Louis I (died January 12, 1140) was ruler of

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

from 1123 to 1140.

Biography

The son of Count

Louis the Springer Louis the Springer (german: Ludwig der Springer), sometimes called Louis the Jumper or Louis the Leaper (died 8 May 1123), was a German nobleman and count in Thuringia from 1056 until his death. Little is known about him, although he is mentioned ...

("the jumper") and his wife Adelheid, he was appointed

Landgrave Landgrave (german: Landgraf, nl, landgraaf, sv, lantgreve, french: landgrave; la, comes magnus, ', ', ', ', ') was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), a ...

by the Emperor

Lothair III Lothair III, sometimes numbered Lothair II and also known as Lothair of Supplinburg (1075 – 4 December 1137), was Holy Roman Emperor from 1133 until his death. He was appointed List of rulers of Saxony, Duke of Saxony in 1106 and elected List o ...

in 1131. According to the succession in his line he should have been called Louis III, but he won Thuringia for his family and, in case of territorial expansion, it was customary to start counting from one. Thanks to his marriage with

Hedwig of Gudensberg Hedwig of Gudensberg, also known as ''Hedwig of Hesse'' (1098–1148) was German regent: she served as regent of Thuringia during the minority of her son Louis II from 1140. Life She was the daughter and heiress of Giso IV, Count of Gudensberg ( ...

he obtained the rule over an extensive heritage, after the death of his father-in-law, Count

Giso IV Giso IV, Count of Gudensberg ( – 12 March 1122) was a German nobleman. He was a Count in the Upper Lahngau and from 1121, he was Count of Gudensberg in Lower Hesse and Imperial Standard Bearer. During his lifetime, the Gisones dynasty re ...

, which led to the union of Thuringia and Hesse. In 1137 Louis became

Landgrave of Hesse-Gudensberg Landgrave (german: Landgraf, nl, landgraaf, sv, lantgreve, french: landgrave; la, comes magnus, ', ', ', ', ') was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), a ...

as well. His close relationship to the King

favoured his rise into the rank of a prince. After the death of Lothair, in 1137, Louis decided to support the

Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynasty ...

in their struggle for power in the Reich against the

Welf Welf is a Germanic first name that may refer to: *Welf (father of Judith), 9th century Frankish count, father-in-law of Louis the Pious *Welf I, d. bef. 876, count of Alpgau and Linzgau *Welf II, Count of Swabia, died 1030, supposed descendant of W ...

party. The Landgrave died on January 12, 1140 and was buried inside the abbey of

Reinhardsbrunn Reinhardsbrunn in Friedrichroda near Gotha, in the German state of Thuringia, is the site of a formerly prominent Benedictine abbey, the house monastery of the Ludovingian Landgraves of Thuringia abbey extant between 1085 and 1525. Later used a ...

. Louis had a daughter,

Judith of Thuringia Judith of Thuringia ( cz, Judita Durynská; – 9 September after 1174), a member of the Ludovingian dynasty, was Queen consort of Bohemia from 1158 until 1172 as the second wife of King Vladislaus II. She was the second Queen of Bohemia after ...

, who married king Vladislaus II of Bohemia.Jonathan R. Lyon, "Princely Brothers and Sisters: The Sibling Bond in German Politics, 1100-1250", Cornell Press, 243

Bibliography

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References

Ludwig 1 of Thuringia Ludwig 1 of Thuringia Landgraves of Thuringia Ludovingians {{Germany-noble-stub