Count Adolf of Nassau-Siegen (8 August 1586 – 7 November 1608), german: Adolf Graf von Nassau-Siegen, official titles: ''Graf zu Nassau, Katzenelnbogen, Vianden und Diez, Herr zu Beilstein'', was a

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

from the

House of Nassau-Siegen Nassau-Siegen was a principality within the Holy Roman Empire that existed between 1303 and 1328, and again from 1606 to 1743. From 1626 to 1734, it was subdivided into Catholic and Protestant parts. Its capital was the city of Siegen, founde ...

, a

cadet branch In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, tit ...

of the Ottonian Line of the

House of Nassau The House of Nassau is a diversified aristocratic dynasty in Europe. It is named after the lordship associated with Nassau Castle, located in present-day Nassau, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The lords of Nassau were originally titled "Count ...

. He served as an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

in the

Dutch States Army The Dutch States Army ( nl, Staatse leger) was the army of the Dutch Republic. It was usually called this, because it was formally the army of the States-General of the Netherlands, the sovereign power of that federal republic. This mercenary arm ...

. In the propaganda for the

House of Orange The House of Orange-Nassau (Dutch: ''Huis van Oranje-Nassau'', ) is the current reigning house of the Netherlands. A branch of the European House of Nassau, the house has played a central role in the politics and government of the Netherlands ...

, he is regarded as one of the twelve heroes of the House of Nassau who gave their lives in the

Eighty Years’ War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Refo ...

for the freedom of the Dutch people.

Biography

Adolf was born at

Dillenburg Castle Castle Dillenburg, in the provincial town of Dillenburg in Hesse-Nassau, is situated on a hill (elevation 958 feet) above the Dill river, 25 miles northwest from Gießen on the Giessen-Troisdorf railway line. The main building of the old castle w ...

on 8 August 1586Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 233. as the third son of Count John VII ‘the Middle’ of Nassau-Siegen and his first wife, Countess Magdalene of Waldeck-Wildungen. He was baptised on Sunday 21 August^Jul.. Adolf studied in

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

in 1601,Dek (1970), p. 87. and then in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

and in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

.Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 116. He entered the Dutch States Army in 1604 and took part in the

Siege of Ostend The siege of Ostend was a three-year siege of the city of Ostend during the Eighty Years' War and the Anglo–Spanish War. A Spanish force under Archduke Albrecht besieged the fortress being held initially by a Dutch force which was reinforc ...

(1604) and the

Siege of Sluis (1604) The siege of Sluis (1604), also known as the Sluis campaign or the Battle of the Oostburg Line, was a series of military actions that took place during the Eighty Years' War and the Anglo–Spanish War from 19 May to 19 August 1604.Jacques p 952 ...

.Dek (1968), p. 248. On 3 April 1606 he was appointed '' ritmeester'' over a company of 86 horsemen. In 1608 he was with his father in the Palatinate. He then undertook an expedition to

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

and was killed on the retreat on 7 November 1608 near

Xanten Xanten (, Low Rhenish: ''Santen'') is a town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the district of Wesel. Xanten is known for the Archaeological Park, one of the largest archaeological open air museums in the wo ...

. He was buried on 23 November 1608 in the Saint Stephen’s Church in Nijmegen. Adolf and his older brothers

John Ernest John Ernest (May 6, 1922 – July 21, 1994) was an American-born constructivist abstract artist. He was born in Philadelphia, in 1922. After living and working in Sweden and Paris from 1946 to 1951, he moved to London, England, where he lived and w ...

and John ‘the Younger’ had the reputation of being

gamblers Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...

and of showing a completely unseemly splendour in their clothes and appearance. Their father wrote letters to the young counts, full of fatherly admonitions, exhorting them to be thrifty, because he did not know what to do with his worries and debts. In a letter of 8 December 1608 he even considered the death of Adolf as a punishment from God and he exhorted the two others, who with ‘''einem ärgerlichen Leben mit Verschwendung fast allem, was ich in der Welt habe, durch Ehebrechen und Hurerei, Plünderung und Beraubung armer, unschuldiger Leute hoch und niederen Standen''’ (‘an annoying life of squandering almost everything I have in the world, through adultery and fornication, plundering and robbing poor, innocent people of high and low rank’) ruined the county of Nassau-Siegen, to lead a different, better life, worthy of the name Nassau. In 1901, on the initiative of municipal archivist H.D.J. van Schevichaven, a plaque measuring 103 by 64 cm was affixed to the northern

