John IV, Duke of Mecklenburg (before 1370 – 16 October 1422) was sole ruler of the

Duchy of Mecklenburg The Duchy of Mecklenburg was a duchy within the Holy Roman Empire, located in the region of Mecklenburg. It existed during the Late Middle Ages and the early modern period, from 1471 to 1520, as well as 1695 to 1701. Its capital was Schwerin. T ...

from 1384 to 1395 and co-regent from 1395 to 1422.

Life

John IV was the only son of the Duke Magnus I of Mecklenburg and his wife Elisabeth of Pommern-Wolgast. Ernst Boll incorrectly refers to him as "John III" in his ''History of Mecklenburg'', Part 1. After the death of his father in 1384 and his cousin Albert IV in 1388, John ruled Mecklenburg jointly with his uncle Albert III (also a King of Sweden). When Albert III was captured by the Danes in 1389 in connection with his rule in Sweden, John ruled as sole Regent of Mecklenburg until Albert's release in 1395. After Albert's death in 1412, John ruled jointly with Albert's son

Albert V Albert V may refer to: * Albert V, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg (ca. mid-1330s–1370) * Albert V, Duke of Mecklenburg (1397–1423) *Albert II of Germany Albert the Magnanimous , elected King of the Romans as Albert II (10 August 139727 October 1439 ...

. On 13 February 1419, John, Albert V of Mecklenburg and the Council of the City of Rostock founded the

University of Rostock The University of Rostock () is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continental northern Europe and the Baltic Se ...

, the first university in northern Germany and in the entire Baltic region. He helped his uncle Albert III in the enforcement of the latter's rights as Swedish king. In this case, he probably acted as a leader of the

Victual Brothers The Victual Brothers () were a loosely organized guild of privateers who later turned to piracy. They affected maritime history, maritime trade during the 14th century in both the North Sea, North and Baltic Sea, Baltic Seas. They were initially ...

. This "Enis" is probably John IV.Matthias Puhle, p. 54

Marriage and issue

John married twice: first to Countess Jutta of

Hoya Hoya may refer to: Places *Hoya, Germany, a city in Lower Saxony, Germany *County of Hoya, a former state in present Germany *Hōya, Tokyo, now incorporated within Nishi-tokyo, Tokyo, Japan * Hoya, Hpruso, a place in Hpruso Township, Kayah, Myanma ...

, who died in 1415, and secondly, in 1416, to

Catherine Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...

, daughter of Duke Eric IV of Saxe-Lauenburg. Catherine's first marriage had been with John VII of Werle, who died in 1414. John had two sons: * Henry IV, ''the Fat'', Duke of Mecklenburg (1417–1477) *

John V John V may refer to: * Patriarch John V of Alexandria or John the Merciful (died by 620), Patriarch of Alexandria from 606 to 616 * John V of Constantinople, Patriarch from 669 to 675 * Pope John V (685–686), Pope from 685 to his death in 686 ...

, Duke of Mecklenburg (1422–1442)

Notes

References

* Wolf Karge, Hartmut Schmied, Ernst Munch: ''The History of Mecklenburg'', Rostock, Hinstorff, 1993. eprinted several times, currently available in the 4th edition (2004). p. 203 * {{DEFAULTSORT:John 04 Mecklenburg 14th-century births 1422 deaths Dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin