Johan I of East Frisia (1506–1572) was a member of the house of

Cirksena The House of Cirksena () was the name of the ruling family of East Frisia, Ostfriesland. They descended from a line of East Frisian chieftains from Greetsiel. East Frisia In 1439, in the wake of clashes between different lines of chieftains, t ...

and a non-reigning Count of East Frisia and later imperial governor of

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

. His father, Edzard the Great, had introduced primogeniture in the county of East Frisia, so that his older brother

Enno II of East Frisia Enno II of East Frisia (1505 – 24 September 1540 in Emden) was the son of Edzard I of East Frisia. In 1528 he became count of East Frisia. For most of his life he ruled together with Johan I of East Frisia, who remained Catholic, while Enno was ...

inherited the county alone and he had to hold back. Despite his ambitions, he always acknowledged his brother's rights and did not dispute the inheritance. Unlike his father and his brother, Johan remained a

Catholic 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 ...

. After his father's death, he joined the imperial army. However, he soon returned to East Frisia and began supporting his brother. He had, however, little positive impact on his brother, who ruled unwisely. Johan was unable to distinguish himself, and also took some unwise and ill-advised actions, such as those that lead to the Guelders feud. He may also have encouraged Enno to try to re-introduce Catholicism in East Frisia. This attempt was cut short when Enno died in 1540. Enno's widow,

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 12 ...

became

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

for her son Edzard II. Johan had an endless series of conflicts with Anna. In 1538, Johan married Dorothea of Austria, the illegitimate daughter of Emperor Maximilian I. In 1543, Emperor

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infa ...

reminded Johan of the fact that he was still, technically, in the imperial service. Charles appointed Johan stadtholder of the

Duchy of Limburg The Duchy of Limburg or Limbourg was an imperial estate of the Holy Roman Empire. Much of the area of the duchy is today located within Liège Province of Belgium, with a small portion in the municipality of Voeren, an exclave of the neighbourin ...

and the three ''Lands Beyond the Meuse'' (dutch: Landen van Overmaas, french: Pays d'Outremeuse). (Valkenburg,

Herzogenrath Herzogenrath ( Ripuarian: ; li, Hertseraoj; nl, ’s-Hertogenrade) is a municipality in the district of Aachen in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It borders the Dutch town of Kerkrade, the national border in one section running alon ...

and

Dalhem Dalhem (; wa, Dålem) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On 1 January 2012 Dalhem had a total population of 6,996. The total area is 36.06 km² which gives a population density of 180 inhabitants pe ...

). Moreover, he became drossaard (judge and prime minister) of the Valkenburg Castle.H.J.H. Schurgers - J.G.M. Notten - L.G.W.N. Pluymaekers, ''De geschiedenis van Valkenburg-Houthem'', p. 135, publisher "Het land van Valkenburg". 1979, . His descendants lived at Coldeborg Castle in the

Rheiderland The Rheiderland is a region of Germany and the Netherlands between the River Ems and the Bay of Dollart. The German part of the Rheiderland lies in East Frisia, west of the Ems. The Dutch part (written: ''Reiderland'') lies in the Dutch provinc ...

and were financially supported by the counts of East Frisia.

References and sources

* Tielke, Martin (ed.): ''Biographisches Lexikon für Ostfriesland'', Ostfriesisches Landschaftliche Verlag- u. Vertriebsgeschäft, Aurich, vol. 1 (1993), vol. 2 (1997), vol. 3 (2001)

References

Knights of the Golden Fleece Counts of East Frisia 1506 births 1572 deaths 16th-century German people {{EastFrisia-stub