Duke Frederick of Saxony (26 October 1473 – 14 December 1510), also known as Friedrich von Sachsen or Friedrich von Wettin, was the 36th Grand Master of the Teutonic Order, serving from 1498–1510. He was the third (and youngest surviving) son of

Albert III, Duke of Saxony Albert III (german: Albrecht) (27 January 144312 September 1500) was a Duke of Saxony. He was nicknamed Albert the Bold or Albert the Courageous and founded the ''Albertine line'' of the House of Wettin. Biography Albert was born in Grimma as t ...

, and

Sidonie of Poděbrady Sidonie of Poděbrady ( cs, Zdenka z Poděbrad; 11 November 1449 – 1 February 1510) was a duchess consort of Saxony. She was a daughter of George of Poděbrady, King of Bohemia, and his first wife Kunigunde of Sternberg. She was the twin sis ...

, daughter of

George of Podebrady George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Preside ...

. Born prematurely seven months after his immediate elder sibling in

Torgau Torgau () is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen. Outside Germany, the town is best known as where on 25 April 1945, the United States and Soviet Armies forces first ...

, Frederick was a member of the Albertine line, the junior branch of the prestigious

House of Wettin The House of Wettin () is a dynasty of German kings, prince-electors, dukes, and counts that once ruled territories in the present-day German states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The dynasty is one of the oldest in Europe, and its ori ...

which ruled

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. Frederick should not be confused with his cousin of the same name from the Ernestine line, who ruled the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony (German: or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356–1806. It was centered around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. In the Golden Bull of 1356, Emperor Charles ...

. Frederick's older brother George had married Barbara, a sister of King

John I Albert of Poland John I Albert ( pl, Jan I Olbracht; 27 December 1459 – 17 June 1501) was King of Poland from 1492 until his death in 1501 and Duke of Głogów (Glogau) from 1491 to 1498. He was the fourth Polish sovereign from the Jagiellonian dynasty, the s ...

. The Teutonic Order had been in a long power struggle with Poland over

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

. The Order's fortunes had declined throughout the 15th century, and they hoped that selecting someone connected by marriage to the ruling

Jagiellon dynasty The Jagiellonian dynasty (, pl, dynastia jagiellońska), otherwise the Jagiellon dynasty ( pl, dynastia Jagiellonów), the House of Jagiellon ( pl, Dom Jagiellonów), or simply the Jagiellons ( pl, Jagiellonowie), was the name assumed by a cad ...

of Poland would strengthen their position. The young duke was elected Grand Master in 1498. When John I Albert summoned Frederick to do

homage Homage (Old English) or Hommage (French) may refer to: History *Homage (feudal) /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/, the medieval oath of allegiance *Commendation ceremony, medieval homage ceremony Arts *Homage (arts) /oʊˈmɑʒ/, an allusion or imitation by one arti ...

for the Order's holdings, he referred the matter to the Imperial Reichstag. The Reichstag informed John I Albert that he could not interfere in the Grand Master's free exercise of power in Prussia. Frederick's delaying tactics were assisted by the quick succession of three Polish kings during his 12 years in office. Frederick died in

Rochlitz Rochlitz (; hsb, Rochlica) is a major district town (Große Kreisstadt) in the district of Mittelsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. Rochlitz is the head of the "municipal partnership Rochlitz" (Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Rochlitz) with its other members ...

. By custom, Grand Masters of the Order did not marry, so he had neither wife nor descendants.

References

* Friedrich Borchert: "Die Hochmeister des Deutschen Ordens in Preußen." In: ''Preußische Allgemeine Zeitung'', 6 October 2001.
Official website of the Teutonic Knights
(in German)

by

Guy Stair Sainty Guy Stair Sainty, (born 7 December 1950) is a British art dealer and author on nobility, royal genealogy, and heraldry. Life and education Guy Stair Sainty is the son of Christopher Lawrence Sainty and Virginia Cade Stair, grand-daughter of ...

1473 births 1510 deaths People from Torgau Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order House of Wettin People from the Electorate of Saxony Albertine branch {{Germany-duke-stub