John III the Pitiless (1374 – 6 January 1425), of the

House of Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a former Bavarian dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria, the Electoral Palatinate, the Electorate of Cologne, County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, ...

, was first bishop of Liège 1389–1418 and then duke of Bavaria-Straubing and count of Holland and Hainaut 1418–1425.

Family

John was born in Le Quesnoy. He was the youngest son of Duke Albert I of Bavaria and Margaret of Brieg. His elder brother was William II, who succeeded their father as count of Holland, Zeeland and Hainault in 1404. His sister,

Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...

, married in 1385 Duke John the Fearless of Burgundy.

Bishop

As the youngest son of three, John was destined for a career in the church. At the age of 15, he became Prince-Bishop of Liège, with the support of Pope Boniface IX. John's rule was a disaster. His authoritarian style clashed with the nobles and burghers of the Prince-Bishopric. He was expelled several times and saw even a counter-bishop being elected. John turned for help to his brother and brother-in-law. On 23 September 1408, a Burgundian army led by his brother-in-law John the Fearless went to the aid of John III against the citizens of Liège, who were in open revolt. During the battle just outside the village of Othee, a battle was fought which saw the men from Liège being decisively defeated. This led to the bishopric of Liège becoming a protectorate of

Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...

. John ordered the beheading of suspicious burghers and noblemen in Liège, while others were drowned in 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 ...

, from then on he was called "the Pitiless".

Duke and count

When his brother died in 1417 and was succeeded by his daughter Jacqueline as countess of Holland and Hainaut, John the Pitiless rejected

holy orders In certain Christian denominations, holy orders are the ordination, ordained ministries of bishop, priest (presbyter), and deacon, and the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders. Churches recognizing these orders inclu ...

and surrendered his bishopric. In 1418, John III married Elisabeth, Duchess of Luxembourg, who was then the widow of Antoine, Duke of Brabant. No children came from this marriage. With the aid of Emperor Sigismund, who was his wife's uncle, John III immediately started a war against his niece Jacqueline and her husband Duke John IV of Brabant. John the Pitiless supported the city of

Dordrecht Dordrecht (), historically known in English as Dordt (still colloquially used in Dutch, ) or Dort, is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Western Netherlands, lo ...

and Duke Philip the Good of Burgundy. A siege of Dordrecht in 1419 was unsuccessful, so John IV of Brabant agreed to start a joint administration with John III. Jacqueline, as a woman, did not get a share in the political responsibility. John IV of Brabant finally gave up Holland and Hainaut and left the rule to John the Pitiless. Jacqueline went to England in 1421 and married the king's brother, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester.Alfred H.Burne, "The Hundred Years War" (1st ed., 1955; Folio Society 2005), 371-2 She was unable to retain control over Holland and Hainaut much longer after John's death.

Death and legacy

John the Pitiless was known for the rich culture of his court;

Jan van Eyck Jan van Eyck ( ; ; – 9 July 1441) was a Flemish people, Flemish painter active in Bruges who was one of the early innovators of what became known as Early Netherlandish painting, and one of the most significant representatives of Early Nort ...

was among the artists he engaged, from at least 1422 until 1424. John the Pitiless died of poison in 1425 in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

. His Court Marshal Jan van Vliet had allegedly poisoned the pages of the ducal prayer-book, and had already been executed in 1424. Bavaria-Straubing was divided between the dukes of Bavaria, the major portion of which went to Bavaria-Munich.

References

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