John II, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg
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Count John II ʻwith the Helmetʼ of Nassau-SiegenIn many sources he is called John II of Nassau(-Dillenburg). His official title was Count of Nassau, but it is incorrect to refer to him as the only reigning Count of Nassau, because the County of Nassau was divided into Nassau-Beilstein, Nassau-Siegen, Nassau-Weilburg and Nassau-Wiesbaden-Idstein. John co-ruled the County of Nassau-Siegen, which is erroneously called Nassau-Dillenburg in many sources. See note 2. (d. early May 1443), german: Johann II. ‘mit der Haube’ Graf von Nassau-Siegen, succeeded, with his brothers, his father in 1416 as Count of
Nassau-Siegen Nassau-Siegen was a principality within the Holy Roman Empire that existed between 1303 and 1328, and again from 1606 to 1743. From 1626 to 1734, it was subdivided into Catholic and Protestant parts. Its capital was the city of Siegen, found ...
The County of Nassau-Siegen is erroneously called Nassau-Dillenburg in many sources. The county was not named after the small, unimportant city of Dillenburg, which did not even have a church at that time, but after the, for that time, large city of Siegen, the economic centre of the county and the counts’ main residence. See Lück (1981), ''passim''. It is also evident from the numbering of the reigning counts with the given name John. One John without regal number who ruled the County of Nassau-Dillenburg in the period 1303–1328, and eight counts by the name of John who ruled the County of Nassau-Siegen in the period 1362–1638. (a part of the County of Nassau). With his brothers, he inherited the
County of Vianden The Counts of Vianden, ancestors of the House of Orange-Nassau, were associated with the castle of Vianden (Vianden Castle) in Luxembourg. In the 12th to 15th centuries the counts of Vianden were the mightiest lords of the area between the riv ...
in 1417, and also inherited half of the
County of Diez The County of Diez (sometimes Dietz, german: Grafschaft Diez) was a county of the Holy Roman Empire, centred on the at Diez in Lahngau (in the modern German states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate). The county is first attested in 1073 and s ...
in 1420. He descended from the Ottonian Line of the House of Nassau.


