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John, nicknamed the Alchemist (german: Johann der Alchimist; 1406 – 16 November 1464) was a
Margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the ...
of
Brandenburg-Kulmbach The Principality of Bayreuth (german: Fürstentum Bayreuth) or Margraviate of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (''Markgraftum Brandenburg-Bayreuth'') was an immediate territory of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a Franconian branch of the Hohenzollern dynas ...
and served as the peace-loving Margrave of
Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 squ ...
after the abdication of his father,
Frederick I Frederick I may refer to: * Frederick of Utrecht or Frederick I (815/16–834/38), Bishop of Utrecht. * Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine (942–978) * Frederick I, Duke of Swabia (1050–1105) * Frederick I, Count of Zoll ...
, the first member of the
House of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, also , german: Haus Hohenzollern, , ro, Casa de Hohenzollern) is a German royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenbu ...
to rule Brandenburg.


Biography

John was the eldest son of
Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg Frederick (Middle High German: ''Friderich','' Standard German: ''Friedrich''; 21 September 1371 – 20 September 1440) was the last Burgrave of Nuremberg from 1397 to 1427 (as Frederick VI), Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach from 1398, Marg ...
(1371–1440), and
Elisabeth of Bavaria-Landshut Elisabeth of Bavaria-Landshut (1383 – 13 November 1442), nicknamed "Beautiful Beth", was an Electress of Brandenburg. Life Elizabeth was a daughter of Duke Frederick "the Wise" of Bavaria-Landshut and his second wife Maddalena Visconti. O ...
(1383–1442), daughter of
Frederick, Duke of Bavaria Frederick (1339 – 4 December 1393) was Duke of Bavaria from 1375. He was the second son of Stephen II and Elizabeth of Sicily. Family His maternal grandparents were Frederick III of Sicily and Eleanor of Anjou. Her parents were Charles ...
, and his second wife
Maddalena Visconti Maddalena Visconti (1366 – 17 July 1404) was a daughter of Bernabò Visconti and his wife Beatrice Regina della Scala. Maddalena was Duchess of Bavaria-Landshut by her marriage to Frederick, Duke of Bavaria. Family Maddalena was born in Mila ...
. After marrying Barbara of Saxe-Wittenberg (1405–1465), daughter of
Rudolf III, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg Rudolf III ( – 11 June 1419), a member of the House of Ascania, was Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg and Elector of Saxony from 1388 until his death. Life He was probably born at the Saxon Wittenberg residence, the eldest son of Duke Wenceslaus I ...
, John hoped to eventually succeed to
Saxe-Wittenberg The Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg () was a medieval duchy of the Holy Roman Empire centered at Wittenberg, which emerged after the dissolution of the stem duchy of Saxony. The Ascanian dukes prevailed in obtaining the Saxon electoral dignity unt ...
once its line of
Ascanian The House of Ascania (german: Askanier) was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Anhalt. The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ''Schlos ...
dukes died out. When this happened in November 1422, however, Emperor
Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it '' Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...
was on poorer terms with the Hohenzollerns and was only willing to compensate John with a monetary payment. John began participating in governmental affairs in Brandenburg in 1424. Frustrated by disputes with the feudal nobility, Frederick I retired to his castle at
Cadolzburg Cadolzburg (outdated also ''Kadolzburg'', colloquially pronounced "Kalschbuʳch" or "Sporch" ) is a municipality in the Middle Franconian district of Fürth, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated west of Fürth. Its name derives from its central ...
in
Franconia Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch''). The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper ...
in 1425, granting the regency of Brandenburg to John at a ''
Landtag A Landtag (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence in non ...
'' in
Rathenow Rathenow () is a town in the district of Havelland in Brandenburg, Germany, with a population of 24,063 (2020). Overview The Protestant church of St. Marien Andreas, originally a basilica, and transformed to the Gothic style in 1517-1589, and the ...
on January 13, 1426, while retaining the
electoral dignity The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, la, Princeps Elector), or electors for short, were the members of the electoral college that elected the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century onwards, the princ ...
for himself. John was poorly received by the populace of Brandenburg, as his administration was incompetent, leading to unrest in the countryside. Rather than governing, John was more interested in artificially creating
gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...
through
alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim wo ...
, thereby receiving the
cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; plural ''cognomina''; from ''con-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became here ...
"the Alchemist". In 1433, a revised version of the alchemical treatise ''
Buch der heiligen Dreifaltigkeit The ''Buch der heiligen Dreifaltigkeit'' ("Book of the Holy Trinity") is an early 15th-century alchemical treatise, attributed to Frater Ulmannus (latinization of the German given name ''Ulmann'', from OHG '' uodal-man''), a German Franciscan. T ...
'' of Ulmannus was prepared for John. Realizing the danger Brandenburg was in, Frederick I granted John Franconian lands in
Brandenburg-Kulmbach The Principality of Bayreuth (german: Fürstentum Bayreuth) or Margraviate of Brandenburg-Bayreuth (''Markgraftum Brandenburg-Bayreuth'') was an immediate territory of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a Franconian branch of the Hohenzollern dynas ...
on June 7, 1437, territory rich with mines that furnished materials for the Alchemist's hobby. The governance of Brandenburg passed to Frederick I's second-oldest son, Frederick II. After the death of Frederick I in 1440, John inherited all of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, including the castle of Plassenburg in
Kulmbach Kulmbach () is the capital of the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. The town is famous for Plassenburg Castle, which houses the largest tin soldier museum in the world, and for its sausages, or '' Bratwürste''. Geography Location ...
. In his later years, he allowed
Christopher of Bavaria Christopher of Bavaria (26 February 1416 – 5/6 January 1448) was King of Denmark (1440–48, as Christopher III), Sweden (1441–48) and Norway (1442–48) during the era of the Kalmar Union. Biography Coming to power He was the son of John, ...
to administer his possessions in the
Upper Palatinate The Upper Palatinate (german: Oberpfalz, , ) is one of the seven administrative districts of Bavaria, Germany, and is located in the east of Bavaria. Geography The Upper Palatinate is a landscape with low mountains and numerous ponds and lak ...
until Christopher's death in 1448. John ruled as Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach until abdicating in 1457, which allowed him to dedicate himself toward studying alchemy and the environs of Franconia. He died in Castle Scharfeneck near
Baiersdorf Baiersdorf is a town in the district of Erlangen-Höchstadt, in northern Bavaria, Germany. Geography Location The major part of Baiersdorf is idyllically situated on a terrace which preserves the town from being flooded by the close Regnitz rive ...
in 1464.


