Charles I, Duke of Münsterberg-Oels (also: ''Charles I of Podebrady'', , ; 2 or 4 May 1476, in Kladsko – 31 May 1536, in

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 Gothic novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a Sapience, sapient Frankenstein's monster, crea ...

) was a member of the

House of Poděbrady A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

. He was

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

of Münsterberg and Duke of Oels as well as Count of Kladsko. From 1519 to 1523 he held the office of the

bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...

Upper Lusatia Upper Lusatia (, ; , ; ; or ''Milsko''; ) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the north, it makes up the region of Lusatia, named after the Polabian Slavs, Slavic ''Lusici'' tribe. Both parts of Lusatia a ...

, in 1523 he was made Obersthauptmann of

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

and in 1524

Landeshauptmann The Landeshauptmann (if male) or Landeshauptfrau (if female) (, "state captain", plural ''Landeshauptleute,'' ) is the chairman of a state government and the supreme official of an Austrian state and the Italian autonomous provinces of South Ty ...

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

Life

Charles was a grandson of King George of Bohemia. His parents were Henry the Elder of Munsterberg and

Ursula of Brandenburg Ursula, Margravine of Brandenburg (17 October 1488 – 18 September 1510) was a German noblewoman. She was born in Berlin, the daughter of John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg, and Margarethe of Saxony. At age 19, on 16 February 1507 she mar ...

, daughter of Margrave Albrecht III Achilles of Brandenburg. In 1488 his father made him marry Anna of Sagan (1480/83–1541), a daughter of Duke Jan II the Mad. Charles's elder brothers Albert I and George were also married to daughters of John II. After their father's death in 1498, the three brothers Albert, George and Charles ruled jointly at first, but each lived on his own court: Albert in

Kłodzko Kłodzko (; ; ; ) is a historic town in south-western Poland, in the region of Lower Silesia. It is situated in the centre of the Kłodzko Valley, on the Eastern Neisse (Nysa Kłodzka) river. Kłodzko is the seat of Kłodzko County (and of the ru ...

, George in

Oleśnica Oleśnica (; ) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland, within the Wrocław metropolitan area. It is the administrative seat of Oleśnica County and also of the rural district of Gmina Oleśnica, although it is not part ...

, and Charles in Münsterberg. Charles moved his residence in 1530 in the newly built castle of

. Since Charles intended to transfer his residence to Frankenstein, he promoted the development of the city. In order to favour people settling in the city, he built new stone houses, and there were freihauses for the landed gentry. The city wall was rebuilt and strengthened and in 1511 a stone

parsonage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, pa ...

was built. Around the same time Charles began construction of a large palace to replace the ruins of the medieval castle of Frankenstein. His successors continued to work on the castle, but it was never finished. By the middle of the 16th Century, the Duchy was so heavily indebted that it had to be pledged at times; the high cost of the palace probably contributed to this problem. His brothers George and Albert died in 1502 and 1511. So Charles inherited the country and ruled alone as Duke of Münsterberg and Oels. Although Charles and his brothers had sold the county of Kladsko in 1501 to their future brother in law

Ulrich of Hardegg Ulrich of Hardegg ( or or ; after 1483 – 1535) was an Austrian nobleman from the Prüschenk family of Count of Hardegg. He was "Cup-bearer" of Austria, which, by this time, was a title of nobility and no longer involved looking after the ...

, they and their descendants continue to use the title of Counts of Kladsko, until the House of Münsterberg died out in the male line 1647. Charles served the Bohemian kings Vladislaus II,

Louis Louis may refer to: People * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer Other uses * Louis (coin), a French coin * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also ...

and Ferdinand I in various high offices. In 1519 King Louis appointed him

. He held this position until the death of the king in 1526. In 1523 he was promoted to chief captain of the Kingdom of Bohemia and was one of the high nobles who administered the country when the king was absent (which he was quite often, as he spent most of his time in Hungary, where he was also King). Furthermore, Charles was made

of Lower Silesia in 1524. After the death of King Louis, Charles was a leading figure in organizing the election of the next king. He supported the candidacy of Ferdinand of Habsburg early, and Ferdinand reward him after the coronation in 1527 with the confirmation of his captaincy in Bohemia and awarding him the post of Oberlandeshauptmann in Silesia. The exercise of these offices was incurred a significant financial burden for Charles, so he was forced to sell parts of his territories. Although Charles read Martin Luther's writings with a benevolent interest, he maintained his Catholic faith 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 ...

. He died in 1536 and was buried in the St. Anne's Church in Frankenstein, where his sons built a

tombstone A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...

for him and his wife (she died in 1541).

Offspring

# Henry (1497–1497) # Anna (1499–1504) # Catherine (1500–1507) # Margareta () (1501–1551), married to Jan Zajíc of Hasenburg #

Joachim Joachim was, according to Sacred tradition, the husband of Saint Anne, the father of Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary (mother of Jesus), and the maternal grandfather of Jesus. The story of Joachim and Anne first appears in the Gospel of James, part of ...

(1503–1562), Bishop of Brandenburg # Kunigunde () (1504–1532), married to Christopher Černohorský of Boskovice # Ursula () (1505–1539), married to Jerome of Bieberstein #

Henry II Henry II may refer to: Kings * Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014 *Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154 *Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...

() (1507–1548), Duke of Münsterberg-Oels # Hedwig (1508–1531), married in 1525 George of Brandenburg-Ansbach #

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

() (1509–1565), Duke of Münsterberg-Oels # Barbara (1511–1539), Abbess in Strehlen (

Strzelin Strzelin (, ) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in south-western Poland. It is located on the Oława river, a tributary of the Oder, about south of the region's capital Wrocław. It is part of the Wrocław metropolitan area. The town i ...

) near Oels # George II () (1512–1553), married to Elizabeth Kostka of Postupice

References

* Arno Herzig and Małgorzata Ruchniewicz: ''Geschichte des Glatzer Landes''. Hamburg-Wrocław: DOBU-Verl. et al., 2006, , pp. 54–59 * Josef Frais: ''Jiří z Poděbrad''. Třebíč 2006, , pp. 138–144 *

External links

*
Letters of Charles of Münsterberg to Ferdinand of Habsburg, whose election as King of Bohemia, he was supporting (1526)

* ttp://www.frankenstein-schlesien.de/index.html Charles of Münsterberg and Frankenstein* Radek Fukala
Silesian Duke Charles I of Münsterberg and Oels and His Power Aspirations
Prague Papers on the History of International Relations, 2018, 2. {{DEFAULTSORT:Charles I, Duke Of Munsterberg-Oels 1476 births 1536 deaths Dukes of Münsterberg Podiebrad family