Otto-Henry, Elector Palatine, (; 10 April 1502, Amberg – 12 February 1559,

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 ...

) a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty was

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 ...

of Palatinate-Neuburg from 1505 to 1557 and

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 1556 to 1559. He was a son of Rupert, Count Palatine, third son of Philip, Elector Palatine; and of Elizabeth of Bavaria-Landshut, daughter of George of Bavaria.

Life

As grandson of George of Bavaria, the young Otto Henry became Count Palatine of the new duchy of Palatinate-Neuburg after the Palatinate had lost the Landshut War of Succession against Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria. After the so-called ''Kölner Spruch'' (Verdict of

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

) the duchy was created from the territories north of the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

for Otto Henry and

Philipp Philipp is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: "Philipp" has also been a shortened version of Philippson, a German surname especially prevalent amongst German Jews and Dutch Jews. Surname * Adolf Philipp (18 ...

, the sons of Ruprecht of the Palatinate. While they were minors, their grandfather Philip, Elector Palatine, ruled the duchy until his death in 1508, followed by Elector Frederick II, their uncle. In 1541 elector Otto Henry converted to

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

and his palace chapel at Neuburg Castle was the first newly built protestant church of all, consecrated on 25 April 1543 by the reformed theologian Andreas Osiander. Otto Henry ordered upgrading of Neuburg Castle, patronised the artsThis included commissioning the lavishly illuminated 16th century ''Otthenreich Bible''. Forbes, Andrew ; Henley, David (2012). Apocalypse: The Illustrated Book of Revelation (with illuminated illustrations from the ''Otthenreich Bible''). Chiang Mai: Cognoscenti Books. ASIN: B008WAK9SS. and was involved in several conflicts, due to his expensive holding of court a huge burden of debts caused his bankruptcy until he inherited the

Electoral Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy Roman Empero ...

in 1556. In the 1550s Otto Henry established the Bibliotheca Palatina. In September 1546 Neuburg was occupied by the troops of

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) ...

as Otto Henry had supported the Schmalkaldic League. In 1552 in occasion of the Peace of Passau Otto Henry could return to Neuburg. As Elector from 1556 he then re-introduced the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

. Otto Henry married Susanna of Bavaria (1502–43), daughter of Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria, on October 16, 1529 in Neuburg an der Donau. He was her second husband after Casimir, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. They had no children, but Susanna brought five of her eleven children to the marriage. She left him a widower 14 years later in 1543. Otto Henry died in

in 1559. He is buried in the Heiliggeistkirche in Heidelberg.

Ancestors

References

External links

* * *
Hans Kilian, Drawings from Elector Ottheinrich's alchemical laboratory

Digital exhibition of the Ottheinrich-Bible
{{DEFAULTSORT:Otto Henry, Elector Palatine 1502 births 1559 deaths 16th-century Prince-electors of the Palatinate House of Wittelsbach Burials at the Church of the Holy Spirit, Heidelberg