Family and children

John of Brandenburg-Kulmbach and Barbara of Saxe-Wittenberg had four children: * Rudolf of Brandenburg (born and died in 1424) * Barbara of Brandenburg (1423 – 7 November 1481), married on 12 November 1433
Ludovico III Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua Ludovico III Gonzaga of Mantua, also spelled Lodovico (also Ludovico II; 5 June 1412 – 12 June 1478) was the marquis of Mantua, ruler of the Italy, Italian city of Mantua from 1444 to his death in 1478. Biography Ludovico was the son of Gi ...
. * Elisabeth of Brandenburg (1425 – after 13 January 1465); married, firstly, on 27 August 1440,
Joachim, Duke of Pomerania Joachim, also known as Joachim I, Joachim the Younger, and Joachim of Pomerania (c. 1424 – 22 September 1451), was a member of the House of Griffin, and the duke of Pomerania-Stettin, that ruled from 1434 to 1451. History Early life and fa ...
. Married, secondly, on 5 March 1454,
Wartislaw X, Duke of Pomerania Duke Wartislaw X of Pomerania (1435 – 17 December 1478) was the second son of Duke Wartislaw IX of Pomerania and his wife, Sophia of Saxe-Lauenburg. Wartislaw married twice. On 5 March 1454, he married Elizabeth of Brandenburg, the widow ...
. *
Dorothea of Brandenburg Dorothea of Brandenburg (1430/1431 – 10 November 1495) was a Hohenzollern princess who became a Scandinavian queen by marriage under the Kalmar Union. She was Queen of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden from her marriage to King Christopher III in 1 ...
(1431 – 10 November 1495); married, firstly, on 12 September 1445, King Christopher III of Denmark. Married, secondly, on 28 October 1449, King
Christian I of Denmark Christian I (February 1426 – 21 May 1481) was a Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union. He was king of Denmark (1448–1481), Norway (1450–1481) and Sweden (1457–1464). From 1460 to 1481, he was also duke of Schleswig (within Den ...
.


Ancestors


References


Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie''




* Eulenberg, Herbert. ''The Hohenzollerns''. Translated by M. M. Bozman. The Century Co. New York, 1929. {{DEFAULTSORT:John, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach Margraves of Bayreuth House of Hohenzollern German alchemists 1406 births 1464 deaths Margraves of Brandenburg 15th-century alchemists