Ernest, Elector of Saxony

Ernest
Ernest
Elector of Saxony
Reign	7 September 1464 – 26 August 1486
Predecessor	Frederick II
Successor	Frederick III
Landgrave of Thuringia
Reign	17 September 1482 – 26 August 1486
Predecessor	William II
Successor	Frederick VI
Born	24 March 1441; Meissen, Electorate of Saxony, Holy Roman Empire
Died	26 August 1486 (aged 45); Colditz, Electorate of Saxony, Holy Roman Empire
Spouse	Elisabeth of Bavaria-Munich
Issue; among others...	Christina, Queen of Denmark ; Frederick III, Elector of Saxony; Johann, Elector of Saxony ; Margarete, Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg
House	House of Wettin
Father	Frederick II, Elector of Saxony
Mother	Margaret of Austria-Styria
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Ernest (Meissen, 24 March 1441 – 26 August 1486 in Colditz) was Elector of Saxony from 1464 to 1486.

Ernst was the founder and progenitor of the Ernestine line of Saxon princes,^[1] and a direct patrilineal ancestor of Queen Elizabeth II (United Kingdom), Michael, Prince of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach), Konrad, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen (Saxe-Meiningen) and Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) and Duchess Donata of Mecklenburg (Saxe-Altenburg: since she is a matrilineal descendant of the last reigning duke of Saxe-Altenburg even if the Saxe-Altenburg line became extinct (in the male line) but since the duke had 2 daughters Princess Charlotte of Saxe-Altenburg (Donata's maternal grandmother) and princess Princess Elisabeth, the Saxe-Altenburg line isn't technically "extinct" since the duke's descendants are still living (in this case, Duchess Donata and her children).

Biography

Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (1381–1428), Ernest, Elector of Saxony (1464–1486) and Frederick II, Elector of Saxony (1428–1464); Fürstenzug, Dresden, Germany

He was the second son (but fourth in order of birth) of the eight children of Frederick II, Elector of Saxony and Margaret of Austria, sister of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor.

The death of his older brother Frederick (1451) made him the new heir apparent to the position of Elector of Saxony.

In 1455 Ernst was kidnapped, along with his brother Albert, by the knight Kunz von Kaufungen an episode famous in German history as the "Prinzenraub"^[2] (i.e. The Stealing of the Princes).

In 1464, he succeeded his father as Elector of Saxony, and annexed Thuringia in 1482, and three years later (Treaty of Leipzig, 1485) shared his territory with his brother Albert, until he arranged the division of the common possession.

According to the Treaty of Leipzig he received an area around Wittenberg, the southern Thuringian part, the Vogtland and parts of the Pleissnerland. As a residence he selected Wittenberg. He provided for the welfare of the country and introduced the constitution.

One year after the division elector Ernest died in Colditz, at the age of 46 years, the consequence of a fall from a horse.

Children

His wife Elisabeth of Bavaria.

In Leipzig on 19 November 1460 Ernst married Elisabeth of Bavaria. They had seven children:

Christina (b. Torgau, 25 December 1461 – d. Odense, 8 December 1521), married on 6 September 1478 to King John I of Denmark
Frederick III, Elector of Saxony (b. Torgau, 17 January 1463 – d. Lockau, 5 May 1525)
Ernest (b. Meissen, 26 June 1464 – d. Halle, 3 August 1513), Archbishop of Magdeburg (1476–1480), Bishop of Halberstadt (1480–1513)
Adalbert (b. Meissen, 8 May 1467 – d. Aschaffenburg, 1 May 1484), Administrator of Mainz
Johann, Elector of Saxony (b. Meissen, 30 June 1468 – d. Schweinitz, 16 August 1532)
Margarete (b. Meissen, 4 August 1469 – d. Weimar, 7 December 1528), married on 27 February 1487 to Henry I of Lüneburg
Wolfgang (b. Meissen, ca. 1473 – d. Torgau, ca. 1478).

Ancestry

Ancestors of Ernest, Elector of Saxony

16. Frederick II, Margrave of Meissen

8. Frederick III, Landgrave of Thuringia

17. Mathilde of Bavaria

4. Frederick I, Elector of Saxony

18. Heinrich IV of Henneberg-Schleusingen

9. Catherine of Henneberg-Schleusingen

19. Judith of Brandenburg-Salzwedel

2. Frederick II, Elector of Saxony

20. Magnus II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg

10. Henry the Mild, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg

21. Catherine of Anhalt-Bernburg

5. Catherine of Brunswick

22. Wartislaw VI, Duke of Pomerania

11. Sofie of Pomerania-Wolgast

23. Anna zu Mecklenburg-Stargard

1. Ernest, Elector of Saxony

24. Albert II, Duke of Austria

12. Leopold III, Duke of Austria

25. Johanna of Pfirt

6. Ernest, Duke of Austria

26. Bernabò Visconti, Lord of Milan

13. Viridis Visconti

27. Beatrice Regina della Scala

3. Margaret of Austria

28. Siemowit III of Masovia

14. Siemowit IV, Duke of Masovia

29. Euphemia of Silesia-Troppau

7. Cymburgis of Masovia

30. Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuania

15. Alexandra of Lithuania

31. Uliana Alexandrovna of Tver

References

↑ Trim 2003, p. 214.
↑ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Frederick II., Elector of Saxony". Encyclopædia Britannica. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 60.

Sources

Trim, David J. B. (2003). The Chivalric Ethos and the Development of Military Professionalism. BRILL. ISBN 978-9004120952.

Ernest, Elector of Saxony House of Wettin Born: 24 March 144126 August
Preceded by Frederick II	Elector of Saxony 1464–1486	Succeeded by Frederick III
Preceded by William II	Landgrave of Thuringia 1482–1486	Succeeded by Frederick VI

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[FOOTNOTETrim2003214-1] Trim 2003, p. 214.

[2] Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Frederick II., Elector of Saxony". Encyclopædia Britannica. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 60.