John of Palatinate-Simmern ( – 13 December 1475 at

Giebichenstein Castle Giebichenstein Castle (german: Burg Giebichenstein) is a castle in Halle (Saale) in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is part of the Romanesque Road (''Strasse der Romanik''). Being a Burgward in the 9th century, the castle became a royal residence o ...

) was a German nobleman. He was

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state distr ...

and later

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

Life

He was the son of Count Palatine

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

of Simmer-Zweibrücken and his wife, Anna of Veldenz. He studied in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

. In 1458, he became Bishop of

. After the death of Archbishop Frederick III of Magdeburg on 11 November 1464, the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

unanimously elected John as his successor on 13 December 1464. On 18 June 1465, his election was confirmed by

Pope Paul II Pope Paul II ( la, Paulus II; it, Paolo II; 23 February 1417 – 26 July 1471), born Pietro Barbo, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 August 1464 to his death in July 1471. When his maternal uncle Eugene IV ...

. He formally became Archbishop when he received the papal bull, however, he had incurred debts in Münster and he was unable to accept his new office until the spring of 1466. He was inaugurated in Magdeburg, although Halle was the official capital of his bishopric, because the citizens of Halle opposed him. On 9 July 1467, he reached a compromise with the city of Halle. He paid 3000 Rhenish florins and the city paid him homage on 17 July. In order to expand the influence of the bishopric, he acquired several possessions, including

Bernburg Bernburg (Saale) is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, capital of the Salzlandkreis district. The former residence of the Anhalt-Bernburg princes is known for its Renaissance architecture, Renaissance castle. Geography The town centre is situated ...

, Sandersleben,

Gröbzig is a town and a former municipality in the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Südliches Anhalt. It is situated southwest of the district capital of Köthen (Anhalt) Köthe ...

Wormsdorf Wormsdorf is a village and a former municipality in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the municipality Eilsleben Eilsleben is a municipality in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. In Ja ...

, Hohenerxleben, Gänsefurth and

Jerichow Jerichow () is a town on the east side of the river Elbe, in the District of Jerichower Land, of the state of Saxony-Anhalt in Germany. With about , the municipality of Jerichow is one of the largest municipalities in area size in Germany. Geog ...

. He also tried to promote peaceful relations between his bishopric and its neighbour states. In 1471, he participated in the public peace of Nuremberg and fought against the robber barons in the area. He mediated between the Hanseatic cities and Brandenburg. He helped the cities in his territory develop by granting them more freedom. On 7 November 1467, John and the citizens of

Calvörde Calvörde () is a municipality in the Börde district of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde ("collective municipality") Flechtingen. Geography Calvörde is situated approximately northwest of Haldensleben and northwest ...

besieged

Calvörde Castle Calvörde Castle (german: Burg Calvörde) is located in Calvörde in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Its existence was first recorded in the late 13th century. In the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Period it was frequently fought over due t ...

, in order to arrest Frederick and Bernd von Alvensleben for street robbery in Calvörde and robbing merchants from Breslau. The brothers were also wanted by Duke Henry II of Brunswick-Lüneburg for highway robbery. John died on 13 December 1475, exactly eleven years after his election. He died at his residence,

. He was buried in

Magdeburg Cathedral Magdeburg Cathedral (german: Magdeburger Dom), officially called the Cathedral of Saints Maurice and Catherine (german: Dom zu Magdeburg St. Mauritius und Katharina), is a Protestant cathedral in Germany and the oldest Gothic cathedral in the cou ...

, next to his predecessor Frederick III of Beichlingen.

References

* Gustav Hertel and Friedrich Hülße: ''Geschichte der Stadt Magdeburg'', Magdeburg, 1885

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:John Palatinate Simmern Archbishops of Magdeburg Prince-Bishops of Münster 15th-century German Roman Catholic bishops House of Wittelsbach 1429 births 1475 deaths Year of birth uncertain Burials at Magdeburg Cathedral