Elisabeth Of Lorraine-Vaudémont
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Elizabeth of Lorraine-Vaudémont, Countess of Nassau-Saarbrücken (also known as ''Isabella of Lotharingen''; in
Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...
– 17 January 1456 in
Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...
) was a German regent and translator. She was the Countess of Nassau-Weilburg by marriage to
Philipp I, Count of Nassau-Weilburg Count Philipp I of Nassau-Weilburg (1368 – 2 July 1429) was Count of Nassau in Weilburg, County of Nassau-Saarbrücken#County of Saarbrücken, Count of Saarbrücken and Seigneur of Commercy ''Château bas'' in 1371–1429. Biography Philipp w ...
, and the regent of the County of Nassau-Weilburg during the minority of her son Philip II between 1429 and 1438. She was a pioneer of the
novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...
in
Early New High German Early New High German (ENHG) is a term for the period in the history of the German language generally defined, following Wilhelm Scherer, as the period 1350 to 1650, developing from Middle High German and into New High German. The term is the ...
language. Around 1437, she translated and edited four French
romance Romance may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings ** Romantic orientation, the classification of the sex or gender with which a pers ...
s () by
Odo Arpin of Bourges Odo Arpin of Bourges (also Arpinus, Harpinus, or Harpin) ( 1060 – c. 1130) was a medieval viscount, crusader and monk. He inherited the lordship of Dun and became viscount of Bourges between 1092 and 1095 after marrying Matilda of Sully, whose ...
, Sibille, Loher & Maller and Hug Chapler.


Life

Elizabeth was the daughter of Frederick of Lorraine (1368–1415) and Margaret of Joinville ( – 1418). In 1412, she became the second wife of Count
Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) ( ...
of Nassau-Weilburg-Saarbrücken (1368–1429).


Regency

After his death in 1429, she took over the regency for her infant son, Philip II (1418–1492) of the Nassau-Saarbrücken territory until her son became an adult in 1438. The territory consisted of the areas along the middle
Saar Saar or SAAR has several meanings: People Given name * Sarr Boubacar (born 1951), Senegalese professional football player * Saar Ganor, Israeli archaeologist * Saar Klein (born 1967), American film editor Surname * Ain Saar (born 1968), E ...
, along the
Blies The Blies (; ) is a right tributary of the Saar in southwestern Germany ( Saarland) and northeastern France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and ...
, in eastern Lorraine, in today's
Donnersbergkreis The Donnersbergkreis is a district (''Kreis'') in the middle of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bad Kreuznach, Alzey-Worms, Bad Dürkheim, Kaiserslautern, Kusel. History The district was created in 1969 by merging the dist ...
, around the city of
Kirchheimbolanden Kirchheimbolanden is the capital and the second largest city of the Donnersbergkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate. Situated in south-western Germany, it is approximately 25 km west of Worms, Germany, Worms, and 30 km north-east of Kaisersla ...
, in the
Taunus The Taunus () is a mountain range in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located north west of Frankfurt and north of Wiesbaden. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg' ...
area, along the
Lahn The Lahn () is a , right (or eastern) tributary of the Rhine in Germany. Its course passes through the States of Germany, federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia (23.0 km), Hesse (165.6 km), and Rhineland-Palatinate (57.0 km). ...
as well as
Commercy Commercy () is a Communes of France, commune in the Meuse (department), Meuse Departments of France, department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. History Commercy dates back to the 9th century, and at that time its lords were dependent on th ...
in Lorraine on the
Meuse The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of . History From 1301, the upper ...
. She managed to keep her possessions together and to avoid disputes with her many neighbours. During her rule,
Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; Rhenish Franconian: ''Sabrigge'' ; ; ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of cities and towns in Germany, city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken has 181,959 inhabitants and is Saarland's administrative, commerci ...
was developed into a residence town. She resided at
Saarbrücken Castle Saarbrücken Castle () is a Baroque château in Saarbrücken, the capital of Saarland. It is located in the district of Alt-Saarbrücken on the left bank of the Saar (river), Saar. Earlier, a medieval castle and a Renaissance castle stood on the ...
on the Castle Rock with its steep slope towards the Saar. Until then, the territory had had no centralized administration, and its rulers had travelled constantly between their scattered possessions, in order to maintain their claim to power by being physically present some of the time in each and every possession ("rule by travelling around").


