List of Margraves of Meissen
Encyclopedia
The Margraviate of Meissen was a territorial state on the border of the Holy Roman Empire
.
) was founded 965
by Emperor Otto I
; in 929
, the German king Henry the Fowler built a fortress on the hill where Meissen
Castle stands. During the tenth century, Meissen was populated by Slavic
tribes who were subdued by the German margrave Gero
the Great. The region between the rivers Elbe and Oder was then ruled by Gero as the margraviate of Sächsische Ostmark 937-965. When Gero died in 965
, Ostmark was partitioned into five new margraviates, including Meissen, and also Nordmark
which eventually became Brandenburg. In 1089, Meissen became the honor of the house of Wettin
's possessions and remained as such even after it had been incorporated into the electorate of Saxony in 1423.
, the last king of Saxony, in 1932, further heads of the house and pretender
s to the throne have used the title Margrave of Meissen.
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
.
History
The Mark of Meissen (cradle of SaxonySaxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
) was founded 965
965
Year 965 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* The Khazar fortress of Sarkel falls to the Kievan Rus....
by Emperor Otto I
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
; in 929
929
Year 929 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* Mpu Sindok, ruler of the Mataram Kingdom, moves his court from Central Java to East Java in Indonesia.- Europe :...
, the German king Henry the Fowler built a fortress on the hill where Meissen
Meissen
Meissen is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrechtsburg castle, the Gothic Meissen Cathedral and the Meissen Frauenkirche...
Castle stands. During the tenth century, Meissen was populated by Slavic
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
tribes who were subdued by the German margrave Gero
Gero
Gero I , called the Great , ruled an initially modest march centred on Merseburg, which he expanded into a vast territory named after him: the marca Geronis. During the mid-10th century, he was the leader of the Saxon Drang nach Osten.-Succession and early conflicts:Gero was the son of Count...
the Great. The region between the rivers Elbe and Oder was then ruled by Gero as the margraviate of Sächsische Ostmark 937-965. When Gero died in 965
965
Year 965 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* The Khazar fortress of Sarkel falls to the Kievan Rus....
, Ostmark was partitioned into five new margraviates, including Meissen, and also Nordmark
Nordmark
Nordmark can mean:*Nordmark Hundred - a district of Värmland in Sweden*the German name for the Northern March - a territorial organisation in Holy Roman Empire*Arbeitserziehungslager Nordmark a work camp from the Nazis...
which eventually became Brandenburg. In 1089, Meissen became the honor of the house of Wettin
Wettin (dynasty)
The House of Wettin is a dynasty of German counts, dukes, prince-electors and kings that once ruled the area of today's German states of Saxony, the Saxon part of Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia for more than 800 years...
's possessions and remained as such even after it had been incorporated into the electorate of Saxony in 1423.
List
| Affiliation | Name | Years | Comments |
| Wigbert | 965–970 | ||
| Thietmar Thietmar, Margrave of Meissen Thietmar was the Margrave of Meissen from 970 until his death. Thietmar was the eldest of three brothers, all sons of Hidda, sister of Gero the Great, and Count Christian of Thuringia... |
970–979 | also Margrave of Merseburg | |
| Ekkehardingian | Gunther, Margrave of Merseburg Gunther, Margrave of Merseburg Gunther was the Margrave of Merseburg from 965 until his death, upon which the march of Merseburg was united to that of Meissen.... |
981–982 | also Margrave of Merseburg |
| Rikdag Rikdag Rikdag, Ricdag, Riddag, or Rihdag was the Margrave of Meissen from 979 until his death. In 982, he acquired the marches of Merseburg and Zeitz. In 985, he was made count in the Schwabengau. He temporarily reunited all of the southern marca Geronis under his command... |
979–985 | since 982 also Margrave of Merseburg, removes Wigger in Zeitz Zeitz Zeitz is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river Weiße Elster, in the middle of the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Saxony.-History:... , Gunther in Merseburg Merseburg Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle . It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg.... and Wigbert in Meißen as Markgrave |
|
| Ekkehardingian | Eckard I | 985–1002 | Son of Günther of Merseburg |
| Ekkehardingian | Gunzelin | 1002–1009 | |
| Ekkehardingian | Herman I | 1009–1031 | |
| Ekkehardingian | Eckard II | 1031–1046 | |
| Weimar-Orlamünde | William | 1046–1062 | |
| Weimar-Orlamünde | Otto I Otto I, Margrave of Meissen Otto I was the Margrave of Meissen from 1062 until his death, the second margrave of the family of the counts of Weimar and Orlamünde. He was a younger son of Weimar III of Weimar and Oda, daughter of Thietmar, Margrave of the Saxon Ostmark. He inherited Orlamünde from his father in 1039 and... |
