Frederick II, Elector Palatine
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Frederick II, Count Palatine of the Rhine (9 December 1482 – 26 February 1556), also Frederick the Wise, a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was
Prince-elector The prince-electors ( pl. , , ) were the members of the Electoral College of the Holy Roman Empire, which elected the Holy Roman Emperor. Usually, half of the electors were archbishops. From the 13th century onwards, a small group of prince- ...
of the Palatinate from 1544 to 1556, and pretender to the Norwegian Throne from 1535 to 1556. The Kurfürst-Friedrich-Gymnasium in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
is named after him.


Early life

Frederick was born at Winzingen Castle near Neustadt an der Weinstraße as the fourth son of Philip, Elector Palatine and his wife, Margarete of Bavaria-Landshut. He was the
Count Palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an or ...
and served as counselor and general for
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (as Charles I) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy (as Charles II) ...
, commanding expeditions against the Turks in 1529 and 1532, and assisting the Emperor at the Diet of Augsburg in 1530. In 1535, he married in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
to Dorothea of Denmark. In 1517, he had declared his love suit to the Habsburg Princess Eleanor of Austria, but this was discovered by her brother Charles V, then duke of Burgundy and king of Spain, resulting in Count Frederick being temporarily banished from court until he returned after announcing to Charles his Imperial election in 1519. He was custodian of the young dukes of Palatinate-Neuburg Otto Henry and
Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male name derived from the Macedonian Old Koine language, Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominen ...
and then served as general for the Habsburg Ferdinand I.


Pretender to the Norwegian throne

Frederick was for a time involved in coup plans in Denmark-Norway. His wife Dorothea was eldest daughter of
Christian II of Denmark A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...
, the former King of Denmark, Norway and Sweden who was deposed after a Danish noble rebellion in 1523. The exiled Christian II was contacted by Olav Engelbrektsson, Catholic Archbishop of Norway and head of the Council of the Realm, in 1529, about retaking the throne of Norway from the Protestant friendly King Frederick I. Christian II was a Protestant, but was also the brother-in-law of Emperor Charles V and therefore vowed to help the Catholic cause in Norway. Christian II tried to retake Norway in 1531, but he was defeated in 1532. He was then imprisoned and was kept a prisoner for the next 27 years in Denmark. After Frederick's marriage to Dorothea in 1535, Frederick soon sent a letter to Olav Engelbrektsson (via emissaries in
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
) telling him that he would claim the throne and he also promised military support from himself and Charles V. In the winter of 1536, Olav Engelbrektsson sent squads of supporters to villages in Eastern Norway; among other things the squads read the letter out to people, signalling that a new ruler could be on his way. However, few peasants joined the would-be rebellion, but other sources say that many farmers and
bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...
in Eastern Norway rose up in rebellion for the Archbishop, but it soon failed as no actual support from Frederick or Charles came. In the winter of 1537, then, Frederick did send two ships from the
Habsburg Netherlands Habsburg Netherlands were the parts of the Low Countries that were ruled by sovereigns of the Holy Roman Empire's House of Habsburg. This rule began in 1482 and ended for the Northern Netherlands in 1581 and for the Southern Netherlands in 1797. ...
. However, this was to no avail as the
King of Denmark The monarchy of Denmark is a constitutional political system, institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark proper and the autonomous administrative division, autonomous territories of the Faroe Is ...
mounted a naval offensive to secure Norway around the same time. Olav Engelbrektsson fled the country in April, bishops Hoskuld Hoskuldsson and Mogens Lauritssøn were arrested, in June, other supporters were punished and the Catholic Church in Norway and the Council of the Realm were abolished. Frederick and his wife Dorothea never gave up on his claim to the throne of Norway (and also Denmark), and worked actively to have the Emperor Charles V to support it. In 1539, they visited the Emperor in Spain to press the matter, but without success. Julia Cartwright: Christina of Denmark. Duchess of Milan and Lorraine. 1522-1590, New York, 1913 In 1544, Frederick became Elector Palatine. The Emperor officially acknowledged Christian III as king of Denmark and Norway the same year, in the Treaty of Speyer, but Frederick continued to press his claim until his death.


Prince-elector of the Electoral Palatinate

In March 1544, Frederick succeeded his brother Louis V as
Prince-elector The prince-electors ( pl. , , ) were the members of the Electoral College of the Holy Roman Empire, which elected the Holy Roman Emperor. Usually, half of the electors were archbishops. From the 13th century onwards, a small group of prince- ...
of the Palatinate. At Christmas of 1546 Frederick and his wife Dorothea took communion in the Protestant way in Heidelberg, which provoked Emperor Charles V's displeasure. For a while, Frederick took the side of the
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
opposition. However, he soon rejoined the Emperor's Catholic cause. After this, Frederick prevented the introduction of Protestant Reformation in the Palatinate. Frederick II died in February 1556 in Alzey, and was succeeded by his former ward Otto Henry.


Ancestors


References

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frederick 02, Elector Palatine Wittelsbach, Frederick II, Count Palatine of the Rhine Wittelsbach, Frederick II, Count Palatine of the Rhine 16th-century Prince-electors of the Palatinate House of Wittelsbach Pretenders to the Norwegian throne People from Neustadt an der Weinstraße Burials at the Church of the Holy Spirit, Heidelberg