George IV, Count of Erbach-Fürstenau (12 May 1646 – 20 June 1678), was a member of the German

House of Erbach A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

who held the fiefs of Fürstenau,

Michelstadt Michelstadt () in the Odenwald is a town in the Odenwaldkreis (district) in southern Hesse, Germany between Darmstadt and Heidelberg. It has a population of 28,629 people. Geography Location Michelstadt is the biggest town in the Odenwaldkre ...

, Reichenberg,

Bad König Bad König () is a town and resort (''Kurort'') in the central Odenwald in the Odenwaldkreis (district) in Hesse, Germany, 29 km southeast of Darmstadt. Geography Neighbouring communities Bad König borders in the north on the communitie ...

and

Breuberg Breuberg is a town in the Odenwaldkreis district of Hesse, Germany. It is 28 km east of Darmstadt and 20 km southwest of Aschaffenburg. Geography Location Breuberg lies in the northern Odenwald. Neighbouring communities Breuberg ...

. Born in Hanau, he was the eighth child and fifth (but third surviving) son of

George Albert I, Count of Erbach-Schönberg George Albert I, Count of Erbach-Schönberg (16 December 1597 – 25 November 1647), was a German prince member of the House of Erbach and ruler over Schönberg, Seeheim, Reichenberg, Fürstenau and since 1643 over all the Erbach family lands. B ...

and his third wife Elisabeth Dorothea, a daughter of George Frederick II, Count of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg in Schillingsfürst.

Life

Because he and his brothers were still minors at the time of their father's death in 1647, the guardianship and rule over the Erbach domains were assigned to their eldest half-brother George Ernest, who ruled alone until his death in 1669, without issue. George IV and his surviving younger brothers George Louis I and George Albert II jointly held the Erbach lands until 1672, when formal division of their possessions was effected: George IV received the districts of Fürstenau, Michelstadt, Bad König and Breuberg. George IV pursued a military career, and eventually he was appointed major-general in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. He died in the

Waal river The Waal (Dutch name, ) is the main distributary branch of the river Rhine flowing approximately through the Netherlands. It is the major waterway connecting the port of Rotterdam to Germany. Before it reaches Rotterdam, it joins with the Afg ...

near

Tiel Tiel () is a municipality and a town in the middle of the Netherlands. The town is enclosed by the Waal river and the Linge river to the South and the North, and the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal to the East. Tiel comprises the population centres Kapel- ...

, aged 32, at the end of the

Franco-Dutch War The Franco-Dutch War, also known as the Dutch War (french: Guerre de Hollande; nl, Hollandse Oorlog), was fought between France and the Dutch Republic, supported by its allies the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Brandenburg-Prussia and Denmark-Nor ...

, and was buried in

Marriage and Issue

Arolsen Bad Arolsen (, until 1997 Arolsen, ''Bad'' being the German name for ''Spa'') is a small town in northern Hesse, Germany, in Waldeck-Frankenberg district. From 1655 until 1918 it served as the residence town of the Princes of Waldeck-Pyrmont and t ...

on 22 August 1671 George IV married Louise Anna (18 April 1653 – 30 June 1714), heiress of

Culemborg Culemborg () is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands. The city had a population of 29,386 on 1 January 2022 and is situated just south of the Lek river. Direct train lines run from the railway station towards the cities of U ...

and daughter of

Prince Georg Friedrich of Waldeck Prince Georg Friedrich of Waldeck (31 January 1620 – 19 November 1692) was a German and Dutch Field Marshal and, for the last three years of his life, Grand Master of the Order of Saint John (Bailiwick of Brandenburg). In 1641, Waldeck en ...

by his wife Elisabeth Charlotte of Nassau-Siegen. They had four children:''Georg IV., Graf von Erbach'' in: geneall.net
etrieved 11 May 2015 * Sophie Charlotte (23 September 1672 – April 1673). * Amalie Mauritiana (1674 – 1675). * William Frederick (March 1676 – 18 August 1676). * Charlotte Wilhelmine Albertine (posthumously 18 September 1678 – 20 March 1683). Because he died without surviving male issue, his domains reverted to his brothers, who divided them between themselves.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:George IV of Erbach Furstenau Counts of Germany House of Erbach 1646 births 1678 deaths 17th-century German people