Prince Johann Weikhard of Auersperg (also spelled ''Johann Weichard von Auersperg''; 11 March 1615 at

Žužemberk Žužemberk (; german: Seisenberg), is a town located southeast of the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana. It is the seat of the Municipality of Žužemberk. The area is part of the historical region of Lower Carniola. The municipality is now includ ...

Castle – 11 November 1677 in

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

) was

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and Knight of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriage ...

. He was the first Prince of Auersperg, and also

Imperial Prince Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors o ...

of Tengen and

Duke of Münsterberg Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

Life

He was a descendant of the elder line of the Auersperg family from

Carniola Carniola ( sl, Kranjska; , german: Krain; it, Carniola; hu, Krajna) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region sti ...

. His parents were Dietrich II of Auersperg and Sidonia Gall von Gallenstein. Johann Weikhard held several positions at the Austrian court. From 1640, he was ''

Obersthofmeister Oberhofmeister of the Austrian King and Emperor (''Grand Master of the Court'') was the most important function at the court of the Holy Roman Emperor (until 1806) and the Emperor of Austria in Vienna (1804–1918). The Oberhofmeister acted as the ...

'' (Lord Chamberlain) and teacher of Ferdinand IV, who was

King of the Romans King of the Romans ( la, Rex Romanorum; german: König der Römer) was the title used by the king of Germany following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward. The title originally referred to any German k ...

at the time. In 1641 he was sent to The Hague and later he took part in peace negotiations at

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population ...

, which ultimately ended the

Thirty Years’ War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

with the

Peace of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (german: Westfälischer Friede, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought pea ...

(1648). In 1653, Emperor Ferdinand III raised him to

and in 1654, in his capacity as King of Bohemia, enfeofed him with the

Duchy of Münsterberg The Duchy of Münsterberg (german: Herzogtum Münsterberg) or Duchy of Ziębice ( pl, Księstwo Ziębickie, cs, Minstrberské knížectví) was one of the Duchies of Silesia, with a capital in Münsterberg (Ziębice). Existing from 1321/1322 to ...

and the City of

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ex ...

. He then styled himself ''Duke of Münsterberg''.Herbert Schmidt: ''Der Silbererzbergbau in der Grafschaft Glatz und im Fürstentum Münsterberg-Oels. Von den mittelalterlichen Anfängen bis zum Niedergang'', Tectum-Verlag, Marburg, 2003, , p. 18 He held great political influence during the first decade of the rule of Emperor Leopold I. As prime minister of Austria (1665-1669), he concluded a secret treaty with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on 19 January 1668 about the division of the Spanish

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutional monarchy) ...

and worked towards a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

triple alliance between

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. He was, however, suspected of having had secret talks with king

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

of France, who was alleged to have promised him a post as

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

and was suddenly relieved of his duties on 10 December 1669 and banished from the court. He was sentenced to death, however, this sentence was never effectuated. He lived the rest of his life on his estates in Carniola. In 1673, he inherited the Lordships of

Gottschee Gottschee (, sl, Kočevsko) refers to a former German-speaking region in Carniola, a crownland of the Habsburg monarchy, Habsburg Empire, part of the historical and traditional region of Lower Carniola, now in Slovenia. The region has been a coun ...

and

from his elder brother Wolf Engelbrecht, Count of Auersperg.

Marriage

Johann Weikhard married Countess Marie Katharine of Losenstein (1635–1691). They had three sons and five daughters. He was succeeded as Duke of Münsterberg by his sons Johann Ferdinand and Franz Karl.

References

* * Grete Mecenseffy: ''Im Dienste dreier Habsburger. Leben und Wirken des Fürsten Johann Weikhard Auersperg (1615–1677)''. in: ''Archiv für österreichische Geschichte'', vol. 114, 1938, p. 295–509. *

Footnotes

1615 births 1677 deaths Johann Weikhard

Johann Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

Austrian nobility 17th-century Austrian people Carniolan nobility People from the Municipality of Žužemberk Obersthofmeister {{Germany-noble-stub