Johann Schweikard Von Kronberg
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Johann Schweikhard von Kronberg (15 July, 1553 – 17 September, 1626) was the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz from 1604 to 1626.


Biography


Early life, 1553–1604

Born on July 15, 1553, Johann Schweikhard von
Kronberg Kronberg im Taunus (, ) is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis district, Hesse, Germany and part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. Before 1866, it was in the Duchy of Nassau; in that year the whole Duchy was absorbed into Prussia. Kronberg lies ...
was the third son of Hartmut XIII von Kronburg (1517–1591) and his wife Barbara von Sickingen (1522–1577).Jürgensmeier, Friedhelm. "Johann Schweikard von Kronberg (1553–1626)", Institut für Mainzer Kirchengeschichte
/ref> His father was an administrator for the
Archbishopric of Mainz The Electorate of Mainz ( or '; ), previously known in English as Mentz and by its French name Mayence, was one of the most prestigious and influential states of the Holy Roman Empire. In the hierarchy of the Catholic Church, the Archbishop-Elec ...
. With his older brothers taking over the family's offices, Johann was destined for a career in the church from an early age. He was elected to the
cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...
of
Mainz Cathedral Mainz Cathedral or St. Martin's Cathedral ( or, officially, ') is located near the historical center and pedestrianized market square of the city of Mainz, Germany. This 1000-year-old Roman Catholic cathedral is the site of the episcopal see of th ...
at a young age through his father's influence. He was a
canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...
of St. Alban's Abbey, Mainz from 1564 to 1566. His uncle,
Daniel Brendel von Homburg Daniel Brendel of Homburg () (22 March 1522 – 22 March 1582) was the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz from 1555 to 1582. Biography Daniel Brendel of Homburg was born in Aschaffenburg on March 22, 1522. The cathedral chapter of Mainz Cathedral el ...
was Archbishop of Mainz, and sent him to the
Collegium Germanicum The Collegio Teutonico (German College), historically often referred to by its Latin name Collegium Germanicum, is one of the Roman Colleges, Pontifical Colleges of Rome. The German College is the Pontifical College established for future ecclesi ...
in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
.Marzi, Werner. "2000 Years of Mainz" There, he became friends with
Johannes Busaeus Joannes Busaeus or Johannes Busius (1547–1611), also known as Jan Buys (Dutch) and Jean Busée (French), was a Catholic theologian from the Habsburg Netherlands who wrote in defence of the introduction of the Gregorian calendar in Germany, and pro ...
, who was later a
Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...
teaching at the
University of Mainz The Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz () is a public research university in Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate, Germany. It has been named after the printer Johannes Gutenberg since 1946. it had approximately 32,000 students enrolled in around 100 a ...
. After his return to
Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...
, the
papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title '' legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Catho ...
Giovanni Morone Giovanni Morone (or Moroni) (25 January 1509 – 1 December 1580) was an Italian cardinal. He was named Bishop of Modena in 1529 and was created Cardinal in 1542 by Pope Paul III. As a cardinal, he resided in the Vatican's Apostolic Palace a ...
appointed him
prior The term prior may refer to: * Prior (ecclesiastical), the head of a priory (monastery) * Prior convictions, the life history and previous convictions of a suspect or defendant in a criminal case * Prior probability, in Bayesian statistics * Prio ...
of ''Stiftes St. Peter vor Mainz''. He became a ''Domkapitular'' in 1582, then became
schoolmaster A schoolmaster, or simply master, is a male school teacher. The usage first occurred in England in the Late Middle Ages and early modern period. At that time, most schools were one-room or two-room schools and had only one or two such teacher ...
in 1584. He was
dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean * Dean Sw ...
of St. Alban's Abbey by 1588, and then dean of the ''Marienstiftes'' in 1599. From 1584 to 1595 he served as Vicar General of the Elector-Archbishop of Mainz. He became the chamberlain (treasurer) of the Archbishopric in 1599.


