Otto,

Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

(24 August 1495 – 11 August 1549) was the

Prince of Lüneburg A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The fem ...

from 1520 to 1527 and Baron of Harburg from 1527 to 1549.

Life

Otto was born on 24 August 1495 as the eldest son of Henry the Middle and his wife, Margarete of Saxony. Like his brothers,

Ernest Ernest is a given name derived from the Germanic languages, Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious", often shortened to Ernie. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), ...

and

Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

he studied at

Wittenberg Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German ...

and was affected early on by the reformatory ideas of

Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...

and was later a driving force behind the introduction of

the 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 ...

in the

Principality of Lüneburg The Principality of Lüneburg (later also referred to as Celle) was a territorial division of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg within the Holy Roman Empire, immediately subordinate to the emperor. It existed from 1269 until 1705 and its territory ...

. When his father had to leave the state in 1520 as a result of his role in the

Hildesheim Diocesan Feud The Hildesheim Diocesan Feud () or Great Diocesan Feud, sometimes referred to as a "chapter feud", was a conflict that broke out in 1519 between the Prince-Bishopric of Hildesheim ('' Hochstift Hildesheim'') and the principalities of Brunswick- ...

and go into exile in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, Otto took over the reins of power in the principality jointly with his brother Ernest. Because the principality was seriously in debt - all the ''

Vogt An , sometimes simply advocate, (German, ), or (French, ), was a type of medieval office holder, particularly important in the Holy Roman Empire, who was delegated some of the powers and functions of a major feudal lord, or for an institutio ...

eis'' being enfeoffed with the exception of the ''Schlossvogtei'' of Celle - a major priority during his reign was sorting out the duchy’s finances. In 1527 Otto married ''Meta von Campe'', a woman who was below his station, and was compensated with his own domain, the Barony of Harburg. He died on 11 August 1549.

Family

Otto married in 1527 to Meta von Campe (died 1580) and they had 7 children: * Anne (1526–1527) * Otto (1527) * Ernest (1527–1540) *

Otto II Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. Otto II was ...

(1528–1603) * Frederick (1530–1533) * Margarete (1532–1539) * Susanna (1536–1581)

Ancestry

Sources

* Geckler, Christa (1986). ''Die Celler Herzöge: Leben und Wirken 1371–1705''. Celle: Georg Ströher. . .

External links

House of Welf
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Otto 01, Duke Of Brunswick-Luneburg-Harburg Princes of Lüneburg 1495 births 1549 deaths Converts to Lutheranism from Roman Catholicism Middle House of Lüneburg