Hedwig of Saxony (31 October 1445 – 13 June 1511) was

Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg This is a list of the princess-abbesses of Quedlinburg Abbey.Johann Heinrich Fritsch: ''Geschichte des vormaligen Reichsstifts Quedlinburg'' pt 2, 1828, pp. 26–28online version)/ref>Hermann Lorenz: ''Quedlinburgische Geschichte. Band 1: Werd ...

from 1458 until her death.

Accession

Born in

Meissen Meissen ( ), is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden and 75 km (46 mi) west of Bautzen on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, th ...

, Hedwig was the youngest daughter of

Frederick II, Elector of Saxony Frederick II, The Gentle (''Friedrich, der Sanftmütige''; Frederick the Gentle; 22 August 1412 – 7 September 1464) was Elector of Saxony (1428–1464) and was Landgrave of Thuringia (1440–1445). Biography Frederick was born in Leipzig, th ...

, and Margaret of Austria. In 1458, the chapter of the

Quedlinburg Abbey Quedlinburg Abbey ( or ) is a former abbey of secular canonesses ''( Frauenstift)'' in Quedlinburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was founded in 936 on the initiative of Saint Matilda, the widow of the East Frankish King Henry the Fowler, as h ...

elected the 12-year-old Hedwig as successor to Princess-Abbess Anna I, who had died aged 42.

Pope Calixtus III Pope Callixtus III (, , ; 31 December 1378 – 6 August 1458), born Alonso de Borja (), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 April 1455 to his death, in August 1458. Borgia spent his early career as a professor ...

confirmed the election but decreed that the Princess-Abbess should reign under the guardianship of her father and canonesses of Quedlinburg until the age of 20. In 1465, she was invested with regalia by her maternal uncle, Emperor Frederick III, and started governing the abbey-principality on her own.

Reign

In 1460, the Princess-Abbess faced a rebellion when the city of Quedlinburg joined the

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

, attempting to gain independence from her and become a free imperial city. Gebhard von Hoym,

Bishop of Halberstadt The Diocese of Halberstadt was a Roman Catholic diocese () from 804 until 1648."Dio ...

, aided the rebellion. The Bishop invaded the abbey-principality and tried to evict Hedwig. As a princess-abbess, Hedwig was subject only to the Pope and the Emperor; she forced the Bishop to renounce his claim with the help of her brothers, Elector Ernest and Duke Albert III of Saxony. Thus, for the next two centuries, the abbey-principality remained under the protection of the electors of Saxony, who would influence the election of its new rulers and often come into conflicts with them. Upon subduing the rebels, Hedwig forced the town to leave the Hanseatic League and decided to strengthen her authority within the town. Her uncle, Emperor Frederick III, admitted her to the Order of the Vase and Stole. She died in Quedlinburg and was succeeded by Magdalene of Anhalt.

Bibliography

* Vollmuth-Lindenthal, Michael: ''Äbtissin Hedwig von Quedlinburg. Reichsstift und Stadt Quedlinburg am Ende des 15. Jahrhunderts'', in: ''Mitteldeutsche Lebensbilder. Menschen im späten Mittelalter'', Werner Freitag, Böhlau, Cologne, 2002, pages 69–88. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hedwig, Abbess of Quedlinburg Abbesses of Quedlinburg House of Wettin 1445 births 1511 deaths Daughters of dukes Daughters of prince-electors