HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

William V (29 September 1548 – 7 February 1626), called ''the Pious'', (German: ''Wilhelm V., der Fromme, Herzog von Bayern'') was
Duke of Bavaria The following is a list of rulers during the history of Bavaria. Bavaria was ruled by several dukes and kings, partitioned and reunited, under several dynasties. Since 1949, Bavaria has been a democratic state in the Federal Republic of Germ ...
from 1579 to 1597.


Education and early life

William V was born in Landshut, the son of
Albert V Albert V may refer to: *Albert V, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg (ca. mid-1330s–1370) *Albert V, Duke of Mecklenburg (1397–1423) *Albert II of Germany (1397–1439), Albert V as Duke of Austria *Albert V, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau (died c. 1469) *Albert ...
and
Archduchess Anna of Austria Anna of Austria (7 July 1528 – 16 October 1590), a member of the Imperial House of Habsburg, was Duchess of Bavaria from 1550 until 1579, by her marriage with Duke Albert V. Family Born at the Bohemian court in Prague, Anna was the third ...
. He received a Jesuit education and showed keen attachment to the Jesuit
Counter Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...
tenets. His title 'the Pious' was given to him because he devoted his daily routine to masses (when possible, several times a day), prayer, contemplation, and devotional reading. He took part in public devotions, processions, and pilgrimages. William V's residence as crown prince was the ancient fortified Wittelsbach seat
Trausnitz Castle Trausnitz Castle is a medieval castle situated in Landshut, Bavaria in Germany. It was the home of the Wittelsbach dynasty, and it served as their ducal residence for Lower Bavaria from 1255–1503, and later as the seat of the hereditary r ...
, which he renovated extensively between 1568 and 1578. His projects, including the construction of an arcaded inner court, changed the Gothic castle into a Renaissance palace complex.


Reign

Like his
Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate ...
father and grandfather, William V was a strong supporter of the counter-reformation. He secured the archbishopric of
Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
for his brother Ernest with his campaign in 1583; his brother
Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...
commanded the Bavarian army in the first 18 months of the Cologne War in an effort to secure the
Electorate Electorate may refer to: * The people who are eligible to vote in an election, especially their number e.g. the term ''size of (the) electorate'' * The dominion of a Prince-elector The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, ...
. Eventually, the Spanish army, under the command of Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma expelled the Calvinist contender for the Electorate,
Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg (10 November 1547 – 31 May 1601) was Archbishop-Elector of Cologne. After pursuing an ecclesiastical career, he won a close election in the cathedral chapter of Cologne over Ernst of Bavaria. After his ...
, and Ernst secured sole possession of both the Electorate and the Archdiocese of Cologne. This dignity remained in the possession of the family for nearly 200 years. Two of William V's sons also followed ecclesiastical careers: Philipp Wilhelm of Bavaria became the
Bishop of Regensburg The Bishops of Regensburg (Ratisbon) are bishops of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany.
and eventually a Cardinal, and Ferdinand of Bavaria succeeded his uncle as Archbishop of Cologne. In 1591, Philipp Wilhelm expelled
Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
from the
Berchtesgaden Provostry Berchtesgaden Provostry or the Prince-Provostry of Berchtesgaden (german: Fürstpropstei Berchtesgaden) was an immediate (') principality of the Holy Roman Empire, held by a canonry (a collegiate foundation of Canons Regular) led by a Prince-P ...
, the future possession of his son Ferdinand. During William V's reign, non-Catholics were forced to leave Bavaria, and the so-called Geistlicher Rat, an ecclesiastical council, was formed to advise William V on theological affairs, independent of the traditional privy council or the treasury, which administered secular affairs. The Geistlicher Rat supervised and disciplined the duchy's Catholic clergy through regular visitations; it controlled the Catholicism of all the state officials by issuing certificates documenting their annual confession and communion; it funded new Catholic schools, new Catholic colleges, new houses of religious orders, especially the
missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
and educational ones, such as the Jesuits and
Capuchins Capuchin can refer to: *Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from t ...
for men and the
Ursulines The Ursulines, also known as the Order of Saint Ursula (post-nominals: OSU), is an enclosed religious order of consecrated women that branched off from the Angelines, also known as the Company of Saint Ursula, in 1572. Like the Angelines, they ...
for women. William V is responsible for numerous executions due to
witch-hunt A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America took place in the Early Modern per ...
s in his duchy. The Jesuit St. Michael's Church and college of the Jesuits were built in Munich between 1583 and 1597 as spiritual centers for the counter-reformation. William V's spending on Church-related projects, including funding missionaries outside Bavaria—as far away as Asia and the Americas—put tremendous strain on the Bavarian treasury. The Italian confidence man Marco Bragadino who was promising to make copious amounts of gold to erase the Dukes's debts was called upon by William V in 1590, and executed after he had failed. William V abdicated on 15 October 1597 in favour of his son, Maximilian I and retired into a monastery where he spent the remainder of his life in contemplation and prayer. He died in 1626 at the Old Schleissheim Palace and was buried at St. Michael's Church, Munich.


