Henry the Proud was the Duke of Bavaria (Henry X, 1126–1139), Duke of Saxony

Rulers of Saxony

This article lists Dukes, Electors, and Kings ruling over different territories named Saxony from the beginning of the Saxon Duchy in the 9th century to the end of the Saxon Kingdom in 1918.-Dukes of Saxony:...

 (Henry II, 1137–1139), and Margrave of Tuscany (1137-1139).

Life and reign

He was the son of Henry the Black

Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria

Henry IX , called the Black, a member of the House of Welf, was duke of Bavaria from 1120 to 1126.-Life and reign:...

, Duke of Bavaria, and Wulfhild, daughter of Magnus Billung

Magnus, Duke of Saxony

Magnus was the duke of Saxony from 1072 to 1106. Eldest son and successor of Ordulf and Wulfhild of Norway, he was the last member of the House of Billung.-Rebellion:...

, Duke of Saxony, and thus a member of the Welf family, and, what was quite important, senior heir of the Billung

Billung

The House of Billung was a dynasty of Saxon noblemen in the 9th through 12th centuries.The first known member of the house was Count Wichmann, mentioned as a Billung in 811...

 family. His father and mother both died in 1126 (father became a monk shortly before his death), and as his elder brother Conrad had entered the church and died before their parents, Henry became duke of Bavaria. He shared the family possessions in Saxony

Duchy of Saxony

The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...

, Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

 and Swabia

Swabia

Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...

 with his younger brother, Welf.

In 1127 he was married to Gertrude

Gertrud of Süpplingenburg

Gertrud of Süpplingenburg was the only child of Emperor Lothar III , Duke of Saxony, and his wife Richenza of Northeim....

, the only child of Lothair III, Holy Roman Emperor

Lothair III, Holy Roman Emperor

Lothair III of Supplinburg , was Duke of Saxony , King of Germany , and Holy Roman Emperor from 1133 to 1137. The son of Count Gebhard of Supplinburg, his reign was troubled by the constant intriguing of Frederick I, Duke of Swabia and Duke Conrad of Franconia...

, whose marriage and inheritance Henry's father had been promised as reward for his changing to support Lothair in the royal election of 1125. Gertrude was heir of the properties of three Saxon dynasties: the House of Supplinburg, the Brunones, and the House of Northeim

Northeim

Northeim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the district of Northeim, with, as of 2002, a population of 31 000. It's located on the German Half-Timbered House Road.-History:...

. The couple had only one son, Henry the Lion

Henry the Lion

Henry the Lion was a member of the Welf dynasty and Duke of Saxony, as Henry III, from 1142, and Duke of Bavaria, as Henry XII, from 1156, which duchies he held until 1180....

. After the marriage, Henry took part in the warfare between the king and the Hohenstaufen

Hohenstaufen

The House of Hohenstaufen was a dynasty of German kings in the High Middle Ages, lasting from 1138 to 1254. Three of these kings were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In 1194 the Hohenstaufens also became Kings of Sicily...

 brothers, Frederick II, Duke of Swabia

Frederick II, Duke of Swabia

Frederick II , called the One-Eyed, was the second Hohenstaufen duke of Swabia from 1105. He was the eldest son of Frederick I and Agnes....

 (who was Henry's brother-in-law, having been married with his sister Judith), and Conrad

Conrad III of Germany

Conrad III was the first King of Germany of the Hohenstaufen dynasty. He was the son of Frederick I, Duke of Swabia, and Agnes, a daughter of the Salian Emperor Henry IV.-Life and reign:...

, Duke of Franconia, afterwards the German king Conrad III. While engaged in this struggle Henry was also occupied in suppressing a rising in Bavaria, led by Frederick, Count of Bogen, during which both duke and count sought to establish their own candidates in the Bishopric of Regensburg

Bishopric of Regensburg

The Bishopric of Regensburg was a small prince-bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire, located in what is now southern Germany. It was elevated to the Archbishopric of Regensburg in 1803 after the dissolution of the Archbishopric of Mainz, but became a bishopric again in 1817.-History:The diocese...

. After a war of devastation, Frederick submitted in 1133, and two years later the Hohenstaufen brothers made their peace with Lothair. In 1136, Henry accompanied his father-in-law to Italy, and taking command of one division of the imperial army marched into southern Italy, devastating the land as he went. Having distinguished himself by his military abilities during this campaign, Henry was appointed as margrave of Tuscany

Tuscany

Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....

 and as Lothair's successor in the Duchy of Saxony

Duchy of Saxony

The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...

. He was also given the former properties of Matilda of Tuscany

Matilda of Tuscany

Matilda of Tuscany was an Italian noblewoman, the principal Italian supporter of Pope Gregory VII during the Investiture Controversy. She is one of the few medieval women to be remembered for her military accomplishments...

.

When Lothair died in December 1137, Henry's wealth and position made him a formidable candidate for the German crown, but the same qualities which earned him the cognomen

Cognomen

The cognomen nōmen "name") was the third name of a citizen of Ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. The cognomen started as a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditary. Hereditary cognomina were used to augment the second name in order to identify a particular branch within...

 of "the Proud", aroused the jealousy of the princes and so prevented his election. The new king, Conrad III, demanded the imperial insignia which were in Henry's possession, and the duke in return asked for his investiture with the Saxon duchy. But Conrad, who feared his power, refused to assent to this on the pretext that it was unlawful for two duchies to be in one hand. Attempts at a settlement failed, and in July 1138 Henry was deprived of his duchies. In 1139 Henry succeeded in expelling his enemies from Saxony and was preparing to attack Bavaria when he suddenly died in Quedlinburg Abbey

Quedlinburg Abbey

Quedlinburg Abbey was a house of secular canonesses in Quedlinburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was founded in 936 on the initiative of Saint Mathilda, the widow of Henry the Fowler, as his memorial...

. Henry was buried in the Collegiate Church of Königslutter

Königslutter

-External links:*...

 next to his parents-in-law.

His son was Henry the Lion

Henry the Lion

Henry the Lion was a member of the Welf dynasty and Duke of Saxony, as Henry III, from 1142, and Duke of Bavaria, as Henry XII, from 1156, which duchies he held until 1180....

, who was underage. Henry's duchy of Bavaria was given to Leopold IV, Margrave of Austria, a half-brother of the new king Conrad. Saxony, which he had attempted to hold but was not officially invested with, was given to Albert the Bear, son of the younger daughter of the last Billung duke, Magnus.