George of Austria (

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded i ...

, 1505 – Liège, 4 May 1557), was Prince-bishop of Liège from 1544 to 1557. He was an illegitimate son of

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. He was never crowned by the pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed himself E ...

and Margaretha of Edelsheim. He became Bishop of Brixen (Tyrol) between 1525 and 1537 and Archbishop of Valencia between 1538 and 1544. In 1544 he became Prince-bishop of Liège by the influence of his nephew Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, a post he held until his death. George strongly opposed any French influence in the

Prince-Bishopric of Liège The Prince-Bishopric of Liège or Principality of Liège was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that was situated for the most part in present-day Belgium. It was an Imperial Estate, so the bishop of Liège, as its prince, ...

, thus maintaining the strong grip of the Habsburgs, who controlled all surrounding lands.
In 1554, he was faced with a French invasion under King

Henry II of France Henry II (french: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I and Duchess Claude of Brittany, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder bro ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:George of Austria 1505 births 1557 deaths 16th-century House of Habsburg People of the Habsburg Netherlands Prince-Bishops of Liège 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Holy Roman Empire Archbishops of Valencia Sons of emperors Sons of kings Illegitimate children of Holy Roman Emperors