John III, Lord of Werle (nicknamed ''John van Ruoden''; born: before 1300; died: between 1 April and 28 August 1352) was Lord of Werle-Goldberg from 1316 until his death. He was the son of

Nicholas II Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pol ...

and Rixa of Denmark. After the death of his father, Nicholas II, in 1316, it was decided to divide Werle. John III. took control over the part Werle-Goldberg and his uncle John II took over Werle-Güstrow. John III built himself a castle in Goldberg. King

Christopher II of Denmark Christopher II (; 29 September 1276 – 2 August 1332) was King of Denmark from 1320 to 1326 and again from 1329 until his death. He was a younger son of Eric V. His name is connected with national disaster, as his rule ended in an almost total ...

promised John and Lord Henry II of Mecklenburg on 4 May 1326 that he would invest them with

Rügen Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...

. However, he had earlier promised the principality to Pomerania. This led to a war, the Rügen War of Succession. Under the Peace of Brudersdorf, Pomerania was allowed to keep Rügen, but had to pay Mecklenburg in compensation. From 1350, he left the business of government to his son and co-ruler Nicholas IV. On 1 April 1352, he was already terminally ill. He died later that year. He was probably buried in Malchow Abbey.

Marriage and issue

John III married in 1317 with Mechtild (died: ), the daughter of Duke Otto I, Duke of Pomerania. They had three children: * John (died 1341) * Nicholas IV, Lord of Werle-Goldberg * Mechtild (died 1361), married with Count

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...

of Schwerin After Mechtild's death, John III married Richaris and had two more daughters: * Sophia (died 1384), married with Albert II of Lindow-Ruppin * Rixa, became prioress of Dobbertin Abbey in 1392

External links

Genealogical table of the House of Mecklenburg

at emecklenburg.de House of Mecklenburg Lords of Werle 13th-century births Year of birth uncertain 1352 deaths {{Germany-noble-stub