Henry II of Reuss (younger line) (10 June 1572 – ), nicknamed ''the Posthumous'' because his father died two months before he was born, was Lord of

Gera Gera () is a city in the German state of Thuringia. With around 93,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Thuringia after Erfurt and Jena as well as the easternmost city of the ''Thüringer Städtekette'', an almost straight string of ...

, Lord of Lobenstein and Lord of Oberkranichfeld.

Life

Henry II was born posthumously, as the only son of Henry XVI of Reuss-Gera (1530–1572), the founder of the Younger Line, and his wife, Countess Dorothea of Solms-Sonnewalde (1547–1595), daughter of Frederick Magnus I, Count of Solms-Laubach. Henry successfully promoted education and the economy of his country. In 1608, he founded the Rutheneum Gymnasium in Gera (now the ''Goethe-Gymnasium/Rutheneum''). Against the advice of his theological councillor, he granted asylum to

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

refugees from

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

and housed them in his capital city

. This led to an upsurge in wool production and an economic boom. During his reign, Gera also developed into the cultural centre of the Reuss areas. He had a particular fondness for "ring riding", and was a frequent guest at the courts in Vienna and Dresden. Henry II died on 23 December 1635 and was buried in the Salvator Church in Gera. The composer

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque music, Baroque composer and organ (music), organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach and one of the most important composers of ...

wrote his

Musikalische Exequien , Opus number, Op. 7, Schütz-Werke-Verzeichnis, SWV 279–281, is a sacred funeral music that Heinrich Schütz wrote in 1635 or 1636 for the funeral services of Count Henry II, Count of Reuss-Gera, who had died on 3 December 1635. It is Schüt ...

for this occasion. His elaborately decorated copper outer coffin, with biblical proverbs and evangelical chorals, was transferred from the Salvator Church to the St. John church in 1995. In 2011, it was displayed in an exhibition about funeral practices in the

early modern age The early modern period is a historical period that is defined either as part of or as immediately preceding the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There is no exact date ...

in the city museum of Gera. It has also been on display in the Museum for Sepulchral Culture in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in North Hesse, northern Hesse, in Central Germany (geography), central Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel (region), Kassel and the d ...

Marriages and issue

In Weikersheim on 7 February 1594, Henry II married firstly Magdalena (28 December 1572 – 2 April 1596), daughter of Wolfgang, Count of Hohenlohe-Weikersheim-Langenburg. They had one daughter: * Dorothea Magdalena (25 February 1595 – 29 October 1647), married in 1620 to Burgrave George of Kirchberg. In Rudolstadt on 22 May 1597, Henry II married secondly Magdalena (12 Apr 1580 – 22 Apr 1652), daughter of Count Albert VII of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. They had seventeen children: * Juliane Marie (1 February 1598 – 4 January 1650), married in 1614 to Count David of Mansfeld-Schraplau. * Henry I (21 February 1599 – 27 July 1599) * Agnes (17 April 1600 – 1 February 1642), married in 1627 to Count Ernest Louis of Mansfeld-Heldrungen. * Elisabeth Magdalene (8 May 1601 – 4 April 1641). *

Henry II Henry II may refer to: Kings * Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014 *Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154 *Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...

(14 August 1602 – 28 May 1670), Lord of Gera and Saalburg. * Henry III (31 Oct 1603 – 12 July 1640), Lord of Schleiz. * Henry IV (21 December 1604 – 3 November 1628). * Henry V (3 November 1606 – 3/7 November 1606), twin with Henry VI. * Henry VI (3 November 1606 – 3/7 November 1606), twin with Henry V. * Sophie Hedwig (24 February 1608 – 22 January 1653). * Dorothea Sibylle (7 October 1609 – 25 November 1631), married in 1627 to Baron Christian Schenk of Tautenburg. * Henry VII (15 October 1610 – 24 July 1611). * Henry VIII (19 June 1613 – 24 September 1613). * Anna Katharina (24 March 1615 – 16 February 1682). * Henry IX (22 May 1616 – 9 January 1666), Lord of Schleiz. * Ernestine (19 March 1618 – 23 February 1650), married in 1639 to Otto Albert of Schönburg-Hartenstein. *

Henry X Henry X may refer to: * Henry X, Duke of Bavaria Henry the Proud () (20 October 1139), a member of the House of Welf, was List of rulers of Bavaria, Duke of Bavaria (as Henry X) from 1126 to 1138 and List of rulers of Saxony, Duke of Saxon ...

(9 September 1621 – 25 January 1671), Lord of Lobenstein and Ebersdorf.

Honors

Since 2008, the motor car of one of the

trams in Gera The Gera tramway network is a transport network, network of tramways forming part of the public transport system in Gera, a city in the States of Germany, federal state of Thuringia, Germany. Opened in 1883, the network is operated by Geraer Ver ...

bears his name.

References

Bibliography

* * * Thomas Gehrlein: ''Das Haus Reuss. Älterer und Jüngerer Linie'', brochure, 2006 * Heinrich P. Reuss and Heike Karg: ''Die Sterbenserinnerung des Heinrich Posthumus Reuss (1572–1635). Konzeption seines Leichenprozesses'', 1997 * Hagen Enke: ''Dissertationis de Henrici Posthumi Rutheni vita et regno historicae commentatio. Vorbereitende Überlegungen zu einer Monographie über das Leben und die Regierungszeit des Heinrich Posthumus Reuß (1572/95–1635)'', in: ''Jahrbuch des Museums Reichenfels-Hohenleuben'', issue 44, 159th annual report of the Vogtländischen Altertumsfor-schenden Vereins zu Hohenleuben e.V., Hohenleuben, 2000, p. 17–34. * Hagen Enke: ''Heinrich Posthumus Reuß (1572/95–1635) und die Fruchtbringende Gesellschaft'', in: Klaus Manger (ed.): ''Die Fruchtbringer - eine Teutschhertzige Gesellschaft'', Jenaer Germanistische Forschungen, new series, vol. 10, p. 39–60 {{DEFAULTSORT:Henry 02 Reuss Gera House of Reuss Counts of Reuss 1572 births 1635 deaths People from Gera 16th-century German nobility 17th-century German nobility