John of Freiburg (26 May 1396 – 19 February 1458) was Count of Neuchâtel from 1424 until his death.

Biography

John was born in

Neuchâtel Neuchâtel (, ; ; ) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the capital (political), capital of the cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Neuchâtel (canton), Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel ...

on 26 May 1396, the son of , Count of Neuchâtel, and Marie of Vergy. He married Marie de Chalon, daughter of

John III of Chalon-Arlay John III of Chalon-Arlay (died 1418) was a French nobleman and a member of the House of Chalon-Arlay. He was the son of Louis I lord of Arguel, and the heir of his uncle, Louis's brother, Hugh II lord of Arlay from whom he inherited Arlay. ...

, between 1416 and 1419. As a result of his marriage to Marie, his suzerain

Louis II of Chalon-Arlay Louis II of Chalon-Arlay ( – 3 December 1463), nicknamed ''the Good'', was Lord of Arlay and Arguel Prince of Orange. He was the son of John III of Chalon-Arlay and his wife, Mary of Baux-Orange, and the father of William VII of Chalon-Arl ...

's sister, John began a military career in the service of the

Dukes of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

. He was imprisoned in Montereau, near

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, upon the

assassination of John the Fearless John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, was assassinated on the bridge at Montereau on 10 September 1419 during a parley with the French Dauphin (the future Charles VII of France), by Tanneguy du Chastel and Jean Louvet, the Dauphin's close ...

in 1419, along with the duke's entourage. John became Count of Neuchâtel upon his father's death in 1424. He became a member of Duke

Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...

's household, as well as a councilor and governor general in Burgundy, and served as an ambassador of the

canton of Bern The canton of Bern, or Berne (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the c ...

to the Burgundian court. Knighted in 1430 and appointed Marshal of Burgundy in 1440, John successfully campaigned against the ''

écorcheurs The ''écorcheurs'' (, "flayers") were armed bands who desolated France in the reign of Charles VII, stripping their victims of everything, often to their very clothes. They were mercenaries without employment since the Treaty of Arras which en ...

'', who were ravaging Burgundian territory. He played a major role in the negotiations between the Duke of Burgundy and the

King of the Romans King of the Romans (; ) was the title used by the king of East Francia following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward. The title originally referred to any German king between his election and coronatio ...

, the future Emperor Frederick III, in 1442. In 1443, John resigned as marshal but nevertheless took up arms for the Bernese against

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, concluding a peace treaty between the two parties in

Konstanz Konstanz ( , , , ), traditionally known as Constance in English, is a college town, university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the Baden-Württemberg state of south Germany. The city ho ...

in 1446. He arbitrated a conflict between Guillaume d'Avenches, ''

Schultheiß In medieval Germany, the ''Schultheiß'' () was the head of a municipality (akin to today's office of mayor), a '' Vogt'' or an executive official of the ruler. As official (''villicus'') it was his duty to order his assigned village or county ( ...

'' of

Fribourg or is the capital of the Cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Canton of Fribourg, Fribourg and district of Sarine (district), La Sarine. Located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss Plateau, it is a major economic, adminis ...

, and Louis, Duke of Savoy in 1447. One of John's most notable acts as count was the renewal of Neuchâtel's city charter on 12 February 1455. Having no male heir, he designated his cousin Rudolf of Hachberg as his successor. John died in Neuchâtel on 19 February 1458.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:John of Freiburg-Neuchatel 1396 births 1458 deaths Counts of Neuchâtel 15th-century counts in Europe Burgundian knights 15th-century military personnel 15th-century nobility from the Holy Roman Empire