Death

Elisabeth died on 17 January 1456. Contrary to the customs of the ancient Counts of Saarbrücken, who were buried in
Wadgassen Wadgassen is a municipality in the district of Saarlouis, in Saarland, Germany. It is situated on the river Saar, approx. 6 km southeast of Saarlouis, and 15 km west of Saarbrücken. Religion Between 1135 and 1792 the Premonstratensia ...
, Elisabeth chose to be buried in the Collegiate Church in Sankt Arnual, which is now part of Saarbrücken. For the next 200 years, all Counts of Nassau-Saarbrücken would be buried here.


Legacy

Elisabeth took care of her inheritance during her lifetime. In 1439, she divided her possessions among her two sons. The elder son, Philip II received the territories on the right bank of the Rhine; the younger son,
John II John II may refer to: People * John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499) * John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672) * John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302) * John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318) * John II Komnenos (1087–114 ...
received the territories on the left bank. Apparently John II, unlike his brother, was interested in his mother's literary activities. Among other things, he had magnificent manuscripts made of the novels his mother had translated These manuscripts and early printed copies are now held by the
Herzog August Library The Herzog August Library ( — "HAB"), in Wolfenbüttel, Lower Saxony, known also as ''Bibliotheca Augusta'', is a library of international importance for its collection from the Middle Ages and early modern Europe. The library is overseen ...
in
Wolfenbüttel Wolfenbüttel (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District Wolfenbüttel (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel (district), Wolfenbüttel Distri ...
and the State and University Library in
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
. In April 2007, a large poster exhibition of Elisabeth's novels was held in Saarbrücken, in the framework of the city's participation in the activities of Luxembourg as Cultural Capital of Europe. A European Writers' Congress in Saarbrücken on 16 October 2007 had as its motto , with which Elisabeth began her translations.


Marriage and issue

Elisabeth was the second wife of Count
Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) ( ...
of Nassau-Weilburg-Saarbrücken (1368–1429) and had the following children with him: # Philip II of Nassau-Weilburg #
John II of Nassau-Saarbrücken John II of Nassau-Saarbrücken (4 April 1423, in Saarbrücken – 15 July 1472, in Vehingen) was a son of Philipp I, Count of Nassau-Weilburg and Elisabeth of Lorraine-Vaudémont. He was Count of Nassau-Saarbrücken from 1429 to 1472. He married ...
# Johannetta (d. 1 February 1481,
Römhild Römhild () is a town in the Hildburghausen (district), district of Hildburghausen, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated 14 km west of Hildburghausen, and 21 km southeast of Meiningen. On 31 December 2012, it merged with the former muni ...
), married on 22 June 1422 to Count
George I of Henneberg George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...
# Margarete (26 April 1426 – 5 May 1490), married in 1441 to Gerhard of
Rodemachern Rodemack (; German: ''Rodemachern''; Lorraine Franconian/ , ''Ruedemaacher'') is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in northeastern France. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of Franc ...


References

* * * Bernhard Burchert: ''Die Anfänge des Prosaromans in Deutschland. Die Prosaerzählungen Elisabeths von Nassau-Saarbrücken'', Lang, Frankfurt, Bern and New York, 1987 * Thomas Cramer: ''Geschichte der deutschen Literatur im späten Mittelalter'', dtv, Munich, 2000, * Wolfgang Haubrichs, Hans-Walter Herrmann and Gerhard Sauder (eds.): ''Zwischen Deutschland und Frankreich. Elisabeth von Lothringen, Gräfin von Nassau-Saarbrücken'', in the series ''Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Saarländische Landesgeschichte und Volksforschung,'' vol. 34, St. Ingbert: Universitäts-Verlag, Röhrig, 2002, * Ulricke qnd Manfred Jacobs: ''Die Grenzgängerin Elisabeth von Lothringen'', Gollenstein, Blieskastel 2007, * Yvonne Rech and Hans-Walter Herrmann: ''Elisabethenwege. Reisen auf den Wegen einer bedeutenden Frau. in Reiseführer'. Regionalverband Saarbrücken, Saarbrücken, 2008 * Kerstin Joost-Schäfer: ''Die dichtende Gräfin — Elisabeth von Lothringen'', in: ''Saarbrücker Zeitung'', section ''Momente'', 13/14 March 2010, p. E 8 (special page)


External links

*
Literature by Elisabeth

Literature about Elisabeth

Elisabeth in the State and university Library in Hamburg

Elisabeth in the Saarländische Biografien
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elizabeth Of Lorraine Vaudemont German translators Writers from Saarland House of Lorraine 1390s births 1456 deaths Countesses of Nassau 15th-century German writers 15th-century German nobility 15th-century German women writers German women novelists Burials at Stiftskirche Sankt Arnual (Saarbrücken) Mothers of German monarchs 15th-century women regents 15th-century regents 15th-century translators Regents in the Holy Roman Empire