Frederick II, The Gentle (''Friedrich, der Sanftmütige''; Frederick the Gentle) (22 August 1412 – 7 September 1464) was
Elector of Saxony (1428–1464) and was
Landgrave of Thuringia (1440–1445).
Biography
Frederick was born in
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
, the eldest of the seven children of
Frederick I, Elector of Saxony
Frederick I, the Belligerent or the Warlike (german: Friedrich der Streitbare; 11 April 1370 – 4 January 1428), a member of the House of Wettin, ruled as Margrave of Meissen from 1407 and Elector of Saxony (as Frederick I) from 1423 until ...
, and
Catherine of Brunswick and Lunenburg.
After the death of his father in 1428 he took over the government together with his younger brothers
William III, Henry and Sigismund.
In 1433 the
Wettins finally concluded peace with the
Hussites
The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation.
The Huss ...
and in 1438 Frederick led Saxon forces to victory in the
Battle of Sellnitz
The Battle of Sellnitz was fought on 23 September 1438 between the Imperial Saxons and the Hussites. The Saxons were led by Frederick II of Saxony. On his journey to Saxony from Bohemia was accompanied by czech noble Jakoubek of Vřesovice, the ...
. That same year it was considered the first federal state parliament of Saxony. The parliament received the right to find together in case of innovations in fiscal matters also without summoning by the ruler.
Also in 1438 it was decided that Frederick, and not his rival Bernard IV, duke of Saxe-Lauenburg, was entitled to exercise the Saxon electoral vote at the elections for the German throne. The elector then aided
Albert II to secure this dignity, performing a similar service for his own brother-in-law,
Frederick two years later.
After Henry's death in 1435, and Sigismund was forced to renounce and became a bishop (in 1440), Frederick and William divided their possessions. In the
Division of Altenburg
The Division of Altenburg (German: ''Altenburger Teilung'') was the plan for the division of the Meissen lands agreed upon by the two hostile Wettin brothers Elector Frederick II of Saxony and William III on 16 July 1445 at Altenburg.Historische ...
in 1445, William III received the Thuringian and Frankish part, and Frederick got the Eastern part of the principality. The mines remained common possessions. Disputes over the distribution led however in 1446 to the
Saxon Brother War
The Saxon Fratricidal WarThis translation is employed by the Museum Leuchtenburg in thei ( German: ''Sächsischer Bruderkrieg'') was a war fought between the two brothers Frederick II, Elector of Saxony and Duke William III over Wettin ruled are ...
, which found an end only on 27 January 1451 with the peace of
Naumburg
Naumburg () is a town in (and the administrative capital of) the district Burgenlandkreis, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Central Germany. It has a population of around 33,000. The Naumburg Cathedral became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018 ...
. In the
Treaty of Eger
The Treaty of Eger (german: Vertrag von Eger), also called Main Compromise of Eger (''Hauptvergleich von Eger'') or Peace of Eger ( cs, Chebský mír) was concluded on 25 April 1459 in the Imperial City of Eger (''Cheb''), administrative seat of t ...
in (1459), elector Frederick, Duke William III and the king of Bohemia
George of Podebrady fixed the borders between
Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
and
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon German, 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 ...
, at the height of the
Ore Mountains (german: Erzgebirge) and the middle of the
Elbe
The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Re ...
which still holds today. It belongs therefore to the oldest still existing borders of Europe.
After the death of Frederick, in Leipzig, both of his sons,
Ernest
Ernest is a given name derived from Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious". Notable people and fictional characters with the name include:
People
*Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), son of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor
* Ernest, ...
and
Albert, first took over the government together. After Duke William III died in 1482, Thuringia returned to Frederick's line.
Family and issue
In
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
on 3 June 1431 Frederick married
Margaret of Austria, the daughter of
Ernest of Austria and
Cymburgis of Masovia. They had eight children:
#
Amalia (b. Meissen, 4 August 1436 – d. Rochlitz, 19 October 1501), married on 21 March 1452 to
Louis IX, Duke of Bavaria.
#
Anna
Anna may refer to:
People Surname and given name
* Anna (name)
Mononym
* Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke
* Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773)
* Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century)
* Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...
(b. Meissen, 7 March 1437 – d. Neustadt am Aisch, 31 October 1512), married on 12 November 1458 to
Albert III Achilles, Elector of Brandenburg.
# Frederick (b. Meissen, 28 August 1439 – d. Meissen, 23 December 1451).
#
Ernest, Elector of Saxony (b. Meissen, 24 March 1441 – d. Colditz, 26 August 1486).
#
Albert, Duke of Saxony (b. Grimma, 31 July 1443 – d. Emden, 12 September 1500).
# Margaret (b. Meissen?, 1444 – d. Seusslitz?, ca. 19 November 1498), Abbess of
Seusslitz.
#
Hedwig (b. Meissen?, 31 October 1445 – d. Quedlinburg, 13 June 1511), Abbess of
Quedlinburg (1458).
# Alexander (b. Meissen, 24 June 1447 – d. Meissen, 14 September 1447).
July 1455 saw the ''
Prinzenraub'', the attempt of a knight named
Kunz von Kaufungen
Kunz von Kaufungen (also known as Conrad von Kaufungen, or Kunz von Kauffungen; c. 1410 - 14 July 1455) was a German knight and military commander. A veteran of the Hussite wars, he also fought for Frederick II, Elector of Saxony against Frederic ...
to abduct Frederick's sons Ernest and Albert. Having carried them off from
Altenburg
Altenburg () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located south of Leipzig, west of Dresden and east of Erfurt. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district and part of a polycentric old-industrial textile and metal production region betw ...
, Kunz was making his way to
Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
when the plot was accidentally discovered and the princes restored.
Ancestry
References
*
Article in the ADB*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frederick 02 of Saxony, Elector
1412 births
1464 deaths
People from Leipzig
Prince-electors of Saxony
Knights of the Golden Fleece
House of Wettin
Saxon princes
Imperial vicars
Margraves of Meissen
Landgraves of Thuringia