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

of St. Stephen’s Church in Nijmegen. The text on this plaque reads (translated into English):

“IN THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER 1608
WAS BURIED HERE
ADOLF COUNT OF NASSAU SIEGEN
THIRD SON OF JOHN COUNT OF NASSAU SIEGEN
AND OF MAGDALENE OF WALDECK
FALLEN AT THE AGE OF 22
IN A BATTLE NEAR XANTEN
HE WAS ONE OF THE TWELVE HEROES
FROM THE HOUSE OF NASSAU
WHO IN THE EIGHTY YEARS’ WAR
GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THE FREEDOM
OF THE DUTCH PEOPLE”

Sitio de Ostende.jpg, The Siege of Ostend (1601-1604). Painting by

Peter Snayers Peter Snayers or Pieter Snayers (1592–1667) was a Flemish painter known for his panoramic battle scenes, depictions of cavalry skirmishes, attacks on villages, coaches and convoys and hunting scenes. (p. 241-243, v.1; plate 92, v.2)Hans V ...

, 17th century.

Museum Het Prinsenhof The Prinsenhof ("The Court of the Prince") in the city of Delft in the Netherlands is an urban palace built in the Middle Ages as a monastery. Later it served as a residence for William the Silent. William was assassinated in the Prinsenhof by B ...

, Delft. Sluis 1649 Blaeu.jpg, The Siege of Sluis (1604). Engraving by

Joan Blaeu Joan Blaeu (; 23 September 1596 – 21 December 1673) was a Dutch cartographer born in Alkmaar, the son of cartographer Willem Blaeu. Life In 1620, Blaeu became a doctor of law but he joined the work of his father. In 1635, they publish ...

. From the Atlas van Loon, 1649. Slag bij Xanten, 1608 Abbildung des blutigen Scharmutzels zwischen den Hispanischen und Statischen, nicht weit von Santen Anno 1608 den 19. Novembris gehalten (titel op object) Serie 10 Nederlandse , RP-P-OB-78.785-344.jpg, The Battle near Xanten (1608). Print by

Frans Hogenberg Frans Hogenberg (1535–1590) was a Flemish and German painter, engraver, and mapmaker. Hogenberg was born in Mechelen in Flanders as the son of Nicolaas Hogenberg.

, 1608–1610.

Rijksmuseum Amsterdam The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the Ste ...

. Stevenskerk Nijmegen.jpg, The Saint Stephen’s Church in Nijmegen, 2016.

Ancestors

References

Sources

* * * (1911). "Adolf, de Jonge". In: en (redactie), ''Nieuw Nederlandsch Biografisch Woordenboek'' (in Dutch). Vol. Eerste deel. Leiden: A.W. Sijthoff. p. 1222. * * * * * * * * * (1979). "Genealogische gegevens". In: (red.), ''Nassau en Oranje in de Nederlandse geschiedenis'' (in Dutch). Alphen aan den Rijn: A.W. Sijthoff. p. 40–44, 224–228. . * * (1882). ''Het vorstenhuis Oranje-Nassau. Van de vroegste tijden tot heden'' (in Dutch). Leiden: A.W. Sijthoff/Utrecht: J.L. Beijers.

External links

Nassau
In

compiled by Charles Cawley.

In

by Paul Theroff. {{DEFAULTSORT:Nassau-Siegen, Adolf 1586 births 1608 deaths German Calvinist and Reformed Christians German military officers German people of the Eighty Years' War

Adolf Adolf (also spelt Adolph or Adolphe, Adolfo and when Latinised Adolphus) is a given name used in German-speaking countries, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Flanders, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and to a lesser extent in vari ...

Military personnel of the Eighty Years' War People from Dillenburg 16th-century German people 17th-century German military personnel