Mechtild of Nassau, german ''Mechthild von Nassau'', (before 1280 – 19 June 1323) was the youngest child of

Adolf, King of the Romans Adolf (c. 1255 – 2 July 1298) was the count of Nassau from about 1276 and the elected king of Germany from 1292 until his deposition by the prince-electors in 1298. He was never crowned by the pope, which would have secured him the Holy Roman ...

and his wife

Imagina of Isenburg-Limburg Imagina of Isenburg-Limburg (ca. 1255 – 29 September 1313?) was the Queen consort of Adolf of Nassau, King of Germany. Life Imagina was born in about 1255 (probably in Limburg an der Lahn) to Gerlach I of Limburg and Imagina of Blieskastel. ...

. Mechtild is also known as ''Matilda of Nassau''. She was Duchess consort of Bavaria, by her marriage to Rudolf I, Duke of Upper Bavaria. Tekening van de graftombe van Mechtild van Nassau

Tekening van de graftombe van Mechtild van Nassau

Family

Mechtild was the youngest of eight children, however only Mechtild and three other siblings lived to adulthood: Gerlach I of Nassau-Wiesbaden, Walram III of Nassau-Wiesbaden and Adelheid, Abbess of

Klarenthal Abbey Klarenthal Abbey (''Kloster Klarenthal'' in German) is a former convent of the Order of Poor Ladies in the borough of Klarenthal in Wiesbaden, Germany. Klarenthal is the only abbey in present-day Wiesbaden. History as an active monastery Klarent ...

. Rudolf succeeded his father in 1294 and supported his father-in-law king Adolf of Nassau-Weilburg against his uncle, the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

Albert of Austria. After Adolf’s death Rudolf joined Albert’s party but the strong dynastic policy of the new king caused a new conflict. Rudolf's mother,

Matilda of Habsburg Matilda of Habsburg or Melchilde (1253 – 23 December 1304) was a duchess consort of Bavaria. She was regent of Upper Bavaria during the minority of her younger son, Louis IV in 1294–1301. Marriage Matilda was the eldest daughter of Rudol ...

acted as regent for her son Rudolf as well as her other son, the future

Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV (; 1 April 1282 – 11 October 1347), called the Bavarian (, ), was King of the Romans from 1314, King of Italy from 1327, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1328 until his death in 1347. 20 October 1314 imperial election, Louis' election a ...

. A civil war against Louis due to new disputes on the partition of

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

was ended in 1313, when peace was made at Munich. Rudolf died in 1319, in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor had taken the Palatinate by force of arms. In August 1322, the war finally came to an end, but only after Mechtild's death in June 1323, when the three brothers finally were able to make peace with their uncle. Louis' sons inherited Bavaria and Rudolf and Mechtild's sons inherited the Upper Palatinate and the Palatinate in line with the

Treaty of Pavia (1329) The Treaty of Pavia which divided the House of Wittelsbach into two branches, was signed in Pavia in 1329. Under the accord, Emperor Louis IV granted during his stay in Italy the Electorate of the Palatinate (including the Bavarian Upper Pa ...

. Metchild died 19 June 1323 in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

. She was buried at Klarenthal Abbey.

Marriage

She married in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

1 September 1294

Rudolf I, Duke of Bavaria Rudolf I of Bavaria, called "the Stammerer" (; 4 October 1274 – 12 August 1319), a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was Duke of Upper Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1294 until 1317. Life Rudolf was born in Basel, the son o ...

. John I of Isenburg-Limburg helped make the final agreement. Mechtild and Rudolf had: # Ludwig (1297 – before 5 April 1311) # Adolf, Count Palatine of the Rhine (27 September 1300,

Wolfratshausen Wolfratshausen () is a town of the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen, located in Bavaria, Germany. The town had a population of 19,033 as of 31 December 2019. History The first mention of "Wolveradeshusun" appears in documents from the year ...

– 29 January 1327) # Rudolf II the Blind (8 August 1306, Wolfratshausen – 4 October 1353, Neustadt) # Rupert I the Red (9 June 1309, Wolfratshausen – 16 February 1390) # Mathilde (1312 – 25 November 1375), married 1330/1 to Count John III of Sponheim # Anna (1318–1319).

Ancestors

References

Sources

* * {{Authority control 1323 deaths 14th-century German women House of Nassau-Weilburg Year of birth uncertain Daughters of kings Mothers of German monarchs