Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (german: Albrecht II., Herzog zu Braunschweig-Lüneburg; 1 November 1419 – 15 August 1485), was a Prince of Grubenhagen; he reigned from 1440 until his death in 1485. Albert II was the third son of Duke Eric I and Elizabeth of Brunswick-Göttingen, a daughter of Otto the Bad, Duke of Brunswick-Göttingen. He was a grandson of the Duke Albert I, was still a minor when his father died on 27 May 1427. His first cousin once removed, Duke

Otto the Younger Otto II of Hesse, also known as Otto the Younger (before 1322 - December 1366, Spangenberg Castle), was the only son of Landgrave Henry II of Hesse and his wife Elisabeth of Thuringia, daughter of Margrave Frederick of Meissen. Life Otto m ...

of Grubenhagen-Osterode served until 1440 as regent for Albert II and his brothers Henry III and Ernest II. After 1440, the three brothers, following the Grubenhagen tradition, ruled jointly until Henry died in 1464. After the death of Henry III, Ernest II joined the

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and Albert II became sole ruler and regent for Henry III's son, Henry IV. Albert II was repeatedly involved in feuds. For example, in 1477, Duke William IV the Younger of Göttingen got into a dispute with the city of

Einbeck Einbeck (; Eastphalian: ''Aimbeck'') is a town in the district Northeim, in southern Lower Saxony, Germany, on the German Timber-Frame Road. History Prehistory The area of the current city of Einbeck is inhabited since prehistoric times. Vario ...

(in the Duchy of Grubenhagen) and in 1479, he encamped his army before the town. The citizens of Einbeck came out to fight him in an open field. Duke William lured them into an ambush and defeated them completely. According to the chroniclers, more than 300 citizens were killed and over 800 were captured and brought to William's Hardegsen Castle. Albert and William settled their dispute on 5 December 1479 in

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

, without a battle. The city of Einbeck, however, had to pay a ransom of to free the captive citizens, and had to accept William's protection. Henry IV came of age in 1479 and agreed with his uncle on a division of their territory. Albert kept

Herzberg Castle Herzberg Castle (german: Schloss Herzberg) is a German ''schloss'' in Herzberg am Harz in the district of Göttingen in the state of Lower Saxony. The present-day, quadrangular building has its origins in the 11th century as a medieval '' castl ...

and Osterode Castle, while Henry received Heldenburg Castle. The towns of Einbeck and Osterode were ruled jointly. Albrecht was married with Elizabeth, daughter of Count Wolrad I of Waldeck. She gave birth to his three sons and a daughter Sophie, who died at age 6. His son Ernest died shortly after Albert himself died. Albert was succeeded in government by his son

Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) (1 ...

, while his son

Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...

became

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population ...

and

Paderborn Paderborn (; Westphalian: ''Patterbuorn'', also ''Paterboärn'') is a city in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the Paderborn district. The name of the city derives from the river Pader and ''Born'', an old German term for t ...

. In 1532, Eric was elected Bishop of

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state distr ...

, but he died on May 14 of that year, before he had been confirmed. Albert died in 1485 and was buried in

Osterode am Harz Osterode am Harz, often simply called Osterode (; Eastphalian: ''Ostroe''), is a town in south-eastern Niedersachsen on the south-western edge of the Harz mountains. It was the seat of government of the district of Osterode. Osterode is locat ...

Ancestors

References and sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Albert 02, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen Princes of Grubenhagen 1419 births 1485 deaths 15th-century German people Old House of Brunswick