Cultural activity

Already as crown prince in Landshut, William V patronised the arts. His court architect
Friedrich Sustris Friedrich Sustris (c. 1540, in Padua – 1599, in Munich) was an Italian-Dutch painter, decorator and architect. He was a son of the artist Lambert Sustris, who worked in Italy. Sustris got his training from his father Lambert in Venice and Padu ...
was in charge of the decoration and remodelling of Trausnitz Castle in Landshut. Later when he ascended to rule, Sustris also undertook the expansion of the '' Munich Residenz'', the construction of the adjoining ''college'', the palace ''Wilhelminische Veste'' (the so-called ''Maxburg'') in Munich, and ''St. Michael's Church''. In 1589, William V built the '' Hofbräu Brewery''. The Old Schleissheim Palace was founded by William V in 1598 as a
renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
country house and hermitage located close to
Dachau Palace The Dachau Palace is a former residence of the rulers of Bavaria at Dachau, southern Germany. History The castle was constructed around 1100 as a castle by the cadet branch of the House of Wittelsbach. In 1182, the last Count of Dachau, Kon ...
. The sculptors
Hans Krumpper Hans Krumpper (c.1570 – between 7 and 14 May 1634) was a German sculptor, plasterer, architect, and intendant of the arts who served the Bavarian dukes William V and Maximilian I. Krumpper was born in Weilheim in Oberbayern. He worked fo ...
and Hubert Gerhard along with painters
Peter Candid Peter de Witte, known in Italy as Pietro Candido and in Bavaria as Peter Candid (c. 1548 – 1628) was a Flemish-born Mannerist painter, tapestry designer and draughtsman active in Italy and Bavaria.Hans von Aachen were engaged at his court.


Family and children

Married
Renata of Lorraine Renata of Lorraine or Renée de Lorraine (20 April 1544 – 22 May 1602) was by birth a member of the House of Lorraine and Duchess of Bavaria by marriage to William V, Duke of Bavaria. Born in Nancy, France, she was the second child and eldest d ...
(1544–1602) in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
on 22 February 1568. They had: * Christoph (born and died 23 January 1570). * Christine (23 September 1571 – 27 April 1580). * Maximilian I (1573–1651), future Duke and Elector of Bavaria * Maria Anna of Bavaria (Maria Anna v. Bayern), 1574–1616, married Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor in 1600 * Philipp Wilhelm (22 September 1576 – 18 May 1598), Bishop of Regensburg from 1595, Cardinal from 1597 *
Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...
(6 October 1577 – 13 September 1650), Archbishop and
prince-elector The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, la, Princeps Elector), or electors for short, were the members of the electoral college that elected the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century onwards, the prin ...
of
Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
(1612–1650) * Eleonore Magdalene (7 October 1578 – 18 April 1579). * Karl (30 May 1580 – 27 October 1587). * Albert VI (1584–1666), in 1612 married Mechthilde v. Leuchtenberg (1588–1634) * Magdalene of Bavaria (4 July 1587 – 25 September 1628). Her tomb is in Hofkirche Neuburg a.d.Donau), in 1613 married Wolfgang Wilhelm, Pfalzgraf von Neuburg (1578–1663)


Ancestors


References


Sources

*


External links


genealogy
{{DEFAULTSORT:William V, Duke Of Bavaria Bavaria, William V, Duke of Bavaria, William V, Duke of 16th-century dukes of Bavaria People from Landshut House of Wittelsbach Burials at St. Michael's Church, Munich