1062–1067 | |
| Brunonen Brunonen The Brunonen were a Saxon noble family in the 10th and 11th centuries, who owned property in Eastphalia and Frisia.... |
Egbert I | 1067–1068 | |
| Brunonen | Egbert II | 1068–1089 | |
| Přemyslid | Vratislaus II of Bohemia Vratislaus II of Bohemia -Literature:*Vratislav Vaníček: Vratislav II. . První český král. Vyšehrad 2004, ISBN 80-7021-655-7*Hans Patze: Die Pegauer Annalen, die Königserhebung Wratislaws v. Böhmen und die Anfänge der Stadt Pegau. JGMODtl 12, 1963, 1-62... |
1076–1089 | |
| Wettin Wettin (dynasty) The House of Wettin is a dynasty of German counts, dukes, prince-electors and kings that once ruled the area of today's German states of Saxony, the Saxon part of Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia for more than 800 years... |
Henry I | 1089–1103 | |
| Wettin | Thimo Thimo of Wettin Thimo , was count of Wettin and Brehna.He was the son of Dietrich II, Margrave of Lower Lusatia, and Mathilde, daughter of Eckard I, Margrave of Meissen, and married Ida, daughter of Otto of Northeim... |
1103 | |
| Wettin | Henry II | 1104–1123 | |
| Wiprecht | 1123–1124 | ||
| Herman II | 1124–1129 | ||
| Wettin | Conrad | 1123–1156 | |
| Wettin | Otto II Otto II, Margrave of Meissen Otto II was the Margrave of Meissen from 1157 until his death in 1190. His father was Conrad the Great and his son was Dietrich I, Margrave of Meissen. He is a direct patrilineal ancestor of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, King Albert II of Belgium and Simeon II of Bulgaria.... |
1156–1190 | |
| Wettin | Albert I | 1190–1195 | Followed by the direct rule of the Emperor Henry VI |
| Wettin | Dietrich I | 1198–1221 | |
| Wettin | Henry III | 1221–1288 | |
| Wettin | Albert II | 1288 | Son of Heinrich III der Erlauchte |
| Wettin | Frederick Tuta | 1288–1291 | |
| |Dietrich II | 1291–1307 | ||
| Wettin | Frederick I | 1291–1323 | |
| Nassau | Adolf | 1293–1298 | |
| Habsburg Habsburg The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and... |
Albert III Albert I of Germany Albert I of Habsburg was King of the Romans and Duke of Austria, the eldest son of German King Rudolph I of Habsburg and his first wife Gertrude of Hohenburg.-Life:... |
1298–1307 | |
| Wettin | Frederick II | 1323–1349 | Son of Friedrich I der Freidige |
| Wettin | Frederick III | 1349–1381 | Son of Friedrich II der Ernsthafte |
| Wettin | Balthasar Balthasar, Landgrave of Thuringia Landgrave Balthasar of Thuringia was Margrave of Meissen and Landgrave of Thuringia from the House of Wettin.- Life :Balthasar was the second son of Frederick the Serious... |
1349–1382 | Son of Friedrich II der Ernsthafte |
| Wettin | William I | 1349–1407 | Son of Friedrich II der Ernsthafte |
| Wettin | George | 1381–1402 | Son of Friedrich III der Strenge |
| Wettin | William II | 1381–1425 | Son of Friedrich III der Strenge |
| Wettin | Frederick IV Frederick I, Elector of Saxony Frederick IV of Meissen and Elector of Saxony was Margrave of Meissen and Elector of Saxony from 1381 until his death. He is not to be confused with his cousin Frederick IV, Landgrave of Thuringia, the son of Balthasar, Landgrave of Thuringia... |
1381–1428 | Son of Friedrich III der Strenge |
| Wettin | Frederick V | 1407–1440 | Son of Balthasar, heir of William I |
As a title in pretense
After the abolition of all German monarchies in 1918 and the death of Friedrich August IIIFrederick Augustus III of Saxony
This article is about King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony. For the elector Frederick Augustus III, see Frederick Augustus I of Saxony.Frederick Augustus III was the last King of Saxony and a member of the House of Wettin.Born in Dresden, Frederick Augustus was the son of King George of Saxony...
, the last king of Saxony, in 1932, further heads of the house and pretender
Pretender
A pretender is one who claims entitlement to an unavailable position of honour or rank. Most often it refers to a former monarch, or descendant thereof, whose throne is occupied or claimed by a rival, or has been abolished....
s to the throne have used the title Margrave of Meissen.
- Friedrich Christian, Margrave of MeissenFriedrich Christian, Margrave of MeissenFriedrich Christian, Margrave of Meissen was the head of the Royal House of Saxony.-Life:He was born at Dresden, the second son of King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and his wife Archduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany...
- Maria Emanuel, Margrave of MeissenMaria Emanuel, Margrave of MeissenMaria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen is the head of the Royal House of Saxony.Born in Schloss Prüfening, Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany as son of Hereditary Prince Frederick Christian of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen and Princess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn and Taxis.He and Princess Anastasia of Anhalt ...