Otto, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen (1320 – 1 December 1398) was the fourth and last husband of

Joanna I of Naples Joanna I, also known as Johanna I (; December 1325 – 27 July 1382), was Queen of Naples, and Countess of Provence and Forcalquier from 1343 to 1381; she was also Princess of Achaea from 1373 to 1381. Joanna was the eldest daughter of C ...

. He also held the title of

Prince of Taranto The Principality of Taranto () was a state in southern Italy created in 1088 for Bohemond I, eldest son of Robert Guiscard, as part of the peace between him and his younger brother Roger Borsa after a dispute over the succession to the Duchy o ...

. His nickname was Otto the Tarantine.

Biography

Otto was the eldest son of

Henry II, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen Henry II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, (before 1296 – after 1351), also called ''de Graecia'' ("of Greece"), was the eldest son of Henry I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Agnes of Meissen. On their father's death in 1322, his sons agreed ...

(c. 1289 – 1351) and Jutta of Brandenburg. In 1353, he married

Violante of Vilaragut Violante of Vilaragut (1320 or 1325 – before 1372) was a daughter of Berengeur de Vilaragut and his second wife Saura, who was an illegitimate daughter of James II of Majorca. Violante was titular queen of Majorca by her marriage to her cousin ...

, a daughter of Berengar de Vilaragut and widow of

James III of Majorca James III ( – ), known as James the Rash (or the Unfortunate), was King of Majorca from 1324 to 1344. He was the son of Ferdinand of Majorca and Isabella of Sabran. Life James was born in Catania, Sicily. Margaret of Villehardouin, Jame ...

. There were no children from this marriage. By 1372, Otto was a widower. On 25 September 1376, Otto married his second wife, the three times widowed Queen

. The groom was fifty-six years old and the bride about forty-eight. The marriage was childless. The so-called

Western Schism The Western Schism, also known as the Papal Schism, the Great Occidental Schism, the Schism of 1378, or the Great Schism (), was a split within the Catholic Church lasting from 20 September 1378 to 11 November 1417, in which bishops residing ...

started in 1378 with the election of two rival

pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

Urban VI Pope Urban VI (; ; c. 1318 – 15 October 1389), born Bartolomeo Prignano (), was head of the Catholic Church from 8 April 1378 to his death, in October 1389. He was the last pope elected from outside the College of Cardinals. His pontificate be ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and

Clement VII Pope Clement VII (; ; born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the most unfortunate of ...

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

. Joanna supported Clement VII and allied herself with his main supporter

Charles V of France Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (; ), was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War as his armies recovered much of the terri ...

. With no hope of having further children of her own, Joanna chose to strengthen her alliance with France by adopting Louis of Anjou, younger brother of Charles V, as her heir. Urban VI proclaimed Joanna deposed in 1381. He named her second cousin Charles of Durazzo as his candidate for the supposedly vacant throne. Charles spent the following months gathering his army within the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

and then marched against the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples (; ; ), officially the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was established by the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302). Until ...

. Otto led the Neapolitan army in battle but was defeated. Otto was exiled from Naples by the new king and never returned. On the 27th of July, 1382 at age 56, Joanna was strangled in prison in the Castle of Muro Lucano held by Palamede Bozzuto. Otto survived Joanna by at least sixteen years but never remarried. He died childless at

Foggia Foggia (, ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere delle Puglie, Tavoliere, also know ...

and was succeeded by his first cousin, once removed

Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen nicknamed ''the winner'' (; – 28 May 1427), ruled the Principality of Grubenhagen, a part of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Life Eric was the only son of the Duke Albert I of Brunswick-Grubenh ...

, previously Duke of

Einbeck Einbeck (; Eastphalian: ''Aimbeck'') is a town in the district Northeim, in southern Lower Saxony, Germany, on the German Timber-Frame Road. History Prehistory The area of the current city of Einbeck is inhabited since prehistoric times. Vario ...

External links

* , - {{Authority control 1320 births 1398 deaths Neapolitan kings consort Princes of Grubenhagen Royal consorts of Naples Old House of Brunswick Husbands of Joanna I of Naples