Philip II (2 May 1533 – 4 April 1596), Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, a member of the House of Welf, was the last ruler of the Principality of Grubenhagen from 1595 until his death. When he died in 1596, the Grubenhagen branch of the Welfs became extinct, whereafter the principality was occupied by Duke Henry Julius of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.

Life

Philip II was one of the many children of his father Duke Philip I of Brunswick-Grubenhagen and his wife Catherine of

Mansfeld Mansfeld, sometimes also unofficially Mansfeld-Lutherstadt, is a town in the district of Mansfeld-Südharz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Protestant reformator Martin Luther grew up in Mansfeld, and in 1993 the town became one of sixteen places in ...

(1501–1535). Philip II was the youngest of nine siblings, six of whom reached adulthood. After Duke Philip I's death in 1551, he was first succeeded in government by his eldest son Ernest III. After Ernest's death in 1567, his brother Wolfgang succeeded. When he too died without male descendants in 1595, Philip II succeeded. Katlenburg 1654 nach Merian

Duke Philip II was married to his cousin

Clara of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Clara of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (16 November 1532 in Wolfenbüttel – 23 November 1595 at Herzberg Castle), was a princess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel by birth. She was abbess of the secular Gandersheim Abbey and later Duchess of Brunswick-G ...

(1532–1595), designated Abbess of Gandersheim, who had renounced her ecclesiastical office after the abbey had been occupied by Schmalkaldic troops in the course of the Protestant

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

and plundered afterwards. The couple took residence at the secularised monastery of Katlenburg, which Philip II had rebuilt in a

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

style. In 1595 Duke Philipp II moved his residence from Katlenburg to Herzberg Castle. He reigned less than one year. When he died without a male heir in 1596, the Grubenhagen side-line of the Welfs died out and the Principality of Grubenhagen was annexed by his cousin Henry Julius of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. However, the

Lüneburg Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also called ...

branch of the Welf dynasty objected to the annexation and took the matter to the

Reichskammergericht The ''Reichskammergericht'' (; ; la, Iudicium imperii) was one of the two highest judicial institutions in the Holy Roman Empire, the other one being the Aulic Council in Vienna. It was founded in 1495 by the Imperial Diet in Worms. All legal ...

. In 1617, after a prolonged legal case, Henry Julius's son Frederick Ulrich had to cede the former Principality of Grubenhagen to Duke Christian of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Duke Philip's final resting place is next to his parents and brothers in the crypt of St. Giles Church in

Osterode am Harz Osterode am Harz, often simply called Osterode (; Eastphalian: ''Ostroe''), is a town in south-eastern Niedersachsen on the south-western edge of the Harz mountains. It was the seat of government of the district of Osterode. Osterode is locat ...

. His wife Clara died in 1595.

Ancestors

References

* Paul Zimmermann: ''Das Haus Braunschweig-Grubenhagen'', Wolfenbüttel, 1911

External links

Information about Philip II at www.welfen.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Philip 02 of Brunswick Grubenhagen Princes of Grubenhagen 1533 births 1596 deaths 16th-century German people Old House of Brunswick