Biography

John was the second son of Count John I of Nassau-Siegen and Countess .Dek (1970), p. 66.Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 90. With his brothers, Adolf I, Engelbert I and John III ʻthe Youngerʼ, John succeeded his father in 1416 as Count of
Nassau-Siegen Nassau-Siegen was a principality within the Holy Roman Empire that existed between 1303 and 1328, and again from 1606 to 1743. From 1626 to 1734, it was subdivided into Catholic and Protestant parts. Its capital was the city of Siegen, found ...
.Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 219.von Stramberg (1865), p. 722.Dek (1970), p. 66 and Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 90 state that John co-ruled with his brother Adolf only. They had already agreed on a joint continuation of the government on 21 December 1409. Whichever of the brothers would be native or closest to his lands on the fatherʼs death should take possession of them in all brothersʼ name until a division would have taken place. Whoever would take something for himself alone would be disinherited. All parental decrees favouring one brother over the other were declared null and void in advance. Adolf hereby tacitly renounced his right to the part of Nassau-Hadamar and the districts of Herborn, Haiger and
Löhnberg Löhnberg is a municipality north of Weilburg in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Löhnberg lies between Wetzlar and the district seat of Limburg an der Lahn. Neighbouring communities Löhnberg borders in the ...
, which he could have claimed in advance from the marriage contract with the heiress of the
County of Diez The County of Diez (sometimes Dietz, german: Grafschaft Diez) was a county of the Holy Roman Empire, centred on the at Diez in Lahngau (in the modern German states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate). The county is first attested in 1073 and s ...
. In accordance with this agreement, the brothers took over the government jointly after their fatherʼs death in 1416. However, the intended division did not take place: Adolf had no male offspring, the elder John was not married, the younger of the same name was a clergyman; it was to be expected that a division would not last long. Together, the brothers bought back the other half of the
city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
of Siegen from the
Electorate of Cologne The Electorate of Cologne (german: Kurfürstentum Köln), sometimes referred to as Electoral Cologne (german: Kurköln, links=no), was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. ...
.Lück (1981), p. 23 states that their father exchanged the County of Arnsberg in 1381 for the other half of Siegen from the Electorate of Cologne. When Elisabeth of Sponheim-Kreuznach, Countess of Vianden, died without issue in 1417, the four brothers, grandsons of
Adelaide of Vianden Countess Adelaide of Vianden (d. 30 September 1376), german: Adelheid Gräfin von Vianden, was a Countess from the House of Vianden, the cadet branch of the House of Sponheim that ruled the County of Vianden, and through marriage Countess ...
, Elisabethʼs great-aunt, inherited the
County of Vianden The Counts of Vianden, ancestors of the House of Orange-Nassau, were associated with the castle of Vianden (Vianden Castle) in Luxembourg. In the 12th to 15th centuries the counts of Vianden were the mightiest lords of the area between the riv ...
with the lordships of
St. Vith St. Vith (german: Sankt Vith ; french: Saint-Vith ; lb, Sankt Väit ; wa, Sint-Vit) is a city and municipality of East Belgium located in the Walloon province of Liège. It was named after Saint Vitus. On January 1, 2006, St. Vith had a total ...
,
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,
Dasburg Dasburg is a municipality in the district of Bitburg-Prüm, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany. Before the French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping ...
and
Grimbergen Grimbergen () is a municipality in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant, 10 km north of the capital Brussels. It comprises the towns of Beigem, Grimbergen, Humbeek, and Strombeek-Bever. In 2017, it had a population of 37,030 and an are ...
.Dek (1970), p. 66 and Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 90 state that only Engelbert I, the third of the brothers, inherited the County of Vianden. After the death of the eldest brother Adolf in 1420, the three remaining brothers succeeded him, but they lost half of the
County of Diez The County of Diez (sometimes Dietz, german: Grafschaft Diez) was a county of the Holy Roman Empire, centred on the at Diez in Lahngau (in the modern German states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate). The county is first attested in 1073 and s ...
, as well as ¼ of Camberg in 1428. The County of Nassau-Siegen was divided by the brothers; John obtained Dillenburg in this division. John was invested with the Duchy of Cleves and the County of Mark by
Roman King The king of Rome ( la, rex Romae) was the ruler of the Roman Kingdom. According to Roman mythology, legend, the first king of Rome was Romulus, who founded the city in 753 BC upon the Palatine Hill. Seven legendary kings are said to have ruled ...
Sigismund in 1422, but settled for financial compensation two years later.Lück (1981), p. 23. Duke Adolf IV of Cleves paid him 12,000 gold guilders.von Stramberg (1865), p. 728. In 1429 or 1439, the counts of Virneburg paid the brothers 21,000 gold guilders to buy off their claims to the ''
heerlijkheid A ''heerlijkheid'' (a Dutch word; pl. ''heerlijkheden''; also called ''heerschap''; Latin: ''Dominium'') was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas in the Dutch-speaking Low Countries before 1800. ...
'' of
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with
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and
Uden Uden () is a town and former municipality in the province of North Brabant, Netherlands. Since 2022 it has been part of the new municipality of Maashorst. History Uden was first recorded around 1190 as "Uthen". However, earlier settlements h ...
. After the death of their youngest brother John III ʻthe Youngerʼ in 1430, John II and Engelbert I jointly ruled Nassau-Siegen, Vianden and Diez again. John died unmarried at Dillenburg Castle in early May 1443Becker (1983), p. 12.Huberty, et al. (1981), p. 219 also mentions the year of death 1443. Dek (1970), p. 66, Vorsterman van Oyen (1882), p. 90 an
Medieval Lands – Nassau
state that John died in Dillenburg in May 1448. Considering the fact that Johnʼs successors divided their possessions on 22 February 1447, the year of death 1448 cannot be correct.
and was buried in near
Hilchenbach Hilchenbach () is a town in the Siegen-Wittgenstein '' Kreis'' (district) of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Location Hilchenbach is about northeast of Siegen. The town borders in the south on Netphen, in the west on Kreuztal, in the ...
. He was succeeded by his nephews John IV and Henry II of Nassau-Siegen, the sons of Engelbert I. Siegen Schloss - 20.3.2011 - panoramio (1).jpg, Siegen Castle, 2011. Vianden castle.jpg, Vianden Castle. Photo: Vincent de Groot, 2004. Burgdiez.jpg, Diez Castle. Photo: Peter Klassen, 2006. Allenbach, Stiftskirche.jpg, Keppel Abbey Church, 2018.


Illegitimate children

John had two illegitimate children: # Adelheid von Nassau, was a nun in Keppel Abbey in 1438. # Tilman von Nassau, mentioned as
student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementar ...
in Heidelberg in 1425, as student in Cologne in 1447, obtained as a fief and a house in Herborn in 1461.


Ancestors


Notes


References


Sources

* * * * * * (1882). ''Het vorstenhuis Oranje-Nassau. Van de vroegste tijden tot heden'' (in Dutch). Leiden: A.W. Sijthoff/Utrecht: J.L. Beijers.


External links


Nassau
In

by Charles Cawley.

In

by Paul Theroff. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:John 02, Count of Nassau-Siegen Nassau-Siegen, John 02 Counts of Diez Counts of Nassau Counts of Vianden House of Nassau-Siegen 14th-century German nobility 15th-century German nobility Year of birth unknown