William II of Egmont
Encyclopedia
William II of Egmont (January 26 1412 – January 19 1483) was Lord of Egmont, IJsselstein, Schoonderwoerd and Haastrecht and Stadtholder
of Guelders
.
, and a younger brother of Arnold, Duke of Gelderland.
He travelled with his brothers to the Holy Land (1458–1464) and was received in Rome by Pope Pius II.
William stayed most of the time in Guelders, where he supported his brother against his nephew Adolf of Egmond. After the incarceration of his brother, William led the pro-Burgundy party.
When Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy took over power in Guelders in 1473, he made William Stadtholder. In 1477 Mary of Burgundy
included William in her Great Council of Mechelen
and made him Knight in the order of the Golden Fleece
one year later.
Stadtholder
A Stadtholder A Stadtholder A Stadtholder (Dutch: stadhouder [], "steward" or "lieutenant", literally place holder, holding someones place, possibly a calque of German Statthalter, French lieutenant, or Middle Latin locum tenens...
of Guelders
Guelders
Guelders or Gueldres is the name of a historical county, later duchy of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries.-Geography:...
.
Biography
William was a son of John II of Egmont and Maria van ArkelMaria van Arkel
Maria van Arkel was the only daughter and heiress of Count John XII of Arkel and Joanna of Jülich. She inherited the title to Gelderland from her maternal uncle, Duke Reginald IV, and her son became Arnold, Duke of Gelderland...
, and a younger brother of Arnold, Duke of Gelderland.
He travelled with his brothers to the Holy Land (1458–1464) and was received in Rome by Pope Pius II.
William stayed most of the time in Guelders, where he supported his brother against his nephew Adolf of Egmond. After the incarceration of his brother, William led the pro-Burgundy party.
When Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy took over power in Guelders in 1473, he made William Stadtholder. In 1477 Mary of Burgundy
Mary of Burgundy
Mary of Burgundy ruled the Burgundian territories in Low Countries and was suo jure Duchess of Burgundy from 1477 until her death...
included William in her Great Council of Mechelen
Great Council of Mechelen
From the 15th century onwards, the Great Council of the Netherlands at Mechelen was the highest court in the Burgundian Netherlands. It was responsible for the Dutch-, French- and German-speaking areas...
and made him Knight in the order of the Golden Fleece
Golden Fleece
In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece is the fleece of the gold-haired winged ram, which can be procured in Colchis. It figures in the tale of Jason and his band of Argonauts, who set out on a quest by order of King Pelias for the fleece in order to place Jason rightfully on the throne of Iolcus...
one year later.
Marriage and Children
William married on january 22 1437 with Walburga of Meurs and had 4 daughters and 3 sons:- John III of EgmontJohn III of EgmontJohn III of Egmont was first Count of Egmont, Baer, Lathum, Hoogwoude, Aarstwoude, Purmerend, Purmerland and Ilpendam, and Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland and West-Friesland.-Biography:...
, stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland and West-Friesland; - Frederik van Egmont, count of Buren;
- William of Egmont jr., stadtholder of Guelders.
- Anna, married Bernard van Bentheim
- Elisabeth, married Gijsbrecht van Bronckhorst
- Walburgia, a nun
- Margeretha, married Jan van Merode