1592), married on 8 February 1540 to Duke Francis I of Saxe-Lauenburg.
* Emilie (b. Freiberg, 27 July 1516 – d. Ansbach, 9 March 1591), married on 25 August 1533 to Georg, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach.
* Sidonie (b. Meissen, 8 March 1518 – d. Kloster Weissenfels, 4 January 1575), married on 17 May 1545 to Eric II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Calenberg).
* Maurice (b. Freiberg, 21 March 1521 – d. of wounds received in action at Sievershausen, 11 July 1553), later Elector of Saxony.
* Severinus (b. Freiberg?, 28 August 1522 – d. Innsbruck, 10 October 1533).
* Augustus (b. Freiberg, 31 July 1526 – d. Dresden, 11 February 1586).

* Catherine of Mecklenburg

* Sybille

* Emilie

* Sidonie

* Maurice

* Severinus

* Augustus

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Keen, Ralph (1991). "Defending the Pious: Melanchthon and the Reformation in Albertine Saxony, 1539". Church History. 60 (2): 160. doi:10.2307/3167524.
2. ^ Rapelli 2011, p. 254.

## Sources

[edit]

* Rapelli, Paola (2011). Symbols of Power in Art. J. Paul Getty.

## External links

[edit]

* (in German) Article in the ABD[permanent dead link‍]

Henry IV, Duke of Saxony

House of Wettin

Born: 16 March 1473 Died: 18 August 1541

Regnal titles
Preceded by

George

|  Duke of Saxony
1539–1541  | Succeeded by

Maurice

* v
* t
* e

Princes of Saxony

The generations are numbered from the ascension of Frederick I as Elector of Saxony in 1423.

1st generation|

* Frederick II
* William III, Landgrave of Thuringia

2nd generation|

* Ernest
* Albert III

3rd generation|

* Frederick III
* Ernest, Archbishop of Magdeburg
* Albert, Administrator of Mainz
* John
* George
* Henry IV
* Prince Frederick, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights

4th generation|

* John, Hereditary Prince of Saxony
* Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Saxony
* John Frederick I
* Maurice
* Severinus
* John Ernest
* Augustus

5th generation|

* John Frederick II
* Johann Wilhelm
* John Frederick III
* Christian I

6th generation|

* Christian II
* John George I
* August

7th generation|

* John George II
* Augustus of Saxe-Weissenfels
* Christian I of Saxe-Merseburg
* Maurice of Saxe-Zeitz

8th generation|

* John George III

9th generation|

* John George IV
* Frederick Augustus I

10th generation|

* Frederick Augustus II1

11th generation|

* Frederick Christian1
* Prince Francis Xavier1
* Charles, Duke of Courland1
* Albert, Duke of Teschen1
* Clemens Wenceslaus, Archbishop of Trier1

12th generation|

* Frederick Augustus I
* Anthony I
* Maximilian, Crown Prince

13th generation|

* Frederick Augustus II
* John

14th generation|

* Albert
* George

15th generation|

* Frederick Augustus III
* Prince Johann Georg
* Prince Maximilian
* Prince Albert

16th generation|

* Georg, Crown Prince of Saxony
* Friedrich Christian, Margrave of Meissen
* Prince Ernst Heinrich

17th generation|

* Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen
* Albert, Margrave of Meissen

18th generation|

* Prince Rüdiger
* Prince Alexander

19th generation|

* Prince Daniel

1 also królewicz of Poland and Lithuania

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* FAST
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States
* Netherlands
* Poland
* Vatican

People|

* Netherlands
* Deutsche Biographie
* DDB

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