Wolfgang Wilhelm von Pfalz-Neuburg (4 November 1578 in

Neuburg an der Donau Neuburg an der Donau (Central Bavarian: ''Neiburg an da Donau'') is a town which is the capital of the Neuburg-Schrobenhausen district in the state of Bavaria in Germany. Divisions The municipality has 16 divisions: * Altmannstetten * Bergen, Neu ...

– 14 September 1653 in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

) was a German Prince. He was

Count palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...

of Neuburg and Duke of

Jülich Jülich (; in old spellings also known as ''Guelich'' or ''Gülich'', nl, Gulik, french: Juliers, Ripuarian: ''Jöllesch'') is a town in the district of Düren, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. As a border region betwe ...

and

Berg Berg may refer to: People *Berg (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Berg Ng (born 1960), Hong Kong actor * Berg (footballer) (born 1989), Brazilian footballer Former states *Berg (state), county and duchy of the Holy ...

Life

Wolfgang Wilhelm's parents were

Philip Louis, Count Palatine of Neuburg Philipp Ludwig of Neuburg (2 October 1547 – 22 August 1614) was the Duke of Palatinate-Neuburg from 1569 until 1614. Life Philipp Ludwig was born in Zweibrücken in 1547 as the eldest son of Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken. After his f ...

, and Anna of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, a daughter of Wilhelm, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. He was the winner of the

War of the Jülich Succession The War of the Jülich Succession was a war of succession in the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. It lasted between 10 June 1609 and 24 October 1610, resumed in May 1614 and finally ended on 13 October 1614. The first round of the conflict ...

(1609–1614), and became thus the first ruler of

Palatinate-Neuburg Palatinate-Neuburg (german: Herzogtum Pfalz-Neuburg) was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire, founded in 1505 by a branch of the House of Wittelsbach. Its capital was Neuburg an der Donau. Its area was about 2,750 km², with a population of ...

, who was also Duke of

and Duke of

. In 1615, he was made a Knight in 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 ...

. Because he converted to

Catholicism 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 ...

and practised a strict policy of neutrality in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

, his territories escaped widespread destruction. Wolfgang Wilhelm moved his residence to

in 1636.

Marriage and issue

Wolfgang Wilhelm married three times: * In 1613 to

Magdalene of Bavaria Magdalene of Bavaria (4 July 1587 – 25 September 1628) was a princess member of the House of Wittelsbach by birth and Countess Palatine of Neuburg and Duchess of Jülich-Berg by marriage. She was born in Munich, Bavaria, the tenth and younges ...

, who gave birth to ** Philip William, his successor. * In 1631 to , daughter of

John II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken John II the Younger (german: Johann II. der Jüngere) (26 March 1584 – 9 August 1635) was the Duke of Zweibrücken from 1604 until 1635. Life John was born in Bergzabern in 1584 as the eldest son of John I, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken ...

, who gave birth to Ferdinand Philip and Eleonore Franziska. Both children died young. *In 1651 to Countess , daughter of

Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (Ernst Egon; 21 March 1588 in Speyer – 24 August 1635 in Constance) was Imperial Count of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (1618–1635) and Bavarian Field-marshal, and an important military leader in the Thirty ...

, they had no children.

Ancestry

External links

* *
Biography and Portrait of Count palatine Wolfgang Wilhelm von Neuburg
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wolfgang William, Count Palatine of Neuburg 1578 births 1653 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism from Lutheranism German Roman Catholics House of Wittelsbach Counts Palatine of Neuburg Dukes of Berg Knights of the Golden Fleece Hereditary Princes of Neuburg People from Neuburg an der Donau