Elector, 1604–1626

Following the death of
Johann Adam von Bicken Johann Adam von Bicken (27 May 1564 – 11 January 1604) was the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz from 1601 to 1604. Biography Johann Adam von Bicken was born in Hainchen Castle on 27 May 1564, the son of Philipp von Bicken and his wife Anna Bren ...
, the cathedral chapter of Mainz Cathedral elected Johann Schweikhard von Kromberg as the new
Archbishop of Mainz The Elector of Mainz was one of the seven Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. As both the Archbishop of Mainz and the ruling prince of the Electorate of Mainz, the Elector of Mainz held a powerful position during the Middle Ages. The Archb ...
on February 17, 1604 with the support of
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg), Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–16 ...
, who feared that the election of the rival candidate,
Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn (18 March 1545 – 9 September 1617) was Prince-Bishop of Würzburg from 1573. He was born in Mespelbrunn Castle, Spessart (Lower Franconia) and died in Würzburg. Life Mespelbrunn was born the second so ...
,
Bishop of Würzburg A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...
would destabilize relations with the
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
of the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
. After
Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII (; ; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 January 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born in Fano, Papal States to a prominen ...
confirmed his election, he was consecrated as archbishop in November 1604. The Archbishop-Elector of Mainz was also archchancellor of Germany and, as such, ranked first among all ecclesiastical and secular princes of the Empire. He completed the work of the
Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...
in the Archbishopric of Mainz that had been begun by his predecessors. He adopted a moderate religious-political attitude that was willing to compromise. He did not persecute Protestants, however, and maintained the religious freedom of
Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...
. In 1605 the Mainz "Catholisch Cantual" was published as part of the "Catholic Manual" with Bible texts, catechism, mass treatises and Catholic worship songs as a response to Protestant spiritual chants. He supported the work of the
Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
and
Capuchins Capuchin can refer to: *Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, an order of Roman Catholic friars *Capuchin Poor Clares, an order of Roman Catholic contemplative religious sisters *Capuchin monkey, primates of the genus ''Cebus'' and ''Sapajus'', named af ...
. He was enfeoffed with the regalia and imperial fiefs on August 13, 1613 at the Reichstag in Regensburg. He commissioned the
Schloss Johannisburg Schloss Johannisburg is a schloss in the town of Aschaffenburg, in Franconia, in the state of Bavaria, Germany. It was erected between 1605 and 1614 by the architect for Johann Schweikhard von Kronberg, Prince Bishop of Mainz. Until German m ...
, which was built in
Aschaffenburg Aschaffenburg (; Hessian: ''Aschebersch'', ) is a town in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg, despite being its administrative seat, is not part of the district of Aschaffenburg. Aschaffenburg belonged to the Archbishopric ...
from 1605 to 1614. Under his reign the old arsenal building was finished. Witch trials were revived in 1615. Johann Schweikhard von Kronberg opposed the intervention of
Henry IV of France Henry IV (; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry (''le Bon Roi Henri'') or Henry the Great (''Henri le Grand''), was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 16 ...
in the
War of the Jülich succession The War of the Jülich Succession, also known as the Jülich War or the Jülich-Cleves Succession Crises (German language, German: ''Jülich-Klevischer Erbfolgestreit''), was a war of succession in the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. The fi ...
in 1609. In 1612 crowned
Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor MatthiasMátyás II of Hungary and BohemiaMatija II of Croatia (24 February 1557 – 20 March 1619) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1612 to 1619, Archduke of Austria from 1608 to 1619, King of Hungary and List of rulers of Croatia, Croatia from 1608 ...
in the Bartholomäuskirche. In 1618, he opposed the decision of
Frederick V, Elector Palatine Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...
to accept the
Bohemian Crown The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were the states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods with feudal obligations to the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of Bohemia, an electorate of the Hol ...
, but he also opposed the Spanish occupation of the
Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a Imperial State, constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy ...
. In the
imperial election of 1619 The imperial election of 1619 was an imperial election held to select the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. It took place in Frankfurt on August 28. Background This was the sixth imperial election to take place during the Reformation. On Octob ...
, he played a significant role in the election of Ferdinand II. He died in
Aschaffenburg Aschaffenburg (; Hessian: ''Aschebersch'', ) is a town in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg, despite being its administrative seat, is not part of the district of Aschaffenburg. Aschaffenburg belonged to the Archbishopric ...
on September 17, 1626.


References

*This page is based on this page on
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. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kronberg, Johann Schweikhard von Archbishop-electors of Mainz 1553 births 1626 deaths