Anthony I, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst (150522 January 1573) was a member of the

House of Oldenburg The House of Oldenburg is a Germans, German dynasty whose members rule or have ruled in Danish Realm, Denmark, Kingdom of Iceland, Iceland, Kingdom of Greece, Greece, Norway, Russian Empire, Russia, Sweden, United Kingdom, the United Kingdom, King ...

and was the

Imperial Count Imperial Count (, ) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. During the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from a prince wh ...

of the Counties of

Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places * Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony * Ol ...

and

Delmenhorst Delmenhorst (; Northern Low Saxon: ''Demost'') is an urban district (''List of German urban districts, Kreisfreie Stadt'') in Lower Saxony, Germany. It has a population of 74,500 and is located west of downtown Bremen (city), Bremen with which ...

within the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation. His parents were

John V, Count of Oldenburg John V, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst (also counted as John XIV, including also non-ruling namesake siblings; 1460, Oldenburg – 10 February 1526, Oldenburg) was a member of the House of Oldenburg. He was the ruling Count of Oldenburg ...

(1460–1525) and Anna of Anhalt-Zerbst.

Life

Anthony I was the youngest son of John V. He had a long-running dispute with his brothers John VI, George, and

Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...

about who would be the sole ruler of the County of Oldenburg. In 1529, he became the regent of the county. In 1531, Emperor

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * 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 Others * Charles V, Duke ...

enfeoffed him with the County of Oldenburg-Delmenhorst. In 1547, during the

Schmalkaldic War The Schmalkaldic War (; July 1546May 1547) was fought within the territories of the Holy Roman Empire between the allied forces of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and Maurice, Duke of Saxony against the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League, with the forc ...

, he conquered the Castle and Lordship of

, which had been lost to

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

in 1482. He strengthened the defenses of his county by expanding his fortresses. He paid for these construction projects from the proceeds of church properties he had stolen during the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. The Order of St. John sued him about their stolen possessions; after a lengthy trial, Anthony prevailed. With the assistance of farmers from

Stadland Stadland () is a municipality in the district of Wesermarsch, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Weser, approx. 32 km northeast of Oldenburg, and 42 km northwest of Bremen. On the west side Stadland border ...

and

Butjadingen Butjadingen () is a peninsula and municipality in the Wesermarsch district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Geography Butjadingen is situated on the German North Sea coast. It is bordered on the west and southwest by the Jade River and the east by the ...

, which his father had conquered in 1514, he managed to gain a large amount of fertile territory by constructing

levee A levee ( or ), dike (American English), dyke (British English; see American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, spelling differences), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is an elevated ridge, natural ...

s around some wetlands in the

Jade Bight The Jade Bight (also known as ''Jade Bay''; , ) is a bight or bay on the North Sea coast of Germany. It was formerly known simply as (the) Jade or Jahde. Because of the very low input of freshwater, it is classified as a bay rather than an e ...

. He constructed several large manors to manage this new land. In 1566, his brother Christopher died, and Anthony became the sole ruler of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst. Anthony I died in

in 1573 and was succeeded by his son John VII.

Marriage and issue

Anthony married on 1 January 1537 in Oldenburg, to Duchess Sophie of

Saxe-Lauenburg The Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg (, ), was a ''reichsfrei'' duchy that existed from 1296 to 1803 and again from 1814 to 1876 in the extreme southeast region of what is now Schleswig-Holstein. Its territorial centre was in the modern district of Herz ...

(d. 7 October 1571 in Oevelgönne), the daughter of Duke Magnus I and Catherine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. They had the following children: * Catherine of Oldenburg (8 August 1538 – 1 February 1620); married in 1561 to Albert II, Count of Hoya (1526 – 18 March 1563). * Anna of Oldenburg (3 April 1539 – 25 August 1579); married on 16 February 1566 to

John Günther I, Count of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen John Günther I of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen (also known as ''Hans Günther'' or ''Johann Günther''; 20 December 1532 in Sondershausen – 28 October 1586 in Arnstadt) was the co-ruler of Schwarzburg from 1552 until 1571 and the sole ruler S ...

(20 December 1532 – 28 October 1586). *

John VII, Count of Oldenburg Count John VII of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst (nicknamed "the Dike Builder"; 9 September 1540 in Oldenburg – 12 November 1603 in Oldenburg) was a member of the House of Oldenburg and was the ruling Count of County of Oldenburg from 1573 until his ...

(9 September 1540 – 12 November 1603); married in 1576 to Elisabeth of Schwarzburg-Blankenburg (13 April 1541 – 26 December 1612). * Christian of Oldenburg (7 November 1544 – 6 August 1570) * Clara of Oldenburg (1 November 1547 – 30 May 1598) * Anthony II, Count of Oldenburg (8 September 1550 – 25 October 1619); married in 1600 to Sibylle Elisabeth of Brunswick-Dannenberg (4 June 1576 – 9 July 1630).

References

* {{Authority control Counts of Oldenburg 1505 births 1573 deaths 16th-century German nobility 16th-century monarchs in Europe Converts to Lutheranism from Roman Catholicism German Lutherans

Life

Marriage and issue

See also

References