Waldemar I, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst (died 7 January 1368) was a German

Germans

The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 prince

Prince

Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...

 of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst

Anhalt-Zerbst

Anhalt-Zerbst was a district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is bounded by the districts Potsdam-Mittelmark and Wittenberg, the city of Dessau and the districts of Köthen, Schönebeck and Jerichower Land.- History :...

.

He was the youngest son of Albert I, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst

Albert I, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst

Albert I, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst....

, by his second wife Agnes, daughter of Conrad, Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal.

Life

After the death of his father in 1316, the young Waldemar and his older brother Albert II

Albert II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst

Albert II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst....

 were put under the custody of their maternal uncle Waldemar, Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal

Waldemar, Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal

Waldemar of Brandenburg was Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal, the last from the Ascanian House.-Life:He was a son of Conrad, Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal and Constance, daughter of Przemysł I of Greater Poland...

. When both brothers reached adulthood, they ruled the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst

Anhalt-Zerbst

Anhalt-Zerbst was a district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is bounded by the districts Potsdam-Mittelmark and Wittenberg, the city of Dessau and the districts of Köthen, Schönebeck and Jerichower Land.- History :...

 jointly. Waldemar made his residence in Dessau

Dessau

Dessau is a town in Germany on the junction of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt. Since 1 July 2007, it is part of the merged town Dessau-Roßlau. Population of Dessau proper: 77,973 .-Geography:...

 and Albert in Zerbst

Zerbst

Zerbst is a town in the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Until the administrative reform of 2007, Zerbst was the capital of the Anhalt-Zerbst district. Since the 1 January 2010 local government reform, Zerbst has about 24,000 inhabitants.It is not clear when was it founded;...

 or Köthen.

In 1359 Waldemar's nephew Albert III

Albert III, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst

Albert III, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst....

 was also made co-ruler by his father Albert II, but he soon died. Three years later (in 1362), Albert II died and Waldemar became co-ruler with his youngest nephew John II

John II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst

John II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Zerbst....

.

Six years later, Waldemar died, leaving his only son Waldemar II

Waldemar II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst

Waldemar II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst....

 as the new co-ruler with John II.

Marriages and Issue

In 22 June 1344 Waldemar married Elisabeth (d. aft. 30 May 1351), daughter of Rudolf I, Elector of Saxony, and Duke of Saxe-Wittemberg. Her paternal grandmother Agnes of Habsburg

Agnes of Habsburg

Agnes of Habsburg was a daughter of Emperor Rudolph I of Germany and his first wife Countess Gertrude of Hohenberg. She was a member of the House of Habsburg.- Marriage :In 1273 she was married to Elector Albert II of Saxony...

 was a daughter of Rudolph I, Holy Roman Emperor. The spouses were distantly related: Elisabeth's great-grandfather Albert I, Duke of Saxony

Albert I, Duke of Saxony

Albert I was a Duke of Saxony, Angria, and Westphalia; Lord of Nordalbingia; Count of Anhalt; and Prince-elector and Archmarshal of the Holy Roman Empire...

, was a brother of Henry I, Count of Anhalt

Henry I, Count of Anhalt

Henry I, Count of Anhalt was a German prince of the House of Ascania and Count of Anhalt.He was the oldest son of Bernhard III, Duke of Saxony and Count of Anhalt, by his wife Brigitte a daughter of Canute V of Denmark....

, Waldemar's great-great-grandfather. They had six children:

1. Waldemar II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
   Waldemar II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
   Waldemar II, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst....
   
    (d. bef. 24 August 1371).
2. Beate (d. ca. 1379), a nun at Coswig
   Coswig
   Coswig can refer to two towns in Germany, both on the river Elbe:*Coswig, Saxony, in the district of Meißen, Saxony*Coswig, Anhalt, in the district of Wittenberg, Saxony-Anhalt...
   
    (1375).
3. Sophie (d. aft. 6 January 1412), a nun at Coswig (1375).
4. Agnes (d. aft. 1375), a nun at Coswig (1375).
5. Judith (d. aft. 1375), a nun at Coswig (1375).
6. (?) Gertrude (d. ca. 1371).

In 1365 Waldemar married for a second time to Beatrice (d. 1387), legitimized daughter of Obizzo III d'Este

Obizzo III d'Este

Obizzo III d'Este was the marquess of Ferrara from 1317 until his death.He was the son of Aldobrandino II d'Este and Alda Rangoni....

, Lord of Ferrara and Modena by his second wife and former mistress Lippa Ariosto. This union was childless.